Late Season Bucks?

[Pastorowc]

OK everybody I have not seen any bucks since the rut. I would like to get a little advice as I have one week left of Archery here in Missouri as to where I should consider being, and what time of days I should be there. Thanks ahead of time

 

[rj2]

in WI this time of year it is tough. the deer move less now but they will always need food. try to find some food sources. if theres snow on the ground that can really help tell you if deer are hitting an area or not. i saw about 30 deer in a public field last friday, scouted around the field in the morning, found tons of tracks and beds. set up for the evening and didnt see a single deer, so even if you get on tracks, most of their movement will be after dark.

maybe good time of year to try to just still hunt the woods, and if you jump something try to set up on its bed right away in case it comes back in a few hours, or the morning

 

[mikear]

I am hunting as well as I got a late start on my season. Find the preferred food sources then find the bedding areas adjacent to the food. Hunt the anticipated bedding exit/entrance direction towards the food you’ve found. It’s an oversimplification, but calories are king right now.

 

[bcar]

After rifle season is definitely tough, usually the deer get herded up and are focused on feeding on ag fields (norther mo, not sure what central and southern bring). A lot of the bucks seem to go nocturnal, and there also just simply nowhere near as many bucks as there were before rifle season. If you're hunting large tracts of public in central/southern that get major rifle season pressure I can't imagine what bow hunting them late season would be like.

 

[Pastorowc]

Thanks guys. Tough year!

 

[ky hunter]

Still hunting and since rut there has been very little buck activity. always keep cameras out and this year seems worse than the last 5 years

 

[SneakyThunderCat]

Scout more than you hunt this time of year. Drive around and look for the herds or get to a higher point and glass. Sit and watch what they do and note what time they start coming out. Deer are pretty predictable during the late season, you just gotta find where they are hiding. Typically pretty close to a good food source and thick cover unless it gets pounded during the gun season. Also, hit those places first when they start shedding antlers!

 

[Fogalo]

This is my favorite time to hunt whitetails. Unfortunately it’s a bit binary. Either you have food or don’t. If you do. Set stands so you can get in and out without any deer knowing on the right wind. Only hunt on the right wind. Only hunt in the afternoons. Make sure you’re hunting on the coldest days. If you have multiple food sources trail cameras are great. Bucks are easy to pattern.

 

[Pastorowc]

Thanks guys. I am limited on my hunting areas and the ones I have are not good source. Bummer.

 

[Pigskin]

The last 2 weeks of season is my favorite time to be in the tree, seems like new deer always show up, here’s last seasons with one day left to go, never seen him before ...........

 

[Fordguy]

I'm a few hours west of Missouri, but this time of year food sources are the way to go. I don't have any luck getting near food sources in the morning, because no matter how early I show up the deer are there first. My advice is to play the wind and hunt food sources in the evening. If its a bright sunny day focus on the off-side of food sources near bedding cover. If it's overcast (cold front moving in) you can usually set up on food sources farther away because (in my experience) deer will start moving earlier and will get to the more distant food sources during legal hours. Around here I'm still seeing deer looking for acorns and pecans. No agriculture to speak of near me.

 

[danny.doy.99]

I’m in PA, Afternoon hunts on southern slopes near food sources. We still have bucks checking does on trail cameras.

 

[Scrappy]

Just killed this guy on the third. Most people will disagree with me but I love hunting bedding areas in the morning. If you know where their feeding and can get into the bedding area without bumping them its a blast seeing all the deer coming back to bed. FYI this is my seventh or eighth late season buck I've killed on morning hang and hunt.