Bowhunting Archives - Page 8 of 65

1 11, 2023

8 Best Days to Hunt Deer In November

Clay Hanback2023-10-24T13:26:32-04:00November 1st, 2023|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Hunting, Deer Rut, whitetail deer|Comments Off on 8 Best Days to Hunt Deer In November

November 6, 2012, Wisconsin bowhunter Dusty Gerrits (picture left) sat and waited on a 150-class buck he called Tiny. “We had pictures of Tiny on a scrape the morning before, so I set up right there,” he says. Two small bucks showed early, but no Tiny. All of a sudden and out of the blue a giant rolled in! Not Tiny but bigger! “He pushed an 8-point off the scrape, but no shot,” says Dusty. Finally, he saw his opening and fired. The buck crashed 50 yards away. The monster netted 189 and change, at the time the new state record archery typical. Regardless of weather, moon or other environmental factors, the vast majority of does in the northern two-thirds [...]

27 10, 2023

Best Bowhunting on Halloween

Clay Hanback2023-10-22T10:54:03-04:00October 27th, 2023|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Hunting, whitetail deer|Comments Off on Best Bowhunting on Halloween

Magical stuff happens on Halloween, so dress up in camo, paint your face and go bowhunting. Compared to the last several years, we’ve noticeably cooler weather for October, and let’s hope the trend holds. A little cold front followed by a few days of high-pressure with a light northwest wind and temperatures in the 35- to 55-degree range… If those conditions come together on Halloween, you’ll see deer moving, and bucks starting to rut. Moon-wise, no trick but a lot of treat this Halloween. Based on the full hunter’s moon October 28, I predict good to great deer movement October 27 and continuing through November 4. This is one of my favorite windows to bowhunt any year, and made better [...]

22 10, 2023

Use Tarsal Scent for Pre-Rut Bucks

Clay Hanback2023-10-22T11:17:00-04:00October 22nd, 2023|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Guns & Loads, Deer Hunting, Deer Rut, Gear Reviews, whitetail deer|1 Comment

This is a true story, I swear. One morning in Virginia, I shot a 10-pointer with my muzzleloader and got on the trail. I could smell his rankness in the air and in the blood as I tracked, and when I found him I covered my nose with my sleeve and thought, Whoa, you stink. The deer’s hocks were dripping and black as motor oil. I rolled the buck over, held my breath and started gutting. Leaves popped. I peeked up and saw another 10-pointer bearing down on me, head and rack held low, hair bristling on his neck. I crouched lower behind the dead deer. A rut-crazed buck is unpredictable, and I figured staying put rather than trying to [...]

19 10, 2023

How to Hunt Deer in Suburbs

Clay Hanback2023-10-15T10:05:10-04:00October 19th, 2023|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Guns & Loads, Deer Hunting, whitetail deer|Comments Off on How to Hunt Deer in Suburbs

I live and hunt a couple of hours outside the concrete jungle of northern Virginia, for decades one of the fastest growing regions in the United States. Even in these difficult times of Bidenomics, suburbia continues to sprawl into the once-rural counties where I grew up hunting. New roads and houses continue to carve up the land, and the deer habitat, across the region. And the deer kill keeps going up! Hunters tag tens of thousands of whitetails in small woods and thickets (many only 10- to 50-acres), and we shoot some massive bucks. A good portion of the harvest occurs during the bow and muzzleloader seasons in late October and early November. I think these are the best times [...]

16 10, 2023

Is a Big Acorn Crop Good or Bad for Deer Hunting?

Clay Hanback2023-10-15T09:25:26-04:00October 16th, 2023|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Hunting, whitetail deer|Comments Off on Is a Big Acorn Crop Good or Bad for Deer Hunting?

The National Deer Association posted this on Instagram: Notice how the red line and the black line seem to avoid each other on this chart (left) from a Connecticut @ctfishandwildlife study? When acorns (black) are abundant, deer hunting success (red) plunges, and vice versa. This same pattern has been documented in many other states consistently. In years with fewer acorns, deer have to move more to find this important fall food, so it’s easier to pattern and see them. Any year the woods are flooded with acorns where you hunt, you’ll have to work a little harder to be successful. Don’t just settle for trees with acorns under them. Look for those with the heaviest deer sign as well: tracks, trails, [...]