A Strategy for Public-Land Bucks

Cal Sportsman ^ | 11/25/2015 | C Cocoles

[w1n1]

Doing some additional homework and traveling the extra distance can often yield private-land results to public-land whitetail hunters

Hunting public land can be very frustrating when it comes to deer hunting. It's difficult to be cruising social media and see private-land hunters talk about how many deer they saw during a recent hunt. On public land, you're sometimes lucky to even see a deer over a week's period of time.

With all the frustrations and challenges, it is not impossible to harvest a buck on public land. In fact, I've had opportunities to take a legal buck every season for the last four years. Out of those four opportunities, I've successfully harvested two. This may sound like public-land hunting is easy, but it's not.

Recently, I climbed into my stand on public land, eager for what I thought would be an awesome sit due to upcoming rut. Up to this point, I hadn't seen more than a couple deer on a handful of public-land hunts this year in Missouri.

Just before daybreak, the woods exploded with deer crashing and grunting. Two different waves of deer, to be exact. But as dawn broke, so did the action. No deer activity at all through lunchtime; the woods died off completely.

What happened?

Just the ups and downs of public-land hunting. If I would have been 250 to 300 yards to the south, I probably would have caught the deer during shooting hours. Just as easy, during my upcoming hunts they could be under my stand.

First off, you got to get away from the crowds. Pulling out a good topography and aerial map will give you an idea on distances from parking areas. The further you are from these areas, the harder it is on you, but it's just as hard on other hunters. If you're willing to work harder than other hunters and go the extra distance, the less hunting pressure your area will get, which will help your odds.

Studying these maps also will show natural pinches, funnels, feeding and bedding areas. Having target areas in mind before you make the long trek will cut down on scouting time. Read the rest of the story here. What are some of your experiences on this?

[Seruzawa]

F***ing California. Should have known. No problem with deer on BLM land in Utah, Wyoming, Idaho....

[SeeSharp]

On public land, you're sometimes lucky to even see a deer over a week's period of time.

Tragedy of the commons

[gundog]

Proximity to parking means lots of dog walkers in nearby public land.I know of a doe that hangs on the far side of a dune, right next to where people park. I swear she knows how many people and dogs are there at a given time. One guy was throwing a ball for his lab when I stepped out with a rifle. He said he’d walked dogs there for 20 years and never seen a deer. Lots of tracks, but no deer. I did a quick scan a spotted a doe about 150 yards away. I trotted to a tree to steady the rifle, but she bolted. Would love to have rolled her down the dune in front of him.