Panhandle Rut Question?

[ecfire1967]

My son was drawn for a gun either sex hunt @ Gene Howe WMA Thanksgiving weekend. What will the rut be doing. Would a decoy work this time of year up there?

[Shane]

That should be a great hunt. There will be rut or at least pre-rut activity. I keep putting in for Gene Howe, but I can't seem to draw it again. I hunted there a few years ago.

I'd go with a doe decoy if I was going to use a decoy. I don't think there's a bad pasture, but when I hunted it a local GW hinted that we should have picked one of the pastures on the north side after he found out we picked a river pasture. There were a couple of wheat fields at the time on the private land just on the other side of the north fence. We asked the biologist if we could switch since nobody picked those pastures, and he reluctantly let us. I think he was saving them for his BIL that was coming the next week.

It's open sand hills covered in grass and sage brush in the north pastures. There were lots of deer up there. There were plenty along the river too, but the wheat fields had them passing back and forth through the north pastures that bordered the wheat. I ended up on one of the coolest spot and stalk hunts I've ever had. I got to within 40 yards of this deer and got him with my rifle. If I'd had a bow, I probably could have gotten closer. Just didn't need to. It was awesome.



If you can drive around the area before checking in, try to find out if there are any wheat fields across the fence somewhere. But like I said, if you end up in a river pasture don't sweat it. There are loads of deer there too. It's just more heavily wooded and less conducive to spot and stalk.

[ecfire1967]

Thanks Shane. I hope he fills his tag but I know we'll have a great time no matter what.

[tkuehn5410]

If there were dates I would hunt in the Panhandle it would be between the 18th and the 25th of November. I think you will be in prime time and be there at the absolute best time outside of hunting a cold front or a blue northern.

[Mudslinger]

I agree with TK, it is definitley in the pre rut right now and should hit it's peak next week, at least what we have seen around our lease.

[ecfire1967]

If there were dates I would hunt in the Panhandle it would be between the 18th and the 25th of November. I think you will be in prime time and be there at the absolute best time outside of hunting a cold front or a blue northern.

A good cold front is scheduled for Thanksgiving week, so it will be cold as well. Thanks for the info.

[ecfire1967]

ttt for todays crowd

[klooney]

I'm in amarillo, but from canadian, Gene howe is a heck of a place if you ask me, and as far as the cold front, it is supposed to roll through the panhandle on Wednesday

[deer99hunter]

used to do business with a hay dealer that had land bordering the WMA - his alfalfa fields always had some good sheds !

[tkuehn5410]

As said earlier, if you can hunt close to an agricultural field in the early mornings or late evenings then you should have lots of action, or at least the most action possible given the scenario. It looks like Friday morning and Saturday morning should be very cold which will make the morning a little better than the evening. The moon will also be favoring morning hunts as opposed to evening hunts. If I saw a good buck in the morning I definitely wouldn't pass on it in hopes of seeing a better or the same buck in the evening.

[rileydog]

WHich do you think deer prefer...maize or winter wheat? I have a maize feed on my south border and winter wheat on the north in Motley county.

[doublearrow]

I'm I'm roberts county just west of canadian working on a hunting ranch. In the last 3 days we've lost lots of antlers due to being busted up and every buck we've seen has a doe bedded or nose to the ground running em hard.

[TexasRed]

We're still trying to figure them out at our new place in Hall county (SE Panhandle). They still aren't chasing. The bucks we've been seeing are still the younger ones except for 2 this past weekend. I saw a 150 class buck that was just hanging around a doe; going where she went. My buddy grunted in a huge 8 that he said would go 140 -150. The buck I saw had black back legs. The other buck didn't. I think we're still pre-rut. Anybody here have any more info?

[Jethro]

It will be cold this weekend at Gene Howe, that is for sure. I think you will be there at a great time. The rut is going on for sure, but the full moon at night this last weekend stunk. Daytime movement was nothing like it was the weekend before, but I think it will be good again this coming weekend. I think your timing is very good as long as they aren't too busted up. I am also with the crowd that thinks finding some ag fields would be good. Will you guys be coming up 83 through Wellington?

[Shane]

It was 14 degrees when I killed the buck above.