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public land managment

-iabowhunter-

-iabowhunter-

New Member
How many other guys are in the same boat as me? I hunt in central Iowa near public land. It seems that so many people are beginning to hunt on public land that the deer numbers are declining very fast. There has to be some sort of solution to this so there will still be deer and turkeys to hunt in the future.I've thought about what they do out west like drawing for certain zones that could be divided up based on deer numbers in an area. Just a thought interested to see what everyone else thinks on this topic...
 
Once the hunting becomes so tough the people will give up. Its the American way. Hang tight people will start to lose interest.
 
I would hate to see midwest whitetail hunting come to having to resort to "western" style management.
 
I would hate to see it too. I only saw one shooter this whole year. Just thinking about the future and the hunting doesn't look to be in my favor. But hopefully a lot of little guys made it through the season and can grow.
 
-iabowhunter- said:
How many other guys are in the same boat as me? I hunt in central Iowa near public land. It seems that so many people are beginning to hunt on public land that the deer numbers are declining very fast. There has to be some sort of solution to this so there will still be deer and turkeys to hunt in the future.I've thought about what they do out west like drawing for certain zones that could be divided up based on deer numbers in an area. Just a thought interested to see what everyone else thinks on this topic...
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Are you hunting public or just near public? Central Iowa I take it so probably near Des Moines? Public land within a 45 minute drive or less near a large population of people is going to get hunted hard. I try to stay at least an hour (the farther the better) drive away from any large cities. It has worked well for me the last few years but I work at it a lot harder than the average person. Public land hunting is tough but nothing worth doing is easy.
 
I have seen some giants on public land every year no matter what the deer will adapt & overcome to a certain extent when over pressured.There not all gonna get harvested.
 
Public land is all we hunt, and all we have to hunt. So if that gets restricted or taken away, we will have nothing. Years back it seemed we were the only ones doing it, the past few years however, there is nearly a pickup in every driveway on a given day. Of course during the week is better.

We did notice fewer deer this year and more people. Fewer encounters, fewer doe, and fewer buck encounters.... like it has been said, the impatient will give up and move on, and hopefully deer numbers return.

But it is, and ALWAYS will be public, so there isn't much a guy can do. Except hunt hard and smart
 
Yes it is within a half hour from des moine. I know a lot of people from the city hunt around here witch is OK but as a land owner it is stressful to try and get a good deer herd to grow then have many get shot. But it is what it is I just gotta keep hammering hopefully next year brings more luck and deer. Oh and it would help if my neighbors didn't wound three bucks a year....
 
I have noticed the same on the public ground. As much as I hate to admit to the forum... I ate a tag sandwich.. but not any tag sandwich... a club tag sandwich...Iowa, Illinois, & Kansas...sometimes a hunter has to ask himself...just how good of a hunter am I???
 
breiner11 said:
Even with all the pressure I know guys who do just fine on public. It all depends on how hard you are willing to work...
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Shot couple deer off of public ground this year, one in coyote canyon and one in sedan bottoms, i know public gets hit hard so i just try to get as deep in on public as possible. Saw 10 deer in coyote canyon and 20 in what my buddies call the goat hills which is part of the sedan bottoms, not many poeple hunt the goat hills causes its rough, up and down up and down:D so hunt hard and find spots others might not go!
 
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Also if your land is not as pressured as the public land the deer should be coming on your land to get away from the pressure I have seen it work both ways,I hunt private land next to public land & have shot good bucks on both the private & public it seems to vary each year.
 
I'm on public solely for the last 4 seasons. My first year was bad...hardly a sighting. My last 3 were better but it took a lot more scouting. People that don't hunt the pressured areas don't see it but it's tough. I don't see a lot of numbers so I try to make good on all my opportunities. Watching scent and wind becomes extra important
 
Its would be an interesting experiment to take one public area and limit the buck harvest though a lottery. Would be great for the general public to have a chance at high quality hunting.
 
I want to see doe tags go away on public land. Also wouldn't be bad to eliminate party hunting on it easier.

It's easy for people to say 'work harder and you'll get it done'...that's the cop out answer. Truth is that we need some time for the deer herd to heal and bring back decent #'s. I hunt public and usually get it done but its a ton of effort. The reason we hunt is to bring home game, lets be honest.
 
in2harrisonCO said:
I ate a tag sandwich.. but not any tag sandwich... a club tag sandwich...Iowa, Illinois, & Kansas...sometimes a hunter has to ask himself...just how good of a hunter am I???
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I feel your pain, brother. Ate $405 worth of Minnesota bear and deer tags myself this past fall. But I had some super hunts, met some cool people and have great memories. I'll be back. Had bear on the bait 4 of 5 evenings up north and had deer in my wheelhouse all but one morning in SW MN. Passed up many opportunities and couldn't close the deal on ones I wanted. Two non-vital shoulder hits. Didn't get passed the bone on the bear or the buck. That close. Hell, I filled my Iowa tag on 1.10.14 @ 5:28 p/m. Took an old dry doe out of the herd. Man's gotta eat.
 
I hunt quite a bit of public too. Not only does the pressure reduce the population and sightings but it makes the deer and turkey dang smart. They've been educated by plenty of other hunters so the slightest mistake is compounded.

I've had turkeys come out into the open on public, see my decoy from 300 yds out then turn right back around. I've also had deer high tail it in response to rattling or grunting on high pressure public. Anymore I leave my calls at home when I'm hunting public; I think too many weekend warriors over call after seeing how "easy" it is to rattle in a big buck on tv.

I like hunting where there are no tree stands or less trucks parked during the season (which can be suprisingly hard to find anymore!). I hunt a couple small pieces that have almost zero mature buck sign but there are some good ones that pass through on my cams. It amazes me sometimes when I'm a mile back on public thinking "this would be a great spot" only to see two ladder stands within a hundred yds of each other.

I have been expanding my public hunting as of this year and even with driving an hour and a half away from a big city I still see about the same use on the public. I'm gonna keep scouting because there are honey holes to be found, but it's kind of frustrating when you drive that far only to see 2 trucks parked in the spot you wanted to hunt!

You are also right when you say it takes a ton more effort on public. It gets old lugging in all the gear and setting up and tearing down each hunt; not to mention getting your hunts ruined by horse riders, cross country skiers, and every other weirdo that is out there! lol
 
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