I hit the woods this morning...again!

[Randall53]

I hit the woods this morning with the last drops of rain hitting the dirt road into my lease. Unloaded the 4 wheeler and drove to the first ledge below the top of the mountain. I saw nary a deer. About 11:30 I headed back to the truck for some lunch. I drove the 4 wheeler about 100 yards and saw 2 sets of tracks that were in the tracks of my ride in this morning ....I saw a few other tracks crossing the road on the 2 mile trek back to the truck. THEN, about 150 yards from where I parked the truck, and again in the tracks I made going IN....was 2 sets of doe tracks and 1 set of what I've always considered buck tracks. You know, spread wide at the front with dew claw marks at the back. ...!!! They wuz really moving around this morning but I was sitting in the wrong place I reckon. I'm taking tomorrow off since it's suppose to storm most of the day, but will be back at it Thursday!! It seems the deer are running from thicket to thicket on top. I guess I'll just have to set up in the thickets and hope one comes by. 

[FJCrusing]

I don't suppose your 4 wheeler is making enough noise to cause them to run off when they hear it?  I assume your stand is probably too far to walk to?  I used to be on a 3000 acre lease and didn't have much of a choice regarding the use of my 4 wheeler but I would try to drive in and park as far away as possible and then walk the rest of the way to minimize the noise.   Good luck on Thursday!  I won't be out until this Saturday and the forecast looks like rain.  I hunted 4 days straight last week.

[Randall53]

11 minutes ago, FJCrusing said:

I don't suppose your 4 wheeler is making enough noise to cause them to run off when they hear it?  I assume your stand is probably too far to walk to?  I used to be on a 3000 acre lease and didn't have much of a choice regarding the use of my 4 wheeler but I would try to drive in and park as far away as possible and then walk the rest of the way to minimize the noise.   Good luck on Thursday!  I won't be out until this Saturday and the forecast looks like rain.  I hunted 4 days straight last week.

Yep. It's right at 2 miles along a rough and rutted mountain logging road. Too far for my 63 year old body with 3 knee surgeries, 2 shoulder surgeries and 2 ankle surgeries....LOL.  I'm hunting for my enjoyment and because I love being out there, really. A deer would be a bonus! I did get one on muzzleloader and have 40lbs of meat in the freezer. I also have a doe tag this year so I'm hoping for 1 or 2 more before January 8th.

[FJCrusing]

13 minutes ago, Randall53 said:

Yep. It's right at 2 miles along a rough and rutted mountain logging road. Too far for my 63 year old body with 3 knee surgeries, 2 shoulder surgeries and 2 ankle surgeries....LOL.  I'm hunting for my enjoyment and because I love being out there, really. A deer would be a bonus! I did get one on muzzleloader and have 40lbs of meat in the freezer. I also have a doe tag this year so I'm hoping for 1 or 2 more before January 8th.

Makes sense.  Sounds like some rough trails.  I've taken two so far this season (out of state) and my freezer is pretty full.  Going to donate anymore that I take.  I'll probably hunt about 5 more times before I call it a season.  Good luck and hope you get a few more before the season ends.  I'm in unit L and does are 3 a day.  Kinda ridiculous but the property I am on is overrun with does so I can see why. 

[Randall53]

24 minutes ago, FJCrusing said:

Makes sense.  Sounds like some rough trails.  I've taken two so far this season (out of state) and my freezer is pretty full.  Going to donate anymore that I take.  I'll probably hunt about 5 more times before I call it a season.  Good luck and hope you get a few more before the season ends.  I'm in unit L and does are 3 a day.  Kinda ridiculous but the property I am on is overrun with does so I can see why. 

I'm on a mountain lease around 2000 acres in unit B. Some is pretty rough some not so much. There's lots of pine thickets and undergrowth but quite a bit of hardwood mixed in. The deer always end up in the thickets after the rut from all the hunting pressure. It'll get harder from now until Jan 8th. It seems they just run from thicket to thicket like rabbits. I wish could get on a lease in the valley, or a farm somewhere but they are hard to find. But, like I said, I'm out there because I love it and another deer will be another bonus.

[FJCrusing]

2 minutes ago, Randall53 said:

I'm on a mountain lease around 2000 acres in unit B. Some is pretty rough some not so much. There's lots of pine thickets and undergrowth but quite a bit of hardwood mixed in. The deer always end up in the thickets after the rut from all the hunting pressure. It'll get harder from now until Jan 8th. It seems they just run from thicket to thicket like rabbits. I wish could get on a lease in the valley, or a farm somewhere but they are hard to find. But, like I said, I'm out there because I love it and another deer will be another bonus.

I hear ya.  They will definitely be locked down at this point between the rut and hunting pressure for the rest of the season.  I'll probably stay deep in the woods the last few weeks of the season instead of the open fields and edges.  I'm on 150 acres of farm land but it's partially wooded so it's a good mix.  It's more like a bypass of property that the deer use to get from one property to the next so we usually get them as they are passing through.   There is also a creek that runs around the property which makes it an attractive water source.  I missed a nice 8 point last week  (40-50yd shot) as my scope got bumped and I didn't realize it.  Couldn't hit the broad side of a barn.  I had re-adjust it and dial it back in again otherwise I probably would have called it a season after that.  At this point I just want to take my young son out a few times before the season is over.  He went with me once during archery season and said it was too warm and wanted to go when it got cold (didn't disagree with that and this was coming from a 5 year old).  Unit L private property also gets an extension between January 9th and the 13th for doe only on private property so depending on how it goes the next few weeks will I continue to hunt that last extra week. 

[Randall53]

Good luck to you and your son