Its taken me a while to decide to write this as I've really bounced around this idea in my head for a while. Its also something I really can't believe I've arrived at this point this late in my life to be honest. Starting this year, I'm going to switch gears entirely and start hunting a lot of public ground. While this is probably the norm for many folks here, it hasn't been for me. My whole hunting career, I've been a private land dweller. I've been fortunate to have access to family land that is over 800 acres of well managed whitetail habitat here in PA. Not to mention the ground is surounded by land that is owned by the government is off limits. To say i've been spoiled all these years is an understatement. But something happened and I'm not sure quite what it was. Maybe it was the realization on my list trip to the midwest with an outfitter that in reality, I didn't hunt the deer I was after out there. I.merely paid someone else to do it and I was the trigger man if something walked by. But a large portion of this feeling I am getting is the probably more along the lines of just being bored with hunting the same old place all the time. I have the family farm pegged. I know that if I guess on which stand or bounce to a few different ones every year, I will eventually get an opportunity at a good deer. But its weird. I'm bored with it. I don't have the strong desire to hang cameras anymore, or spend evenings in fields glassing from a distance to see what bucks we have around this year. I don't have the ambition to put in scouting work much anymore simply because I feel like I already know the answers. I feel like hiding on this ground for all these years has sort of robbed me of what I probably love the most about hunting big bucks. The challenge, the adventure of it. I remember when I was a kid and in my teens and twenties, I loved figuring these deer out. Every season was a new experience and a learning opportunity. I'd hunt from trees, on the ground, spot and stalk, whatever I thought would get me closer. Thats all gone now. I spent an afternoon on a piece of public ground doing some still hunting to learn the area a bit and maybe even run into few deer. No deer were seen, but it was a really enjoyable time slipping around the woods, looking at and reading tracks, finding sign, sneaking up to what I felt was bedding areas. All done with the use of maps on the phone. I've since started using Onyx a lot to identify what I feel are candidates to go put boots on the ground and put together a game plan to hunt it. This lit a fire under me again. The unknown, the challenge. It takes me back to my younger years where I was constantly screwing up, spooking deer, etc. But I can say without hesitation that I was on to big bucks more often and had much more fun. I feel like at one point, I was a very good woodsman. I was good at reading sign, good at getting close to bedding and good at killing deer by hunting them and putting the puzzle together. I feel as though I lost that hunting the way I have for all these years. My hope is I get it back and this new challenge really is what I'm looking for as I evolve. Sorry for the long read. I'm curious if anyone else has ever gone through something similar.
I hunted private land that was highly managed the first few years I bow hunted. I got into a similar mindset; had the deer movement pegged through the terrain, could reliably see deer with shot opportunities almost every hunt. It took losing access and being forced into public land to realize I wasn't as good of a hunter as I thought and that it was the land management. It is a learning curve, but I am a better hunter now than I was back then. Welcome to the challenge!
I'm in the same boat though it started last winter in thought. I had plan on going out to scout...unfortunately life got in the way...My fear now is BIDEN is in the way. Gas prices really have me not leaving unless absolutely necessary. Driving these Finger lakes hills is a serious drain in a 2006 marques. That said, I am going to hit the road on the first warm up/thaw we get. Once the snow pack goes down enough to walk safely and find parking I'm going to be out there with A.J. to find some areas I know I can get a deer out of. Though I know if I can drag a deer up our hill and up the hill at camp.... I'm good for most areas. I also butcher all my own deer so push come to shove in field quarting isn't an issue. A big issue is family...they are having a harder time with my age than I am. Being 64 + next season and my hunting alone feaks them out.
Get yourself some black market adrenalin shots and if you start to go downhill in the woods, "pulp fiction" it into your chest!
Lol...pretty sure that wouldn't be a need...Though...I have to say I don't get the pulp fiction reference. I've never watched it.
I was forced back to state land when the land I leased (160acres) for 18yrs the land owner died and it went to his son (a true prick) and he allowed his 'buddies' on the place for free, it was ruined at that point by wrong set ups and over pressure ... I had hunted state land off and on for a change of scenery even when I leased and took some good deer off of both ... if it is a good lease, I sure would prefer it than the over pressured state land ... I will scout more this spring and look at different sections of the state I have not hunted before, still concentrating on the bow only area of it ... I do hunt the surrounding sections which are gun hunted, and hunt those before the gun season starts, then concentrate on the bow only section once it does ... a change is good and sometimes needed, however the pressure now is unbelieveable so beware of what you ask for, now many gun hunters now using those damn crossthingys in the early archery season and there is waaaay more pressure, it never used to be like that there, so I am forever looking for new lands but dont relish the thought of paying again for a lease ... getting permission for free is almost impossible as most is family hunted or already leased or no hunting allowed .. its tough finding good land ... the grass isnt always greener on the other side of the fence ... good luck ...
Thanks man! I would like to take myself back to being a young guy again... learning and using woodsman skills that I feel like I don't use anymore. I miss learning and knowing about how winds move through the mountains here. Finding those tiny ridge points on a map that may hold buck bedding, then going to investigate on foot and finding big tracks and learning where he goes, etc. All the things that I learned and was taught to me as a youngster that really created some awesome hunts and experiences.
That is one thing that I"m not overly concerned about. Here in PA, our hunter numbers have been falling to begin with, but with more than 3 millions acres of gamelands alone. I have three gamelands close by that have really good habitat and are about 3K acres a piece. Combine that with very rough, steep and nasty country.. its pretty easy for deer to hide in it. Its strange, many years ago, I wouldn't have dreamed of going onto public and having success. These days are much different. I don't know... I like the challenge of going onto these places and hunting down and pulling a big buck out where everyone else is too.. haha.
I have been public land hunting since 2004. I’ve never cared much for hunting private land. I’m also a big woods Hunter, I care nothing about driving roads and watching fields. The piece of advice I would give you is to learn your property and don’t listen to outsiders that do not hunt where you do. For example there is a misnomer that you must go deep to see big deer. I have killed quite a few big deer within a half a mile of a main road. One was killed within 200 yards of the main road. What works in the Midwest does not often work in the mountains where I’m hunting. Hunting public land can be frustrating but it is also very rewarding. Hang in there I think you will like it Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
You can bounce back and forth from private to public. There still are things to be learnt on your private you might be overlooking, it’s good to change the scenery up every now and again, but I wouldn’t bail completely on the private. I hunt both here in Pa and pubic only in Ohio and have a good time between them. On the private farm I hunt in Pa it’s easy to do the same thing each time with the different winds or season changes. But you can always switch things up on the private too, I did that this year and took a good deer. Good luck in your adventures and I hope you find what your looking for !
I am a public land junky. We have a smaller family farm that is right under 100 acres and surrounded by national forest. I even got tired of hunting the national forest surrounding the family farm. Dont get me wrong i still enjoyed it but felt the urge to spread my wings and leap from the nest. What i love about hunting public is the freedom of it. Im always hunting different places. The area ive been hunting the past couple years is 19,000 acres so it will take me a little time to cover all that and figure it out. When ive hunted most of that ill move on. Not that i will never come back to familiar places but i just feel like life is too short to hunt the same old stands and ground over and over. I feel like im not learning and not evolving. I like being put at a disadvantage of the unknown and then figuring it out. Like a puzzle. On our family farm i can tell you pretty much what the deer do and how they move. Every new piece of public is like a mystery. Another buddy of mine has 500acre farm in one of the biggest buck counties here in illinois. I wired an addition on their lodge for free so they told me i could go there any time i wanted whether they were there or not. That is probably my best shot at killing a trophy deer but still the thought of getting out and pounding public ground on my own appeals to me more than going to one of their foodplots and killing a big buck. I have yet to take them up on their offer. Ive hunted there with my buddy but since they told me i could have free reign i havent gone. All this said i DO still hunt private parcels. I just kinda think of them as small pieces of public. They are nice to fall back on especially with kids to have the privacy and safety from other knuckleheadsin the woods. Be prepared for frustration. Use onx like you said you have. If you think you see something interesting on a map chances are 20 other guys have seen it too. Alot of public hunting channels are inspiring people to get out on public land, put in the work, go the extra mile in a canoe or kayak, hike in further, scout more. This sounds like competition, which it is, but it is a GOOD thing. That said, the majority of hunters are still pretty lazy as a whole. You will have guys walk in on you from time to time depending on hunter density but truthfully i havent had too many negative issues with it. (At least where im at) Its just a whole new element that you have to pattern and make work for you. Other hunters. A whole new twist in the game. Example of this is I have waded through mudflats up to my knees in mud to get to a spot that could only be accessed a certain way otherwise. The “easy route” If i had taken the easy route the deer would be pushed away. Taking the hard route i was able to set up in a bottle neck. When the other hunters were walking in half hour before sunrise i had already been in my tree for an hour. They would push deer to me every time. I killed a good buck and a few does in that spot. By using the element of other hunters influencing deer movement. Good luck and enjoy our land, after all, we are paying for it!
I was in your shoes a few years ago. For me it was the freedom to roam. Also we can bait on private here and everyone does it. But on public, no baiting. I love that aspect of it. It's a adventure for sure and a big learning curve. Best bet is to throw away all you knowledge about hunting your private place. If you try to use the same tactics on public, all you will do is run into other hunters all the time. Think like a deer and we're you would hide if you were being hunted. It will be hard at first and will probably find your self falling back on your private land for the first couple years, but stick with it, gets easier with time. I have a couple thousand acres of private to hunt, but rarely do these days. I enjoy the challenge and freedom. Plus you can shoot what you want and you won't have the peanut gallery making comments. Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
Thanks for the pep talk guys. Haha. I'll admit, i've been smitten a bit by the Hunting Beast stuff. I just love and truly miss the challenge of figuring out a new area, putting plans together and going in after them. On the private I hunt, we do not hunt aggressively at all. You don't really have to. Time in the tree will eventually pay off. I miss the days when I was younger and went all in on deer trying to get myself close enough to kill that buck. I miss making all the mistakes and such I did when I was younger, because more often than not, those mistakes taught very good lessons. I feel like with all of my years of experience, mistakes will be less, but the fun will be through the roof now. I will absolutely still hunt the private, but i'd like to limit it to when my best stands there have perfect winds and conditions to go into them. Otherwise, I'm going to explore. Me and two of my hunting partners are in the midst of mapping several big tracts and marking tons of areas we'd like to look at over the winter and spring. Hopefully we will get a bit of idea of where to hone in some and see what happens.
I know a guy that could probably use some of this just for everyday life. So, asking for said friend, where can I find some of these?
It not just hunting, it’s true of life. We need to be constantly challenged and learning new skills to be happy. Enjoy the journey, wherever it may lead you.
As you know from reading my other write up - in a similar fashion a cross road has hit here as well. Honestly, like with all things in life the key is to keep building upon the foundation laid - that could be as the father to our children and the task God has given us there, refusing to ever be "good enough" but to pursue being the best father possible. Embrace it man, and lean into it - enjoy the journey of it. Even if that involves still hunting some of your private land still, let be seen as a blessing and embrace it as well!
I thought I knew all the state forests and WMU in the area. Nope more have popped up between here and camp. Most are segregated small pockets in 1200 - 3000+ acre size. I put up topo maps over several and I'm pretty pleased with what I see. Though signage in. NYS sucks and seriously my phones,so old I'm not sure,I can use ONX. I should have taken daughter up on taking her old phone. I wonder if she sold it? She has to have the top of line due to her working from home,car,shopping, bathroom ,crying out loud! Like hubby his phone rings day night ,sick days, anniversaries,vacations... BS
Funny story, I just walked a piece of public land the other day. Not all of it because its so damn cold... haha. I was in my element... I crawled around and found a couple of points/ridge systems that low and behold looked to have been harboring some buck bedding. I followed big tracks back into some "hell holes"... had to hide from a group of does milling around below me... saw piles of big turkey tracks... it was a blast. I covered about 5-6 miles in total according to onyx and have a couple of spots and trees picked out that I will put on the list to sit next fall. I'm going to check the other end out the next time... then move on to another piece of public land and do the same. My goal by next fall is to have at least a two dozen stands scattered across multiple public lands to sit. This will give me options plus avoiding sitting the same stand twice unless i need to for some reason.. aka i see a deer i want to hunt down. Basically, I want enough spots to bounce around to all season until I find something. Plus I like the scenery change... haha
Sounds like a plan. The only thing that works against it is time. I wish i had more of that. Or a vending machine that sells it
