Hunting Public Land

[Chris Dillard]

I only hunt fair chase deer on Public Hunting Land, I starting wondering how many other crossbow hunters only hunt Public Land

[sipsey]

Chris,

Have shot some nice deer on the "Forever Wild" land near here. Also used to hunt some of the "Corps" land with good luck.

[vixenmaster]

Since i bought my small place, i no longer hunt deer on public land

[Riflemanz]

Since i met a friend of a CEO of a corporation whose company owns 116 acres within city limits,i no longer hunt public land.I used to hunt an Army base called Fort McCoy!Great hunting there but a 3hr ride to do it.
I now have a 30 min ride.

[rayman]

Public land around here gets pretty crowded, but bow season is usually not too bad. I'm fortunate enough to have plenty of private land to hunt on though.

Oh yea, no hunting with crossbow during bow season on public land in Florida but fine on private land.

[Bullzeye]

Public land is to far away and unfortunately it seems that everyone with private land wants a lot of money to hunt on it.

[Kegbelly]

Both. Been hunting leased land, but still hunt Nat Forest and WMA land some too.

[steve rodo]

I mostly hunt private land ,but on occasion i'll hunt public ,with good success.The trick is to stay all day and go deep off the beaten path.Most hunter's that hunt public land use rd bed's to go in on .At least around here .I hunt where there are no rd's in the forest .I like to hunt the cohutta's in ga.big forest and lot's of un hunted ground's if you go deep enough.Have to cross a few gully's to get to where i go.

[DaveShooter]

I have hunted both private and public-here lately been hunting public close to Cesar Creek lake. But I would love to hunt Lake Hope which is in Vinton County Ohio- Nice big tall trees and an open tree forest for clean shooting lanes-Have taken a lot of Deer in both those places through the years of bow and gun hunting-Lake Hope is a very beautiful place here in Ohio

[Kegbelly]

The Nat. Forest land here is pretty rugged terrain, its just about all ridges and "hollers", and anything behind a gate is closed to any kind of motorized vehicle. I've shot deer and hogs first thing in the morning and literally spent the rest of the day trying to get them out, even with help. Often wondered if its worth it. I still hunt public lands some, but I'll tell ya straight up I like private land a whole lot better, you've got a lot more control over things, and if you do have success its a lot easier to bring one out on a ATV, I'm getting too old to be hauling deer out on foot. And we absolutely DO NOT bait or hunt feeders, IMO its every bit as much a fair chase harvest as on public land.

[Kegbelly]

(sorry, double post, must have double clicked by mistake)

[steve rodo]

I pack me in some 3 gal plastic baggie's if i go deep here in ga mountain's .To much work to get them out .I take what i can and leave the carcass .
30 lb's of meat is better then 150 pd deer dragging.

My climber and pack weigh in at 25lbs plus deer meat coming out in baggies.I dont have a problem toting out 60lb's on my back .

[Chris Dillard]

Steve I pack the majority of my deer out also.

[seabee401]

Here in Jersey private land is hard to come by. Unless you know someone personally or a relative. Have been in a few clubs that leased land over the years but they never seem to last for one reason or another. Can be pretty expensive too. I now hunt only public land. but if and when the opportunity arises and I can afford it I will gladly take private over public.
Tom

[sipsey]

Chris,

I grew up wading the swamps also. Last year I ran 2 miles down a small stream, then unloaded a 10' kayak and paddled the slough systems. I was wondering as to how you scout these areas. I wind up scouting far more than I actually hunt. I am always looking for that "perfect" setup and it can be quite elusive. As my age increases exponentially, I seem to enjoy scouting as much as the hunt.

Anyway was wondering how others approach scouting these remote, swampy areas.