whitetail deer Archives

12 01, 2026

Is Whitetail Hunting the Best It’s Ever Been?

Clay Hanback2026-01-12T09:25:58-05:00January 12th, 2026|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Hunting, whitetail deer|0 Comments

It’s a good time to be a whitetail hunter in America. According to the National Deer Association’s 2025 Deer Report, “we are at historically high harvest levels, and the buck age structure is among the best in recorded history.” We're harvesting more than 3 million bucks across the country each season. From the pictures I've seen on social media, the recently concluded 2026 season was a banner year for big buck kills in many states. Buck Harvest by Region The NDA crunched the numbers and found that hunters in 23 of 37 states (62%) shot more bucks in 2023 (last year with hard confirmed stats) than their prior five-year average. In the Northeast, the harvest was up 4 percent; 7 [...]

8 01, 2026

4 Great Stands for the Deep-South Deer Rut

Clay Hanback2026-01-05T15:09:13-05:00January 8th, 2026|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Deer Rut, whitetail deer|0 Comments

There is no shortage of cutovers down in south Mississippi and Alabama, and they are great spots to kill a rutting buck in January, especially during a morning hunt. I like to post up on a regenerating clear-cut (3 to 5 years old) with brush, briars and brambles head high to a buck. If you’re bowhunting, hang a tree stand on an edge and near a well-used deer trail. With a rifle, I often just sit atop a pile of logs pushed together by a bulldozer where I can cover 200 yards or so. A buck is liable to push or chase a doe across a cut anytime of morning because he feels safe and hidden in the cover. If [...]

5 01, 2026

Where Do Deer Rut in January?

Clay Hanback2026-01-05T15:01:31-05:00January 5th, 2026|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Rut, whitetail deer|0 Comments

If you live and hunt anywhere in a 1,000-acre swath of the South below the 37th parallel, buckle up. Bucks are pushing does, and will continue to do so for the next six weeks or so. The latest deer rut in North America is finally here in these three states! Time to get out there and have some fun. Mississippi: Historical rut data compiled by state biologists shows that peak breeding occurs in mid-December in the northwestern counties. But as you move south across the state, the rut occurs progressively later in mid-December and into January. In the extreme southeastern counties, bucks push and chase does well into January, with breeding peaking from roughly January 24 through February 6. Louisiana: [...]

28 12, 2025

State of America’s Whitetail Buck Harvest

Clay Hanback2025-12-28T12:34:50-05:00December 28th, 2025|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, whitetail deer|0 Comments

According to the National Deer Association’s 2025 Deer Report, “we are at historically high harvest levels, and the buck age structure is among the best in recorded history.” Final figures show a nationwide buck harvest of more than 3 million animals, the highest buck kill since the turn of the century. Bucks by Region The NDA crunched the numbers and found that hunters in 23 of 37 states (62%) shot more bucks in 2023 than their prior five-year average. In the Northeast, the harvest was up 4 percent; 7 of 13 states in the region had a higher kill last season. While the buck harvest across the Midwest was only one percent above its five-year average, hunters in 6 of [...]

16 12, 2025

3 Great Stands for Rifle Deer Hunters

Clay Hanback2025-12-16T17:29:39-05:00December 16th, 2025|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, whitetail deer|0 Comments

One morning in Oklahoma, a guide named Jim Bob pointed me to a box blind and whispered, “When the sun comes up, you can see and shoot a country mile brother. Watch the tree line out front. Good luck.” I climbed into the box and the sun rose a splendid pink and blue. I couldn’t see a mile to the tree break, but might as well have. My rangefinder read 412 yards to the front edge of the timber. I refuse to shoot at a deer that far away, not even with a finely tuned rifle and a solid rest, so I was basically an observer the rest of the morning. Might as well make the best of it. I glassed [...]