Skip to main content

10 Whitetail Hunting Tips to Capitalize on the Rut

OutdoorChannel.com collected some of the best whitetail rut tips to help hunters take advantage of the rut and enjoy their time in the field

10 Whitetail Hunting Tips to Capitalize on the Rut
Setting up a stand on travel lanes – between feeding and bedding areas – can often increase your opportunities to encounter bucks leading up to and during the rut. (Terry Owens Photos)

The whitetail rut can be one of the most exciting times of year, or one of the most frustrating, depending on if your tag has some ink on it by the end. Knowing where to look, how to stalk, or how to call in the clever bucks can mean the difference in a freezer full of venison or an empty spot on the wall. That's why the staff at OutdoorChannel.com pulled together some of the best whitetail rut tips to help hunters capitalize on the rut and enjoy their time in the field.

1. Choosing the Right Stand Location for the Whitetail

Moving away from feedingand bedding areas, setting up on transition lanes could be the key to tagging your buck during the rut. Click here for tip.


2. Strategies for Big, Aggressive Bucks


Bucks have egos? Absolutely! Ever seen a buck with their back hair raised up, ears laid back and walking stiff-legged? These tough guys might think they own the place, the fact is they might be some of the most vulnerable and easy to take this hunting season. Click here for tip.


3. 6 Tips to Beat a Mild-Weather Whitetail Rut

If facing the challengesof a whitetail rut in above-normal temperatures, there are strategies to tiltthe odds back into your favor with a little extra effort. Click here for tip.



4. The Chess Game of Rut Phases

This year, to increase your success in the stand, make sure that you attack each phase of the rut independently. Ultimately, the encounters you have may not be as luck-driven as you originally thought.Click here for tip.





5. 7 Tips for Deer Hunting a Warm, Slow Rut

Warm or cold weather, the rut willhappen; just be ready to change your strategy if you find yourself sweatingwhile hunting in a t-shirt. Click here for tip.


6. How and When to Use a Grunt Call

Recommended


Don Kisky, an expert Iowa whitetailhunter and host of Whitetail Freaks, relies heavily on grunt calls to bring bigbucks within bow range. Click here for tip.


7. With the Peak of the Rut Coming, Here's WhatYou Need to Know

When whitetail breeding is at its peak,it doesn't necessarily mean you'll see more deer and have a better chance attagging a buck. Click here for tip.


8. Whitetail Hunting Tips to Bag a Smart Buck

When whitetail breeding is at its peak, it doesn't necessarily mean you'll see more deer and have a better chance at tagging a buck. Click here for tip.


9. Whitetail Hunting Strategy: Waterholes ProduceBig

From the warm, early days of the autumnbowhunting season to the frenzied peak of the rut later on in the year, anoften overlooked tactic by some whitetail hunters is that of guarding awaterhole with bow or rifle in. Click here for tip.


10. Use Deer Sign to Understand Whitetail RutStages

Part of being good, consistent whitetail hunter is having the ability to decode thesigns bucks leave behind, understand what it means and use the information toincrease odds for success during the different rut phases of fall. Click here for tip.


GET THE NEWSLETTER Join the List and Never Miss a Thing.

Recommended Articles

Recent Videos

Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives fo...
Recipes

Wild Turkey Noodle Soup Recipe

Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives fo...
Fishing

Bass Crash Course: How to Properly Tune a Baitcasting Rig

Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives fo...
Fishing

Baitcaster Basics: The Overhead Cast

Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives fo...
Gear

Winchester Big Bore: Backcountry Bear Protection

Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives fo...
Guns

Ruger American Now Chambered in 7mm PRC

Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives fo...
Guns

Classic Marlin: 336 and 1894 Lever-Action Hunting Rifles

Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives fo...
Learn

NWTF's Passion for Wild Turkey Conservation Still Burns After 50 Years

Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives fo...
Gear

First Look: Leupold's BX-4 Range HD Rangefinding Binos

Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives fo...
Gear

Browning's Max Point, Silver Series Rifle Ammunition

Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives fo...
Gear

New Hunting Ammo from Remington: 360 Buckhammer

Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives fo...
Guns

New from Browning: X-Bolt Pro LR McMillan

Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives fo...
Gear

New Hunting Blades from Buck Knives

Game & Fish Magazine Covers Print and Tablet Versions

GET THE MAGAZINE Subscribe & Save

Digital Now Included!

SUBSCRIBE NOW

Give a Gift   |   Subscriber Services

PREVIEW THIS MONTH'S ISSUE

Buy Digital Single Issues

Magazine App Logo

Don't miss an issue.
Buy single digital issue for your phone or tablet.

Buy Single Digital Issue on the Game & Fish App

Other Magazines

See All Other Magazines

Special Interest Magazines

See All Special Interest Magazines

Phone Icon

Get Digital Access.

All Game & Fish subscribers now have digital access to their magazine content. This means you have the option to read your magazine on most popular phones and tablets.

To get started, click the link below to visit mymagnow.com and learn how to access your digital magazine.

Get Digital Access

Not a Subscriber?
Subscribe Now

Enjoying What You're Reading?

Get a Full Year
of Guns & Ammo
& Digital Access.

Offer only for new subscribers.

Subscribe Now