NW Minnesota
- Thread starter bwoods11
- Start date
bwoods11
5 year old buck +
Yep, west of Lake Bronson. My farm is on the Two Rivers which is just north of the photo
Bowsnbucks
5 year old buck +
Super view from the drone !! I can't imagine hunting deer in such an open flat area !!! I guess any cover becomes the " go - to " area ?? I like the spruce blocks.
nwmn
5 year old buck +
and this is in a hilly area compared to the rest of us! isn't the halma/bronson areas all gravel ridges?
it's cool how close you are to us. we're just SE of strandquist
Bowsnbucks
5 year old buck +
You're confusing me with someone else in Minn. !! ^^^^^ I'm in Pa. - mtns ...... no flat areas like the pic from the drone !!!
bwoods11
5 year old buck +
Pretty flat but the river bottom (not pictured) is quite a drop, that is where a lot of the activity is.
bwoods11
5 year old buck +
It is nice up there, although there are farm sites and small towns around it, I rarely see a bow hunter up in that area. The rifle season is busy though. Not terrible. Yes, they love to bed in the spruce trees. In most cases there are 8-20 deer bedding in there at any given time. With aspen woods on both sides, they mingle in between and we get opportunities as they leave the spruce trees.
We rarely hunt in the spruce trees as we leave it for a sanctuary, we broke that rule a few years back and my buddy shot a nice 135 inch 9 pointer in the middle of the blocks. During the gun season, deer head in there for safety.
bwoods11
5 year old buck +
It's different hunting that is for sure. You can see forever from one stand though!
bwoods11
5 year old buck +
Steady and quite often windy!! About 5 years ago I hunted an evening by the river bottom where it meets the CRP and it was terribly windy---40 mph winds. Where I hunt in west central MN you would rarely see a deer move in those conditions. That evening I think I saw around 17 deer and at least one big buck. They must be used to it!
bwoods11
5 year old buck +
Yes it is. There are a few ridges but really flat!
West Branch
5 year old buck +
Flat is almost an understatement. The red river of the north average less than 1 foot per mile drop for hundreds of miles. My brother said some of the crop fields they harvested up in red river valley had elevation changes of less than 6 inches on a full section (640 acres). I still like the terrain of river bottoms and terrain east side of the old glacial lake bed from what I have seen driving through there.
sandbur
5 year old buck +
Is hunting pressure part of it?
Bowsnbucks
5 year old buck +
Just for comparison - a ridge in the Pa. mtns. is 500 ft. to 2000 ft. in elevation change !! 75 ft. to 250 ft. or so we call a " hogback ".
With all that open country, I can believe the deer home-in on the blocks of spruce or other timber for cover !! What's in your crp?? Do you guys throw seed mixes down or is it all strictly whatever grows wild ?? Do you add anything TO the wild stuff ??
With all that open country, I can believe the deer home-in on the blocks of spruce or other timber for cover !! What's in your crp?? Do you guys throw seed mixes down or is it all strictly whatever grows wild ?? Do you add anything TO the wild stuff ??
bwoods11
5 year old buck +
CRP is mostly switchgrass and it does pretty well up there. A few willows grow up wild in the CRP and the deer bed in the willow areas.
I also planted 5.3 acres of trees as part of the riparian buffer CRP (I like when they pay for your trees)...Look at me asking for a handout!!
I also planted 5.3 acres of trees as part of the riparian buffer CRP (I like when they pay for your trees)...Look at me asking for a handout!!
sticknstring
5 year old buck +
What variety of trees did you plant?
We just drove threw that area.Went from International Falls to Bemidji and on to Grand Forks for a night. Left Friday morning on the way back home so we traveled north to Drayton and across Highway 11 I believe threw Donaldson,Karlstad and on to Warroad.What a change in terrain over the trip.The sugar beet harvest is in full swing, i plan to plant some next year for the deer.
bwoods11
5 year old buck +
I had an 80 near 11 in Karlstad. That farm was my first purchase and helped me get additional acres. Friend owns it now, he and I have planted thousands of trees on that 80, and its impressive now!!
Best tree in terms of survival and growth was the scotch pine!! Must be a localized thing?
Busy area during the sugar beet harvest, deer sure love those beets!
I am glad you had success with the scotch pines. I have been slowly gaining on mine but the deer seem to like them too.I have been basically unemployed the last year and still do not seem to have time to get my habitat work done.Going to try to cross some farm work off the list now and leave the woods alone till prime season.