Whitetail Watch with Bill Winke

Even though just last week I said it is best to wait until you have proof that the deer you are hunting are hitting the feeding areas in daylight before you go in after them, I am retracting that advice for this coming weekend. With the deep cold snap that is going to hit much of the country over the weekend or early next week, (depending on where you live) it is probably a good idea to hunt spots

The rut is officially over, but that doesn't mean your season has to be. In some cases, late season hunting can be better as the deer tend to concentrate more on feeding areas like food plots which can be more predictable to hunt, especially with snow on the ground. However, precautions are necessary. It is a big risk to hunt these areas before you know that a target deer is active and huntable be

With the in-coming cold front and the waning rut, it is time to start shifting your focus from the pure rut travel routes and doe bedding areas toward the feeding areas. You can still expect to find some cruising bucks in the mornings near the bedding areas (if you are tough enough to stick out the cold weather), but now the deer will increasingly start to show up in daylight near their evening fe

The upcoming weekend is difficult to hunt because the number of does in estrous is hitting it's peak, meaning that most of the mature bucks are tied up with them. Movement is limited and it is hard to get a buck off of a doe at this time. I would stick to areas of high doe concentration with the hope of crossing paths with a buck that is looking for the next doe. Mostly, I would hope for some good

This is the weekend we wait for all year. The bucks are on the move looking for does that are just coming into estrus. It's time to put in all of your chips and hunt your best spots. I will be hunting travel routes between doe bedding areas and the fringes of the bedding areas themselves. Mornings and evenings should both be good, and you may be able to have some limited success on food in the eve

This weekend is shaping up to be a good one, maybe one of the best of the season. Weather patterns look ideal and trail cameras are showing lots of daylight pictures of bucks cruising. The does have not yet gone into hiding and are still following their normal patterns, which means the bucks are easier to hunt as well. Travel routes and heavily used trails are great options this weekend, but I wou

We are still about a week away from the best days of the early rut, but Saturday marks the "unofficial start of the rut". October 25 has annually been a good time to start moving away from the feeding patterns and moving toward the rut strategies. This weekend would be a great time to hunt an active scrape line, but save your best spots for a little bit longer. Good luck.

I am getting the itch to see some mature bucks from my stands and blinds, but they are nowhere to be found - even on my trail cameras! Every year, I want mid-October to be November, especially when the weather is cool and feels the part. But no amount of wishing can change the timing of the rut. Bucks on my farm are in hiding now - they seemed to evaporate from my trail cameras during just the pas

This recent cold front was a very nice change from the intense heat of early October, but it didn't much action on mature bucks on my farm and not much for my friends that I talked to after the hunt. All cold fronts are worth hunting, but the ones that fall in late October are the only ones that will get mature bucks really worked up. Those are the ones for which you need to save your vacation and

I have been talking to some of my friends who have cameras deep in the woods and they are getting tons of buck photos while I am getting a few (very few) on cameras on the fringes. If you are serious about shooting a buck (or any deer for that matter) this weekend, you will probably have to go in after them. But be careful not to push too hard - have a plan. kwhunting kwwhitetail