I'm hunting NW Jersey and have had a heck of a time locating deer, on both public and private land. There are acorns all over the place. Don't remember when I saw so many. Wondering if others in the northeast are experiencing the same problem. I did go out today and put up a new stand at the edge of a cornfield and while securing the stand heard things falling about twenty feet behind the stand. Well, lawdy, lawdy, it was a huge white oak and it was raining acorns. The white oaks aren't as productive as the red and chestnut this year but when one is found, it can be gold. The deer seem to prefer them to the other varieties. Am I accurate in my assessment or just a plain lousy hunter? Don't hold back. I have thick skin. :biglaugh:
My oak stands are worthless this year due to a LACK of acorns. Wish I had your problem! We are having to try to intercept them heading to the fields and with the fickle wind are having the most difficulty in years.
When there have been lots of hard mast we have been successful looking for mature white oaks. Right now our deer are hitting persimmons, apples and grasses.
Good luck!
Our acorn are going nuts here. Seems like every tree is dropping. I don't see it as a problem but yeah, you cannot just pick one for sure.
Heck, I don't think my deer have to move more than 10 Yds to get food, shelter and water, they are just laying in the thick stuff letting acorn drop into their mouth lol
We are going to have a bumper crop this year also.
I find if you walk enough, AND LOOK ENOUGH, the deer always pick out certain trees to eat the acorns while they leave the rest for later.
Don't necessarily know what causes one to be more appealing than another but it is always the case. Just pay attention to the sign and good luck.
It's been hard hunting since the acorns started dropping here in CT. The deer are moving but they are moving inconsistently.
BUT I will kill a deer this weekend with my new stalker wolverine. It's happening :archer2:
Dave, I live in North West N.J., like you said have never seen this many acorns, I have seen some deer and was able to connect, but not seeing the numbers, due to the acorns.
we have more acorns than Iv e ever seen here in CT
I walk to my stands on top of acorns, hardly ever touching the ground.
I can feel your pain, we had that problem in Carolina last season.
Acorns all over the place here as well. Deer are moving but not much since acorns are so abundant in my area making the hunting a bit tough.
I'm feeling your pain fnshtr. Nothing here either. Still was able to harpoon a big doe with the Super D though.
Just Googled why deer like whites over reds. Seems the whites have less tannin than reds. Tannin is bitter so the deer logically gravitate toward the whites.
Hey Scott. You and I are armed with the same weapon, a Stalker Wolverine. Mine is an FXT and 47# @28. Great bows. I'm also predicting success by this weekend.
Your just a lousy bowhunter :biglaugh:
Only kidding Dave...not sure if I'm going to make Jersey. Just brought the wife home today from her hip replacement surgery and the next 3 weeks I'll be nursing her at home so my bow hunting will be severely limited this fall.
Family first...killing deer second....I will be out behind my home and 1/2 mile from the house next week as she progresses. Don't shoot that albino or piebald...give me first dibs!!!
Acorns are so abundant here and falling like rain. Hard to pattern where deer might show up.
I had that problem here last year, acorns everywhere. It does make for tough hunting.
Some years or better than others. Like you said the White Oak is gold... If I may suggest putting fertilizer stakes around the Oak trees in the Spring time that you like to hunt in the Fall. By simply putting the fertilizer stakes around the drip line you will guarantee that the deer will wear out your tree. Good Luck!!!
I set up on public land in south NJ this afternoon...found a tree dropping tons of acorns and threw the climber up.....2 fat does came out to munch on them buuuutt I missed. They've been hard to pattern but I've been hanging by the spots with the freshest tracks. Very hit or miss so far.
Last year, the acorns were crazy down here. This year there are not many where I hunt, and the ones that are here seem to be scrawny!
I hate it when there are a lot of them!
Bisch
Lots of acorns here and no deer!
We have a ton as well. You just have to find the trees they seem to prefer over the others. They will eat them first then move on to others
Should have known you would say that Joe. I'm still laughing.
Sorry to hear about your wife. Hope she makes a speedy recovery. Sure hope you'll be able to make it to Mike's for a little spot and stalk. I promise I won't shoot that piebald.
Set your ambush points up around watering holes instead of the oak trees. Maybe a ton of acorns but, only so many water sources.
Quit hunting the Oaks.... Hunt the edges of bedding reas and or the funnels. Deer will cross the same areas in the same places. Just hunt for these spots,,,
Last year, I thought the amount of acorns I had in my front yard was just total insanity.....and of course it was no different in the woods....we got red oaks EVERYWHERE! Then, I couldn't imagine having a larger acorn crop. Well I swear, this year beats last year without question! They are out of control! If I continue to rake them off my nice front yard, Im probably not going to have any grass left.....from all the scratching with the rake.
As far as the deer go, I have a couple spots where they always seems to hang out, no matter what. These spots are also LOADED with acorns. I hunt these spots and see deer and as with last year, I don't suspect the acorns are going to keep them hung up so that they don't come into these spots.
I do wish I didn't have all the acorns around the house though :rolleyes:
Yup, Long Island is loaded with acorns too. The lack of rain we are having makes the oaks produce. I'd rather have too many though than not enough. When there aren't any the deer stay in the corn or bed by farms that I don't have permission to hunt.
Its been spotty in my area (western NC). Last year we had acorns covering the ground. This year they only seem to be dropping from red oaks around 3700 ft in elevation. I found a good stand of oaks that were dropping but the deer weren't hitting them at all.
I have the "problem" of too much public land for the deer to roam. We have low deer numbers, <15 per sq mile, and millions upon millions of acres of undisturbed forest. Yesterday I switched my strategy to hunting bedding areas and thicker stuff leading out of them and have started seeing more deer. Beds are tough to hunt but you should have much higher chance of seeing them.
Plenty of acorns back where I hunt..just not the right kind. This is the first yr I can remember around here that I haven't found the first White Oak acorn.
Quiet a few Reds and that's what the deer are eating.
Sure would like to find a few White Oaks..they'd be hot.
no deer is truly safe when you're in the woods dave!!stay after them!!---we are going to miss joe--but rumor has it he's covered up with deer over there in highland!!
Last year was the biggest acorn crop I have ever seen. We average killing 13 deer a year on my lease, last year we killed 3.
(http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll199/montgomeryforge/Mobile%20Uploads/20150207_081739_zpsgleilwoc.jpg) (http://s288.photobucket.com/user/montgomeryforge/media/Mobile%20Uploads/20150207_081739_zpsgleilwoc.jpg.html)
this is what it was still like in February.
This year, no acorns and we have already killed 5.
Chris
We have alot where I am. Several metal roofs on my street and I hear 'pop' 'pop' all day.
I had the fortune of hunting my nieces husbands place in north eastern Oklahoma. It was loaded with acorn like this. It would be much easier finding sign after a little while though.
QuoteOriginally posted by John3:
Quit hunting the Oaks.... Hunt the edges of bedding reas and or the funnels. Deer will cross the same areas in the same places. Just hunt for these spots,,,
I am going to have to agree with John. We have been without rain here where I live in NE Texas since June. Before that we had record amounts of rain early in the year. Consequently, we don't have any acorns this year. I was hunting last weekend in an oak grove that I have traditionally hunted in the past, when I noticed about 4 does feeding along a fence line that ran from some real thick paper company land, all the way up to a county road that has a thick stand of timber on the other side. They were about 100 yards away with no good way to approach them, without alerting them to my presence. The deer were browsing on the leaves of the small bushes that were growing on the fence line. Later that morning after they left the area to go bed down for the day, I went to investigate. Turns out, that fence line is the route that they use between bedding areas. I know where I will be hunting now. :thumbsup:
I've never seen so many acorns at least that I can remember. Kind of afraid what it's going to do for the tick population. They are already bad here.
It amazes me how quickly a deer will change its pattern due to a changing food source. Keep after them Dave, good luck.
Yep, acorns are littering floor like someone took a truck and spread a layer on purpose...everywhere.