I was on vacation this past week muzzleloading. Yesterday saw 4 bucks chasing does. Things are starting to heat up here in northern Arkansas

For those of you who know Charles Alscheimer (Deer and Deer Hunting magazine)....he has been predicting rutting activity in the North and South for over 30 years now....I have been keeping tabs on his predicitions in my area of the country....(SW Ohio and SE Indiana). In my opinion, his predictions have been dead on.....Now with that being said.....he gives a "window" of days.....his predictions for this year is that the best 9 days to hunt in the North is 11/10-11/18....he says that the seeking/chasing activity will increase dramatically 2-3 days before the 10th....again....some believe in this and others do not....I for one gauge my vacation days based upon his comments!!

Here in central MD things have been slow. One of my friends who lives backed up to a park told me yesterday that the bucks and does have been grazing in his yard like usual. However, just yesterday one of the bucks left a massive rub in his yard. He has a nice eight pointer hanging out there this year.

Normally by now we would be in the middle of a nice seeking/chasing phase, but alas that is not the case this year.

I'm theorizing (and hoping) that Charles Alsheimer is accurate this year and things are going to take off big time later this week. I'm not planning vacation as I have done in the past. I intend to take my hunting stuff to work and if I get the call that things are going down then I am outta here and on my way to my hunting property!

Chaz, have you had any luck in fulton this year? i hunt in Clarksville and over in Damascus and have seen a fair amount of doe movement but not many bucks chasing them. Most of the bucks have been flying solo. Used to be alot of good places to hunt in fulton, maple lawn ate alot of it up.

Pre-rut in South Carolina is on. I found some scrapes and put some buck urine on them Thursday to get him riled up. Sunday climbed a tree about 50 yards from one of them and I rattled him in. He went straight for the scrape to check it. A nice 9-point. His neck wasn't huge but his tarsal glands were black.

I went back down home from school to hunt this past weekend at the family farm in mid-ohio. Still seeing alot of scrapes and rubs and sub-par movement from the bucks. The does just arent in estrus yet and not moving very well. I give it another week or two and the rut is going to be hitting hard down home.

WackandStack. I haven't really hunted Fulton this year. I have some does coming around my property, but I'm leaving them alone for now. I wanna see what happens with any potential strange bucks that come around to check them out. I usually hunt in Gaithersburg and have been seeing pretty much the same thing you have. It's interesting in a way. I tend to think things will happen fast and furious. Hopefully not all at night though. I've seen that happen when November turns real warm. It's supposed to get warmer next week, but nothing extreme.

I hunt Carroll county Maryland (liberter watershed) and don't see much happening yet. Yesterday I saw a 8 pt. feeding with a doe and two yearlings. I watched the feeding for 45 minutes when the buck slowly separated and went on his own.

Unfortunately all the descent bucks I've seen on my cams are moving at 5am coming off the fields. Seen some smaller bucks moving in the evening but no shooters. I know what you mean about the Indian summer weather impacting the rut. Wish these cold over night temps would hold on.

Things heated up tonight. From 330 till dark. Nothing till sunset. Then a number of doe moved into the bean field. Then small buck entered the field and proceeded to chase the does around till they moved into the woods. Then the buck moved back towards the area he enter the feild and worked a scrap. Had to grunt loudly to get him to exit the field so I could climb down. Clearly its on now.