In your opinion , is 6 hunters on 80 heavily wooded acres too crowded?
#41
RE: In your opinion , is 6 hunters on 80 heavily wooded acres too crowded?
I would think that is too many, for too little of territory no matter where you are! It might work for a season but if everyone is shooting deer, the survivors will get wise really quick!
#42
RE: In your opinion , is 6 hunters on 80 heavily wooded acres too crowded?
My family hunted 50+ acres with between 5-8 people every year. We sat still while the yahoos on the adjacent property move the deer for us. Tagged out most every year.
#44
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Southern Mississippi
Posts: 111
RE: In your opinion , is 6 hunters on 80 heavily wooded acres too crowded?
Not walking the land,it's hard to say for sure.IMO,that's just not enough land for 6 hunters.Heck,I'd want that 80 acres all to myself.
#46
RE: In your opinion , is 6 hunters on 80 heavily wooded acres too crowded?
This reminds me of where I used to rifle hunt in central Wis. The neighbors had 5 hunters in a 40 acre or so woods. Opening morning I stopped counting after I heard 50 shots from that woods. I had a doe come walking by with her guts dragging. The one guy sat right on the fence line and shot at deer as they crossed in front of me.
Now I remember why I headed north!
Now I remember why I headed north!
#47
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location:
Posts: 2,186
RE: In your opinion , is 6 hunters on 80 heavily wooded acres too crowded?
After reading in detail all of the previous posts, I came back to my ownand edited it.
What was interesting to me were the wide variety of opinions. I did not make a count, but I think most were like I am on this ... 6 hunters on 80 acres are to many.
The most interesting posts were from folks who are Ok with this. Most state that similar arrangements to this have and are"normal" in the area where they hunt. I cannot imagine that. One guy posted that someghint like 2000 acres/hunter was crowded to him.I cannot imagine that either !! Wow !!
Where I hunt, the estimated population of deer per square mile is about45. That means that on the 3150 acres that I hunt, there is an estimated 250-300 deer.We have killed about 75 - 80 each season for the past 7 years, of which 75% - 80% weredoes.
Our group consists of 15 guys who went together and bought the land.We do allow a 1 guest/member and all dependents. We seldom have more than 15-20 guys in camp at any one time. So that is about200 acres/hunter.When we are going to have 12 or more, or a pile of folks start rolling in, I skip hunting there and go to a place where I have exclusive permission to hunt about 660 acres of swampy woodland. It is just too crowded for me.
Another influence that I think is a very different driver sown this way from some places maybe up north or out east is thathave don't have "opening day" rush because our season is looooong. It runs from Oct. 15 to Jan. 31 , unbroken. Archery first 6 weeks or so, thengun kicks in Saturday after Thanksgiving. Because there is indeed usually alarger number in camp on opening day of gun season,I usually skip that weekend altogether. I cannot tell you when I have hunted opening weekend of gun season. Many of my buddies do the same. Funny thing last season ... no one was in campopening weekend !! Last tiem I made a special effor to go opening of gun season was maybe 5 years ago ?
In addition there is no urgency to putmeat in the freezer. The limits in Alabama are very liberal. If one were to maximize the limit allowed in the area I hunt,he/she could legally put well over 200 deer in the freezer.
So back to the 6 on 80 acres question? Even if there were only say 2 folks on this 80 acres,I'd be reluctant to go for it. More from a safety point of view than any single other consideration.
What was interesting to me were the wide variety of opinions. I did not make a count, but I think most were like I am on this ... 6 hunters on 80 acres are to many.
The most interesting posts were from folks who are Ok with this. Most state that similar arrangements to this have and are"normal" in the area where they hunt. I cannot imagine that. One guy posted that someghint like 2000 acres/hunter was crowded to him.I cannot imagine that either !! Wow !!
Where I hunt, the estimated population of deer per square mile is about45. That means that on the 3150 acres that I hunt, there is an estimated 250-300 deer.We have killed about 75 - 80 each season for the past 7 years, of which 75% - 80% weredoes.
Our group consists of 15 guys who went together and bought the land.We do allow a 1 guest/member and all dependents. We seldom have more than 15-20 guys in camp at any one time. So that is about200 acres/hunter.When we are going to have 12 or more, or a pile of folks start rolling in, I skip hunting there and go to a place where I have exclusive permission to hunt about 660 acres of swampy woodland. It is just too crowded for me.
Another influence that I think is a very different driver sown this way from some places maybe up north or out east is thathave don't have "opening day" rush because our season is looooong. It runs from Oct. 15 to Jan. 31 , unbroken. Archery first 6 weeks or so, thengun kicks in Saturday after Thanksgiving. Because there is indeed usually alarger number in camp on opening day of gun season,I usually skip that weekend altogether. I cannot tell you when I have hunted opening weekend of gun season. Many of my buddies do the same. Funny thing last season ... no one was in campopening weekend !! Last tiem I made a special effor to go opening of gun season was maybe 5 years ago ?
In addition there is no urgency to putmeat in the freezer. The limits in Alabama are very liberal. If one were to maximize the limit allowed in the area I hunt,he/she could legally put well over 200 deer in the freezer.
So back to the 6 on 80 acres question? Even if there were only say 2 folks on this 80 acres,I'd be reluctant to go for it. More from a safety point of view than any single other consideration.
#49
Fork Horn
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: SOUTH CAROLINA
Posts: 179
RE: In your opinion , is 6 hunters on 80 heavily wooded acres too crowded?
Yeah, I think it is to many. 80 acres and 6 people. Thats going to put a lot of pressure on the deer. Every 13 acres the deer are going to run into someone. After a few deer I would be willing to beat they will turn to completly noturnal. I would only allow 2 but 3 at the most.
#50
RE: In your opinion , is 6 hunters on 80 heavily wooded acres too crowded?
In terms of safety, I might tend to be more worried about the folks on the surrounding property that i don't know, than I would have about the several guys on mine that I do know. Having 80 acres all to yourselfisn't much of a better option if you have a dozen or so folks on the surrounding property shooting in your direction with centerfires. The location of the property might be just as important as the number of folks you want to put on it in terms of safety.