Archery Hunting during the Rut at Ohio Whitetail Deer Outfitters

Our Rut hunts are the last week of Oct - first two weeks of Nov. We sometimes have a corn feeder on your parcel, but not always. We have some unique funnel areas where I do not want to pull in does and have them loiter about. I want that buck that is traveling through to stay on track, and to stay on the scrapes on his way to the does. During the rut hunts, it will be something you can decide if you want feeders in your area or not. It will change week to week on the parcel we choose, we can discuss this by phone. Usually, (weather permitting), the Bucks are running scrapes the first and second weeks of November, but as the number of does in Estrus increase, the Bucks, especially the big ones, will have plenty of action with out checking his scrape line. So as this happens, we move closer to the funnels, feeders and doe bedding areas. Last year one of my clients had to wait for a buck to dismount from the doe, then he arrowed him. At this time of year if you want a big buck, then hunt the does! Late November most does are out of estrus.

Some Bucks are tired and slow down. Others go back to the scrape lines, but not with the daily maintenance we had seen the first week of November. We usually rest a parcel of property between hunters. But if the previous hunter was scent free, quiet and a good hunter, then the action can keep getting better in November. So there will be exceptions to the "give it a rest" rule. But, these are things I want the client input on. If you want a rested parcel, that´s fine, but there could be hotter scrape lines available even though a Buck was shot off of it last week. I might mention here we are hunting about 4,000 acres in Guernsey, Noble and Muskingum counties. Some places because they have been solid for years, I can tell you exactly what tree he will be under next November 10th.

Other parcels have variables so we must scout each week to know what tree is the one for this week. In years past, I have had many, many years with 100% shooting opportunity. Some kill ratio's as high as 80%. I always enjoyed the challenge of seeing how short of time period the hunter was in the tree stand and tagged out. My record is a PA client that took 1 hour and 10 minutes to tag a nice 8 pointer. The next year it took a lot longer for him. I think it was 3 or 4 hours and he killed a 9 pointer. The Buck had just busted up the clients Buck decoy and was gloating over the broken foam Buck when he got double lunged.

During the rut things can change often. I rely on a lot of scouting and trail cameras to place the hunters in high traffic areas. Because of the active farming environment I have a unique set up, the deer do not pay much attention to 4-Wheelers, because they see them so much and they do them no harm.

My entire hunting career it seemed the best scrape lines were always on old logging roads and the edges of small meadows that had the appropriate over hanging branches. That´s the perfect place for the bucks to set up for the does.

With that in mind, I use a different kind of hunting equipment than most people, a big John Deere Dozer. In the summer months I build new logging roads, clear shooting lanes around the best trees for stand placement, I rework meadows and the like. I can improve the shooting lanes, put brush where I don´t want a deer to go, thus influencing there travel patterns, all the while leaving the important overhanging branches thus influencing locations of the primary scrapes. The fact that either I or my family owns the property I am free to clear land for food plots, build ponds so the deer do not have to leave the property for water, build a road so the deer can move around a hillside easier and quieter, all the while working with primary scrape location and bow and gun shooting lanes in mind,

This fall there were several bucks harvested in areas that was built by the dozer this summer. It´s gratifying to see immediate results, I have been doing this type of work for over 30 years, It all started for better access to very remote parts of our farms and to remove mature crabapple and elm trees and get it back to pasture for the cattle, but over the years it slowly evolved so now it´s now it´s done exclusively to aid in the hunting of deer. We have even fenced out large sections of timber so cattle will not displace or bother the deer. Hundreds of acres are used exclusively for producing and holding deer.

The abundant road system allows for fast and easy access to the farms with a 4-wheeler to scout, place stands, feed and check cameras. All the while the deer either stand and watch or just get out of my way, they show much less fear of me on a 4-wheeler that when I am on foot. It allows me to run a farm quickly, find the open scrape lines, establish baits, drop off stands and get out. The deer either see or hear me come and go then they go about their business . By using big equipment and 4-wheelers it has allowed me to maintain the high quality and high success rates in the short time period of the rut when the bucks are the most predictable and active.

I will need to know what type of set up a hunter wants, I need to know the shooting distance they can handle, how high they want to get up a tree, or if they want a ground blind, how far they are willing to walk in to a stand location, we have some big pieces of ground, you could have a one or two mile walk, with some steep hills, we have some short walks, some stands will produce fewer deer, but the possibility of a Big Buck is better, or medium sized bucks could be plentiful on certain stands, some stands are in open mature hardwoods, some stands are in the thickest hedge apple trash you ever seen, I want to talk and visit with each perspective client by phone so I can learn what he or she can handle and would like a stand set up.

Read the hunt descriptions, and give me a call if you have any questions.

Whitetail Deer hunting includes a full five (5) days of hunting.
Move in and setup on Sunday (mid-morning arrival).
Monday - Friday Deer hunting.
Pull stands and depart on Saturday (noon departure).
You will provide your own meals & hunting license.
Cost of the hunt is $2,000.

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