Kansas Public Units

[TitansTracking]

Hello all!

This 2020 season i plan on going with w group of guys to Kansas in search for giant mature whitetails on public access land! I'm in no way asking for exact locations just some information on units. I would like to take a step out of the tree stands and do some ground and pound stalking. Just curious to see if i can get any info on which units would be good ! I'm thinking unit 7 or 8 possibly 4. This puts me in the central part of the state. I figured i could maybe find 10 trees per square mile in case of a back up plan Any information would be greatly appreciated. I have hunted Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, and Missouri public lands so I'm well aware of pressure, and some research that i have to do. Coming from Michigan I'm i may have my standards set way high, but I'm just looking for a mature animal regardless of score. Any help would be awesome !

Thanks,
TT

[jmaas07]

The western units aren't hyped up and I personally know guys who have been killing big mature bucks out there and the pressure is minimal compared to the more popular units you mention, I wouldnt overlook that.

[Mgaspari]

The western units aren't hyped up and I personally know guys who have been killing big mature bucks out there and the pressure is minimal compared to the more popular units you mention, I wouldnt overlook that.

[TitansTracking]

Thanks! I'm thinking about going way west but were to sure. I know the prairie land will be more difficult but I'm always up for the challenge.

[AR Hunter]

Hello all!

This 2020 season i plan on going with w group of guys to Kansas in search for giant mature whitetails on public access land! I'm in no way asking for exact locations just some information on units. I would like to take a step out of the tree stands and do some ground and pound stalking. Just curious to see if i can get any info on which units would be good ! I'm thinking unit 7 or 8 possibly 4. This puts me in the central part of the state. I figured i could maybe find 10 trees per square mile in case of a back up plan Any information would be greatly appreciated. I have hunted Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, and Missouri public lands so I'm well aware of pressure, and some research that i have to do. Coming from Michigan I'm i may have my standards set way high, but I'm just looking for a mature animal regardless of score. Any help would be awesome !

Thanks,
TT

You might look at how this Coronavirus plays out. I think Kansas is requiring people to quarantine for 14 days if they are from certain states. Hopefully this junk will be over by season but who knows. Also, I have no idea what the quarantine requirements are. Just a heads up if you don’t have lots of vacation.

[seazofcheeze]

Hello all!
I would like to take a step out of the tree stands and do some ground and pound stalking.

Thanks,
TT

If you want to play Whitetail Adrenaline, I am pretty sure they hunt the south central part of the state.

[DhD]

I was going to put in for a Kansas tag this year but open for a preference point instead. I'm also curious about the differences in units. I live in southeast Nebraska, and I'm trying to find a compromise between the best unit I could go for vs. distance traveled per trip. If I can keep it under a 3 hr drive I could make many more trips.

[Hogbuckdm]

My good hunting buddy and myself have spent many many years on DIY public land bowhunts from eastern kansas to central kansas and all over inbetween north and south. I also have another very close friend who has spent alot of time out in that part of the state for several years as a DIY public land bowhunter. With all of that said and a ton of experience in Kansas pursuing the same thing you are a mature buck i'll be happy to share my thoughts and experience. Additionally I personally know some other hardcore DIY bowhunters who have traveled to Kansas as long and longer than myself.
If you are coming from Michigan with very few mature deer most every state you visit will offer much better opportunities at seeing and getting a shot on a mature deer. I wont try and define what a "mature deer" age is, as i have my personal opinion and so do others and thats completely fine. IMO a hunt is NOT just about the inches or age of a deer. A hunt should be about the overall experience and enjoying the freedom of the outdoors and nature. Literally taking the time to soak it all up and live each moment, all while at the same time enjoying the pursuit of the big bucks we hope to see.
In a nut shell Kansas public ground overall is definitely not what it used to be due to over exposure (pro hunters, social media outlets and technology in general), all of these factors have played a part. Quite possibly the #1 reason for the downward trend in age structure and quality for kansas public land deer would be the extremely liberalized non-resident tags available. It wasn't all that long ago that the Kansas DNR was much more reserved on the number of non-resident tags. Unfortunately Kansas sold out to the short sightedness of more $$ right now instead of preserving the amazing whitetail resource they used to have for the future.
West Kansas has a massive amount of public ground between WMA's and tons of WIHA land. Majority of west kansas is wide open pasture and grass country. You will not find many trees to stand hunt. It is spot and stalk country. The problem is do not think for a moment that if you travel out to western kansas to do some spot and stalking mature bucks that you wont have company. It has become extremely popular as of the past few years due to a certain couple "video guys" making money on it. What also does not help is that most of west kansas has alot of roads that are built on the grid system being square 640 acres chunks. Most of the non-resident public hunters use these roads to drive around non stop until they see a particular buck or a few deer. Then they get out and plan a stalk. There are very few deer in that region of the state compared to the acreage and if you just got out of your truck on any 640 chunk and started walking to attempt to find deer you could easily burn up an entire day and see nothing and possibly not even be remotely close to any deer. So you end up having a bunch of trucks driving around doing exactly the same thing as you which is in essence just road hunting IMO. To each their own on that style of hunting. I will also say even though the pressure in that part of the state has climbed dramatically the deer in that wide open country are NOT easy to kill. For example try closing the gap from 500 yards to 40 yards on a golf course on a mature whitetail buck. Therefore there are still a good number of older bucks in west kansas. Just be prepared for company and a very challenging bow hunt.
Central and eastern Kansas offers much more in the way of tree stand hunting and diverse topography. More of your traditional whitetail terrain which allows you to hunt them the way most guys prefer with a bow. There is a good amount of public land between WIHA and WMA's. All of the units are good deer hunting and some do get more attention than others. The further east in the state you go the more timber typically. Alot of our best public spots have gotten over ran and severely over hunted. I find it amazing at how fast it happened and how even faster we noticed the quality of the bucks we used to see (and kill) start sliding. Cause and effect its very simple. Loosely managed hunting pressure will always equal a younger average age class structure. With that said Kansas does have a couple things still going for it in the world of older age bucks. A rifle season AFTER the rut is huge! And its a one buck state no matter what. Both huge contributors to keeping some age class alive past 2-3 years old.
I personally know several guys who have leases on private acreages for years in Kansas and they absolutely see and kill more older deer still compared to the public. It wasn't long ago that that wasn't the case and a good savy hunter had just about the same opportunity as the private land guy. Times are different now. I'm not going to throw out specific unit numbers however i'll advise for eastern and central kansas to pick an area far from bigger towns and especially from large cities to help combat hunter pressure on the public. Also don't just focus on the largest public properties. You can kill a buck on any couple small acres if its the right small acres. Lastly a little secret i'll let out....If you can find any corn at all, cut or standing on or very close to public with good bedding habitat nearby and is NOT being pressured at all you will be in the bucks in November.
Kansas public deer hunting is still good, not great anymore but good. It's all about the attitude and the effort put in. There are still some mature bucks to be had on the public. Good luck!

[Vtbowhunter3]

My good hunting buddy and myself have spent many many years on DIY public land bowhunts from eastern kansas to central kansas and all over inbetween north and south. I also have another very close friend who has spent alot of time out in that part of the state for several years as a DIY public land bowhunter. With all of that said and a ton of experience in Kansas pursuing the same thing you are a mature buck i'll be happy to share my thoughts and experience. Additionally I personally know some other hardcore DIY bowhunters who have traveled to Kansas as long and longer than myself.
If you are coming from Michigan with very few mature deer most every state you visit will offer much better opportunities at seeing and getting a shot on a mature deer. I wont try and define what a "mature deer" age is, as i have my personal opinion and so do others and thats completely fine. IMO a hunt is NOT just about the inches or age of a deer. A hunt should be about the overall experience and enjoying the freedom of the outdoors and nature. Literally taking the time to soak it all up and live each moment, all while at the same time enjoying the pursuit of the big bucks we hope to see.
In a nut shell Kansas public ground overall is definitely not what it used to be due to over exposure (pro hunters, social media outlets and technology in general), all of these factors have played a part. Quite possibly the #1 reason for the downward trend in age structure and quality for kansas public land deer would be the extremely liberalized non-resident tags available. It wasn't all that long ago that the Kansas DNR was much more reserved on the number of non-resident tags. Unfortunately Kansas sold out to the short sightedness of more $$ right now instead of preserving the amazing whitetail resource they used to have for the future.
West Kansas has a massive amount of public ground between WMA's and tons of WIHA land. Majority of west kansas is wide open pasture and grass country. You will not find many trees to stand hunt. It is spot and stalk country. The problem is do not think for a moment that if you travel out to western kansas to do some spot and stalking mature bucks that you wont have company. It has become extremely popular as of the past few years due to a certain couple "video guys" making money on it. What also does not help is that most of west kansas has alot of roads that are built on the grid system being square 640 acres chunks. Most of the non-resident public hunters use these roads to drive around non stop until they see a particular buck or a few deer. Then they get out and plan a stalk. There are very few deer in that region of the state compared to the acreage and if you just got out of your truck on any 640 chunk and started walking to attempt to find deer you could easily burn up an entire day and see nothing and possibly not even be remotely close to any deer. So you end up having a bunch of trucks driving around doing exactly the same thing as you which is in essence just road hunting IMO. To each their own on that style of hunting. I will also say even though the pressure in that part of the state has climbed dramatically the deer in that wide open country are NOT easy to kill. For example try closing the gap from 500 yards to 40 yards on a golf course on a mature whitetail buck. Therefore there are still a good number of older bucks in west kansas. Just be prepared for company and a very challenging bow hunt.
Central and eastern Kansas offers much more in the way of tree stand hunting and diverse topography. More of your traditional whitetail terrain which allows you to hunt them the way most guys prefer with a bow. There is a good amount of public land between WIHA and WMA's. All of the units are good deer hunting and some do get more attention than others. The further east in the state you go the more timber typically. Alot of our best public spots have gotten over ran and severely over hunted. I find it amazing at how fast it happened and how even faster we noticed the quality of the bucks we used to see (and kill) start sliding. Cause and effect its very simple. Loosely managed hunting pressure will always equal a younger average age class structure. With that said Kansas does have a couple things still going for it in the world of older age bucks. A rifle season AFTER the rut is huge! And its a one buck state no matter what. Both huge contributors to keeping some age class alive past 2-3 years old.
I personally know several guys who have leases on private acreages for years in Kansas and they absolutely see and kill more older deer still compared to the public. It wasn't long ago that that wasn't the case and a good savy hunter had just about the same opportunity as the private land guy. Times are different now. I'm not going to throw out specific unit numbers however i'll advise for eastern and central kansas to pick an area far from bigger towns and especially from large cities to help combat hunter pressure on the public. Also don't just focus on the largest public properties. You can kill a buck on any couple small acres if its the right small acres. Lastly a little secret i'll let out....If you can find any corn at all, cut or standing on or very close to public with good bedding habitat nearby and is NOT being pressured at all you will be in the bucks in November.
Kansas public deer hunting is still good, not great anymore but good. It's all about the attitude and the effort put in. There are still some mature bucks to be had on the public. Good luck!

Spot on! Lots of experience with DIY public land hunting in KS myself. Agree with all of the above.