Need some advice.

[FishBaitThe2nd]

Well late season rifle deer opens on Thursday. (The area I hunt anyways). The rut is apon us, and if anyone has any advice on hunting bucks during the rut id greatly appreciate it. Ive hunted hard all season, took a shot at a 5x6 black tail opening morning at about 400 yards, hit just below it. Havent shot at anything since. Should I just sit in clear cuts, or what should I do! I got 4 days, any advice is greatly appreciated!

[Amx]

Find a trail/path they use and sit and wait. Or follow that trail slowly making no noise. Or walk slowly around the clearings, but INSIDE the tree line, not out in the open/clearing. Or find where they feed, and the paths that they travel to get there, and back to water, and their bedding places, and sit and wait.

[needs2hunt]

like AMX said... best to find where they bed and then where they feed and find the route they use to go between those 2 area and setup a stand .... but seeing as your after blacktail that can be hard... since it is the rut... you could try rattling a buck in... rattling has work for me before... bucks get pretty stupid when chasing after tail... they make mistakes you just have to be there when they do...

[schu7498]

Blacktails love to hangout on the edges of clearcuts. They also LOVE newly logged areas. They really like the fresh churned dirt. Blacktail rut is a blast to hunt. Get yourself some estrus doe pee and put it in a spot you know the deer go during the night. If they smell it they will be charging out of the woods before it gets dark. Ive sprayed deer pee in this clearcut and before I even made it back to my spot 2 bucks came busting out of the underbrush almost plowing right into me. The doe pee can be any deer species, when they are in heavy rut they dont care. My family has had bucks trying to court our goats during the rut. The bucks during the rut travel pretty good distances, but if you know an area where there are some does I would focus on that area. Blacktail does wont be traveling, and they always stay in a 2 sq mile territory. Bucks will be coming to court them. And if you have a field or clearcut you know those does feed at I would go during the day and spray some deer pee in that field. And in my experience, during the rut the bucks will actually gather a small harem of does like mulie bucks. Goodluck!

[FishBaitThe2nd]

Thank you! I appreciate it!

[racfish]

Get some female deer spray. Spray it all over your body and wait. LOL...Then lock and load.

[Amx]

Get some female deer spray. Spray it all over your body and wait. LOL...Then lock and load.

...and keep a CLOSE eye out behind you for a buck...

[gonnahookit]

Get some female deer spray. Spray it all over your body and wait. LOL...Then lock and load.

...and keep a CLOSE eye out behind you for a buck...

Doing this, it is safest and is best accomplished using the "buddy" system, 2 is good, four is excellent.

You all spray each other up, and stand back to back (or quartered off) so you can have your buddies back(s) to guard against those soon-to-be VERY amorous bucks!

[Amx]

Many years ago I was laying on the ground watching over the bank/hill, waiting for a buck to walk by. After a bit I heard a noise behind me. Turned over and there was a doe about 20 feet from me looking at me. I twitched a little and she was GONE! Good thing it wasn't a buck, I'd have had to roll off the bank onto the road below, say 15 feet down.

[chrome_chasin]

The number one method for me was always to stalk. Its tedious but pays off. Find a unit that is one to five years old that is surrounded by standing timber. walk the edges, anywhere from 5 to 50 feet, but the key is to take 5 to 10 steps as quietly as you possibly can then wait for 5 to 10 minutes standing in place. Have your rifle ready and on safe. Do not have it slung on your shoulder, have it rested into your shoulder ready to be lifted into a firing position. This action will get a laying deer curious as to what is going on. He will here you, there is no doubting that, but the short steps and long periods of silence will get him very curious, at this point he will start moving his head around or just flat out stand up to check it out. It is vital that you remain motionless when standing in place. Try to work it to where you are standing next to brush and not silhouetted in the open. Scan the unit by moving your head only, again the key here is to blend in and not be an easily spotted target. Once you walk the outer edge slide a third of the way into the unit and repeat.

It helps to glass the unit prior to walking it. Look for small patches of tall grass surrounded by thick brush. These will be the bedding areas that you will want to be cognitive of during your stalk. When glassing the unit look for heavy game trails on the outer edges.

Once you stalk a deer and he stands for you it is very important not to jerk or make sudden movements. Wait for him to relax a bit. If he bolts then he has already spotted you and the best you can hope for is for him to stop short of the timber. A loud grunt will often slow him down or stop him. Slowly raise your rifle when he presents you with a killing shot. I have seen to many guys jerk their rifle up and fire when the buck first stands rushing the shot and either maiming the animal or missing altogether. Take your time and let him turn and commit suicide. Any sudden movements will put an end to your trip. Very slow and very steady. Good luck