Every year it’s the same old routine when November rolls around. The alarm clock goes off well before daylight and any free time is spent on stand patiently waiting for that big buck to come by. Trail camera pictures are analyzed and stands are placed in the best possible locations.
Pre scouting before the deer season even comes in to figure out what mast hit and where the food is going to be helps in determining where to place a tree stand or ground blind. Not to mention all the hours spent preparing and mowing food plots in the summer to give the deer a quality food source. My point is, serious deer hunters spend a lot of time not only preparing for deer season but also sitting for hours on stand once it comes in.
I’ve lived and hunted in West Virginia all of my life and I’ve came to the conclusion that no matter how well prepared you think you are once deer season comes in; it’s being in the right place at the right time. There are so many factors that come into play especially when the rut is in.
A hot doe can lead a big buck wherever she goes. He could be under your stand one day and a mile away the next. You just never know. Add thousands of hunters in the woods during buck season and deer can be spooked and run your direction at any second. Then there’s the chance that the buck you’re after can get hit by a vehicle, shot by a neighbor, poached, etc. There are so many factors that cannot be controlled. As a landowner, all I can do is create the best possible habitat for wildlife and then just sit back and wait for hopefully a big buck to walk through once deer season comes in.
Those hunting on public lands have to do their homework as well to determine where the mast hit, what area to hunt and how to best access it, where others are hunting, etc. Even then, it’s still the luck of the draw and like playing the lottery trying to connect with a mature buck.
Of course, the more time you can spend in the deer woods, the better your odds are. I spent 2 months hunting the buck I fortunately ended up shooting on Thanksgiving Day last year. Without the snow cover on the ground I would have never seen the heavy racked Braxton County 10 point that day. I first spotted him at over 500 yards and then shot him at 326 yards 6 hours later. Persistence, patients, and snow helped me last Thanksgiving.
Weather is another factor in deer hunting. As I mentioned I love hunting with snow on the ground. Windy conditions might not allow you to hunt in a tree stand without getting rocked all over the place so a backup plan is always nice to have. Rain can allow you to slip along quietly without crunching leaves or you can sit in a ground blind and stay dry.
Speaking as a Dad of a 3 year old, hunting time can be hard to come by nowadays but I make sure to make the most of it when I’m out there. I’m really enjoying being able to hunt on Sunday this year in Braxton and Nicholas Counties as it gives me an extra day. So this deer season try to get out there every chance you get, be patient, and keep a positive attitude. I know I sometimes struggle with the last one when gun shots are ringing out all around me on the first 3 days of gun season, but you have to stay positive and be persistent.
The much anticipated two week long buck gun season starts on Monday November 24 and runs to Saturday December 6. Muzzleloader season is the following week from December 8 to December 13. Then there’s one last chance to fill the freezer on the split antlerless season on December 18 to December 20. It’s open again on December 29 to December 31 to finish the year and the 2014 deer seasons. As always, good luck, stay safe, and enjoy your time in the West Virginia deer woods. Wear those safety belts and plenty of blaze orange. Most of all take your time, settle those cross hairs, and shoot straight.
