New public land hunter anxiety...

[Bonecrusher101]

It’s just the opposite here. Everyone piles into private land, trespassing and vandalism happen 10-1 on private vs public. I have worried about someone messing with my truck but it’s never happened to me yet. I always carry a firearm and am ultra cautious when approaching my vehicle after dark. No issues though!

I rarely see anyone I had not planned to meet up with on public. I’m always polite and courteous when I talk to other hunters I don’t know. Everyone I’ve met has been cool. Mostly, I avoid talking to other hunters all together, I feel like I have more to lose by saying too much.

I sometimes play give and take with info about public. I ask questions and if they aren’t being truthful to me, I usually say something off the wall to sound like a goofy idiot to dead end the conversation. I then go about my business. The goofy weirdo is always a great card to play if anything starts to get heated towards an argument.

I bumped into a hunter last season on a main trail and he talked for 30 minutes or so and never asked a single thing. He was very knowledgeable and I listened to his tactics and experience of the area. If someone wants to talk deer hunting, I will let them talk and ask questions. I always love hunting stories and will always have something to learn.

To me, That’s all part of the adventure!!! Have fun with it and enjoy the steps!

[gsquared23]

The huntERS aren’t as bad as advertised, but the huntING can be the first couple years. I haven’t seen a legal buck on public ground from a stand, but I’ve gotten into some does. It isn’t as bad as I feared, but it’s not amazeballs either.

[Bio1]

I’ve been hunting 36 years on public land across many states - only twice have I run into true Aholes. Once was hog hunting in GA and another was elk hunting in AZ. Neither was really that bad, though. I have had a trail camera trashed which really torqued me but other than that it’s all been good! I love having tons of land to roam - I always feel if I look hard enough I’ll find something good.
Killed some pretty good critters over the years as well.

Good luck and enjoy!

Bio1

[MOtgrinMI]

I hunt public land in SE MI now and I have never had any problems with people messing with my vehicle. Common sense still applies though (i.e., you can't make it easy for people to steal your stuff) but vandalism has never been a problem. I have had loads of problems with people in the woods though from folks pulling behind my truck in a single vehicle parking lot to hunt the same small chunk of public I was on and ruining my hunt to folks setting up right next to me because I was hunting "their spot" even when I was in there well before them, etc. I have also run into people leaving their vehicles at single access locations to block the spot off from other hunters (typically occurs the day before the bow or gun opener). I have hunted quite a bit of public land throughout the country and SE MI is the only place I have encountered such a**hole behavior. I chalk that up to the higher population, the smaller parcels of public land (here it is not easy to get "further" back than the other hunters), and MI DNR not really enforcing the treestand laws (certain a-holes throwing up stands in every nook and cranny on public land to mark their territory). This is not to intimidate you as you can still find great bucks on SE MI public land, just know that there will be a decent proportion of days that get screwed up by all the SLOB public land hunters here. The good thing about SLOBs is they don't think out of the box and are somewhat predictable, so if you can figure them out you can put the pieces of the puzzle together to get it done. A piece of advice, some of the best bucks you'll find here are places that don't get you too excited when looking at them on an aerial. Some of my best spots are places that other hunters would think it impossible to kill a deer much less a big buck. If it looks anything like a classic terrain feature that animals like to use (funnel, saddle, pinch point) my advice would be to avoid it like the plague as it will get hammered by all the other hunters and mature deer won't move through them during daylight. Boots on the ground and looking for subtle features and off the wall pieces of cover are your best bets! Good luck!

[greenhorndave]

Good stuff MO. Thanks

[greenhorndave]

Anyone I've run into on WI public has been just fine.