Help with Pressured Farm Bucks

[nsmith253]

This is my first non-introductory post. Through my gf's dad we have gun hunting permission on a large farm here in SE Wisconsin. I'm not sure on the exact acreage but it's definitely over 2500 acres. It's within an hour of my house and has Lake Michigan beachfront (about a mile of it). Ag fields, woodlots, a creek that runs through it, a couple of marshes/swamps, and wooded bluffs with two ravines that lead down to the lake. It's an incredible piece of land and we're fortunate to be able to hunt it.

So what's the catch? First, the landowner's deer management goals. They essentially want them eradicated. Mature, immature, it doesn't matter--in their mind they do damage and they want us to kill as many as possible. There's a sense of "we're here to do a job" more than we're here to enjoy our hunting. My gf's dad is worried if we don't shoot enough deer every year we may not be invited back the next.

The second problem leading from the first--it gets pounded. There's a different group of guys that bowhunt it before us. They don't share any information on what they're seeing, shooting, or anything else. From the bits and pieces we get through some of the caretakers who live on the property, if I had to guess I'd say at least 20 deer have been killed between us and them every year for the last 5 years they opened it up to hunting I've only been around for 3 of those years. Most go to the venison donation program at the butcher. It's hunted at least every weekend from October through end of muzzleloader (metro sub-unit). Some decent bucks have been taken by our group, but nothing over 2.5 to my knowledge. The bowhunters may be shooting older deer but we'll never know. Despite all of this we still see mature deer on cameras even into gun season, sometimes during daylight.

The last issue is access for scouting, we have limited time to scout and put stands in, usually in October on a single day when the bowhunters aren't there. The last two years, frustrated by the bucks I've been seeing, I've brought my climber (my only mobile setup at the moment) and taken to scouting new spots during the last weekend of gun season (this upcoming weekend). Starting to apply Beast Tactics I've found that all of the advice about bucks bedding watching access is holding true, there's numerous road/trail systems throughout the property, and tons of outbuildings etc. All of the suspected buck bedding I've found has been around these areas, watching the human activity. It just feels like since I can only scout these areas in-season, and to find the "spot within the spot" to set up I have to get into the bedding areas that I'm going to booger it up for 2-3 seasons until I am able to cover all the ground finding beds.

I guess my question is, do you all think I'm stringing myself along? Getting caught up on the size and beauty of the property? Is the pressure high enough where it may not matter how well I scout and the mature bucks simply won't tolerate it and move on? Anyone else have experience with what seems to be a great property, but you have zero control over how and who hunts it?

[DaveT1963]

My advice, just because you have access to land does not mean it is worth hunting. From the picture you painted, I would say look elsewhere unless you are sure there are overlooked spots/bucks.

[stash59]

Have you asked for permission to scout in the off season?

[nsmith253]

Thanks, Dave. I think my goal then will be to try and eliminate all the possibilities and move on if that is the case.

Stash: The relationship with the landowner is through my girlfriend's dad--he works for a general contractor that built her new home so I kind of get the sense he's hesitant to ask for more or push any boundaries. I will bring it up to him though and see what he says.

[nsmith253]

Here's an aerial shot of the property, can hunt everything except the Northeast corner. Let's see if this works:

[headgear]

I'd heavily focus on the overlooked stuff, if good bucks are around they will be where nobody is hunting or they are watching your access. I think the lake will play a big role too, has to be some major thermals or other lake effects going on. As mentioned if it gets pounded too much you might be better off on public.

[nsmith253]

Headgear, I think you're right on both pieces. Winds are predominantly out of the west, and with the lake to the east there's definitely gotta be a thermal tunnel effect happening on the bluffs. The nicest buck our group has shot was cruising north to south along that area during rut. Regarding access, last year I was trying to find bedding and trying to think like a beast I found this (I think) older bed, in between the two ponds on the aerial watching human access.

Bed with old rubs:

SW view from bed watching caretaker's home and access road along field edge:

NW view of outbuildings:

N view of a parking area myself and others have used many times to park and walk in:

[fenderbender62]

I would say it depends on what you're trying to accomplish. It sounds like you're seeing and killing some deer, so thats you can hang your hat on that. If you're looking to kill a mature buck, there has to be one present on the property your hunting, when you're hunting it. Have you put up any cameras to inventory what the age class is there?

[mheichelbech]

In a somewhat similar situation as you. It has mostly been an exercise in frustration and wasted time in trying to get on a mature buck versus other places I hunt. The property should be and could be totally awesome but is way over hunted.

[jnwalsh]

Are the fields to the NE and W on a consistent crop rotation? Have you noticed any difference in activity over the last few seasons with different crops in the ground?

[nsmith253]

Circling back on this, after receiving and watching Dan's Farmland DVD a couple of times I burned the last day of gun hunting to do some scouting, as I won't be able to get back on the property until late October/Early November next year. I focused on finding overlooked stuff, and leaving no stone unturned, so to speak. Found some eye opening stuff and 3 good buck beds.

This first bed is in a circular cattail marsh that's in the center of the property, probably a couple hundred yards across. Found a tree on the edge of the marsh that I can get up just high enough to see him going in and out of the downwind side.



This second one I will credit Dan with, as I probably would have never given it a second look. In the Farmland DVD he talks about bedding up against old farm equipment, rock piles, etc. Well when walking through an area that not a lot of hunters from our group go, I started seeing piles of old concrete rubble, and junk that had been tossed out in this chunk of woods many years ago. Lo and behold I found the trash buck's lair right in the middle of it all. The coolest bedding area I've found by far.



View from the rear of the bed upwind where he's hidden from sight, and looking downwind where he can see out to the field edge where most hunters access from across the field.



The last bed was an area I had suspected before and actually hunted near, but the bed was actually on the more extreme fringes than what I had thought. I actually kicked this buck out his bed sneaking in here on a cross wind. Didn't get a super great look at him but he was tall. To his back is the predominant wind, a fence line, a ditch, and then Interstate 43 so he does not expect any human access to come from that direction.



Here's what he sees from his bed watching he's watching access

[rhaggs1616]

From my take, I'd say start hunting on the ground more (it just doesn't limit you). I started doing this the past couple years and found myself in spots I would never consider hunting previously. Some of these spots there are literally no trees to climb, or I come back later and use a stand when I have confidence in it. Essentially, it just allowed me to get out of my comfort zone and I started really getting on deer and close.

I hunt a similar type property with a ton of pressure. I started focusing on small drainage's in ag. fields, little islands. Pretty much anywhere no one ever hunts and theres sign is where I want to be.

I would just look at the map, cross of everywhere people hunt/have hunted and give it a shot at all those little overlooked areas. I mean it's worth a shot! I shot a 11 point, 140 inch buck this year coming out of a standing cornfield 400 yards from the closest woods.

[greenhorndave]

Good stuff ^^

Overall, it does look like a really cool place... but with some tough stipulations.

I have a spot that gets pounded too, but there are good deer in there (or at least were) that has me interested in cracking the code. But I totally understand why other areas might be appealing. Hate to spend precious hours hunting a place that might not yield the best outcomes.

I really liked your approach of doing a scout on the last day. Great thinking. (although I hope others who hunt it don’t poach your intel without reaching out to you)

A tough nut to crack, but really might not be all that different from hunting public ground: you never know who is walking where, their access routes, what bucks have hit the deck, etc. The limited time window is something most don’t face either, but it might be kind of like an out-of-state hunt to some? You kind of have an idea, but have to figure it out in a short time.

Maybe the thing to do is hit it the first couple days with what you know now, and be prepared to move to Plan B if you’re not seeing the sign you want. Or... just thought of this... pattern the other hunters and let them essentially drive deer to you.

All that might not have helped much. But I wish you luck.

[treeroot]

One property I hunt gets pounded, it's almost impossible to get away from the guys. But I found the first two weeks of bow are the sweet spot. Hitting it before they start cutting trees and moving stands. The bucks are there early season, after they pound it the only buck sign I find is on the boarders. I think the bucks just shift off the property during season.

[matt1336]

The landowner wants the dear dead but you guys are hesitant to talk to him about scouting so you can get better at killing more deer? In my experience, farmers don’t care too much about the property that doesn’t make them money....as long as you’re not abusing the privilege of being on the farm. I would find it hard to believe that he wouldn’t let you walk around in the winter and spring. Ask him if he wants some fence lines cleaned up or some other other work done out on the property. There has to be ways to get in better with the guy and get some scouting done. I always take some sausage or other venison stuff with me whenever I go visit the farmers.
I just got permission on a 40 today...at the gym, while I was talking to the farmer’s daughter, lol. No, I wasn’t hitting on her. If I wasn’t married I might have been tho.
She flat out told me....”go kill the deer, we don’t care, go a head and hunt it”. I said, sure thing, thanks a lot!!!