Deer hunting over bait.
 

We are allowed to hunt over bait in NJ. With the rut coming up in the near future, does it make sense to still use a bait pile of corn or sweet potatoes or should I just use scent lures? Or both?
I realize deer still have to eat during this time, but do they eat less frequently and are more concerned about reproducing.

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

A lot of people here use corn feeders, and they hunt them all season. I usually notice more does become regulars at feeders than bucks. My theory is that during the rut, bucks are after does, so find the does and you will find the bucks. If you can attract does to feed, then sometimes those does will attract bucks that would otherwise wouldn't come around your setup.

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

A live hot doe is the best bait you can have.

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

Feed the hot mommas and the bucks will come

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

i personaly hunt over bait all year. i hunt in northern wisconsin and usually when my bait pile runs low i see fewer deer. my party also saw fewer deer about 2 years ago when there was a temporary bating band due to cwd in the southern part of the state. but since bating has been reistablished we have seen more deer than in years past.

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

I hunt over a feeder year round, because I love to watch deer. My feeder and stand are on a thick tree line. During rut I move to a stand just inside the tree line and out of sight of the feeder. I found, like many, the BIG boys will hang in the cover and watch the does eat. So thats were i'm gonna be, in the cover with the big boys.

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

I hunt over bait in NJ. I have been making sure that the pile is refreshed often now. As the does come in, so will the bucks. One of my set-ups is near a 20+- acre thicket that is a hiding place and a bedding area. I can get along the edge and get the deer moving in or out. It sems the bucks lately have been "cruising" past the pile, not to eat but to look for love.

The pile has ben out since August.

Greg

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

i have bean hunting over corn for the past month for bow season and i have sean at least 2 deer every time i go out but iv only sean 3 bucks over that time but i could of bean becouse it isnt rut im in turtl lake WI

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

Never hunted over bait before , but since we can in NJ , figured I'd give it a try. What food seems to work the best and how far away should you be from the pile ? I'll be hunting in a pop-up blind. How far in advance to you put food out and how often to you check/re-stock the pile ?

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

I've always been told the reason big mature bucks aren't seen as much around piles of corn is because their teeth are all worn down to almost little stumps and it's hard for them to eat the stuff. The does will hang around and eat so that brings in the bucks looking for a little bit of love......:)

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

Deer eat sweet potatoes? I didn't know that. Guess its true..you do learn something new everyday.

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

Deer do eat sweet potatoes but they usually dont eat them until they start to rot. Our camp put out a truck load of them last year and they didnt touch them until the potatoes started to rot and stink. And man do they stink. They also like apples and pears. But again they dont eat them until they rot. I hunt in southern arkansas and we put out piles of soybeans and the deer love them. Try the new mix they have out called beast feast it is really good. I have a feeder and mixed it with my corn and started seeing double the amount of deer after I started using the beast feast. It has molasses in it. They love anything with molasses.

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

I have deer eat the turnips (tops) out of our garden before. Usually around this time of year. My neighbor says that they eat his blackberries and cherries every year. I am used to seeing them eating apples and persimmons and grain. We can't bait in Illinois, so have to try and find a natural food source like oak trees and honeysuckle. Or we might lant a food plot, but that is hit and miss and not cheap. How much $ do you spend on bait a year? Not trying to start a fight.....just curious. I have noticed the feed prices and it is not cheap. Still would have never guessed that deer would eat sweet potatoes.[&:]

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

Well on the average we spend about 150 dollars a year on food plots and corn for our feeders but we have 4 feeders between my husband and me. I also plant turnips. We plant alot of rye grass in our shooting lanes. They seem to really like that. It gives them something to nibble on when everything else is turning brown here. Corn is cheap here. It sells for 4 dollars for a 50 lbs sack. Sometimes we can get it cheaper than that if we buy in bulk. We have a farmer that is a member of our camp that raises sweet potatoes and he brings his culls to the camp for the deer. So we dont have to buy them. I dont know if they will grow up there this time of the year but deer also love any kind of peas. We cant even plant peas here because the deer eat them up. Looks like someone took a weedeater to them and just mowed them down.

RE: Deer hunting over bait.
 

I also spend probably about $100 to $150 in a bow season on maily corn. I enjoy hunting over bait because I see more deer and I also enjoy watching the other animals that come to get a little to eat. I think it's most productive for big bucks during the rut because they'll be following the does, but big bucks can be taken off of bait if you hunt it right. If you don't overhunt the stand and make sure not to alarm the deer big boys will come and eat during daylight. One idea I have used is don't put out too much feed and when you're hunting make sure there is little to no feed out. Deer then come to check the pile then leave, so they're not there for a long period of time which will give them a better and better chance of figuring there could be something wrong. Here is proof big bucks can be shot over bait, it was taken earlier in the season off of corn.