hunter_mike wrote:szwampdonkey wrote:Just saw 35 deer on a Girl Scout Camp soccer field in SE WI at 2:30 in the afternoon three days ago. This 200 acre girl scout camp is 100% off limits to hunting. One spot of public i hunt is just over a ridge from this spot, probably a half mile from that public swamp. I just walked that swamp last sunday, not a track in it. It’s a total ghost town but i also know it got absolutely hammered during Gun Deer this year because i kept tabs on it being it’s like 5 minutes from my house.
The deer have clearly just been pushed out of that public land and migrated to this untouched 200acre girl scout camp. I’ve always known the deer get pushed off public but this was just a glaring confirmation of that thought for me as there is no way that 200 acre woods supports that many deer permanently. I’ve always seen deer in there as i drive by but only a few at a time never a herd 35 strong. The public doesn’t look like there was a deer in there since gun season.
This is why i am not a huge fan of late season if you hunt public. Hard to kill a deer no matter what strategy you use or how vigilant you are if they’re just not there. Some will come back by late Jan but not a lot of them theyll winter on private imo.
WI DNR should go back to the season structure they had around the 90s before the went full on stupid over CWD. More seasons, longer seasons, more tags isn’t doing a thing except destroying the traditions of hunting.
Thanks for posting your observation swamp donk... I have had some similar observations in the past and i think its kind of a common pattern with some public pieces
Definitely makes it tough hunting late season frigid temps when you’re pretty sure the deer are a half mile away on private.
That being said it’s not impossible as i have seen deer come back to public after gun deer but it seems it’s later than mid to late December. Talking more like late Jan if you’re in an area you’re allowed to bowhunt that late. I killed a doe two years ago on public 75 yards from the parking lot out of a tree i could see my truck from on Jan 28. It was definitely “dating the fat chick” and i felt ridiculous but there was a well run trail in the snow saying that’s where i needed to be and it worked.
So if you want a late season kill i’m thinking it might be best to just stay out of your spots pretty much all of Dec and let them calm down after all the gun deer pressure with a plan to hunt the hot sign mid to late Jan if you’re able.