Charlie P

After reading this a questions came to mind
Let's say I have 10,000 acres high fenced that I manage for QDM. Myself and 5 other guys hunt this property and we are on it in the off season putting in food plots and loading the feeders frequently. Do feel that this would actully condition the older deer not to be leery of humans. You would have to admit that is very light hunting pressure and a deer could be a few years old before it see's a human. They would grow acccustomed to smelling man with out alot of danger. You bringing them their food.That's no reason to fear you.

Come hunting season they hear a few shots and then it's over for another season. Once again many of these deer are never put in a predator prey situation. No reason for big bucks to become nocturnal,right?

If a buck has little hunting pressure and a good deal of human contact. Is a big rack a good indicatator of a trophy?

Why would the larger older deer be as leery of man as a deer on heavily hunted piece of property?

So what's the big deal if your shooting older bucks on a managed property if they aren't any smarter then a 2.5 yr old on public land?

mauser06

i agree......i think its just a TAD bit harder to consistantly kill deer on public land then it is on a piece of land 5 guys are allowed on......where i hunt on state game lands theres hikers ect in the summer through there..turkey hunters everywehre in the spring...bow, small game, and turkey hunters in the fall....LOTS of deer turkey and small game....small game its hunted VERY hard becuase of the number of grouse in the area.....then its finally my turn in rifle season.....these deer even half year old deer seen it all......and the ones that survive year to year are even smarter......and its way harder to kill them consistantly........so a public land trophy isnt the same as a private land trophy that never saw a "hunter" in its life....maybe saw someone bringing in food for him......

JagMagMan

I agree with whats been said here. A trophy really is a personal thing, to each their own! Different areas produce different sized deer for one reason or another, so a trophy is what you feel it is. Or better yet, a better than average size deer for the area you hunt in.
Some people pay big money, to shoot huge deer, that they never scouted or worked the land for! Thats OK too! Please, just don't tell me how great a trophy it is!

PacNWhunter

All I hunt out here is public land. We have a 3 point min.(one side western count) for mule deer. My season starts Sept 1st for archery. We only get one tag. Since they started the 3pnt rule I have seen alot more nice bucks then before. I also have whitetail around here that I go after tho the pop. on them is less, but it is growing every yr. since we don't have any pay as you hunt land around me, don't really have the same QDM that there is back east. A public land deer is a hard critter to hunt in my book and it makes the hunt more enjoyable. It's funny to watch all of the out of town hunters cruse the roads around private property cause they see a few nice bucks out int he fields. What they don't know is those same bucks move out of those fields and back onto public land. Granted there are a few deer that live on the private ranches around the area but not enough to make me enviouse of it. Some of our ranchers only let 1st time hunters or youngins hunt for those deer, which is great.
Now to the heading of this thread. Since I have never taken a deer that would score in the book. I don't judge a deer by numbers. A trophy to me is a deer that have given me a good hunt and one that is better then the last deer I took. But if I do not see a buck that I want I usualy take a barren doe towards the end of the season or no deer at all. I think to much is placed on the numbers game, i.e. P&Y score or B&C.

mammasboy

Believe it or not, that particular kind of quote, is a big reason more people don't get involved in QDM. Hunters that chose to push QDM in this fashion are actually doing a diservice to the cause they are trying to promote.[] A trophy is subjective to every person on these boards. Good luck to all this season in obtaining the goal they set for themselves.

Western MA Hunter

A trophy is in the eye of the beholder. Everyone from everywhere is going to have a different perception of what a trophy is. I think QDM is a great idea if conditions permit it. If I owned a large hunk of land that only me and a handful of hunters will be able to hunt, and antler restriction wouldn't be a bad idea. A couple of my friends have some land and they do just that. They have taken some nice bucks, and have passed on many.
BUT, I primarily hunt state land here in MA. Granted, there are more & more large bucks being taken out here every season, but it's a rare thing. We scout our butts off and if we see a couple of scrub bucks and does, we are doing something right. Now, if we pass on that little 5 pointer and he continues on away, you are apt to hear a shot, or figure you will never see him again because the next guy certainly won't let him walk!
So, do i believe in QDM? Yes, under certain circumstances. Do I practice it ? No.

speyrjb

I don't care how light hunting presure is on a piece of property, mature bucks have this innate ability to avoid danger. A buddy of mine makes a joke about mature bucks having a "chip" that makes them spook easily.

I've hunted both private and public land, and I would much rather hunt private land.

And I'm not trying to offend anyone so please don't take it that way. I'm just sharing my opinion but....

Most people out there that are "too proud" to hunt private land either don't have access, or don't have the means to. So they say "hunting private land is not really hunting" but when it comes down to it, if they had the means or the access they would do it in a heart beat! I guarantee you if any of you "public only" hunters were aproached by a member of the King Ranch in south Texas to go on a deer hunt, you would jump on it right away! Then you would be posting the picture on this billboard saying "look at the deer I shot this season!" Be honest now, would you rather work your tail off all season and MAYBE get a shot on something marginal because it makes you feel like you accomplished something more? I'm not buying that for a minute. I'd bet a paycheck that none of you would say "No, I'd rather not go to the King Ranch. That's not really hunting."

I've also hunted on private land where the hunters would shoot everything and it's the same thing. Not many deer, and hardly no mature bucks.

Private land / public land...if everybody could just get on the same page, everyone would benefit and have more and bigger deer.

It comes down to this....Why do we all hunt? We are all trophy hunters. If you hunt, that's why you do it. If you hunt because you NEED the meat then how can you afford to hunt in the first place? Let's face it. Hunting is an expensive hobby. We all do it for egotistical reasons. Eating venison is just an added bonus.

PacNWhunter

sreyrjb, since you resonded to my post, I'ld like to say I never said a public land deer was harded to hunt then a private land deer. I said basicly a public land deer is a hard critter to hunt and that makes for a more enjoyable time. In the area I live and hunt in, the area consists of 15% private land and 85% public land. My best hunting areas are on public land so therefore why would I want to hunt anywhere else. I have asked and been given permission to hunt before on private land so that is never a problem for me.
Now since you talked about the King ranch, unless they are going to pay for my flight down there and pay for my lic. and tags and also let me hunt there for free that is really not an issue. Simple economics, I don't have the money to do that and more power to those that do. I could care less.
I hunt where I hunt and how I hunt cause that is what makes me happy and it's what I can afford.
Like I said before a trophy to me is one that I am happy with. Just as one might be that scores high might be what makes the next guy happy.

Charlie P

up to a 150 Boone & Crockett Gross Score (3 day hunt,) $5,500.00 flat fee,
151 - 170 B & C, $5,500 plus $200.00 per point above the 150 B & C gross score

171 - 180 B & C, $5,500 plus $250.00 per point above the 150 B & C gross score

181 - 199 B & C, $15,000

200+ B & C, $20,000


Nope I'll pass.

speyrjb

I wasn't replying to your post per-say, I was directing my reply to those who will say that killing a large buck on private land is not a real accomplishment. I was basically saying that those same people, given the oportunity, would jump on the chance to hunt on one of these large game ranches.