It should be illegal! Team 8!

[GCTerpfan]

@fbwguy I don’t know about the illegal part. Now maybe unfair but when the team was formed we didn’t know @Nutterbuster was going to be on the trophyline staff. We had no idea they’d send everyone on team 8 here

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They can’t have their favorite Nut losing the only saddle hunting contest in the world. The sad thing is I’m going to have to cancel one of my favorite hunts of the year. I had a nice spike patterned and everything. Oh well sometimes you have to take one for the team.

I wanted to go on that trip but, I couldn't make it work. I do plan on going to the one the next weekend to this place. https://oakcreekwhitetailranch.com/photo-gallery/

I figure we can only turn in one buck anyway. You going to be on this hunt to?

 

[Nutterbuster]

Lol, what's awesome is the SOA I got drawn to hunt routinely produces booners... in alabama!

They will literally kick you out of SOA drawings for life if you shoot under the antler requirements. Something like an 18" inside spread or 20 something inch main beams.

Managed bucks, but they're "public land deer." Win-win.

Unless you're not on team 8...

 

[fbwguy]

Lol, what's awesome is the SOA I got drawn to hunt routinely produces booners... in alabama!

They will literally kick you out of SOA drawings for life if you shoot under the antler requirements. Something like an 18" inside spread or 20 something inch main beams.

Managed bucks, but they're "public land deer." Win-win.

Unless you're not on team 8...

 

[Nutterbuster]

View attachment 17658

Sounds too good to be true, right?

Alabama recently started the Special Opportunity Area hunt program. Basically, they have been buying small, but prime chunks of land that come up for sale. Parcels too small to turn into WMAs. The one I'm hunting used to be owned by Mossy Oak Incorporated, and has been QDMA managed for decades. To keep pressure down, you draw to have a 3 day weekend to hunt the area, and you're the only person allowed on your couple of hundred acre parcel that weekend.

Anyone with a bama license can enter the drawing. I lucked right the heck out and got drawn for some of the best hunting the state has to offer.

 

[fbwguy]

Sounds too good to be true, right?

Alabama recently started the Special Opportunity Area hunt program. Basically, they have been buying small, but prime chunks of land that come up for sale. Parcels too small to turn into WMAs. The one I'm hunting used to be owned by Mossy Oak Incorporated, and has been QDMA managed for decades. To keep pressure down, you draw to have a 3 day weekend to hunt the area, and you're the only person allowed on your couple of hundred acre parcel that weekend.

Anyone with a bama license can enter the drawing. I lucked right the heck out and got drawn for some of the best hunting the state has to offer.

That’s sweet! Wish we had that here

 

[Nutterbuster]

That’s sweet! Wish we had that here

I'm honestly not a really huge fan of the program. I suspect they'll start charging for it, and I believe public land should be open access. They've been losing WMA acreage, and I think this (eventually) more profitable system will phase out the ridiculously good deal or current WMAs are.

Alabama has had it pretty good. They're slowly screwing it up in the name of providing better buck options. 3 buck annual limit, SOAs, and now a $15 baiting privilege license. I liked the old "2 deer a day, hunt'em how you can, beat of luck to ya" approach. I look at what hunting looks like in Europe and what it's turning into in big buck states. Not exactly an everyman sport anymore, if you k ow what I mean. I think we're heading that way.

But, since I got outvoted, might as well pit in for the drawing, right? That deer won't mean as much as the ones I've killed that had the whole county after them, but it'll score the same in the contest!

 

[EricS]

I wanted to go on that trip but, I couldn't make it work. I do plan on going to the one the next weekend to this place. https://oakcreekwhitetailranch.com/photo-gallery/

I figure we can only turn in one buck anyway. You going to be on this hunt to?

I just don’t do high fence. Sure they may bottle feed the bucks and pet them at the other place but they didn’t mention fence.

@Nutterbuster we have trophy managed hunts on public land in Georgia also. Most of those areas are draw only for rifle but any can show up during bow season. Most of them have a 15”spread minimum. There are a lot of barely legal bucks shot and they get pounded during archery season but still make an awesome rut hunt.

 

[fbwguy]

I'm honestly not a really huge fan of the program. I suspect they'll start charging for it, and I believe public land should be open access. They've been losing WMA acreage, and I think this (eventually) more profitable system will phase out the ridiculously good deal or current WMAs are.

Alabama has had it pretty good. They're slowly screwing it up in the name of providing better buck options. 3 buck annual limit, SOAs, and now a $15 baiting privilege license. I liked the old "2 deer a day, hunt'em how you can, beat of luck to ya" approach. I look at what hunting looks like in Europe and what it's turning into in big buck states. Not exactly an everyman sport anymore, if you k ow what I mean. I think we're heading that way.

But, since I got outvoted, might as well pit in for the drawing, right? That deer won't mean as much as the ones I've killed that had the whole county after them, but it'll score the same in the contest!

In Arkansas we have several WMAs that are pay to play. Jack Mountain WMA is a place I hunt every year with a group of friends. It’s $40 for the access permit. I don’t care for the fact it cost extra but the pressure on the area is less due to the additional cost. Good deer and less hunters, but it comes with a cost

 

[Wirrex]

I'm honestly not a really huge fan of the program. I suspect they'll start charging for it, and I believe public land should be open access. They've been losing WMA acreage, and I think this (eventually) more profitable system will phase out the ridiculously good deal or current WMAs are.

Alabama has had it pretty good. They're slowly screwing it up in the name of providing better buck options. 3 buck annual limit, SOAs, and now a $15 baiting privilege license. I liked the old "2 deer a day, hunt'em how you can, beat of luck to ya" approach. I look at what hunting looks like in Europe and what it's turning into in big buck states. Not exactly an everyman sport anymore, if you k ow what I mean. I think we're heading that way.

But, since I got outvoted, might as well pit in for the drawing, right? That deer won't mean as much as the ones I've killed that had the whole county after them, but it'll score the same in the contest!

I totally agree with you! I went to Germany a couple years ago. Stands everywhere! Whose hunting them, I asked. Basically only the wealthy, I was told. Idk how true that is but I see our system headed that direction fast. Take a look at western states and how all their policies are changing. It’s ugly for the public land hunter.

Anyway, I’ll be sitting private tonight lol.

 

[Nutterbuster]

I just don’t do high fence. Sure they may bottle feed the bucks and pet them at the other place but they didn’t mention fence.

@Nutterbuster we have trophy managed hunts on public land in Georgia also. Most of those areas are draw only for rifle but any can show up during bow season. Most of them have a 15”spread minimum. There are a lot of barely legal bucks shot and they get pounded during archery season but still make an awesome rut hunt.

I will definitely shoot the first legal buck I see. They encourage you to shoot does and hogs, but screw that. I plan on bringing the JX3 and sitting dark to dark all 3 days if necessary. I booked a room with a local outfitter who is 5 minutes from the check in gate. I go up for my designated scouting day next weekend. I'm already aerial scouting it, but I plan on walking the whole thing and taking lots of pics and video to review between then and the hunt.

 

[EricS]

Maybe they won’t go that route in Alabama. Georgia’s kind of had the same setup for years. Some properties are managed for quality while others are managed for opportunity. Georgia is still adding land and that’s great. There has been some sold. They do less actual management of the land than they used to. Basically they manage for timber production. About the only thing they do for management of the deer herd is by changing the days available to hunt and by requiring some areas to require you to draw for the opportunity. Some of the federal land requires an extra cost to hunt but that’s it.

 

[Nutterbuster]

They do less actual management of the land than they used to. Basically they manage for timber production.

Yep. I listened to a podcast with the DCNR director, and most of their land is made available through "in kind" agreements where they manage the property in exchange for rights to use it for hunting. They do a pretty "meh" job overall. If I was a landowner, I'd probably end up thinking "***?" at some point and selling/leasing to someone else too.

They barely keep the roads up at my local WMA. Forget actually manning check in stations or planting plots. Shoot, the area map still lists the boat ramp by my house as a check in station, and it's been closed down for repairs for 3 years!

Of course, I can always say I'm on my way to the check in station with my deer.

 

[Adrena123]

Headed to public after work team 8....time to get one!