Barometer Secrets & Rut Forecast for Early November! | Chasing Giants 297

Published: 2025-11-02 Episode page Duration: 75 min

In this episode

360-blinds

• Terry announced he and Don will attend the 360 Blinds dealer event in January and invited 360 dealers to meet them there. 25:06

all-day-sit

• Given the favorable barometer forecast, when do you go in prepared for an all-day sit, and what decides that? 28:20

bare-root-trees

• Adam asked how many years bare-root trees take to produce first fruit compared to buying individual seven-gallon potted trees. 37:26

barometer

• Don observed that as the barometer rose during the cold front, deer activity picked up sharply, reinforcing his belief that barometric pressure drives movement. 1:55
• Don believes hunters can watch the barometer to predict when deer will be moving. 2:33
• Don checked the forecast and found the barometer expected to stay above 30 through Thursday, signaling several strong hunting days ahead. 9:38
• Don plans to pay much closer attention to barometric pressure going forward, not just this season but in future years. 50:41

buck-competition

• Is heavier scrape activity creating more competition among bucks this year? 5:56

calculated-risk

• Don’s banker told him his land-buying risks were calculated ones that always pay off, advice Don now shares with younger listeners. 18:16

career-risk

• Terry described taking a major risk at 47, retiring early from a great, stable job and company. 16:35

diet-health

• Don joked that after giving up his Snickers and Doctor Pepper hunting breakfast this year, he feels a whole lot better. 30:31

doe-buck-ratio

• Don believes keeping the doe-to-buck ratio in line has positively affected his property in many ways. 5:48

e-bike-scent-control

• Don recommends laying an e-bike down flat in the weeds rather than leaving it standing, since deer aren’t bothered when it’s lying down. 49:46
• Andrew asked how close to a stand he should ride his e-bike to eliminate ground scent when accessing stands. 47:32

eastern-ohio

• Terry speculated that hunters in Eastern Ohio might see the barometric spike arrive a day or two later than in Illinois. 24:10

encouragement

• Don told Terry, after a devastating setback, that it would prove to be the best thing that ever happened to him and become his biggest blessing within a year. 17:13

episode-planning

• Terry planned to record the next episode a bit later next Saturday so they could discuss deer activity from November 7th and 8th. 50:54

fruit-trees

• Don told Corey that deer cleaned up every pear that dropped from a planted pear tree, showing how quickly wildlife use planted fruit trees. 46:36

gingerich-tree-farm

• Terry explained that Jay Gingerich and Don collaborated to build a ready-made quarter-acre ‘Chasing Giants’ package with the right number of trees and wraps. 39:44
• Don said Gingerich’s exclusive trees were developed by apple breeder Andy and are likely the most disease-resistant available anywhere. 40:50

guest-visit

• Terry announced that musician Emerson Day and her husband Bryce will visit and hunt with him mid-week during a break in her tour. 11:16

habitat-management

• Terry said watching a managed property’s wildlife thrive from invested effort can feel even more special than the hunting itself. 46:03

listener-feedback

• Don asked listeners to share feedback about deer activity on November 7th and 8th, his two favorite hunting days of the year. 23:52

november-7-8

• Don noted that November 7th and 8th are traditionally the days when more mature bucks are killed than any other dates on the calendar. 21:05

opportunity

• Todd Hewing’s father taught that opportunities have only a short window, and those afraid to pull the trigger on them never get ahead. 14:54

regional-timing

• Don said areas east of him typically see the same deer activity patterns he reports about one to two days later. 24:39

rut-behavior

• Given cooler temps and rising barometer, what’s going on with all the bucks right now as the rut approaches? 4:18

rut-kills

• Emily Shad of Novix reportedly shot a big buck on the morning of November 1, per her social media post. 10:17

rut-lockdown

• Some social media commenters claim deer are already in lockdown this early in the season, a recurring seasonal remark Terry and Don hear every year. 1:05

rut-movement

• Don said this was hands-down his best morning hunt since November 1, after five slower mornings hunting through the end of October. 2:39
• Don hunted that morning with his son-in-law Corey, and together they saw six bucks and 15 to 20 does. 3:00

rut-report

• Terry said followers of Don, Chasing Giants TV, and Real World Wildlife Products will see a daily rut report shared across social media. 23:35

rut-timing

• Don urges listeners to spend as much time in the woods as possible this coming week, the best chance of the year to kill a good buck. 11:06

scent-control

• Caleb asked whether Don and Terry hunt quartering winds favorable to bucks even though scent control isn’t a top priority for them. 31:41

scouting-strategy

• Don recalled that when scouting a new property last-minute, he simply hung his stand at the first good-looking spot rather than scouting extensively. 27:57

shooter-buck-decisions

• Brock asked whether Don and Terry struggle to shoot mature bucks they’ve watched grow up for years, or if he’s just getting soft. 42:36

stand-strategy

• For a farm you weren’t prepared to hunt, how would you strategize scouting, finding a tree, and hanging a stand this week? 26:04

tim-heath

• Don described his friend Tim Heath of Lincoln, Illinois as the person closest to him in understanding how to manage bucks on a property. 44:04

trail-cameras

• Don runs 55 trail cameras, 22 of them cellular, monitoring numerous properties every day to track deer activity. 7:16

weather-underground

• Don recommends Weather Underground as his go-to tool for planning hunts. 22:37

wildlife-habitat

• Don considers Todd likely the biggest private spender in the country developing wildlife habitat, as distinct from deer-specific habitat work. 13:44

wind-strategy

• Terry believes most hunters understand wind and scent control but still don’t truly grasp how a mature buck uses the wind to his advantage. 35:21
• Don argues that consistently killing mature bucks in October and the late season proves a hunter truly understands how a buck uses the wind. 36:33

Deer activity

• unnamed buck (sighting) 1:00
• unnamed buck (hunt) 8:54
• unnamed buck (harvest) 27:43
• Trump (harvest) 29:18
• Turning Point (hunt) 29:23
• unnamed buck (sighting) 49:22

Listener questions

Question: Given cooler temps and rising barometer, what’s going on with all the bucks right now as the rut approaches? 4:18

• Answer: Don answered that every buck he saw that morning was chasing or pushing does rather than feeding, consistent with rising rut activity. 4:35

Question: Is heavier scrape activity creating more competition among bucks this year? 5:56

• Answer: Don answered yes, describing bucks following and bumping does near a feeding area, as interested in the does as in food. 6:10

Question: For a farm you weren’t prepared to hunt, how would you strategize scouting, finding a tree, and hanging a stand this week? 26:04

• Answer: Don said he’d scout likely spots via onX or Google Earth, then go in midday with a stand and bow, hang it based on that day’s wind, and hunt until dark. 26:44

Question: Given the favorable barometer forecast, when do you go in prepared for an all-day sit, and what decides that? 28:20

• Answer: Don answered he only sits all day for a specific target buck, and only from around November 5 through Thanksgiving weekend. 28:50

Question: Caleb asked whether Don and Terry hunt quartering winds favorable to bucks even though scent control isn’t a top priority for them. 31:41 — asked by Caleb

• Answer: Don answered that regardless of scent control, a deer close enough will smell you, so he doesn’t change his wind strategy based on scent regimen. 32:24

Question: Adam asked how many years bare-root trees take to produce first fruit compared to buying individual seven-gallon potted trees. 37:26 — asked by Adam Dawson

• Answer: Don answered that Gingerich Tree Farm’s Jay sells both bare-root and potted trees, noting he recently planted 25 more potted apple trees himself. 37:48

Question: Brock asked whether Don and Terry struggle to shoot mature bucks they’ve watched grow up for years, or if he’s just getting soft. 42:36 — asked by Brock Van Oslin

• Answer: Don said he now relates to Brock’s dilemma, watching favorite bucks grow up and dreading that shooting them means the story is over. 43:45

Question: Andrew asked how close to a stand he should ride his e-bike to eliminate ground scent when accessing stands. 47:32 — asked by Andrew Diller

• Answer: Don answered he drives the e-bike as close as possible, ideally leaving it lying in the weeds right at the base of his tree. 48:10
• Answer: Terry answered he’ll ride close but not into the woods, slipping in on foot at the wood edge because he thinks it’s quieter. 48:32

Prayer Time

Scripture: 1 Samuel Theme: servant’s heart Filling in for prayer time, Terry reflected on 1 Samuel 17, noting David approached King Saul as a humble servant to fight Goliath despite already being anointed king, and challenged listeners to pursue hunting, business, or ministry with a servant’s heart rather than seeking personal glory. 52:22

Sponsors this episode

• Brenton Firearms

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