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Thread: Late season

  1. #21
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    During Montana's Oct-Nov hunting season most temps run from 60 F to 0. Deer are moving early and late, generally just before and after sunrise and sunset. When it gets cold this time of year they can be out at any time but generally only leave cover to feed. We see at least 1 road killed deer a day in the 10 miles around my house from Aug -Nov. We had a cold snap just before Christmas, low was -34 High was -17. Since that time it is more like one dead deer a week. I think they have good feed somewhere and are not leaving until it's gone.

    I had a hot air balloon ride with the neighbor yesterday and we flew 6 miles over prime food grounds as we headed to town yesterday. We left about 9:45 and saw no game in any fields where I have seen them feeding at dusk.
    [The Montana Gianni] Front sight and squeeze

  2. #22
    Boolit Grand Master Tripplebeards's Avatar
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    I came back from Christmas vacation so I can hunt on the 29th. Unfortunately I had a nasty cold. Head was compressed in my nose was running nonstop. I finally made it out the last day of the holiday hunt on January 1. Figured I’d try and get one with a Lyman devastator in my Ruger 7744 with the soft alloy I wanted to see what it would do. Tons of tracks all over in the snow that weren’t fresh by the afternoon stand I chose. The other stand I walked by lower on the ridge had tons of fresh tracks. Never fails I didn’t see any deer and I’m sure there were probably plenty in the other spot. I normally don’t hunt second season archery season even though it’s extended in my county till January 31. I just don’t wanna end up shooting a 200 inch plus buck… with no antlers. It’s small game hunting and trapping time boys and girls! I would’ve went out and set some today but it’s been raining nonstop here with an ice storm and I have a 35 minute drive to my property one way when it’s dry. I saw a bunch out an open cornfields on the way home from Christmas vacation about an hour before close. Dozens of them out there in big groups eating and digging in the cut corn. I need to get some corn planted on my property next year!

  3. #23
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    That is where I made my mistake this year
    the critters(deer I think) cleaned out the fields I had planted with corn , probably 2 acres total in 3 seperate plantings
    so I decided to get a jump on this spring and tilled the fields
    now I should have left it for cover and scrounging deer but that is hidsight now
    I did have a small patch of winter oats but that was covered up with snow
    so I had nothing to keep em around
    Hit em'hard
    hit em'often

  4. #24
    Boolit Grand Master Tripplebeards's Avatar
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    Yup all my dear disappeared after the first couple of days after rifle season opener because all the farmers cut their fields about a couple miles away. Miles of cut cornfields! I’m sure they all left my property in bedded next to the Food source until they got pressured off from hunting. 30 years ago the neighbors used to plant corn every year at the top of my property edge. I had deer and big bucks up there like flies. Ever since they stop planting corn I don’t get the deer traffic I used to. I just make sure to try and get a dandy during the rut before the corn gets cut.

  5. #25
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    I am beginning to think once the corn is cut in east ILL-nois the moon cycle does have influence.
    "Come unto Me, all you who labor and are heavy burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28
    Male Guanaco out in dry lakebed at 10,800 feet south of Arequipa.

  6. #26
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    Around here, we don't normally get much snow. So when it snows, you want to be out there. If it's a heavy snow, they'll remember any corn piles or feeders and go right to them. Snowfall is a super spark to deer here.

    In general, I prefer to hunt mornings. I like to watch and hear the woods come to life. Plus if I'm lucky enough to have to track one, I have lots of light. But it seems most of the deer we've seen and shot over the years have been before dusk.

  7. #27
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    I'm in Iowa and hunt the late muzzleloader season with single shot pistols. I haven't shot a deer in the morning since 2015. Every other tag that we've filled has been in the afternoon up to literally last minute of shooting light. If it's snowing, I go out right after lunch and rarely have to sit until sundown to see deer. If we have a severe cold snap, they're more active in the afternoon and evening here. When that snap breaks and gets above zero, you'd best sit all day because the deer will be moving all day. Especially if it goes from -15 to 20-30 F within an 18 hour period. We shot two deer in two afternoon sits, about 24 hours apart, on Dece. 19 and Dec. 20 this year from the same blind in the same field. It was the warmer couple of days before a cold snap and the deer knew it.
    God gave us music that we might pray without words

  8. #28
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    Two weeks more here but just spikes and does allowed for the remainder of season. Around 70degrees right now.
    I prefer to get them in the mornings, but I’ve done quite a bit of field dressing at dark.
    I’ve been hunting every season for the last 50 years and have deer hunted in the snow ONCE.
    Tracked a group of deer to where they left our side of the fence. Then turned around because I was freezing my binacas off….


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  9. #29
    Boolit Master marshall623's Avatar
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    I hunted midday today which is the last of late muzzleloader , west of the Blueridge. First outing of the year deer hunting on public land . No deer but seen 7 or 8 Gobblers work thier way up the ridge about 120 yds out . The last 3 had beards a swinging , so some hope for this spring if the yotes don't get them .

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    Last edited by marshall623; 01-07-2023 at 07:54 PM.
    Jesus said ( Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest ) Matt. 11:28

  10. #30
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    I think since deer & bear season is over, I am going to commit lots of time to trapping & snaring fawn killers (Yotes). It is very rewarding when you catch 9 in a winter. It makes the fawns & does very happy. Not to mention it leaves more opportunity for buck girlfriends. I think indirectly the bucks thank us also. versa-06

  11. #31
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    I like hunting mornings best, but time wise, it hasn't worked too well, the last few years. This last season, evenings were certainly most productive. My buddy, whose farm I was hunting in, told me the deer would start moving through the woods at around 5pm. to feed out on the fields. Both my does were shot just a few minutes after 5pm. I did see other deer at different times, but they were out of range. Anyway, evening hunts worked out just fine, although I had to use a light to dress out the does

  12. #32
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    I just realized that my area has an extended archery season thill the 31st of this month
    I will try tomorrow afternoon, evening see if I see anything
    Hit em'hard
    hit em'often

  13. #33
    Boolit Grand Master Tripplebeards's Avatar
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    Yup so is mine. I went out predator hunting today. I really wasn’t planning on predator hunting but small game hunting. But I had the idea of putting some mouth calls in my pocket when I got bored I’d small game hunting. I called in a red fox and took a shot in thick brush that I should’ve never took. The 22 WinMag connected but obviously not a good shot. I tracked the red fox over 200 yards and lost it as it went straight up a tree! Never knew red fox could climb straight up trees. I knew grays were climbers. Pretty bummed that I lost my red fox as it was the first one I’ve ever mouth called in. I shot a rabbit five minutes before it came in. I called for 45 minutes and gave up. 15 minutes later a rabbit showed up so I shot it in thick brush that I shouldn’t of taken that shot either. The red fox showed up five minutes later 15 yards away staring at the dead rabbit. The brush was so thick I couldn’t even see it in the scope. It moved 3 feet and I pulled the trigger when I finally could see it enough. Figured a shotgun would’ve been a challenge at the shot I took. Just startled me and wasn’t expecting it and got too excited. Hopefully the fox dies up in the hole on the tree so I have a few more extra turkey nest that might make it through next spring without getting raided. I’m still beating myself up over that fox sure would’ve made a nice pelt! Anyways I jumped 3 deer tracking that Fox right up by my tree stand! I could’ve shot them with a crossbow walking along they just got up and looked at me 15 yards away.

    Here’s one of the two trees that Fox climbed believe it or not! You can see the blood trail going way up the tree past the bend. One it got up to where it bends ,about 25 feet up, it must have jumped out of that tree. Looked like it made three leaps and walked 10 yards down to another tree and that’s where the trail in the blood stopped. The tree where the trail stopped at a big hole about 20 yards up so I would assume it must’ve crawled up in that tree hole.

    Well lesson learned I should’ve never took the shot… or taking my 12 gauge with lead BB which I originally planned on doing to begin with. Darn it!



    I probably won’t do any late season bow hunting just cause I don’t wanna accidentally shoot a giant buck that had shed his antlers.


    The last of the tracks ended right here at the base of the tree with blood so I would assume he went up this tree and into the big hole in it…



    Here’s a picture of me pointing to the rabbit I shot and you can see how brushy it is. The fox was at a 45° angle to the right about 10 to 15 yards in back of it. It would’ve been like sewing a needle… which it was for the shot of the rabbit too. I would’ve loved to miss the rabbit and dropped the fox but beggars can’t be choosers I guess. Lesson learned to be patient and don’t take shots through brush with rifles. It’s still going to eat at me for a long time.



    The rabbit…

    Last edited by Tripplebeards; 01-07-2023 at 10:12 PM.

  14. #34
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    T-beards: Interesting Write Up, to say the least.

  15. #35
    Boolit Master Jedman's Avatar
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    Very interesting ! I would never have guessed that a red fox could climb a tree ? I never thought a fat ground hog could either but I have shot 2 of them out of smaller trees.

    Jedman

  16. #36
    Boolit Grand Master
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    To bad about the red
    I knew that grey's climbed trees but red's, well you just never know what wounded animals will show you
    Hit em'hard
    hit em'often

  17. #37
    Boolit Grand Master Tripplebeards's Avatar
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    I went back out today and looked for it for 2 hours today. I ended up finding blood 20 yards away from the last spot at the base of the 2nd tree. My guess is that second tree where I thought he went up and in the hole was incorrect on my part. It still blows my mind that he climbed that other tree 10 yards from the one I thought he was holed up in though and painted it with blood! I ended up finding a bunch of blood on a down tree 20 yards from the last spot going down the hill of the 45° angle. I followed his tricks with pin sized blood speckles to another downed tree 30 yards away. The blood finally quit and I followed the tracks till they crossed a bunch of other tracks and I lost it. I made circles out to 300 plus yards from the last spot with zero luck and no more blood found.

    I also saw a decent buck on the way out. He was a good 18" inside spread and close to 250 pounds. The rack was wide but wasn't thick or tall. Looked like a pencil rack as I'd call it with about 5 inch tines or so.
    He was about 400 yards down the road from my property along with 2 other deer that were about the same size. I also counted over 3 dozen deer out in cut corn on the way home!
    Last edited by Tripplebeards; 01-08-2023 at 08:18 PM.

  18. #38
    Boolit Master
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    Around here that would be called deer heaven. -06

  19. #39
    Boolit Master
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    Did you eat the rabbit?

  20. #40
    Boolit Grand Master Tripplebeards's Avatar
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    I had the rabbit for lunch!

    Yesterday within the first five minutes of calling I forgot to say that I had a bald eagle come in. They moved into my area probably 30 years ago. I noticed today when I went out looking for that fox I had two of them circling above me. My guess is if that fox expired it got picked up by an eagle bright and early this morning and they were looking for dessert.

    BTW…I had my spring turkey legs for suppers along with venison back strap!

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BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
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LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check