My Ohio Hunting Lease

[Grouse45]

I signed a two year hunting lease in Ohio near Lancaster. This coming weekend will be my first time hunting it. It's about 200acres and 60cares of it is soybean and corn. I decided to put a hunting shack on the peak of a field. About a 200 yard shot out of the left window and 500yards out of the right window. The front window to the edge of the woods is about 75yards.

After alot of thinking i finally shot in my 45cal Knight Disc Elite with the 200grn Lehigh. Sabotloader and Lehigh Dave convinced me the bullet would be best in windy long range shooting.

So Knight Disc Elite 45, 200grn Lehigh, Harvester sabot, Federal 209A Primer, 140grns of BH209 at 2526fps will be my weapon of choice. Now all i need is to shoot something.

I do want to mention this load 3 inches high at 100yds is dead on at 200yards.

BTW- Ohio allows baiting while hunting. Any suggestions on a good attractant or bait? I'm thinking of a mineral block at 75yards or so.

[batchief909]

Good luck Tom!

[sabotloader]

Grouse45

Good luck... the gun and the load are right....

Ohio allows baiting while hunting. Any suggestions on a good attractant or bait? I'm thinking of a mineral block at 75yards or so.

Not sure that will work for you in a short period of time. It takes them awhile to find it then it takes a while to create usage...

I think you would be a lot better off with an aromatic attractant with the block...

There is a ton of stuff on the market... or here is a homemade brew...

Okay - Here's a deer lick brew that I use and it has worked great. I put several of these out - some near the feeder, others on paths that lead to the feeder or cross my property elsewhere. The deer love these deer licks - although technically I guess they're not licks since I pour the liquid directly on the ground, anyway here's my free Deer Lick Recipe:

This makes 5 gallons-
5 Gallon bucket
Boil about 3 gallons of water - Boiling water will dissolve more of the ingredients
6 lbs Iodized salt
2 cups Baking Soda
1.5 Cups Baking Powder
18 oz. Molasses
Potassium Gluconate (20 - 500mg Tablets)
Magnesium (10 - 250mg Tablets)

Add more water to fill the bucket (about another 2 gallons)

Clear about a 2ft. patch of ground - minor dirt disturbance to aid absorption.
Slow Siphon the concoction into the disturbed earth (Air Line for Fish Aquariums works great!). Slow siphoning allows deeper penetration and keeps the liquid more concentrated in the desired area. As the liquid cools some of the ingredients may precipitate out of solution - not a problem - pour that stuff right on top of the wet soil

Something with Molasses is what Trevor uses - says the deer really like it....

http://www.yeoldearcheryshoppe.com/molasses-p-359.html

[oldsmellhound]

Sounds like a lot of fun. Good luck on your hunt. I haven't had much luck with attractants that work quickly. What does work is to create a mineral attractant. On our land in Ohio we found a place for it in a central area on our property. We then use a salt/mineral mix (I think it's designed for cattle- you can buy it cheap in 25 or 50 pound bags) and sort of mulch it into the soil in a 4 or 5 foot diameter circle. We then come back to freshen up the lick several times a year. The deer come and eat the dirt that is laced with the salt/minerals. And they hit it hard- it is a big-time attractant for deer- there is always tons of sign around it, and they actually eat a hole in the ground where the salt is. The only problem, you have to set it up, and maintain it, and it takes awhile for the deer to really start hitting it.

The other option is a motorized feeder that releases corn at a set time. My cousin & hunting buddy both have one, and it works pretty good. But again, it takes at least several days or even weeks for the deer to find it and start hitting it. They've also commented that even when the timer is set to go off during daylight hours, a lot of times the deer get smart and only move in to feed after it gets dark.

[cayugad]

A favorite bait is old orchard apples. Just put a pile of them out and then smash a few of them. Especially if there are any orchards around there. The smell will carry. And when they freeze it must do something to them as the deer around here go crazy over them. We can purchase them at feed stores in a 50 pound bag. Works good for bears too.

[IL-Cornfed]

Originally Posted by Grouse45

BTW- Ohio allows baiting while hunting. Any suggestions on a good attractant or bait? I'm thinking of a mineral block at 75yards or so.

A mineral block would be a great attractant.... in JULY! LOL! All kidding aside, deer intictivly know that their bodies simply don't requires the mineral in most Blocks until the summer. You want a hunting season bait... you simply can't beat CORN! unless you can leave a few acres of standing corn and soybeans up for them. Good luck on your new lease.

[gregrn43]

Corn would be my first choice especially if there isnt corn fields around or if the acorn crop has failed this year. If the corn is placed near travel corridors it doesnt take long at all for them to find it.

[lemoyne]

Good luck Tom, That's my favorite load, it really scrambled the insides on my buck this year on a long angle running shot.

[revpilot]

Cant beat good ole corn. I think you'll love the location. Ive been hunting down in that area for over 20 years, and there are ALOT of big deer running around. Not to mention a nice bag limit in zone C.

[Breechplug]

Grouse Nice lease! And you should have no problems getting out there with that load.
I'd get Myself a couple of Doe's for Bait, they work GREAT! LOL
(BP)