Everyone who has hunted in Illinois longer than 10 years. A MUST read!
 

An absolute must read for WHITETAIL hunters!

http://www.heartlandoutdoors.com/gue...etail_disaster


You can't say that I didn't tell you so, earlier this year!

Whitetail, believe me, I feel your pain. PA has undergone the same mis-management as Illinois. I will be the first to say that the buck being harvested are older and sport healthier headgear. But the quantity of deer are extremely low- but are slowly coming back. But I still go for several days without seeing a deer. I've also walked miles in freshly fallen snow and not see a single deer track.

I'm going to Kentucky this upcoming season for my out of state hunt and had been planning to visit Illinois the following season but with all I have seen lately about Illinois I will probably pick a different state to try out!!!!!!!!!

Browtine I have leases in Illinois and Kentucky. I noticed the number of deer down in Kentucky just as Illinois. Generally as a rule I would see 10 to 1 deer in Ky. Not this year it ran pretty even. I seen a lot less doe in both states. I killed a 120 inch velvet 8 point in Ky because I never taken a buck in velvet. I didn't see much in KY with antler after that. Illinois was also way down on doe but I seen some very good bucks missing 1 in the 160's and passing on a 140's that will be a toad this year. Also seen 10 bucks at 2 years old to 1 doe in IL. I think a lot of it is area specific also. How many kill em all mentality you have hunting and taking every animal that moves. From what I have read MO and IN are way down on numbers also. Something up with Midwest deer herd and not sure what it is. I didn't see a lot of EHD but numbers are down. So im leaning more towards low birth rate and over issue of doe permits.

At least Michigan can say they have a better management program and a wayyyy better web site.

I know what you mean. I live in Mississippi and this was the worst year I have had in a long time both in quanity and quality!!!!!

A lot of people could see this coming. The problem is people think that license dollars raises a lot of money for this state, which it does. The problem is the money that the state gets from the Insurance companies is far more than they get from deer hunters. The insurance companies are beginning to have the deer/car collisions where they want them and the amount of money that they save is more that the state gets. If you want to change the amount of deer you have on your property or in your area, I'm afraid to say, its going to be up to you and your neighbors. Plant food plots, leave standing crops all winter (we left a lot tho year), have good bedding areas and PRAY we have no EHD next year. Personally, I think for the neighbors and ourselves, we should (barring any diseases or drought) have the best year for deer and big bucks in a long time.

I agree it will be up to the hunters to limit the number of deer we kill on our farms .The big issue will be getting all the neighbors around you to limit what they kill also. Illinois is to stupid to put together a plan that will work,ummm lets switch the start of gun season from Friday to Monday that should help. AHH NO how about we get rid of the late doe season ...Or just plain limit the tags that can be drawn per county???? Go back to fishing JO..

one thing I notice/see is lets say you manage your 200acres well, and then the neighbors go wild, deer drives, etc... and shoot as many deer as possible. We shoot 2-3/yr they may shoot 20+

I'd like to see deer season end by jan1st or sooner even, some bucks were dropping antlers early this year by us! don't need big bucks who have shed being killed in the january antlerless seasons...

totally agree!

all tags should be drawn... even bow tags?