New to the area

[Chancegriffis]

Alright guys, I’m new here. I have hunted most of my life in Florida for deer and hogs as well as gators and ducks...I have never hunted in the snow or in Ohio before this year. Since moving to Ohio in late July I have been on the hunt for decent permission and public around my area. I have done a ton of scouting and cyber scouting, have seen more deer this year that are over 120 than I have seen in my entire life. I’m in eastern Guernsey county living in Salesville. But that’s not why I’m here. I was wondering if some seasoned veterans could give me some insight on post rut behavior, really from now til end of season. Are they going to get back to their normal scrape lines here soon? does chasing calm down even more? Hell can you even pattern these bucks this time of year? Is calling still effective, or decoys? Any advice is great as I have a few bucks that I want to shoot as my first Ohio buck. Thanks in advance for the help y’all!

 

[Wildlife]

First off, welcome to Ohio!

With regards to late season buck deer hunting, well, right after gun season, patterning bucks would be sporadic at best and less likely to figure out due to the termendous pressure in most areas from the orange army. After all the dust settles, look for super thick bedding areas with good cover and a good food source that is nearby. Try to setup in between them for evening hunts mainly.

That's my best suggestion for you.

Best of luck to you and welcome to the 'TOO' forum!

 

[Jackalope]

Like wildlife said. If the area has been hit hard the bucks will primarily be nocturnal and hold tight to their bedding areas. You'll need to get in close which means you'll have to be way more cautious with your entry and exit, hence the reason for primarily hunting evenings. In the pre-morning darkness, you have no idea where that buck is when you're making your way to your stand. But in the evening you can bet he's in some thick stuff hunkered down. Hope for cold weather towards the end of the month. The deer will start to yard up in pockets once it gets cold. You may pass a field with 30 deer in it every evening that you never really saw deer in before. You can almost bet that's every deer for a good distance around. The good news is they really get back on a pattern when that happen

 

[giles]

Pour the feed...take December off and hope it gets stupid cold for a week.

 

[Spencie]

What Joe said. Mornings can be effective in late January but it is risky. If you are going to hunt over corn have an escape plan. You won’t be able to do it every night. Or hunt trails leading to the corn. If you are the only one feeding in your area you will get bucks you have never seen. Those are the ones to kill! They most likely won’t be around in November next year. But they will be back in January for corn. They don’t forget. Be prepared for some frustrating evenings. But when things pick up it can get exciting quick. The colder the better if you can stand it.

 

[Chancegriffis]

Being from Florida I’m very warm blooded but I can withstand the cold. I appreciate the insight guys and I just plan on hunting over corn in the colder part of this month until season ends. I am hunting a 208 acre chunk behind my work that the owner has given me permission to hunt. He however owns the surrounding area and it equates to about 1300 acres. Only three people have permission to hunt it and nobody else has permission to the 200 I’m on. I have two feeders and two piles and have I believe a total of 6 or 7 stands up. Just hoping for a cold weekend coming up...