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Hunt report / Rut report

I sat all day yesterday. I didn't intend to until would I would estimate to be a 150' bed down at 0930 about 30 yards from me through some brush. I had to stand for the next 1.5 hours or was afraid he would best me if I went to sit down, that was rough. He didn't give me a shot though, just walked straight away from me once he got up. I decided to just sit the rest of the day in hopes he could come back by. I saw several deer in the morning, nothing midday at all except two does that ran in behind me from an open bean field, not sure what they were running from. The last hour though there was quite a bit of movement, I think 6 different bucks up moving and only one doe. All dinks expect for one nice 8 point that I would have been really tempted on had he given me a shot. A couple of the little guys spared.

Oh, and a hunter on the bordering property did a little bit of rattling. Some of the bucks could hear it and they did not react to it at all, they just stopped and listened. In fact the decent 8 point ran away when he heard it. It was not very convincing sounding rattling.
 
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Ried#3 said:
Saw 10+ different bucks this weekend but nothing older than 3.5. Just not quite ready here. SE Iowa.
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Where you at in SE Iowa. Live in Keokuk, hunt some of the public ground around here from time to time and have a lease just past Wever.
 
Movement is pretty good this AM. 15 does and I rattled in the same 120" 9 pointer twice so far, he was just as confused the second time as he was the first.
 
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Drove to des moines, and back, from Iowa city on business today. Many does and little bucks laying dead along the interstates.

Apparently some good movement going on to proute so many "casualties".
 
Drove to des moines, and back, from Iowa city on business today. Many does and little bucks laying dead along the interstates.

Apparently some good movement going on to proute so many "casualties".
 
Hey guys. Haven't posted In years. Oct 31 saw 8 bucks from when I walked in at 230 p.m. until dark. All cruising or flat out chasing. Can't ever remember having these temps this early and this much standing corn. Get in a tree!
 
Got out last night in Madison Cty 100 acre CRP field. Buddy killed a nice 150 in 10 on Sunday morning there and saw a ton of action, so I went back to the same stand. Had a 150 inch 8 pt walk by at 20 yds 5 minutes into the sit and gave him a pass. Grunted in another about the same size, he was about 35 yds and didn't offer the best shot, so he got a pass too. All in all, saw 8 or 9 bucks with 4 being 150+ and about 20 does. Very active night. Hunting Warren Cty tonight in hopes of running into one of the big boys I have on camera. Good luck to everyone.
 
Al Stockwell said:
Got out last night in Madison Cty 100 acre CRP field. Buddy killed a nice 150 in 10 on Sunday morning there and saw a ton of action, so I went back to the same stand. Had a 150 inch 8 pt walk by at 20 yds 5 minutes into the sit and gave him a pass. Grunted in another about the same size, he was about 35 yds and didn't offer the best shot, so he got a pass too. All in all, saw 8 or 9 bucks with 4 being 150+ and about 20 does. Very active night. Hunting Warren Cty tonight in hopes of running into one of the big boys I have on camera. Good luck to everyone.
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Are the bucks bedded in the CRP, or just cruising through? Sounds like good action
 
Do you guys like all this standing corn? I’d rather have all the corn out so all the areas of travel are a bit more condensed.
 
Ried#3 said:
Do you guys like all this standing corn? I’d rather have all the corn out so all the areas of travel are a bit more condensed.
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I personally don't like all the standing corn. On one of my properties that I hunt specifically, the deer really use the ag fields hard. I generally don't see much until the crops are out so this year is making it tough out there.
 
Ried#3 said:
Do you guys like all this standing corn? I’d rather have all the corn out so all the areas of travel are a bit more condensed.
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Generally speaking, seas of unharvested corn will keep the deer more dispersed and consequently harder to hunt. BUT...I know a guy that about every other year would shoot a nice buck in standing corn fields. His approach was to sit in a tree, surrounded by standing corn, where a waterway intersected with a fence line. His plan was that the deer would emerge from the corn and use either the waterway or the slough to travel from place to place.

They were very comfortable moving in the daylight since they had likely spent months walking around with impunity in that tall corn and pretty much never had human intrusion. As I recall, he generally nailed his buck within the first 2-3 weeks of the season starting, which made sense because that's when the corn is still up, etc. He also was a farmer himself and got busy during harvest as it got later into October.

I remember seeing one of his stands once, it was only about 8 feet off the ground because there was a shortage of suitable "stand" trees in that fenceline. But he shot a nice buck out of it that year...so I guess it was a good place. :)
 
Hardwood11 said:
Are the bucks bedded in the CRP, or just cruising through? Sounds like good action
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We have had 3-4 bigger bucks on camera all summer in this section, so I know that some of them are bedding there. This field lays in a valley with decent timber all around. I have hunted it for about 12 years, but really never focused on it real hard as it is about 30 miles from my house and I have some nice spots within 5 miles that I generally prefer. Tons of does are bedding here as well which I think bodes well for the next couple weeks getting some new bucks passing through.
 
Northeast Iowa, not to far away from Minnesota, sat last night the 31st, just seen does, and went this morning and had about a dozen does all within 15 yards of me for half an hour. No chasing yet.
 
I call NOW “the calm before the storm”. IMO with no evidence- next few days (I pry go out) - it is “slower” & imo (this has no backing, just my gut)... it’ll be “go time” MONDAY on for the “main event” we been waiting for. My Ebola is so bad- I think I need to stay away from people until dec 1. If u had mental & physical energy to push through 30 days (I know FEW that do, even if they had time to do it)
Time is upon us. :). So great!!!!
 
Sligh1 said:
I call NOW “the calm before the storm”. IMO with no evidence- next few days (I pry go out) - it is “slower” & imo (this has no backing, just my gut)... it’ll be “go time” MONDAY on for the “main event” we been waiting for.
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I would agree with this. I think we are just slightly too early yet to see consistent action. The occasional hot doe can make things seem like it's on, but I'd have a hard time convincing myself to sit all day just yet. Plus, I can't hunt tomorrow or Saturday due to prior engagements, so I have to convince myself that I'm not missing anything! :D
 
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