Now is the time to hunt close to deer bedding areas. The deer have sensed the change in the seasons and have noticed the increased human activity in the woods. The mature bucks will most likely stay bedded until just before dark, so set up as close to the bedding area as you can without spooking the deer. I watched a doe come out of the swamp a half-hour before dark, but no bucks came out.
October is also a good time to hunt different stands than you normally hunt. I have a tendency to hunt a certain stand that has always produced good bucks in the past. But it is close to the bedding area and I believe that the bucks will sit tight until dark — then he can hear you get down from your stand and walk out of the woods. When this starts happening it’s time to let that stand rest for a while. I will then hunt other stands that I don’t hunt too much. You might catch deer leaving the bedding area from a different direction and get a shot at them by hunting the other stand.
As October progresses, it is the time that I start hunting mornings; I don’t hunt mornings too often during the early part of the season. I have found that the mature bucks have usually gone back to the bedding area by first light. But as we get to the later part of the month you will start to see some scrapes and rubs made by the younger bucks as they start sensing that some does are coming into heat. This is the time to start calling and rattling. This technique has worked for me in the past. A Saturday morning in late October, I was sitting in my funnel stand and decided to do some rattling. A half-hour after I rattled I looked to the north toward the funnel and a deer with nice polished antlers was looking my way. I got ready and as if on cue, it moved in front of me and I drew when it went behind a tree. As it stepped out into one of my shooting lanes, cut way back in August, I put the pin on it and watched my arrow disappear into its chest. It was a great feeling when all that hard work paid off and everything went to plan.
It is always a good idea to keep practicing with your bow during the season to keep sharp. I keep a target in my truck and before I go into the woods I shoot a few practice arrows to make sure that I am still on. You don’t need to shoot 100 arrows every day; you just need a few here and there to keep yourself sharp.
If you are experiencing the dreaded “October lull” have faith the deer will be on the move again. Hunt some less disturbed stands, hunt at different times, keep shooting and remember that the rut is only a few weeks away.
