To be successful in late-season muzzleloader seasons, it’s best to focus on feed available this time of year, the whitetails’ need to rest, and the fact that as much as 10 percent of the doe population will come into estrus in December.
There may be fewer bucks moving at this time, but don’t forget there also are fewer hunters in the woods. Look for buck patterns to re-emerge around food sources first.
You don’t need a high fence—you can keep deer on your hunting tract through a variety of measures. Consider managing the number of hunters and their locations and days hunting, setting aside sanctuary or planting preferred foods.
A white-tailed deer in the Oklahoma Panhandle has tested positive for chronic wasting disease (CWD), marking the first confirmed case in a free-ranging wild deer in the state.
In Oregon’s Coast Range last year, the author pursued the state’s rarest deer: the Columbian whitetail. The hunt marked a rare double bonus, as far as he was concerned: a chance to hunt a species he’d never hunted in a state he’d never hunted.