Northport buckslayr

I am sure someone has posted this before, but I wanted to get everyone's feelings on big woods deer versus farm hunting. I go up to the sprawling woods of northern wisconsin for opening weekend of gun hunting, and hunt around my in-laws farm the rest of the week. I see way more deer around the farm, but for some reason the big woods bucks seem more rewarding. Taking a deer that spends its its whole life browsing and never seeing a corn stalk or a food plot seems like an entirely different accomplishment.
Any one else have thoughts?

GVoverstreet7

i hunt the river bottoms of the missouri river, and i'll tell you what the big guys are everwhere down there. the corn fields the thick woods. it really doesn't depend as long as they're getting food. they go anywhere. yeah it seems sometimes though the ones that are in the woods are bigger, but only cause they're smarter too.

Northport buckslayr

I guess I am not saying that big woods deer are bigger, actually a lot of the deer on the farm are bigger because they have so much better nutrition. I am saying that its more challenging and rewarding even if the bucks arent as big.

RockinChair

Just started the same exact thread in the bowhunting forum last night

http://www.huntingnet.com/forum/tm.aspx?m=3169415

Steve863

I've got to tell you that the guy who manages to take a big buck in northern big woods like Maine, the Adirondacks of NY, etc. surely has accomplished something greater than the guy who hunts farmland, suburban areas, or a Texas fenced in ranch! Deer are few and far apart in such areas and even killing a forkhorn can require a hell of a lot more hunting than killing a much bigger deer in other areas where people see dozens of deer each and every day.

BarnesX.308

We hunt a mountain that is all big woods. Miles of woods, swamps, clear cuts, laurels and berry thickets. Also one side is steep hillside and cliffs. The nearest farm isat least10 miles away. I would like to think it's much more of a challenge. There's no setting up between bedding and feeding areas. Like between the agricultural field and the thick brush. A 1000 acre overgrown clear cut is all bedding and feeding area. If you don't do your scouting, you might as well be deer hunting in downtown Manhattan.

T.Gsportsman

In my humble opionion farm is good for bowhunting and the big woods for gun. Deer seek the added cover during the firearm season from my experience.

However if you want to get a monster try using (one or two other people) driving thehedgrows and small patches of cover found on farm land, it may just produce the "big one". More than once it has, and its the reason why a big buck is stuck on our wall at home.

bigwilly11189

That makes me feel better as I hunt the thick woods of N. Maine and there are years that I dont' get a single buck let alone see a single deer! They can be 100yds away and you wont see them. I wish I had some farm lands to hunt so that I can be successful every year. Might have to start hunting public land in my state were I probably would have a much higher success rate. But I enjoy the hunt and woods so its not a total let down when I walk away without a buck.

WIbuckchaser

I don't have a lot of experience in the big, big woods like where you are talking, i hunted up in sawyer county 1or 2 years and didn't see a buck, but I feel when you do tag a big woods buck it is definitely more rewarding. I hunt in the chippewa county forest and there are some big chunks of woods,but I also hug the private property where there is usually crop land, because this is where you find the deer. I also like to take these deer because I feel the deer that eat corn and other legumes taste a lot better.

Centauri

There will be more/bigger deer in farm country, just because they will always have something to eat, and they know it will be there year round. With big woods, there will be deer, but they have to go search around for food and water.

FYI, I'm hunting in the big woods in northern Wisconsin this year too, and the wolves up there are another huge factor. They have been taking a big hit on deer populations up there.