I will attempt to once again this year post updates on the 2020 archery hunt. Right off the bat, I am having difficulty loading images. So, when I figure that out I’ll get some pics on here to make things more interesting.

10/1 Season Opener. I sat a draw leading out to alfalfa tonight in the hopes of cutting off a really nice buck I have pictures of. At quitting time the wind laid down, something I don’t like. I saw 1 small buck, and two does.

No sign yet of a few of the bucks I was hunting last year that I am fairly confident are still alive. Scar Back is one of them. Would like to see him this year, not because he’s huge, or scores high, but because I have a history with him and he would be fun to hunt.

10/2 Was dealt with variable winds tonight. The winds were switching from NW to NE, and swirling. So I picked an observation spot where I could see a 20 acre alfalfa field. This is on a farm I just started hunting last year. It is almost all cow pasture, but the 20 acres of alfalfa draws a lot of deer. There was one problem last year, well maybe more than one, but the big problem at that farm is the neighbor. He’s a terrible hunter. And tonight he was driving his atv around about an hour before quitting time. Probably checking cameras or something. He’s pretty much got that area goofed up. It was worth a try. I saw a doe and fawn, and a small buck. If he enjoys what he’s doing, I really can’t complain.

I was going through my pics from this year and I might have old Scar Back on camera. I would need more pics or maybe a sighting, but I think he might be back.

10/3 So, going into tonight’s hunt I only had a few options. We had an east wind which limited me to only a few spots. My thought process was I really wanted to go after the typical 12 point on my farm, and at the same time I also really needed to harvest some does on that same farm. Opening night showed me that the big 12 was not using a draw that I thought he was using heading to alfalfa after dark. The view from the blind I sat that night showed me that if he was coming through that area, it was after dark…which was probably not the case since he was at my camera right after dark some 300 yards or so away.

I had another idea that he might be using a different draw from the north. This is the same draw that a giant buck my son killed a few years back was using for his bedding location. This time of year, I think these older bucks like to be alone. They avoid the social stress of other deer. It’s why I wanted to harvest some does on that farm. So the decision was made; check out the other draw to the north in an attempt at the big 12, and at the same time if he didn’t show there stood a good chance to harvest a doe.

So I slip into the stand I call Cul-de-sac west about 4 o’clock. The night is damp and cold with those east winds. The access was great and the wet ground made for a quiet entry. I took my time getting in, quiet as I could be remembering that Forest’s buck was using a knob on the draw only 80 or so yards from this stand. Would the big 12 be there? I doubted it. My gut still said he was using the draw to the west of my plot/alfalfa, not the north. But the wind worked for this spot. As I sit facing east, the wind is in my face, any deer downwind will also be below me as the ridge of this draw drops off fast. It’s almost bullet proof with an east wind.

The wind was steady. The leaves held a shuffle all night. Which I like. I don’t like when the wind lays down and it gets still. I was texting one of my old work buddies for a bit, then settled in. Around 6:30, from the northwest, a deer came trotting in to right below my stand. That’s from behind me, but again it couldn’t smell me as the drop off is severe. The deer was standing directly below my stand…I could hear it sniffling trying to smell what was on the pegs of my stand. I slowly glanced down to see it was a buck…pivoting more I saw it was the big 12 . No %#&^ing way I thought. Then immediately, are you shitting me, he’s gonna smell the pegs.

The deer was now spooked. Not terrible, but enough that I was nervous. After a minute or so he turned to the east and started walking directly away from me to a small transition plot that I was hunting over. I used the angle to grab my bow, attach my release, and turn slightly in my stand. I shoot sitting if at all possible. The buck was at 8 yards when he turned quartering away and stopped. There was a lot of leaves and branches between him and I so no shot. He takes another step or two and I should have a chip shot…and then he does. As he does I simultaneously draw and softly grunt to stop him in the opening….but he spooks ever so slightly ahead of the opening. At full draw, I shift my body upward, still sitting, to clear a few small twigs…settle in at the heart and thwack.

At 350fps, I cannot see my arrows in good light, at 30 yards. This was in poor light and at 8 yards. But the sound was perfect. I knew at 8 yards something horrible would have to go wrong for me to blow the shot, and the sound confirmed it was good. The buck bolted to the south and out of view. Did he go down? Was the shot good? It had to be right? My instinct was to sneak out. I waited a few moments then very quietly got down from the stand and made my way to the point of impact…blood everywhere…and more in the direction he ran. It was heavy lung/heart blood. I slowly followed the trail a few yards and there he was; making it only about 50 after I shot him.

Update 10/3 So, I had this buck from August when he was in velvet but started getting him regular starting the 22nd. I had him almost daily from the 22nd until the last time I checked cameras on the 27th. I had another camera about 100 yards away and I got him twice in the morning heading back the other direction…thus I concluded he was using my big draw, exiting my timber on that farm and heading east each night. Hunting the north draw last night was somewhat of a “I have nothing to lose” kind of pick. Sure there was a chance he was using that draw, but my money was on the west draw. However, these bucks tend to shy away from other deer; I’ve seen it before. So now that the hunt is over, it makes sense that he was using my north draw, all by himself.

In any event, it is a great deer. I was up until early this morning texting and talking with neighbors about the deer. Fun times! Amy took some better pictures this morning on our neighbor’s cow pasture to get a better look at him. At Amy’s prodding, I scored the buck at 207 and 7/8″ gross. I had no idea! He had 17 scorable points.

10/5 I took a couple days off from hunting. Finished up a few lose ends around home, cut up the deer today, and I’m looking forward to get back after it. I still have almost unlimited doe tags and one more landowner buck tag. Soybeans are coming off in the area and today the corn at home is coming off. Normally, I would want the crops to come off to make it easier to hunt preferred food sources. If there is less food, the food that remains is easier to pattern. This year, with my early buck, I was hoping the corn at home would stay on as long as it could…not so much. I don’t blame the farmers, the need to get crops off when they can. With the corn harvest, there is a good chance I’ll pick up some narrowed movement on my farm in the next couple days. I think I’ll be back on stand tomorrow.

10/6 Sat the home farm tonight for the first time this year. It was 81 in our way in tonight. Amy sat with me in the same stand I shot my buck on this farm last year. With a couple improvements. The first, I made a small scissor ladder to make going over the fence easier and super quiet. Second, the food plot is smaller and not as good (on purpose). Too many times last year deer would come out, eat, and stay in the plot too long. I don’t want deer using this plot as a main food source…more like a bad salad bar while they wait to go out and get their main food. This is a common mistake among food plotters; making plots too big and too good then hunting them hard. I want the deer to simply use this plot in transition, then leave. The last update is I brushed in the ladder stand a bit with some fake Christmas tree branches I got.

Saw nothing tonight, but my expectations were not high. It was just a good night to get out and enjoy the outdoors with my bride. This stand can get hunted over and over without bumping or pressuring deer because of how we get in and out. Access and exit is perfect.

10/7 I did some camera pulls and scouting today on one of my leases that I have for hunters. There are two really nice bucks on that ground; one really big 10 point. I want to put in a ground blind at that farm, but where I want it the weeds/grass is too tall. I need to get the blind in that spot, so I’ll have to trailer the tractor and mower over there, then haul back a blind that will double as an archery “decoy” set and a late muzzleloader set. I also have some work to do mid-day hanging a couple double sets…my daughter Lily is coming down next weekend with her boyfriend Mason, and I’d like to be able to sit with them if I can. Add that to the fact that it is forecast to be in the 80’s from now through the weekend, and that I don’t have a good plan or strategy right now at taking another good buck, means I’m taking a few days off from hunting. My plan is to get back after it on Monday the 12th. When I say I’m taking time off from hunting, it really means I won’t be sitting on stand with my bow, but I’ll still be planning and strategizing, hanging a few stands, putting out blinds, you get the idea!

10/12 I got back after it tonight. I sat a ground blind at the cabin farm in hopes of shooting a doe. The wind laid down way before sunset, a condition I hate. I’m not saying deer won’t move when this happens, but I will say generally speaking I don’t have good action when the wind drops to nothing; especially on evening hunts.

I did check one camera at the home farm today and got several more pictures of a nice buck with a small drop tine. I’d like to put my eyes on him before deciding whether or not I would shoot him.

10/13 Reluctantly, I am taking the next two days off from hunting. I have, at this point, one buck I am considering (the drop tine buck) but I need a north or northeast wind to try and hunt him. Today, we have a west to northwest wind which would be blowing right at his bedding area. I have some options for hunting does, but because it is in the 80’s, I’m using the next two days to prepare a “sealed” ground blind for a late muzzleloader hunter. If I was still hunting the big 12, I would have set up on the cabin farm tonight. My point is, I’m not specifically taking off because of the weather, but instead because of wind directions and the buck I am now targeting. Wednesday looks like I might get a wind I can use on the drop tine buck, or I will again go after some does.

10/14 The first buck I ever shot with my bow was at the age of 14. It was a very small yearling spike buck; but I shot it hunting by myself and made a good clean kill on the deer. I was pretty proud to say the least. The following year, at the age of 15, I passed my first buck(s). Several more yearling bucks, the biggest if my memory serves me was probably a 6 or 7 pointer or something like that. I didn’t kill a buck that year. I was going for something with 8 points.

At the age of 15, I was passing antlered deer. Not because I was hoping for a “mounter”, or because I wanted to make the buck to doe ratio better, not because of QDM. I didn’t even know what “score” was. I passed the bucks because the moment I would shoot one, my archery season would be over. It wasn’t that I was a good hunter, I was terrible. It was all about being able to have a long season to enjoy. Any of those same small bucks I was passing during the season would’ve gotten an arrow during the last couple days.

Around 18, I would start passing bucks, and it was about QDM. I didn’t want to hunt yearling bucks. It still wasn’t about score, or ratios…it was simply because I had seen enough yearlings to know that it wasn’t hard to shoot one anymore, and again I didn’t want my season to end. Then in my twenties, I started killing some “nicer” deer. So, my goal was a little bigger, then a little bigger. It was never about a score, it was always about extending the season and hunting big deer.

I will admit, a huge antlered buck gets me going. I would be lying if I said I didn’t care. But, at the age of 48 it is still about having a long and memorable season each year. Not the kill, not the score, not really even the age. I love the hunt, the challenge, the conservation. Observation is more enjoyable than the kill. I only bring this up because with an early season buck harvest, I once again feel like I’m 15 with the very real scenario of ending my season early if I put myself in front of another good deer. The goal isn’t to fill tags, or to shoot a big buck. It’s to maximize my time in the wild deer woods enjoying what I love. With that being said, I plan to sit a couple farms I have never hunted before (that I got permission on this year) in hopes of learning and observing. This will help me with my hunt next year, and observation is a great way to learn more about deer without the pressure of trying to take a deer. I look forward to it. In the between time…my home farm will just soak. The drop tine buck isn’t going anywhere. Other bucks will surely show up too. If I get the urge, I’ll slip into one of a few spots I have here at home and try to take another great buck.

10/15 I sat a new farm tonight that I’ve never sat before. This spring, I hung one stand on the property that requires a NW wind. In front of the stand is a very small transition plot and a mock scrape. The plot itself has virtually no food in it. It is not supposed to be a feeding plot at all, transition plots are just to manipulate deer movement. However, it would’ve been nice if there was at least something there to nibble on. The plot is eaten to the ground, and because there is absolutely no moisture the winter rye is not growing back as fast as the deer are eating it. I saw three does and two fawns…in three different times. At quitting time I did see a nice buck just briefly skirt the edge of the plot.

I was running a camera on that mock scrape and over the past 17 days, not a single nice buck on the camera but a ton of does and fawns. That farm, because of extremely high deer numbers is a doe family group farm. That’s all that’s there right now. Sure, for a couple weeks a year you might see a nice buck or two, but even then with an overabundance of does, hunting will never be good. It’s kind of what I expected. The problem I believe are several larger landowner/hunters in that area that don’t shoot does. I won’t go back until late October or November, and even then reluctantly. It’s a beautiful farm, the deer herd is just out of whack.

10/16 I sat the cabin farm trying to kill a doe tonight. I have a hunter coming in on this farm in November, and with talking with him he is ok and understands the need to harvest does. That being said, I’m still trying to hunt the fringes on that farm in hopes of killing a doe off a normal feeding pattern…in other words just trying to get lucky. I don’t want to go to any good spots where I would normally be hunting for a buck right now. So I’m hunting rut type funnel areas and stuff hoping a doe will walk by. All these spots are great spots in a few weeks, but right now there’s really no need for a deer to be there. I saw one small buck, but I can just see how the spot I was sitting in will light up in a few weeks. There was one camera on a small transition plot that I passed on my way to the stand tonight, and as expected there are some does and fawns using that draw consistently. The stand I’m in is just off that action (on purpose) so that the stand can be hunted over and over without burning out the area.

I did a podcast the other day about the buck I shot October 3rd. Check it out if you want by clicking on the link below.

https://sportsmensnation.com/podcasts/a-once-in-a-lifetime-buck

10/17 Sat the home farm north fence tonight. The goal was to see if I could spot the drop tine buck from the north line stand…all the way by the south ditch crossing. You can kind of see through there but it turned out it was more difficult to see that far, through the tree tops than what I expected. If he went through there, I surely didn’t see him. I got skunked where I sat too. Tomorrow is calling for a NE wind which would be perfect for the south ditch crossing. If the forecast is correct, I’ll be sitting there hoping to lay eyes on the drop tine buck. I did pull one camera at the north line fence and although there were a bunch of deer on the camera, most were at night and there were no good bucks. They’ll come!

10/18 I had a nice NE wind tonight, so I snuck into my south ditch crossing stand tonight. This year, there is no food plot in front of the stand at all. Last year too many times I had deer lingering around me and felt odds were too high I was getting busted. This year, I have two mock scrape in bow range, and the trail that connects a fence jump with the ditch crossing is getting pounded. I was hoping to see the drop tine buck but he was a no show. I did however see 3 does, 1 fawn, and 4 bucks. Near quitting time an old friend showed up and worked the mock scrape to my east (no camera on that one). It was old Scar Back. I could have shot the buck, a brute 5 year old but I had no intentions on ending my season on him. Not yet anyhow.

All 4 bucks were within range and used the east mock scrape. One doe/fawn group jumped the fence and walked along that trail, worked the north mock scrape then moved on. In short, this setup looks to be perfect this year. The biggest change I made was converting the small plot into switch grass this spring. I want the deer to come in…but leave without lingering. So far, it’s working.

I did pull the card on the camera I have on one of the mock scrapes. No sign of the drop tine buck since the 3rd of October. Did he move? Is he dead? I doubt either is the case. He’ll show up again.

10/19 You ever have one of those night where you just know it’s gonna be good, maybe even gonna see a giant, or kill one. That was tonight. However, it doesn’t always work that way. It was a perfect night. I had a NE wind which is perfect for the south ditch crossing stand at the home farm. I saw two yearling bucks and one 2 1/2. It was a cold night, the wind stayed up, but that’s all I saw. Toward quitting time, I did hear two bucks fighting to my south; after they quit I don’t know where they went and I never did see them.

Some hunters would say don’t hunt your good spots unless the weather is right. Others would say don’t hunt your good spots until a certain date…maybe November 1st? Not me. I think all my spots are good for starters. And if you only hunt your “good” spots on certain days, you are kind of forcing yourself to only kill on those days that you limit yourself to. It’s like if I said you can only kill a big buck on high pressure days…then I only hunt high pressure days…it kind of makes it impossible to kill a good buck on another kind of day right? My point is, I’ve seen and killed good deer on almost any kind of day scenario in my life. Sure, I’ll admit some days are better than others. But I like to hunt…so I hunt. The key then for me is to make sure I have good winds for my scent, and great entrance and exit…that way I can hunt and hunt and hunt and not worry too much about saving spots. Another key is to move around, keep bouncing between farms, stands, etc. Tomorrow is calling for an East wind, I have a new stand in mind if it holds.

10/20 It was a cold dreary day down in southern Iowa today. I had my hopes that we would have an east wind tonight. I wanted to check out a new farm and a new stand. Kind of a scouting mission for next year, and the farm literally butts up to my home farm. So any bucks on it are likely on mine as well. It was a perfect archery night…I saw one really nice younger 8 point but it did walk right down a logging road into a mock scrape I had there. Would have been a chip shot. I pulled the camera on the mock scrape and two nice bucks showed up. The camera seems to have lost it’s color though as all the day pics about half through are now reddish. Looking forward to hunting this spot more and next year.

10/21 I took the day to do some scouting and camera checking. First, I checked a camera at my neighbor’s farm that was put on a larger alfalfa field. The rest of the property is cow pasture. The alfalfa draws a good amount of deer, but narrowing down movement is very difficult. There was very little sign around the field, and the camera picked up no good bucks. I like this farm in that I know there are good bucks over there…but it is proving to be just too hard to hunt. I think the only good way would be a decoy during November on that alfalfa field.

Tonight, thunderstorms were moving in so I didn’t hunt. Instead I scouted the farm I sat last night. It was raining and I think that makes for good scouting weather. The deer hunker down, and any scent I leave is washed away. Plus it’s quiet moving around. Yesterday, I hunted the west side of the property. The camera over there had some deer and that good ten and another mature 8. But overall, there wasn’t much sign over there. I suspected there would be more sign and deer activity on the east side since that is where the food is in the form of standing corn. I snuck in there this afternoon and there was a ton of sign. Scrapes pounded the trail that the landowner has cut through the property and there were multiple good trails leaving the bedding cover on that side out to standing corn to the east. I placed two cameras on scrapes over there. I hung a stand on that side this spring and with the scouting I did today, I fear I might be just 40-50 yards off where I need to be; however, if I move in another 40-50 yards I might be too close to the action with deer getting down wind of me. For now, I’ll stay with where I hung this spring with the thought that I’ll move in if needed. This is a scouting mission farm at this point, and a doe farm as my remaining buck tag is a landowner only tag…but any bucks on that farm are likely on mine because they border each other.

10/22 Spent the day working on the cabins for the hunters coming in early November. I was planning on hunting tonight, but a huge front was moving in with lightning and heavy winds so I stayed out of the woods. My daughter Lily and her boyfriend Mason are down in southern Iowa for a few days. Hopefully I’ll get some sits in with them!

10/23 Sat the south ditch crossing with Mason tonight. Only saw a doe with a fawn and they got down wind and busted us. The temps were cold and it was windy, it felt like November…but it’s not. Cold weather, even if it seems like November, does not make does come into heat, and it does not make bucks start chasing and seeking hot does. As far as I can tell, mature bucks are still clearly on a bed to feed pattern…actually most deer are. Sure you’ll see some young bucks chasing does around, but it’s still a bed to feed game.

Now, what triggers a buck, and mature bucks, to start “their rut” where they really start seeking and chasing, is when the first doe comes into heat in their area. That’s why rut activity can begin sooner on one farm than another. The first hot doe is what triggers intense rutting activity by the local bucks in an area. Keep this in mind…we can have that first hot doe any day now.

Amy and Lily sat and watched a bed to feed pattern for me glassing from the truck tonight. They saw 8 bucks and about 10 does and fawns leave preferred bedding cover and work their way to standing corn. All on a bed to feed pattern tonight. It confirms what I was thinking and it also helps me confirm the bedding area of that group of deer. I already have a plan of attack to hunt those deer, but it was nice that they were able to confirm that pattern. If you have a feeding pattern buck you are targeting right now, you should get all over it because any day it could end when that first doe pops.

10/24 Sat the neighbor’s farm tonight that borders mine with Lily in the stand with me. Saw a doe and fawn early. Then saw a bachelor group of 3 bucks toward quitting time. Two of the bucks sparred in front of us for about 5 minutes. It was a fun night, deer still clearly on bed to feed.

Amy and Mason sat a farm I have permission to hunt and glassed from the truck. 20ish does and fawns, not a single buck. Deer clearly on a feeding pattern. That farm is living proof that a bunch of does and fawns is a deterrent to bucks hanging around. They will only be there a few short days during peak breeding, and even then activity will be low because it won’t be hard for them to find a hot doe. High doe numbers=bad hunting. I’ve seen this the past 30 years. The problem again, is not the landowner I have permission to hunt from…but the many large landowners in that neighborhood that won’t shoot does.

I set up a new fully enclosed blind on one of my leases today getting it ready for an archery hunter/and later muzzleloader hunter. Setup looks promising for a muzzleloader. Pulled cards on that farm and two good shooters are still showing pretty consistently over there. Food plots are getting hammered because of the lack of rain this fall on that farm. Should be perfect for the hunters coming into camp in a week or so.

10/25 Sat the south ditch crossing again at the home farm. Didn’t see a thing. But I’m gonna keep pounding the stands, and rotating around until the first doe comes into heat…which will trigger some great buck movement and will start the “buck’s” rut.

What triggers a buck’s rut is the first hot doe in his area. Right now, where I’ve been hunting on multiple farms, there has been no evidence of a hot doe yet. All the action I’ve seen, and Amy sitting out glassing has been deer are still bed to feed. However, any day now that could change. When the first doe pops, it’s game on for that farm. A calendar can’t tell you that. DNR statistics can tell us that peak breeding year in and year out is the same. For southern Iowa that’s November 15th. For central Wisconsin (where I did a lot of hunting in the past) it might be November 13th. But, in the wild, it doesn’t follow this perfect bell curve that you get with hundreds of data points. I’ve hunted farms that hit wide open rut activity because a doe came into heat in mid-October. The earliest being October 19th. I’ve also seen farms lag and lag and go full tilt not until well into November….no doubt when that farm experienced it’s first hot doe. Stay with it! Keep hunting. You don’t want to miss when it opens up!

10/26 Sat the south ditch crossing again tonight at the home farm. There is no reason for a deer to come through this area unless they are “cruising”…and again tonight I saw nothing come through at the ditch crossing. I did see one small buck walk through the north ditch crossing with my binos. I’m able to hunt this stand over and over because access is perfect, and almost without exception deer don’t bust me on stand. Not that it never happens, but rarely. I was able to shoot a coyote tonight, for deer they don’t bother me much but I do want the local pheasant population to grow and they are a major predator of pheasants. So, he got the arrow tonight. I need to start hunting mornings now. I was waiting to see cruising activity, but we are so close to that activity I’m no longer going to wait until I see it. So now the planning starts…where do I go for what wind? I usually like to plan ahead several days to try and bounce around with what winds I have.

10/27 I started hunting morning today. Normally I wait until I see signs of the first hot doe coming into heat…but this far along on the calendar and I’ll no longer wait because it will literally happen any day. I’m glad I did. I sat a new stand today at home for both the morning and evening hunts. Saw 5 bucks and a handful of does and fawns this morning. The drop tine buck was one of the bucks…I took a good look at him with optics as he was dogging a doe…he’s a good one! The other 4 were younger deer. Tonight, I saw 7 bucks and a handful of does and fawns. 3 of the 7 were chasing. One giant buck I barely got a look at was right on a doe…I got a good enough look to know he was big, but nothing else. It’ll be steady go from here on out.

10/28 Saw 5 bucks and a handful of does and fawns this morning. No shooter bucks. Hunted until 10 and then went to the cabin to pull cards one last time before a hunter shows up. So far, (I haven’t gone through them all yet) one more giant has shown up at the cabin. Tonight, even though I knew better, I sat a field edge of picked corn. The goal was to scout and possible see a good buck for fun. This is a new farm that I will be hunting more next year. Toward quitting time, I had 20 does and fawns out in the field behind me, getting chased by several smaller bucks and one nice 3 year old 9 point. In the timber in front of me a doe came in and was spooky…she never saw me or smelled my but I swear they sometimes have a 6th sense. After about 15 minutes of walking in circles and stomping…then she started to snort. Then a few does in the field started to stomp and snort. It’s why you NEVER sit field edges!!! Anyhow, I had deer stomping and snorting all around me so I lit up the coyote call before quitting time just to clear the field. It worked…I also called in two coyotes—No shot! I’ll update tomorrow with more pics if I can. Running out of time tonight and still have to go through 5 cards and hundreds of pics.

10/29 Sat the south ditch crossing this morning and tonight. Saw two does this morning, and about an hour into the hunt the farmer started taking off the rest of the corn. I sat until he made a few rounds then got down for the morning. I wanted to set up a ground blind just as he was taking the corn off…so I did that. Tonight, I saw 4 bucks—all were chasing does. None were mature but it was a fun night.

10/30 Sat pretty much all day today. I did leave around 11 this morning to grab a bite to eat, then right back out. I saw deer all day with peak activity this morning between 9 and 11, and then steady trickling action all afternoon. Saw maybe 20 does and fawns, a ton of chasing, and something like 5-7 bucks. No mature bucks, but a couple really nice 3 year olds. Another big buck showed up on camera too.

10/31 Sat a ditch crossing this morning on the neighbor’s farm. Saw a fawn, a doe, and a really good 10 pointer that I’ve never seen before nor do I have pictures of (as of yet). This was mostly a scouting mission although technically I could shoot a doe over there. Again, any bucks over there will likely show up on my farm since they are adjacent. A lot more cover over there though as my farm here at home is mostly tillable ground. Tonight, Amy sat with me and we saw 3 fawns and one little buck here at home.

11/01 Sorry I never updated yesterday. I was having trouble with the laptop. I saw a bunch of deer throughout the day. Saw a few 3 year olds that are great up and comers. Less and less doe sightings I think because every time you see one, they are being relentlessly harrassed.

11/02 Sat this morning and tonight at the north ditch crossing here at home. Saw one nice buck this morning and a few does. I didn’t get the greatest look at the buck but it did look like a mature buck frame with his body…big shoulders, slim waist, gut. Tonight I saw the same stand and passed on a 140 10 point and Scar Back both trailing the same doe. I was ready to kill old Scar Back but again, didn’t want my season to end just yet. He’s no different than last year. Heavy 8 point, huge body this year, and I believe he is 5 years old. He gives me the shot he offered tonight this weekend when I’m sitting with my son Forest or his girlfriend Jessica and he’ll be in a world of hurt.

Amy sat observation for me watching a big draw about 300 yards from me. She watched about 20 deer total tonight, moving in all directions through that draw. She also saw one giant buck in there and got some really far footage of him for me. Keep at hunters! It’s gonna get warm the next few days…don’t fret…keep at it!

11/03 I hunted the morning of 11/03 and saw a few does and fawns, one little buck. That’s it.

11/04 I skipped the evening hunt of 11/03 and the morning of 11/04 mostly because winds were very light and variable. I don’t normally hunt in variable winds. I will do an observation sit from a long distance, but I’m pretty comfortable with what I know right now. So I just took the hunts off waiting for better winds. Tonight, I sat the north ditch crossing here at home…only saw one doe from a distance. It was mid 70’s today so I think movement was suppressed a bit.

The next few days looks like very warm weather…more variable winds. I don’t mind the warm weather as much as the variable winds…impossible to hunt with archery equipment with variable winds. (And I don’t have a bunch of high dollar sealed blinds to hunt out of.) So, for now, it’s hunt smart…don’t put too much pressure on deer, and wait for better winds and weather. If I can squeeze in a hunt here and there, I’ll do it

11/05 Sat this morning in a new stand I hunt just for these warm south winds. It’s more of an observation stand right now, while I fine tune where I want to hang a stand for next year overlooking a pond. I saw a couple does and fawns and one good buck. I didn’t get a great look at him, but he was a good one.

Tonight I saw that same pond stand and saw a fawn early, then nothing until about 4. Then, a doe came running in…I could see another deer behind her but back in the timber about a 100 yards or so. He hammered a tree for at least 10 minutes, just leaning into it. It was loud in that quiet timber. He finally did come in, giving me several chances for a shot but I didn’t take it. He had double forked G2’s, nice mass, but I didn’t want my season to end just yet. Having way too much fun! It felt like summer in that warm timber tonight.

11/06 Did not hunt this morning. I’ve been pounding my stands that work for a south wind and thought I would just take a morning off. I hate when the weather just doesn’t change. We have very unseasonably high temps, that’s bad enough…but then we’ve had this persistent warm weather, south winds, and no rain for really quite some time. And it looks like a few more days yet. I don’t even mind the temps that much, but we need some weather to come through…some rain…different winds. That would help.

That being said, I’m really having one of the best hunting seasons of my life. I’m seeing a ton of good deer. No doubt next week will/should be better. I sat the north ditch crossing again tonight here at home…south winds go figure. I only saw 3 does, all far away. Movement is being hampered by the weather, and this time of year does quit coming out to feed in the open less and less. They’ve been chased and harassed so much the past couple weeks that every year, around this time, you see this decreased activity with the doe family groups. Add the two, and the fact that does are now coming into heat, and hunting actually could get tougher a bit because of this. But it’s still a great time to take a giant!

One last comment. I haven’t been checking cameras at all lately. Other than curiosity, or fun, I don’t see a lot of value in it for me. I know my stands are in the right places, I’ll keep hunting based on the wind direction and hunt more cover in mornings, maybe closer to food in evenings. The last thing I need to do is put any pressure in the form of bumping deer or leaving scent out there to check a camera. If I walk by one going to a stand, I’ll check it.

11/07 Sat this morning and tonight in the same stand overlooking a funnel area between a creek bottom and fence line. Sat this morning with Forest, and tonight with Jessica. Saw some deer both sits both nothing special. Small bucks, and a few does. Movement was slow again. But movement now might be, and most likely will be in pockets as more and more does are coming into heat. Case in point…tonight while Jessica and I sat the funnel, Forest and Amy glassed a fence line and cut corn. They saw 11 bucks and 3 does—one giant but guess what—there was a hot doe there. Movement for the next 10-15 days or so could be very contained to pockets where there is a hot doe. Stick with it. Looks like the weather is changing next week which should really help.

11/08 Sat most of the day today, in this heat. Saw only 3 fawns all day. Both archery hunters have been in camp now a few days on what I would argue are my two best farms, and they are mostly seeing nothing. A few deer here and there, but movement is suppressed quite a bit from the heat and many does now in heat. The weather looks to change in a day or two, that should help immensely.

11/09 Saw only a few small bucks and two fawns today. Movement will continue to be slow unless you find a buck in between hot does, or you have a hot doe by you. I think this will continue another week or so until we start seeing the number of does in heat start to drop off a bit. The weather should also help as a couple fronts are moving through in the next week or so getting us something other than south winds and a little rain. I love a good rain…it has a resetting type action in the deer woods. We’ll see!

One of my hunters shot a big buck tonight. In his words the hit was not perfect…he tracked the buck to where he saw him last and then backed out. We will both go look tomorrow when the sun comes up. I am hopeful!

11/10 First an update on the hunter who hit a buck last night. We went back early this morning after the rain stopped. To kind of break it down a little, I felt like there was a 50% chance the hit was a single lung/diaphragm type hit. With that, it would/could be a few hours before the deer would expire. Then maybe 25% that the arrow had better than expected penetration in the shoulder, and it would be a double lung/heart shot, which obviously would have been a very quick kill and short tracking. Then maybe a 25% chance penetration was poor, and/or the arrow glanced and there were no vitals hit. The highest percentage led us to wait, if he was dead quick, or bed down quick, we would find him close to where the hunter last saw him.

Upon starting the search, it was clear after about an hour that the hit was not super deadly. No sign of the deer within say 150 yards of his last know spot. After circling and grid searching, we did find the fletch side of the arrow broken off maybe 300+ yards from point of impact. We did more grid searching in that area and found nothing. At this point, I think we are at the 25% chance where the impact was poor and/or it glanced and hit no vitals. I’m confident that our grid searching would have found the buck in that second area where we found the broken arrow, and yet nothing. That means the deer went awfully far, a full 16+ hours after impact. No impossible, but highly unlikely he was hit mortally. Our hopes are that he shows up on camera or the hunter sees him again.

The front we were hoping for finally moved through last night and today. A ton of rain! Temps today crashed to the low 40’s, high 30’s. Super windy. I saw 4 bucks tonight and one day…the doe was clearly in heat which is why I saw those bucks. Still expecting activity to be around hot does, or catching a buck in between.

11/11 Sat this morning at a new farm that I can hunt…it was a scouting mission to see how the deer are moving in relation to a transition plot I have on it. I can’t shoot a buck there because my buck tag is a landowner only tag. I saw 12 bucks and as many does…there were at least two hot does that I saw, and every buck I saw save 2 were with or on those does. At about 10 or so, one of the does came out behind my in some cut corn with a nice 9 point mature buck right on it. After they courted a bit, he mounted her and did his thing. They stood together for a minute or two after their love making session was over…then the buck simply walked off—like literally left her and went on his way cruising. I was shocked. Anyhow, it was a fun morning, but I feel that stand is off about 15 yards or so, making that scouting mission a success so I can move the stand in the off season.

Tonight, I once again sat the north ditch crossing at the home farm. I can sit this stand 20 times a year and never burn it out. There are not very many stands like this, but this is one of them. I saw several small bucks cruising, and then a doe came into my decoy I had out. Same setup as last year when I shot my buck. The decoy was between me and her and because of that, I couldn’t hardly breath yet alone move. She rotated between me and back up the fence line to my left staring. I knew another deer was coming but I couldn’t move to look. I heard the crunch, crunch, crunch, coming in strong and figured it was a buck…then she turned and I could look….a nice 4 year old was all puffed up ready to kick that decoy’s ass. He was already at 35 yards or so coming in strong on the decoy…I already had my bow in hand. I drew when he cleared some hedge apple branches and brought my pin on his heart. He was at 20, 19, 16, 13 yards. I bleeped at him like 6 times, finally loud enough he stopped…thwap the arrow went straight through the lower chest. A clear double lung and heart shot. He bolted off making it about 40 yards before stopping to look back at what just happened, then tipped over in the cut corn!

If you’ve never hunted with a decoy, you don’t know what you are missing this time of year!

11/13 Sorry no update yesterday. I was in hunting camp with two hunters that are hunting with me. Amy and I sat out and glassed two different spots trying to help one of my hunters get on deer. What I’ve been seeing the past week or so is that every mature buck is either with a hot doe, or if you are lucky, is in between hot does and you happen to see him. This happens every year. I find the best hunting is the last week of October going into the first part of November. At some point (every farm is different, that’s another story) it seems like the mature bucks have plenty of hot does to breed, and hunting gets very hard. Then, about the 20th of November, maybe a little earlier, hunting starts to get really good again. Every year I see great bucks around that time frame. In many states, gun seasons are already in play, so you don’t see that great later rut movement like you can here in Iowa.

In any event, I took this morning off (I might do that more now that I’m strictly on a doe mission). I hunted tonight at home here and didn’t see anything. I could see hundreds of acres of cut corn, a big bottom draw, and two ditch crossings sitting an observation stand…still couldn’t see a deer. I’m not surprised. Keep hunting hard, but the hunting is hard right now.

11/14 Sat tonight for a doe, saw a small 8 point and a fawn. I’ve been hunting and scouting this year on new farms, old farms, and farms I plan to hunt more next year. At this point, I feel I have a solid plan for next year’s season. I’m always looking ahead. My point is this, from here on out my early archery season is mostly done. I don’t plan to put any more pressure on any of these deer because Amy and my daughter Lily both have hunts on these same farms coming up. No sense in putting pressure on the farms to learn them, when in fact I think at this point there’s little left to learn. (Not literally, but the trade off to adding pressure and what I could learn is not good) So I will not be updating this blog from here on out as it pertains to the 2020 archery updates.

In a week or so I will add photos if I get to checking some trail cameras, or maybe an update if one of my hunters kills a buck. But if you’ve been following along, maybe check back only once a week for a bit. One last time….I went over my log book that I keep informally each year, and most every year from about November 5th or so activity starts to slow, bottoms out around the 15th or so, then starts to get better again. Absolutely not saying it’s not good hunting or that you can’t or won’t kill a giant in that time frame, but it can be tough. I saw it again this year. I expect activity will really start to ramp up from here going forward to about the 25th or so or even later, at which point the deer herd will start to return to a more bed to feed pattern with mature bucks feeding pretty good in the evenings and checking every doe when they do. Most years, I see and pass some really good deer toward the end of November starting right about now.

For now, that’s all. Good luck to any hunters out there still at it!