Monday, October 1st is the opener for deer here in Iowa! This will be my 45th season taking the field and I don't know if I've ever been more excited!
Ordinarily, I put my treestands up about three weeks before season starts. This year I put them up in July. I've been blessed to have the same farm to hunt all by myself for the past 30 years, and saw a bunch of big bucks last year. Looking back through my field notes, I saw that I had five different large bucks at various times within twenty-five yards of my stands. None of these materialized into a shot, and maybe that's why I'm so excited about this year.
So....good luck to all of you and have a great season!
Bernie Bjorklund
NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin
I have stands up and ready to go. My daughter shot a huge buck open day of youth season and filled her antlerless tag as well, but the freezer still has some room. I have high hopes of shooting a nice doe Monday evening after work.
Hunt safe and good luck everyone!
Thanks and good luck, Bernie! I won't get a chance to hunt until the weekend most likely, but I'm okay with that. My cousin and I haven't even thought about putting up stands yet. We don't hit our woods too hard until late October or early November, so there is plenty of time. We generally know where are stands will be though, so there is no rush.
My boys have stands up where they live over in Clinton County. I helped them do some clearing of shooting lanes last weekend. I plan to hunt with them next weekend and hope to fill my doe tag.
I'm subbing at Nora Springs Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. Stop by and say howdy if you have some time and are in the area.
Russ
Good luck to all, I'm looking forward to some Iowa pictures.
-Jay
Go get 'em guys!
I had all my stands and ambush spots ready to go.....then EHD. We have deer piled high dead in Warren Co. I do not know if I can hunt his year. When you see piles dying each week it makes you sick. My place has been hit way less than most. You go out each week to hike the creeks and ponds and just pray. We are maybe a week away from a good frost to slow this down.
I will sit my stands and still hunt. Just do not plan to shoot much at all this season. Might need to butcher the goats for meat ;)
First time in years I will not even sit untill mid Oct.
Good luck to you all!
How is everyone's season going?
Starting to see some rut action start. I was standing in my neighbor's yard talking arrows this weekend when a big boy ran a doe right through the back yard!
I have had many small bucks under me but no shooters yet. We are holding off on does this season because EHD hit our doe heard. I have never been a trophy hunter, so this season feels strange. I rejoice when I see a doe!
Good luck everyone!
I'm heading over to Red Oak on Thursday, super excited! From what I've been told, EHD hasn't been a problem where I'm going...crossing my fingers! I'll post over the weekend.
The rut is just starting to really get interesting in my area. I hadn't seen much chasing until the last few days. This next week will see a bunch of action I'm hoping. Good luck Bivyhunter on your trip to Red Oak!
Bernie Bjorklund
NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin
We had some EHD here in NW Iowa also. I have not seen as many deer this year, but still saw a fair number. I found a dead buck and a doe I assume died from EHD.
I'm working on filling a couple doe tags yet. I havent had as much time to be out hunting as I'd like between the honey-dos and working on a boat. I hope that this next weekend will start some hardcore treestand time for me!
I've seen some nice bucks, but nothing close enough yet. I haven't even had a chance at a doe yet. I've seen some smaller bucks running does and grunting. We've had EHD in our area in central Iowa. Found two dead bucks and 5 does.
I saw a real nice 165-170 a week from Saturday. Thankfully I haven't found any dead deer, and with as cold as it's been that will help. Good luck to everybody out hunting! I saw a nice 10 breeding a doe in the middle of a 200-250 acre corn field yesterday so they are definitely looking :thumbsup:
One place I hunt I have a blind made of sticks and branches, this week some knuckle head put a double wide ladder stand, IN MY BLIND. On another place, private land, we have another deviant causing problems. He told one of our party that he was the land owners best friend and claimed a bunch of tree stands were his, they are not. Almost every night at sundown he rides the entire farm at the tree edges with the radio blaring. He had no bowhunting items in his truck that my friend could see when he talked to him. He has sped out of the field every time I have tried to stop him. We have been finding deer that have been shot with shotgun loads. The deer have moved off the farm for the most part and are holed up about a mile away. The land owners do not have a clue who he is and said they do not approve of his actions. They are not around all of time and our trespasser seems to know that. We have three new warriors on the private land that drive to within 50 yards of their stands and they have put up about 6 tree stands each. they have trail cams everywhere and think that no one has the right to get near their stands. I hate how everyone around here puts out many tree stands to "claim" territory. I cannot keep a ground blind up on either private or public land, and have had wheelie boys tell me that tree stands mean that they have more claim than my natural material ground blinds. One more thing, I know where there are two 180 plus bucks. One of them crossed a road a couple of weeks back and about a dozen wheelie guys flocked in and lined the dirt field drives for the first couple hundred yards from the gravel road. I think a deer drive by early season inline powder shooters pushed him a couple miles off his turf. He is back on his home turf, but don't tell all those boys that are tree sitting within sight of their precious pickups. Iowa is truly a place of high adventure for those looking for deer hunting heaven and still stay within a short walk and in plain sight of their four wheel drive security blankets. Every year I think my opinion of Iowa hunters cannot get any lower. Two seasons back a guy flew out into the public land to chase the dominant buck off with his four drive that was heading straight to me. He stopped on the gravel that was about a half mile away and spotted the deer and charged in. He expressed his intentions when he stepped out and yelled "ha, ha your not gonna to get him, you f**** sob". Last year I got my tires slashed and then there is this year, and we yet again discover a new low, night time poaching and leaving deer lay full of buck shot.
So far I have not been run off of any land by anyone that I have given trad bows arrows to, there are quite a few of them out there, when that happens I will get angry and kick some butt. But I do not think it will happen, trad archers never behave like our trouble makers.
Pavan- what part of Iowa are you in? That sounds crazy nuts!!!
I was out today and saw plenty of 120-130 bucks with does. Still waiting for the big boys to start moving in my 8-2 time slot.
Must be nice to have the 120-130 buck not be the big guys.... :wavey: I hope the BIG GUYS come out to play.......best of luck!
quote:
Originally posted by ron w:
Must be nice to have the 120-130 buck not be the big guys.... :knothead: :D
Katie, we hunt O'Brien and Cherokee counties. And we have turned three people in to the game wardens just this past week. We are fed up with getting pushed around by knuckle draggers. Everything from poaching to baiting to harassment, hunting after hours, and my next target is a fellow that filled his tag three weeks ago and is still out hunting deer trying to fill his wife's tag, she does not hunt ever. We have been nice and polite they don't seem to respect that, now we will show them what we are like when we get crabby and we all have the game wardens cell numbers on speed dial.
Oh yes, one more thing I had a 170 or perhaps bigger buck pass by me at sunset, about ten yards too far out and too tense to risk a shot. I was as about as far from any road as I could get, I guess that is what deer carts are made for.
Bucks are moving well. I was in stand Friday morning and had 5 under me. One 8 point was a beauty but never gave me a perfect shot. I like to pratice hard shots in the range but not the woods. Mt cell rang at 8:05 to say I had a sick kiddo at school. Back to reality!
It is raining like mad now. Temps dropping from 75 yesterday to 25 by 2pm today. I would guess if the front leaves like they say it will, my area will be nuts tonight. Now if I can tough out 25 degree temps this early :scared: