“Mom, look at that buck,” my 8-year-old daughter yelled on the way to the bus stop this morning. I tapped the brakes, and we watched a 4-by-4 muley with his nose in the air chase a doe beside our rural country road. We watched long enough that I almost had to blame the rut on her nearly missing the bus. We routinely see mule deer does on the drive, but it’s rare to see a buck bigger than a forkhorn. However, I know the rut is heating up when the bigger bucks suddenly come out of hiding. Today’s drive was the best yet. We spotted two mature bucks and three younger ones, all of which were hot on the heels of does.

From seeking to chasing and fighting to rubbing, I witnessed every rut behavior but breeding during my backcountry mule deer hunt the last week of October. When planning the trip with my husband, we knew not to expect peak rut activity. However, any parent will understand that when you line up childcare, you go even if it’s not the perfect scenario. We planned our trip hoping October would offer a good weather window. Unfortunately, that window was very narrow. Although wind is to be expected when chasing high-prairie mule deer, every day but one was filled with 50-plus mph winds. Despite the gusts making me seasick while glassing, we saw close to 30 bucks — just nothing big enough to pull the trigger.

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Although the younger bucks were often with does and exhibiting rut behaviors such as chasing, seeking and fighting, most of the mature bucks we glassed were alone or still in bachelor groups. The biggest buck we spotted during the trip was still in his pre-rut routine of bedding in the same area during the day, alone or with a smaller buck, and moving to and from an agricultural field to feed in late afternoon.

Montana’s mule deer get closer to peak rut activity every day, but the state’s whitetails are on a different schedule. Friends targeting whitetails say they’re only seeing bucks right at daylight and dusk, and they’re often alone. They’re having the most luck spotting whitetails in thick brush, especially on windy days. Trail camera photos are showing more buck movement, but it’s still primarily in the dark.

Hunters in Idaho, Wyoming and Montana have battled strong winds and some unseasonably warm weather for much of October. There’s been little snowfall so far, except in some higher mountain ranges. With November underway, that is expected to change this week. Meteorologists are predicting wet weather to move into the Pacific Northwest. Washington and Oregon, especially along the coast, could see several inches of rain, including flash flooding. Idaho is also expected to see some rain and snow at higher elevations. If you’re headed out, keep an eye on the weather, and be prepared for snow.