Welcome to TheOhioOutdoors
Wanting to join the rest of our members? Login or sign up today!
Login / Join

Dead mornings

finelyshedded

You know what!!!
Supporting Member
31,856
260
SW Ohio
IMO, there's some breeding going on but mostly by the mature shooter bucks. At anytime the shooter in a given area can and will be solo again and out roaming. Just hang tight and keep hunting hard till then.

I'm hearing stories of monster bucks with huge racks being seen after night fall on the move. Whether they're as big as they say or not, this is typical at this time of the season.
 

brock ratcliff

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
24,834
247
I agree, Ric! I have a bit of an advantage with my stand set-ups. They are in funnels, with a great view of wide areas. Sometimes I'll see deer all over the place a good distance off and nothing close by. If I were hunting in a woodland set, I would think they just weren't moving. You and Ron are on the money that they are doing it somewhere, maybe not where you are though. I watched one of the young bucks come from a mile across a field this morning. He wound up right under my stand, but it took him a while. The reason I first saw him was he was scent checking a doe in a fence row. He got enough of a nose full of her to know she wasn't ready and went back to looking. Just so happened he came looking in my neighborhood. That's the way the rut works. If you aren't seeing them, just wait, they cover ground in a hurry.
 

cotty16

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
IMO, there's some breeding going on but mostly by the mature shooter bucks. At anytime the shooter in a given area can and will be solo again and out roaming. Just hang tight and keep hunting hard till then.

I'm hearing stories of monster bucks with huge racks being seen after night fall on the move. Whether they're as big as they say or not, this is typical at this time of the season.

Now, where'd you hear that story from? Lol
 

loose_is_fast

Junior Member
618
108
McClure
i saw 24 deer on saturday seven of which were bucks and only one was a shooter.Sunday i sat the same stand and only saw one lil pussy button buck. I hunted dark to dark both days and sunday was very hard not seeing any deer.I have no idea what was going on i didn't have a single one blow on saturday.
 

epe

Senior Member
6,113
93
Lancaster
Saw two fawns and a fork this morning. Saw seven tonight, two of them bucks, one a pig. He came to the field at last shooting light over a hundred yards away. He went out and harassed the does after shooting light. Need him to come in earlier.
 

finelyshedded

You know what!!!
Supporting Member
31,856
260
SW Ohio
Here's another observation I've seen play out over the years. Joe blow hunting over here seeing fighting and chasing and rutting like crazy for a few days in a row while Harvey Lunchbucket hunting a half mile away is watching squirrels and counting falling leaves. They talk to each other afterwards and one says, It's on BIGTIME! And the other says, rut is running later than normal. The fact is, it's been happening all along but one guy was just in the right place.
That's why Roger Rothaar said if he's hunting during what should be good movement periods and he's not seeing or hearing anything he moves to another area. I think he was on to something! IMO
 
Last edited:

Diablo54

Senior Member
7,082
126
Outside
I'm out of town working now but I was home all last week. I hunt 5 different propertys. 2 of them were pretty hot. 3 were not. the place tha I killed my buck was tore up. Gordo got to see all the rut sign. The other was tore up with sign as well. While the others seemed dead. You just have to find the hot spots while there hot IMO. It doesn't all happen everywhere at the same time.
 

hickslawns

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
39,721
248
Ohio
I'm out of town working now but I was home all last week. I hunt 5 different propertys. 2 of them were pretty hot. 3 were not. the place tha I killed my buck was tore up. Gordo got to see all the rut sign. The other was tore up with sign as well. While the others seemed dead. You just have to find the hot spots while there hot IMO. It doesn't all happen everywhere at the same time.

Basically what Ric said and I concur. My buddy hunted tonight. Saw one of the big boys but couldn't get him to commit. Watched him tear up some trees and bed down. My buddy grunted. Buck got up and tore the snot out of the trees again. Buck bedded again. He repeated and the buck repeated. My interpretation: It is right there, but this particular area just might not be ready yet. This buck obviously had some frustration to get out. I heard the same thing over the weekend. Heard one walking thru the trees in the dark. I let out a couple grunts. I listened to him thrash on some trees. The big boys are ready. Just not sure all the ladies are hot to trot quite yet. Just a handful it seems.
 

Carpn

*Supporting Member*
2,234
87
Wooster
Well, I for sure have been covering ground . I have hunted 7 different stands, on on 5 different property in 3 different countys since last Thursday .
 

cotty16

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
Basically what Ric said and I concur. My buddy hunted tonight. Saw one of the big boys but couldn't get him to commit. Watched him tear up some trees and bed down. My buddy grunted. Buck got up and tore the snot out of the trees again. Buck bedded again. He repeated and the buck repeated. My interpretation: It is right there, but this particular area just might not be ready yet. This buck obviously had some frustration to get out. I heard the same thing over the weekend. Heard one walking thru the trees in the dark. I let out a couple grunts. I listened to him thrash on some trees. The big boys are ready. Just not sure all the ladies are hot to trot quite yet. Just a handful it seems.

That's pretty much how Count Chocula acted Sunday morning. I pissed him off, but he wasn't ready to commit.
 

finelyshedded

You know what!!!
Supporting Member
31,856
260
SW Ohio
Well, I for sure have been covering ground . I have hunted 7 different stands, on on 5 different property in 3 different countys since last Thursday .

Your doing the right thing IMO. I have no explanation for you but just a question and a comment. Has anybody else in your hunting area killed a good one during your hunting stretch since Thursday? Do you have TC out to monitor movement?

It's also slightly possible that one or more of your stands was hot the next day after you hunted it. That's how hunting works....isn't it? Lol

Just keep hunting hard and enjoying yourself, it will happen soon. That's how I'd look at it. Good luck Carpn!
 

epe

Senior Member
6,113
93
Lancaster
We hardly saw anything yesterday morning. A pair of fawns and a forkhorn. Today we have seen 7 bucks, 3 does and 4 fawns. Two bucks chasing, three more heads down moving thru fast. Same stand as yesterday..
 

cotty16

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
We have been in a constant struggle to find my son a place to get on a decent buck. In fact, we have been trying to find a place just for him to see deer.

My dad went to check the scrape cam to see if it's worth putting a blind up there. Here's what we found... this may answer morning question. The time is off an hour because of time change.

132.jpg124.jpg129.jpg
 

Carpn

*Supporting Member*
2,234
87
Wooster
Seen 2 dinks this morning. Hunting property#6 tonight. Its a good east wind spot, in fact my only east wind spot. Wind is swirly tho. Doubt I see squat .