Late Season Whitetails
By Kyle Weiter
As the Whitetail rut begins to wind down, some hunters start to lose focus as the grind of hunting nonstop during the breeding stages has taken its toll. However, if you have an unfilled tag, it’s time to regroup and become laser focused as the late season offers opportunities that other stages of the deer season do not.
The tactics during the late season are based around evening hunts over food sources mixed with cold weather fronts.
1. FOCUS ON FOOD SOURCES
Food becomes the priority as rut worn bucks and family groups of does are in survival mode with a potentially hard winter looming ahead of them. During this stage, the deer herd is on a simple bed to feed and then back to bed pattern.
Trail camera recon along with scouting from a distance with good optics is a great way for a hunter to locate a mature buck. In order to plan your hunt accordingly, pay extreme attention to details, such as exact time and direction deer begin moving into the food source.
2. EVENING HUNTS
As the rut winds down and the late season begins, evening hunts over food sources will quickly become the hot spot. If left undisturbed, mature bucks will feed in these locations during daylight hours as they recover from the physical stress the rut brings.
Food source stand locations must be set up with a solid entry and exit strategy, as deer will begin hitting these food sources earlier, and some will remain in these food sources until well after shooting hours.
3. WEATHER FRONTS ARE KEY
Weather will always be the most important factor in deer movement. Here are the combinations to look for during the late season:
- EVEN COLDER FRONTS - During the late season, weather fronts with temperatures dropping a minimum of 15 -20 degrees after a long period of warmer weather will lead to increased deer movement.
- HIGH PRESSURE - Positive deer movement happens with a rising barometric pressure above 30 and climbing. A barometric pressure that is below 30 will have hunters experiencing sluggish deer movement. This applies to the entire deer season.
- WINDS - As the beginning of winter is happening, the late season will have more blustery days than before. Days with wind speeds over 20mph and gusting will have an adverse effect on whitetail deer movement. Conversely, a sudden change in wind direction after several days of the same will increase deer movement temporarily.
- EVEN HARSHER WEATHER - Overall, most of the deer herd will bed during harsher weather conditions, such as heavy rain, wind, or snowfall. Movement begins immediately after the front passes through.
4. DRESS ACCORDINGLY
In order to stay mentally focused on the hunt, KUIU’s layering System is best as it allows you to adjust the level of insulation needed to hunt comfortably. Having a next-to-skin base layer, mid-layer insulation, and outer-layer protection is a necessity during the late season as temperatures drop throughout the evening hunt.
Overall, the late season is a favorite amongst many veteran hunters, as the unique opportunity to harvest a giant whitetail on a feeding pattern is very real. Common sense hunting through utilizing the recon off trail cameras, along with watching for harsh weather patterns can pay off big for hunters that remain focused on the goal.
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