what a buck flips, tell your buddy congrats!

The deer don't seem to be rutting on all parts of Quantico it's very strange but I have seen 15-20 deer this week and none of them show rutting sign I'm a bit puzzled becuase in other parts of Quantico guys are seeing chasing and rutting so I'm not really sure maybe where I'm hunting the does haven't come in yet

From my experience, the rut can happen at slightly different times in different areas on Quantico. The base is huge and a few training areas may be hot while some of the others cool. If you are in the woods over the next 10 days, chances are you will hit right one of those days.

Good luck

Saw a buck chasing today, first of the year. Should be getting better every day I would think. (I hope!)

Haven't posted in a few days. I'm tagged out for bucks already this year. Shot a Big 10pt with the bow last Friday, a Big 7 pt on Saturday with the ML, and last night the woods came alive again when a hot doe came right by my stand and every buck in this piece of woods was on her. I watched a Big 8 breed her from over 150 yards away and then they disappeared. Then I heard a crazy buck fight in the thick stuff about 75 yds to my right. The woods quieted down then the doe comes in at around 50 yds with a Big 8 in tow. He came right in behind her and offered me a 40 yard chip shot with the ML. It has been a crazy rut so far. First time I've ever seen a buck breed a doe in the wild pretty crazy. I'll try to get some picks up today.

congrats VA on tagging out so quickly, lets see some pics of your bucks. I have only seen 2 chases in wakefield while i have been out hunting this year. Now my dad and the farmers see them all day everyday, so they are hot out there right now. Been going on since the middle of last week out that way. Good luck to you all

va5326-did u get them w/ GM? i have been texting Buck from MHC daily for updates. he says its been slow so far for them.

Hunted a spot yesterday that I have always seen lots of activity from and have taken some good bucks from in the past. Hunted from daylight to dark and did not see a deer until 4:55 pm. Then the woods came alive but it was small bucks chasing does until dark. Had a small basket rack 8 pointer come in and start feeding on red oak acorns. Looking back, I wish I'd taken the 2nd week of blackpowder season off instead of the first.

Posts are gettingbetter so the rut seems to ramping up. Congrats VA on your tag out. I have 70 hours in the woods and haven't seen any activity yet. I hope to have the same luck you have this next week. Starting tomorrow I will be in the woods everyday on a hunting vacation. From everything I have looked at, ie: weather, rutting forcast etc., Saturday should be top notch. Good luck to all. Hopefully I will be able to post with a pic of a bruiser!!

I am off tomorrow thru Monday and hope to get in on some of that rutting action! I had a small six chasing a doe all over my stand site last Sat. I saw them at least four times. Its supposed to warm up this weekend and hope it does not slow them down.

mackesr, I sure do miss hunting Orange County. I used to have access to 148 acres out on Tower Lane or Tower Rd. I forget what its called. We had a bruiser out there that we all saw, but never could get a shot at. We found its sheds after the 2001 season and he was a 17 pt. then. Good luck this weekend!

Smoked an 8 Yesterday at 3:00. He was chasing my scent drag through the wood line. Came out and busted me. Gave a head on shot at 22 yrds with crossbow. Seen a lot of small bucks actually chasing the scent drag down the gas line I was on. Def on n Va.

Rut is finally starting to pick up here. Saw a nice buck Saturday morning running does and heard quite a bit of chasing up until 11 am. I was watching two does within 20 yards of my stand when I saw a tree shaking about 100 yards below my stand. The buck was rubbing trees in the bottom of the hollow I was watching and was working his way towards me and the two does. As he got to about 60 yards and was about to clear the thicket, he spotted a third doe and took off after her.

I'm gonna post a separate thread later today with the full story on each, but here are all three of my bucks that I shot this year. Work only allowed me to take two weeks off this year for hunting. It looks like I picked the right to two weeks to take off this year.





I shot this 180lbs, 10pt bruiser on the last day of archery season at 9am in a stand that I hung the day before Sandy hit Virginia. It was a 15 yard chip shot but I managed to hit the only branch between him and I and as a result, I hit him a little far back. I watched him walk behind me about 10 yds behind my stand and bed down. 30 minutes later he got back up and limped out of sight to a creek bottom behind my stand dragging his hind legs. I waited until he was bedded back down and then carefully backed out and decided to come back at dark to take up the trail with some help of course. We tracked him another 50 yds from the creek to the edge of a pond which I feared would be the case. We decided to come back the next morning hoping to find him floating in the pond. The next morning we came back and he was not in the pond. So we decided to walk the edge of the pond and wouldn't you know it we found him on the edge of the pond directly across from where we lost the trail the night before. I was ecstatic. From the looks of him, it was apparent he had died later in the day that I shot him. Probably before last light. He is currently at the taxidermist.





I shot this Big 8pt with about 15 minutes of shooting light left to spare. I actually watched him breed a doe about 200yds away from my stand which was overlooking a secluded clover plot. He and the doe disappeared into the cut over and I could only listen as he fought another buck for breeding rights inside of the 7 year old cutover. With about 20 minutes of shooting light to spare, the hot doe popped out and he was in tow and came out about another 5 minutes behind her looking exhausted from the fight he had just been in. He turned broadside and I squeezed the trigger and he dropped in his tracks.





I shot this Big heavy 7pt (would've been an 8pt had he not broke off a brow tine) at 10am just before I was going to get out of my stand. I was hunting a hub where I have seen does going back and forth in past years. No surprise the does came through shortly after first light with a basket 6 hot on their trail. I decided to pass on the hoping for a big buck to be lagging behind. Well 2.5 hrs passed and nothing. Finally, I decided at 10 am my hunt was over and had already convinced myself that I had some work to do on another stand location. Right as I was getting ready to unhook my harness from the tree, I heard leaves rustling from behind me. I decided to sit tight to see what it was. I could see glimpses of a deer but could not tell what it was. I assumed it was a doe and planned on climbing down after the she passed through the area. As the deer came to a clearing it stopped and he poked his head out to ensure the coast was clear before he crossed. Once he poke his head out I saw his antlers and quickly sized him up and knew it was a big buck. He jumped across the clearing and began his slow cruise only to stop perfectly broadside to my stand at approximately 50yds. I was ready for him and squeezed the trigger he only ran about 15 yards and piled up right by the downed tree where the picture you're looking at was taken.

It was definitely a great two weeks off for me.

VA

Damn VA 5326, good deer. Well it has been a week since I posted. I was using a rut/game movement guide online sponsored by someone else and it was accurate to the hour. The property that I hunt, I have finally found the running highway of bucks. Though I haven't landed a monster yet, the week I took off was packed full of activity. The short of it is, I landed two doe (as it is an EAB county) and one nice 7 pt. Dressed at 132lbs. Unfortunatly I will not be able to hunt for two weekends due to the holidays, but I am confident I will land a big bruiser out of the big woods on this property. We have seen a nice 9 pt twice now with a bunch of junk and a very nice heavy 8. The 450 yard drag is brutal, but all well worth it if I can get the big one. Sounds like everyone else is seeing a lot and dropping some Attachment 23892

Attachment 23893as well. I am happy for everyone.

Thanks. Which rut guide were you using?

Folks,
This year was the rut that never happened; at least for me! I live in NoVa just around Lovettesville and have not seen much rutting activity in spite of being in my tree stand at least 10 different days since the start of muzzleloader season (Nov 3). I did see some bucks moving around by themselves, in fact, I saw three different and nice bucks on the same morning (got one of them). However, what I haven't see was bucks chasing does or bucks running with does! As a matter of fact, I have seen, these past few weeks, are does (small groups) wandering around by themselves.

This is way different than past years. Could it be the weather? Was the rut just the few days I wasn't in the field. Usually, around my parts there is no mistaking rutting activity. What's up?

The switch flipped a week before ML season came in. I saw a lot of chasing the last week of bow season. You might've missed all the chasing. Opening morning of ML season, I saw an assortment of bucks.

Rut has been odd here too. Most people did not see much activity until the second week of blackpowder here and then it just shut off. Then a lot of people saw chasing yesterday and today. I was stuck on call yesterday and today and have not been able to hunt. Got several days off coming hope so hopefully I can find a buck or two left!

I shot a 10 pointer yesterday evening chasing a doe (Augusta County). I shot a 9 point on the 9th of November following a doe about 10 steps behind her. She was not afraid of him and he wasn't in a hurry following her. I thought they were already in the breeding phase when I shot the 9 pointer on the 9th, but yesterday I saw chasing and I talked to 3 friends yesterday evening and they also saw chasing yesterday??? Weird rut this year for sure. Of course Va's buck to doe ratio is so far off the rut is hard to predict anyway. Especially here in Augusta County.

VA5326, go to F&S and look for the rut/game movement times. This weekend should be a good one. 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.

DROX, Nov 9 through Nov 13 was fantastic rut activity in Fauquier. Don't know what's going on by you. Better luck this weekend.

This past Sat. I hunted in Powhatan County and with about ten minutes of legal shooting light left 2 does and 2 yearlings come in. I'm holding out for the buck that may or may not show up looking for these girls. With only a few minutes left I decide to get some meat. Just as I raised my gun on the big doe I hear two large deer running right up to the does and they scatter. One is to my right but can't see him yet. when I finally see him or more like I see his outline from an early moon it is too late to shoot. Couldn't tell how many points But his base was BIG. He made a scrape then the two bucks went back in the direction of the does. Rut activity ? I'll say yes. I'll be back after him next week.

cpljbuck,
Yeah, who knows. Maybe its just going to be one of them kinda' years for me. Right place, right time, wrong year!

I did, however, speak with a neighbor yesterday who lives and hunts about 1/2 mile from me and he said that Saturday he saw 17 does pass before a small buck finally followed up a few minutes later. He said he had seen so many does this season, but had only seen a couple of bucks; one which he killed.

That's how it is, sometimes you're the bug and sometimes you're the windshield!

Hunted Quantico today the deer movment has defiantly stopped I have hunted about one week and went from seeing 5 deer a day to seeing nothing I guess there in the lock down phase and not moving.....This has been a very dissapointing rut especially when they predicted it to be one of the best in several years I guess you can blame Virginia for it 100-1 doe to buck ratio

Hunted all day yesterday and only saw two does between 10:45 and 11:15. These two were feeding. Hoped a buck would cruise by but never did.

Drox, This little 50 acre area I hunt has been the opposite. I have seen more bucks this year includeing the yearlings than in years past. We did a lot of doe hunting the past three years and it seems to hve paid off. We still have about 20 or so doe that filter through and a geroup of nine that stick together so we're seeing a lot more bucks and better quaility too.

Checked the rut activity in the area of Fauquier County. Rut is still happening, but the winter pattern is creeping ing in. Should see some bucks tomorrow and Saturday. Game movement time 1:30 to 3:30 both days (Friday and Saturday). Buck hunting both days unless I get my big Nine I have been after tomorrow!!! Been chasing this guy all year. Who knows what the woods will bring, but it's better than being at work!!!!!! Good luck to all going out this weekend!!

Cpljbuck,
Tomorrow, sunrise to 10 am and then noon to 4pm; that's the plan. Since i
i live an an EAB county, the next has to be a doe. But that's ok because I need to fill the freezer.

Good luck guys! My season is over!

Were hunting the GWNF for the second year for Bucks only and bear. For the second year in a row, we've seen nothing but prints, rubs and scrapes. Not a single deer or bear to be scene a anywhere. What gives

Drox, I hunt EAB as well. Two tags left. One either sex and one antlerless only. After that I may or may not get bonous tags, but I will only hunt until the end of January. After that I personally don"t want to shoot pregnant does that far along (which isn't much but still. Going out in the next hour or so. Check back in later to see if you got your doe.

I got this guy on 11/23. He was trailing a doe and even mounted her twice while I waited for a shot. After I got him in the truck I had a larger buck come out the same way this one had, no doubt trailing the same doe. This is in SW Virginia.

Heard some chasing going on yesterday as I was getting ready to leave my stand. Only problem was it was after legal shooting time.

I was reading some other threads earlier. Guys in NC were saying that the rut is peaking right now. (i.e. bucks all over the road at night and chasing/breeding in the woods). It has been a long rut this year that's for sure.

VA

DROX, Here you go buddy. I have been hunting for 26 years and this is the biggest thing I have seen come through the woods. I ended up goiing out just to move my treestand for tomorrow. Three bucks came through that were not what I was looking for with one buck tag left. Then this guy brought up the rear fifty yards behind the others. Today is a good day. What I am seeing now though is bachelor groups again. Deer were everywhaer. While I was cleaning this one, a bigger buck came within fifty yards. Good luck tomorrow.

That's a great looking buck. Bow or Gun? Congrats!!!

VA

Nice buck.

I haven't seen anything at all the past two mornings which is not uncommon where I am. Basically about this time of year - every year....they all seem to disappear. Good luck to you guys.

Thanks VA5326! For the first tiime this year I actually used my .35 lever action instead of my muzzy.

So an update in NoVA. Just when I though the rut was over, All day long there was nothing but chasing. I actually haven't seen rut activity this hard in two years. Bucks galore and does being chased.
As a side note. Extremly rare happening today. I actually had a game warden come on to our property. It was a great day. He was looking for poachers in the area which is great considering the issues we have been having out there. My buddy actually shot a buck and it went to another property. We couldn't find who owend the land so the game warden walked us on to help track the buck. We recovered him three hours later. Give it up for the boys in green!