Whitetail Watch with Bill Winke

It can be very tempting to rush right to your best spots when the season opens, especially if you had some daylight trail camera photos of a good buck in that area during the past few weeks. But, be careful. There is a change in behavior that happens at this time every year. Bucks that were daylight active throughout most of September stop coming out in the open, or possibl kwhunting kwwhitetail

We had a chance to get out and hunt the cold front yesterday on opening day. There was some decent movement back in the timber, and the forecast calls for another cold front this weekend. However, the most effective strategy now is also the riskiest. Many bucks are still not moving out in the open during daylight. Hunting them where they're living means potentially educating and spooking them. It

This week's cold front didn't deliver quite the results we were hoping for, but the best hunting of the season is yet to come. With the bucks shifting their ranges again, it is a good idea to base your strategy on what you are seeing now versus what you were seeing even earlier this month. The bucks will be where the does are as the rut closes in, so if you can pattern the does, that will give you

The season is ramping up. Buck behavior will increasingly be dictated by the rut phase versus the weather in the coming weeks. Now it is time to begin hunting mornings. Near bedding areas in the mornings and near active scrapes close to field edges for the afternoons are great places to start. This is the time we look forward to all season. Enjoy it and good luck.

This coming week will feature one of the most useful behavior events of the season - when the first doe comes into estrus in the area where the buck you are hunting lives. Things really break loose when that happens. Most years we see this occur between roughly October 30 and November 3. Let's keep this simple: the bucks are physically hunting does so if you do the same thing you are much mor

The best days of the rut are upon us. Historically, November 7th - plus or minus a couple of days - has been my favorite day to hunt. Bucks are out searching for does as the number in estrus climbs. Use this to your advantage by focusing on funnels and doe bedding areas. Now is the time to sit all day, hunt your best spots, and pull out all of the stops. Deer tend to move best when it is under 5