The Guides Angle by Chris Scalley
November is when deer hunters get real serious about being in the woods. This is the time of year when female deer or does go into estrous and mature bucks which are normally nocturnal can’t resist the urge to mate even during daylight hours offering the hunter a rare opportunity for a shot at a trophy. I am a deer hunter as well for almost 40 years and have found that despite inclement weather, nice weather, or if it is cool or unseasonably hot, the does will go into heat in November in Georgia, no matter what. This is proof that “photo period” or the length of daylight each day is the primary trigger for does to go into heat.
Same is true for Georgia brown trout, but we like to call it the “brown-blitz”. Again, the shorter days in November and December cause the larger browns to be active during the daylight hours triggering spawning activity. Typically browns are low light fish, and this nocturnal behavior makes them difficult to catch outside of the fall season.
So this November, remember most serious sportsman are in a tree stand hunting whitetails leaving the river almost vacant of anglers, and the big mature browns are more active even in broad daylight.