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Main Boards => PowWow => Topic started by: Mike Bolin on January 01, 2012, 01:13:00 PM
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Don't know the reasons for sure, but this is the first season that I can remember that I have not had a shot! Now I'm not saying that I've not had other seasons that I haven't killed a deer, but I have not even had a deer in range/position to even draw the string. I figured to hit it hard this weekend as the season ends today, but I've been down with the flu or some kind bug since Friday evening.
Last winter was a tough one with lots of ice covered with snow late, so the winterkill could be a factor. Lots of trees and limbs down may have altered the travel patterns on neighboring properties. Could be some standing crops still available. The neighboring/adjacent properties are off limits for me to hunt (leased), but I do have permission to walk them after season, so I may be able to figure it out in the next few weeks.
My usual sightings amount to 6-20 deer per day, total for morning and evening during October. In November I have seen as many as 13 bucks (I keep a journal) on a morning set. I have seen a total of 2 bucks this entire season and a total of 21 deer from the stand! Neighbors say they have not seen the numbers of deer this year that they are accustomed to seeing and on one of the Indiana forums the majority of hunters say the deer sightings are down as well. Could be the herd is just on a down-turn.
Either way, I am feeling a bit better and am off work tomorrow, so I will go out and try to fill my fall turkey tag. Not whining, just baffled to what the heck is going on. Congrats to all of those who were successful this year and remember, spring turkey is just around the corner!
Mike
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I can relate brother. I once laid in the hosiptal fighting cancer, taking chemo, and trying to survive the effects of it before, durning, and after all of hunting season. So now I just Praise the Lord everyday I get up, much less getting to go hunting.
Good luck and I would quess their was some food source the deer were keying on all season long that kept them from their normal haunts. God Bless and kick that bug.
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Mike,
I can feel your pain. We had our worst season ever this year as well. I only saw four deer in bow season however I did manage to get a nice buck. I thought it may have been a local thing. So far this winter has been mild so that should help.
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Our deer sightings were down this year also. Too many tags available as far as I'm concerned. Would like to see a 1 buck 1 doe limit with mandatory check in to see if it would help/make a difference.
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Sorry to hear about the lack of deer sightings. I know that not even seeing deer from the stand over repeated trips can be real discouraging. But, that's what makes it so rewarding when your plans seem to come together.
I think we all have those feast or famine times. If not, and you always see lots of deer, or you always shoot your deer, it can loose it's luster and the real reward is gone.
If you hang in there, they will come..... and it will be worth it all over again! Next year, deer will probably over-run your stand.
Good luck with the turkeys
WoodsyDave
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Here in North Texas the record heat and drought this year hurt our place.I didnt see alot of our older deer this season on stand or on trail pictures.I dont think they made it though the summer.
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I know it's just deer hunting....not life or death. I am a happy person and I thank God for every day! I figure if I wake up, it's a good day!
This has just been a really weird/slow season and there has to be a reason behind it. Sound like I'm not the only one with this problem though!
Mike
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Mike-as you know there are many ways to measure success and you seem positive enough to realize that because I bet you had some successes! I've didn't score yet this year with my bow here in Michigan but I do have one more hunt tonight!
Good luck with the turkeys!
Kenny :bigsmyl:
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I average seeing 3 deer per year,total. Last shot I had was in the early 70's, 71' I think. Your plight is actually better than my average season......I guess I don't know what to say!
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Mike, you're not the only one. I only managed to get out 5 times this year, but a couple of my buddies went out quite a bit and they didn't see even close to the amount of deer that we all saw years prior. It was a tough winter no doubt, but I think the DNR is getting their wish and the doe population has had a large dent put in it.
In my 5 sits I saw 11 deer total 2 of which were spikes and 3 were racked bucks. I'm not complaining as I was lucky to get a nice doe the 2nd day and nearly a nice 8 if he'd taken 2 more steps!
I also believe the weather this fall has been the worst I can remember having with high temps, wind, and rain prevalent from the end of October until today! I believe that also has a lot to do with it.
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The same thing is happening here in IA. The larger doe harvest pushed by the DNR is resulting in a smaller herd. I had a very bad year last year on deer sightings. I have to work a lot harder to see the deer now than I did 5 years ago.
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Same thing happened here in Northcentral Montana. Seriously. Blue Tongue went through the region and wiped out a sizeable chunk of the local white tail population.
Throw in two of the worst winters in a row in last 20 years, unmanageable numbers of coyotes(I say this because there were a few days I seen more coyotes than deer) and other factors(I assume) and our region had the lowest white tail numbers ever. Although, the muleys seem to be doing well.
The coyote situation is the most depressing factor. We had our family dog killed by three of them the third week in November. No one traps them, nor does anyone really shoot them. I have been doing a litte reading on the subject of trapping, only to surprisingly find that "In order to reduce the coyotes in number, 70% of the population must be reduced for five years in a row". With that being said and done, things look a tad depressing.
Overall, I do hope that our white tail numbers go up in the next few years.
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EHD gets most of the blame for Whitetail population demise. EHD rarely hits Muleys.
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Mike, my worst too. When I could hunt I saw next to nothing--fewest deer sightings in years, but I tore a cartilage in my knee and just couldn't get out there and walk and get in the woods since--hurts too bad. I couldn't even get an appointment with an orthopedist until Jan. 13! Hope next year is better for both of us. The fire just died down when the knee went south.
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I sat over 80 hours in 2 stands early season and didn't see a deer. These spots were usual good for 10 deer a day last year. After that I put my climber on my back and decided to find some. I went to ridge tops with nuts dropping and was back in the deer right away. I ended up with 3 and one was a nice buck.
Between killing those deer in the same area I went back to my usual go-to spots and saw a total of 5. Where I hunt is 95% big woods and public. Food and pressure change things every year. The deer are there but 200 yards can make the difference in a great season or crap.
Get out in the snow and atleast see how many you have in the area. Good luck next year!
Rob
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If it could go wrong for me this year it has.Been working a lot lately and have not been able to get to the woods.Get 3 days off for New Years and have the creeping crud and cant quit coughing and sneezing so just staying in the recliner
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Coyotes are a major factor in some of the areas I hunt. I didn't see a single deer in the woods this year, although I only went 3 times all season. I did see one Coyote and would have taken a shot at it had it not been walking through a thicket.
Bill
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My son, who is also my hunting partner, left to Wyoming for a job before season and so we both turned our tags in for a refund. Didn't get out once this year. Those who hunted had a better time than I did.
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I got skunked this year also, I didn't see a single deer. I did see a moose go figure. The deer population in western MA is way down as far as I can tell. This is also my second year in a row that I didn't draw a doe tag.
It's very discouraging deer hunting in mass, shot opportunities are few and far between. You really have to just love being outdoors enjoying the fresh air.
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It was tough in our area this year wasn't it? Warmest and windiest season I can remember. It seemed every time I was out the wind was whipping like crazy. I got lucky and put a few in the freezer but my sightings were way down as well, but I wasn't near as picky as what I usually am
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Very poor season for me too. The only shot opportunity I had was on a fawn and I just couldn't bring myself to shoot one that was so small it still had the remnants of spots.
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I feel you also. I had not gotten out due to work, and the last half of the season due to a back injury. I hope I can make up for it next year.
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Pretty rough around here as well. My deer sightings are way down and this is the first season I can remember where I haven't even come across another hunter's gutpile.
Weird but that's why it's hunting rather than shopping.
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In away glad to hear I wasn't the only one having a bad year. In Kansas at least for me and a bunch that I know we all had a difficult time seeing or getting a deer. At one point went 14 sits without seeing a deer of any kind. Maybe next year will be better. Never had a year like this before...
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The high heat temperatures and year long drought made for a very bad bowhunting season where I hunt in Texas.
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5 this year. I had 11 last year and 14 the year before that but I spent much less time in the woods this year.
Maryland is really overrun with deer. We are allowed unlimited does in the suburban archery zone.
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I didn't get to hunt as much as I would have liked. I think I got out five or six times and only seen three deer. One good buck, one scrubby buck and a doe. Probably the worst season I've had. At least we got to spend some time in the woods. Better luck next year!
Jason
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Same here Mike, our game and fish say we have more deer than ever, i think thats way wrong, first year in a long time i spent multiple days without seeing anything at all. The texas guys have stated the heat and drought, we had the same, it hit 116 here a couple days with a very long drought and days over 100, but ya think yad find a carcass now and then, i havent. as far as being nocturnal, i am not seeing the tracks and general sign this year either. dunno its like they vanished
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Saw very few this year where I hunt and no chance for a shot.
From talking to other guys in my area they didn't see much either. Not seeing any along the roads either...
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Makes me feel a bit better....at least it's not just me. Tough season in a lot of places it seems. Mike
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I had a poor season as well. I saw 120 does 59 bucks, only 4 were over my 140" minimum. That may not sound too bad but I had 326 hours in stand. Since 2002 I have averaged seeing at least a deer per hour every year with the exception of 2005. Which was very similiar to this year weather wise. For the first time in 46 years my Dad didn't see a buck during gun season and I am sure he had well over 100 hours in stand.
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It seems some of the Indiana hunters on up north had a good season, at least from what I've read. Feelin' a bit better today so I went out to try and scare up a turkey. Wind was howling so I headed to a sheltered area with an open flat..........nothin'! Shot a couple of stumps and came back to the house. Cold, windy but still a good time. Mike
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Mike
Its not just Indiana I live about an hour south of you .Its cold and windy here also but the last two years down here have been the worst I've seen in 25 yrs.DNR tries to say number of kills are the same or better but I think they say that to keep the sell of tags up not near the gun shots in any gun season we have.That tells me no one is seeing the deer.
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How late does the fall turkey season run?
~Bona
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Kevin-I hear ya on the gun season! We can bowhunt though the gun season, which is too long. I always count the number of gunshots I hear on opening morning. Several hundred acres of woods/farm ground around me and I usually hear at least 100-125 shots by noon. 4 years ago I counted 211 shots by noon! This year I counted only 37 shots on opening day, both morning and afternoon and only 23 on the second day! I am anxious to hear what the DNR comes up with for our total kill this year.
Bona, turkey goes out on 1/7/12. Good luck! Mike
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Mike, it ain't just you here in IN! I live in Putnam county and we are locally probably at 30-40% of the deer population we had in '07. The EHD hit in '08 and hit us pretty hard right here, but the (virtually) unlimited antlerless tags are way worse (we are an 8 bonus county now). They have hammered the crap out of the deer in the gun season in '08, '09, and 10 around me - and I really saw the effect this year. I goofed up and shot a 2 1/2 yr old buck in late October, but held completely off on the does this year. Behind my house I put out some food plots, and usually (last 8-9 years) have around a dozen antlerless deer and 6-8 bucks using regularly, this year there were 2 does and 3 fawns and a spike and 1 1/2 yr old 6 point. The neighbor shot the 6 point on opening of shotgun season next door.
My big fear is that with the VERY HIGH kill on US40 this year due to detours for RT70 road construction all fall (6 deer hit near my house compared to the usual 1-2 roadkills) the DNR will hammer even harder because of the "high population".
I used to pass up 20+ bucks a season around here, now its more like 6. I think the we are just reaping what the DNR has sown.
Ryan
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I ended up seeing about the same deer numbers but very little in the way of bucks that had any size or age to them. Did have some nice ones on trail camera though. I did have two close encounters in November but they wouldn't cooperate. I saw very little in December. I am it was due to all the warm weather we had.
I actually saw more deer the year that EHD hit and the year after than I have seen the last two years. We have three guys that hunt the property directly south of our farm that really hammers the does. Not near the amount of shooting this year. Hopefully they are figuring it out but probably not. They just started a timber cut in there in the last couple weeks. Hopefully they will be able to hide a little better. We planted 25 acres of CRP this past spring too. That should help with the hiding places.
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Sounds like the norm for us Indiana hunters. I did not see a single doe this entire season while hunting. I only saw one buck. Very odd season. I still enjoyed being in the woods and spending time with my son in the stand.
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And I thought it was just me. I expect things to get worse with the changes coming next season.
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I'll be waiting for the DNR postings of deer taken this year in Ohio as well. I haven't talked to a single hunter who has seen as many deer as in years past. Last year was just as bad.
Joe
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Turkey and deer were both off for me this year. It is rare that I do not get 2-3 birds every year (we get 5 tags in SC) and I did not hear a single gobble all season. Deer hunting was pretty much the same...only had a single doe come in all year so far a she got chased off by a buck before I got a shot off. Who knows?
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I too feel your pain. I didn't even come close to getting a shot this year. Didn't see one deer after the 3rd week in Oct. and I hunt on my own property at least 2 afternoons/week plus the weekend. Depressing to say the least.
We had the drought and forest fires to contend with in 2011 and once the rain did come in late Aug. the oaks put on a bumper crop of acorns. The pin oaks are still falling so the deer haven't the need to forage from my food plots and feeders. I was getting about 75-100 trail camera pics/day in June - Aug. but now I only get about 6/day (or should I say night) as not one pic is in daylight hours.
Hopefully 2012 will be a better year all around.
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I didn't get a shot either this year, the deer population is way down here but the game and fish has the answer. Open doe season with guns for a month. Then add 3 weeks of dog hunting. finishing off with 2 weeks of either sex primative weapon.
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I talked to a very big farmer Sunday he farms both Ind.and Ill.and he told me he hasn't had near the crop damage the last two years as he has in the past.Boys for a farmer to say those words that tells me they are simply not out there.
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Same here, 2 full months in the woods, 3 deer within range. Luckily for me, 3 deer in the freezer as well. Toughest season in a long time. Trail cameras, same story. I blame it on the lack of mast this year. Not an acorn on our 125 acres of woods. Strange to not see deer here, especially since most doe had twins last spring.
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I feel your pain. Between hunting new property for the first time this year and the Iowa heat during the rut (two of my many excuses) I only had two deer within range of my bow all season and I hunted my heart out.
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Worst day of hunting still better than the best day of work. ;)
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I saw as much sign as ever in Southern Indiana but the weather sucked pretty much the whole time. My brother was near a hot doe one morning and had 13 different bucks walk by. I think the deer are still there just tough hunting this year.
Parke County was as populated as ever where I hunt. I saw deer every time out. For me it was just hot and windy almost every time out. I hunted Mississinew this weekend and the sign was promising there too although I only saw one deer.
It will be very interesting to see what the harvest is.
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What stujay said x10!
I went out the last evening of the season. 50 mph wind gusts and all. Three showed up at 200 yds. and a small buck passed by at 30-35 yds at last light....the night before.
The last night...0. The wind knocked me off balance once. I had forgotten to put on my Rivers West jacket. I had a thin, long sleeved shirt a wool sweater and my ghillie suit on. My home made wool neck gaiter saved my life. I thought my fingers were going to break off though. STILL better than my best day at work!!!