The so called second rut is really hit or miss. If you can get near a hot doe there can be some great action, but that’s a gamble. The bucks aren’t out looking for does like they do during the normal rut. If you have a good food source to hunt, late season hunting can be the best hunting of the year if the weather is cold. Snow is an enormous help, but I don’t know anyone who can predict that. It’s really what works best for your schedule. Anytime can be good, but anytime could be dead as well. If it was me and I had a food source to hunt, I would pick mid-late January. But, I like hunting in the cold. Not everyone does.