Bucks are cruising and chasing at all hours of the day in Midwestern states, and hunters in other regions should soon see similar activity. (Shutterstock)
October 31, 2024
By Game & Fish Staff
This is Week 2 of the 2024 Game & Fish Regional Rut Update , a series of exclusive weekly rut reports from the field by whitetail contributors Doug Howlett (East), Brandon Butler (Midwest) and Josh Honeycutt (South). This week's report includes:
In the East, Howlett says bucks have begun to chase does and spar with each other. Hunters are seeing an increase in deer activity as bucks abandon their late-summer/early-fall feeding patterns. However, recent high temps have limited daytime deer movement.In the South, Honeycutt reports slow deer activity in many parts of the region while some states are starting to heat up. Hunters will benefit from cooler temperatures as the rut begins. In the Midwest, Butler says field reports indicate that the chasing phase is hot and heavy. As the rut goes full tilt, archery hunters are reaping the rewards by hunting scrape lines and travel corridors, as bucks are moving during daylight hours. EAST REPORT The Pre-Game Show As bucks begin to chase does and spar, it’s just about time for the rut to kick in. By Doug Howlett
With the first week of November upon us, we are right on the doorstep of prime time for the 2024 whitetail rut. Across the Northeast, hunters are seeing an increase in deer activity as bucks abandon their late-summer/early-fall feeding patterns and begin to roam more widely in search of those first estrous does. From Virginia to Maine , new bucks are showing up on trail cameras and are close to hitting full rut behavior, though that still might be a week to a week and a half away. The only wildcard that might temper the momentum is a stretch of warmer-than-ideal weather sweeping the region. The mercury is hitting the 80s in the southern part of the region as this report goes live. It’s a hitch no camo-clad woodsman wants to see at this juncture.
In West Virginia , hunter and former game warden Larry Case reports bucks are starting to show interest in does, though the hard, frantic chasing—what local hunters call dogging—hasn’t kicked off yet. Up in Connecticut , Matt Wettish reports a definite uptick in movement around his rural home. His buddies have all reported it is almost “game on.” Another Connecticut local who’s been getting in the woods regularly, Trevor Berwick confirms the action is building, with bucks beginning to travel more in daylight hours and expand their ranges. More scrapes are popping up, and bucks are roaming for the first receptive does.
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Farther north in Vermont and New Hampshire , hunters like Mike Wheeler have been in a bit of a rut slump thanks to the recent mini heatwaves that have kept buck activity to a minimum. He noted a 5- to 6-day dead period with barely any movement or scraping activity, though that changed earlier this week with a brief cold snap, which prompted bucks to work scrapes and lick branches from dawn till late morning. Wheeler’s cameras even picked up some unfamiliar bucks hitting scrapes—a sure sign of pre-rut energy building. He advises now is the time to hunt scrapes, with bucks finally leaving behind their summer feeding sites and working into their historical rut ranges.
In Virginia , hunters from the mountains in Bedford County to the farmlands of Southampton County saw a recent cold spell jumpstart the rut activity only to have the returning heat slow it down a little in the daytime. Chris Barham witnessed two bucks sparring as he cleared a trail, the clash occurring within 5 feet of his tractor before the bucks even noticed him. He then went on to enjoy a special hunt using his late father’s crossbow and a bolt his dad had used to kill a deer to take an 8-point buck on one of his farms (his father, Tommy Barham, a former Primos pro-staffer and one of the most well-known hunters in the area, passed away just over a year ago.) Barham called the buck "like it was on a string" using a Primos Can doe bleat. He says a number of oaks are shedding acorns, and deer are hitting those hard, with any available soybeans being a strong second food option. Barham notes more scrapes are popping up, too.
Since the heavy rain that accompanied Hurricane Helene a few weeks ago, it has been fairly dry in much of the region. That, combined with the current heat, will make any water source in your hunt area a good place to post up, especially if there are scrapes and acorns nearby.
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TAGGED OUT Cameron Parham arrowed this huge buck with his late father's bow. The Virginia monster measured a gross score of 202 4/8 inches. (Photo courtesy of Cameron Parham) Double Deuce Down Virginia hunter drops 200-inch monster with late father’s bow.
Hunter : Cameron ParhamDate : Oct. 19, 2024Location : Sussex County, Va.Method : Compound bowStats : 202 4/8 inches (gross score)It’s been a tough year for 23-year-old Cameron Parham, who lost his father earlier this year. It was Parham’s father who taught him and his brother to love the outdoors and hunting, and on Oct. 19, he took his late father’s compound bow to one of his dad’s favorite stands. He had caught a huge buck on a trail camera on the Sussex County, Va., farm he hunts and had named it "Double Deuce" for the double beam growing out of the left side of the deer’s head. Parham was hoping for a chance at the buck because the rut activity had been picking up.
He was sitting in the stand when he heard the crack of a branch. Just 55 yards away stood a large 8-point eating acorns. The buck was tempting, though not what Parham had come for, and he battled whether to take a shot as the buck edged closer. Just as the 8-point stepped into shooting range, Parham heard more movement in the same direction from which the buck had come. He looked, and there he was—Double Deuce. The larger buck strolled right into range and stopped to feed on acorns, presenting a broadside shot. The young hunter calmed his nerves and delivered a perfect shot. He then called his brother, Wade, and a friend to help find the buck. Fortunately, it didn’t take long to find the giant.
“The trail camera pictures did him no justice,” says Parham. The buck was much larger than he had even realized. The tale of the tape on Double Deuce: 20 scorable points and a rack that gross-scored 202 4/8 inches, according to Buckmasters’ scorer Anders Blixt.
Parham’s father was on Cameron’s mind following the hunt.
“It hurt my heart to not be able to call him first and celebrate it with him,” Parham wrote on a Facebook post. “However, I know he was with me on this hunt, as I was using his bow and hunting from one of his favorite stands.”
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SOUTH REPORT The Wait for Peak Action Continues Rutting activity is still slow in many parts of the South, but reports show it heating up in others. By Josh Honeycutt
The mood of whitetails remains quite varied across the Southern states, as does their level of activity. But no matter where you are, it’s definitely time to be out tracking down bucks.
Heath Thompson of Hayden Outdoors in Georgia knows what it takes to tag mature whitetails, and he recently shot a big buck. Thompson says the bucks in his area are already chasing.
Meanwhile, comedian Michael Pitts, another avid Georgia deer hunter, says the action in other parts of the Peach State has been so slow the past few weeks that it isn’t even funny.
“Most areas around us have had a good acorn crop this year, and that is what the deer are still feeding on,” Pitts says. “A heat wave moved in—with temperatures as high as 87 degrees—and we have not had any rain in October, and that’s crippling planted food plots and making for tough hunting conditions. I am seeing a lot of scrapes and rubs, but most of the mature bucks remain nocturnal. The last week of October can be very good in Georgia, but we are going to need cooler temperatures and rain.”
Michael Lee in southern Georgia agrees. “Hot and dry conditions are making it tough right now. There are lots of acorns on the ground, and the deer are hitting them hard. Most mature bucks are moving at night or right at first and last light.”
Over in Tennessee , outdoor writer and editor Brodie Swisher says things are improving in the northwestern part of the Volunteer State. “This week, we saw our first shooter buck up on his feet an hour before dark,” he says. “Still hanging close to thick bedding, but already starting to make the rounds. We also spotted the first scrapes of the year. We’re about a week out from the good stuff.”
In central Louisiana , Southern Boys Outdoors’ Kinion Bankston says there’s not much happening near him. “Bucks are just starting to play a little tap-horns around here,” he says. “But no scrapes to report at this time.”
TAGGED OUT South Carolina hunter Ryan Griffin called this great buck, which he had been hunting for the past three seasons, to within shooting range earlier this month. (Photo courtesy of Ryan Griffin) Looking For a Fight His search for a rival proves to be one South Carolina buck’s downfall.
Hunter : Ryan GriffinDate : Oct. 11, 2024Location : South CarolinaMethod : RifleStats: 129 1/8 inchesRyan Griffin had been after one particular South Carolina deer for three years. Last year, he had three fruitless encounters with it but held high hopes for the 2024 season.
“We worked hard in the off-season prepping the land, hanging sets and watching as bucks grew in the bachelor groups,” Griffin says.
The buck in question resurfaced on Sept. 27, but it wasn’t until Oct. 11 that he finally had the opportunity to move in on the deer. After watching smaller bucks bumping does, Griffin grunted and rattled, and after a while, the big deer came to check on the commotion.
“It wasn’t long before I heard him busting through the brush,” says Griffin. “He came right up the funnel, running all the small bucks out of the area and looking for one that was ticking him off. As he crested the top of the saddle, I eased my gun up and got my eye on him with the scope. But before I could pull the trigger, he was gone.”
The big buck exited down the opposite funnel and went cruising for the rival that had him fired up. “He was on a mission, and I could hear him going west of me, so I pulled the call back out and hit him with a few deep, mature grunts. In 30 seconds, he popped back out and made a scrape. Once he finished up, he started coming my way.”
Wasting no time, Griffin again got his sights on the buck and took the shot. The deer crashed just over the rise. Griffin’s father arrived a bit later to lend a hand, and the two of them found the buck together.
“It was surreal,” he says. “After taking it all in, all my emotions exploded through my body, and the requisite FaceTime calls were made.”
VIDEO How to Rattle in Big Bucks During the Rut Watch the Video Rattling antlers are the best way to call in a whitetail buck, and you can rattle effectively through the end of December to grab his attention.
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MIDWEST REPORT Midwest bucks are starting to pursue does across much of the region. By Brandon Butler
It’s a bad time to be driving on country roads, but it’s a great time to be a Midwestern whitetail hunter because the chasing phase of the rut has arrived. Reports from across the region all include tales of bucks in hot pursuit of does. Old, elusive bucks are showing themselves in the daylight, and quite a few are taking rides in truck beds. If you can find an active scrape line, you should hunt over it all day. There is no telling when a buck is going to show up.
Archery hunters are enjoying the action as the rut kicks into full gear. If you’ve never bowhunted, consider the fact that crossbows are now legal in most states. The next couple of weeks are what we’ve waited for all year. The recent cold spell with a waning moon seems to have set the early does off, and the bucks are giving chase.
Tony Reiss is no stranger to big whitetails. His family has hunted the eastern prairie region of South Dakota for generations.
“The bucks are chasing,” he says. “This is the time of year I look forward to most as a hunter. I focus on river bottoms. If you can find a good stretch of timber along a river or big creek, those travel corridors are where I’d recommend setting up because bucks are going to be running through there all day.”
West-central Michigan has large swaths of forest. It’s not like downstate where a lot of the rural landscape is currently harvested agricultural fields that expose a lot of the rut activity. Up north, much of the action takes place in the woods, through which many rivers flow.
Fishing guide Kevin Morlock is currently focused on salmon on a remote stretch of river. He says a lot more deer have been running through the timber in the last week, much to the delight of his clients.
“This time of year is great,” Morlock says. “Just the other day, a doe scooted across a shallow riffle downriver from where we were fishing. A couple minutes later, a nice buck runs through, clearly after her. It was beautiful. I think a lot of hunters would do better up here and find better quality deer if they got away from the road farther.”
Quite a few Kansas giants now reside on Heath Hazen’s walls. The diehard hunter, who lives outside of Wichita but hunts farther to the west, says he saves vacation time for the last week of October and the first week of November.
“I hunt open country,” he says. “I love it because I can see a lot of deer. I like watching them. Right now, if you see a doe on her own, there’s a good chance a buck is going to be after her. Maybe more than one. A single scent line laid down by a doe can be followed by many different bucks. You want to be where you think the most does will travel. Find the does and you’ll find the bucks.”
Bucks are moving in the daylight in pursuit of does. The best action is still likely to be at dawn and dusk, but you can realistically see a buck on his feet at any time of the day right now. Focus on travel corridors. Be in those funnels. Hunt around scrapes. Make sure you set up so your wind is blowing away from where you expect the deer to pass by. Anytime you can hunt is a good time to hunt right now.
TAGGED OUT Brandon Butler poses with "Short 10" after arrowing the buck in Howard County, Mo. (Brandon Butler) Central-Missouri Magic Midwest Rut Update columnist bags a beautiful Show-Me State buck.
Hunter : Brandon ButlerDate : Oct. 28, 2024Location : Howard County, Mo.Method : Compound BowStats: 138 inchesI’ve reported on a lot of big Midwestern bucks over the years, but I’ve never shared one of my own stories. With this being the first buck to entice me to loose an arrow in five seasons, I’m motivated to share the tale.
This buck, which we referred to as “Short 10,” had been around awhile. I have pictures of him dating back to 2021 and figure he was at least 5 1/2 years old. He was always wide but had short tines, hence the name. Last year, he put on good mass but stayed short. This year, his right side shot up, and his mass increased even more.
I didn’t weigh him, but I wish I would have. I’m guessing his dressed weight was close to 250 pounds, as this buck was the size of a small mule. He would have been a contender in any of the big-buck contests back in the day when winning relied on weight. I miss those contests.
A couple of years ago, I bought a Redneck Blind and set it up on my central-Missouri property. I still prefer to be in a treestand. I covet those cold, gray days spent 20 feet up an oak tree out in the elements. But sometimes, the comfort of a fancy box blind is too much to resist.
I went to the blind because I didn’t expect to shoot a buck. I was more interested in observing rut behavior than I was in punching my tag. But then the “Short 10” burst onto the scene. Sitting in my comfy chair, my bow on one side of me, my release on the other and a cup of coffee in hand, I thought there was no way I’d pull it off. Thankfully, he was rutted up and crazed out of his mind. As he stood in the picked bean field, his mouth was open and his chest heaving as he tried to figure out where the doe he was pursuing went.
Buck fever like I had not experienced in maybe 20 years gripped me. I panicked and scrambled like I was a beginner bowhunter again. Ultimately, I pulled it off and put an arrow through him at 25 yards. The “Short 10” is being mounted by Scenic Rivers Taxidermy in Salem, Mo., and will be proudly hung in the shop on the property from which he came.
