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Pressured public strategies

e1han

e1han

Member
Joined
Jul 4, 2019
Messages
99
Location
SE Michigan
Was talking to some guys at my local archery shop about strategies to get onto deer on pressured public lands. One of the guys was talking about how the deer are often quite aware of when you come and go, and can even pattern your movements around a time of day. He says often his approach is to get into a pattern of getting into the woods at the same time and leaving at the same time every day where he knows the deer are. After getting into this rhythm for a week or two, he'll sleep in and go out for a midday hunt. His philosophy is that the deer are smart enough to pattern you, and if you can surprise them in the woods, that's when you can land the nice older deer. I was interested to see some of your takes on hunting pressured land as it pertains to hunting from a saddle, and your ideas on catching deer off guard, or if you even disagree with a plan like that.
 
I found one of the best time to hunt public land is between 11:00 am and 2:00 pm. It seems that deer move alot around that time . That's when most hunters leave the woods.
 
during the rut, I would go out about 9 am and sit the rest of the day. killed some good bucks between 10:00 and 2:00.
 
Instead of wasting a week trying to get the deer to pattern you use a run and gun approach to catch them off guard. Hang and hunt everyday and never hunt the same tree twice. The biggest problem with that guys approach (other than wasting a week of sits) is that it doesn’t account for the pressure from the other hunters. Stay mobile and figure the deer out.
 
Apex7 said:
I found one of the best time to hunt public land is between 11:00 am and 2:00 pm. It seems that deer move alot around that time . That's when most hunters leave the woods.
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Seems like a common thread from a lot of guys is the midday hunts are often when most people are successful.
 
Rangermatthews said:
Instead of wasting a week trying to get the deer to pattern you use a run and gun approach to catch them off guard. Hang and hunt everyday and never hunt the same tree twice. The biggest problem with that guys approach (other than wasting a week of sits) is that it doesn’t account for the pressure from the other hunters. Stay mobile and figure the deer out.
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That's mostly what I had been doing this last year and found some success with it. Didn't hunt with a saddle last year so I'd often walk in, set up on the ground for an hour or so, and then move on to a different spot. It definitely helped me figure out which spots were good and more so where the deer weren't. I ended up stumbling into a lot of spots with great sign, but jumped more deer than I would have liked. I'm hoping with the saddle this year to hone in on some of the hotter areas, and extend my sits to 2-3 hours before moving. I am somewhat worried with too much movement I'll end up spooking more deer than I'd like or not giving a solid area enough time for anything to walk by.
 
Run and gun, spend weeks between same area twice, save your best trees for day 1 and the rut. Hunt where others dont, hunt when others dont. I love hunting in the rain, it feels like movement, sound, and smell sensory overload for deer, and you usually don't see other hunters.



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e1han said:
Seems like a common thread from a lot of guys is the midday hunts are often when most people are successful.
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I have seen the biggest numbers of deer between 10-2, and about the same number an hour or less before dark.
 
If you watch The Hunting Public they have found success setting up close to points of entry on public land. Almost like the Bucks are bedded close to there watching hunters walk in on the main trails
 
e1han said:
That's mostly what I had been doing this last year and found some success with it. Didn't hunt with a saddle last year so I'd often walk in, set up on the ground for an hour or so, and then move on to a different spot. It definitely helped me figure out which spots were good and more so where the deer weren't. I ended up stumbling into a lot of spots with great sign, but jumped more deer than I would have liked. I'm hoping with the saddle this year to hone in on some of the hotter areas, and extend my sits to 2-3 hours before moving. I am somewhat worried with too much movement I'll end up spooking more deer than I'd like or not giving a solid area enough time for anything to walk by.
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Did you hunt IN MY BODY for the last three seasons?! Seriously, this is exactly how I have been doing things, and hope to do things, almost to the T. I would often still-hunt until getting to a decent place to set my LW stand at the base of a tree, put out a 2D decoy, stealthily go to a spot a few hundred yards away and change the decoy position, maybe see a deer or turkey and get a drawback opportunity or a cool encounter, maybe move again, maybe jump about 1000 deer and get sneezed at by pissed mamas, maybe take a poke at an unwary squirrel or cottontail, maybe hang the LW high up in a new spot, and before I knew it, I feel like I’ve learned waaaaaaay more about hunting than I have from “the pros”. I have had some nice shot opportunities, some amazing encounters with wildlife and some weird/cool/get-away-from-me/I-wanna-hunt-like-him encounters with other hunters, and I am awaiting my saddle shipment with what I feel is the piss and vinegar I need to get a full freezer this year. It’s been really helpful to move around, but also to move around and learn how to become more mobile and efficient with my gear and my wind and my trails.
 
Rangermatthews said:
Instead of wasting a week trying to get the deer to pattern you use a run and gun approach to catch them off guard. Hang and hunt everyday and never hunt the same tree twice. The biggest problem with that guys approach (other than wasting a week of sits) is that it doesn’t account for the pressure from the other hunters. Stay mobile and figure the deer out.
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I feel like “the old timer”, we’ll call him, in the original post was probably hunting a very small number of pre-set stands or trees, places that he never wants to leave because he’s comfortable with it, then goes to a place he’s less comfortable with after the deer avoid him for a week per his design.
 
If you are in Wisconsin just stay out of the public land. Horrible horrible hunting! :smirk::D Otherwise good advice above. Lol
 
Weldabeast said:
I biggest buck I've seen on public land was at around 2 in the afternoon
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Yupp. Last year I filled a tag on 11/3 but had scheduled days off later in the month. I kept them so I could keep after it and bounce around a bunch of different spots and do some scouting. I got to a new piece around 1:45 and was walking in when I kicked up a doe. I hung out there for a while just checking out why she was bedded there and getting the lay of the land. Started to walk a little deeper and I looked up and a GIANT was walking right at me. It was 2pm on the dot and he was walking out in the wide open in this little piece of secluded public right down this strip of grassy field next to a stream. I knocked an arrow, spun around behind a bush, and drew in one go. He was at 5 freakin yards but I hadn't settled the pin and he was about to get into heavy cover so I tried to stop him. He was gone before I could settle. I'll be back there this year for an all day sit hoping to put an end to the nightmares lol.
 
BOWHUNTER14 said:
If you watch The Hunting Public they have found success setting up close to points of entry on public land. Almost like the Bucks are bedded close to there watching hunters walk in on the main trails
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There's this one spot I hunt where I walk in on train tracks (I know, not supposed to) and there's a ditch off to the right of it with a thin strip of shrubbery in the ditch. Those bushes used to look like nothing to me but I couldn't tell you how many times I've busted deer out of them walking in and out. It seems the only reason they jump out of there now is because they see me looking for them in there but I'd be willing to bet they've been in there from the time I've started hunting the property and they just stay hunkered down. In fact, the last time I walked out of there I was just hurrying out trying to get back to my car and home to the wife when I realized I was passing that spot. I looked up just in time to see 2 eyes and 2 big ears staring at me from that hidey hole. I was walking quick enough that I was past the spot when my brain processed what I saw. I backed up to see if it was a buck and as soon as I did the deer took off. If I would have kept walking that deer would have laid right back down. That one little piece has opened my eyes big time to how 99% of hunters overlook spots. It doesn't take deer much to hide, just a little depression in terrain, and some cover and you've got no idea they're there. It's shaded during the summer heat, they've got a lightening fast exit out either side when they're pressured, and they can monitor the easiest entry spot for people the entire day. They legit cannot be killed in that bed, it's a brilliant spot.

Another spot I just scouted for the first time this summer has parking right off the road. There's about 20 yards of thick crap you have to walk to before the woods begins. As soon as you enter the woods there's bedding everywhere. I'm sure the deer are watching that parking and if anyone parks there they're gone. That spot I'm confident I can take advantage of though.
 
Find the sign find the wind find the pattern get in an out quiet disturb as lil as possible. Go deep, beat the crowds. Go thick, I’ve seen some awesome spots right by the road people drive by an would over look. Boot leather, earn your trophy. Our hunt the next guy!
 
e1han said:
That's mostly what I had been doing this last year and found some success with it. Didn't hunt with a saddle last year so I'd often walk in, set up on the ground for an hour or so, and then move on to a different spot. It definitely helped me figure out which spots were good and more so where the deer weren't. I ended up stumbling into a lot of spots with great sign, but jumped more deer than I would have liked. I'm hoping with the saddle this year to hone in on some of the hotter areas, and extend my sits to 2-3 hours before moving. I am somewhat worried with too much movement I'll end up spooking more deer than I'd like or not giving a solid area enough time for anything to walk by.
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If you stay mobile and don't hunt the same tree twice (like someone said above) then don't worry too much about jumping deer now and then. If they spooked and got away, they know they're location allowed them to escape danger... they'll be back in that area sooner than you think (often hours later). Even a slight change of your location (20yds) can pay off.
 
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