[{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/blog\/why-pre-rut-is-the-best-time-to-tag-a-hitlist-buck\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/blog\/why-pre-rut-is-the-best-time-to-tag-a-hitlist-buck\/","headline":"Why pre-rut is the best time to tag a hitlist buck","name":"Why pre-rut is the best time to tag a hitlist buck","description":"If you want to tag a hitlist buck, pre-rut can be your best opportunity. Learn four reasons why pre-rut is the number one time to hunt for hitlist bucks.","datePublished":"2016-10-21","dateModified":"2018-12-04","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/author\/hagosto\/#Person","name":"Hector Agosto","url":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/author\/hagosto\/","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d7bfedbdc5ef3ed8f8df91eb37e1ffbe?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d7bfedbdc5ef3ed8f8df91eb37e1ffbe?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Legendary Whitetails","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"http:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/logo-legendary-whitetails.png","url":"http:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/logo-legendary-whitetails.png","width":522,"height":226}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Big-Buck.jpg","url":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Big-Buck.jpg","height":651,"width":1200},"url":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/blog\/why-pre-rut-is-the-best-time-to-tag-a-hitlist-buck\/","about":["Hunting"],"wordCount":881,"keywords":["Hunting","Hunting Strategy","Tips"],"articleBody":"This might sound crazy to you, but the rut is not the best time to tag your hitlist buck.\u00a0 Actually, it might be the hardest time to tag him.\u00a0 How many times do you hear stories from friends and neighbors about a buck they had on camera all season long that ended up getting shot 2 miles away during the rut?\u00a0 A fair amount probably. I know I hear it several times each season, and those are only the bucks we know about.\u00a0 Usually, these stories revolve around big deer because they are the ones that spread through social media and are identifiable.\u00a0 What about that 140\u201d 10-pointer you never saw again after last year\u2019s rut?\u00a0 He\u2019s a dandy buck, but he\u2019s not sweeping across Facebook like a 170\u201d buck shot in your town.\u00a0 So, what happened to him?If you\u2019ve got a hitlist buck you\u2019re after, here are 4 vital reasons the pre-rut is your best chance to wrap your tag around one of his 6-inch bases.#1 \u2013 He\u2019s Still HomeYou can\u2019t shoot your hitlist buck if he\u2019s not around.\u00a0 One of the only times a buck will venture from his home range is during the rut, hence the stories of another hunter shooting him miles away.\u00a0 Pre-rut is the magical time when you\u2019ll find that buck being more daylight active, while still respecting his home range boundaries.\u00a0 Day-to-day testosterone levels are rising in bucks, the closer we creep towards peek breeding, the more he\u2019ll be willing to leave his comfort zone (a.k.a. home range) in search of a hot doe. The last 10 days of October are the days you should be looking to tag your hitlist buck north of the 35th parallel.#2 \u2013 He\u2019ll React to CallsIf a buck makes your hitlist, he\u2019s probably pretty big.\u00a0 That buck isn\u2019t stupid, he got big for a reason, but he also knows he\u2019s big and probably thinks he\u2019s the king of the jungle this time of year. \u00a0Bucks spent September and the first half of October gently sparring, rubbing, and scraping as a means to sort out dominance.\u00a0 All out battles have been few and far between\u2026up until now.\u00a0 With testosterone levels ramping up and bucks still caged in by their home ranges, a call from a challenger won\u2019t be taken lightly.\u00a0 If you see your hitlister out cruising, hit him with a challenger grunt and prepare for a shot.\u00a0 Calling works best when you\u2019re set up near some thick cover or something obstructing the bucks view.\u00a0 This way he\u2019ll have to come closer to investigate.\u00a0 If you\u2019re in the open, consider using a subordinate buck decoy to give life to your calls.While grunting at your hitlister is an effective way to draw him into bow range once you actually see him, rattling is a good blind calling technique due to its volume and reach.\u00a0 Don\u2019t be afraid to crack the horns together every 30 minutes or so during this time of year.\u00a0 You can follow up your rattling sequence with a couple challenger grunts and a snort-wheeze to liven the fight.#3 \u2013 Cold Front CommotionBy now you know you should be hunting any cold front that moves through during the season, but you really can\u2019t miss a late-October cold front.\u00a0 Again, it comes back to rising testosterone levels \u2013 combine this with a cold blast of air and things will be on fire in the deer woods.\u00a0 History says there will be at least one major cold front during the final week of October.\u00a0 This is a must hunt situation!\u00a0 Your hitlist buck won\u2019t be able to resist the urge to move during daylight, so you need to be there waiting for him.#4 \u2013 Crops are Coming OffThere are a lot changes for a whitetail buck during this time of year, but the one change that may be most advantageous for us hunters is crop harvest \u2013 specifically corn harvest.\u00a0 The second half of October is when most crops are harvested throughout the Midwest and Northeast, which equals lots of waste grain and lots of lost cover \u2013 both advantages for the hunter.\u00a0 Now, bucks are forced to bed in woodlots and travel out in the open, making them much more predictable. Also, a freshly cut corn field is practically a gold mine this time of year and can instantly knock the bucks out of that \u201cOctober lull\u201d.Yes, the rut is exciting as hell, but the pre-rut is something you shouldn\u2019t undersell \u2013 especially when you\u2019re trying to tag a hitlist buck on his own turf.\u00a0 Don\u2019t wait until he\u2019s running around on someone else\u2019s property, get out there and hunt him down."},{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/#breadcrumbitem","name":"Legendary Whitetail's Blog"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/blog\/why-pre-rut-is-the-best-time-to-tag-a-hitlist-buck\/#breadcrumbitem","name":"Why pre-rut is the best time to tag a hitlist buck"}}]}]