how do you explain the success guys like me, Livbicks, DougE to name a few seem to still be having on public ground smack dab in the "deer desert" areas of this state? I don't think we're all superhunters nor do I think all of the guys complaining about seeing no deer are bad hunters.

We arent that far apart here Germain. I can agree that poor habitat isn't the onlyfactor. But it's not just hunting pressure either. Fawn recruitment, predation etc etc are all part of it.

As far as theories about why some hunters are still very successful and some arent here goes:

the FLIR showed us that deer densities vary wildly within small areas at least in the wintertime. Is it possible that with deer densities lowered that this goes on all through the seasons?

As deer numbers were brought down, we noticed that the areas around us with poor habiatat produced far less deer yet going down the road a few miles resulted in much better hunting.

Here's another thing to consider. In the good (bad) old days, hunting pressure was much higher on three distinct days the opener of buck and both Saturdays. Hunting pressure on those days had deer in most of the state constantly on the move because they kept seeing smelling hearing humans. Hunter numbers in the big woods has been declining steadily and we all know it started before AR/HR. the number one method of hunting with a firearm in Pa was to sit in one spot and watch the parade of deer all day long. A deer bumped by multiple hunters is likely to hole up as soon as it feels safe. With far fewer hunters in the woods, but still enough that the deer know it's hunting season, the deer have to move far less to feel secure. You're an archer, I bet you've noticed less of a difference in deer activity when archery hunting that when gun hunting because then and now archery pressure has not changed as much.

Gernmain, I know Crazy Horse and deerfly wont even read this before beginning to spout numbers and the various USP battle cries but I know that you and many others can think for yourselves. Do you see any possible missing pieces to this big puzzle here?