Land Plan Recommendations Needed

[Ben.MN/WI]

You need to bear hunt up there, it's world class hunting. I shot one that field dressed at 421 pounds the year before my dad bagged his. My neighbors got ag tags the last couple years so they really knocked the numbers back, but we still see them. Ever find any sheds your place? We usually find a couple every year.

 

[Camp 2 Dukes]

Thats ironic my neighbor got a bunch of ag tags apparently they took 30 bears out of one 400 acre field. How long did it take to get a tag?

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

it took me 5 years to get a tag in 2013, but it's up to 7 preference points now. It sucks that it takes that long when there are so many bears on the private properties up there. When I hunted I saw 19 bears before I saw a big one I wanted to shoot. I'm sure I saw a lot of the same bears twice, but it was still a ton of action. It was far more action than deer hunting. I didn't think I would like bear hunting that much, but it was awesome.

 

[Camp 2 Dukes]

Thats a lot of bears. Did you bait it yourself on your own property?

 

[Camp 2 Dukes]

Do you know the big dairy op on 40 by H. Thats the farm that got all the ag tags.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

Yeah, we baited it ourselves once a week. It would have been better if we baited more frequently, but thats as often as we could get up there.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

I'm not too familiar with that area, but I know from driving through that area there are a few big farms near your place. The bigger ag fields by my place are similar. The farmer renting my crop acres wanted to apply for that bear damage program but I declined because of the public hunting requirements. Every year big boars mark their territory on the wooden ladders and posts on my permanent stands. They chew the wood, often 7' up. Every couple years I have to reinforce the stands with 2x4's. They sometimes climb into my stands and take a dump in them too, which is always Fun to clean up.

 

[Camp 2 Dukes]

Sorry but that is kind of hilarious. They really poop in your stand OMG. We had one tear into one of our tower stands 2 yrs ago. I was surprised it didn't come down. I wrap mine with steel up about 10' now.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

I can't leave buckets in my permanent stands either because they will chew them up and throw them out of the stands. I think the bears like to get into trouble just like overgrown raccoons. I kept a 55 gallon drum of cookie dough by my cabin during bear season and it was still half full when we were done hunting. They figured out how to open that drum and ate the remaining 25 gallons of bait out.

 

[Camp 2 Dukes]

They are like big raccoons. There was one problem bear by us that our neighbor chased out of their kitchen on a Sunday morning. We believe that same little bear was one we had try to get in one of our cars. My buddy left a half eaten cheeseburger in there. We were gone and rolled in the driveway as he was trying to pull the car window open. I looked at your piece on a map. What kind of swamp do you have? How are the neighbors?

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

My swamp is primarily black spruce and Tamarac with a few acres of shrub wetlands on the edges. It's horribly thick and that's where most of the deer are during the gun season. There is a ton of pressure in our area, so they are usually pretty nocturnal after opening weekend of gun. During bow season the deer spend more time in the fields and plots, but generally the old bucks don't leave the swamp until dark. Our neighbors are good, but the one I knew the best sold his place so I don't get the info on what everyone shot like I used to. Before the numbers crashed most would let little bucks go, but I don't think that is the case any more.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

I grouse hunted the public land about 4 miles nw of your land yesterday. I took the long way home and drive by the roads to the west and south of your place. I saw a permanent stand in what i think was your overgrown field on the southern end of yours. I was going by memory though, but I think I was looking at the right stuff. That area looks good. I bet a lot of deer go to that property to the east when pressured as it looked like there was a lot of scattered spruces there and some thick swampy stuff. That looks like a nice area. That creek that must go through part of yours looks nice too and deer seem to like those areas. Ever catch anything there? I've never trout fished around my cabin since I never seem to have enough time, but maybe some day I'll have more time.

 

[Camp 2 Dukes]

Nice! Ya I have not posted any pics of that stand yet. Its just like the ones you may see on Redneck Heaven T-shirts. Its a 76 chevy pickup cab that I fiberglassed visors and flip down windows in. It only sits about 6' off the ground but I needed just enough to over the rise of the field. Now I can legitimately say "I shot it from the truck". If I can find a pic I will post it. That is a good are IMO. How was the grouse hunting? Do you have a house or cabin on your property?

 

[Camp 2 Dukes]

My kids fish that creek not much in there apparently years ago there was. There used to be a beaver dam near the road where you saw my stand. There was a pond by those Fir trees where there is marsh grass now. That pond was great had fish in it brought in a ton of geese and ducks. But the DNR blew out the dam.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

I shot 1 grouse on my land and one on public land. I missed a few too as usual. my dog is young, so it was good to get her out even if we didn't get many birds. I had a cabin built on my land a couple years ago, so that's where my dad, my 4 year old son and I stayed. It's pretty nice to get up in the morning and walk out the door and start hunting.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

That sucks they blew out the dam. I didn't know they did that. There sure are a lot of waterfowl in the area. I bought a duck stamp this year for the first time and shot some woodies and mallards on my land and some public properties. im hoping to get approval for the pond I'm trying to build in my land. Id like to have a place for my kids to duck hunt when they get old enough. The usfw guy thought it would be approved, but who knows. I also figure I need to have as many hunting options up there as possible for the years when the deer hunting is rough.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

I wasn't entirely sure I could remember where your land was, but I had to drive east anyway to get back to my land so I swung through that area. I figured it was the right spot when i saw that stand, that looked cool. How old are the trees in your woods? When grouse hunting public properties I generally see way more deer sign (and grouse) in recently logged areas. The one exception is areas with dominant shrub thickets with dogwoods, hazel and plums. Those shrub pockets seem to persist in mature woods if they are thick enough to prevent trees from growing up. They usually are magnets for grouse and deer even if the surrounding woods are mature.

 

[Camp 2 Dukes]

Our woods hasn't been logged since the 30's. I may be meeting the local forester up there this week to discuss a logging recommendation. Did you see any deer up on the public? Are you hunting off meadow dam? Or off O by Christie?

 

[Camp 2 Dukes]

I didn't find the truck pics but found one of the Joyner buck. Terrible res it was a pic of a newspaper pic.

 

[Camp 2 Dukes]

I shot 1 grouse on my land and one on public land. I missed a few too as usual. my dog is young, so it was good to get her out even if we didn't get many birds. I had a cabin built on my land a couple years ago, so that's where my dad, my 4 year old son and I stayed. It's pretty nice to get up in the morning and walk out the door and start hunting.

How do you cook those grouse?