Texas Hunter- Post Rut Question

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Krb017
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Texas Hunter- Post Rut Question

Unread postby Krb017 » Wed Dec 05, 2018 2:57 pm

Hey guys,

With one month left to my season, I have about 10 hunts left to get the job done. It’s post rut and cold fronts are finally dropping the temps. Three guys have shot good bucks this year via box blinds and feeders. I’m hunting bush style, not feeders. One main question, should I focus on hunting a scrape this time of year? I saw a buck make one earlier in the season. Wondering if you think other bucks will come check it out or not.

Thanks


SmallJawNH
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Re: Texas Hunter- Post Rut Question

Unread postby SmallJawNH » Wed Dec 05, 2018 4:56 pm

I'm in a similar situation here in north Texas. I can only share what I think based on my observations and goals. I would hunt bedding near food sources that show fresh sign. I think I heard the guys on the hunting public talk about bucks and does shifting focus to food post rut and if a doe comes in to estrous late she'll likely be at a food source with odds that a buck will come in to her.

If the scrape is near bedding and it's fresh enough to make you think a buck is bedded nearby then I might sit it. If it's older I'd keep looking. I would not mentally be in the game hunting over marginal sign and it's possible I'd ruin any opportunity I lucked myself into by sitting there. Maybe you're more disciplined. I know I hunt much better when my confidence is high.

Please let us know how you do. My season also has about 10 days left and this rain coming this weekend kills me. Good luck, man.
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Boogieman1
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Re: Texas Hunter- Post Rut Question

Unread postby Boogieman1 » Wed Dec 05, 2018 5:50 pm

Depends on what kind of habitat/terrain u got to play with as well as pressure the deer have been exposed to thus far. The good thing about box blind/ feeder hunters is they usually have a set routine and stick to there cozy cone. The deer just work around them and carry on about there business and are really not pressured. A quick zig zag across the property will reveal how there giving them the slip!

If you are hardwoods cover is pretty scarce now so hit the softwood edges and other areas that provide ample cover and wind break. Mesquite country can be tougher especially if u don't have multiple kinds of cover. Look for oddball stuff, anything diff. Structure within habitat.
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Krb017
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Re: Texas Hunter- Post Rut Question

Unread postby Krb017 » Thu Dec 06, 2018 6:03 am

SmallJawNH wrote:I'm in a similar situation here in north Texas. I can only share what I think based on my observations and goals. I would hunt bedding near food sources that show fresh sign. I think I heard the guys on the hunting public talk about bucks and does shifting focus to food post rut and if a doe comes in to estrous late she'll likely be at a food source with odds that a buck will come in to her.

If the scrape is near bedding and it's fresh enough to make you think a buck is bedded nearby then I might sit it. If it's older I'd keep looking. I would not mentally be in the game hunting over marginal sign and it's possible I'd ruin any opportunity I lucked myself into by sitting there. Maybe you're more disciplined. I know I hunt much better when my confidence is high.

Please let us know how you do. My season also has about 10 days left and this rain coming this weekend kills me. Good luck, man.


I’m fearing the rain as well! Supposed to be pretty bad. We actually got stranded during dove season in a flash flood and had to sleep in the truck overnight. Had to wait for a creek to go down. It was nuts.

The problem at my lease, which is in Brady, is the amount of food there is. It’s almost 3000 acres of cedar, oak, mesquite, and briar. The deer are grazing on all sorts of vegetation on the ground that I don’t have a clue what it is. Deer has food everywhere and bedding cover everywhere. I have pinpointed a couple legit bedding areas but mature bucks have not been in it. Ideally I would focus on corn post rut but over the course of the last couple of years, the older mature big boys do not come to the feeders. Guess I just need to go with my gut!

Thanks for your input! Where in north Texas are you?
Krb017
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Re: Texas Hunter- Post Rut Question

Unread postby Krb017 » Thu Dec 06, 2018 6:09 am

Boogieman1 wrote:Depends on what kind of habitat/terrain u got to play with as well as pressure the deer have been exposed to thus far. The good thing about box blind/ feeder hunters is they usually have a set routine and stick to there cozy cone. The deer just work around them and carry on about there business and are really not pressured. A quick zig zag across the property will reveal how there giving them the slip!

If you are hardwoods cover is pretty scarce now so hit the softwood edges and other areas that provide ample cover and wind break. Mesquite country can be tougher especially if u don't have multiple kinds of cover. Look for oddball stuff, anything diff. Structure within habitat.


Ton of cedar, mesquite, small oaks, briar, etc... very thick country. A bunch of creek beds, ridges, thickets. Really all kinds of stuff but based on everything I’ve seen over the last couple of years, they just roam everywhere. One area I like is a natural funnel close the scrape. The area is a one acre opening that leads to a watering hole with oaks around as well. The other area I really like is a 25 acre valley/mesquite thicket with a creek running along the side. Super super thick place that nobody besides me has ever gone into. Gotta put the puzzle together!
SmallJawNH
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Re: Texas Hunter- Post Rut Question

Unread postby SmallJawNH » Thu Dec 06, 2018 7:56 am

Krb017 wrote:I’m fearing the rain as well! Supposed to be pretty bad. We actually got stranded during dove season in a flash flood and had to sleep in the truck overnight. Had to wait for a creek to go down. It was nuts.

The problem at my lease, which is in Brady, is the amount of food there is. It’s almost 3000 acres of cedar, oak, mesquite, and briar. The deer are grazing on all sorts of vegetation on the ground that I don’t have a clue what it is. Deer has food everywhere and bedding cover everywhere. I have pinpointed a couple legit bedding areas but mature bucks have not been in it. Ideally I would focus on corn post rut but over the course of the last couple of years, the older mature big boys do not come to the feeders. Guess I just need to go with my gut!

Thanks for your input! Where in north Texas are you?


I live in Aubrey on the north side of the Dallas metroplex. I have a similar problem with plentiful foods but I do see deer move along certain elevations. The post oaks were still dropping two weeks ago when I last hunted. I scout and still hunt in with my stand on my back and set up close to suspected bedding near fresh sign when I find it. It may become an observation sit as I tend to set up a little further back from bedding but I adjust and push closer on the next hunt. Since I plan my approach based on wind and ground scent I can refine my stand location a little on the 2nd hunt before having to hunt a new area. There is a ton to learn and I came to the realization that without bait it will just be a lot of trial and error. I also hunt public land which can have unpredictable pressure applied to it.
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DaveT1963
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Re: Texas Hunter- Post Rut Question

Unread postby DaveT1963 » Fri Dec 07, 2018 6:42 am

I hunt N Texas and E Tex public - outside private wheat fields and corn - you will have an extremely hard time patterning mature bucks this time of year. And they do not use consistent beds like in other parts of the country, they will have core bedding areas. If you can find a hot doe you will be in the game as most every buck around will be on her tail. That is why we typically start seeing busted racks this time of year - in Nov there are simply too many does in heat and very little completion unless you are on a large managed lease. One possible food draw is honey locust if there is not a ton of them - I have killed a lot of nice bucks in Dec munching on the pods - of course mesquite is another great food source if there is not acre upon acre of it.


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