2020-2021 Catoosa-Walker-Dade

[AJLBucks]

I hunt Walker, close to Catoosa line off 151. Still seeing groups of does and young bucks together. Big one’s hiding out still. But plenty of sign popping up. Found some new rubs on 4” trees while walking to and from stand and doing some bush hogging. I haven’t been looking for scrapes, hunted this farm my entire life so I pretty much know where the does hang out and that is where I’ll be for the next month. Killed a good 8 on opening day of bow season. Norm mounted him already

 

[tjgregory]

That is a fine, fine Walker County buck and a spectacular bow kill. I like the dark rack.

 

[AJLBucks]

Thanks, I killed him with my crossbow. Not my biggest buck, but my first archery deer. Just my second year hunting archery, passed does a small 7 several times last year. He had lost his velvet just about a week before. The antlers were still blood stained. He had rubbed some of it off and riding in my truck wore some off too.

That is a fine, fine Walker County buck and a spectacular bow kill. I like the dark rack.

 

[RossVegas]

I'm hunting a piece of property in Walker county this year. Usually hunt on Thursday, but had to work today. Hunted Tuesday, but didn't see anything. Last Thursday, i saw 5 does, but no bucks. I have seen a few small bucks in the battlefield, even saw a nice 8 a couple weeks ago (daylight)

 

[gnumadic]

Walker County, Flintstone/High Point Area. I first picked up camera footage of bucks pushing does on 10/31. Young bucks. All the mature ones are only out at night. Couple days ago saw a doe walk by and estrus bleat. Today a 2.5 y/o 4 pt was pushing a doe (maybe the same one) by my stand.

I've got meat in the freezer from bow season so I'm holding out for big buck. But I'm also taking my oldest boy out in the morning, so maybe that 4 pt will be his first kill if he shows up again.

 

[tjgregory]

I sat in the tree from daylight until 11:00AM Saturday morning and saw eight, two with antlers and six without. Both bucks were young and I didn’t care to shoot a doe from my good buck stand because I am conserving live bait until I get a chance at a good buck. Maybe that will happen Thanksgiving week, when I will hunt many consecutive days rain or shine.

The trail camera pictures from what were fresh scrapes turned out to be a little disappointing. Mostly young bucks with single pictures of two big 7 pointers, both at night. The scrapes are no longer active. Makes me think that the bucks were too far ahead of the game or that the peak was early, quick, and during the week. I get in this frame of mind at this point every fall and start doubting the season, but I just keep hunting and then I usually see the biggest buck of the year sometime Thanksgiving week and he is often following a doe or cruising around with his neck stretched out.

 

[Otisman]

Finally got some time to hunt this morning. Saw 3 buck before 730, each one alone with nose to the ground and on the move. First two were younger deer, third was a decent 10pt. Took him home with me. Walker co. One processor I use was full, not taking deer. Next one told me I got lucky because they are only taking 10 and I was number 7. Must be lots of people hunting. Never encountered this before.

 

[tjgregory]

11/19: hunted from daylight until 11:00 and saw six antlerless deer between 8:20 and 8:40. I filled my hands with my rifle in anticipation of a following buck, but he didn’t show. Three separate deer ran off in the dark on the walk to my stand.

11/22: hunted from daylight until 11:00 and saw a doe and two fawns being chased by two spikes. The spikes gave up the chase and started fighting. This all occurred in the eight o’clock hour. At 10:13, I heard a buck grunt three times to the north of my stand.

11/23: hunted from daylight until 11:30 in an absolutely frigid north wind and saw two antlerless deer feeding on acorns a hundred yards away through the timber at 11:05. One scrape still being worked and it is the first one started this season. The others are covered with leaves.

I will be back out there Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Looks like my quality Walls rain suit might see some action. The farm is as dry as a bean and needs some rain to hopefully resuscitate the annual winter plots that have been slow to start.

 

[tjgregory]

A young buck with a broken antler chased a doe passed my stand this morning fifteen minutes after daylight. Five minutes later, a nice eight point came through on the trail of that doe. Did not see another hair until 10:25, when a large doe crossed about a hundred yards to the west of me. Hoped that she might have been towing a buck, but he didn’t show. I got out of the tree at 11:15 and headed to the family meal.

 

[tjgregory]

I hunted from daylight until 11:30 on 11/27. A large buck cruised through the timber at first light at a distance of around a hundred yards. When I first spotted him, he was halfway through the only clearing on his route and I could not get the crosshairs on the right spot before he exited the clearing. A goat-sized spike eased through at 8:45 and bedded down for half an hour before resuming his travel. At 9:48, I watched three antlerless deer feed around the same area that the big buck passed through earlier in the morning. At 10:02, another large buck chased two does out from my stand and I would have ground checked him, if he had stopped. At 10:50, I watched a unidentifiable deer milling around to the north of me.

I hunted from daylight until 11:45 today and did not see a single deer hair until 10:30, when a spike chased a doe and fawn around and began mounting the doe. He ran the fawn off by chasing and snapping at it, then returned his attention to the doe. I was going to shoot this spike, but he was close to the property line and I didn’t want to shoot and have him run across the line and die on the neighbor’s property. Around 11:00, I saw a large bodied deer cruising through the timber at well over one hundred yards. I was ready to climb down at 11:45, when I caught movement and looked to see a big deer moving steadily my way through the brush. It turned out to be a large fork horn and I chose to shoot. I had to call five processors before I found one that could take my deer.

The deer are rutting on my place and my knife is freshly re-sharpened. I will be back after them tomorrow and again on one of the cold front days this coming week. I am now hunting one for the wall.

 

[BuckNasty83]

I MISSED a 10 point yesterday that was locked down with a doe.... ? They was bedded down 30 yards from where I climbed up my tree and completely ignored me as I did so. Lots of chasing today as well, just no shooters.

 

[ChattBuck]

Haven't done much hunting as got a bad case of Covid. Pneumonia the whole 9 yards. Thought it might get me for a bit, narrowly avoided hospitalization after a trip to the ER via ambulance.

Managed to hunt from the front porch Sunday morning and had two small bucks chase does through my front yard (it's two acres surrounded by woods).

This morning went and sat in a box stand for an hour before my first day back at work in two weeks and had 4 different bucks come through a food plot for a bite to eat. One decent 8 that I hope my son can harvest and a six, a 3pt with whole left side broke off, and a spike.

Was nice to see that many bucks. Just needed THE MAN to show up but he didn't.

 

[tjgregory]

11/29: I almost bagged a giant with my F-150 on the way to the woods, looked like a 4.5 plus year old 8 point and paid my truck no attention after forcing me to a complete stop. This was near Villanow and I got a good look at him in the high beams as he loped across the highway in the predawn. I hunted my south wind stand from daylight until 11:05 and did not see anything, but I found a piece of treasure when I climbed down in the form of a five point shed that the squirrels and mice had not gotten all of. This was a nice prize to take home on the first hunt of the season with zero deer sightings.

A guy hunting with me saw a small buck feeding in a clover plot in the 8:00 hour.

12/2: Back to my north wind stand on one of the coldest days that I have ever hunted. I saw a small buck slipping around shortly after 8:00 and no deer after this. I shot at a coyote just before 10:00 am watched him streak away in a blur after jumping at the shot. Climbed down at 11:00 and looked for any sign of a hit, and found one drop of blood the size of a pencil eraser. I followed the tracks left when he dug out on his sprint and found nothing else. He was broadside and quartering slightly toward me when I squeezed and he turned directly toward me just before the trigger broke. I believe that the bullet grazed his shoulder or hind leg. I saw a group of eight does of all sizes on my walk out of the woods.

I am switching to afternoon hunting until Christmas Eve, when I will resume mornings and try to catch the second rut. I have seen just four instances of it since 2003, all between 12/23 and 12/26, and 2016 was the last time that I saw any second rut activity. Until then, I will hunt afternoon food plots and try for a doe or two.

 

[tjgregory]

I climbed into a stand overlooking a food plot at 3:20 this afternoon and killed a large doe at 4:00. She came out into a clover plot with two others and all three put on their feed bags. I had to watch them for a while in order to get a nice, clean shot. My 180 grain .30 caliber bullet passed through her boiler room broadside at 85 yards. She ran a little ways and I do not know how. She was fat and healthy, and looked like she had been eating good.

 

[mformica]

11/29: I almost bagged a giant with my F-150 on the way to the woods, looked like a 4.5 plus year old 8 point and paid my truck no attention after forcing me to a complete stop. This was near Villanow and I got a good look at him in the high beams as he loped across the highway in the predawn. I hunted my south wind stand from daylight until 11:05 and did not see anything, but I found a piece of treasure when I climbed down in the form of a five point shed that the squirrels and mice had not gotten all of. This was a nice prize to take home on the first hunt of the season with zero deer sightings.
View attachment 1053434
A guy hunting with me saw a small buck feeding in a clover plot in the 8:00 hour.

12/2: Back to my north wind stand on one of the coldest days that I have ever hunted. I saw a small buck slipping around shortly after 8:00 and no deer after this. I shot at a coyote just before 10:00 am watched him streak away in a blur after jumping at the shot. Climbed down at 11:00 and looked for any sign of a hit, and found one drop of blood the size of a pencil eraser. I followed the tracks left when he dug out on his sprint and found nothing else. He was broadside and quartering slightly toward me when I squeezed and he turned directly toward me just before the trigger broke. I believe that the bullet grazed his shoulder or hind leg. I saw a group of eight does of all sizes on my walk out of the woods.

I am switching to afternoon hunting until Christmas Eve, when I will resume mornings and try to catch the second rut. I have seen just four instances of it since 2003, all between 12/23 and 12/26, and 2016 was the last time that I saw any second rut activity. Until then, I will hunt afternoon food plots and try for a doe or two.

Nice. Was this on private property or in the national forest?

I've had a large buck 8 or 9 pointer coming show up on video coming through the front of our property near LaFayette twice now, but unfortunately both times have been in the middle of the night.

 

[tjgregory]

Nice. Was this on private property or in the national forest?

I've had a large buck 8 or 9 pointer coming show up on video coming through the front of our property near LaFayette twice now, but unfortunately both times have been in the middle of the night.

The big eight crossed the highway on private land.

 

[RustyJeep]

Got this one Tuesday morning Dec 8. It was chasing a doe with 3 other mature bucks. South Walker County.

 

[tjgregory]

Got this one Tuesday morning Dec 3. It was chasing a doe with 3 other mature bucks. South Walker County.

Congratulations! That is a dandy buck.

 

[Bushhog Bob]

That is one fine Buck. That would be a beautiful mount

 

[520ranger]

Outstanding deer. They are starting to get crank up in Dade county. Congratulations