Public land whitetails

I have to hunt public land (river bottoms) in central WI. Unfortunately, there's getting to be less and less of that so the hunting pressure is getting worse and worse. It's not only the deer hunters but you also have to work around duck hunters too. The biggest problem with that is the deer are almost completely nocturnal. I go to the extreme to get back away from everyone but it's almost impossible to see the bigger bucks during shooting hours. Besides crawling into their beds with them does anyone have any suggestions??

dodgeman_29

Well, dodge' ... at the risk of sounding ... um ... offensive? ... (NOT intended that way ... merely sayin' whut's the only thing I can think of that might address your problem ... )

Move to (or, at least, try out) bowhunting in North Dakota ...

There are a few limitations on NRs, but basically the archery deer season is wide open ... except for the Mule Deer Buck special license in certain areas (buy it from the G&F before they're sold out, which usually occurs in March), y'all can shoot any deer you see ...

And ... our deer archery season is the longest one in the USofA ... starts in late August or early Sept. and runs thru ... um ... first or second weekend (closes on a Sunday night) of January ...

And ... out in West River country, there's a LOT of Public Land that is available, and if you're into hiking to the Boonies, you won't be bothered by very many (if ANY) other hunters ... AND ... most every area of the state has some decent areas that are open to all hunters, if not "public" land, then PLOTS, WMAs, Waterbank, or whutever ...

And ... with our deer populations in excess of the management plan in many areas, after the drawings are all held, you can buy extra NR tags (doe only) for a mere $55 (each, and the first one costs $215, but late sales have the discount), and you can buy as many of those as you want ... so, the first (Archery) tag is good for any Whitetail, or a Muley doe ... HOWever, the "extra" ones (termed "Second Concurrent Season" -- or "Third ... " and so on) are limited to certain units ... BUT ... they can be used in ANY season: Rifle/Bow/Muzzleloader ...

Last time I checked, there were still several thousand of the extra doe tags available ...

Merely sayin' whut we've got here ... and I realize my idea must be tempered with the reality of your own travel/cash limitations ... but ... here we are ... come visit us ...

All of life is six-to-five against, just enough to keep you interested. (Damon Runyan)

Gravity makes all the important decisions ... (John R. Powers)

NRA, REMF, PF, NAHC-L, NAFC-L, KC, NPPA

I would love to bowhunt in North Dakota... and Kansas, Montana, Idaho etc. My plan is to do just that hopefully once a year but a week's worth of bowhunting just isn't enough for this fella. I like to be able to get off of work and go climb into a treestand or actually be able to hunt on weekends. (I don't waste my time on weekends here. The land I have to hunt is crawling with guys) Thanks for the tip on North Dakota hunting. Maybe that will be my next trip after Kansas.

If you would not mind driving a bit towards Hancock, I can offer up some good public land over that way that has some bruisers in it. It is right off of Hwy C and 6th ave. going south to the end of the road. There is almost 5000 acres of public land there to hunt. It almost buts up to mine.  Just a thought for ya if you did not mind sleeping in the truck or pitching a tent for the weekend.

Gary Scheel
NAHC LM,RMEF LM,NRA Member, Lonestar Bowhunter, TexasHogHunter Pro Staff Member

Dodgeman, Where are you located in Wis.? I was hunting Tomah/Camp Douglas area and ran into the same problem you have. I went north. About the only solution to the problem. There is alot of open land in northern Wis.. It don't help much with the after work hunt but a 3-4 hr. drive for the weekend ain't bad. I would drive from Kenosha to hurley every other week end to hunt. Finally I just moved there. About 65% of Iron co. is public. Has a wolf problem though as does most of N. Wis.. Lots of bear though.

I'm around the Castle Rock Lake area towards Necedah. It's pretty crazy around here. Developers are putting up condos all over the place so the places to hunt are getting smaller and smaller so in turn the hunting pressure gets worse and worse. Thanks for the tips fellas. Maybe I'll check it out.

You may also want to check out the land the state bought a few yrs back south of Adams-Friendship. It has alot of deer and some pretty good ones too. Hard to get into but well worth it. Meaning it is thick.

Gary Scheel
NAHC LM,RMEF LM,NRA Member, Lonestar Bowhunter, TexasHogHunter Pro Staff Member

Something else I'll have to check out. Thanks for the lead.

I ran into something else that tweaks me about public land hunting today. I was out doing some walking around looking for fresh acorns on the ground when I came upon a ladder stand, probably 300 yards from where my stand was, which is fine. The thing that tweaked me is the cans and wrappers laying around the base of the stand. How come people can't take the empty containers and wrappers home with them? Why should I have to look at that crap when I'm out trying to just enjoy what mother nature gave us? I picked it up, punched holes in it and attached it to the dudes ladder stand. Anyone out there that leaves their garbage lay, you are an inconsiderate pig. Take your s*** home with you.

dodgeman_29

Pack it in, Pack it out.

Boy I wish everyone thought that way. That kind of stuff puts us all in a bad light, stereotypes, ya know?

Absolutely!!!!!!!!!!!! I hate finding any kind of trash while out in the woods. Pure Lazy and inconsiderate. No excuse.

Kraig Osborne
Hunter since birth, NAHCLM, USN

I don't know about you guys but it seems like I'm seeing it way to often nowadays, unfortunately from hunters and fishermen both.

  Yeah, what a shame...I hate picking up after slobs, too.  Just lazy!!  And that's on private land & people wonder why land gets posted!! 

Jeff

What do you guys think about the plastic marker ribbons left strung all over the woods? It irritates the heck out of me. I don't use them - I don't hold anything against whoever has to but damnit, take them home with you when you're done. I come home with a pocketful or two of them when I go post season scouting. That's littering to me and it's just as bad as throwing garbage on the ground.

dodgeman_29

Just make sure you're not pulling some boundary markers.

No, No. LOL The boundaries for the land I'm hunting are the lake and roads on three other sides.