[jce97]

Anyone have any tips/suggestions about hunting public land. I'm in Illinios, but public land should be public land. I'm good with small game, but need some info on deer. Bow and Shotgun. Would like to start hunting again with the 2012 season. Thanks in advance for the info.

[fmj]

Scout, scout, scout, then scout some more is the best advice i can give. also, get dialed in with the archery tackle but avoid the gun season. Around here the public lands turn into war zones come gun season!

[alsaqr]

What fmj said.

For many years i hunted public lands in several states. Scouting is the key to a successful hunt on public land: You will probably not find a good spot close to a well traveled road. Find yourself a nice remote spot that hunters avoid and deer frequent: Come prepared to stay all day.

Yeah, first get in good physical shape, if not already. Dragging deer for a mile or three gets a little tiresome.

[jce97]

Thanks guys. I will be loggin some miles next spring, and see what I can find.

[ACRhino]

A good time to scout and get a little bit of trigger time (at least in my neck of the woods) is squirrel and other misc mammal season. You can generally hunt them in the same area and with the same means as you can turkey, deer, etc but the season lasts for months. Get to know the area walking around, learn the animal paths, hide a few cheap trail cams, bag a few squirrels, possum, racoons, and even maybe toss up an inexpensive treestand out of the way for when that magic week arrives. This will also help you figure out the best way to drag out a deer if you actually get one. In MA, we can't harvest the deer at a kill site, we have to drag it out whole and take it to a tagging station. Dragging a 180lb buck up hill ... both ways ... 3 miles, in the snow, with a gun ... sucks lol.

[dunerunner]

Originally Posted by ACRhino

In MA, we can't harvest the deer at a kill site, we have to drag it out whole and take it to a tagging station. Dragging a 180lb buck up hill ... both ways ... 3 miles, in the snow, with a gun ... sucks lol.

I would think that practice would contribute to a lot of spoiled meat. Isn't the idea to manage the herd and not spoil what you've killed?

[ACRhino]

Originally Posted by dunerunner

I would think that practice would contribute to a lot of spoiled meat. Isn't the idea to manage the herd and not spoil what you've killed?

Well you can remove the internal organs but you cant remove the sex organs, skin it, quarter it, or cut it up in any way.

[purehavoc]

Might I ask where your hunting public ground at ?

[jce97]

purehavoc. If that ? is towards myself. I am going to hunt state land in central ill. There are a handfull of sites around Peoria ill. As soon as the squirrel season opens back up, I am going to hit the woods. I believe that it be sometime in jan.

[ACRhino]

Do yourself a favor ... even if it isn't shotgun deer season, wear hunter orange. Most public land hunters will shoot anything that moves ... hunting season or not and lots and lots of people poach. Most game animals can't see hunter orange and it actually makes good camo ... unless you are hunting turkey lol ... they can see that **** miles away.