Two ScentLok ambassadors and renowned hunters compare late season whitetail deer hunting in the north and south.

Civil War in the Woods

Two ScentLok ambassadors and renowned hunters compare late season whitetail deer hunting in the north and south.

By Jay Anglin

MUSKEGON, Mich. (December 9, 2024) – Millions of hunters nationwide anxiously await white-tailed deer hunting season openers that begin sometime in September and continue all the way through December. While archery/crossbow seasons are generous and typically run through firearms seasons and often past them, the traditional firearm openers border on religion in many regions, but only last a few weekends. After the excitement subsides and regular archery and gun seasons come to end, a lot of hunters wipe their irons down for the rack and hang the bows up until next fall.

This is unfortunate, because the opportunity to cross paths with a trophy buck often occurs long after the heat of the early season and chaos of the “pumpkin army” retreats. Besides late archery and crossbow options, as well as muzzleloader seasons, also kick-in sometime in December – all offering relative solitude along with deer that are likely more relaxed.

ScentLok pro Matt Jennings

While there are fewer bucks to choose from and most does have been bred, the second rut as well as critical nutritional and caloric needs always beckons the last of the studs to take a walk in the open during broad daylight looking for companionship and a good meal. While hunting whitetails in the south verses the north may seem a lot different, the fact is there are simple steadfast rules that apply no matter where you hunt.

“I always say the late season separates the men from the boys because that’s when you find out who wants it the most,” said ScentLok pro and host of The Game, Matt Jennings, who cut his teeth as a deer hunter by tagging big whitetail bucks in the Southeast.

Hundreds of miles to the north, Bow Hunt or Die phenom Kurt Thorsen has an uncanny knack for zeroing in on cagey northern whitetails with remarkable consistency. “Late season can break battle worn bruisers of their fickle rut roaming and condense them back down to predictable daylight cover-to-feed patterns. It’s every deer hunter’s dream!”

ScentLok pro Kurt Thorsen

Northern and Southern Advantages

Jennings/South: “Yearling does start to come into estrous during the second leg of the breeding period. I’ve seen it with my Moultrie cell cams – those big deer from the early October scrape lines that disappeared sometime in mid-November – they’re back on the hunt. He’ll come back to those October scrape lines to see what deer are still in the area, who his competition is, and what younger does may be coming into estrous. I don’t abandon October scrapes because I know he’s going to come back to them eventually.”

Thorsen/North: In a way it can be a sigh of relief – November rut movement is often random, and at times, unpredictable. The issue, however, is that bucks have been heavily pressured for weeks by hard hunting bowhunters and during firearms seasons. As November ends, I shift my focus from hunting doe bedding areas, travel corridors, and pinch points, to the highest quality food sources in the area. So, it really narrows the scope of where I hunt.

When and Where

Jennings/South: “I usually look for those high-pressure days where the sun is high, and I like to sit over a food source – especially green food plots. If I’m in a tree stand, I’m going to be pretty close to a bedroom because you know those deer aren’t going to want to travel too far because they’re run down, they’re beat up. They’re trying to get their kicks back,” explained Jennings. “They want sun during late-season. Deer are just like us, and they want to warm-up and they are trying to get that energy built up, and they need nutrition. Whether that’s a bait pile, food plot, or other food source, it plays a big role. Pay attention to moon phase and the “red moon” (when gravitational pull is closer to the Earth).

Thorsen/North: “The bucks are in dire need of food to replenish the energy spent during the November grind. Going into winter on an empty battery can be a death sentence, so if you’re fortunate enough to find the highest quality food sources, you are guaranteed to find the deer. The key to being successful is hunt those cold, post storm, high pressure systems and doing so effectively.”

Morning or Afternoon/In and Out

Jennings/South: “I try to relate late season to the early season. Unless I have the window of all windows to get in there in the morning, I try not to go into a set until about 11 am or 12 pm, and grit it out the rest of the day. Because you don’t want to blow your deer off the food. Most of the time it’s just too risky in the morning.”

Thorsen/North: “This time of year I slowly phase out my morning hunts to do some personal rut recovery as well! I’ve found late season morning hunts to be too high of a risk. Deer often beat me back to the bedding regardless of how early I try to get to the woods, and conditions make it difficult to slip into these locations anyway. It’s crucial not to let the deer know you’re hunting them otherwise daylight feeding activity will quickly shift to an after-hours frenzy.”

Weather

Jennings/South: “During frigid cold snaps or snowy conditions Alabama deer shut down. They don’t know how to handle it! If it snows at my house, they go underground, they freak out. It’s like aliens came and got them.”

Thorsen/North: “Late season whitetails offer a unique challenge to those willing to tough out the brutal conditions. My best success has been during evening hunts over high quality food sources in high pressure cold front conditions. The colder the better and conditions can be unbearable!”

Pro Tips

Jennings/South: Late season success starts during July and August when you’re putting in the sweat, planting food plots, and setting the trap for late season. Put the sweat so you can get the blood in the last season. I have everything laid out for him and all I need to do is slide in the back door and wait for him to show up.

Thorsen/North: Effective entry and exit routes are incredibly important. Unfortunately, that is easier said than done when it’s quitting time with a field full of deer. A strategy I have used in the past is having someone pick me up in a vehicle. That way they are spooked from an outside source and not me piling out of a blind or treestand.

Deer season lasts a long time, and it borders on agonizing if you haven’t tagged a buck by the time late season rolls around. Many hunting peers have their deer back from the processor and have selected the form from the taxidermist. It’s easy to lose hope and accept that it isn’t going to happen, but there is only one certainty when it comes to deer hunting – it’s definitely not going to happen if you give up. And, if you stick with it and finally connect with a late-season trophy, it’s oh-so worth the wait.

ScentLok BE:1 Fortress Parka

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MSRP $369.99 – $389.99

ScentLok BE:1 Fortress Bib

Designed to complement the ScentLok BE:1 Fortress Parka and complete the elite-level late-season bowhunting apparel suite, the 100% waterproof, windproof, and breathable BE:1 Fortress Bib features a soft, quiet, and flexible brushed fleece shell fabric, thermal-mapped Primaloft™ Silver insulation for perfect warmth, and proprietary ScentLok Carbon Alloy® technology for maximum odor adsorption. The BE:1 Fortress Bib completes the late-season cold-weather bowhunting apparel system that checks every box. Available in three camo patterns and ten sizes to meet the distinct needs of any hunter.

MSRP $369.99 – $389.99

ABOUT NEXUS OUTDOORS

Nexus Outdoors, headquartered in Muskegon, MI, USA, is a leading worldwide designer, marketer and distributor of performance, hunting and casual odor-controlling apparel, footwear and equipment under the ScentLok Technologies®, OZ®, Blocker Outdoors®, Whitewater and Tree Spider® brands. It also owns American Range Systems, manufacturer and distributor of the world’s strongest and safest bullet traps. Nexus Outdoors is the only company with access to all scent-controlling technologies, including their patented Carbon Alloy™ and Cold Fusion Catalyst™ technologies, which provide superior success in the field. ScentLok and Blocker Outdoors are pioneers in the hunting industry, which many credit with creating a market focused on superior scent control to get closer to big game.