Late season archery Black-tail tips

Hey there again,

So since I forgot to post last night and I just remembered just a minute ago, I may not have as much info as I'd like so forgive me on this one starting up a blog and posting consistently takes time to brake into.

So back on topic, late archery tips...

Most people out there will say that hunting late archery black-tails can be next to impossible, which I agree with but there are some strong advantages that may help you tag a nice black-tail if your willing to enter the gamble...

What makes the late season so hard is that the deer have already been hunted for 2 months, the rut is coming to a gradual decline and the big bucks begin to shift their daylight activity toward more and more nocturnal activities. This can be hard because the big boys will be back to their normal behavior mode: remaining hidden, and moving only when its safe, at night.

But there are some variables that play into the hunter's advantage, for instance snow can and will push bucks and does out of their secretive thickets and hideouts out into other territory such as creek bottoms and forested canopy where the snow is not as deep and where forbs and grasses remain as a good food source. Another advantage of snow is if you know that snow is expected that evening, or just after dusk, then hunting 2-3 hours before a storm will give you more chances at spotting a buck and for sure does and fawns feeding trying to fill themselves up with as much food as possible so they can sit out the storm. This is true as well when hunting after a significant storm, rain or snow.

One other advantage to hunting the late season is the colder weather, bucks will have worn themselves out during the rut and will be trying to find food sources that require the least energy expended. Remember after the rut these deer are on starvation mode (that's not to say that a deer's life is not a constant fight for survival, but that the winter months are about the most stressful on the deer herd) they need food badly but they still have to be careful not to use much of that energy for travel. A cold front will also push deer to feed earlier as well which gives an advantage to hunters looking to tag a bigger buck that tends to be more nocturnal.

Hunting the late season can be hard, but if you scout earlier in the year, and throughout the seasons learning the travel and feeding patterns of the big bucks in your hunting area, then you will gradually be able to pick apart the black-tail's crafty ways and stick an arrow one of those bigger bucks.

Good luck and Merry Christmas!

Jeremy

TIP OF THE WEEK:

Now's the time when bucks are back to their normal behavior, and are less likely to come out during the day, but you can still have the upper hand just remember deer are slaves to their stomach and if you know where a good food source is, or if you prepared fall/winter food plots back in august-September then stick tight, cause the deer will be hitting easy to access food sources hard throughout the winter.