2020 Blacktail rut/pre-rut and post rut thread

[highside74]

It was a bad weekend for spikes in Vail. With the rain the does and young bucks were out in force. Saw 5 spikes in the back trucks late yesterday.

[fishnfur]

I saw a 3 point today at 930 here in town.  He must have been interested in a doe because he just stood there when I pulled over to take his pic with my cell.

Pictures or it didn't happen!   


Checked my cams under the apple trees.  I've never seen it so slow at this stage of the season.  Zero bucks since the 13th.  I'm wondering how many bucks got poached or hit by vehicles in town since last fall.  Hopefully, it doesn't indicate that the season for mature deer is off to a slower start than usual. 

Just for fun, and because it is so slow here, I uploaded a vid to Youtube from last October - a young buck that is clearly frustrated.  I didn't combine all the videos leading up to this moment, but clearly he is very unhappy.  I love how the buck's really lays into the vocalization, which subsequently made the doe run off.    Sadly, no microphone on this cam.  I wonder what kind of noise he made.  I keep imagining something like the T-rex in the movie Jurassic Park.     (watching the full size version on Youtube gives a much better feeling for the exertion in his effort).

[WapitiTalk1]

Durn fresh in one of my areas.

[85yota]

Have yet to see a fresh rub since about the week before season started (the rub was in a neighborhood thats basically unhuntable and im probably just missing them in my area).. Question about does with fawns.. Between Saturday and Sunday me and my partner saw about 10 does between hunting and driving and 1 small spike.. 7 had fawns with most being twins and looked extremely young, mainly in cuts I would presume do to the rain.. My question is what happens when they go into estrus with fawns? They seemed way to young to leave them.. So do they get bred with fawns.. If we find a doe in late Oct. That still has 2 fawns is she worth waiting on? In my local area the fawns have all been killed but my other spot all the does have fawns in toe.. What say you fish n fur?

[JakeLand]

How do you post videos

[85yota]

By the way I will post some info about myself once i figure this sight out.. Been lurking for years and guys like jakeland skagit steel fish n fur radsave blr243 and the rest of Yall have been more informative than any other resource in the world when it comes to these crazy black tails.. Thanks in advance sorry to thread jack lol

[fishnfur]

Have yet to see a fresh rub since about the week before season started (the rub was in a neighborhood thats basically unhuntable and im probably just missing them in my area).. Question about does with fawns.. Between Saturday and Sunday me and my partner saw about 10 does between hunting and driving and 1 small spike.. 7 had fawns with most being twins and looked extremely young, mainly in cuts I would presume do to the rain.. My question is what happens when they go into estrus with fawns? They seemed way to young to leave them.. So do they get bred with fawns.. If we find a doe in late Oct. That still has 2 fawns is she worth waiting on? In my local area the fawns have all been killed but my other spot all the does have fawns in toe.. What say you fish n fur?

The doe chase the kids away when it is time to breed.  They don't quite know what to do without mom, so they just hang out in their normal spots, but they are crazy on edge and freak with any movement.  If you see that, mom is probably close by waiting for Mr. Right.  If you see a doe without fawns in late Oct, if she is in heat, her tail will stick straight out so that her scent can be exposed to the winds which will attract the bucks pretty quickly.  You my just see them standing still in a spot by themselves, waiting. Check the tail and look for fawns.  Decide what to do based on that information.  If she is hot and just waiting for a buck (as far as you can tell), the buck may actually be already there and you have failed to see it.  If not, then keep your eyes downwind to where her scent is carried.  That is where you'd expect a buck to come from, though not always.  Sit tight and keep your eyes on her.  Her ears will move around towards the sound of an incoming buck as he gets closer.  Find an opening in the expected lane of travel and kick off your safety.     

eidt:  if you're OK killing a young buck, then watching a doe with kids close by may provide a shot opportunity around this time of the season for a young horny buck chasing around mom while the kids are there.  Doe will not breed with their kids there.  I think, in general, it is a waste of time to watch a doe with fawns still with her.  Checking back on her every day or two (of possible) might put you in a great spot once she's getting hot. 

[WapitiTalk1]

 

[TheStovePipeKid]

Got a small forkie in the same spot at pre dawn the last two nights. Poking around where a doe is also working through at night. Making plans.

[fishnfur]

Have yet to see a fresh rub since about the week before season started (the rub was in a neighborhood thats basically unhuntable and im probably just missing them in my area).. Question about does with fawns.. Between Saturday and Sunday me and my partner saw about 10 does between hunting and driving and 1 small spike.. 7 had fawns with most being twins and looked extremely young, mainly in cuts I would presume do to the rain.. My question is what happens when they go into estrus with fawns? They seemed way to young to leave them.. So do they get bred with fawns.. If we find a doe in late Oct. That still has 2 fawns is she worth waiting on? In my local area the fawns have all been killed but my other spot all the does have fawns in toe.. What say you fish n fur?

It's still early for rubs down here.  Typically, I have not seen fresh rubs in SW WA before the last week of the month.  I know it is different in other areas, but not a heck of a lot different.  Wapititalk1's pic does look fresh and there's 10 days left in the month.  I guess you have to get to know what is normal in your area.  The rubbing will ramp up over the next couple weeks until most of the doe get hot in early Nov.

[fishnfur]

How do you post videos

If you want to try yourself, you need a Google or Youtube account (user name/p-word).  When logged into youtube, click on the camera in the upper R. corner of the page.  Select upload a video.  A window opens that you can drag and drop your video file into and it will upload while you fill in information such as title, tags, private or public access, suitable for kids, and some others.  Pretty straight forward.  The suitable for kids tab requires a response.  Some of the stuff you can just ignore.  After a few minutes, it will show that your video is ready to publish and give you the address where the video will be posted.  All you need to do is click on the "Publish" option and you're done.  Copy and paste the address into a new browser page to make sure it works.  If all is good, just post it here in the text box.  No need to attach the file below.

[WapitiTalk1]

Concur with your assessment fishnfur. The rub i posted was made within the past 3ish days (I was at this spot over the weekend and it wasn’t there; took the pic last night). Most of the rut rubs I see occur more towards the end of OCT and farther into the rut on normal years up my way also.  I’ll be back up there at least once from FRI - SAT; maybe I’ll bump into him but doubtful till a bit later in the season when he gets a bit sillier. I have one of my portable one man blinds set up about 1/2 mile farther on up the hillside, just off the edge of a cut, with a 200 YD shot up into a ravine trail, pretty consistently baited with apples/pears.  Getting some consistent does feeding, a few scraggly forkys, and this pest 

[fishnfur]

Got a bear tag?  That bear looks huge!

Here's one of two videos from Jakeland.  I'm still working on the second.

[fishnfur]

Part 2 from Jakeland (possibly part 1)

[Turner89]

What a dink