Beat the Post Rut Doldrums

This ancient, post-rut warrior was moving from feed field to bedding cover at first light when I intercepted him at the only time he was active during shooting hours. Ultra Light Arms M20 in 284 Win., Leupold VX-III 2.5-8X.

I hope you’re out chasing rutting whitetails right now because -- this is your best chance.

Just as the early bird gets the worm, the early buck gets the doe and the early hunter gets the buck. But it doesn’t always work that way, which is why we created Ron Spomer’s Everything Whitetail for iOS and Android.

Everything Whitetail is a treasure trove of information on whitetails and whitetail hunting.

This convenient app is designed to educate, inform, entertain and help you through the slow times. It can provide insights and information, incentive and options to help you work through problems, try new tactics and make venison while the rut wanes. It'll keep track of all weather conditions including wind speed, direction and barometric pressure as you create Hunt Reports.

The chase phase of the rut is roaring while I write this. The lockdown phase will soon start, and then everything shifts into slow-mo. The following is taken from The Hunt section of Everything Whitetail under Hunting The Rut Periods:

Post Rut Behavior

The slow time. Most bucks will be battle weary and worn down. Many will retire from rutting even though a few does come into heat late. Let the young bucks have them, the old bucks must think. They often retire to safe solitude, barely moving. They may become nocturnal. Many will be limping, blinded, bloody. Some will die. Key on core bedding areas or nearby foraging sites. Rattling, calling and even decoying rarely work post rut. From now through winter deer focus on husbanding their energy and rebuilding their bodies. Food and rest are the objectives. A month after the primary rut peaks, a secondary rut can kick in. Younger bucks may be quite active, but many older bucks won’t bother. Still, there’s always one willing to give it one more fling. Stay alert.

Rut fights injure and flat wear out aggressive bucks. They lay low to heal up and recharge fat reserves.

Avoid the Post Rut by Scoring Now

If you read this before the end of November or as late as mid-January in some parts of whitetail range, you might benefit from this How To Hunt the Grasslands page in Everything Whitetail:

Anything Goes In the Rut

During the rut expect bucks in weird places like wide open pastures and fields farm from normal escape cover. They like to chase does into such isolated places so they aren’t disturbed by other bucks. Glass for antlers protruding above the cover. Millions of acres of public grasslands and BLM brushlands in the West may be dry and devoid of good whitetail cover, but when they border private croplands, load your rifle. During the rut, and when hunting pressure pushes bucks off more productive private lands, they’ll run and hide as many as five miles back into “barren” public lands, especially if no one bothers them there. You bother them.

Young bucks are more likely than old bucks to be active and chasing late-rut does, but even they are more interested in feeding than playing.

Ron Spomer’s Everything Whitetail is on sale now for just $1 at your app store. Download it today for all the details. No cell tower connection is needed for the app to run.

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