Experienced hunters spend the entire year looking forward to the next two weeks. Bucks are beginning to move during daylight hours offering hunters their best opportunity to tag a trophy.

The rut is controlled by many factors, most of which are predictable. Many scientists claim the moon cycle is what sets the rut off. You can’t use a calendar to exactly predict the rut, but you may use it as a reference. It’s common for the extreme hunters out there to keep a journal and catalog the time frame of the rut. I find most recent information to be the best way to judge when the rut is kicking off.

I haven’t found that the moon cycle affects deer as much as fish. I have tried to base my hunts on the moon cycle, but have had little success. My records show a steep increase in fish activity three days before the full moon. The night of the full moon has tended to be the worse fishing of the cycle. The bite will be off for the next three days after the full moon also. Knowing what phase of the moon cycle that you are in can greatly increase your odds of a harvest. I’ve found that the kickoff of the rut is much less predictable using the moon cycle, while deer movement can be much more easily defined. I have found that a.m. deer movement decreases, while in the full moon, I believe this is attributed to increased nocturnal movement, and the extra light in the morning sending the deer to bed early for safety purposes.

To combat the changes, I recommend hunting from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. during the full moon. The increase in daytime movement is not only during the full moon. Bucks like to get up and cruise the downwind side of bedding areas in an attempt to sniff out a hot doe. They may move at first light in the darker phases of the moon, but will get up around midday to make their rounds. I like to hunt all day if possible in the dark phases, because bucks may move at any time. The old line you can’t shoot one from the living room couch, is best fitting once bucks have been seen running does. Once the chase phase of the rut begins buck movement increases, but the timing of these movements are less predictable. For this reason, an all-day hunt is your best bet.