Originally Posted by
bluebird2
Well let's see how things would work if I took your advice and solved the problem by leasing 100 acres of a recent cut from the adjoining dairy farmer for $1000/yr. I could post it solid and spend a couple of season not hunting it and chasing of trespassers and making enemies out of the other neighbors who hunt. That would create a sanctuary and allow the herd to increase and the result would be a significant increase in crop damage for the farmer and a significant increase in roadkills. So as you see, what you claim to be the solution to the problem just creates the same problems that the PGC was trying to solve and which you claim to support. In other words , you have no idea what you are talking about.
Between the fact that you now put 6 people on 27 acres and the above example shows exactly why you are experiencing such poor hunting.
You dont necessarily have to spend money, although some, like you, may think thats the only way. You dont have to have exclusive property. Our gang does quite well on public ground every year, but then, we put in the time. If you dont want to spend money, you will have to spend time and effort. Time and effort is the thing you've told us you dont want to bother with.
You've said time and again that scouting is a waste of time other than just before the season . Scouting is a 365 day activity for some of us. Scouting is also much more than walking in the woods looking for sign. It's never a bad time to observe and learn about whitetailed deer. It's never a bad time to check out a new place to hunt. If your in an area with mostly private land, It's never a bad time to seek out relationships with landowners. It's never a bad time to keep your landowner informed and happy with your efforts. My landowners hear from me year round, not just when I want to take a deer from their land. They know that I'm in it for the long haul and they welcome me back year after year. I get repaid for that time by getting to hunt there and by getting offers to hunt from other landowners they know.
Try thinking like a hunter not a banker. You dont have to spend money. Get out there and work at it. Your efforts will be reflected in your results eventually. It may take quite a while but eventually even you can learn some new tricks.
You say my methods wont work if everyone did it. So what? It's always been that way. Our gang has had to keep changing hunting spots for year as things changed. Timbering, development, disease, winter kills, changes in the herd, maturing forest, changes in nearby farming practice, changes in rules can all cause a change in the hunting for a given spot. Smart hunters learn to adapt. Hunters who won't adapt will be left behind as it appears you've been left.
BTW, in your example, you said the neighbor was a dairy farmer. Are you saying that the deer will eat his cows or are they just going to drink all the milk?
