the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

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How optimistic are you for the upcoming late season?

I'm a late season specialist with multiple successes
12
3%
I've taken more than one good late season buck
37
9%
Only one good, mature buck in the late season
48
11%
I haven't been successful on mature bucks in the late season
323
77%
 
Total votes: 420
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Singing Bridge
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the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Thu Sep 05, 2013 6:23 am

With all the scouting and preparation I've done for the early season and rut periods, I haven't had a lot of time to think or plan for the late season. What if you have a tag burning a hole in your pocket and your previous 2013 early and rut efforts have failed?

Lets talk tactics- I'm not speaking of the serenity of the late season and how the woods may become quiet from the reduced hunting pressure. Bunny watching is nice, but this about getting after the mature bucks. Have you routinely been able to get the job done in the late season with good bucks? Or perhaps you have struggled mightily...

Whether you have done well in the late season or not, what's the plan? What adjustments will you make and what is your plan B, C or D?Or are you going to wait and see what happens first before you even consider it?

Will your tactics be in farm country, marshes and swamps, the big woods or some other habitat? What have you found to work the best in your hunting area and what adjustments will you make when the late season arrives?


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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby whitetail007 » Thu Sep 05, 2013 6:44 am

after the orange army invades the woods im done hunting and into ice fishing for the winter.
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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Thu Sep 05, 2013 7:07 am

whitetail007 wrote:after the orange army invades the woods im done hunting and into ice fishing for the winter.


I hear ya, 007... the late season can be very tough. I've taken some young bucks but getting the big fellas up and moving before dark can be tough. When the weather and other conditions favor it, I'll make a play though.
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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby Chris Conroy » Thu Sep 05, 2013 7:20 am

I put the bow away on public after opening day of gun season. We have a second gun season here in the CWD Zone after Christmas. I like to get out then because the marsh is usually frozen and there is snow on the ground (sometimes). I've never had any luck with the bow after gun season, and I have a hard time sitting in a stand knowing that.

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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Thu Sep 05, 2013 7:44 am

Chris Conroy wrote:I put the bow away on public after opening day of gun season. We have a second gun season here in the CWD Zone after Christmas. I like to get out then because the marsh is usually frozen and there is snow on the ground (sometimes). I've never had any luck with the bow after gun season, and I have a hard time sitting in a stand knowing that.

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I think this is what the vast majority of us endure... yet I can't help but think there are things we can do to improve our chances... and I know that there are people who excel at this time of the year with getting a crack at mature bucks. Being close to the buck's bed is never more critical in high pressure areas to see any kind of daytime movement...

What about gently forced movement with a buddy getting the buck up?

What about making a play when storms dictate a better than average chance that the buck will feed early and he is in no condition not to?

How about late season food plots near water and bedding on private land?

There's lots more but I'm hoping some late season Beast specialists chime in...
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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby dreaming bucks » Thu Sep 05, 2013 7:51 am

I have not tried the late season thing either, who knows, maybe this year....... but from what I have heard, on private, if you have a food plot, look for the deer to show up early on the REALLY cold days.
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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby BassBoysLLP » Thu Sep 05, 2013 8:32 am

I generally hate the late season on public land. Hunting pressure has taken its toll and the hunts are relatively uneventful on heavily hunted pieces. I focus on small public pieces and private pieces

However, I generally think the late season is GREAT! Its my second favorite time to be in the woods behind the pre-rut. The colder the better. I find the best food in the area. Generally this is an unpicked corn or soybean field. Well prepared food plots shine in the late season.

As far as tactics, I try to get as close to bedding as possible and avoid hunting close to the field. Not only does this increase the chance I'll see a buck during daylight hours, it minimizes the amount of accumulating eyes and noses that can ruin a hunt. I'm blown enough chances on decent bucks by sitting to close to the field and getting blown by non-target deer at the moment in truth. Everything is extremely skittish this time of year; therefore, entry and exit routes are super important. Fawns and sometime doe groups are often bedded within close proximity of the food source. I have several spots where I have to sneak around the does...

Good cover is also important. I'll take a good ground blind over a bald maple tree any day. Conifers or near conifer is king.

Heater body suit is a must once the temp drops below 5 degrees F.
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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby BassBoysLLP » Thu Sep 05, 2013 8:40 am

[quote="Singing Bridge"][quote="Chris Conroy"]

How about late season food plots near water and bedding on private land?

[quote]

I try to avoid hunting areas with shell ice. I find activity goes ways down in areas with shell ice. Focus on the higher adjacent ground as the primary travel corridor.

Also, a water source or creek crossing without shell ice is better than one with it.
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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby bigwoodsmn » Thu Sep 05, 2013 9:00 am

December - public big woods - muzzleloader - I can drive 30 miles on snow covered dirt roads and see trappers checking their sets, wolf tracks, bunny tracks, and the occasional grouse, but no deer. Or...

A) drive straight to 1-3 year old logging cuts ... find tracks and either set up near there or follow the freshest tracks to the bedrooms and try to pickup/jump a buck to track ... of course as soon as possible in the AM because it gets dark so quickly.

or...

B) hunt over unpicked corn strips in the heart Iowa big-buck-country right before a storm... enjoying all the 150-inch bucks whilst I wait for the 180-inch buck we've named the "G2 Goblin"

Plan B) is a bummer because I'm not rich and/or famous. Plan A will be my starting point if I have a tag...
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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Thu Sep 05, 2013 9:09 am

Good stuff guys, keep it rolling...

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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby PLB » Thu Sep 05, 2013 9:11 am

bigwoodsmn wrote:December - public big woods - muzzleloader - I can drive 30 miles on snow covered dirt roads and see trappers checking their sets, wolf tracks, bunny tracks, and the occasional grouse, but no deer. Or...

A) drive straight to 1-3 year old logging cuts ... find tracks and either set up near there or follow the freshest tracks to the bedrooms and try to pickup/jump a buck to track ... of course as soon as possible in the AM because it gets dark so quickly.

or...

B) hunt over unpicked corn strips in the heart Iowa big-buck-country right before a storm... enjoying all the 150-inch bucks whilst I wait for the 180-inch buck we've named the "G2 Goblin"

Plan B) is a bummer because I'm not rich and/or famous. Plan A will be my starting point if I have a tag...

Lol!!! Plan A for me too late season!!

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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby PLB » Thu Sep 05, 2013 9:12 am

BassBoysLLP wrote:I generally hate the late season on public land. Hunting pressure has taken its toll and the hunts are relatively uneventful on heavily hunted pieces. I focus on small public pieces and private pieces

However, I generally think the late season is GREAT! Its my second favorite time to be in the woods behind the pre-rut. The colder the better. I find the best food in the area. Generally this is an unpicked corn or soybean field. Well prepared food plots shine in the late season.

As far as tactics, I try to get as close to bedding as possible and avoid hunting close to the field. Not only does this increase the chance I'll see a buck during daylight hours, it minimizes the amount of accumulating eyes and noses that can ruin a hunt. I'm blown enough chances on decent bucks by sitting to close to the field and getting blown by non-target deer at the moment in truth. Everything is extremely skittish this time of year; therefore, entry and exit routes are super important. Fawns and sometime doe groups are often bedded within close proximity of the food source. I have several spots where I have to sneak around the does...

Good cover is also important. I'll take a good ground blind over a bald maple tree any day. Conifers or near conifer is king.

Heater body suit is a must once the temp drops below 5 degrees F.

X2! Great post Shawn!!

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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby Southern Man » Thu Sep 05, 2013 9:40 am

What about a second rut? :mrgreen: Some people say it don't happen, some say it does. I have seen more mature bucks standing stupid in the wide open than any other time during hunting season. Now I said "more than", not all or an incredible amount. But during mid December here you can see a pronounced time of big buck activity. There has been many times I still had a tag in December and seen it in the woods also. I don't mind hunting late season at all.
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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby BassBoysLLP » Thu Sep 05, 2013 10:20 am

Southern Man wrote:What about a second rut? :mrgreen: Some people say it don't happen, some say it does. I have seen more mature bucks standing stupid in the wide open than any other time during hunting season. Now I said "more than", not all or an incredible amount. But during mid December here you can see a pronounced time of big buck activity. There has been many times I still had a tag in December and seen it in the woods also. I don't mind hunting late season at all.


I've definitely seen second rut activity; however not enough to justify changing my strategy for a nightly hunt.

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Re: the late season- "Hate" or "Great"

Unread postby Dewey » Thu Sep 05, 2013 10:56 am

I love late season. No hunting pressure and my favorite time of the year to relax on stand and enjoy the stillness of a cold winter day. Nothing beats sitting on stand nice and cozy with a light snow falling. Warm clothing makes it so much more enjoyable.

The bucks that survived the season are true survivors and I enjoy the challenge of going one on one with them. I never connected on a late season mature brute but that will not stop me from trying harder every year. Over the years I have seen some great bucks into late December and those bucks have schooled me and taught me a ton about mature buck behavior more so than any other time of the season.

In the marshes I generally still hunt near buck beds adjacent to feeding areas. If there is still a standing cornfield in the area I find mature bucks will still bed in their primary beds and travel quite a ways to these fields sometimes up to a mile or more. The biggest problem I have is catching these bucks on their feet before dark unless it is bitterly cold. After months of hunting pressure most of the late season movement around here is under the cover of darkness.

All I can say is if you have always skipped the late season you will never realize what you are missing out on. Give it a try and you might be surprised. ;)

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