Category: Hunting Strategy

Early Season is Best

It’s always exciting as fall approaches, but deer hunting in the early season can be downright frustrating, zapping that initial enthusiasm you took into the field. It’s nothing new for seasoned hunters. But regardless of whether you are new to the sport or an “have been around the block,” it takes more than luck to find your buck during the early season.

This was a tough year for deer in Texas. The first eight months of the year were dry. Summer is always dry, but this one seemed especially rough following a less than stellar spring. White-tailed deer no doubt found natural foods waning earlier than usual as summer progressed. It appeared fawn production was going to be lackluster, but bucks would be highly patternable as food would be the go-to play during the early part of the hunting season.

Hunting Season in View

“Range conditions had diminished somewhat with the long stretches of 100 degree weather and wind,” said Alan Cain, TPWD whitetail deer program leader. “The majority of the state had reasonable forb production and good brush green-up this past spring, which provided a good foundation of native forage to get deer off to a good start in terms of antler growth and fawn production. By late August, we were seeing preferred forbs becoming less available for deer.”

But all that changed on a dime. Hey, this is Texas. September rolled around and it started raining. And raining. And raining. As mid-month approached, many properties in the state received as much or more rain during the first two weeks of September as they had received the eight months prior. Of course.

It was dry enough to significantly reduce the fawn crop in many areas, but now it’s so wet and green that deer will not be easily-patterned on specific food sources. High quality, natural foods are now found everywhere. Did I mention that the acorns that are out there are now beginning to fall? To add insult to injury for early season deer hunters, mosquitos populations are, well, robust.

Early Season is GREEN

“Hunting might be a little tough with the exceptional rainfall in September that has created a giant food plot of native forage across the state,” said Cain. It’s a bittersweet situation for those deer hunting in the early season. Conditions have helped the deer herd; makes it much more difficult for hunters.

There are about 4.6 million deer in Texas but good eats can literally be found anywhere and everywhere across the landscape. When food is so abundant it’s as if the deer herd simply dries up. “Deer may be visiting feeders less frequently with the available forage, so hunters might rely on information gathered recently on their trail cameras to help narrow down windows of opportunity as to when deer are visiting feeder and blind locations.”

The influx of new groceries on the ground should provide a boost of nutrition heading into the fall. It should also give wildlife managers some relief after range conditions across much of the state heading out of the summer doldrums began to decline.

5 Hunting Tips for the Early Season

Hunting white-tailed deer during the early season offers its own unique set of challenges. Not only are natural deer foods abundant, making deer more difficult to pattern, but so are bugs, potentially making life miserable. On the plus side, deer haven’t been hunted for the better part of a year so a nimble hunter has the chance scout, locate and sneak in for the kill.

If you haven’t done anything yet — you’re most definitely late. Regardless of whether you’ve been living in a stand this year or just getting ready to head afield, here are a few things to consider to improve the odds of you tagging a buck during this season:

1. Use Game Cameras

Game cameras are like the most effective scouting tools that we as hunters have at our disposal. They work well whether using them to identify early season deer hunting action or trying to pattern the movement of deer during the late season. The take home message is they can be in more places than us and they keep score.

2. Early Season Patience

Wait for it, grasshopper. The season is just getting underway in many areas and that has you pumped to go jump in your favorite stand and shoot a monster buck, but don’t rush it! When weather conditions are wrong for hunting a particular stand, just stay away.  You will leave with nothing, except getting busted by the very deer you are attempting to hunt. Wait for the right time or you risk pushing the buck you are chasing right into another hunter’s lair.

3. Scent Control

This goes right along with number two. Don’t do everything right only to phone it in on scent control. Some hunters really stink (I know, I know) when it comes to mitigating scent, but it’s the easiest way for a buck to know you are there, stop, and simply walk the other way (with you being none the wiser).

4. Control Insects

Think about this prior to climbing into your favorite early season deer hunting setup. It is early fall, after all. Whether hunting from up high or down low, you do not need to be more uncomfortable than trying remain semi-motionless while sitting on a less-than-comfortable seat for half a day.

5. Early Season Evening Hunts

Just as in life, timing is everything in deer hunting. If you have limited time for deer hunting then make sure you give priority to evening hunts rather than morning hunts when hunting deer during the early season. If you are not bound by time, well, then lucky you. During the early season, a hunter is more likely to encounter a whitetail buck during the afternoon/evening hunt. It’s also easier to get into a stand without bumping deer, which is step one when trying to tag an early season buck.

Hunting for Success

Question: “I live and deer hunt in west Tennessee. When should I put my trail cameras out to start looking for growing bucks? I’ve got my mineral stations and corn out now. The white-tailed deer are tearing the ground up to get the mineral. I’ve been spreading 160 pounds of corn out every 3 weeks when I go to refresh my mineral stations.

The land owner has been telling me that within three days the corn out it is all gone. What should I do or not do with regard to monitoring this property and preparing for deer hunting season?” -Jerry P.

Response: It’s mid-June so if you want to watch the process of antler growth in bucks there will definitely be something to see at this point in the year, but white-tailed bucks are not yet near the end of the antler growing season. Expect antler growth to terminate by the end August for most bucks, with a substantial amount of change between now and then. Summer is a great time to document the bucks in your area through the use of game cameras because the weather is typically hot and dry. That equates to bucks taking advantage of any nutrition they can find on the landscape. They will be on feed, so your cameras should be too doing some pre-season scouting.

The mineral sites on the property are likely more beneficial for antler growth than the corn you are providing, but deer will readily consume corn during the summer months since native vegetation will be less palatable as new growth has slowed and older leaves are now tough and offer less nutrition. Corn and minerals both serve as warm weather attractants so they are ideal locations to capture deer on camera. Place a camera on each of them.

Game cameras work 24/7 and do a great job of inventorying bucks using food sources/attractants during the summer and winter months. It can be challenging to get bucks, especially mature bucks, on camera during the spring and fall when natural foods are abundant. However, if those deer are there and then that makes your summer time photo sessions quite valuable! If you waited until just before fall to deploy cameras then you would likely miss a number of bucks. At the very least, I would recommend that hunters do their pre-season camera scouting during the month of August.

When deer hunting a new property, or even a place that you have hunted for a while, the first thing that you need to do is PLAN for the upcoming fall. The best way to ensure success at anything is to plan. We develop deer management plans for properties, so why not deer hunting plans?

Basic 4 Step Plan for Deer Hunting Any Property

1. Consider how you will access your hunting ground.

You’ve got to get there, right? But… will your arrival tip off the very deer you intend to hunt? We tend to know when someone is in our yard, at our house. Whitetail are the same way. They pay attention to what is happening in their front yard, side yard and back yard. It’s called survival. Over the years I’ve learned to address anything that announces my approach, whether it be a noisy chain on a metal gate, a diesel truck driving through a field or a ATV/UTV humming along through the woods. It’s best to walk. Quietly.

Deer can handle all of the things mentioned above when that is what they are used to on a daily basis, but not so much when it’s out of the ordinary. When white-tailed deer perceive their surroundings are different they will act different. Go stealth from the start.

2. Keep some areas quiet and off limits all of the time.

You will want sanctuaries on the property you are hunting. These are areas that are off limits to all human activity during the pre-season as well as during the hunting season. If you own the property then you have more control over this, but if you are hunting someone else’s land then you are at their mercy. Even then, there is likely at least one area on their property that they tend to avoid for one reason or another. I’d recommend that you avoid the urge to march off into the middle of it and put up a stand and/or feeder, especially on small acreage since sanctuaries are more important on pint-sized properties.

Instead, place your stand on the edge of the sanctuary, or better yet, a short distance away on a travel corridor or funnel. This gives the hunter the edge because hunting deer where they travel to and from bedding and feeding areas is much better than hunting deer where actually sleep and feed. You will disturb them. Hunting travel corridors will likely allow you to see more deer, as well, since not all deer (especially older bucks) will head straight to the feeder once the hunting season is underway.

3. Identify the feeding, bedding and travel ways of local deer.

Before a hunter can figure out how to successfully hunt a property, he or she must understand how deer are using the property. Deer are out there doing what they naturally do, so the worst thing a hunter can do is disrupt the natural course of events. Scout every inch of the place during the off season to find natural sanctuaries, bedding areas and travel ways. If you can’t get into all the nooks and crannies for fear of bumping deer (too close to hunting season or during hunting season), then resort to aerial photography.

A look from above will also tell you where you might expect winter agricultural fields or neighboring food plots to be situated. This will give you more insight into how deer may be moving within and adjacent the property you are hunting.

4. Have at least two hunting setups.

Once you know the lay of the land and have identified deer use of the property, it is only then that you should take your a stab at picking stand locations. Make a map and insert all of the pertinent features onto it. Then, consider how the property should be hunted during a north to northwest wind. I’ll submit that this is the best time to hunt since deer movement increases significantly during cold weather.

Hunting warm weather can pay off, but when you want to limit disturbance on a property so as not to impact buck behavior, then you will want to make the most of your few days out there each fall. Cold weather helps keep human scent down, but more importantly lower temperatures get whitetail bucks up on their hooves and moving. Go cold or go home. Really. Have at least two stands that you can access under a couple of wind conditions with minimal disturbance setup on your deer hunting property.

Use this four step deer hunting plan now to put the odds in your favor this fall and winter. A little planning will allow you to make the most of your hunting property, whether big or small. In addition, a well thought out game plan will likely result in more enjoyable hunts, which hopefully result with the tagging of a big, mature whitetail buck.

Pre-Season Hunting Strategy

It’s mid-August and that means “go time” for pre-season white-tailed deer hunters. There is no doubt countless game cameras are scattered throughout the whitetail’s range right now documenting groups of bachelor bucks in all their velvet glory. In fact, I can’t wait for the next download myself!

The pre-season, however, is not just about stand placement, feeder filling, food plot preparation and eyeing the latest deer hunting gear. Yes, those are some of the things we all do as deer season approaches, but there is something more important that should be a part of our lives, especially hunters.

Pre-Season Conditioning

It’s time to get into hunting shape, both mentally and physically. This gets more and more important with each passing year. We are not as young as we used to be. You know who you are. Join the club.

There is no better time than right now to start preparing for the physical demands of your next hunting trip. Climbing, lifting, lugging, drawing back a 70-pound bow and the sort can take a toll on a body, and physical preparation can go a long ways towards keeping you both healthy and safe.

Staying in good physical condition should be a way of life. Unfortunately, many of us fail to maintain our desired level of physical condition. For me, like a lot of other hunters, it’s about priorities. We often put other things before ourselves, whether it be our families, our work or both.

However, it’s important we take care of ourselves for THOSE very reasons. Nothing is more important than making it back home safely to our loved ones, whether it be from the office, a work trip or a hunting trip.

Pre-Season Safety

The month of August is officially Tree Stand Safety Awareness month. Each hunting season, unfortunately, a number of hunters do not make it back home because of accidents directly or indirectly related to hunting. Most hunting accidents are self-inflicted and can be avoided. As you prepare for the upcoming deer hunting season keep safety on the top of your mind, at all times.

Most hunters have careers that stress safety on the job. Maintain that training and awareness with you when you leave the job. Enjoy the pre-season prep as well as the hunting season itself, but take that safety-first attitude with you into the field.

From TreeStandSafetyAwareness.org

Tree Stand Safety Awareness (TSSA), a newly formed not-for-profit 501(3)c organization with the mission of educating hunters about treestand safety, has announced that August is officially Tree Stand Safety Awareness month. August, the month that most hunters start heading back to the woods to cut trails and hang stands in preparation for upcoming hunting season, is the most opportune time for treestand awareness. TSSA is looking to get hunters to start the season by putting safety first.

Treestand accidents are annually the #1 cause of death and serious injury to deer hunters and virtually 100 percent of these incidents are preventable by implementing three simple measures: First, wear a full-body harness when hunting from a treestand. Second, stay connected from the time your feet leave the ground. Third, make sure your hunting buddies do the same. It really is that simple.

TSSA encourages all hunters to take treestand safety seriously, every time you hunt from or hang a treestand.

The white-tailed deer hunting season will be ending shortly, so there’s no better time than right now to employ a few late season deer hunting tips and tactics to bag that last-second buck. In Texas, many hunters take time off between Christmas and New Year’s in anticipation of putting deer on the ground, but whitetail bucks that have made it this far into the deer hunting season are well educated.

Still, there’s no need to panic. Careful planning combined with the wise use of time in the field can still result in a successful deer hunt later in the season, but let’s discuss some of the things you need to know to up your chances. Hopefully, these tips will tip the odds in your favor.

The Late Season: Deer Know

The hunting season has been on for a while and the deer are most definitely in the know. Patterns are extremely important to them. Not so much their patterns, but the patterns of hunters. A deer knows that the sound of a four wheeler running or a truck door closing means a hunter is in the area. Deer will stick with moving very early, before sunrise, and then after mid-morning, when most hunters have long left the field. It’s time to change things up. First, be quiet.

Next, be flexible. By late season, even young deer realize that bad things can happen to good deer that hang out too close to deer stands and deer feeders. Older deer will be on full alert and will avoid all of them. Instead of jumping into your stand out of habit, find a travel corridor and catch whitetail moving around your setup. Deer move even when you are not seeing them from your stand, they just know how to avoid the average hunter by late season. Deer will not expect you to be somewhere else, out of your stand. Put the wind in your favor and you will see deer.

Use Late Season Feeding to Pattern Deer

Another great late season deer hunting tip is to watch the moon. Deer naturally become more nocturnal, feeding during the night, as temperatures drop into the fall and winter, but their nightly movements are greatly reduced during the dark of the moon. Avoid full moon periods and stick with hunting the days around a new moon. This hunting tactic will also work in between nights that are hampered with heavy cloud cover. Whitetail will hold tight overnight, so be in the woods when daylight comes, especially when these conditions coincide with really cold temperatures.

This next hunting tip is a no-brainer, but it works. Look for deer foods. As mentioned previously, deer do not stop traveling altogether, but their movements will be modified late into the deer hunting season. Hunt food sources such as cool season forbs, winter food plots, or even deer feeders at non-traditional times. Whitetail deer have to move and eat more as the mercury drops, so find a food source and camp out on between late morning and early afternoon.

Weather for Late Season Hunting Success

A last, but often overlooked, deer hunting tip is to pay attention to the wind speed. Many deer hunters pay attention to wind direction, and rightfully so, but wind speed alone can dictate deer movement. High wind speeds (more than 15 mph) make for difficult hunting conditions and deer do not like to move during these times either. Whitetail deer are nervous creatures already, so high winds and lots of moving limbs do not help. High wind inhibits their ability to detect danger, so deer movement will be greatly suppressed.

Use a weather web site such as AccuWeather.com to get hour-by-hour temperature and wind direction and speed information for your hunting area. It may be the late season, but there is still plenty of deer hunting to be had. Find time to use these deer hunting tips and tactics in combination before the end of the season and the odds will be in your favor. Happy holiday hunting!

With the official start of summer almost upon us and whitetail bucks rapidly putting on new antler growth, it is never to early to speculate about the fall white-tailed deer hunting seasons in Texas. Unfortunately for everyone, dry weather has kept a damper on many deer and habitat management practices to date, but poor habitat conditions may help hunters across the state this fall.

Most folks know that dry weather is not good for wildlife. Deer hunters are also aware that low rainfall equates to below average antler sizes for bucks relying on natural forage to get them through the year. That being said, it comes as no surprise that severe drought across the state has dimmed what usually is a bright outlook for white-tailed deer quantity and quality. Continue reading “Habitat Conditions Bad, Deer Hunting Good?”