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i get asked this hundreds of times a year,prolly the#1 question...
i always say to hunt the largest parcel of public you can find since most want to be away from other hunters.also i believe the larger public lands like the 3 districts of the wnf are less likely to be crowded than small state parks,especially close to big cities.pick a district of the wnf thats closest to you,then find the largest single solid parcial of land in it you can find and go to the area farthest from civilization...remember the wnf ,no matter what district is dotted with private land within its boundaries...also remember all 3 districts have equally good deer numbers...
shawnee state forest is one big block of public land...its one great big partial,not even the wnf has a bigger area of a solid block of public hunting...its more rugged than the wnf in most cases...and in my opinion has larger bucks...one thing to remember is there are a good amount of big bucks,theyre hard to see but theyre there in all that timber.you just have to scout and hunt hard for them...
one thing nice about the wnf and public land i'm aware of is theres laws prohibiting 4 wheelers and baiting...this keeps a lot of guys from hunting here...a word of caution though is it can be very hard to get your deer out...this is where scouting comes in and a good topo map...you need to know the lay of the land because theres almost always an easier direction to drag out a deer without going up any hills...knowing where all the creek drainages wind up by the road can be very helpful...by scouting you should learn that well...its the difference of a drag out that can kill you or one thats downhill all the way by following a creek right to the road,many times theres a foot path along the creek...one thing i tell everyone coming to hunt is theres really no best place in our area,it just needs someone there...deer are very evenly distributed within the forest from just off the road to out in the middle...not so with hunters,theyre more likely on the edges and theres more the closer you are to towns...no hunters need to be on top of each other...respect other hunters,if you hear a guys on a big buck,dont go hunt next to him,theres other big bucks in other areas besides those big bucks could be 3 miles away in a day or two...right at your original stand...as for lodging ,there should be motels near by in most cases but camping is the ticket...you can set a tent just about anywhere in the wnf(no so with shawnee)...and be to your stand just by walking in just a few minute...
with the wnf before you even go,pick the district nearest you,check out the topo on line or buy a map...locate the biggest/remote parcel in that district...find the best route to it and get out there and scout it...good luck...:biggrin:
i always say to hunt the largest parcel of public you can find since most want to be away from other hunters.also i believe the larger public lands like the 3 districts of the wnf are less likely to be crowded than small state parks,especially close to big cities.pick a district of the wnf thats closest to you,then find the largest single solid parcial of land in it you can find and go to the area farthest from civilization...remember the wnf ,no matter what district is dotted with private land within its boundaries...also remember all 3 districts have equally good deer numbers...
shawnee state forest is one big block of public land...its one great big partial,not even the wnf has a bigger area of a solid block of public hunting...its more rugged than the wnf in most cases...and in my opinion has larger bucks...one thing to remember is there are a good amount of big bucks,theyre hard to see but theyre there in all that timber.you just have to scout and hunt hard for them...
one thing nice about the wnf and public land i'm aware of is theres laws prohibiting 4 wheelers and baiting...this keeps a lot of guys from hunting here...a word of caution though is it can be very hard to get your deer out...this is where scouting comes in and a good topo map...you need to know the lay of the land because theres almost always an easier direction to drag out a deer without going up any hills...knowing where all the creek drainages wind up by the road can be very helpful...by scouting you should learn that well...its the difference of a drag out that can kill you or one thats downhill all the way by following a creek right to the road,many times theres a foot path along the creek...one thing i tell everyone coming to hunt is theres really no best place in our area,it just needs someone there...deer are very evenly distributed within the forest from just off the road to out in the middle...not so with hunters,theyre more likely on the edges and theres more the closer you are to towns...no hunters need to be on top of each other...respect other hunters,if you hear a guys on a big buck,dont go hunt next to him,theres other big bucks in other areas besides those big bucks could be 3 miles away in a day or two...right at your original stand...as for lodging ,there should be motels near by in most cases but camping is the ticket...you can set a tent just about anywhere in the wnf(no so with shawnee)...and be to your stand just by walking in just a few minute...
with the wnf before you even go,pick the district nearest you,check out the topo on line or buy a map...locate the biggest/remote parcel in that district...find the best route to it and get out there and scout it...good luck...:biggrin:
