RE: OK... How about a little strategy talk....
 

Gmmat


Would you rather hunt for mature deer (size irrelevant) on gamelands in PA or in KS? I am willing to bet that there are many more deer per square mile on the PA lands than the KS lands.

KS if I remember correctly is the second least pressured state after IA by licence sales with PA being number one in license sales.

Which plot would you feel more comfortalbe with your chances at killing a mature animal? Why?
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RE: OK... How about a little strategy talk....
 

Amen from me Pasture GregH;) I would add to that, you have to take notice of what is going on, in your area off your property;)

RE: OK... How about a little strategy talk....
 

GregH....

I don't think anyone could argue your points.....but I'll throw this in.

I hit a limb and missed a buck on Thanksgiving day. I set up 100 yds from there and saw him at 30 yds the next day. I shot him on 12/12 another 150 yds up the line. I don't hunt the same trees for a reason.

This is GREAT stuff, guys. it's a really good conversation for ALL level hutners.

RE: OK... How about a little strategy talk....
 

Here a picture of a buck from Kansas, LOL Buddy of one of my friends, Can I pick KS:D

I think this has to do with location also[:-]

RE: OK... How about a little strategy talk....
 

Glad to see this finally got moving. I'll add some more thoughts at lunchtime.

quickie thing to add though, is that the more credit I began giving to whitetails, the more my success on mature bucks went up.

RE: OK... How about a little strategy talk....
 

Tough call. I've never hunted what I would call "pressured" deer. That being said......there's strength in numbers if you're hunting smart. Would YOU rather hunt "mature" deer in your woods, or mine?

Honestly? PA. Unless the pressure is SO bad that it makes hunting the deer nearly impossible.....I think there's strength in the numbers (If God called down and said he wated you to take a mature deer, or else).

My question was fair......would you rather take your chances at a lot of unpressured mature bucks....or a few unpressured mature bucks.I think it works both ways.

To be honest......you're comparing two things that of which I have no experience with......"pressured" mature deer.....and unpressured KS deer. It would depend on how many KS deer on that particular parcel that woudl fit the bill.

RE: OK... How about a little strategy talk....
 

I wanted to add a real life scenario that happened this past weekend that fits this statement precisely.

Last weekend I setup my ground blinds in their spots so they would have a week to "cool down" before our opener next weekend. The one ground blind I setup, last year Dan and I hunted probably 3x times and did end up busting this one large nanny that lives on the sidehill below it. This doe is huge, probably 6.5 years old now and is VERY smart (She has your name on her Rob [8D]). Well on Saturday evening after setting up the blind several hours before, from a good 400 yards away we watched her and her twins come outjust as she always does into the plot where this setup is, and just as she came into the field she locked up 75 yards out.......stared at the ground blind for 10 minutes, and then bolted off. I know she didn't smell it, I have orange tape on the markers around the plot so I can determine wind direction from a long distance there and the blind was 75 yards downwind of her. I know that deer remembered that blind from last year and associated danger with it. That's why I setup the blindin advance so they could get comfortable with it before Rob comes up and lets the air out of her. I'm gonna rest that spot specifically until the weekend I have planned for Rob to come up because I know that doe is gonna only let you get busted once in that spot and then it's game over.......it will be next to impossible to get another good chance at her.

I have several spots on the property like this, last year we only hunted the food plots on the last day of season and because of this lack of pressure we had deer coming into the plots at all hours of the day even at the end of the PA rifle season.

RE: OK... How about a little strategy talk....
 

What's your point? You saw and shot the deer an over an 1/8th mile and 2+ weeksfrom where he detected your presence?

Deer will avoid an area where they've encountered danger but it doesn't mean that they'll flee the county. It is common for them to skirt such an area by 50 yards or more, enough for them to feel safe again.

RE: OK... How about a little strategy talk....
 

Good discussion here...

Example: From my experience, let's say you start hunting a doe family, or a foodplot frequented by a good herd of does/yearlings - and let's say that you're 100% careful, and slink in/out undetected... Let's also say that there are other people with access to this property, who are meat hunters.

You might see 12 deer in there your first night.

Maybe4 a week later - increasingly spooky.

Then, by week 3, you'll find yourself sitting in a ghost-town.

It doesn't matter that you've never been picked out, or if you've been careful with your scent. They'll know that you were there. Be it a twig that brushed across your neck, a fencethat you grabbed, or a tree step with trace amounts of human odor and residue remaining... They'll know.

The moral of the story is that if you start hunting the does in week 1, those same does will be un-huntable by week 3. They learn, react and adapt very quickly. This is how pressured deer survive. They are survivors, and will not tolerate much, if any human presence. They view it as a life-threatening invasion, without exception.

Facts: From December-September, these deer were subjected to nearly zero human intrusion. Between October and November, they're hunted almost daily by somebody, somewhere. Most hunters around hereare brown-and-downers, so even the does learn to survive - and they do it fast. If they ignore the danger signs, they'll be in a frying pan before October 7. They know.


Now - compare/contrast that to a deer herd that is accustomed to human presence. Maybe a suburban deer that lives in narrow woodlot behind a housing development, or4,000 acrelease deer that sees a guy on an ATV pull up to the feeder with 50# of corn every two days, but only actually see 5 hunters per year...only buck hunting...only for a week... A little bit of human activity isn't going to freak these deer out. It's not life-threatening. It never has been. They know it.


It's all about how much human activity the deer in your area will tolerate. Where I'm at, these deer see almost zero human activity (aside from the occasional ATV or utility worker)until the third week of September. At that point, guys invade the woods and start scouting heavily, then archery season starts and the slaughter begins. These animals have learned that human activity is absolutelylife threatening - buck/doe/fawn -no exception. They will tolerate no human presence whatsoever, or you risk putting them into "survival mode."

RE: OK... How about a little strategy talk....
 

Buckeye, would you say your thoughts would be different if you had an issue with the deer population. I don't mean just does. I know there are too many deer, both bucks and does, in the area I hunt. There are very few hunters. I completely see your view if there is a balance. But when there is such a population it is really easy for me to say that if I get busted or educate by one now, there will be four more coming in the next hour. Not that I want to sound like I am taking it for granted.

I guess my question to you is...Is it that important with a higher population? Am I naive for thinking this way? Your thoughts or anyone else for that matter.