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Opening morning in Indiana. I'm hunting my newest lease this morning I've been watching some does 95 yards out about 30 yards from the edge of the lease. I have a stand that just recently got placed about 30 yards from where they are I think I'm going to try that stand this evening. Other than the rain it hasn't been bad

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Saw lots of doe. No slam dunk shots though or ones that wouldn't clear field at prime time. Passed a nice 2.5 year old 8 pointer that's fair game on the QDM co-op. He's on track to be big but will make a youth hunter happy this year. Had a ruffed grouse walking around like a boss under the treestand. Poor guy lookin lovin but couldn't find it.

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Our season has been open since 4th Saturday of September. Weather is getting a little better. Been out 3 times so far, saw single doe first sit, small buck that antlers looked like a pronghorn this morning(same buck was running with a shooter middle of September), watched 8 antlerless this afternoon an hour before legal shooting light end. Had a couple good sized does in range.

Need to get the girls shooting the 243 a little before the youth hunt, be here very soon.

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OK Tim...here's your Midwest report from Missouri. I was at our MO place for 15 days in a row and came home yesterday. I saw 4 mature shooters and 1 of them I saw twice from 2 different stands (1 in the timber). The best ones I saw were...a 160 class 10 point and a 160 class 11 point (saw him twice). My son hunted with me 3 days. He saw 2 shooters and shot at a mature 11 point on our hit list. Even after calling a well known tracker with his blood hounds, we didn't find him. Based on the minimal amount of sign I figure it was a non-lethal hit. It appeared the bucks switched from their late summer range to their fall range around 10/8 (people refer to it as the October lull). The last 3 days we were there (3 of us) we were only seeing very young bucks, does, and fawns. We were seeing good numbers of deer but very few young bucks & no bucks 3.5 or older. Prior to that we were seeing 3.5 year old bucks and some mature bucks. I'm taking time off from MO now for a couple of weeks. I'll head back around 10/26 when rutting activity traditionally starts to pick up there.

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Scrapes popping up here now. Just need some cooler weather to get me a little more motorvated.

Been out 4 times total to date this season, skunked on deer the last sit but did see a small yote last week. Missed the yote with the crossbow, sailed the bolt just over his back. Think the small yote played into me misjudging the distance a bit, figured it was 60 and did not have the time to range at that second. Ended up being more like 50 when I ranged it after I shot. Was only planning on hunting with the crossbow out to 30, but take my chances on a yote pretty well every time.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Sits 5 and 6 this weekend. Saturday morning and this morning. Seeing more pre rut signs here now, seems a little early. Watched a couple youngsters spar pretty good yesterday morning, not all out fighting but pushing pretty good. Then this morning had a group of does get pushed by a couple bucks twice. A single button buck was pushed out of the group of 5 or 6 antlerless. One doe blew, had no idea why she blew then there came the bucks and chase ensued. Saw a busted racked buck this morning too. Things definitely picking up in this area. Hopefully it will all come together for next weekends youth hunt. The busted rack buck is the same little guy that was running with one I would like to get a closer look at. Think one of the bucks chasing the does may have been that deer, but was still too much leaf clutter where they were for me to tell for sure.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Deer getting goofy here.  

About to break wide open, this next 2 weeks is the best time to be in the stand in this part of the country, plan to make it out as much as my back will allow me to.  Seeing several busted bucks, 2.5 year olds and younger dogging does.  Had one poor doe yesterday afternoon in the 72 degree sunny skies at 3:45 in the afternoon looked like she was run ragged, buck chasing her had no antlers left on either side just busted bone at the bases.  Under new regs the busted buck if he gets mistaken as a doe will count towards the 2 buck limit, love that reg change!

Passed a young 8 pointer yesterday morning that was harassing a group of does, pretty sure after looking at tc pics that he had been running with the big 9 that is my top of my targets for this year.

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Got back from MO yesterday evening.  Bucks went from the cruising stage to the chase phase around Nov. 3rd. Wild action going on right now in northeast MO.  I killed an 11 point on the afternoon of Nov. 5th that scored 150.  Thread is in the bowhunting forum.  Saw another mature 10 in the 155 class range that afternoon too.  I saw a big, wide 10 point on Nov. 3rd but closest he got was 52 yards.  I also saw a wide, big mature 9 point on Nov. 4th at ~75 yards.  Had a good friend of mine with me in MO.  He saw about 6 shooter bucks while we were there too but never got a shot opportunity.  Between the 2 of us, the number of bucks we saw chasing was crazy.  Before we left he said it was the best rutting action he's ever seen there.  I got a text from Gene Wensel this afternoon.  Barry Wensel killed an odd looking NT 10 point this morning.  Needless to say, if you're hunting in the Midwest, now is the time to be in a stand as many hours as you can stand it.  I can't use my 2nd MO buck tag until Nov. 12th.  I can't get there to hunt on the 12th but I'm heading back in time to hunt the afternoon of the 13th and hunt through the 20th.  

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Scrape activity has dropped off, chasing has picked up, bucks tracking does.  Figure our first major rutting should be around the end of this week.  Most bucks I have seen are 2.5 and younger and are busted up, a few that have not gotten beat up yet that are still intact.  Doubt I get out much the next week or so, will be Catrina in the stand til she gets one and me being chauffeur and chef for the kids.

Our rifle opens the 19th.  Probably get our youngest daughter Allison back out quite a bit, she came down with the crud the last weekend in October and really did not feel well when we took her hunting.  She missed trick or treating and was sick on her 11th birthday, ended up a second trip to the dr after 5 days on antibiotics and only getting worse before they ran more tests and realized the poor kid had pneumonia.  A shot and some better antibiotics and she seems to be on the mend now 2 + weeks later. 

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