Rattling for Late Season Success

In many areas, rattling isn't a well known tactic for hunting Blacktails. Trust me though, it works! Here are some pointers for your next late-season archery hunt.

Start by selecting a set of rattling horns with extra points (3x3 or better), and make sure they have some size to them. You can tell the difference in sound between large sheds and small ones, and I think the deer can too. I never was able to get anything to come using forky sheds, but once I went to some fairly fresh 4x4 sheds it started working extremely well.

As far as timing goes, I've found that bucks become pretty 'rattleable' about the time they begin making rubs. If you are seeing new rubs and you have a tag in your pocket, you should be in business.

The rattling itself is actually really simple- be as loud as you can! You'll feel stupid at first (at least I did), but after doing it enough you'll see that the bigger the commotion, the better the results. This is where bigger horns with more points come into play. Don't forget to rake the ground and shrubbery while you rattle. Possibly the most important factor is having the wind right. Figure out a rattling location where there is a high likelihood of bucks coming in from up wind, and a low likelihood they will come from behind you. This may sound obvious but it's important none the less! The very best scenario is to spot bucks and sneak to about 200 yards of them with the wind right, then rattle them into bow range. In almost every case I've had they have come to me on a straight line like a coyote. If rattling isn't common in your area, don't be too concerned about bucks trying to circle down wind unless you're in the wide open.

For frequency I usually do 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off. When blind rattling I give every spot at least 15 minutes, but after 25 minutes of nothing you should probably move. One more thing, they will come to rattling all day long. Not just morning and evening.

If you haven’t used any calling tactics on Blacktailed deer before, don’t be afraid to give it a try!

Here is a nice Blacktail that my dad and I rattled

 in to 19 yards at the end of the general season a 

couple years ago.

This nice little buck was rattled in to 25 yards before

seeing me and bolting into the next canyon. After 10

more minutes of rattling he was sprinting right back!

I stopped him at 30 yards and made the shot.

"How do you scout for Blacktail?"

Hey all, I was recently emailed this question, and I thought I would share the "short answer" with whoever may find it helpful here. Obviously not all of the following is necessary all the time, nor is it collectively sufficient all of the time. That said, if you are looking for a starting point to out-of-season scouting, hopefully this can get you pointed in the right direction.


I basically scout the same way as I hunt, but with no bow. I also don't mind making more noise, in order to cover more ground and maybe catch a glimpse of a bumped animal. I'm not afraid to push them around a little bit, they aren't going to completely move away. It also shows what kind of tolerance they have, and what their escape rout is. In my opinion, the 2 most important scouting months are the month after the season, and the month before. Whats helped me is taking notes. Scouting heavily in October is just a waste if you can't remember what you learned by the time the season comes around again. I keep a note pad and pencil with me to sketch where heavy trails and bedding areas are, and wind patterns for morning and afternoon. Having an idea about what time of the day the wind switches is very helpful. Figure it out and log it! I also write down how many animals I see and how big they are. Writing down exactly where I see a certain buck each time gives me an idea on what his general range is. Most of the bucks I hunt stay within a 3/4 mile area most of the year. There is no such thing as too much detail! Check out the heavy trails and see if all the tracks are going in the same direction. If so, then why? What other trail are they using to get back to the beginning of this one? Are they using this one in the morning or afternoon? Blacktails CAN be patterned! They are creatures of habit. Trail cameras are an awesome tool, obviously. They give the hunter confidence. Having confidence in an area is a huge factor. It will make you hunt harder and longer than if you don't have a high confidence in your area. On the other hand, trail cameras can really hurt hunters. Most guys put a camera or two out, and get pictures of a buck that they would be happy shooting. They then leave the camera there to take pictures of the same few deer over and over until the season starts. What they don't realize is that in the next canyon there is a B&C monster that they have no idea about because they didn't move their camera around. It's hard to move it away from a place that produces pictures, but the deer aren't going anywhere. When I get some pics that show constant results of the same bucks, I move it 3/4 of a mile or so. Then I get to see different deer. They might be smaller, or they might be bigger. You never know until you do it. If you want to consistently hunt/kill big bucks, then you need to find the biggest bucks in your area. This means getting out of your comfort zone and investigating new pockets of deer. It took me a while to learn to do this but it's paid off.

WELCOME!

To anyone who took the time to get here, welcome! I decided to create this blog to share my trials and tribulations with others who share the same interests. I began my time in the field at a very young age, as my dad and his friends would tote me around the hills while dog hunting for wild hogs. Before long I was promoted from walking dog leash rack to shooter. Besides hunting pigs with my dad, I spent a great deal of time in the field with my Grandfather on dove and quail hunts. My time in the outdoors as a youngster has made me who I am today. In this blog I look forward to sharing stories and photos of hunts from throughout my life so far, and some of the things I look to accomplish in the future. Some stories will be good, some will be informative, and others will contain material that is downright hilarious- in some pretty sick ways.

I also plan to share some of my home projects. Lately I have been bedding and painting rifles, along with a few other DIY projects that folks might benefit from seeing. And by all means, please leave comments if any of you have suggestions for me!

Stay tuned, and thanks for looking!

Todd