Blind opening rifle?

[mauser06]

Tell me if I'm crazy...


Opening day of rifle is Monday.

Every spot I have behind camp has been over run because bucks have been piled up there. It's getting plain out crowded.


I have a very large tract of public ive fished and turkey hunted (about 2 hours..went in blind and carried out a longbeard lol).

I'm guessing it gets a fair amount of pressure...but the layout of the land probably is going to isolate it heavily onto the tops of the ridge.

I have a couple points appropriate for the leeward wind on Monday. And there is clearly a bench on the topo.

It's probably 1/2mi from the road but it takes a special kinda stupid to shoot a buck anywhere below the top because the drag WILL be up hill.


The spot I have picked is also halfway between 2 gaslines which will be main hunter access...


I know there are trees there. It's not a clear cut or anything. I know it holds deer...



I have a hit or miss spot at camp. Can be great or I can be surrounded by orange.



I really wanted to scout the tract this winter/spring. But hunting it open day will tell me how hard it gets pressured and will give me a good idea of where the pressure is.



Am I crazy?? On the topo the spot looks good...clearly a bench there. I'm a sucker for benches in big woods hill country.

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[Rich M]

Do it!

If I was gonna go anywhere blind, it would be with a rifle. Gives you a little more security if you see a monster.

Let us know how it works.

[mauser06]

The more I think about it the more it sounds like the way to go.


I was there the first week of turkey and the birds seemed completely unpressured.



I think I will carry my Viper in with my sled...

Once it breaks light figure out exactly the tree I need to be in and hunt...or move up or down the ridge if I do have e company.

If it's a punkin patch I have over 12,000 acres to still hunt or move to the next spots I have in mind. Cable lock the stand to a sturdy tree and GPS it and come back for it.



I've never seen a bench jump out on a topo like this one does...I've seen examples but not in real life on ground I hunt. Benches here are usually not visible and usually are old tram roads.



I think I have little to loose....and a lot to gain.



Helps I seen a decent 2.5yo there last evening lol. Nothing huge. But public land big woods going in blind I'd blow his shoulders out and smile about it.

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[Nelson87]

Go for it...good luck!

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[mauser06]

Upon looking at some other views of the spot...there is a bowl on top and right below the bench is a transitional edge of hemlock along the creek in the bottom.


So I have bedding points, a bench, a transitional edge, top 1/3rd cooridor and some terrain features of the bowl that may funnel movement.



Pretty certain I will be there. Still torn on taking in the stand.


I think it'll help get me more of a view and is probably worth taking. It's a pretty long steep hillside. I might have to be between the bench and the top 1/3rd to cover the entire place.


Was going to take the flintlock i just finished building...but I think I need ole Whelen. To reach out and touch and to drop the hammer. I don't want it flopping doen the hillside and I don't want some yahoo claiming it.

I've never had a deer shot in the front end take a step from it. One deer did and it was nearly walking away and hit by someone else so I put one in him.




I'm not sure I can even cover it all. Probably going to be a play by sight and make a movement when I see where they are running...




By what I saw truck wise and muddy tracks on the road o think there will be some pressure. I just hope my hunch is right and I'm largely left alone on the hillside...

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[cbay]

Me and another Beast did an opening rifle trip blind this year. Cyberscouting was extremely helpful. Also, the pressure from other hunters was very much like expected; easy access = hunters.
One of the key strategies that kept us in the game was having plan b, c, & d's,,, because of running into other hunters.
The majority of unpressured bedding points had a buck sighting.
Good luck Mauser, hope you get a big one!

[mauser06]

Thanx!


I already have several ideas on where to head if I'm forced out of there. The top has a fair bit of room...and a ton of flatter land on the other side of the road...I really think it's going to take nearly all the pressure.

I already have extreme backup..if I go down that mountainside and up the other I'm fairly sure I will have an entire ridge to myself. The issue will be getting a deer out.






That's the mountainside. Picture doesn't do it's length or steepness justice...temps are fine...gunna see if I can find cheesecloth and bring extra rope..pack out what I can then go back the next day for the rest. ..


Where there's a will there's a way.


Talking to my buddy...him and another guy already have me cut off my good spot behind camp without anyone else even mixing in. And they both stomped around there ..there's not much land behind camp..

I did that to myself....my first year rifle hunting there I found 3 spots. I put 2 buddies in my other spots and I went to mine. We went 3 for 3. Rules were my spots if I want it they are mine. Doesn't help I told them of the monster 10 I saw there in archery. My own fault...but at the same time, it's their camp..not mine so I don't care. I can come and go as I please..

Atleast by going to this spot tomorrow I have pretty much endless land to walk if needed...

I think I'm going for it....I don't have much to loose...its nice hunting behind camp with everyone but it's just too crowded...



Cheese cloth and another cable lock or 2.

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[mauser06]

Didn't make the adventure.


Got to camp yesterday and noone was hunting high. Someone had to hunt there. Knowing I had a monster 10 there in archery I had to hunt it.



It was the first PA opening day in over 15 that I didn't see a single hunter. Very enjoyable day. Seen somewhere around 30...couple unidentified and passed 2 legal 1.5yo bucks. Good day.


Might go over to the new area tomorrow and poke around. Haven't decided my game plan actually.


This place was a ghost town after lunch. I only seen 1 deer after 2pm.

Should be nice and wet.

Thinking I might just pack the truck for home and go still hunt there and see what I see...it's on the way home..



If o find deer there tomorrow I will find them in their areas they go when pressured...good info to have...

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[Joe68]

Good luck Mauser.

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[mauser06]

Raining buckets at camp and noone is in the woods...


It's not raining at the spot this post is about. I'm gunna pack up and head over there...

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[cedarsavage]

Good luck

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[mauser06]

So I got there and saw a bunch of Amish buggies and horses tied up...

I really debated on going home. I know they are masters of the deer drive and moved about a mile down the ridge.

Went into the spot I was going to yesterday and realized it's pretty easy to access and was probably lined up yesterday.

Sat there a bit and listened to them do a little shooting...I could tell they were in my "extreme measures" spot...the ridge a mile and a half from nowhere..

I really figured they had special doe tags and were shooting doe.


I decided to still hit out the ridge. Ran into 4 doe right away. Bedding right in the wind tunnel.

Continued on and stayed high because once I got out to the big point I wanted to drop onto the bench and work it back.

Came across a few ladder stands but there wasn't a ton of hunter sign. I was surprised. It's not far or hard to access...lots of deer sign.


Dropped down and found a spot I could shoot to 3 benches and saw a cluster of good rubs and tracks. Stopped to look at the GPS...put it away and was looking at the lower benches and a deer snorted above me.

I swing the gun to my right and get the scope on it... standing there...can't see a rack...sun was directly behind it but thought I got a good look..it starts trotting and I'm 90% sure it had a decent rack..by that time I couldn't shoot..


I jumped on its tracks...yep probably was a buck. Dang!


Kept working that hillside out and dropped down to the middle bench.

Kept seeing good buck tracks. Good sign. Not lots of sign but looked like mostly good buck tracks.

The hemlock edge crept up and down and I was working along it on the bench...

I hear a deer go out below me...tail...chest...never saw the head. The body looked like a good buck but never seen the head...got the scope in the next opening and he never came through of course...


Not sure but I'm guessing both were bucks and both different.


I am working around a small point and hear talking...and realized immediately it's the Amish crew.


I get out and they are on the right of way dragging deer...



My jaw dropped. The one was a slob.


They were 100% honest and forthcoming with info. I was kinda shocked. I never asked but they told me where they killed them and what they seen and other area info tips like places to cross the big creek and another area with lots of buck.


13 of them killed 3 buck and they were done shooting by about noon.

All 8 points. They said one was 11" wide, 15" and the slob....he was 25".

The slob didn't have much mass or tine or beam length but was crazy wide.


They said 3 other big ones got away.


Where'd they shoot them?

Yep...my "extreme measures" spot.


They started on the side i was on and moved some deer over there but they spent the morning killing bucks on that ridge.


Those guys make us look like sissy's lol. They packed in a bunch of water and food and spent the morning killing bucks and the afternoon dragging them out...that picture i posted previously is over a different right of way...the one they drug the bucks up was actually steeper..lol. Not to mention it's basically mud covered slippery rocky ground today.



If we get snow next week and I still have my buck tag I'm going back.


If not I don't know if I will or not.


The area is huge. The press was pretty intense yesterday from what I heard but it was largely isolated like I figured.

I wanna scout the tar out of the area this winter/spring and get to know it well.


It's rougj rugged terrain and those hills are unforgiving.


I also have to figure out an actual plan for what to do when I do drop one back in there...there is a trail that runs along the creek bottom...not sure if the sled and trail would be best or pack and quarter.


I'm glad I didn't hunt there yesterday as I think I would have seen more hunters than deer...but glad I went today...gained some good info...

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