


They are moving fast and are not interested in food. In October, I usually see them in the last 90 minutes of daylight, and mostly in the last 30-40 minutes. A deer makes a post by scraping clean a place in the dirt, usually under a single, low-hanging limb and leaving scent.ĭeer are putting on fat and growing out their winter coats right now, so they spend the hot hours bedded down in protective cover. They spend a lot of time cruising their territories checking scrapes, which is a deer's equivalent to a dating app.

You have to be edgy, though, because mid October is an excellent time to encounter a mature buck. My head swiveled and darted all day, and my nerves were on razor's edge. They made even falling leaves sound like pterodactyls landing. Years ago, I tried using electronic "game ears." They're merely hearing aids marketed to hunters, with camo earpieces, of course. Even little wrens bobbing around in the leaves will keep you wound as tight as an eight-day clock. A squirrel rooting around in the leaves can sound like a herd of deer, and an armadillo sounds like a herd of buffalo. The slow shuffle of doe hooves sound a lot different than the purposeful stride of a buck. You can hear a deer's footsteps in the brittle leaves from afar. It hasn't rained much, so the forest floor is dry. A lot of leaves have already fallen, so you can see through the woods farther than you could two weeks ago. Acorns are falling, and the leaves of the hardwoods are slowly beginning to change. Mornings are cool, almost cold, but not uncomfortable. Of course, nothing compares with the excitement that surrounds opening day of the modern gun deer season, but muzzleloader season is a world unto itself. 24, and hunters can kill their entire season bag limit with muzzleloading firearms if they choose.įor all it encompasses, muzzleloader deer season is my favorite deer season. If you are one of those dreamers, then your time will come Saturday when muzzleloader deer season opens statewide across the Natural State. Cool mornings lately inspire thoughts of slipping out and bagging a deer with a muzzleloader.
