Ohio Deer Hunting

Rut Chasers, LLC offers some of the best hunting trophy whitetail deer in the most renowned counties in Ohio, including Licking, Franklin, Coshocton, Knox, and Muskingum counties. We limit the number of hunts so that we can focus on you. Bigger in terms of business is not better in our opinion. See why we have an 80% rebooking rate! Take the best whitetail deer hunting in the country and an outfitter committed to your success, and you will feel the same. Experience our fair-chase, semi-guided deer hunts for yourself. You won't be disappointed!

Book Your Ohio Deer Hunt:
Email or Call us today at 419-543-3433

Hunt Package and Pricing Info:
Opening Week Hunts Pre-Rut Hunts Rut Hunts Post-Rut Hunts Gun Hunts Gun/Bow Combo Hunts Muzzleloader Hunts Late Season Hunts

Opening Week Hunts:

Price starts at $2800 - Opener OR Midweek Opener $2600 5 days of hunting

Opening week has always been one of my favorite weeks. There is something special about the opening week here in Ohio—no pressure in the Ohio woods until that opening day. You will see a ton of deer. The deer are very patternable this time of year. So, there's a good chance you'll know exactly what bucks you'll see and what ones you're targeting. I killed Goliath, my biggest deer to date, the opening week back in 2020. Hunting greens and corn piles are typically the best this week. It has a lot to do with the weather. All my hunts depend heavily on the weather. This week's success rate/opportunity rate rivals any time of year. It's always been a very successful week, especially for opportunities. This week, we only hunt in the evenings, except for certain situations. Hunting in the mornings does more harm than good at this time, as getting to a food source before daylight is hard. Like late season, the early season deer are focused on the baits and generally offer the most"slam-dunk" opportunities as they come right to the baits and sometimes stand there feeding for a long time, giving you the best angle to take the perfect shot.

Late October Pre-Rut Hunts:

Price starts at $2800 - 4 1/2 days of hunting (Sunday afternoon through Thursday).

This particular hunt is an absolute blast. This last week of October typically falls on that Halloween time frame right before it, and hunting on Halloween is one of my favorite dates to hunt. This time, a lot of my bucks disappeared before the opener started showing back up randomly, along with new studs. The success rate/opportunity week this week of 140 plus will be around 60 to 70 percent. We need the right weather for it to work perfectly. But it's also the beginning of the rut, so even if the weather is warm, there is still a very good chance something BIG can happen! Trail Camera photos don't mean much at this point because most of our bucks are not just standing on the baits. Many are killed as they cruise through, looking for does. So being ready and prepared in any direction is key!

Rut Hunts:

Price starts at $2,800 - 4 1/2 days of hunting (Sunday afternoon through Thursday).

Rut hunts will run the first 3 weeks of November. The first three weeks are typically all good in their own way. Weather conditions play a significant role in this particular hunt. The deer are going to rut regardless. But movement will be reduced if it's warm. Typically, it's not that warm, and they chase and rut plenty during the day. Success rates are high if you're willing to put the time in and stay focused. This hunt is better suited to a patient, hard hunter who can perform under pressure. For this period, I prefer to book hunters who are willing to sit all day. If you don't want to sit long, this hunt probably isn't for you. In that case, you're better off going earlier or later in the season. A lot of my hunters have killed between 10 and 2 during this time. The best part about the rut is you never know what can show up. Don't let your guard down on this hunt, or you could miss your shot at the booner whitetail of your dreams! Don't get caught up on trail camera photos (or lack of) during this time. Our cameras don't tell us much at this point, as most of our bucks are killed as they cruise through looking for does. If they do hit the camera many times, they are just walking to and through the bait, nose down, looking for does or chasing does. Be ready to stop that buck or take the shot when it presents itself.

End of November- December Bow Post Rut

Price starts at $2600 - 4 1/2 days hunting. (Sunday afternoon through Thursday).

The post-rut bow season can be an excellent time to hunt, mainly because we are a bait state. These bucks have been cruising, chasing for a month, and eating very little. Then the rut starts winding down, and they hit bait, food plots, and crop fields like crazy. It can be one of the best times to get an easy bait pile shot at a big, mature whitetail, especially if we get that perfect weather situation. Cold, snow, and food add up to some excellent hunting. The hard part of hunting this time is typically a ton of deer hitting each spot. So there are a ton of eyes, ears, and noses in the same area. So scent control is a big deal, as well as getting in early before they start moving. This hunt can also be great because the last does and fawns are coming into heat. Those big mature bucks are cruising to find those last few does to breed for the year.

Gun Week Hunts

Price starts at $2800 - 5 days hunting (Monday through Friday)

Gun week hunts are 5 days with 6 days of lodging. On this hunt, you will arrive on Sunday, start on Monday, and run until Friday. There's also an extra weekend hunt the following weekend after the gun week. We have very little gun hunting here in Ohio. Gun week is a great week to hunt. It's a great time to kill a mature buck that we haven't been able to get to cooperate. Monday morning of shotgun week is awesome. Some absolute studs have went down that morning and throughout that week. It is gun week, so expect mid-week action to be slow and pick back up as the pressure drops.

Bow and Gun Weekend Combo

Price starts at $2400 5 days of hunting. (Wednesday through Friday is archery, and Saturday and Sunday are gun season).

This bow-gun combo hunt allows you to score a buck either during the three days you hunt with the bow or the last two days with the bang stick. This combo hunt can be action-packed, as deer frequent the baits after all the hard rut action.

Muzzleloader Season

Price starts at $2250 - 4 days hunting

Muzzleloader season is a great time to book. It's one of my favorite times, especially if the weather is good and cold. We could have snow and frigid temperatures, and that's just what we need to kill studs late and during muzzleloader. I love it because the late season is good all around, but you have a gun in your hands. It makes the opportunity so much better. You just have to be willing to hunt in cold temperatures. Some of our biggest bucks come from this time of year. These hunts are over a food source, and I highly recommend evening hunting only. It's hard to get into food sources in the mornings. This hunt will make you want to rebook it each year. You just can't beat late-season hunting on food sources with a gun. If you're interested in our combo hunt, reach out, and we'll discuss it.

Late Season Whitetail Hunts

Prices start at $2400 5 Day Hunt (Can be extended for $300 a day.)

These hunts are some of the coldest and most successful hunts. If the weather is right, the success rate rivals any other time of year. I enjoy this hunt. If you have a flexible schedule in January, we can watch the weather and hunt it accordingly. It's perfect. You will mostly be hunting for food sources. All my mature bucks start randomly showing up and become regular at food plots or bait piles. Makes for an exciting and cold hunt. I've typically got regularly daylighting bucks for this hunt and the opener. This is when the deer are more aware, so you must be still and ready. Mostly evening-only hunts, but it will depend on the situation and deer movement. Call me, and let's talk about late-season whitetails!

Additional Hunt Info

Booking

80 to 90% of our hunts are from rebookings by past hunters. Our high rebooking percentage keeps our availability window small; call ASAP to determine the best dates for you.

How our semi-guided hunts work with going in and out of properties:

All the hunters drove their vehicles to the properties once we showed them where they were hunting. They wanted the freedom to come and go on their own schedule. That is fine with me, but I encourage you to stay in your stand as long as possible or as long as we recommend. Some of the properties you will have to be dropped off and picked up by us because that is what the landowner wants. When I drove to an outfitter to hunt whitetails in the past, I always preferred to drive myself to the property if allowed, because I wanted all my hunting equipment in my vehicle in case I needed it. I also didn't want to be on the outfitter and other hunters' schedules.

Lodging:

Lodging is not included on any hunt, but we can assist you in finding a place for a reasonable cost.

Success Rates:

One of the most-asked questions for an Ohio whitetail deer hunt with an outfitter is, "What is your success rate?" I think it's fair to say that a success rate is an outdoorsman's best honest guess, and that is all that can be expected. In different articles, I have written that the higher the success rate, the more attractive the outfitter looks. We must be careful with the high success rate numbers because it could become a "participation trophy." I like my hunters to be happy, not just kill, so they don't go empty-handed. Some guys don't shower and/or smell like Axe Body Spray. Others don't put the recommended time in the stand as they should. Others just don't make the best choices, for example, opening every window in the blind, using a bunch of scent lures, not sitting still, or doing Candy Crush marathons. Simply put, there is no real success rate percentage number because it varies based on the hunter's preparation, patience, and performance, among other variables we can't control (such as weather). So the guy who takes scent control seriously, puts in the right amount of time in the woods, and gets in and out properly will have a much better chance than the guy who doesn't take anything seriously. So it's hard to give a 100 percent answer on our true success rates because of all these factors. Last year, we killed a great number of big, mature whitetails. But we also had around 25 missed opportunities! Missed opportunities aren't included in an outfitter's success rate, although the opportunity was presented. No one sees this unless the hunter and outfitter succeed and the trophy is harvested. Hopefully, this will help clear up the success rate question. I promise, as the owner of Rut Chasers, LLC, anyone who comes to hunt with us will be on a mature shooter buck. Weather, hunter ability, and everything else determine whether that deer gets harvested. Over the last few years, the opportunity rate has been around 70%, but it could be higher if all hunters put in the effort mentioned.

Size restrictions: 130 inch minimum

A 130-inch antler minimum is implemented and enforced on all of our farms. Shooting a substandard buck will result in a $1,000 fine. Only by myself or a guide will some leeway be considered. This fine is not about making money and alienating customers; it's about growing the kind of bucks our customers want to shoot. It will help you as a Rut Chaser customer in the future. Quality deer management is one of the reasons you will want to hunt with us in Ohio!

Rut Chasers size restriction exceptions:

Each of our farms holds a few fully mature bucks whose antlers do not reach the desired 130" requirement. Most often, our guide or I will inform hunters of the presence of these management bucks, and they are welcome to harvest them without penalty.
We do NOT impose antler restrictions for our disabled or youth hunters.