So are they ??
 

After the last post I made and some very overwhelming respones, I got to thinking....are the Drury's hunting the best you can hunt in all those states?? I have dvd's where they are complaining about not seeing big bucks, but hell, their bad days out do my best days here and probably anywhere for that matter...so I can assume that not all of the midwest is that good, just certain places such as what they hunt??

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They(some of the Drury crew)had a lease 2 years agoabout a mile from where I killed my buck this year. Rumor was they had trouble with people tresspassing and stealing stands. Welcome to southern IL.[&:]

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Sure they are, now. Nobody really knows where they grew up that talks about them, I do. They grew up about 30 minutes south of my house, which is not too good of deer hunting. Ya, of course there's deer there, but it's NOTHING like what you see them do on TV.

RE: So are they ??
 

Landon, come on?? Yes, the Drury's are hunting the absolute Mecca of deer hunting. HUGE chunks of private ground, only a handful of hunters (like 4) and intensely managed. Their pieces of land are also large enough that they have deer LIVING their entire lives on them. Huge differene here when compared to small tracts most of us have access to. When you can scout bucks like they do, between the trail cams and summer sightings, and KNOW that deer is living on your land, you can kill him with regularity, and pass the other 30 bucks that come by. Another factor to consider is time in the field. Theese guys are out every single day of the season, so by time alone, something is bound to happen. You bet your ass that I am not hunting on Drury type ground here.

Anyone remember two years ago when Lee Lakosky passed that 170" class deer because he was "only" probably 3.5? He knew that deer would be around the next year because of little pressure and tract size. In this particular case, the deer was poached, but still, passing deer like that just doesn't happen on Joe Blow's IL land, I don't care it is still has spots on it at 170".

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Of course they are...I would too if I was hunting for a living a had the financial means to do so.

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I know some of their farms (particularly in Illinois) are in some AWESOME areas.I use to drive by and look and the deer (after I tagged out) in the fields and on their property and surrounding properties and it was pretty amazing. I vidoes over 100 deer in one of the bean fields on a property they lease or at least use to lease and at least 40 of them were bucks and there were 9 or 10 that would go over 150 including a couple of booners. The video will make you sea sick just watching it though from all the bouncing up and down:DI don't know if i was nervous seeing all those deer or I just suck as a camerman:D

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I down frown on them at all...I think it's great they have that. so what Im saying is, most of IL and IA is pretty much like everywhere else, hard hunting outside of the rut?? deer are reluctant to move on their own ??

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I got in a tiff with Mark Drury in 2002 at a seminar. He was preaching about taking only broadside shots. He ask who would not take one I said I have:D He ask why, and I quote "Well Mr. Drury when you can pass a 140 class because the angle is bad, and wait 20 mins and have a 160 class come by, I would also "pass". When I got a 140 class in front of me, that's it, this is my one shot to score. I am not going to let it pass"

I did not win any prizes.

For the recrod the some famous big buck hunters do "things" to their property. The make funnels with hay bails/wire and other stuff. Wire is a big one amoung some well know big buck hunters. Guide the deer like cattle;)

RE: So are they ??
 

interesting Germ... very interesting...I guess they do whatever it takes to sell a dvd..by the way, I wouldn't pass on a 140 either, I will make it happen if i can get him close enough.

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More big bucks fall to bait then a lot of us will ever know on TV;)

I have come to ignore the TV hunters, I put my faith in the King these days[:-]

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Germ's point is RIGHT ON as fas as "passing" goes. A 140" comes by me, he's getting jacked, and i'm in IL, but certainly not on a Drury property. I saw two deer this year that would gross Boone, but "saw" is the key word here. There is no doubt that there are more of them here than other places, but outside the rut, they are just as scarce as anywhere else. The thing here is that you can see them at night, get cam pics, so you know they are there, but during daylight, it is frustrating as hell not seeing them, yet knowing he is close by. Saw the same boone twice this year when pulling in to where I park to hunt, NEVER saw him while hunting. Not sure if I would rather not know what is there, or know what is there and then not see him during hunting time.

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Deer are deer - anywhere! If they are left alone they will move alot more freely. If they are scared they will lay low. Hell, if theres' a private piece thats never been hunted in the middle of thousands of hunters the deer will learn it's safe and move all day.

As far as who is a good hunter or the best hunter I can answer that too.
I hunted pressured deer in a "brown it's down" environment for many years. I shot 2bucks that were 2 years old. This was in farm country type setting.
I started hunting the big woods of northern Wis and Minn. (IMO a much tougher type of hunting then the broken woods farm country) I have killed a lot of deer that were 4 years old and older. I'm the same guy as I was when I hunted the farm country yet my mature deer kills went way up. So who's the best hunter? The guy who has some deer knowledge and the best location

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[/quote]

You remind me of the benoit brothers or Hal Bloodstyle of hunting, (not that I know them, just what i have seen and read) If you ever come to Maine to hunt our big woods whitetails I would love to shadow you in the woods.

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delete

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So does he mean no quartering away shots then? I have seen him take those before...some with alot of angle too

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I have to question how some of the big name celebrity landowners are able to hunt for, and harvest so many exceptional bucks with regularity each and every season on their property. There are several of the celebrity hunting couples these days thatseem to invite quite a few celebrity guests to their farms each year andbetween them and theirnumerous guests hunting both bow and gun seasonharvest an abnormally large number of trophy deer, often seeimg to be more than the land would probably be able to hold even with QDM in place. I've heard speculation that some outfitters and landowners supplement their herd each season to increase the trophy potentialwith deer (primarily big bucks)purchased from private breaders. This practice is nothing new as hunting ranches have been known to bring in deer to increase genetic potential for years now. Not sure whether this is actually happening or not, but would be a likely explanation of how any one group of farms could hold so many exceptional deer each and every season, year after year.

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You remind me of the benoit brothers or Hal Bloodstyle of hunting, (not that I know them, just what i have seen and read) If you ever come to Maine to hunt our big woods whitetails I would love to shadow you in the woods.
[/quote]

I have read every piece of info on the Benoits and Blood. I have been tracking for a few years now with great results. If I ever get out that way I will look you up.

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Big accusations here. With as high profile as these people have become, I find it VERY hard to believe they would be stocking pen raised deer without it being known. In the states these people hunt, there is no reason to stock anyway. There is also no reason why a large tract of land can't support the bucks that are being harvested. With good management, and low doe numbers, the number of bucks can be pretty astonishing. The Lakosky's for example, kill maybe6-8 bucks per year off of ALL their properties combined, so when you think about it, that's not very many. A good friend of mine manages ground here in IL for a wealthy landowner, and they have 8 guys that hunt, and for each to kill a 160" or larger (that is their rule)is not uncommon, but spread out over 5 properties. When you have multiple properties that are intensely managed, it is absolutely possible to harvest multiple brutes off these areas.

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That is a deal, If you do get this way I will take care of everything for you, except for the killing of the deer part, that is where I struggle.

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I agree and disagree on this.

I agree Deer are Deer-anywhere

I disagree with- If left alone they will move alot more freely.

Deer are deer...meaning they are nocturnal by nature, it doesn't matter ifa thousand peoplehunt a piece of land or it's left alone for years...deer prefer night time. They may move more at first light and right before dark, but to say deer move throughout the entire day outside of the rut..I don't buy it. I live close to some untouched land owned by the University of Illinois and it's absolutely LOADED with deer, and big deer at that, and I hardly ever see deer moving freely when the sun is high in the sky, but ALWAYS see them during "regular" hunting hours.

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Thats so funny, you sound like my ex. You take what I say then twist the words. This is a classical example of "he said ,she heard"

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Hahaha....I didn't intend to twist, I thought that's what you were getting at...that deer will just roam around freely at all hoursbecause they know they are "safe" in un-hunted or lightly pressured areas. And I agree, I did sound a little wife'ish....it's what happens when brainwashed by marriage....sorry.

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No problem solo. I would like to add that I have hunted some areas that recieve very little pressure. In these areas it's not all that uncommon to see deer up and feeding around near their bedding areas at any time of the day. Deer commonly get up often during the day and stretch their legs, relieve themselves, do a little feeding and bed down again. Mid day still hunting thru these areas can be fun and very productive.

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I also agree with that Magic....that's the same type of area I hunt as well. One of the biggest deer I've ever seen while on stand was at 12:45 in the afternoon this Nov.

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Reading comprehension, Mike. Never accused anyone of anything. Just question whether any of the popularTV rating-driven shows that center around privately owned groundmay participate in a practice that has been going on for decades at ranches and lodges around the country.

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Thats why the DVR is so cool. I can just fast forward to the kill shots which is what I want to see anyway. (Tiffany Excluded).

We all wish we had it as good as those guys do. Acres and acres at your disposal and when they do go on an "outfitted" hunt the guide has left the best stands untouchedfor their use.

If they don't kill the show dies but they are all product prostitutes just trying to sell the rest of us crap which by the way we end up buying.

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I'm just asking....is this really true?

I think they prefer night time to mid day.....but I always thought they were more geared/wired/etc... for the dawn and dusk hours (I think the term is 'crepuscular' sp?).

RE: So are they ??
 

I don't think deer are nocturnal by nature. If left alone, one tends to see more deer moving during the day than when pressured.