fairchaser
Well-Known Member
Yes, we pay to hunt $1630. It was worth it when we had a successful QDM program but had to give that up because of CWD which is now at a 50% effective rate.
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How to hunt nocturnal bucks?
- Thread starter fairchaser
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fairchaser
Well-Known Member
About 50 members this year.
fairchaser
Well-Known Member
I do hunt those edges but the cameras show the bucks come out 1-2 hours after dark and go back 1 hour before daylight with almost no exceptions. We have them well trained!Get you one of those thermal imaging scopes or NV scopes. If you want to save the coin you can get a good spotlight at any outdoors store. That last one is an old south tradition, that has been tested by time and stood up to the challenge.
In all honesty IDK the answer. I think you are doing it right and that is what I do most of the time. I hunt a small property that is not the core area of any of the bucks in the area and I just have to see what shows up in November and then hope a hot doe brings him by. There isn't much else I can do.
If I had a larger property where big bucks actually bedded from time to time, I would probably try to hunt the edge of the bedding area.
Fairchaser, I've always enjoyed your (and Andy S's) posts about Ames. Seems like it used to be heaven.
I know y'all had an aggressive doe management program. My question is, are there enough does left to draw nocturnal bucks out during daylight hours?
fairchaser
Well-Known Member
Bryan, I never hunt the same tree twice unless it's over an open area and I'm far away from the deer travel. I also focus on edges of thick cover and approach from down wind where the deer won't get behind me. The most mature bucks generally get killed during the first week of December. I will reveal how a couple of the most successful hunters deal with this problem but nobody has hit on it yet. Btw, it's not me.
fairchaser
Well-Known Member
According to the drone surveys, yes but the aggressive doe strategy has also trained does to stay in super thick cover and the bucks follow. When I say thick, I mean impenetrable by a human.
catman529
Well-Known Member
Deer drives or stillhunting in bad weather?
Antler Daddy
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Based on the pics, there are about 10-12 guys that consistently take good bucks every year.
I wouldn't think 50 people on that size of property could cause that much pressure unless none of them work and they don't know how to hunt.
catman529
Well-Known Member
That's what I was thinking. 50 people on 18k ain't nothing compared to most of the places I hunt.
fairchaser
Well-Known Member
They are like any group but most of them are very good hunters. Not so much pressure but the damage has been done from prior seasons. Also there are 250-350 cameras out which create a lot of pressure too.
fairchaser
Well-Known Member
There are at lease two exceptional hunters who seem to get a good buck or two every year. These guys are experienced on the plantation but their style is what sets them apart from the crowd IMO.
They both hunt very hard but again so do others and it is a necessary ingredient but it takes more than time and chance. This is a summary of how they hunt.
One hunts from the ground and IMO has perfected this over decades. He seems to know when to stop and when to move. He will sit a stand when necessary but I think he would rather hunt on his feet. He moves with patience, stealth and purpose. He kills way more than his share.
The other hunter is a hunter's hunter. He pegs the meter on being aggressive. He sits a stand but makes the bucks come to him. He has perfected this as an art form. He uses horns, calls, scent. Whatever it takes to get that buck on his feet to check him out. Most of us are trying to be a ghost, he is saying I'm big and bad and gonna take your ladies. What are going to do about it?
Neither of these tactics are my preference nor could I duplicate what they accomplish but it does make one think. My hunting approach has been molded over a career of deer hunting and enough mistakes to write a novel. I've had some success but not like these two guys.
They both hunt very hard but again so do others and it is a necessary ingredient but it takes more than time and chance. This is a summary of how they hunt.
One hunts from the ground and IMO has perfected this over decades. He seems to know when to stop and when to move. He will sit a stand when necessary but I think he would rather hunt on his feet. He moves with patience, stealth and purpose. He kills way more than his share.
The other hunter is a hunter's hunter. He pegs the meter on being aggressive. He sits a stand but makes the bucks come to him. He has perfected this as an art form. He uses horns, calls, scent. Whatever it takes to get that buck on his feet to check him out. Most of us are trying to be a ghost, he is saying I'm big and bad and gonna take your ladies. What are going to do about it?
Neither of these tactics are my preference nor could I duplicate what they accomplish but it does make one think. My hunting approach has been molded over a career of deer hunting and enough mistakes to write a novel. I've had some success but not like these two guys.
JCDEERMAN
Well-Known Member
I know you know what you're doing, you know the game. But have you taken a look at the times these deer are photographed? Hence, 30 minutes after dark and traced it back from the direction they came from to where they might be bedding? Also right before light and the direction they're headed, to where they might be bedded? Any consistencies? Taking a microscopic look at that has helped me on a few deer.
Myles Kellar talked about this subject. He would go deep into bedding areas several hours before daylight, even has, on occasion, gone in after he knew a buck left the bedding area in the evening and slept in his stand awaiting the bucks return at daybreak.
fairchaser
Well-Known Member
Thanks for the tip. Yes, I have tried to figure how far a deer can travel in one night, drawn concentric circles, and speculated where they might be going and bedding. In a few cases gotten pics in two locations a mile apart. I had one buck pegged on his travels when another hunter got lucky and killed him in a random spot within this travel pattern. There are so many variables but it's fun playing chess.
Would for sure but that's not hardly legal hereA pack of well trained hounds will do it
.You basically have a tough spot to hunt. I'm sure it's aggressive doe hunting and that's your problem. I've seen it over and over. Our club used to be exactly like that. Except way more pressure. It has made a 180 degree turn and that's what we did was limit the doe harvest. Bow only or the last 2 weeks of season. It has made a tremendous difference. I doubt you get to make these changes so that does not help you. I guess first I'd try find a better spot. For 1600 dollars you might find a small place you could lease for yourself. If you are set on hunting there I say pick what u think is the prime 2 weeks and hunt every day those 2 weeks. Seemed to be time in stand trumps luck a lot. Tough situation for sure. I'm sure when we hit cwd it will prolly ruin our lease value and then I'll prolly b done. I'm not going back to hunting like you describe. Very frustrating.
What's the benefit of hunting there vs. public land?
Do you think it's plausible that the couple of aggressive hunters are boogering up the property, perhaps even more so than the doe management?
Do you think it's plausible that the couple of aggressive hunters are boogering up the property, perhaps even more so than the doe management?
fairchaser
Well-Known Member
Ski, the benefit vs public is getting less and less. But, having a group of great guys on a piece of ideal habitat and totally secure. We don't lock cameras or stands. Nothing gets boogered with means a lot. If there is a problem, somebody else deals with it and it's taken care of.
It's not reasonable to blame hunters. We operate within the same rules. Nobody can have more than two stands, etc. Some hunters will hunt every day. But some never show up at all. If you want to blame one thing for the decline of the club it's simple, blame CWD and maybe our response to it.
