After what looked like it was going to be the best rut ever, it's taken a turn for the worse. In my best areas, the sign (incredible) started much earlier than usual. However, for the past week and half, the scrapes are unnattended and I've seen fawns alone--indicating that the rut (breeding phase) was underway. However, I'm NOT seeing many deer and when I have seen bucks, they're always alone, feeding contentedly and totally ignore my calling attempts--not looking for receptive does. The best part of the year has turned into a big lull for me. I sat out yesterday from 5:30am until 12:30pm and saw 2 little ones at 9:20 and a small rack bucked at 10:39. That's all I saw. Anyone else experiencing this?

Today's small bucks are tomorrow's trophies.