deerhunter1224

Today was opening morning for shotgun. There was a lite rain most of the day. It wasnt windy. It was in the middle 30' s all day. I sat in stands that I have seen deer before. I did see a single deer all day. I heard a few shots go off today. Not as many as in the past. I know some people got a deer today. I sat in my stands for a stright 12 hrs and didnt see athing. What could have happened
?

webejonesin2

well now i dont feel so bad, today was first day of rifel here, i spent all day from 545am to 515pm and also didnt see anything. saw a few birds but that was it.also heard a few shots but as for visual on deer --nada

sabotslinger

I hear you guys, did my all day stand today and saw zip!! I did some scouting mid-day and moved my stand 100 yds. near some fresh rubs. Sat the rest of the day without seeing anything. More scouting tomorrow, can' t figure out where their hiding. Tony[]

OneShotCharlie

been there done that many a day...but sometimes that' s what it takes for you to know why its called hunting. or to serve you your piece of humble pie

trmaker

I think we have all been there before. Just keep telling yourself that patience is the key. And remember thats why its called hunting not killing lol.

cravingame

Don' t know what your problem may be. I saw 12 deer openin' day of muzzle-loadin' (3 bucks and 9 does). Deer are really moving here. maybe your in the wrong spot. What is your scent elimination program like? Are you huntin' with the wind in you favor? How high do you Hunt? Are you spooking deer along your travel route to and from your stands? Happy Huntin'

James B

I saw at least a 100 deer the first day out. I shot one big mule deer doe with my 257 Roberts. There are a jillion deer in South Dakota this year. Keep it up though you will get your chance. I have gone through years when all I saw was tracks and as they say, tracks make thin soup.

Joe_148

either thats BS, or hunting in south dakota would suck.

James B

Hey JOE your wrong on both counts. It is nothing to see a bunch of 50 or so deer at once on the winter wheat fields. Its also common to see 30 or forty deer in the hay stack corals. After the first good snow the winter wheat fields usually blow clear of snow and the wheat is 3 to 4 inches high and a green as a summer lawn. Mule deer will gather in pretty sizeable herds and move into the fields and night and stay until day light. Hunting is great. The only problem is deciding which one to shoot. The big old smart bucks won' t often be seen there. They move into the river breaks during the day and you would swear there was not a deer to be had. However park yourself along those wheat fields about an hour before sundown and here they come. Before winter wheat came to this area it was almost unheard of to see a deer. It has been a boom for the deer population. The area I hunt is also mostly controled by a big pay hunting outfit. They control 50-70 thousand acres of this unit. They allow only four point or better bucks to be taken so the doe population goes wild. This stresses the hell out of the winter supply of hay and once that becomes the only source of food then the land owners have severe problems with loosing hay and the deer wrecking the haystacks. They can be fenced out but its a chore. Right now there is to much of a good thing. They have extended the doe season for several weeks this year to try to get control of the problem. What makes me mad is the pay hunting outfits won,t allow taking does then in the winter when they are loosing crops and hay, they want the Game and Fish to do something about the deer problem. If you don' t believe that that number of deer exist here then treat yourself to a little drive through the farming area around Wall SD. Most people hunt most of the season for a big buck but its no problem to whack a doe on the last day if you don' t see your big one.

tiggeer

yea i hear you i see tons of deer opening day in Washington (mule deer) you get into the open country where you can see forever they really show up hes not B.S.' ing you hes for real and it is really fun