Success Stories and Late Season Strategies
Posted By
Ben Koopman
at
11/28/2011 12:00:00 AM
Late Season Strategies
Jason knocked this buck down on on December 6th. It was
Brock Halstead with his 2009 late muzzleloader kill.
Late season is always an exciting time for me and my family. We have been very fortunate the last few years as far as the caliber of deer we've been able to take. This year should not be any different as my stepdad, Dennis Mueller, has drawn a 2nd shotgun season tag. I'll also have my late muzzy tag and my bow tag to fill. The tactics will be consistent for attempting to fill all of our late-season tags: food sources and the hope that Mother Nature will smile on us. The food sources we've had success with the past few years will be the same that we'll rely on heavily this year - standing soybeans and Big N Beasty brassica mix. As far as Mother Nature - if she continues to provide the single temperatures that she has the past few years, we should have an opportunity to be successful again. Food and frigid temps are a deadly combination for late-season whitetails here in Southern Iowa. We look forward to sharing all the action with you on Midwest Whitetail.
-Brock Halstead
Colder temps are arriving and hopefully some snow as well. I look forward to this time of the year more than the rut. The rut can be exciting, but its typically very unpredictable. In contrast, late season can be very rewarding and very predictable. The food plots did outstanding this year in spite of the dryer than normal conditions. I have a mix of soybeans and Big-N-Beasty Brassicas that will provide food thru the entire winter. The clover is looking pretty rough and really hasn’t been a factor this year. 
a calm, cold afternoon and deer were piling into his field.
(Watch this hunt!)
My plans for the gun seasons are to limit my hunting to the best days. The colder the temps the better the deer movement usually is. Trail cameras are running, and I want to establish some type of pattern. Once that is found, I will hit it hard. I can hunt the Big-N-Beasty plot with minimal hunting pressure and will probably put a decent amount of time in on that plot. I still have two tags, and plan on making the most of them.
-Jason Vickerman
Colder temperatures and the arrival of snow have really turned the deer onto feeding. The small ¼ acre bean and Big & Beasty plots have been mowed over pretty hard
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The hunt for Temptation came to a close when George's neighbor put him down during first shotgun season. |
late season deer hunts unfold!
-George Dean
Pro-Staff Success!!
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The deer I killed is a 4 1/2 year old ten pointer that scored 155. He came in and worked over a scrape and presented me with a 20 yard broadside shot. Unfortunately, I made a poor shot and paunch shot him. BJ and I waited one day to look for him and it ended up taking two days to recover this buck. Upon recovering him we realized it was out hit list buck, Cliff. We had many opportunities to take him last year but let him grow one more year, and we are glad we made that decision!
We forgot the camera arm that morning and had to free-hand the footage. It was definitely a learning experience for future videoing but and exciting hunt nonetheless!
-Jim Cooper
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Whether it was opening day or late November a successful hunt will always be one that wont be forgotten. My unforgettable hunt was on the evening of October 13th when one of my main hit list bucks showed up. "The Dark Knight", eluded me the previous year because of a lack of camera light, he would not do so this year. He hadn't shown his face on trail cameras until early October. I needed a west wind to hunt this spot and the first day it was called for was Oct. 13th and it just so happened it was my fall break from classes. After a cool front came through it was perfect. This buck put on a show making scrapes and rubs as he closed the distance. The rest was history. Using the features of the land and waiting for a cool front with the right wind allowed me to seal the deal on my hit list buck. After only sitting in the stand twice; my bow season in Iowa had come to an end and I couldn't be happier. The 2011 season has been the best that I have experienced. With both my boys shooting their first deer and myself shooting the my largest buck to date.
-Jack Borcherding
(Watch this hunt!)
The morning that I shot my deer was Nov. 9 and it was a nasty morning of hunting with high winds and a wet snow. Little did I know that I would shoot such a great buck that morning. This was a great hunt braving the weather and this buck being excessively vocal as he came into range. I had no previous history with this buck, and he just appeared out of no where that morning. Sometimes these are the best ones. This is definitely a hunt I will always remember, and I am lucky enough to have it all on film.
-Thad DeMoss (Watch This hunt!)
-Josh Neville - Great Plains Producer
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The morning of November 5th was definately a memorable one! The wind was perfect for a stand I had hung in a long draw in the middle of two recently cut cornfields. It was an hour and a half drive to where I was hunting that day in Southeast Iowa and needless to say my cameraman and I were running a bit late. As we were just getting settled in the stand we saw a mature buck in the field to the north of us. He worked his way right into the draw in front of us and gave me a 25 yard shot. The hunt had ended as quickly as it began! This was my first Iowa buck and I look forward to taking many more.
-Aaron Warbritton - Missouri Producer (Watch this hunt!)
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On the evening of November 15th I decided to go to a stand that was hung deep into public ground. It was a relatively warm afternoon but the date was right. With everyone in the office already partnered up and heading to the woods, I was going to have to self film myself that night. Loaded down with gear, I began my trek to the stand. Around 4:45 I saw my first and only deer of the night. He came in and rubbed a tree for about ten minutes before walking a fenceline directly towards me. Filming and trying to prepare to shoot deer is no easy task but I sort of pulled it off and put down my first buck ever with a bow!
-Ben Koopman - Iowa Producer (Watch this hunt!)
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After filming my brother, Thad, kill his biggest buck, I was eager to do the same. We both took about two weeks of vacation during the beginning of November and those days off sure did come in handy! After a few days of frustrating sits, I was beginning to think that things were not going to pan out for me during the rut this year. Fortunately, on the evening November 12 it all came together. I was checking college football scores on my phone when I spotted this bruiser coming directly at us through the woods. I arrowed him at fifteen yards and he was on the ground in about thirty. It was an awesome hunt and an very memorable year!
-Brad DeMoss (Watch this hunt!)
