Hey guys,

I'm new to the forum but not new to hunting. Is anyone else not seeing the deer very much this year? I have a lease in Zavalla and a few deer have been taken already. What pops up on game cameras only comes in the middle of the night. I took a good 250lb hog on Friday and it was super fat, we even got bacon off of it. We have been thinking that its because of all the acorns? I haven't hunted east Texas too much. This is my first lease over here. The deer seem to be completely different. Most won't come to the feeders. The rut was short and quick. So whats the trick to getting some of these East Texas deer after the rut? I'm open to new suggestions.

I've heard it said the deer in East Texas go underground after the first weekend or two of the general season. It doesn't seem to take them long to figure out that so many are after them.

If you can take the time off from work, I would suggest hunting in the middle of the week when the woods are more quiet and still. And if you have an ATV, leave it parked and walk to your stand, at least for the last half mile or so.

East Tx can be tough after the rut, but there are ways to connect on big bucks. There will be another, smaller rut 28 days after the first rut you saw when does that did not take the first go-around come back in. There will be less does available, but there are also less bucks alive at this point so it can be pretty good hunting as well. Late in the year I have had great success by hunting food plots or other food sources once the rest of the food sources are dead or gone.

It is tough after the rut, period. The biggest deer I have seen and taken late in season have always been around secluded food sources that are adjacent to really thick bedding areas, such as thick creek bottoms. Even then it is a crap shoot, and can take alot of hours in the woods. Really cold nasty weather very late in the season always seems to pay off better for the bigger deer. Look in places where you found big big buck sign earlier in the year, and those bucks will return to those areas after the rut (if there is food and thick stuff for them to hide in, that is).

Talk about pressure, this part of the state is pressured and poached like no other, which is a shame, because there are some big deer in east Texas. As for late season, I would suggest food plots, especially smaller ones that you can build/plant in the thicker cover of the hardwoods/piney woods away from roads and civilization. The more remote and harder to get to in east Texas, the better.

Thanks for the advice guys. Pretty much what I was figuring. I think the are holed up real good. Was thinking of trying my hand at stalk hunting my area don't want to spook them out tho. I have the largest area on the lease and right next to it is an area with tons of acorns and all kinds of tracks. I have my game camera out there right now on time lapse every minute. We'll see what turns up. Before the rut I had 17 scrapes in my area worked pretty often. The rut came on the 8th and 9th. I saw 5 does a spike and a real nice buck but they all crossed trails trough the brush and were gone before I could shoot. I didn't take the 125yrd shot at the 130 class buck I saw cause all I could see was the top of his neck and head and wasn't comfortable making that shot. I was hoping he would move closer but he disappeared and I haven't seen him since. I'm afraid I lost my chance. I'm pretty sure he's in my area but I'm lost on where to set up for him because he won't go near my feeder. I'm trying corn piles with apples. even tried peanut butter to bring him out. Nothing...

The deer I am seeing are just now starting to follow does. The end of this week or into next week will be good.

Me too...
From what I've seen and talking to others hunting the areas close to us that are out a lot, I think it may just starting around us.

You may have been just housing a lot of deer in pre season. Iv seen a lot of places that will have loads of deer then rut and winter starts rolling and they head for a better area

I havnt been seeing much all year and its like someone turned on a switch when the cold hit.

The same for me. But then, I'm guilty of doing the same thing I always say that I won't do next season. That is, don't over hunt the same stand.

+1

Ive been every weekend since bow season started in red river county. Hocks just getting dark. No necks swollen up on any bucks. Live or on cameras.

I hunt near Tatum and live in Wood Co. I think the deer may be a little behind this year. Haven't seen any serious chasing until this week. Saw a big 8 that got hit by a car last night that the warden said was chasing a doe.
I also work in a body shop and we usually see a lot of customers start coming in for deer hits, hasn't happened yet.

You guys are quite a bit further north. I really think our rut already happened. All the scrapes I have aren't being worked anymore. 2 weekends ago that buck was chasing the does I seen. This last weekend it was dead for everybody. Unless that was a pre rut...? But the TPWD claims it happens in our area around the 10 and 11th of November. That's close to the time I saw all the action.

Anyone hunting Zavalla or jasper with another opinion?

rut last longer than a week... Do you have a lot of doe that stay on your place?

ta THF, congrates on the hog, read a cool post about the bacon, while back gonna give it a try if get lucky an get a big one around my feeder, went ta refiill feeder, seen hog tore up plot for deer, checked cam nothing, full moon do most of my hog hunting on public land, end up back packing em out. thankful for what I get. see in later post ya been seeing a few deer, used ta see three different bucks & several does out of my stand few years back, had a buck with velvet nubs, at food plot in May, finaly got a pic of young buck over bye bow stand bout 2 weeks ago been getting rain so every thing is looking green, leaves starting ta fall. Aagh some times I shift my brain into nutural an let my mind rattle. keeps my fingers loose, helps with my sign language, took up enough space here so moven on, Keep your head held dry & your powder dry.

With scrapes not being worked the deer are currently rutting and spending more time locked down with does than out cruising and being real visible. Hard to pattern them when they're doing that, just have to hope one slips up and follows a doe out in an opening. Bucks will still act like they did in pre-rut up until late Dec, then start grouping back up and going back to their Summer/early Fall habits.

Agreed. When I see bucks returning to their bachelor groups, I know all the excitement is over until next season.

It's not completely over, but may have to have a ML or be MLD to take advantage of it. Hard to beat the fawns that cycle after the bucks have grouped up. You're liable to several of the groups chasing one around. I've seen that happen the last weekend of general season all the way to the last week of Feb.

We always get another clean up rut during late November/early December here

I think your correct about the rut. Most of the doe have been bred here. I'm seeing all the doe grouping back up and the bucks seem to be resting from all the chasing and cruising. However they didn't all get bred and will be coming back in heat.
Just do a lot of hand corning over large area and not just depend on feeders. Focus on bringing in the doe and you still never know what may come out after they do.
Late December gets real good again as most hunters have stopped going out or are duck hunting. The bucks group back up and move a lot more during the day.

Got word a friend shot one running does yesterday evening outside of Lufkin and another friend shot one chasing this morning outside of Huntington (hers was young, but still running does).

I've always heard that the bucks rest a week or two after the rut and their activity picks up again once the urge to feed gets to them.

A good surge of cold weather and the right food source helps to punch a tag late season.