The public land thread.
Wisconsin
Let's put all things public land here. Tips, tactics, pics if you want. Links to public land resources. I would really like to get Les , Mike, Noc, and Ruger to maybe reveal a few of their public land tricks.
I hunt mostly private but I have an area that consistently produces action. It's in the Jackson co forest and my best day there was 18deer. I killed a nice old wide 8pt.
I chose this spot because it has hardwoods to the north and east, softwoods and thick bedding to the south and east and a long swamp on the west. CONVERGENCE OF HABITAT.
When I first scouted it I was thinking about how good the spot looked, I looked around and sure enough found an old hang on that had grown into a tree but clearly hadn't been hunted in years. I'll give away the coordinates via pm if anyone hunts up that way and wants to check it out.
I do a lot of scouting during the season. I've found deer movement changes alot year to year on public land. Throughout the years I've scouted enough places that if there is no sign on one, I have others. Finding good setups and funnels is crucial in the big woods for a bow hunter. Finding these spots with fresh deer sign is tops on my list.
Live2hunt nails it on the head. The key to a good public hunting land strategy is scouting SEVERAL places, always have a plan b/c. I cant tell you the number of times where the stand I wanted to sit at got washed out (I hunt a few low lying places on the river ways), found someone else there, or had other people making noise (dog walkers, horse people, construction). Hunting big woods is tough but it can be quite nice having a large chunk of land with relative solitude. My strategy for gun season is to sit high up in a tree overlooking large swamps. This usually results in some long range shots so its probably not applicable for bow hunting. Since my father and brother cant shoot worth a dam, I set them up on pinch points or runways between dry swamps and open water where shots are within 40yds. If you can find an isthmus between two swamps it is golden.
Scout ahead of time to find the bedding areas and then get as close as possible along an exit trail without being detected. Also agree with having a plan B or be the first one to the parking lot. Then the other guy hopefully goes to his plan B
While doing some other research and listening to some other scouting public land videos I came across this link - https://www.windfinder.com/ This site will give you the wind statistics for particular months. Just thought it might be helpful to someone.
Another interesting site - http://dodgecowi.wgxtreme.com/ Looks pretty cool because you mix the aerial and street together. A little stalkerish in that it gives you the owner of the properties name but might be helpful if you need to get a hold of someone because a deer ran onto their property.
Many counties use the wgxtreme platform. I use it pretty much daily. The mobile version will show your position on the air photo.
I hunt a lot of public in the sw part of the state where pressure can get pretty high. As far as other hunters, what I do is when I'm the first one to arrive, I will draw a simple map of where I'm hunting at on a piece of spiral notebook paper and then tape it to the window of my truck. I'm not greedy when it comes to public hunting rights. I don't think that since I arrived first, I should be the only one hunting a 200 acre public land parcel and make other hunters drive somewhere else. I agree with a previous post. Have a plan B in store and get an aerial map with boundaries clearly marked.
Hunting public is crazy . Its certainly a challenge & I have found many spots that are as good as private land .
Hunting huge tracks of big timber is a real chess match . I,ll offer some advice In how I look for mature Deer .
But I gotta tell yea some of my best spots are tiny patches & small pieces next to hiways . one 11 ac patch is crawling with Deer . One 14 ac swamp has mature Deer on it every year .
I'll break it down piece by piece . I like keeping my posts short . I never read those 4 & 500 word post & I'm not alone .
I'm fairly lucky I have a huge amount of private land to hunt but one of my favorites butts up to a small section of public land which usually has 1 hunter every 10 feet it really pushes the mature deer past my stand
Bucky452, that is a great idea!
I hunt and scout, and am always covert. I have nothing on my truck, or in my truck that indicates I am hunting, at all...... I never park within at least 1/8 mile from where I make entry....... I do not want anyone to know where I am at........
I hunt only during the week. If a hunter, which is rare, does set up by me, or blows out the area, I simply just leave, and move on. and I do that, immediately.... with a hanger and sticks, I am quickly gone. I say nothing, maybe just a friendly wave, but I am gone
I hunt a lot of small areas, and usually by some type of water or drainage system
I put nothing on social media, facebook, or any of that non sense. I work hard to find good spots, and simply just hunt, and enjoy my quiet time.
I do not carry a lot of junk, I am hunting, not on a camping trip. Noise is the number one problem on set ups, so if it makes noise, its gone.............. I do not call, rattle, etc on public land. I sit quiet, and try to anticipate the shot...... When I can, I try to use other hunters, and non hunters intrusion to my advantage........
I never hunt a spot more than twice......... I find the cattails and wetlands and late season, with good crops still in the area, the best time to hunt public land solo, and its not during the rut, but during the late season
When I find a spot I walk the outer edge to see what kind of property owners are surounding me . Do they have food plots or crops planted . Are they " feeding " the Deer ? IE , heavy trails going to their property .Are they illegaly driving motor vehicles on the pubkic land ? Wheres the bedding areas ? Wheres the Primary food . And most important the prevailing wind direction . Is there more than 1 way into the good stuff ? At this point I draw a rough map on. 2 ft paper & grab the platt book & start writing down names & # of land owners .
Break time . Fish are biting .
Very interesting groundhunter...........
The best public land hunters can make every situation work. They don’t have excuses. They do not complain. They enjoy the hard work put into it, cause that’s exactly what it takes out there. They can read tracks and where to find the right ones. They can see the woods, food, and animals changing with them and their tactics will change, based on what it shows. They are usually the first ones up and the last ones back. They are usually the most modest too. Won’t tell unless you ask. If you need them. They will be there.. Ultimately, they are the ones doing the right thing, when nobody is watching.
Thanks for the name drop rut. You should be contributing yourself. I feel all the information about deer or big bucks in general is out there now. Anyone can watch first hand or listen in a podcast.
Maybe we can get specific when it comes to the small stuff? Early season, rut, late, mornings, midmorning, evening, beds, thermals, islands, swamps, frozen swamps, pressure, wolves and deer, clearcuts, select cuts. Anyone want to ask? Maybe that will interest a response from someone.
Other names not mentioned
Smokey, groundhunter, case
Part 2 . After I decide to hunt the spot I setup several ground stands on the same trails to avoid wind issues .
I call or visit any land owners that I'm hunting close to . This works great . You get the ok to look for Deer & I have permission to hunt a few private properties .
That was quick . Just landed an 18 in Walleye . Part 3 . Once I figure out the food sourse & the bed area I get very creative on setting up ambushs . 7 gal bucket & camo burlap . Sometimes I drag big blowdowns around to help create a trail that works for me . No Trail cams but I will bring in a backpack of Sandy soil . Pour it on the trail so I can see what kind of Deer traffic , size & what direction .
I’m starting to focus more on reading other hunters along with the deer sign. Having beds and food sources identified early enough in the year, now it’s matter of who is hunting where. Some people make it so obvious, and ruin what could be good spots. I’ve learned most beds have multiple entrances and exits. I’m learning to hunt the less obvious ones, that are more difficult to identify and hunt. The thought of walking and crawling a few hundred yards in a few hours has never been so appealing! Let the other hunters push them towards me hopefully.
"Smokey, groundhunter, case"
Yeah I definitely forgot some great hunters. I want everyone to contribute so I hope I didn't give the impression otherwise. I will say nothing replaces actual scouting and hunting experiences BUT. I have learned a ton from The Hunting Beast site. The owner dan Infalt is a public land hunting machine. He also is all about sharing his knowledge and doesn't reek of ego like most of the so called pro's. The Hunting Public is also a great group of public land guys.
As far as my tips, some have been covered already but I'll share my basics. Scout, scout, scout, and scout some more. IMO patterning the other hunters is just as important as patterning deer. I always have a back up to my back up. Because even when I try to hunt where others usually won't, I still sometimes have "company". A lot of the time it is guys coming in off private land that borders the public. I have no problem with others hunting public. But some people have no common courtesy, that's why I have back up plans.
Like groundhunter said, don't overlook the small properties. Also don't overlook the the overlooked;) I have a few new spots that are going to feel weird setting up in as they are so close to the road. However it is where the daytime buck movement is. I have a few more tips but I'm done for the night.
Part 4 . As mentioned , non stop scouting . I will have 4 places ready to hunt by the end of August . You never know on public land . You think you have it all to yourself & an entire family shows up & takes over .
The good news , most pieces I hunt I have to myself until about Oct 28th . Then the rut hun ters show up & about Nov 5th the gun hunters invade with stands , bait , & chainsaws cutting 10 foot wide shooting lanes .
Part 5 . Business cards . Every outdoorstan shoud have business cards . They are so important . They should have your name, e-mail & basic info with a white tail pic or bow to remind people of what you do .
They are so handy if you run into another hunter , or you find a Truck parked next to yours & want to conpare notes .
Its a nice professional touch when you give a card to landowners or other hunters .
When your hunting big woods and the endless possibilities, rattling antlers are your friend.
# 6. Deer on public land both small or large pieces are different for several reasons .
They are very jumpy on public & down right nervous on big timber to any strange odors . I do most scouting & stand work in the rain & . I hunt the wind & take no chances . I don't wear scent suits BUT I spray my boots with pure & clean water before I walk to my stands . This is critical to avoid being bagged by wandering Deer that cross your track .
Last year I watched a 3 /12 year old 140 class cross my tracks 3 times while eating Acorns . Never knew I was there .
Ruger anything special in the water? Or just plain tap, I would have thought that would make your scent stick more?
I fill my spray bottle with water from the rain barrel or the River . And I really soak those boots .
OK I'll let the cat out of the bag . A friend of mine adds a little Acorn extract or Apple juice to his bottle . He claims that during the Rut the Does follow his trail with the Bucks on tow .
Ruger, those are good tips. I have used apple juice in a spray bottle for a long time.
I agree, the place you hunt during the RUT is critical, due to what I call the "cowboy pressure" in the woods, on the weekends leading up to the gun season. It will absolutely destroy your chances, and make hot spots go cold quickly,,,,,,,,, The RUT on public land can be very very tough...............
I also will keep my thoughts short,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, but I have a boat load of info, that has worked for me, that I am willing to share, to younger, more inexperienced hunters, to me that is what I like to do
# 7 as Retro said , Rattling .
1, Opening weekend . I tinkle small antlers about every hour on the stand . Mature bucks hear that & figure thats the new kids on the block playing with their newly hardened antlers .
Some times the big boys show up to let them see who the boss is . It really works . Whacked a great 9 pt years ago that came in on a line from his bed to me .
I’ve watched a number of bucks in the 1.5 - 3.5 year range walk right down a hiking / horse trail not more than 30 minutes after people walked down it with their dog. Seemed like the bucks didn’t have a care in the world about their ground scent. Do you think the deer get used to the ground scent on heavily used public land yet still spook in a second with airborne scent or was that more likely a case of younger deer that haven’t gotten educated yet?
I've had mature bucks bust out of the country from the slightest whiff of Tinks/Rut Scents. That's why I don't use them anymore. Hell, the slightest sound (Arrow bouncing off a covered riser) or movement when drawing spooks them. Those large mature bucks don't seem to take a second and look, they just bolt.
X2 live2hunt..
Oforalot- deer accept scent in many places. Field edges and man trails are usually the obvious. Step 2 feet in and they will react to it..
+1 on #7! Ruger gave that early season rattling tip a long time ago and I tagged a nice 11 pointer opening day in 2008 using it.
Thanks Jason . Are you still living in Utah ? I'll be driving thru Sept 18th on my way to Id , NV & AZ .
Yep. I'm still out in Utah. Haven't moved back to Wisconsin yet.
Hey guys all I hunt is either DNR public land or FCL or MFL land here. Last year I was able to take a nice 6 pointer on public land here in Winnebago county. Hunting public land is hard but do your homework and it can pay off .
onXhunt is a good pay for app that gives you landowner information and exact property lines in case your ever in doubt or need a landowners name for any reason.
The lines are approximate on any app that shows property boundaries. They all come from the individual county land/surveyor offices and are not georeferenced. My property lines for example are off by over 100 feet.
I guess I should have reworded my statement starting with "from my experiences". For me the app has worked well and been accurate to my knowledge of the landowners around me as well as the public land that is adjacent to us. These things I do know for fact. regardless it's a step in the right direction to making public land hunting more effective for me. So you've purchased this app and confirmed that their representation of your property lines are over 100ft off? I'm just wondering because if so it's a good thing to know when scouting new territory. Thanks for the input.
I know of a guy and have heard from other guys who are tv hunters who got in trouble out west because of OnX. They are good for the most part but not always the case: Hunt with common sense
I'm always aware of my surroundings in new territory and do use common sense. I would never trust the map over a no trespassing sign. I guess I can only speak for my experiences with it. I encourage anyone to go out and try it. There's a free trial and if you think it's not accurate or worth it don't buy it.
The data they use comes from the counties and it's not exact. I have seen it be within a few feet and as far as well over a hundred feet. The data can be up to a year old as well. I am a forester as well as a hunter and use GIS pretty much daily. FYI most counties in Wisconsin have applications that do much of the same stuff for free.
form onX "we work with the counties on obtaining that information and update each state at least once a year. The information in the app is what is currently available at the time that we gather it. Unfortunately, some counties are slower to update their digitized records than others but we do everything we can to get the most up to date information. We still have an update coming for Wisconsin. We also have a process in place to look into any properties in question so that we can look specifically into them and make sure they are updated in the next update. This page walks you through that process. Let us know if you have any other questions."
I understand onX only compiles the data and makes it easy to use. I've used the free interactive maps on the WI DNR and county websites and it simply isn't as intuitive and easy to use as this mobile app. It's only going to get better going forward so I'll continue to use it until I find some major issues. Thanks for all the info fellas.
