Illinoin Shotgun season

Buck Terminator · 10-29-2006, 08:16 AM

It looks like the first season should be favorable. Even though the rut may be tailing off it shows a new moon starting right on Saturday and Sunday and Friday should be almost full. That should make for some extra daylight movement in addition to the gunfire. Looking forward to the weekend.

Bowflex · 10-30-2006, 02:41 PM

How does the second season look?

Buck Terminator · 10-30-2006, 05:47 PM

From what I am seeing on the gps calender it is going into a full moon on Sunday of the $ day weekend so it should be pretty bright for most of the 4days that weekend.

Bowflex · 10-31-2006, 09:20 PM

Thanks BT.
Where doyou gun hunt? I am stuck with State land.

Good Hunting,
Bowflex

Buck Terminator · 11-01-2006, 05:24 AM

We hunt in Hardin Co. Some private ground and we adjoin the Shawnee National Forrest area. Don't Look down on public hunting areas Shawnee is public and there is

Buck Terminator · 11-01-2006, 05:25 AM

quite a bit to go around if you can put some time into finding a area.

fastetti · 11-02-2006, 08:19 PM

For my first few years of college I went to Southern Illinois and hunted Crab Orchard outside Carbondale pretty much everyday in the fall for Rabbits, Doves and quail and if I had a dollar for every deer that I kicked up that had 8 pts or above, well, I would have had enough at least to buy a few cases of beer back then! Was Full draw on a nice 8 pt and a HUGE 10, and this was wearing jeans and a flannel standing on a limb in a tree. So If you can get permits for Crab Orchard, I would go with that. The deer are thick down there and if you know the spots, there are plenty of Bucks to go around. On public land (which I am hunting this year) stick to areas that you think only rabbits would come out of, that is where I have found those big bucks hiding! Good Luck!!

uncle matt · 11-04-2006, 08:48 AM

Me and my nephew went out to the range (Buffalo Rock in Ottawa) last Sunday. We took the 3-9X40 Bushnell off the Mossberg slug barrel package($169) I bought last year for my 12 gauge Mossberg 500. It was annoying trying to get your eye lined up just right to get a full field of view. He uses the gun so he got a red dot scopre for it and we had to mount it and dial it in. After maybe 7 boxes of slugs we were happy with it. He liked it and I guess if he's gonna be using it - that's good enough.

I threw 5 slugs thru my USH and that was enough. It is still as accurate as ever.

solocamcan · 11-10-2006, 09:52 PM

I disagree with the rut tailing off during first season. With this warm weather, I think it will a interesting gun season with temps coming back to normal. In years past I have seen a lot of rutting taking place in East Central IL during the 1st gun season.