Hotspotoutdoors

Have the farmers been able to get out in between the monsoons or are the deer going to be hiding in the corn this weekend?

Very little corn is down in SW Minnesota. A few farmers have started, but I would guess only 5-10% is down. We just drove through from South Dakota and there are corn fields still flooded over there.

Corn??? Most aren't even done with the darn beans yet! It is a HORRIBLE fall for harvesting...

The deer will be in the corn during the day. Best chance hunters have is to hit river bottom/slough areas during first light. Of course the deer have proved me wrong in the past.

if there ever was a year to skip deer hunting and go waterfowling...hmmm...flooded corn....

They are on the roads at night...as evidenced by the missing headlight and cracked bumper on our daughter's car.

The next week should see a lot of corn coming out.

Thanks for the update from your neck of the woods Carolyn! Sorry to hear about the daughters car, darn deer, they'd be better in my belly than on your hood!

Full moon at night. Rut just ramping up. Deer are going to run all night and nest up during the day. Youre going to have to go into the corn fields if you want any success at all.
















When you sneak into a deers bedroom, every one is a trophy!

Great shots reddog!!

Very cool pics!

Thanks,

Im dying for some fresh venison. So much to the point that Im thinking about putting my name on the list for a roadkill.

Headed to South Dakota Friday to see if I can fill an archery tag.

Shoot, reddog, should've had your number two weeks ago when my daughter took out a small doe by Redwood Falls. She would've been tenderized on one side...

with the rut starting or about to start if hunters play it kool it will be a great year sit by funnels or waterways next to corn, no need to enter the corn sit at ambush points. always remeber there is tons of people pushing state ground sit at natural exit points and youll be fine.. i am really looking forward to doing some rattling it has worked every where that i have hunted it will be a first time i will have tryed back home

I just talked to a friend that is heading west tonight between willmar and appleton and he said he's seein a few combines out in the field today but that there is a lot of standing water in low spots. I just hope most of the corn is out near where we are going tomorrow and friday. The farmer said he was going to have a lot of it out but then it rained last night again. The forecast looks good for a while which is nice for a change!

i wanna know how you snuck up on them that close with out them noticing you there.....

Actually, its easier than you would think.

Conditions are the key.

Mid day,

Wind.

Keeping the wind in your face.

Never step into a row before peeking.

Wait till the bulk of the cornfields are gone. (1 per mile or less)

Camo up different than you would for woods, obviously. bit go light colored on top because the deer is laying down and you are close, so you are way above it. Think of how you would camo if you were against the sky.

Ive been hunting in the corn fields for over twenty years. both with a bow and a gun.

The keys (other than the ones noted above) are:

With a gun, you can shoot down the row. Typical shot is a 20 yd neck shot.

With a bow, you always shoot cross rows. Usually 3 or 4 rows away. Typical shot is 3-4 yds into the body cavity. When you let it go, be prepared to move, as they typically take off crossrows initially.

Adjust your approach to the way they are laying. You can approach from any one of 270 degrees, just cant get upwind.

Sometimes you are playing the wind to a within few feet.
Take your time. There is nothing as exciting as seeing the first patch of fur or the big eyeball at 15-20 feet! Then you start looking for the lane to shoot thru.

If gun hunting, go in the fields one at a time. Bow hunting can utilize more than one hunter, but it should be decided where you can and cant go ahead of time.

It used to be easy when the rows were 36 inches. Then 30"s came along and it makes it so much harder. BUT, with the advent of Roundup Ready corn and GPS guided planters,that has improved the ability to hunt 30 inch rows. Dont even think about 20 inch rows. Its impossible.

Toad Smith from Sibley Ia. wrote a book and produced a video outlining how the succesfully hunt in the corn. I have both the book and the video. It has been out of production for many years, but occasionally one of them pops up on the auction sites. I wont loan out the video, for damage reasons. If anyone is interested in the book, Ill get it back and send it out.

Here is a discussion from a couple years ago.
http://www.fishingminnesota.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/1163357/1



This is going to be a great year to hunt in the corn!.

Toad's book is a MUST read! Great stuff reddog!

good ideas thanks

reddog, NICE pics!! Sutty: 11/6 we're going to TRY to start harvesting beans near Fairfax. The 'headrows' have been taken out but the combine got stuck 3 times in doing so. Hopefully we can make a sizeable dent in this years harvest over the weekend. Hunting, to say the least, will be a challenge in that area for sure!! Phred52

The area I hunt in is by Ortonville. I have heard there is lots of standing water in the fields so I assume it will be tough. Supposed to be no rain for the next few days so hopefully for the farmers sake they can salvage their crops

around me most of the beans are gone and they are going at corn, but id say 60-75% of it is still in.

There is a LOT of corn still unharvested along hwy 23 south of Marshall to I-90. I missed a smallish 8 pointer with the van, but got a good look at him. He was south of Jasper about 2 miles...

Better luck next time, Carolyn. I hope you know how to field dress.

I got my 2nd book back. If anyone is interested in taking it out on loan. let me know.

If you hit them just right, you don't have to worry about field dressing, right?