But I'm adding a bunch of pictures summarizing July thru till this morning ...standby for more picture downloads ."My Exocet 200 for tomorrows opening day and some rut info! "
This older model Exocet 200 has been a durable tack driver for me .
Ask anybody that hunts with me and they will tell you that we get into al lot of messy cover that puts our gear to the test .
So far this year ( 2016 ) , I filled a Spring turkey tag with it …
And it survived a 7 foot fall into the river when I was hunting Carp in July .( quick recovery / dry off / clean up = lucky no damage ).
Earlier today I took the fishing tackle off of it and confirmed sight in @ 20 yards > Bang On !
Drove my truck back to the shop and proceeded with today’s chores > I got all the back trails trimmed in preparation for tomorrow mornings Ontario Whitetail Archery opener . Sent Wylie a note letting him know that the ramp stand was open for business !
Wylie called later to chat about plans for the upcoming week and then I went out to put the tractor in the barn > Something caught my eye ! Yikes ! > There is my crossbow laying in the weeds where my truck was parked earlier this morning … I almost ran over it with the tractor ! You could see the tire tracks in the weeds from when I backed the truck up .
It had been leaning on the passenger side rear wheel well of the truck when I loaded my gear after sight in … I don’t know how I missed it when I loaded the gear but when I backed the truck up to go back to the shop , It slid off and I must have accidentally drove over the left limb with the front wheel of the truck > Lucky we had big rain last night and this morning so the ground was soft > Some minor dirt and scuff marks wiped off … I checked everything else and nothing looked askew except the rear scope cover wont snap in crisp .
I grabbed my Black Hole target out of the shop again and I shot one arrow at 20 yards to check ( it appeared to be slightly off center left ) > But my next two shots confirmed my usual grouping > Man I got lucky with that one !
Basically since last fall this Exocet 200 has been banged around in the bush during multiple set ups > Wetted in the Nith River during the July Carp Season > The left limb survived a run over earlier today and it’s still ready for tomorrows opening day !
Now I don’t recommend you try a “drive over” test > But , I’ve had many Excalibur Crossbow models over the years > these older model crossbows are durable and I’ve been lucky to have them stand up to the rough and tumble hunting routes I put them thru every season … And also survive a few absent minded moments !
PS : Congrat’s to all the successful hunters that started their season in September > And Good Luck to all the Ontario Hunters that will brave the rain for tomorrows opening day !
Shoot straight and take lots of pictures !
Page break ...
Had dinner in the truck and watched the back field until dark just to see what is around > A truck slowed out at the road to the North to watch these two young rack bucks skirt my East bush line > I watched them walk the trail I cut today > they walked right under one permanent stand and three climber stand positions before they walked out of view to the South .
Sorry for the grainy picture > It was taken about 7:15pm > Had to switch to 3200 ISO just to get a focus .
What are the chances of them repeating that path tomorrow !
Hope everyone has an exciting opening morning !
Page Break ...
I usually post this info every year around this time " Rule of Thumb " I don't have the moon phase charts posted but good reference for those that are new to the game .
Lots of rut theories out there ...
Calculation used to determine the Rut : Autumn Equinox + 2 full moon cycles + 10 days = 1st day of the rut + 14 days of activity .
Charlie Alshiemer predicts an earlier rut … The autumn fall equinox for this year falls on Sept 22 , making the rutting moon to be October 29th . According to Charlies theory , we should start seeing light seeking starting around October 24th-25th . The seeking should escalate to full chase around October 30th-31st . The breeding phase should start the following week , right around November 6th-7th and should be finished by the 17th-18th > Then the second rut should be into seeking/chase phase .
Remember > Your recovery % remains high if you pass shots on alert deer like this example.
And capitalize on close broadside shots like this example > This doe expired (years ago) , seconds after this picture was taken , when she took a step forward and offered an complete exposed vital area .
And deer vital diagram is a good reference as well .
It's that time of year again when I type , what I feel is a helpful "Rule of Thumb" guideline for Whitetail behavior during Oct/Nov/Dec for Southern Ontario Whitetail .
Oct week 1 and 2
Feeding : Alfalfa , Soybeans , apples .
Bedding : Small upland deciduous forests .
Rutting: Boundary scrapes and rubs
Oct week 3 and 4
Feeding : Standing corn , corn and bean stubble.
Bedding : Larger deciduous forests , standing corn .
Rutting : Secondary scrapes and rub lines .
Oct end week into Nov beginning weeks ...
Feeding: Does and fawns ~bean and corn stubble ... Bucks very little feeding leading into the rut peak ( est peak rut 1st week of Nov ).
Bedding: Larger deciduous forests and valleys .
Rutting : Breeding scrapes .
Nov week 2 into weeks 3 and 4
Feeding : Corn and Bean stubble.
Bedding : deciduous and coniferous forest valleys .
Rutting : Secondary scrapes and rub lines .
Nov end week into Dec begging weeks ...
Feeding : Does and fawns ~ corn and bean stubble ~ Bucks very little Feeding leading into the 2nd rut .
Bedding : deciduous and coniferous forest valleys .
Rutting : secondary breeding scrapes ~2nd rut ( yearlings and doe fawns )
Dec 2nd week till Dec end week .
Feeding: corn and bean stubble as well as browse .
Bedding : coniferous forest valleys .
Rutting: Secondary scrapes and rub lines in coniferous forest ..
Watch for 3rd rut peak signs ( late dropped doe fawns )
Note : Date/week/timing is approximate and will vary according to your area and area land make-up ( swamps etc ) ...
Also moon phase and weather fluctuations / seasonal advances from year to year .
Myself , I take note of what I think is peak rut in my area ( seeing
rut drunk bucks out mid-day etc. ) ... Mark the calendar and count
approx 28 days ahead for the 2nd rut and approx same for 3rd rut .
Like few years back when the 3rd rut came in around Dec 26th …
I got a few cool frames during a snowfall of a 20 yard buck with a hot doe … he chased her everywhere !
Bottom line , I cant say this enough ... Believe 50% of what you read and 110% of what you actually see and experience when you are out in the field !
Page Break > July thru till this morning October 10th 2016 .
July > Did some old gun restorations … then Fit in some turtle pictures along the Thames River and later some bass fishing .
Later July > Did a road trip after picking up my sister in Kingston Ontario then slipped down across the border and crossed the USA ( stopping too many places to mention ) > One cool stop was the anniversary of Custer’s last stand > back up to BC to visit Dad and Betty and then on to Dawson City Yukon so visit my daughter and her boyfriend . I wont bore you with all the pictures but here are some that caught my eye . PS : I even got a picture with "Big Al Mcgregor" from the series " Yukon Gold "
August / September > Had an Eng. from work ( DroneMaster JVDV ) drop by to fly his drone over my farm to take a few “birds eye” view pictures ….
I also got a cool tree picture from someone’s bush lot not far from my place …
September also brought the early goose season ( Southern Ontario ) and Archery season opener for Moose ( Northern Ontario ) > Frank V. had some fun with his first goose hunts and Chris H’s crew scored a beauty bull to top up the freezer ! ( Congrat’s Brian ! )
Then of course we were trimming trails / meeting new friends / scouting for turkeys right thru end of September into October’s Ontario whitetail deer season …
Put a lot of stand time in > Since we only have one tag this year we passed on some 25 yard does and suffered thru some unseasonable warm weather .
That brings us to this morning … October 10th > I called Frank V. last night and told him we had to get out today because of the three C’s ( Cool / Clear / Calm ) and in my experience those three C’s are key for deer movement !
Frank picked the TV tower stand at the South/West end of my property ( an awesome funnel spot between two bush lots with great food source (Beans to the South and Clover to the North ) > I set up at the North/East part of the bush . I was watching a doe feed approx 25 yards at 1st light when I noticed a glow in my pocket ( my phone was on silent but it glows when a message comes in ) > I see Frank message , buck down !
Headed to the stand and hear the story > Long story short 16 yard pass thru shot > 75 yard recovery > Shooting an Excalibur Matrix 330 , Diablo with 150 Grain Bolt Cutter Broadhead on board !
I had Frank direct me from the stand > Arrow looked good > good blood trail and yep it was piled up approx. 75 yards ! Good Shooting Frank !
Here are the pictures to help ilistrate the hunt !
View from the stand .
Lowering his Matrix 330 …
Checking the arrow …
Good blood trail …
The walk up pictures …
And , one Happy Hunter ! Congrat’s Frank ! > Keep in mind , this is only his 2nd season hunting whitetails with a crossbow > He took two text book does in his 1st season last year and this is the 1st buck he has had opportunity to arrow since then > He did a couple contact grunts at first light and heard the buck coming soon after > It walked the field edge / pawed a boundary scrape > then stepped into a ranged 16 yard shooting lane > Frank kept his cool and made another text book shot that lead to a quick recovery !
He wanted to do the whole field dress thing himself this time to seal the deal on the overall experience … But I gave him one last tip ( the old garbage bag field dress sweater routine ) > It worked great ! PS : We field dress into a garbage can to remove from the field to keep the Coyotes away .
Dragged / Tagged / Field Dressed and loaded , ready for the butcher ! The smile on his face tells it all !
Congrat’s again Frank on your 1st crossbow buck and Good Luck to all that are out hunting ! Have fun and take lots of pictures !