Tommy,

I wouldn't give up on the area. I only own 17 acres of land, I don't hunt it, but have deer on my land. I'm surrounded by farmland and have tractors running around my land all the time, plus I plow my own firebrakes with my tractor, and quiet often see deer while on the tractor.

We have had 1000 acres leased for 27 years, 400 acres used to be in cropland. I have actually been siting in a tree stand while the farmers was working their crops and watched as the tractor plowed toward one end of the field, deer would walk out into the field to feed and run back in the woods when the tractor came back to our end, then do it again. I have actually watched coyotes do the same thing. The coyotes would run out into the field and catch a field mouse the plows had stirred up. Then they would run back into the woulds, then do it again. Quiet comical to watch.

One thing I have noticed from my truck and atv, a deer may stand still as long as you don't stop the vehicle or if they do run, they don't go far. But stop that vehicle and they will disappear.

dog1