Ep. 725: Late Southern Rut??? (Second Rut Cycle, Lockdowns, Cold Front 11.29.23 RFR) - podcast episode cover

Ep. 725: Late Southern Rut??? (Second Rut Cycle, Lockdowns, Cold Front 11.29.23 RFR)

Nov 29, 202334 min
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Episode description

Welcome to the THIRTEENTH episode of Rut Fresh Radio for the 2023 Season! In each episode, K.C. and Tyler interview deer hunters from across the country in search of the freshest, most current information on Whitetail Buck movement and hear stories of hunting success. This week we talk to Hunter Lindsey in Kentucky, Hunter Dickens in Texas, Barrett Negus in Alabama and our good buddy Scott in Arkansas. We are seeing the second cycle of the rut where bucks are cruising looking for that next doe. Some places are still seeing the lockdown but with cold fronts moving across the country, there's still a good chance to shoot a good mature buck. Watch our latest episode on the MeatEater channel from South Dakota. Thanks for listening! 

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THE RUT IS ON FIRE!!! (Rattling In Bucks)

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Transcript

Speaker 1

Welcome to Wired to Hunt's rut Fresh Radio, bringing you the latest reports from the Whitetail Woods, presented by First Light, creating proven versatile hunting apparel for the stand, saddle or blind. First Light go farther, stay longer, and now your hosts Case Smith and Tyler Jones.

Speaker 2

This is Reughfresh Radio. I'm your host k C. Smith. And the rut is over? Or is it?

Speaker 3

Did you know that there are still a lot of running action. The bucks are still in the mood if they can find the right dough. Let's see if they're in your state. This is Retfresh.

Speaker 2

Let's go.

Speaker 3

Welcome to Retfresh Radio. Y'all, I am your host k C.

Speaker 2

Smith. We are brought to you first Light gear.

Speaker 3

Tyler Jones is here and in attendance via telecommunication not telekinesis.

Speaker 2

Maybe I don't know, he might be capable of that. Mark Kenyon, what's up? Man?

Speaker 4

It's good to be here. Good to be here. And when you say telekinesis the first thing that comes on mind's tenacious d Now retrospect you probably do you guys? Do you have you ever listened to Nation?

Speaker 2

I hate to admit it, but I have.

Speaker 4

There's a good song and about telekinesis. So I don't know. That's that's a fun off topic.

Speaker 3

The one that for me was a Pokemon. There was a Pokemon that was like a telekinetic.

Speaker 4

Do you remember that, Mark, I was not a Pokemon player.

Speaker 2

I can't believe it.

Speaker 4

Okay, yeah, you're you're the nerd today.

Speaker 2

I mean, here's the deal.

Speaker 4

I love this, this is great. Let's go down this path further.

Speaker 2

Pokemon, star Wars. What else?

Speaker 4

Man, Lord of the Rings?

Speaker 3

I can we can go on Man.

Speaker 2

Star Trek. I got some Star Trek game. He's a lot like Sheldon. Yeah, random that, Like.

Speaker 4

Are we talking about deer today?

Speaker 2

Though?

Speaker 4

We're talking about deer right, Well that's in.

Speaker 3

The interviews just start. It's just just just for the last But no, this is Reference radio where we talk about the rut and all things fresh, and it's on the radio.

Speaker 2

All right.

Speaker 3

So we've been doing a lot of deer hunting, Mark, You've been doing some deer hunting in the coldest place known to man. It seems it feels like that today it is snowy and like wind chill sub ten degrees at least.

Speaker 4

So yeah, I was actually just out there this morning, and my fingers are splitting. I don't know if you guys had that, but when you're outside hunting for so long in that cold, dry weather, my fingers start to actually split. So I got I just put band aids and like neo sporn on my fingertips because they're bleeding. And yeah, it is chilly.

Speaker 2

So were you hunting this morning?

Speaker 4

I was not hunting this morning.

Speaker 3

I've been hunting a bunch YEP.

Speaker 4

I was hunting last night. I was out the day before, the day before that, and I showed a couple days for Thanksgiving. I was hunting most of the week before that. So the last you know, seven to nine days, I've been out there for almost all of it. So it's all been in Michigan. So yeah, I feel like I got a good sense of what has been going on out here.

Speaker 2

Tell us about what's been going on.

Speaker 4

Well, I think what I have seen is the beginning of that big shift as we shift out of November and out of the rut for much of the country and into that next phase of the year, which for you know, those of us up here in Michigan and elsewhere, we're shifting into that late season type of behavior.

Speaker 5

Pattern.

Speaker 4

So, I mean, like I said, I've been out in the woods.

Speaker 6

Ten out of the last twelve days something like that, and you know, I was still seeing some of that you know, cruising, some of that bumping around stuff, you know, in that last that third week of November in the beginning of the twenties.

Speaker 4

But the last few days, maybe since the twenty fifth or so, I've not seen anything the last three or four hunts like ruddy type behavior. Now that can change, right, You can still see that kind of thing happen this time of the year, especially if you get a little dough fon that pops into heat here. But almost everything has been on a feeding pattern. It's been you know, every dear coming out at the end of daylight heading out to go feed in the highest carbohydrate type food

source around, and Bucks just mining their own business. Bucks just feeding does just feeding. It looks like October, right, I mean they're back on the same things they were doing October first, but now it's a different food source and it's much colder and deer are more pressured now. So that's I think. Another thing, right is we're going

back to that bed defeed pattern. But these are deer that have been hunted for two plus months now, so they're a lot more weary, not moving as early unless you can find those spots where they've been able to evade hunting pressure. Because we were in our second week of gun season here in Michigan, so there's been a ton of hunting pressure. So deer are jumpy. That is definitely another thing I've seen, like definitely on edge, constantly

looking around, constantly thinking they're going to get bothered. So so yeah, that's what I'm seeing. We had a big cold front come through. It's been very cool, like I mentioned, and we had snow the last two days. So the last two days deer ever really been on their feet, hitting the food source and in my case cut corn, and the day before the snow arrived that evening before they really got after it. So how they don't know if I'm rambling too much, but that's that's been exciting stuff.

Speaker 2

Your listeners are used to that. How did the deer know? I'm just how did the deer know this?

Speaker 3

Scott kind of said that as a joke, rap, but like, seriously, is what do you think it is?

Speaker 2

Why did deer? Howhy are you able to predict fronts? Like that.

Speaker 4

My best guess, I think it has to be related to barmentric pressure, right, Like, I'm guessing that's the only condition change.

Speaker 2

What organ are they using to detect the barometric pressure?

Speaker 3

Mmmm?

Speaker 4

That I do not know?

Speaker 3

See this is where and then maybe this is not really arough fresh type thing. But we're going to dive into a little bit. I like to think that barimetric pressure matters. But scientifically we should be able to, like you like the science mark, like, scientifically we should science we should be able to point to an organ that says the barometric pressure is affected, right, And maybe it is like the inner ear or something, and we don't quite understand how it works.

Speaker 4

But I don't know, Well, dyll isn't I'm no, I don't have this issue. But isn't it a pretty well documented phenomenon that people can feel the change in bear rut pressure Arthroic people will feel it in the joints, so when certain pressure systems come in.

Speaker 2

My wife had surgery on she basically has a fake heal bone, and she can feel she can feel the weather for sure.

Speaker 4

So I wonder if it's something like that.

Speaker 2

I don't know, I don't know.

Speaker 3

We might need to talk to some some body else who actually study this stuff or something instead of us just making up some assumptions.

Speaker 2

But I like it too. I like it. I like the thought of the bone thing.

Speaker 4

It would it would make sense like from a you know, evolutionary perspective, like for this deer to survive, they have to be well prepared for changes and conditions, right, Like for if a deer wants to make it through a tough snowstorm, years and years worth of tough snowstorms, it would behoove these critters to you know, get on and

pack on the food ahead of those things. So you would think that, you know, natural selection would eventually select for deer or wildlife of a kind that that knows to feed at the right times or to feed a little extra at the right times. And so I got to believe something like that has led to deer being able to not necessarily predict but they just get hungry sooner or something when that change comes on them. I

don't know. We can kind of smell like the rainstorm coming in it, right, we can kind of feel certain things changing, and they are much more tuned than we are. So for sure, I gotta believe there's something there.

Speaker 3

They don't have as many microplastics in their system. I don't think it helps you out, that's true, Yeah, Mark, it would seem as if you did some good predicting of your own potentially and have been out doing some hunting. But the listeners need to tune in to the actual Wired to Hunt show that launches on Thursday of this week to get the full story.

Speaker 4

Yeah, I've got an exciting story to share tomorrow on the main show. All right, man, So yeah, I'm very excited to share that story. I'm actually going to record it right after we get off the phone here, and it's good. It'll be good.

Speaker 2

It'll be good, sweet awesome. Tyler.

Speaker 3

Speaking of recording, who have we got interviews with this week for reports from around the country.

Speaker 2

Well, we've got Hunter Lindsay out in Kentucky. You know, we actually have two hunters. There's lots of hunters on this podcast. But Hunter Dickens one of our our acquaintances, a good friend of ours that does a lot of stuff with us at the Element. He's out in Texas doing the thing. The dude has had a streak of a year in Texas. Pretty impressive, you know, resume. There are good buddy Barrett Nigas, who is an Instagram friend and now a real friend after we get to talk

on the phone. He's in Alabama, which they have weird ruts down there, so it's gonna be like a report, you know, that's different than what most of the country's given right now. And then our good friend Scott from Arkansas, he's gonna be on here too.

Speaker 3

Sweet man, let's get this thing going. I'm on the phone with Hunter Lindsay. He's been doing some hunting in Kentucky. And if you ever watched a viral clip of an owl landing on a dude's camera, that's this guy.

Speaker 4

Hunter.

Speaker 2

What's going on, man.

Speaker 7

Not much, not much, just doing some chores after I've tagged out in Kentucky.

Speaker 2

Oh man, you let the cat out of the bag? You killed a big buck?

Speaker 4

Yeah?

Speaker 5

I did.

Speaker 2

Yeah, Way to go, man. What was that deer doing.

Speaker 7

He was actually coming to a field to check for some dose had been consistent on that side of the farm for a while. We had him on camera and I finally decided to go in after him and it worked out. At what I think it was three thirty eight in the afternoon, so I got it done pretty quick.

Speaker 2

Gole Lee.

Speaker 3

How so how early is that compared to your sunset where you're at.

Speaker 4

Uh, sunset's probably around five five.

Speaker 3

Twenty Okay, so he's a good two hours before sunset. This deer is out checking for dose.

Speaker 4

Yep.

Speaker 3

And that's still that's pretty much late November and that's still going on there in Kentucky.

Speaker 2

Yeah.

Speaker 7

Yeah, it seems like the doe uh in that in this past week, uh, you know, they were starting the bucks were starting to look for those dough that were starting to come into that second heat, and and.

Speaker 4

It seemed like that was what he was doing.

Speaker 7

He had finally gotten off that first dough and heat that he had found, and he was coming to find another one out here in this big cornfield with some with a long hardwood draw through it.

Speaker 3

That's cool, man. Do you think that as you look to like what's coming up? Is that still on the rise As far as bucks in that seeking moat.

Speaker 7

I think that they're still gonna be looking for some hot dose, but not near as hard as they were, you know, a week or so ago. I think, you know, in the next week or two they're probably gonna start moving towards a feeding pattern, but they're probably you know, they're not going to turn down a hot dough if they find one.

Speaker 2

Got you, So, what kind of food would you be would you be looking to hunt if you were gonna be out there the next week.

Speaker 4

Probably some high nutritious greens.

Speaker 7

If there's still some acorns around, then you know, if you're in a big wood setting, then try and find, you know, some acorns that are left. But those ag fields are uh, you know where they're playing winter wheat and stuff like that. I think that's a that's a big thing to key on in December.

Speaker 2

Is y'all's winter wheat in pretty good shape right now.

Speaker 7

It's probably about you know, two or three inch, which is maybe four at the highest.

Speaker 2

Get some of that cold weather that's coming in across the country.

Speaker 7

Oh yeah, No, it's been in the thirties just about every morning here so far for the past you know, handful of days. It's it's been great weather. You know, highs in the in the mid to upper forties. It's just been perfect.

Speaker 2

Yeah, has that? Do you think the daylight movement is gonna still sustain even though bucks are kind of cooling on the rut a little bit.

Speaker 4

That's hard to say.

Speaker 7

I think that's gonna be situational, but I think that this colder weather will definitely help with that more than than note. You know, we've kind of had some hotter weather towards the beginning of November.

Speaker 4

I think, uh, this colder weather at the end.

Speaker 7

Of November will definitely start, you know, and the rut starting subside a little bit. I think that that's definitely gonna.

Speaker 4

Help with some daylight movement on some food sourses. That's cool.

Speaker 2

What do you think about that moon? It's just real big and bright all night long up there.

Speaker 5

You know.

Speaker 7

I've seen that moon phase, you know, helps movement some, but I don't pay to it and pay as much attention to it as I do, you know, just better temperature and pressure conditions and all that stuff. Some people really focus in on that moon phase, you know, unless it's just like glaringly bright outside at just all night long.

Speaker 4

I don't really pay attention to it too much.

Speaker 2

Sweet Well, in the next week, if you had to put a number one to ten on buck movement, what you're predicted Buck movement is, what would you what would you put it?

Speaker 4

I'd probably say four or five.

Speaker 2

Okay, all right, so you think that's a downgrade from this week.

Speaker 7

Yes, I think that they're going to start uh yeah, I think that they're going to be not searching for the dose as much as they were this past week. But you know, it's all situational, and you could be in an area where.

Speaker 5

You know, there's a.

Speaker 7

Couple more hot doughs than than not and they could just be going crazy. But at this point, I think that the rut is on definitely on the downhill side.

Speaker 2

Cool man.

Speaker 3

Well, thanks for all the great information, dude, and congrats on all the big bucks have been hitting the ground.

Speaker 4

I appreciate it. It's been a good year.

Speaker 7

It was some ups and downs, but it definitely turned out to be a better season.

Speaker 4

I thought it was going to be.

Speaker 2

All right. I've got a guy that people are familiar with here on the phone. His name is Hunter Dickens, and he is a big contributor on our YouTube channel, the Elements YouTube channel shooting Bucks. I mean, at least a couple of year, but this year it's it's been good for you man. Actually, they're in Texas where you've been hunting. You had some success the other night, correct, I.

Speaker 4

Did I did.

Speaker 8

Texas seems would be the only place I can find success at the moment.

Speaker 2

Oh, I don't know about that. But you you are doing well there. Man. You've have you shot? How many bucks have you shot in Texas this year?

Speaker 4

The three Texas bucks?

Speaker 2

Man? You got it? Dialed?

Speaker 8

Man, I've been blessed, Yes, I have. It's it's been a lot of fun.

Speaker 2

Now. The Bucky shot through the night was just a big frame looked like an eight point with maybe a couple of extras, but like a mainframe eight What was he doing?

Speaker 8

That deer was fresh out of the bed really, so, yes, yes, fresh out of the bed at last light. So I didn't have I didn't have time to get in there on midday movement.

Speaker 4

So I just I got as close to his bed as I could. I'm pretty sure I heard him stand up out of his bed.

Speaker 2

Really, what was this? What was what was the weather like that day?

Speaker 8

It was gosh that day it would have been we was just wearing a hoodie, I know that. So it was in the fifties to sixties.

Speaker 2

Just that's probably what it was that evening. Gotcha? Did it feel hot for the time of year or normal?

Speaker 8

Yesky, Yeah, it was a lot warmer than I would have liked.

Speaker 2

Okay, So you think that has to do with the small amount of daylight movement that that buck was, you know, portraying?

Speaker 4

Ye partially.

Speaker 8

I think the moon has some contributions to that as well, because I've been seeing a lot of midday movement kind of that twelve to one o'clock hour has been really peeking for me on cameras, which I know you can't go off everything the camera shows you, but I.

Speaker 4

Can get a general idea of what movement is.

Speaker 8

So I've been seeing a lot that twelve to one, and then I didn't have time to get in, so I went and.

Speaker 4

Got as close to his bed as I thought.

Speaker 8

I knew the general area of where that buck was, and I suspect i'd set up within about sixty yards of his bed.

Speaker 2

So talk about the moon, what stage it was in when you shot that deer, and how that affects to your movement in your opinion.

Speaker 4

That was I believe.

Speaker 8

Three three days ago, so we would have been right at full moon and now we're at the backside of the moon. But that was three days ago, so I believe that you get a lot of midday movement, and then you get a lot of those bucks who are

coming off the rut. This is kind of their final push for the end of November, and so they're going to be doing a lot of zombie walking during the day, especially you know, midday and in the evening, they're just gonna be traveling looking for that last little bit of doze that they can find until the next cycle world's around.

Speaker 2

Gotcha. So you think when he got out of his bed, that was his intention, was to go bind those for the evening.

Speaker 8

Yes, that was it. And I had set up on a known travel route for a lot of doze and so he could almost just lay there in his bed and smell doze as they came by.

Speaker 2

Gotcha.

Speaker 8

And so he was just taking more of the lackadaisical approach to it with it being such warm weather.

Speaker 2

Right, So in the next week or so, would you change what you're doing based off the thing weather moon? What are you going to do different in tactic? Tactically, see, I would go sit.

Speaker 3

I would go sit.

Speaker 4

Probably forty yards off the edge of food.

Speaker 2

I would be really.

Speaker 8

Focusing back on food sources for the next couple of weeks and be sitting back on some soft edges to them, or just inside the timber line. Gotcha, if you've got if you've got food plots, or if you're hunting standing corn beans, whatever it is, I would be back off that edge, but relatively close to a food source.

Speaker 2

Okay, So in the next week or so, if you had to make a prediction on buck movement, and you had to rate it on a scale of one to ten, what would you what number would you give it?

Speaker 4

Probably seven?

Speaker 8

All right, dude, I like it because the bucks almost become a little bit patternable around these food sources. So they're gonna be for you know, a week or two. They're gonna be there, and it's it's if you've got a really good food source, it's gonna hold them because I mean, their bodies are deprived of nutrients right now and they're gonna be wanting.

Speaker 4

To build that back up.

Speaker 8

And especially if you've got good food source, you're also going to have doze in year lands that are going to be coming in later, you know, in a.

Speaker 4

Couple of weeks.

Speaker 8

I've I've got some properties that don't heat up till December.

Speaker 2

Yeah, okay, Well that's good news, man. I appreciate the report, and uh, good job there in Texas, dude. If you know, people are looking forward to seeing those videos on the Element. They will be on as soon as we can get them edited. We're all out hunting like crazy right now, but they're we're working on them. So one hundred thanks for the report, man, I'll be talking to you soon.

Speaker 4

Yes, sir, it's a blast.

Speaker 2

I've got Barrett Nigas here, he's with long time bow hunting out in Alabama doing some deer hunting. Nextually, you're heading to deer hunt right now, right.

Speaker 4

That is correct?

Speaker 5

Awesome, I got a cold front coming.

Speaker 2

Oh man, that's what I'm talking about. That's a there's a you know, usually only a few types of people that like cold fronts on the way in winter in the wintertime, and that's uh, you know people sometimes in the South we're like, oh yeah, we get a snow this year, and then there's deer hunters, you know, and that's that's us. So, uh, your your was it your brother that recently had success there in Alabama?

Speaker 4

Yeah, it was my brother.

Speaker 5

Yeah, he shot one over the Thanksgiving break here a few days ago actually, uh Sunday morning.

Speaker 2

Yeah, that's all right, man as a good buck to what h what was he keen inn on right there?

Speaker 5

Well, he was really hunting, hunting in between I guess

you call I think this deer's two bedding areas. Uh, he'd showed up a few days earlier, and it was really just like some five foot tall you know, i'd call it just some you know, it's like a clear cut, but really just five foot tall planted pines and newly planted pine slash clear cut where that there could kind of move pretty safely between two bedding areas and we get there's like a hardwood hardwood flat there that we've hunted for years, and he was moving in between those

two areas. I think you guys would call it a d M A a deer movement area that we've hunted for years there and kind of some historical movement. And H. He had shown up two days before. And so this time of the year in Alabama, they're on a pretty good pattern. We're in that pre rut stage. We're still a month and a half from our rut. So he had showed up two days prior, and you know, he was kind of on that pattern moving in between two we think two bedding areas.

Speaker 2

So when you say betting areas, is this like would you make these more like a doe betting area or a betting area that he's inhabiting.

Speaker 5

Yeah, so I would say it'd be buck betting. I mean it's like five foot tall weedy, you know.

Speaker 1

Three.

Speaker 5

I think they planted the pines there three years ago, two, three years ago, So those pines are getting up. I mean you can't hunt in them, you know. And those deer as soon as they walk into it, they disappear, you know. So you'd say a four year old buck like that, I mean he loves it, you know, as soon as he walks into it, he disappears, you know, kind of like those mature East Texas bucks. Same thing

with those mature Alabama bucks. Man, as soon as they can walk into some tall grass RP type stuff like that, I mean, that's like heaven for them. They walk into it, they disappear. They can lay in it all day, you know, get up at night, feed on acorns or whatever that that nearest food. Of course, you can you can bait in Alabama too, now, so the nearest corn pile on the neighbors or whatever it might be.

Speaker 2

So what you what would you uh, would you call it pre rut.

Speaker 5

Where you're at, I would say it's not quite pre rut, uh the deer shed velvet beginning of October here. But I see that like just that testosterone is picking up, and so I feel like they get on this feeding pattern in like October November, but come December, it's like they know like it's coming, and it's like this pre rut phase is like they're on a They're certainly on a bed to feed pattern right now. I've seen it with a couple other Bucks, and that's that's why I'm

going hunting now. It's because I think there's a few other Bucks that might be on that bed to feed pattern right now also. But there's certainly like we're starting to see some rub lines pop up. You know. I saw a group of bachelor Bucks, like some young bucks, they were just two year old, but they were locked up, you know, getting excited, especially with these cold fronts, are like locked up and they were pushing around for like five minutes.

Speaker 2

Yeah. So so in the next week, do you think that that's gonna continue to ramp up with this cold front coming in? Is it gonna Is that gonna that kind of rutty type movement gonna continue to increase or is it gonna be about the same next week in your opinion, Yeah.

Speaker 5

I think it continues to increase all the way through the month of December.

Speaker 2

Like yeah, so then December.

Speaker 5

Will start popping up. Yeah, those scraps will start popping up and stuff like that.

Speaker 2

Yeah. And the and the rut for you is win.

Speaker 5

Uh, the rut will be like the peak of the rut in Central Alabama will be mid January.

Speaker 2

Okay, okay, cool man. Well there's still some time left to get on some of that pre rut movement. You know. The best thing about that is deer still pretty patternable typically during that and but they can be a little more. They can show up in daylight more so. It's a it's probably a pretty good time of year. Tell your brother congrats. I got one more question for you. On a scale of one to ten, what do you think buck movement is going to be like in Central Alabama in the next week.

Speaker 4

I would say like an eight.

Speaker 5

We just came off the full moon and we have this, Man, this is like one of the best cold fronts I think we've had all year. We've had some warm weather, so we have this cold front coming, and I think we have a decent moon and a cold front coming, so I think maybe you can get on a good buck this next the next few days here.

Speaker 2

So it's awesome though, awesome, I'm hoping. Yeah, well, I hope that it goes well for you too, man, And appreciate the time we'll be talking to you. I'm sure at some point soon, Man, maybe next year or maybe later this year when the rut's kicking. But appreciate the report. Bett. Yeah, thank you, Toll on the phone. Now, I've got my friend Scott from Arkansas, and Scott has hunted. What your whole life in Arkansas? Pretty much? Right? Yeah? I have.

Speaker 4

That's about the only place I've hunted.

Speaker 2

Yeah, so you know quite a bit. You're as qualified as anybody. Probably talk about it. I know you're gonna be humble and say no, no, you know, y'all do this and y'all do that. Whatever. But Scott, what have you been seeing in the deer woods lately? Uh?

Speaker 9

We're you know, if you're in it, you're in it, I think. But I think right now, I think Bucks are definitely on the dose. I think we're past the pre rut and we're into the rut. You know, Arkansas is a funny state just because of water levels and the different terrain that we have. So I think really on X has done a great job at connecting the dots as far as giving you a good rut calendar, and I think they're pretty accurate.

Speaker 2

I really do. So far.

Speaker 9

I've just been really impressed with how that connects with what's really going on the ground.

Speaker 2

Sure, so you think, do you think the bucks are in what a lot of people consider the lockdown stage right now? They are.

Speaker 9

I believe they are, And I think that's one of the reasons why that if if you're not in it, you need to move because they're not going far and they're not roaming around like they were, you know, earlier in the month. So yeah, I think they're definitely in the lockdown.

Speaker 2

Yeah.

Speaker 3

So a lot of times for these southern states, you know, acorn crop is a big deal.

Speaker 2

Is that is there a lot of acorns right now? Or what does that look like?

Speaker 9

Man, we've seen in our area and the place that I hunt. Now it's going to be different, you know, because Arkansas is just so varied in terrain and topography. But in the area that I hunt in particular, there is far fewer acorns than I've seen in the last several years, and I think that has to do with water. I just think that there's been a little bit of water shock among some of the hardwood trees around here,

which for us is actually better. It's just better it keeps that it gives us an at least the opportunity to look for feed trees and look for a little bit more condensed movement and patterns.

Speaker 4

That that helps us that way.

Speaker 9

The deer that they can they've got some places they've got to go if they're going to get into those acorns.

Speaker 2

Is there an acorn that they prefer in your.

Speaker 9

Opinion, yeah, I think you know, obviously white oaks are are you know, I preferred acorn, but but water oaks I have found in my area. They love water oaks, and I kind of key in on those. But you know, as the season goes on, red oaks produce here a lot later in the year, and and a red oak tree is usually your friend, especially as the rut advances, because you got to think about it, the buck is

pursuing the dough, the dose still doing dough things. And so if you find the dose and you you find the food source, because the dose are still going to the food source, you're gonna find the bucks, and you're.

Speaker 4

Going to be in the in the mix for the rut.

Speaker 9

So especially late rut, you know those red oak trees that are kind of in the open, that that that big old buck wouldn't go near any other time of year chasing, you know, a younger that's coming to estras late, you got a good chance of killing a big deer that way.

Speaker 2

That's kind of you know that that's a good point. I think about this a lot, and I have in the past, but especially on like private land, man, if you can hunt, if you can hunt food sources like agricultural food sources, a lot of times, man, where the deer aren't necessarily pressured off like they might be on something that's closer to public or more accessible to a public that it's almost like you can get away with hunting deer on ag and close to egg from like

September to January. In a lot of cases. You know, it's like you really almost if you had good access, you wouldn't even need to move your set, you know.

Speaker 9

No, I completely agree, And I think that's one of the things about the big Woods when when you hunt the big woods, and I define big woods as tracks of land that are not influenced by agriculture necessarily, So when you hunt those big woods, I mean, the deer are much more dispersed. It's a much more complex thing. I think predictability as far as like where they're coming

from their travel routes. You know, you don't have that in the big Woods, So the deer could show up in a place that you didn't expect it, which affects, you know, shot placement, It effects you know, everything about you because it's kind of a surprise. Whereas when you have agriculture and you've got you know ingress negress routes and you've got a good way in, you know, you're not having to you know, bump around.

Speaker 4

And try to figure out where you ought to set up.

Speaker 9

I think agriculture gives you a distinct advantage in that. But I think when you kill a deer in the big Woods and you pursued it and you found it in that environment that it was in, I just feel like there's just like a piece of accomplishment in that you know, I think there's a piece that just says, you know, I didn't have the advantage of those other things. I'm not saying I disagree with emer it's unethical or

nothing like that. I'm just saying, challenge wise, it's kind of like the person that says, you know, I want to shoot, you know, a traditional bow as opposed to a compound bow. I think there's definitely there's a learning curve, and it's more difficult I think in the big woods.

Speaker 2

Yep.

Speaker 3

So since it's already difficult in big woods, we got a full moon right now. For the next week, it's going to be you know, kind of waning, but it's still going to be pretty big.

Speaker 2

And you know, you said it's kind of the lockdown thing.

Speaker 3

So if you had to kind of predict what you thought the buck movement would be like over the next week on a scale of one to ten, what would you think it would be.

Speaker 9

I don't think the moon when they're in the lockdown affects them as much as it does maybe other times of the year, because they're going to be doing what they're going to be doing at that particular time. And again, I just look at the rut this way at this phase of it, and the beauty of Arkansas that I've always loved about this state and why I loved up to hunt here, which obviously I live here, is that when one particular area begins to cool off, you can move.

Sometimes it's twenty miles, You go twenty miles and you've got a completely different time frame for the rut. And so it's kind of like chasing the migration of ducks. You know, you're you're you're following that that rut down, and I think the obviously they're going to move a lot at not but they're nocturnal anyway. I mean, it's I always laugh when people say, you know that they're just going to go nocturnal. They are nocturnal, their entire

eye structure, everything about them is nocturnal. But them showing up during the day should be the abnormality. But I would continue, you know, I mean, obviously monitor, you could monitor some of your game cameras and stuff. But I feel like, personally, from my experience, I feel like weather patterns.

Speaker 4

Affect their movement. I feel like they're up on their feet more.

Speaker 9

I also think food sources is a really really important part of this aspect, because again, the dough the does are going to be doing what dose do. If you're in the dose, you're gonna be in the bucks, you know for sure.

Speaker 2

Hey, give me that one to ten number.

Speaker 9

Come on, one to ten for for for next week.

Speaker 2

Yep, for the next week.

Speaker 4

Okay, So ten.

Speaker 2

Ten is good. Ten is the best day you've ever had in the woods, like the best jumps in your truck.

Speaker 8

You know.

Speaker 4

I'll say this, I think I think moving.

Speaker 9

I think the area that I'm hunting in right now is at the tail end of what's really good, and there's.

Speaker 4

Probably a day or two of that left.

Speaker 9

I think I'm gonna probably make a move, and I think you could be in the I'm gonna say you could be in the eight nine.

Speaker 2

Well, well that's a good day. Golly, it's good numbers, good numbers. Think it's me excited. Thanks for the report, Scott. Now, I'm sure we'll be talking you as soon as good to hear from you, man.

Speaker 4

Absolutely, thank you, guys.

Speaker 3

A bunch of good info from a bunch of good dudes there.

Speaker 2

If you haven't.

Speaker 3

Noticed, the South Dakota hunt from the Element in twenty twenty three is on the meat eater channel.

Speaker 2

There will be a link to that below in the description.

Speaker 3

Go watch, go comment, and just show us all the love because we really appreciate that and we just thank y'all for the support.

Speaker 2

Very very much. Also, Mark has a very important message for you on his main show podcast that comes out tomorrow. Don't forget to tune into Wire to Hunt and hear that story. This has been ret fresh, Keep it fresh. Wo a Noon

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