With the extened forecast looking like it will be decently warm into late October, when are you guys thinking the rut will start up? Anybody seeing any scrapes yet? I love hunting the rut and can't wait to get out and chase some bruisers.
Rut
- Thread starter CAH
- Start date
Happens around the same time each year, but there are factors that can affect how much movement you see during daylight such as warm weather. Seems like that could be a factor this year the way its going. The one good thing is much of the corn is starting to come down, so as long as it stays dry, standing crops shouldn't be an issue in most areas in a couple weeks. Over the weekend I did see a nice big rub on a decent sized tree. Also seeing pictures of the bucks sparring. However, all of that stuff is normal this time of year anyway. Like usual, things will start to pick up a lot around Halloween. Then for the next 3 weeks the chase is on. Personally my favorite time to be out is from Nov. 10 to 20.
Every year, without exception, there is rut signs in the woods we hunt. The activity is what varies. Some years the bucks are dumb as bricks. Other years they are on high alert. I think it correlates to temperature just as much as all the other factors.
mostly photoperiod driven I suspect
Deer need to have the fawns the right time next spring. A cold snap in late October should not have the ability to influence events 7 months into the future... if nature knows what's good for it anyway.
- - - Updated - - -
Also - when they study deer they find it's a distribution throughout the weeks of rut - with some deer going nuts early, some mid, some late.
Guess that makes sense - in a "cover all your bases" sort of way.
- - - Updated - - -
For those of you in Rio Linda that means the fawns will be born in a spread of a few weeks next year - with at least some being born in an optimal period.
Deer need to have the fawns the right time next spring. A cold snap in late October should not have the ability to influence events 7 months into the future... if nature knows what's good for it anyway.
- - - Updated - - -
Also - when they study deer they find it's a distribution throughout the weeks of rut - with some deer going nuts early, some mid, some late.
Guess that makes sense - in a "cover all your bases" sort of way.
- - - Updated - - -
For those of you in Rio Linda that means the fawns will be born in a spread of a few weeks next year - with at least some being born in an optimal period.
Quit using logic and data. You are supposed to use information you gathered from your bachelor uncle after he drank 13.5 Hamms. Damn you!
Might be a little early but saw a wall hanger around noon today out in the open in the the sandhills north of Mountain.
Didn't find any Pheasants though.
No Ruffed Grouse either, too many leaves.
Didn't find any Pheasants though.
No Ruffed Grouse either, too many leaves.
Last edited:
Yes my son?
They were sparring hard last night and came into a mock scrape during daylight hours, starting to see them out later in the am and on their feet earlier in the eve, what Oct lull?
well im gonna go out this evening and see what kinda activity is going on out there, didnt see anything for rut activity last time i was out in the trees but ill snoop around suppose i better find my grunt tube and rattling antlers will be needing them in a couple weeks!
Saw one decent scrape last night, but checked the trail cams and they are still in bachelor groups and almost always nocturnal. I did have one photo where two larger bucks had locked horns but it didn't look too serious. This is south of Valley City. I did have a couple new ones show up, so they may be cruising (although that also coincided with corn coming down). I would expect they'll be pre-rut chasing by the end of next week and breaking off from the bachelor groups. That's actually my favorite time of year. Not brutally cold, I don't need to wear orange, and there's still a good chance you can fool a buck with rattles/grunts.
Tuesday night I saw a young buck (small 2x2 or 3x3) pestering a doe. Saw him again last night laying down out in the open (in the same location I saw him the previous night) which I thought was a little odd but whatever floats his boat I guess.
When I saw him last night, he got up around sundown and appeared to be rubbing on the brush where he was at.
The bigger bucks have been pretty much nocturnal for me since early September.
this is in Central ND.
When I saw him last night, he got up around sundown and appeared to be rubbing on the brush where he was at.
The bigger bucks have been pretty much nocturnal for me since early September.
this is in Central ND.
Last edited:
"Lockdown" is hilarious. Probably applicable in some areas, but not where I'm at. At 12:01 the pushers start (only reason I know is because I start seeing deer about 15 minutes later) and anything "Locked down" is going to bust loose and head for the hills...or they'll be dead.
Lockdown absolutely happens but it doesn't mean the deer is "locked down" so to speak. It means a buck will stick with a doe that's getting close. I've witnessed it many times. Watched a nice whitey about 8 years ago that was on lockdown with a doe. I watched them for a good 4 hours. Even when kicked up by some hunters he stuck with her.
I witnessed lock down last season. The big buck that eluded me during bow season had a doe locked down hard in a little slough. Wouldn't let her get away; it was pretty fun to watch. She'd get up and he'd get her right back down. Luckily he made it through rifle season last year and hopefully finds my arrow in the next month or so!
I have suffered from lockdown on more than one occasion in my life. It's kinda fun.
I'm not dissuading the relevancy of the term, just the fact that the speaker stated it was a tough time to hunt bucks because they wouldn't travel far. As I said, in most states or on private land that's probably applicable. In North Dakota where hunters get antsy immediately and are doing drives right at noon on Friday, "lockdown" means exactly zilch.
My uncles always taught me to sit tight after shooting a doe. Back when we had a bunch of tags, it seemed that inevitably a buck would come sneaking along after her. They don't seem to care about the gunshot five minutes prior and the mell of death in the air when poontang is on the brain.
Similar threads
Recent Posts
-
EV mountain bikes
- Latest: NodakBob
-
Outdoor Playsets- Latest: Rowdie
-
Tail Gate Tent- Latest: Davey Crockett
-
Mercer county deputy killed
- Latest: Davey Crockett
-
1969 Evinrude 25 sportster
- Latest: rodcontrol
-
"Conspiracy Theory" or not?
- Latest: Ruttin
-
Baltimore bridge collapse- Latest: Allen
-
Rain
- Latest: Davey Crockett
-
went to a bar part 2- Latest: Average_NDA_Member
-
Humminbird Side Imaging- Latest: Big Iron
-
Riddle Me This.....
- Latest: Davey Crockett
-
Battery powered lawn mowers- Latest: guywhofishes
-
2024 Bis-Man Reel & Rec Flyer- Latest: Honkerherms
-
29th Annual NDSFC Banquet
- Latest: Honkerherms
-
So what is this?- Latest: SDMF
-
Good old days- Latest: bucksnbears
-
Soil temperatures
- Latest: LBrandt
-
More CWD NE ND
- Latest: Fester
-
Walleye fishing on Missouri?- Latest: Wally World
Friends of NDA
Top Posters of the Month
-
This month: 109-
- Posts
- 7,613
-
- Likes
- 2,748
-
-
This month: 101
-
- Posts
- 879
-
- Likes
- 828
-
-
This month: 93
-
- Posts
- 10,041
-
- Likes
- 1,810
-
-
This month: 82-
- Posts
- 20,083
-
- Likes
- 3,807
-
-
This month: 81-
- Posts
- 410
-
- Likes
- 666
-
-
This month: 79
-
- Posts
- 1,977
-
- Likes
- 826
-
-
This month: 74-
- Posts
- 6,271
-
- Likes
- 1,259
-
-
This month: 67-
- Posts
- 19,027
-
- Likes
- 3,035
-
-
This month: 66
-
- Posts
- 499
-
- Likes
- 182
-
-
This month: 66-
- Posts
- 18,314
-
- Likes
- 2,086
-