Big woods properties knowledge

[BJE80]

It seems to me so much of the available information out there these days is centered around Farms and Agricultural hunting properties. Some or most of these properties may even have more open areas (crp, crop fields, meadows) than wooded/brushy areas. I look at the propertes MoLandowner has posted and most of them seem to be maybe 70% open and 30% wooded. I look at Dipper's pictures and his land looks like it should be out west to me. :) I just watched a Jeff Sturgis video and it was all about food plots opening up to the large Ag fields. Again, a lot of open ground. I also notice a lot of people on here refer to their properties as a "farm".

This seems very foreign to me as I've never hunted on properties that have so much open area. I'm used to mostly/fully wooded properties. My land is fully wooded and the only open areas are the ones I've cleared myself.

I also believe some of the common tips, tricks and methods out there do not translate to big woods properties. Sure some do. But there are some that don't.

Those of you that have big woods properties, what have you found to be the keys to setting up big woods properties different than farm properties? Have you found a resource or expert that gives good tips, tricks, methods that pertain to the big woods?

 

[wiscwhip]

No clue. I am 50% ag and have been on a cornfield edge as our farmer makes laps combining.great setup btw. I bet steve would have the wisdom.

I agree with NoFo, Steve has properties that he cares for that are primarily big woods, he will have some insight.

 

[Terrific_tom]

It seems to me so much of the available information out there these days is centered around Farms and Agricultural hunting properties. Some or most of these properties may even have more open areas (crp, crop fields, meadows) than wooded/brushy areas. I look at the propertes MoLandowner has posted and most of them seem to be maybe 70% open and 30% wooded. I look at Dipper's pictures and his land looks like it should be out west to me. :) I just watched a Jeff Sturgis video and it was all about food plots opening up to the large Ag fields. Again, a lot of open ground. I also notice a lot of people on here refer to their properties as a "farm".

This seems very foreign to me as I've never hunted on properties that have so much open area. I'm used to mostly/fully wooded properties. My land is fully wooded and the only open areas are the ones I've cleared myself.

I also believe some of the common tips, tricks and methods out there do not translate to big woods properties. Sure some do. But there are some that don't.

Those of you that have big woods properties, what have you found to be the keys to setting up big woods properties different than farm properties? Have you found a resource or expert that gives good tips, tricks, methods that pertain to the big woods?

After gun hunting Big woods up in Northwest Wisconsin for 28 years I have found that there are a lot of similarities between big woods and ag-land hunting. The difference is that in a big woods setting the signs are more subtle. The deer in Big woods still feed and bed. Once I figured that out and looked for that sign my hunting in Big woods setting up north got a lot easier. Find where the deer bed and find where the deer are feeding. There is usually a staging area with a lot of browsing close to bedding on their way to feeding. Set up as close to the bedding area with out disturbing bedded deer. This method put a buck on ground mostly every year for me with several getting hung on the wall. It sounds simple but is the same as what guys do on ag-land. I think you are on the right course with your planned logging and setting up some food plots. The logging will thicken up your woods and the food plots will give your deer in the area a place to eat.

Note: this all changed when the DNR wiped the deer herd out in the Northwoods. There has to be deer for it to work.

 

[j-bird]

I'm used to mostly/fully wooded properties. My land is fully wooded and the only open areas are the ones I've cleared myself.

What is he talking about? Is this a different language?:D

I can't make ANY suggestions - my area is 70% or more open. In many areas you can see from one county road to the other - that's a mile! So it's open and flat. A "big" block of woods in my area is like 50 acres. Then you got nuts like me planting weeds and things for the deer in "perfectly good corn fields"!

I agree - I would try to see if Steve B is willing to part with some of his wisdom.

 

[phil@thesidehill]

I've never owned big woods property in order to have been able to manage it for deer hunting. However a good friend of mine just bought a property that is in the big woods and he wants me to help him set it up. We havent started yet as he lives 5 hrs away and there is just too much snow to really work on much. I would be interested to hear what others might have to add to this.

I have however been hunting deer in the big woods on public ground for quite a few years. But i would say simply hunting the big woods as is, is most likely much different than managing a big woods property for deer and deer hunting.

 

[BJE80]

After gun hunting Big woods up in Northwest Wisconsin for 28 years I have found that there are a lot of similarities between big woods and ag-land hunting. The difference is that in a big woods setting the signs are more subtle. The deer in Big woods still feed and bed. Once I figured that out and looked for that sign my hunting in Big woods setting up north got a lot easier. Find where the deer bed and find where the deer are feeding. There is usually a staging area with a lot of browsing close to bedding on their way to feeding. Set up as close to the bedding area with out disturbing bedded deer. This method put a buck on ground mostly every year for me with several getting hung on the wall. It sounds simple but is the same as what guys do on ag-land. I think you are on the right course with your planned logging and setting up some food plots. The logging will thicken up your woods and the food plots will give your deer in the area a place to eat.

Note: this all changed when the DNR wiped the deer herd out in the Northwoods. There has to be deer for it to work.

I've tried locating bedding areas on or near my land. I've found beds but nothing consistantant enough to set up on. If there were some topography to the area that would make things easier to have a better idea where they bed. I also don't have a destination food source close at all that would help know what direction they are going to.

 

[Steve Bartylla]

Sorry....Bunch of balls in the air today and must be brief, but this isn't really a brief topic. Frankly, it's a great one.

So, I'll just toss this out there for now. In big woods, food is generally king. It's really hard to have too much on the vast majority of big woods properties. Also, where as many mixed grounds I find it best to setup more to hold deer than draw them, I often find an even balance between the two on big woods to be best.

For what it's worth, I tend to enjoy big woods properties more. They're more of a blank slate that can often be manipulated however one sees best. It's a lot quicker and easier to open up ground for food plots that it is to turn a field into timber.

Sorry that's so brief.

 

[Terrific_tom]

I've tried locating bedding areas on or near my land. I've found beds but nothing consistantant enough to set up on. If there were some topography to the area that would make things easier to have a better idea where they bed. I also don't have a destination food source close at all that would help know what direction they are going to.

That is where the manipulation that Steve is talking about. Create the bedding areas and food source. I had to find it because of the land I was hunting up North was public. You will be able to create it with your logging scheduled for next year.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

I own land in a big woods area (NW WI), but my specific property is about 40% ag even though my general neighborhood has a higher % of woods. I like the lower taxes and bonus income associated with ag land. I've looked at some 100% wooded properties in the area since they can be relatively cheap per acre - $750-$1000/acre. But if I bought a property that was solid woods and my goal was to create great hunting, the first thing I would do is bulldoze a section and make a field.

Wisconsin has a deer damage program where properties must be open to public hunting if the landowner/farmer gets paid for deer damage. Even in years where the deer herd is way down, you'll see farmers enrolling properties in the deer damage program and if you look at the aerial photos it's easy to see why - they're trying to farm the only field within miles. So somehow they're able to draw in a pile of deer even on the down years since they have the best food in town. Based on that information, I'd say that it may be easier to draw in deer in an area of solid woods if you can create a great food source. If you live in a deer paradise with a perfect mixture of fields and woods, it will be tougher to differentiate your property from the neighbors.

In northern WI natural movement is very limited because of baiting. If we see a lot of deer sign on public land while grouse hunting, it's generally leading to someone's bait pile.

 

[Tree Spud]

I hunted big woods up north for 10 years. As everything can look the same, small subtleties are important.

Stem density was probably the most important feature I looked for. Meaning that when all that everything you appear to be looking for are trees, look for the small ribbons of high stem (tree trunk) density that will exist. Bucks tend to favor travel in these high density corridors. Often times these could be smaller trees (<2-4" dia), saplings, or understory shrubs that would form in the woods. These corridors often had lower canopy heights than the surrounding mature forest, and could be a source of browse.

When you combine these high density ribbons with slight changes in topography, they could be very productive travel areas.

 

[wiscwhip]

I agree TS. If you look at the post I made in the "good place to die" thread about the area I shot my best 2 deer, they bedded in and came from an area of the County Forest land to our north, with the same traits as the areas TS is describing. Small elevation change with very dense young conifer growth in amongst a semi-mature mixed oak-jack pine forest. They would follow this "ribbon" of cover when pressured off the county land and they would end up right in my rifle scope.

 

[PackerBacker]

It seems to me so much of the available information out there these days is centered around Farms and Agricultural hunting properties. Some or most of these properties may even have more open areas (crp, crop fields, meadows) than wooded/brushy areas. I look at the propertes MoLandowner has posted and most of them seem to be maybe 70% open and 30% wooded. I look at Dipper's pictures and his land looks like it should be out west to me. :) I just watched a Jeff Sturgis video and it was all about food plots opening up to the large Ag fields. Again, a lot of open ground. I also notice a lot of people on here refer to their properties as a "farm".

This seems very foreign to me as I've never hunted on properties that have so much open area. I'm used to mostly/fully wooded properties. My land is fully wooded and the only open areas are the ones I've cleared myself.

I also believe some of the common tips, tricks and methods out there do not translate to big woods properties. Sure some do. But there are some that don't.

Those of you that have big woods properties, what have you found to be the keys to setting up big woods properties different than farm properties? Have you found a resource or expert that gives good tips, tricks, methods that pertain to the big woods?

Take a look at the map that Steve put together to for me in the Prioritize thread. You should be able to get an idea off of there on what he recommended. I am in big woods (over by Lakewood so not to far from you) and in the middle of the Nicolet. I couldn't even tell you where the nearest ag land is by me.

Out of curiosity - if your by Antigo - aren't you surrounded by the potato fields?

 

[bueller]

Find and hunt the funnels your property offers. Funnels= creek crossings, road crossings, fence crossings, deer trails skirting around homes, buildings, or other human activity. Also creating funnels either through chainsaw work or plantings. And as Steve said, FOOD. Not just food plots, but find where the acorn producing oaks are most concentrated and you should have an early bow season hot spot.

 

[phil@thesidehill]

Sorry....Bunch of balls in the air today and must be brief, but this isn't really a brief topic. Frankly, it's a great one.

So, I'll just toss this out there for now. In big woods, food is generally king. It's really hard to have too much on the vast majority of big woods properties. Also, where as many mixed grounds I find it best to setup more to hold deer than draw them, I often find an even balance between the two on big woods to be best.

For what it's worth, I tend to enjoy big woods properties more. They're more of a blank slate that can often be manipulated however one sees best. It's a lot quicker and easier to open up ground for food plots that it is to turn a field into timber.

Sorry that's so brief.

I was thinking food would be the key for setting up my friend's big woods property. It really seems to be the lowest hole in the bucket over a very large area around his property. I was also thinking that food could possibly suck deer in from surrounding areas and essentially artifically inflate the deer density locally.

 

[phil@thesidehill]

I've tried locating bedding areas on or near my land. I've found beds but nothing consistantant enough to set up on. If there were some topography to the area that would make things easier to have a better idea where they bed. I also don't have a destination food source close at all that would help know what direction they are going to.

what if any improvements have you done already and what outcomes have they produced?

 

[j-bird]

I would think property management and the basics of it would not change.

Evaluate the property. Determine what your limiting factors are and develop a plan to address those. Re-evaluate the property and the plan to monitor success and changes needed.

Obviously that is overly simplified - but just because your habitat is different doesn't mean proper habitat management is different. You simply have different constraints, strengths and weaknesses. The basics of hunting are the same as well - bed, food, water and the route in between - the better you can define those the more consistent the hunting will be.

I'll shut up now - I know nothing about the big woods.

 

[BJE80]

what if any improvements have you done already and what outcomes have they produced?

I've put in two plots. A .3 acre plot and a .18 acre plot. It has worked very well bringing in deer. I've planted 10 apple trees last spring. Don't know the result of that yet. I've hinged cut a bedding area but as far as I can tell they have not used it much. That is about it.

 

[BJE80]

Take a look at the map that Steve put together to for me in the Prioritize thread. You should be able to get an idea off of there on what he recommended. I am in big woods (over by Lakewood so not to far from you) and in the middle of the Nicolet. I couldn't even tell you where the nearest ag land is by me.

Out of curiosity - if your by Antigo - aren't you surrounded by the potato fields?

No I'm 20min west of Antigo. If you drew a line between Merrill, Antigo and Wausau it is where they would all meet. I am 20 min from each of them.

 

[Dave63]

Get Jim Brauker's new E book. How to shape your property with a chain saw. Very good book for big woods.https://gumroad.com/l/extremedeerhabitatbook

 

[wiscwhip]

I've put in two plots. A .3 acre plot and a .18 acre plot. It has worked very well bringing in deer. I've planted 10 apple trees last spring. Don't know the result of that yet. I've hinged cut a bedding area but as far as I can tell they have not used it much. That is about it.

Up that number to 10% of the total property size and you will draw deer. Is 8 acres of plots feasible for you? Only you can answer that, but in an area like that, if you feed them, they will come. Is baiting legal in your area? Do your neighbors bait? It might be hard to draw deer away from a cozy bait pile even with plots. Lots more food would be the first approach. If your woods is mature and park-like, that would be the second thing I would address.