2025 Lessons Learned.

[OakSpur]

Curious what some of yall have learned this year? I'll start it off with something that's really been bugging me. I have a farm I've hunted for the last 6 years this year was gonna be different tho. My friend that hunted the farm with me in years past was out of the picture. This meant for me that I could control the hunting pressure finally and I just knew with the ball in my court things were gonna be the best they ever have. In turn they might have been the worst multiple shooters that were there pre-season and early bow vanished just the same as they have before. Low hunting pressure and trying to hunt the wind didn't play into affect as I thought it would. In fact I killed 2 does off the farm early Oct and haven't even seen a shooter from the tree the entire season. Thoughts?? And anyone else learned anything this year?? Side note I've been bow hunting for 20 years and have killed several pope and young class deer.

 

[Griswold]

Ive learned to not expect this season to be like seasons prior!!! All the good deer that survived always come back in late October, not this year!!

 

[Crappieaddict]

Yes, I learned that this season has been an anomaly.

 

[OakSpur]

Ive learned to not expect this season to be like seasons prior!!! All the good deer that survived always come back in late October, not this year!!

I've experienced that as well.

 

[Ocoee Ridge Runner]

I learned I need to be more patient. Rushed a shot on a possible buck of a lifetime.

 

[jejeffrries71]

Be persistent and keep going out.

 

[Skyhunter]

Persistence does pay off (usually) - BUT - "Mother Nature" still holds the cards AND dictates the rules.

Keep in mind that Blind A$$ luck sometimes still wins out.

My hunting partner and I thought this would be THE YEAR! Food plots in w/good coverage, able to hunt when we wanted (Dark of the moon), middle of the rut, plenty of game camera verification as to size, arrival times, etc.

Then Mother Nature -
thru her 1st curve ball - the big 8 pt became a ghost!
thru her 2nd curve ball - daytime temperatures skyrocketed to the high 80's and NOTHING moved until after sunset and damn near full dark.

Enter LUCK on the 4th PM hunt. Biggest 8pt of my life walks out at 17:32 hrs.! (Had not seen a deer in daylight since starting the hunt four days ago.) At 259 lasered yards, I made the 2nd longest shot of my life and dropped the buck in his tracks.

WYT-P
Skyhunter

 

[deerhunter10]

Ehd is and always will be undefeated. Upside is the bucks that make it seem to be bigger and better in a year or 2. Been a good year i have nothing to complain about. Killed one of my biggest and my number one target. But the lessons learned every season is to many to list especially in an anomaly year like this one.

My list of to do things is longer then ever before. Will start on them January 5th.

Here's to hoping normal body size a normal spring, summer, and fall with no droughts or ehd and healthy deer to hunt again next year.

 

[Wolverine72]

Learned the hard way to do a thorough cleaning of my my breach plug at the end of every season.
I always clean, but never did the drill bit cleaning recommended when using BH209.

 

[batten_down]

Even though I shot expert in the Army, and haven't lost a deer in 25+ years, my buddies here informed me I suck as a shooter. It was my biggest lesson to learn this year.

So im learning important terms like "that one hit em" and "rack another shell"

2026 gonna be great. Anyone have a powerline i can post up on?!?

 

[BSK]

Here's to hoping normal body size a normal spring, summer, and fall with no droughts or ehd and healthy deer to hunt again next year.

Normally I would say that's not wishing for too much. But after the last 5 years, I say "Fat chance!"

 

[BSK]

What did I learn this year? I had to relearn what I have learned many times before: just when you think you have a deer herd and single property figured out, Nature will throw you a curve ball to humble you.

 

[Chiflyguy]

I learned that the spot where I have hunted successfully the past 3 years didn't work out this year.
I need to spend more time scouting and stop hunting unproductive areas.
The deer should tell me where to hunt, not me telling the deer.
Also, I need to quit sitting in a blind and start putting some miles on my boots.

 

[DoubleRidge]

I learned that the traditional rut calendar dates can shift more than I thought.
Two years in a row I killed a mature buck in late November...this year on the 28th & last year on 30th...historically November 12 to 18th has been the peak of the curve for us. Next year I have no idea when to take my fall rut vacation days?

Also learned that I can push in closer to areas of our property that historically have been off limits, sanctuary areas giving deer a place to be with no pressure from us or the neighbors...well this year , because of the cumberland gasline construction, we had to adjust the way we hunted the traditional travel corridors....we slipped in closer to the center of the property...I killed on the 28th...buddy of mine hunted same area and killed his buck on the 29th....backed out and left the farm alone (self imposed 1 buck limit).

Will any of this be applicable to future years? Cant say for sure, but these are lessons learned I'll reflect back on.
This year has certainly been different.

 

[nso123]

I learned that just as soon as we think we have the deer figured out Mother Nature will remind you that you don't.

 

[DomG]

Lesson Learned: "some things are out of our control...".

Cosmic Calendar, Sun Spots, Solar Winds, and a 30% drop in Radiation could be the reason for the whackiest rut conditions I've seen, since I moved here 2001.

I'll be watching the gestation periods...

https://spaceweather.com/

 

[backyardtndeer]

Learned that things change in the deer world despite what many experts say. Also determined that getting out early isn't early enough, pressure on one side was much closer than I realized and not really sure they we're even supposed to be there. Really thought the first week of muzzleloader would be the best timing here, but late October was. Will be putting more time in archery next fall.

 

[MUP]

I have learned not to take the driving fire inside you for deer hunting for granted, bc it can leave, and for reasons unknown.

 

[30-06 type of guy]

Make sure my magazine is full and remember where my extra bullets are. Yes you can see him breath and blink in video but I wasn't watching the screen so I couldn't see that from where I was or else I'd have followed up. I did kill him tho after I reloaded.

 

[Marlin308]

I learned it's much colder on a deer stand when you aren't seeing any deer.

 

[Outdoor Enthusiast]

Make sure my magazine is full and remember where my extra bullets are. Yes you can see him breath and blink in video but I wasn't watching the screen so I couldn't see that from where I was or else I'd have followed up. I did kill him tho after I reloaded.
View attachment 307682

Somehow I missed this. That is a great video! Been there done that. Learned a hard lesson with a MZ.

 

[Outdoor Enthusiast]

Lesson learned #1: you can still kill a target buck in December even if the rut hunting didn't go as planned.

Lesson learned #2: add additional permanent stands in areas where bucks and does tend to lock down during peak breeding to allow for flexibility with stand selection.

Lesson learned #3: be aggressive especially during rut. High wind days are prime for slip hunting.

 

[Lost Lake]

There are always some lessons that I have to relearn, and they're always hard ones. The biggest for me was that nothing is written in stone concerning deer hunting. I saw more deer in late October than I did all of gun season, and banked on traditional rut dates, and hunted way less than I should have, by choice.

One thing that Ski has always said here will apply to me next year, and that is to get more aggressive and move in closer to sanctuary cover and hunt hard. I've always shied away from doing that, but in some cases the evidence has shown me different and I still didn't do it. I believe it cost me a good chance at a great buck this year.

Also, if we have another late season drought this year, I'll be in the woods as much as I can from mid October on.

I've spent the last twenty years making sure hunting buddies always had first shot at the best stands on the farm (and public too), and starting last year, I've had to relearn how to hunt alone again. It's weird only having to make decisions for one hunter. Kinda hard to explain, but that in itself has been a couple seasons worth of lessons.

 

[PickettSFHunter]

The rut timing was unlike anything I've ever seen, so I guess I learned to be out there as much as possible even if you don't think it's time.

Also learned that at least one big buck was skirting below me in one of my traditional killing spots. I will work to modify that travel route and have a set up for it. I did kill another buck but it still bothers me

May have shot to early to limit out? I killed a really old mountain 9 to limit out but then a much bigger buck showed up on the same place and was in there a lot. It wouldn't have been any trouble to kill it instead. Oh well

 

[EastTNHunter]

I learned that public land pressure is not letting up anytime soon.

 

[bloodtrailing]

Make sure my magazine is full and remember where my extra bullets are. Yes you can see him breath and blink in video but I wasn't watching the screen so I couldn't see that from where I was or else I'd have followed up. I did kill him tho after I reloaded.
View attachment 307682

Sounded like you were fumbling with your keys trying to reload.

 

[killingtime 41]

I didn't just learn this. But so far it's held true. You can plan and hope every year to have a banner season. Only for it to unfold nearly identical to the last several disappointing years. Maybe next year I'll try reverse psychology. Kind of hard to start off with that mindset though. But at this point I'm willing to try anything

 

[BSK]

I learned that the traditional rut calendar dates can shift more than I thought.
Two years in a row I killed a mature buck in late November...this year on the 28th & last year on 30th...historically November 12 to 18th has been the peak of the curve for us. Next year I have no idea when to take my fall rut vacation days?

Learned that things change in the deer world despite what many experts say.

I can't think of a more ill-timed article than the one the NDA put out this year browbeating hunters with the fact that breeding happens at the same time each year, no matter what hunters think. In the northern tier of states, this is true. Even in most of the Southeast this is true. However, especially in the Southeast, localized conditions can alter breeding dates, most likely due to changes in herd health and food sources.

DoubleRidge, I have years and years of data showing chasing on my place surging the first few days of November, then a lull (lockdown) then peaking for the year around November 17. And I mean MANY years of data. Then we have 2022, an acorn failure year, and chasing didn't peak until around Nov 29-30. Then we have 2024, another acorn failure year and again chasing peaks around Nov 30. Then we have this year with chasing peaking Oct 26. Go figure...

 

[backyardtndeer]

I can't think of a more ill-timed article than the one the NDA put out this year browbeating hunters with the fact that breeding happens at the same time each year, no matter what hunters think. In the northern tier of states, this is true. Even in most of the Southeast this is true. However, especially in the Southeast, localized conditions can alter breeding dates, most likely due to changes in herd health and food sources.

DoubleRidge, I have years and years of data showing chasing on my place surging the first few days of November, then a lull (lockdown) then peaking for the year around November 17. And I mean MANY years of data. Then we have 2022, an acorn failure year, and chasing didn't peak until around Nov 29-30. Then we have 2024, another acorn failure year and again chasing peaks around Nov 30. Then we have this year with chasing peaking Oct 26. Go figure...

We usually see earlier activity here. Peak here is typically the beginning of second week of November, earlier than forecasts predict for the area. This year peak was around the last week of October.

This coming years rut is going to be interesting, especially with earlier born fawns possibly coming in 2+ weeks earlier than normal.

 

[DoubleRidge]

I can't think of a more ill-timed article than the one the NDA put out this year browbeating hunters with the fact that breeding happens at the same time each year, no matter what hunters think. In the northern tier of states, this is true. Even in most of the Southeast this is true. However, especially in the Southeast, localized conditions can alter breeding dates, most likely due to changes in herd health and food sources.

DoubleRidge, I have years and years of data showing chasing on my place surging the first few days of November, then a lull (lockdown) then peaking for the year around November 17. And I mean MANY years of data. Then we have 2022, an acorn failure year, and chasing didn't peak until around Nov 29-30. Then we have 2024, another acorn failure year and again chasing peaks around Nov 30. Then we have this year with chasing peaking Oct 26. Go figure...

Its hard to wrap my mind around but its fun to keep trying (and frustrating).

Another odd thing I'm reading is the folks who have reported bucks shedding one or both sides already? In years past, during poor acorn years, harsh winters, etc. We contribute early shedding to poor body condition, but this year they seem to have an abundance of food and mild weather for the most part....could the early shedding be related to the early rut in some way?