Hi I’m Adam Lewis and welcome to Deer IQ and our High IQ TOPICS series. In this episode we’re going to look at my 3 favorite and I think hands down best tactics I know to consistently tag a buck during the rut. So, if you do these 3 things - you're really going to up your Deer IQ and up your chances to punch a tag. And stay to the end because I have a couple High IQ takeaways and challenges I think you’ll really benefit from. And now to my top 3 rut tactics.
A big key to being successful during the rut is understanding the dynamics and driving force for deer movement, and essentially thinking like a buck. If you can change your mentality and approach to do this alone, you will see better success. This is what must be done in order to be one step ahead of the deer and intercept them versus always being one step behind by simply going off deer sign (that was made in the past). Don’t get me wrong, you should be scouting for fresh sign, but being able to predict a buck’s future moves is very important. In your thinking the needs of a buck should be paramount (food, security, breeding) with the latter being the major focus now. So, where and how will he get those needs met? Now you’re thinking, and the answer is the right location and with his extremely tuned senses. If you can focus on these you’re well on your way to being where he is going to be and punching that tag.
Strategy #1 - Dive Deep. Location - doe bedding area, Primary Senses to consider - smell and hearing.
If you want to find a buck, and his #1 goal is finding a doe, then just go where the thing he is looking for is located - a doe bedding area. Hopefully you know where some of these are if you hunt public land and have some known trees you can occupy. If you hunt private land, hopefully you’ve set sanctuaries aside where does feel safe and have a stand or blind within these for just this time of year. These should be areas you only hunt once or twice a season due to the intrusive nature of doing so, so waiting for the wind and weather conditions to be just right will increase your odds. These areas typically are thick and hard to get to, so having your entry and exit routes prepped (if possible) or at least routed out well beforehand is important to avoid making noise and leaving scent all over brush you come in contact with. You are going into the bedroom, so be extremely careful to change as little as possible to not tip off any deer of your presence. Get in early before the does will arrive and be prepared to stay all day. The middle of the day is potentially as good or better than any other time as bucks are cruising for receptives does at all times of day now, so stay alert.
Because of the high stem count in bedding areas bucks will primarily have to use their nose and ears. They won’t be able to see the does from very far. So, be on the downwind side as much as possible within the bedding area while keeping yourself in the action, and consider some grunting and potentially rattling to entice a buck into view. The lack of visual confirmation will make a buck have to come close to see what’s making the noise, so a bedding area is a good place to try this. If you were in an open woods a buck could confirm from afar, see nothin, and probably not respond. So use his lack of visual ability to your advantage. In Michigan where I live, with pressured deer who have probably been called to all season, it’s probably best to be less aggressive as you call and rattle, but can still be a legitimate tactic if done conservatively. So consider the state and pressure of where you hunt in this equation.
Strategy #2 - Hang on the Fringe. Location - outside edge of cover or food, Primary Senses to consider - sight and smell. If diving deep won’t work for you, or you’re afraid your intrusion may do more harm than good, hanging just off the edge of this cover or a well known doe haunt can be a good option. If a buck isn’t locked up with a doe deep within, he’ll be looking for one where she’s likely to be found and potentially working the outer edge. The downwind side of a bedding area, just off dense cover, can be a great spot to catch a cruising buck using his nose to check the entire bedding area for a hot doe without even entering it. This is a highly efficient move for him and allows him to keep moving and cover more ground until he finds what he’s looking for. For this reason, you can see deer here that you may not buried deep in the cover and you’re also more safe from being winded. You can also usually see a bit further making calling to a buck once sighted easier instead of “blind calling.” Another good location is where bucks both use their nose and eyes: downwind of a food source. Food plots or field edges just inside cover are great places bucks can feel safe and poke up to visually scan the terrain for does without busting into the open. If he sees something worth investigating he can, but this leaves him a safe travel route while accomplishing the same thing. Being setup just downwind of trails that typically parallel fields and food plots can be a great place to be. If you only hunt over your food plot, you may not even see these cruising bucks or just catch glimpses of them. So setting up so you can both shoot these trails, and maybe into the field can be a great option. However, if I had to choose sitting a field, plot, or hunting a fringe as described, I’d consider hunting the safety of the fringe.
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Strategy #3 - Fill a Funnel: Location - converging terrain or habitat, primary senses - sight and smell.
The last suggested place to try out during the rut is a good ole funnel, or pinch point. If you find or know of a good one, set your stand here and fill your body with it. In this case you’re trying to catch a buck going from one place to another to either (a) check for receptive does (like from one bedding area to another), or (b) catch a buck who is already following a doe. The good thing about this setup is that a funnel does just what it suggests, confine deer movement from one place to another into a narrow space. That movement could be a doe dragging a buck along or just seeking bucks. It essentially doesn’t matter why he comes by, you just need to be there. Since these locations are not typically your dense cover (although they may be created by edges of it), they are typically easier to access without spooking anything. Deer aren’t dwelling here or going here as a destination, they are just passing through, so there’s potential for high traffic over brief periods of the day. During this time of year this could be any time, so sit tight and plan for an all day sit even if action is slow. I listed eyesight here due to bucks will typically be hounding a doe and keeping his eyes on her in this scenario (or not far behind), or using his sense of smell if he’s cruising through to see if he can catch scent of a hot doe track. This again is a high odds spot for him to find that since doe travel is necked down through this narrow area. You’re essentially doing exactly what bucks do here - utilizing terrain to maximize encounters, and bucks will even bed and wait in these areas too for a passing doe. So should you - its a high IQ tactic!
Are there other tactics that work for the rut, yes maybe, but these are three that have produced for me. Think about what a buck is after, then put yourself in a place he will likely be, these are strategies you can take to the bank.
And now, your HIGH IQ Takeaways and Challenges:
And I’ll See you on the next Deer IQ High IQ Topics series