Are the glory days of deer hunting coming to a close?

[356]

Spot on. I 16 and was stuck in a stand in upstate NY with cotton socks, crappy boots and cotton camo bigs and parka. Froze my ass off and didn't have fun. Was told that this was what it was all about. Now my oldest will be 12 next fall and able to hunt with me. Not only during the gun season, but the new youth weekend over Columbus weekend. I'm already looking at a platform setup that we can both comfortably fit into because it'll provide better shot opportunities than a ground blind.

I think as parents we want our kids to follow in our footsteps so badly that we're willing to try and hand it to them on a silver platter, which in turn sets up unrealistic expectations as they age out of youth season. On one hand, give them success and they may fall in love, give them misery and they might never want to hunt again.

I think there is a balance here….last season my granddaughter expressed interest In hunting due to a desire to source her own culinary favorite—venison summer sausage. We started target practice last spring. She turned six (the legal age in Missouri) over the summer. During her first twelve sits in ground blinds and/or tower stands, she saw a few deer, but all were out of range. She hunted in temperatures ranging from 70 down to 14 degrees (windchill below 0). Three of the first 12 sits where in rain, and most lasted hunts lasted 3 1/2 hours. On her last two sits, she trudged through snow and climbed icy ladders before finally harvested a 2 y.o.doe. Never once did she complain of being board or wanting to go home (although on a couple of hunts, her non-verbal expressions said, “can we go have lunch.”

Yes, I am glad for the ground blinds, tower stands and Little Debbie snacks (& hot chocolate on the coldest mornings). The buddy heater definitely helped on two sits. My son and I did not let her bring her phone (yes, at 6 she has one) nor any other electronic leashes. She did bring a conservation magazine into the stand—the issue that featuring deer hunting, of course. She loved the pictures and tried to figure out the words and letters! We used the pictures to reinforce shot placement, which must have worked, as her shot was double lung and heart.

Not all of our grandkids hunt. Some may start, and some may never take up the sport. But all of them know that when they are ready, I’ll be happy to work with them, but only if they are willing to invest time into practice and preparation. My granddaughter is now looking forward to harvesting her first buck (grampa, I still have a boy deer permit!). For me, this is the Golden Age of Deer HuntIng.

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

Two weeks post rifle season and between mine and my neighbors combined 1200 acres we have ONE mature buck. This is pretty dang good habitat in western ky. And the buck isn’t even that impressive. Mid 40’s 10. The participation trophy regulations are absolutely killing any chance bucks have to making it past 3.5. I truly believe the best is behind us for consistent mature bucks on most properties.

 

[Hoytvectrix]

Two weeks post rifle season and between mine and my neighbors combined 1200 acres we have ONE mature buck. This is pretty dang good habitat in western ky. And the buck isn’t even that impressive. Mid 40’s 10. The participation trophy regulations are absolutely killing any chance bucks have to making it past 3.5. I truly believe the best is behind us for consistent mature bucks on most properties.

I forget the context, but are the neighbors helping or hurting with allowing bucks to mature? I'd think with 1200 contiguous acres you should be having a lot more mature bucks around.

If they are helping, i wouldn't think statewide hunting regulations are going to make nearly as much of an impact on your situation as something else.

 

[S.T.Fanatic]

Ha! That is too funny and so true. I imagine anyone over 60 reading this has used plastic bread bags over their socks back in the day.

Thought they’d make my leaky army surplus boots waterproof when walking thru morning dew or frost, or crossing a creek.

42 and wore those every time I put my winter boots on as a kid. It wasn’t high quality name brand bread like Wonder though.


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[Mortenson]

Something not right there. 1200 acres is roughly our entire creek bottom drawing world, and we are doing way better than that and that's with snipers, public, 5 acre neighbors, and the fence line army. Maybe your big mature ones are hiding out hopefully. Maybe a different poaching culture also. Maybe there's something to be said for more highly traveled roads... less poaching threat? We aren't the burbs by any stretch, but enough traffic to perhaps keep folks honest.

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

I forget the context, but are the neighbors helping or hurting with allowing bucks to mature? I'd think with 1200 contiguous acres you should be having a lot more mature bucks around.

If they are helping, i wouldn't think statewide hunting regulations are going to make nearly as much of an impact on your situation as something else.

It’s not contiguous totally, roughly a thousand is. Another tract is 2 miles away. Neighbors are not helping clearly. Between youth seasons, baiting be a religion, rifles in muzzleloader, crossbows, three week rifle in rut we just can’t keep them alive. A rifle and corn pile will kill every 2.5 and 3.5 in the woods. So all we can pray is they wander when someone isn’t sitting there since we can’t control a large enough area to get them through obviously. This isn’t a situation where they are elusive or we are just missing them on camera, they aren’t there. We are covering a large enough sample size with cameras unfortunately.

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

Something not right there. 1200 acres is roughly our entire creek bottom drawing world, and we are doing way better than that and that's with snipers, public, 5 acre neighbors, and the fence line army. Maybe your big mature ones are hiding out hopefully. Maybe a different poaching culture also. Maybe there's something to be said for more highly traveled roads... less poaching threat? We aren't the burbs by any stretch, but enough traffic to perhaps keep folks honest.

Obviously I cant know everything but I don’t have a reason to believe poaching on our places is an issue. In 2 years I’ve never gotten a pic or a track or any indication someone has been on mine or my neighbors land. Knock on wood and guarantee I just jinxed myself when I pull cards next…thanks! But yes the culture here is not exactly one where you want to leave your gates unlocked.

 

[Bill Loser]

It’s not contiguous totally, roughly a thousand is. Another tract is 2 miles away. Neighbors are not helping clearly. Between youth seasons, baiting be a religion, rifles in muzzleloader, crossbows, three week rifle in rut we just can’t keep them alive. A rifle and corn pile will kill every 2.5 and 3.5 in the woods. So all we can pray is they wander when someone isn’t sitting there since we can’t control a large enough area to get them through obviously. This isn’t a situation where they are elusive or we are just missing them on camera, they aren’t there. We are covering a large enough sample size with cameras unfortunately.

What no deer killing robots?

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

What no deer killing robots?

At this pace the rifle will be attached to the drones within 5 years!

 

[Mortenson]

Obviously I cant know everything but I don’t have a reason to believe poaching on our places is an issue. In 2 years I’ve never gotten a pic or a track or any indication someone has been on mine or my neighbors land. Knock on wood and guarantee I just jinxed myself when I pull cards next…thanks! But yes the culture here is not exactly one where you want to leave your gates unlocked.

Yeah I wonder if the corn pile reality is the big driver. Our snipers use corn from mid Jan thru April if they last that long. Should be prime time to stack them up, but they aren't massacring our herd yet.

 

[hillrunner]

The more I read about it, the more I think baiting might be the thing I'm the most glad we don't have in iowa.

 

[Brian662]

Kentucky was/is a destination state for whitetails. Obviously some people in KY are growing, seeing, killing big deer. Where are the gaps?
If my neighbor and I controlled 1000 contiguous acres in MN, even with the gun season starting the first weekend in MN, I know we'd have some monsters every year. Both states (MN and KY) are one buck states, gun season during rut, crossbows, etc. Only difference is MN isn't a bait state, but I'd bet 50% of hunters still use an illegal attraction of some sort here. Just doesn't add up.

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

Kentucky was/is a destination state for whitetails. Obviously some people in KY are growing, seeing, killing big deer. Where are the gaps?
If my neighbor and I controlled 1000 contiguous acres in MN, even with the gun season starting the first weekend in MN, I know we'd have some monsters every year. Both states (MN and KY) are one buck states, gun season during rut, crossbows, etc. Only difference is MN isn't a bait state, but I'd bet 50% of hunters still use an illegal attraction of some sort here. Just doesn't add up.

I’m at a loss too. Anecdotally I think there is a lot of nefarious stuff down here that may or may not happen there. That would be one. 31 days where people can hunt with a gun. That includes rifle (opened 11/11 this year), muzzleloader and youth, which is all basically adult rifle here. Bait is the big one is annother, maybe the smoking gun? Other than that I can’t say. EHD isn’t a thing. Saw one dead doe in a creek this year but that’s it. We have corn, beans, wheat, clover, cutovers, swamps, hardwoods, etc. I’m hoping something moves in late season for that we can hold till next year.

 

[S.T.Fanatic]

Kentucky was/is a destination state for whitetails. Obviously some people in KY are growing, seeing, killing big deer. Where are the gaps?
If my neighbor and I controlled 1000 contiguous acres in MN, even with the gun season starting the first weekend in MN, I know we'd have some monsters every year. Both states (MN and KY) are one buck states, gun season during rut, crossbows, etc. Only difference is MN isn't a bait state, but I'd bet 50% of hunters still use an illegal attraction of some sort here. Just doesn't add up.

Be glad you aren’t in a CWD zone. 1 buck bow, 1 buck shotgun, 1 buck black powder. That and mother nature it’s a miracle we have it as good as we do in my area.

Luckily for me all the neighbors have at least 200 acres boarder ing ours


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[Brian662]

Our rifle season ran for 9 days after starting on Nov 4. That was after a four day youth season starting Oct 19. Fire back up with a 16 day muzzle loader season that started on Nov 25.

So basically running from Oct 19 through December 10, there are 24 days without firearms and 29 days with firearms in MN. Absolutely brutal management and it's no wonder why half the state isn't seeing deer. If that's not enough we allowed crossbows this year because....well...why not?

 

[Brian662]

Be glad you aren’t in a CWD zone. 1 buck bow, 1 buck shotgun, 1 buck black powder. That and mother nature it’s a miracle we have it as good as we do in my area.

Luckily for me all the neighbors have at least 200 acres boarder ing ours


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You'd hope that land owners and managers would be smarter than filling all those tags. Unfortunately it isn't always the world we live in.

 

[Mortenson]

You'd hope that land owners and managers would be smarter than filling all those tags. Unfortunately it isn't always the world we live in.

My 21 yr old neighbor and my son each shot good bucks this yr. The neighbor said he was hanging it up for the year. My 11 yr old son said he was following the leader. Gotta build a tradition somehow. Proud of those youngsters.

 

[S.T.Fanatic]

Our rifle season ran for 9 days after starting on Nov 4. That was after a four day youth season starting Oct 19. Fire back up with a 16 day muzzle loader season that started on Nov 25.

So basically running from Oct 19 through December 10, there are 24 days without firearms and 29 days with firearms in MN. Absolutely brutal management and it's no wonder why half the state isn't seeing deer. If that's not enough we allowed crossbows this year because....well...why not?

We are lucky we have halfway decent numbers, habitat, and neighbors.

In SE MN it’s a 9 day shot gun season starting the first Saturday in November. 5 days off another 9 day season with black powder overlapping the last two days that runs 14 days. It’s a miracle that we have the number of mature bucks we do.

The biggest thing we have going is that most farms are over 160 acres with the majority of them being 300+. If it wasn’t for that we’d be singing the same tune many of you frustrated hunters are.

 

[S.T.Fanatic]

My 21 yr old neighbor and my son each shot good bucks this yr. The neighbor said he was hanging it up for the year. My 11 yr old son said he was following the leader. Gotta build a tradition somehow. Proud of those youngsters.

My son and I set a 1 buck limit on ourselves. 2 of my uncles pressure the shit out of it and luckily for my son and I the uncles aren’t good hunters and can’t shoot straight.


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[omicron1792]

Never been baled in over 3 years. Some is new seeding never been baled.

it was grazed in the spring by cattle. Early fall it brings in a ton of deer. ( September).

This is volunteer alfalfa ( the taller “ wolf plants” )and the seeded part was just “ dry land “ alfalfa from the Co Op bulk bin.

Looks like almost a pure stand. I seeded it in a mix.

That field next to the mountains is gorgeous. Thanks for posting the pics.