Joe.USMC

Well I am new to the forum but not new to deer hunting. I have been stationed in NC since 2008 an I am EXTREMELY frustrated with the hunting in far eastern NC. Me and a good buddy of mine hunt our tails off with very little return. We do ok during bow season but after that it is all down hill. We have a very long gun season that starts the first week of November and goes all the way till January. From that point forward it might as well be called DOG SEASON instead of deer season. The deer are pressured so much that it is rear to see a deer during the day. We have game cameras out with corn, sweet potatoes, buck jam and every other thing we can think of to try to lure them into day light. NOTHING works. The only deer we see are yearlings from time to time. We are both experienced hunters and have tried everything we know to do. I am from Arkansas, and he is from TN and have never had to deal with so much dog pressure. Neither one of us can afford to shell out the big $$$ to join a hunting club so we are faced with the situation we are in. This is just more of a rant than anything else but if you guys have any advise please share.

Topgun 3006

Putting all that bait out is only going to make them more nocturnal than they already are. Get rid of all that stuff and they may move earlier during legal hunting hours, but if there is as much pressure on them as you stated, whether it's dog hunting or just hunting in general, they may just not move until an hour or two after dark and be laid up well before daylight. If that's the case, you're srcewed unless the rut gets them moving a little during the day.

Joe.USMC

We do not have all that bait out at once, Its just what we have tried. We put just enough corn out to keep them in the area. Our biggest problem with the corn is all the dang turkeys. There are a couple of nice bucks in the area but they have only been seen at night and not one time during the day. May just try that with not putting any more bait out an see how well that works. Hell at this point ill try anything.

Topgun 3006

Most of the time you are not going to see a good buck come into bait during hunting hours unless he's on a doe that's coming in season and he's following her. Deer are mostly nocturnal by nature and baiting only makes it easier for them to stay bedded until after dark because they don't have to work as much for their food and they know right where to go for it AFTER dark. If you have good cover in the area, that may be what is keeping them in the area even more than your putting out bait.

Chester Co. Deer Hunter

I don't know if you are hunting GMA or private land, but I am very familiar with eastern NC as I have hunted there many times in Edgecombe County near Tarboro. The trick I believe is to hit the thickest areas where the deer are likely hiding. Get as high up in a tree as you feel comfortable in a climber so you can see down into the cover. If there are any fire breaks sit on them as that was a method I used and had very good success.

Joe.USMC

I am hunting some gray area land so to speak. I know I am on a hunting lease but i am on the back side of a housing development that boarders the land. I have hunted there since 2008 and have never seen another hunter besides my buddy. were are hunting in pine thickets and are on the creek bottoms that cannot be cleared due to regulations. I am always in a climbing stand and I get as high as i can and have never been busted upwind. I have good cover and sit on a cleared row of pine and have no less than a 500 yard shot to the end. I hunt with a Browning A bolt 7mm WSM and I am very confident with that rifle . where abouts are you hunting Chester?

gjersy

Man i feel for you guys that have to put up with dog deer hunting! It's illegal here in WI thank goodness. When my uncles bear hounds,(there broke off deer) get loose, and i get there pic on my food plot camera the big deer don't show up again for a few days! And the rest go nocturnal. In a few days to a week it goes back to normal. Maybe put a small amount of bait out every morn, that way it's usually gone by dark, that might get them coming at dusk, it works for me sometimes.

Grizzly13

JoeUSMC, I do not have any experience hunting where there is dog pressure but I do hunt our farm in NJ yet and there we are legally allowed to bait. I have taken alot of pride in my feeder. My suggestion isnt in what you put out or how much, it is in the fact that you are giving them access to the bait at any hour of the day. Try a timed feeder ! I set mine one hour after sunrise for breakfast and then again at 3 pm and 3:30 pm for my evening shift. This way I can keep the turkeys away because they are going to thier roost. For the Deer it is like a competition for them, they want to be the first ones at the dinner table, you can actually see them staging up in the nearby thicket. I also keep the feeder in the thicket because that way I do not make them uncomfortable coming into the wide open, they like the security. And with the dog pressure be sure to get off the beaten path. I have never shot a buck at the feeder the bigger ones tend to skirt the fringes and sniff around the activity going on. Hope this helps ya, Goodluck.