How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

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How many years to kill 1st public bow buck?

1
49
24%
2
29
14%
3
27
13%
4
9
4%
5+
27
13%
Still havnt killed one
60
30%
 
Total votes: 201
walleyeralph
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby walleyeralph » Wed Jan 17, 2018 2:31 pm

1year,had private land 2 hunt on when I started. Got sold. started 2 hunt public after that.first time out 2 horicon marsh opening day 1989 seen a small 10 pt.Sunday moved stand seen him again.not in right spot, wednesday seen him again, getting closer.2nd sat shot him.seems like yesterday.Ralph.


Rich M
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby Rich M » Fri Jan 19, 2018 3:03 am

I've got about 40 seasons under my belt and about 80 deer, only 6 branch antlered bucks. Only 4 deer total with archery.

Never shot a deer on public, especially FL public. I should add that I'm deaf - it does make a diff. One unnatural noise and the deer know where you are...

I keep trying but not with the energy and enthusiasm I once had - it just isn't there. A handful of weekend hunts is fun and relaxing, after that it becomes work.
OldMtnMan
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby OldMtnMan » Fri Jan 19, 2018 9:27 am

My first year my dad was teaching me to still hunt and we snuck in on a small buck. I shot it with a longbow. I was 14. I retired the longbow the next year when I got a Win 94 30-30 for Christmas.
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RDubs44
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby RDubs44 » Sat Jan 20, 2018 3:34 am

1 year and counting. Just started the beast this fall.
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dewayne
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby dewayne » Sat Jan 27, 2018 1:35 pm

Still chasing my first bow/public land kill. This was the first year I went strictly bow so I guess I’m getting a little closer.
Brian1986
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby Brian1986 » Sat Jan 27, 2018 1:50 pm

It took me 4 years to kill my first buck. He was a 4pointer. I was 17 yrs old and my dad let me take a couple days off school to go hunting with him. I ended up taking him in the same tree that my dad got his first buck. Hard to believe how fast time has flown by since then.
Jbhuff0822
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby Jbhuff0822 » Wed Jul 03, 2019 8:27 am

I killed a good mature 9 pointer my second year on public land. I was blessed with a great hunt and some luck. This particular year I went on a nonresident hunt to Ohio Public Land. We arrived on Saturday at 2:00 and I was tagged out on 4:45 that evening! I was in the right spot at the right time. Since then I have let a lot of good bucks walk on public and have had several out smart me!
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DaveT1963
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby DaveT1963 » Wed Jul 03, 2019 8:31 am

First arrow I ever released at any living animal was a fork horn I took my first year with a recurve. I don't think there has been a season yet that I have hunted (few deployments and life made me miss a couple entirely) that I have not killed a deer on public land. That first shot was luck no doubt but it got the confidence rolling early and i just believed I could from that point on.
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Ishi Spirit
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby Ishi Spirit » Wed Jul 03, 2019 8:43 am

☝️
The Spirit Lives On
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Tufrthnails
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby Tufrthnails » Wed Jul 03, 2019 8:47 am

First morning of first sit ever. The gap from #1 to #2 was 2 seasons. I didn't kill another buck until year three.
Tuf- The below average hunting beast
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby Maverick1 » Wed Jul 03, 2019 9:42 am

I was fortunate. It was a couple of hours.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
No sponsors. No camera crew. No team. Just me and my bow. And that’s the way I prefer it.
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Boogieman1
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby Boogieman1 » Wed Jul 03, 2019 10:08 am

For me it's a bit deceiving. Killed mine the first year on only my 2nd or 3rd trip. Mostly had to do with very lax realistic goal setting and a bit of luck. Made up my mind I was gonna shoot the very first legal buck I saw. Slipped in midday after work and on my way to stand seen a buck walking the ridge line and just looped infront of him hoping he continued his path. Sure enough 5 min later he was in my wheelhouse. A goofy 5pt with 4 on one side and a spike on the other. Still a rewarding hunt none the less despite the fact I never climbed a tree.

That was the only buck I ever took off that property. Spent a lot of time scouting that place in the years to come and realized it just doesn't hold the kind of buck I want. Struggled on different public pieces after that, believe I had about a 4 or 5 year gap b4 the next one.
Life is hard; It’s even harder if you are stupid.
-John Wayne-
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john1984
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby john1984 » Wed Jul 03, 2019 12:00 pm

Started bowhunting in 08. Killed 1st public buck in 2011.
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Hawthorne
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby Hawthorne » Wed Jul 03, 2019 3:52 pm

My second year with a .270 in northern Michigan a little 5 point. I was 15 years old in 1991.My first 3 years was all public land. Was on the land my dad grew up hunting.My first beast buck with my bow was year 3. I shot bucks before that on HAP land. It’s private land open to the public. That first beast kill felt like my first public buck. Kinda a born again revelation. Was a nice 8 point
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whi52873
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Re: How many yrs did it take you to kill first public land buck?

Unread postby whi52873 » Thu Jul 04, 2019 2:46 am

My first year of hunting public land, I hunted a pinch between two main bedding areas. I was hunting the week of Halloween and saw 30+ deer in 3 days. I just happened to pick a good time to be in the woods and I was hooked ever since to public land. In those three days, I shot at three bucks and missed all three. I didn't have an opportunity to shoot a buck the rest of the year.

The year after (second year hunting public), I killed a buck on opening day at 2pm and got the monkey off my back.


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