When is the best time to kill a mature buck?

[dan]

I don't see where it matters whether it is Sept. or early Oct. In south it is hot. First days of season is a fresh start. You are either on him and know his pattern or you don't . After first couple weeks or so they start wising up to activity in woods. Then when cold fronts start through change begins.

I have not hunted early season in the south... So you and Dave could probably have a better handle on that, but I can say it has little to do with pressure and more about a bucks annual cycles. There are plenty of places where no hunting occurs here, and you go in October 1st and its a whole different animal than Sept. 15th... Just is. They are still on Summer patterns feeding in fields and such... Sure, pressure effects deer movement, but What I am talking about is not pressure related.

[dan]

Hard to beat late season if you get the right weather. Bucks are trying to replenish body weight after the rut cold temps gets them moving! Usually back on a bed to feed pattern.

I agree... I did not listen to this yet, I keep getting pulled away, but late season is better for giants than early season. Sept comes second to Jan in the North... But again, I feel that different in the south where you don't get those below zero days and snow.

[tundra]

I think the first day of the Sept season would be the best, but every other year I am chasing elk..... Add to that, that I am addicted to brook trout fishing and hunting woodcock, in the UP, I am usually not bowhunting. However, I love the late season, have shot all of my best bucks after December 10th. And to add that you can hunt in SE Wis in January that is the cats a..

I missed a dandy this past January, just before the real deep cold. I have shot some really good bucks, in very cold weather. Yeah I love late season..... whole different world

[Grizzlyadam]

My season opener is Sept 15th. From my observations it seems to coincide exactly with when the bucks shed their velvet and seem to change any pattern they have been in.

[DaveT1963]

I don't see where it matters whether it is Sept. or early Oct. In south it is hot. First days of season is a fresh start. You are either on him and know his pattern or you don't . After first couple weeks or so they start wising up to activity in woods. Then when cold fronts start through change begins.

I have not hunted early season in the south... So you and Dave could probably have a better handle on that, but I can say it has little to do with pressure and more about a bucks annual cycles. There are plenty of places where no hunting occurs here, and you go in October 1st and its a whole different animal than Sept. 15th... Just is. They are still on Summer patterns feeding in fields and such... Sure, pressure effects deer movement, but What I am talking about is not pressure related.

Agree.... Sept deer are still on summer patterns.
If you can find alfalafa or food plots they will hit them pretty consistent until pressure disrupts them. Oct = acorn drop in many places and it locks the bucks to very small core area. Oct is a transition month and bucks go through a lot of hormonal changes. They just dont move far until late Oct.

[seazofcheeze]

unfortunately, most states do not have Sept seasons

Alot do... Just off the top of my head there is: Wisc, Minnesota, Kentucky, Oregon, Montana,Indiana, South Carolina, etc... Im sure Im missing a lot

North Dakota and South Dakota. I'm pretty sure ND actually opens end of August this year, and SD is a Sep 1 opener now.

[Bogle]

I agree with the September scenario where I hunt as well - S.E.. A lot of the gun hunters are still fishing and don't start hitting the woods until October. Once they start moving stands, checking trail cams etc...... everything changes. In addition, a lot of guys wait for that first cool "snap" since it can still be in the 90's in September. Most opening weekends down here are pretty dead with regards to pressure.

[dan]

The title is misleading... They titled the video: When is the best time to kill a mature buck? but the question they asked was: When is your favorite time to kill a mature buck? The best time to kill a big buck may be late season in the north... Both early Sept and Late winter with frigid temps are good times though.

[ghoasthunter]

My season opener is Sept 15th. From my observations it seems to coincide exactly with when the bucks shed their velvet and seem to change any pattern they have been in.

same hear sept 15 opener i normally see a short window for first 2 or 3 days then bucks shift over too a new pattern think its the start of pressure plus acorns plus heavy baiting. if you can find areas that dont get baited the deer tend too shift threw the pattern change more slowly. my best time too see mature bucks tight too bedding has been the month of October. main reason is i start seeing rubs around bedding open up giving me a good idea of where the bucks shifted. sometimes they just travel differently out of beds sometimes they shift there whole range but once i find the right sign i get a lot of opportunities. these shifts are heavily reliant on how much mast but once you find a pattern its pretty repeatable both from previous years and the trend for that year. i spend a lot of time checking oaks before season normally you find one tree species that will be the main mast for the year. when i check trees im not doing it in areas im planning on hunting its more of just getting a general pattern on trees. then i go into my notes and look at bedding areas that hold the tree i need. pattern the tree and its location if the chestnut oaks are dropping on west ridges only thats a pattern. or maybe the pins are dropping in the marsh or it could be that white oaks that are below drainage are dropping heavy. the growing seasons weather often dictates a pattern on available food. last year there were only white oaks on edge of swamp but bears where in them too heavy. that pattern pushed the deer into flats with beach nut crop and into some tough bedding. that pattern forced me too go find new areas with lower bear numbers.

[mipubbucks24]

I can’t speak for other states but in Southern Michigan excluding the rut which would statistically be the best time to kill a mature buck, I would say the last 10 days of October. Since I have been hunting the way Dan teaches, I have had the most sightings of mature bucks during this time.

It just does not seem like the bucks around me put that much sign down till later in October. The last couple years I have put a lot of miles on in season looking for fresh sign and it’s just hard to find till mid October. I am talking fresh rubs and scraping. Still trying to figure out the whole track thing. Now granted I have only been at this beast stuff 3/4 years now, and I had to learn a lot. Hunting beds in swamps and marshes have been best for me during this time frame.

I am sure my opinion would be different if our season started earlier and went later.

[may21581]

So after doing some reading and research I see Wisconsin has an archery date which opens on September 14th give or take a day. If you were able to watch and study a particular buck this short window in this month could and has been enough for some to capitalize on a giant.
In Ohio our opener isn't till like September 28th. What a huge difference those two weeks can make on deer. I personally watched a bachelor group of mature bucks over a soybean field for the whole summer, they exited and entered the same every night. As the summer hours get shorter their arrival and departure times would also get later. However something crazy happened around that third week of the month, it was almost like a switch went off and they changed over night. At first it was bazar to me and I thought it was something I had done. Turned out that they were just in tune to their environment and pressure had nothing to do with it. Their past experiences is what taught them to do this as well as an internal clock set by their genetics.
It has been my experience that when we talk about those last two weeks of September in my neck of the woods we may as well be talking about two months because there is almost no difference. The biggest change a hunter will ever witness is in that time period.
I like to hunt the rut, it is a magical time and a guy can kill a slob. With that said I believe late season to be the most overlooked time to pattern a stud. The reasons are most hunters dont want to battle the frigid temps and most have already tagged out or given up in frustration so pressure is also much lower.

[DaveT1963]

read kill threads and study telemetry and stats and it's obvious when the best time is (late Oct- Nov). Yep it can be done on any day, and a few pull it off consistently during early or late season..... but those #s are very, very few.

[dan]

read kill threads and study telemetry and stats and it's obvious when the best time is (late Oct- Nov). Yep it can be done on any day, and a few pull it off consistently during early or late season..... but those #s are very, very few.

Rut is the best time to get lucky... Not the best time for a skilled hunter to kill a Slob. Unskilled people (the majority) fill the woods during rut. Of coarse a lot of bucks get shot then. I go out during rut and the parking lots are full and there are hunters everywhere, early season or late season I see very few hunters... I don't thinks its any accident that Wisconsins biggest bow kills recently have been coming from opening week when based on numbers of hunters should be rut...

I hunt all season. However, Im usually tagged out by late season. Your stats speak for themselves... So do mine. The few of us getting it done on big bucks in that time frame are doing so because we do the homework and big bucks make themselves more available during shooting hours in that late summer time frame.

Opening weekend Wisconsin bucks:

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I could post a lot more nice bucks I shot opening weekend. I can kill a lot more bucks during rut... Killing a nice buck is easier then.. Killing a mature buck is not. At least not on public / pressured. It is easier if you are not as good a hunter and/or you don't put in the work... Its not even all that hard on road trips... Remember Joe and I gettiung it done on new ground in Minnesota last year opening week?

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[DaveT1963]

read kill threads and study telemetry and stats and it's obvious when the best time is (late Oct- Nov). Yep it can be done on any day, and a few pull it off consistently during early or late season..... but those #s are very, very few.

Rut is the best time to get lucky... Not the best time for a skilled hunter to kill a Slob. Unskilled people (the majority) fill the woods during rut. Of coarse a lot of bucks get shot then. I go out during rut and the parking lots are full and there are hunters everywhere, early season or late season I see very few hunters... I don't thinks its any accident that Wisconsins biggest bow kills recently have been coming from opening week when based on numbers of hunters should be rut...

I hunt all season. However, Im usually tagged out by late season. Your stats speak for themselves... So do mine. The few of us getting it done on big bucks in that time frame are doing so because we do the homework and big bucks make themselves more available during shooting hours in that late summer time frame.

Opening weekend Wisconsin bucks:normal_img362.jpgnormal_0000_1.jpg59558766_10215554490670009_6253768821618769920_n.jpg59605862_10215554493830088_6359863756599590912_n.jpg59605862_10215554493830088_6359863756599590912_n.jpg

I could post a lot more nice bucks I shot opening weekend. I can kill a lot more bucks during rut... Killing a nice buck is easier then.. Killing a mature buck is not. At least not on public / pressured. It is easier if you are not as good a hunter and/or you don't put in the work... Its not even all that hard on road trips... Remember Joe and I gettiung it done on new ground in Minnesota last year opening week?
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Dan, I said there are a few that routinely get it done during early season. Those are some great bucks.... congrats. Yes I watched you and Joe pull that off. Excellent hunt and the kill speaks for itself. Listening to local friends that know the area, when you have them, is always a good idea. That was a wise decision to go find habitat, or a pattern, you are most familiar with. It was an excellent hunt.

Like I said, I'm not arguing with you that opening weekend in Sept and late season can be the EASIEST time to pattern and kill a buck. One of the reasons I'm going to KY for the Sept opener.

Early season and late season timing is everything.... it's a lot harder to pull off long distance.

Everyone can read the kill threads and many states publish good stats these days, and they can determine for themselves when is the best time and who is killing what and when. when and if I ever get to hunt WI, unless I can find a local to get me in the game, it wont be during early season that's for sure.

Not sure I can agree with some of the other assumptions (silled vs unskilled hunter, luckier, or dont work as hard). I will say this, hunting in several states where they had gun seasons during the entire rut was some of the most challenging conditions I've ever hunted (I only use a bow). I never found ag country all that difficult, even with trad gear.

[dan]

Not sure I can agree with some of the other assumptions (not as good of hunter, luckier, or dont work as hard).

If that "assumption" is wrong, then why is it some hunters who routinely get good bucks, work harder, and put in more scouting get big bucks in early season? Is it sheer luck? I would like to think their is a little skill, a little scouting, and a little work that went into each one of those bucks I put up. If I have a system that works for me, obviously it can also work for others...