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Slow Year Question/thoughts

hickslawns

hickslawns

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
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Ohio
Those are some more great points. 3-4yrs of scouting, hunting, shed hunting, running cameras, etc will change your initial thoughts on how to hunt it. Seat time is a double edged sword. Too much seat time can make the deer shy away from our human odors. Not enough and we don't learn how the deer are using the terrain.
 
Maxxis31

Maxxis31

Junior Member
760
61
Deer wood's
Yes sir, that young fella has a cheshire cat smile from ear to ear, thats one happy boy, doesnt get any better than that right there, a moment he will never forget,
congrats to you and your boy, awesome for sure.
 
reo

reo

Junior Member
484
91
N.E. Ohio
gpb1111 said:
Haven't seen any coyotes, but have noticed many footprints at the smaller property. I guess I could trap some. The owner doesn't allow gun use so picking them off in the night is a no go.

I know there is one other college kid who hunts the 200 acre property but he keeps his treestands on the west and I on the East. I've never met him but I assume he has more time than I do so he may be overhunting.

I think I'll get some cheap trail cams and a blind and try moving to new spots in the property.
Click to expand...

Something is not adding up. Is there a lot of sign? What about gun season? Crop damage tags/killing? If it is just you and the college kid I'm thinking there should be a ton of deer. If not they are being killed or run off somehow.

As far as the yotes it has been my experience that if they are around in any numbers you will hear them and there would still be more deer than what you are seeing.
 
G

gpb1111

Junior Member
92
12
reo said:
Something is not adding up. Is there a lot of sign? What about gun season? Crop damage tags/killing? If it is just you and the college kid I'm thinking there should be a ton of deer. If not they are being killed or run off somehow.

As far as the yotes it has been my experience that if they are around in any numbers you will hear them and there would still be more deer than what you are seeing.
Click to expand...

Other than a few prints here and there, no. I haven't seen a rub, scrape, bedding area or anything else on the property, but I also don't spend a great deal of time walking all around the property for fear of spooking everything. Plus, since its such a big property and I can see almost all of it (my 100 acres) from my stand, I just thought I'd scout from there. It just isn't enough.

I saw a bunch of deer last year but the field was cut corn when I started hunting there and now its cut beans.

I may spend some time on the first snow and check tracks or buy some cheap cameras.
 
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Mao

Mao

Member
1,695
109
Coshocton, OH
My guess is your avid neighbors are drawing the deer in with corn piles or plots. I have a friend that hunts a bordering property to us. He had 8-10 different bucks at his mineral site all summer/early fall. When I started putting corn out for my daughter at our place, all his bucks disappeared and moved onto our property. Mine and his trail cams prove it. Maybe the same thing is happening to you. I know a few guys that put corn out heavy this time of year to hold does. Doe comes in to eat and brings buck with her. My cousin killed his last evening when his buck came in to check four does at his corn pile.
 
G

gpb1111

Junior Member
92
12
Drove around looking at the neighbors properties that butt up to our 20 acres. Just figured it out...standing corn. I don't have a stand anywhere between the known bedding area on my property and the standing corn field about 1000 yds away through a stand of woods.

So I'm now hunkered down in the weeds with a crossbow.

Hope it pays off.




 
hickslawns

hickslawns

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
40,460
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Ohio
Ah yes. That could be a big part of it. I don't know how close you live to this property. I'm not sure if it is feasible to do some driving around at different times or even pull into the property and find a perch somewhere you can glass them with binoculars. I do nearly as much scouting as I do hunting. Maybe not this time of the season, but early and late season I do a lot of driving or sitting with binoculars. It seems to help. If nothing else it does help my sanity.
 
finelyshedded

finelyshedded

You know what!!!
Supporting Member
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SW Ohio
Mao said:
My guess is your avid neighbors are drawing the deer in with corn piles or plots. I have a friend that hunts a bordering property to us. He had 8-10 different bucks at his mineral site all summer/early fall. When I started putting corn out for my daughter at our place, all his bucks disappeared and moved onto our property. Mine and his trail cams prove it. Maybe the same thing is happening to you. I know a few guys that put corn out heavy this time of year to hold does. Doe comes in to eat and brings buck with her. My cousin killed his last evening when his buck came in to check four does at his corn pile.
Click to expand...

WINNER WINNER CHICKY DINNER:smiley_coolpeace:


I think this is becoming the norm for those who aren't seeing much although that standing cornfield could be the reason no doubt.
 
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G

gpb1111

Junior Member
92
12
Skunked again this morning. If my math is correct that is:

10 sits
X4 average hrs per sit
X0 deer seen
=0 deer per hour.

I resorted to this:



I set it up at my mineral lick.



 
giles

giles

Cull buck specialist
Supporting Member
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The real Amish country
So if your deer count is way down, why are you still trying to kill deer? That makes no sense to me. You guys have killed the only deer you've seen this year, I personally wouldn't be looking to kill anything.
 
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