Seney Wildlife Refuge Seney Michigan

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Mlehto
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Seney Wildlife Refuge Seney Michigan

Unread postby Mlehto » Sat Nov 16, 2019 11:57 am

:? Got snowed out of usual UP location, went South to check out Seney Wildlife Refuge. Can any one give general strategy for hunting here, not a location or secret spot, just type of terrain, method help. Locals say deer are generally migrating South and deer don’t necessarily stay there all winter. There is a foot of snow, lots of ponds, evergreens, flat lands and hills. There are tracks along the roads and crossing the roads but doesn’t look like a find the beds location. Can anyone give just some general advise, saw one buck go from evergreens to swamp driving around.


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Re: Seney Wildlife Refuge Seney Michigan

Unread postby ihookem » Sun Nov 17, 2019 1:52 pm

You answered your own question. You saw a buck cross. There ya go!
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Hawthorne
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Re: Seney Wildlife Refuge Seney Michigan

Unread postby Hawthorne » Sun Nov 17, 2019 3:27 pm

Go to the Michigan Sportsman forum. Tons of guys on there hunt the UP. They are friendly and they would help
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Singing Bridge
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Re: Seney Wildlife Refuge Seney Michigan

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Mon Nov 18, 2019 7:19 am

Mlehto wrote::? Got snowed out of usual UP location, went South to check out Seney Wildlife Refuge. Can any one give general strategy for hunting here, not a location or secret spot, just type of terrain, method help. Locals say deer are generally migrating South and deer don’t necessarily stay there all winter. There is a foot of snow, lots of ponds, evergreens, flat lands and hills. There are tracks along the roads and crossing the roads but doesn’t look like a find the beds location. Can anyone give just some general advise, saw one buck go from evergreens to swamp driving around.


Without you being familiar with the refuge, there are seasonal timing methods you can utilize for your hunting. I have hunted Seney many times.

First, the locals always say the deer are migrating south if there is any snow on the ground. Most of the time on November 17th they are far from it.

Lots of buck travel will be going on between doe bedding areas. Hunting the edge of rivers and creeks (Creighton, Driggs, etc.) will give you the opportunity to intercept some mature buck travel. The outside bend of the river may funnel bucks around or it may lie adjacent to a river crossing (another hot spot). Any point or ridge of high ground that approaches the rivers will also contain buck travel. There will be hunters by the road where the rivers cross, study topo's and head for a good looking spot you identify.

The chains of islands traveling through the giant swamp will also contain buck travel. Your approach to these islands will need to have you play the wind or all that work will likely be in vain. Hip boots are always a great thing to have around Seney.

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Re: Seney Wildlife Refuge Seney Michigan

Unread postby Trout » Mon Nov 18, 2019 7:50 am

I always drool about hunting that area when I'm up there in the summer on fishing or camping and hiking trips. So much land there to explore, can definitely relate to it feeling overwhelming. One of these years I will make it happen.
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Re: Seney Wildlife Refuge Seney Michigan

Unread postby Mlehto » Wed Nov 20, 2019 2:37 am

Thank you to all who responded, no luck this year but learned a lot about the area. Thank you Bridge for the strategy info, did see sign in type of area you indicated. The unplowed snow covered roads in the park are a lot better than the old logging roads to the North.
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Singing Bridge
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Re: Seney Wildlife Refuge Seney Michigan

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Mon Nov 25, 2019 3:07 am

Mlehto wrote:Thank you to all who responded, no luck this year but learned a lot about the area. Thank you Bridge for the strategy info, did see sign in type of area you indicated. The unplowed snow covered roads in the park are a lot better than the old logging roads to the North.


You bet- Seney is one big area.

I've taken a buck or two out of there that dressed over 200# and I got picked off in there by an absolute brute of a buck one time. There's nothing easy about hunting Seney, Big Woods - Big Time.
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Re: Seney Wildlife Refuge Seney Michigan

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Mon Nov 25, 2019 3:18 am

This is me hunting inside Seney National Wildlife Refuge in the 1980’s... I was a couple of miles in with hip boots.

Image
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Re: Seney Wildlife Refuge Seney Michigan

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Wed Feb 12, 2020 2:06 pm

Bump… when scouting big woods there is nothing more challenging than Seney… The northernmost regions of Minne are right there with technique / big woods bucks and methods of hunting.
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Re: Seney Wildlife Refuge Seney Michigan

Unread postby TitansTracking » Wed Mar 04, 2020 1:39 am

I worked up at sceney wildlife refuge for one summer, then was stationed in grand marais. The most deer action i seen in september was actually east of grand marais right outside muskelunge lake. Seen multiple bucks most of younger age class besides one who showed him self often. I was never there during season due to seasonal work. As far as in sceney i never seen much but like i said i was there for the summer. But early October id make a trip to muskelunge lake west side. They have done sime select cutting and most deer were seen eating in grass flats where trees have been cleared. I agree the whole upper pennisula is a challenge, but going to school there sure helped !
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Re: Seney Wildlife Refuge Seney Michigan

Unread postby Ranger Matthews » Wed Mar 04, 2020 2:53 am

Scrapes are king in the UP big woods. It’s the only thing I have had consistent action on. The deer seemed to have big loops they make and the bedding is real inconsistent. Scrapes seem to intersect multiple bucks and depending on where you hunt I really don’t find that many of them which makes them even more important.
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Re: Seney Wildlife Refuge Seney Michigan

Unread postby Huntress13 » Wed Mar 04, 2020 6:08 am

Never hunted there. But on vacation years ago, I had a flat tire somewhere near there on Route 28. It was the early days of cell phones and there was no signal there, so I couldn't call AAA. I managed to get the spare donut on and drove in to Munising where they had the exact snow tire in stock that was on my car, in the middle of July. So it only delayed my trip by a couple of hours. :lol:
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