How To Hunt The October Lull : Breaking The Myth Of Nocturnal Bucks

 Story and photos by: Ryan Nordahl owner: Epic Whitetail Habitat, LLC [email protected]

There is little doubt in my mind that like you the October lull and nocturnal deer can be a very hard and frustrating pattern to break. Especially on when it comes to hunting small properties. It can be as though we are chasing our tails when we are seeing trail camera activity only in the middle of the night of the mature bucks we are after. 

Believe me, I've been in your shoes. But through my own experience, and from the guidance of more experienced and successful hunters during the first half to two thirds of October, my own experience, and now seeing clients having success throughout October, hunting during this time can be very fruitful and rewarding for those who maintain a sense of discipline to beat the dreaded "October Lull" more consistently every year.

It's not rocket science! It's simply a matter of understanding and discipline. And I simply want you to experience a more rewarding early to mid October hunt when in comes to encountering mature bucks while on stand.

I am passionate about sharing my Top 5 strategies that you can implement on your hunting property this October to help you have a chance to beat the dreaded "October Lull".

#1: Know Where Bucks Are Bedding

To understand where mature bucks bed takes "off season" scouting and in season trail camera intel. To be really effective is understanding why he's bedding in a certain area one day, or a succession of days, versus other days. 

This requires some studying and work on your part.

How bad do you want to be successful in early to mid October? 

I am fully aware that anything can happen at any given time at any given place. But to have continued success year after year with anything in life requires discipline and consistency. This can be said for Public Land hunting just the same. With anything in life, we are rewarded greater when we go above and beyond to reap the real true rewards of what success really is. 

How Bad Do You Want It? That being said it is important to keep a journal of trail camera intel, weather conditions, wind direction, observations from previous hunts, etc..

So, with that, lets get back on topic.

Remember, deer feed 5 times during a 24 hour period. 3 of which will be in and around a bedding area.

How and when to hunt a bedding area is based on 4 things:
     - Wind direction as it relates to where we think a mature buck is or is going to bed down.
     - Understanding how thermals can impact your hunt early & late in the day.
     - Your access to and from your stand location.
     - Knowing where he'll be feeding in the evening/early morning.

When we fully understand the above we can pretty much relate the rest of this blog to what we expect the final outcome of how we conquer and overcome the October Lull blues.

#2 Hard & Soft Mass Producing Trees

Understanding the naturally established hard and soft mass producing trees and shrubs and knowing where they are located and when they are falling can also help in determining where deer are possibly feeding during daylight hours along with woody browse opportunity within their bedding areas. Also, one can establish what I refer to as micro-orchards within a secluded food plot location. This all coincides whether you hunt private or public lands.

Never forget that deer relate more to variety within their domain. the more diverse the area we are hunting the greater our chances of daylight activity increases. So yes, we can "artificially" manufacture our private hunting grounds to offer an array of diverse food and bedding area sources as it relates to the already existent resources on and surrounding the property.

This can be a daunting undertaking for some of you reading this. And it could mean bringing in a second set of eyes to help you determine what already exists and what could be added as it relates to how deer already use the lands we hunt, whether private or public grounds. But on private ground, we can design a plan, be it ourselves or a hired professional, to generate that plan that offers diversity that deer do not have access to in the surrounding area. 

This could simply mean adding a water source which could be implemented with a minimal cost of just pure sweat equity and time.

#3 Water

I have been to many properties around most of the entire country that already have an existing source of water such as a stream, river, or pond already on the property. But you have to stop and ask yourself a few questions about these sources of water:
    - Is the water source huntable?
    - How does it relate to food sources and/or bedding areas?
    - Could an artificial water source such as a 100 gallon stock tank be buried closer to a bedding area?

Deer, especially an old mature warrior, are lazy creatures. Like an old man in his "mancave", the less he physically has to move about the better. Positioning a water source closer to his bedding area could be the difference maker needed during this time in October. Even if that natural water source is just 50 to 100 yards from his bedding. With the newly created water source we can pinpoint his movement even more. And if we position the new water source between his known bedding and primary feeding destination, it can be a slam dunk setup given the right conditions to hunt the location.

#4 Weather Patterns & Cold Fronts 

What better time to hunt than those days that provide a significant drop in daytime temperature. Even just a drop of 10 degrees from the previous days high temperature can mean a dramatic shift in daytime deer activity. 

Wind speed during this time can definitely have an impact as well. 

I used to hate hunting windy days (wind speeds in excess of 10mph). I  thought if I didn't like the wind why would the deer. And I learned I was missing a huge opportunity. When you take yourself out of the equation you begin to realize that higher wind speeds can significantly offer an advantage. And I'll get to that in a bit.

For now, let's focus on a great cold front.

Early October can bring with it dramatic chances in temperature patterns. 70 to 80 degrees one to two days, or more, can lead to a 50 degree day or less the very next day. And when the morning low temp aligns itself with the rising barometric pressure, you can bet I'm playing hooky from work that day or a succession of days. Needless to say, I absolutely love cool, crisp early October mornings. And if it's the youth deer season with my children, I'm all the more blessed. And my hope is that you are too!

Look for those patterns in weather, and you may no longer experience the dreaded October Lull. But that really depends on how much pressure you are putting on the property and area you hunt. This Is also true on public grounds, as well.

#5 Human Pressure

There are so many factors that go into reducing your presence while hunting your property. And when it comes to mature whitetails there is NO margin for error. The smaller the property the more significant this becomes. 

I've helped design habitat and hunting strategies for properties as little as 5 acres. Though a property this small may not produce year after year, the opportunity to accomplish such a feet increases. Everything has to be right. Even hiding your access and exit strategy, which really goes for any size hunting property.

How many of you reading this spend time on your first sit of the year, or opening day of archery season, and experience a flush of daylight deer activity only to see that activity dwindle within just a few short days of continuous hunting, even if rotating stand locations?

I can relate. And when I began to implement a less is more approach to hunting, I began to understand that one can actually have better, more successful hunts while sitting on the couch. Taking advantage of trail camera intel and weather patterns and how it all relates to peak deer movements, mature bucks in particular.

In Closing

If I had to suggest any of the preceding 5 points to anyone it would definitely come down to hunting pressure and stand access/exit strategy to help break the nocturnal buck myth and a lull in early October deer activity. 

A deer showing up on your camera at 1am simply means one thing and one thing alone... He's not on your ground at all during any part of daylight. He's simply in a location where there is absolutely no sense of human activity. Deer on your property must never know they are being hunted.

If you take even a bit of anything from this, I can almost assure you that you too will start to see through the myths of the October Lull and nocturnal deer activity.