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Hardest terrain to deer hunt in your opinion

neonomad said:
The interesting thing about hunting is how difficult it can be, any terrain, everything has hurdles.
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Just like life. And it's the challenges that drives me.

I try not to fall in 'analysis paralysis' and that's easy to do with whitetails. Cover what you can and keep moving. I accept the fact that the deer are going to win. I learned deer do not like being killed. I just want to get close in case they screw up.
 
weekender21 said:
What do you define as crap logging practices? From my experience, cutovers anywhere in Appalachia are the most productive habitat. Endless seas of mature timber are wildlife deserts.


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Crap as in none. There is little to no logging done round my parts except for a few areas. It used to be done more in the past. It's been a big complaint among Virginians.
 
PancreasBroke said:
Crap as in none. There is little to no logging done round my parts except for a few areas. It used to be done more in the past. It's been a big complaint among Virginians.
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a super overgrown clearcut that you don't even want to try to walk in....is great for deer....find how they get in and out of it and hunt the edges of it

also, if it is big square shape....then no matter which way the wind is blowing you'll have a place you can hunt it and not blow your wind into it
 
raisins said:
During the rut, do you find that cruising bucks stick to these old roads/benches as they move around and checking things out?

I find that during early and late season (not rut) that bucks tend to avoid these old roads because they feel exposed. If I walk down one and spook a buck, it will often be 20 yards or so from the old road.
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Yes I do, but I necessarily wouldn't even describe these as roads, as my favorite ones are barely discernible from the rest of the area. Three years ago I actually walked one in late October in my core area after I tagged out and found something like 23 scrapes on an old skidder road in a circle around this 'mountain' (I live near the Allegheny National Forest for a terrain reference). Granted my findings in this spot may be a perfect opportunity where there is not a ton of pressure, and the old skidder road created a small bench, about 1/3 of the way down from the top, all of the way around this 'mountain'.

I still find them using them in early and late, even on public but the bigger bucks are more-so at night than day until late October. I use my cameras and other sign/historical daytime pics to tell me what scrapes to concentrate on.
 
7mmremmag said:
Yes I do, but I necessarily wouldn't even describe these as roads, as my favorite ones are barely discernible from the rest of the area. Three years ago I actually walked one in late October in my core area after I tagged out and found something like 23 scrapes on an old skidder road in a circle around this 'mountain' (I live near the Allegheny National Forest for a terrain reference). Granted my findings in this spot may be a perfect opportunity where there is not a ton of pressure, and the old skidder road created a small bench, about 1/3 of the way down from the top, all of the way around this 'mountain'.

I still find them using them in early and late, even on public but the bigger bucks are more-so at night than day until late October. I use my cameras and other sign/historical daytime pics to tell me what scrapes to concentrate on.
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I'm near you in WV. I know exactly what you are talking about. The old roads in the fed forest that haven't been used in decades and nature has taken them over.
 
raisins said:
a super overgrown clearcut that you don't even want to try to walk in....is great for deer....find how they get in and out of it and hunt the edges of it

also, if it is big square shape....then no matter which way the wind is blowing you'll have a place you can hunt it and not blow your wind into it
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Agree and am aware the habitat will hold deer. Again, not much of that where I am, so many are also hunting that spot. Yes there are some and I have success with them, but it's the fact that it is not as abundant that makes mountains that much more challenging.
 
PancreasBroke said:
Agree and am aware the habitat will hold deer. Again, not much of that where I am, so many are also hunting that spot. Yes there are some and I have success with them, but it's the fact that it is not as abundant that makes mountains that much more challenging.
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yeah....that's the price of youtube and the internet providing easy advice to everyone.....back when you had to crack a book, talk to an old timer, or figure it out yourself....fewer people would have been hunting there
 
raisins said:
yeah....that's the price of youtube and the internet providing easy advice to everyone.....back when you had to crack a book, talk to an old timer, or figure it out yourself....fewer people would have been hunting there
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Yep, you tube and the everybody's invited app I mean onX have definitely hurt lots of great spots.
 
BTaylor said:
Yep, you tube and the everybody's invited app I mean onX have definitely hurt lots of great spots.
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yep....just needing to get a paper topo and know how to read it probably took half of all hunters out of the game!
 
PancreasBroke said:
i end up scouting hunters more than deer now…
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Understanding pressure really helps narrowing down big woods spots.

Dmathews87 said:
it'd be fun to put some these northern guys in joyce or maurepas wma off lake maurepas. between the alligators, cotton mouths, and mosquitoes, im not sure many could take it!....at the same time, dont put my a** in the cold mountains
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I'm down to hunt anything. I hunt the western mountains every year, plus our big woods and tamarack swamps here. A little bit of Ag thrown in for fun.
 
Dmathews87 said:
it'd be fun to put some these northern guys in joyce or maurepas wma off lake maurepas. between the alligators, cotton mouths, and mosquitoes, im not sure many could take it!....at the same time, dont put my a** in the cold mountains
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yeah...i think it is bananas that you guys go boating, swimming, or wading anywhere there are alligators or crocs
 
raisins said:
yeah...i think it is bananas that you guys go boating, swimming, or wading anywhere there are alligators or crocs
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just gators. they leave you alone for the most part. Its usually a ding bat messing with them or getting too close to a mamma when stuff happens. I am always nervous about wading through hip high water knowing gators are around, but you just gotta have big cojones and trust the lord has you lol
 
Dmathews87 said:
just gators. they leave you alone for the most part. Its usually a ding bat messing with them or getting too close to a mamma when stuff happens. I am always nervous about wading through hip high water knowing gators are around, but you just gotta have big cojones and trust the lord has you lol
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i'd have a 10 mm glock on a chest rig and be ready to mag dump a gator!
 
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