Aldeer.com Forums Alabama Deer Talk Land, Leases, and Hunting Clubs Is it just me?

This isn't that other state this is alabama it isn't Ohio Kentucky or illinois. If people not just you feel like we don't need to shoot anymore does then don't shoot anymore does. I'm sick of people getting all upset cause they had a bad year and wanting more rules and regulations. If you do better in 7 days up there than a 100 here then lease a big chunk of land and only hunt it 7 days a season. The reason a lot of people had a bad season Is that there are still good acorns on the ground and I'd venture a guess to say 80% of hunters don't know any more than to just go sit in a shooting house on a green field. I'm not trying to say I'm the great white hunter because that's far from the case. That's just my 2 cents

When did having a civilized discussion become whining?I saw no whining and we had a normal,maybe better than normal season..Not everyone did..I hunted Wheeler Wildlife Refuge alot.Wheeler usually has acorns rot on the ground there are so many..Almost none this time.I still saw plenty of deer they were just scattered and hard to pattern..

Take a look at the American Indian and compare them to the White tailed deer. Not many Indians roaming the woods these days. Wait a few more years boys and there are not gonna be many deer roaming the woods either.

Think about the Bobwhite Quail and the Cottontail Rabbit also. I used to have literally hundreds of them here on the farm and now I cant tell you the last time I saw a rabbit or a quail here.

Put that in your thought processor and kick it around for a while. I am going to leave it at that. We need some help here in North Alabama no matter what some of you experts say.

The way I look at it, instead of calling people whiners that aren't seeing deer where they've traditionally seen them or aren't harvesting deer where they've traditionally done so, be grateful for the success that you've had and pray that God would bless you with continued success. To insinuate that somehow those who aren't killing deer are not doing so because they are inferior woodsmen is a bit haughty and even ignorant of the reality that we're not all playing with the same hand of cards here.

The truth of the matter is, whether you like or dislike the deer hunting regulations in Alabama, they are written in the interest of the large tract hunting clubs and leases and the insurance companies. Insurance companies are the largest lobby in the state and they want deer populations down to reduce car collisions with them. The conservation of the animal and creating an excellent hunting experience for the average hunter is an afterthought.

From an outsider looking in, Alabama has some great deer hunting.
I have some distant family with land south of Montgomery. Hunted there a few weeks ago. Every time I hunt there I am amazed at the number of deer I see. Nothing for me to see 15 to 30 deer a day on their property. And all day at that.
But, they hunt smart and don't pressure the place very hard and don't shoot many does. Same for the land around them.

All I'm saying is most people that I personally know that aren't seeing deer don't put in the work to see them. Over the years I've seen the majority of hunters shift to shooting house green field watchers and that's a fact whether you want to admit it or not. People are pressuring the deer more. I think game cameras hurt more than they help. You are leaving more scent in the woods by checking them all the time. People leave more scent when they are going into the woods to fill there corn feeders. Now I may be wrong but that's just my opinion. I do my scouting this time of year and when I hunt I go straight to the tree or blind I'm hunting and get in my stand. I don't walk around for 30 mI mutes looking for tracks and sign before I hunt

It is a fact that I start seeing deer and lots of them on the side of the roads starting Feb 1st. The corn bags also disappear from the roadside. A logical conclusion is when the corn piles are gone in the woods then the deer are on their feet & looking for groceries.

Fairly certain one of my hunting locations has low sightings because of corn. The only deer killed there was full of it. The other areas were all better than normal. Time to drop that lease.

Whatever you do, do not come to Georgia hoping for better hunting, with some places being the exception most of central GA has been shot out. The qdma guys talked a bunch of idiots into believing they had to shoot every doe seen to be able to kill a big buck. I live in Ga but hunt more in Tn,Ky, and Mo. Funny how I can hunt a Midwest farm and see 30 or 40 does and still see several big bucks., hopefully the guys up there won't fall for this horse hockey about having to shoot every doe they see

It might be too simple a mind-set when it comes to shooting does, but seems to me that less does = less fawns, some of which will be bucks. The logic doesn't make sense to me.

I have not seen an increase in people looking for a new property. It is always busy this time of year.

Have deer sightings been down? I'm not sure but I do know that my local processor is about 30% down from last year. (Last year was a record high). It is the ebbs and flows of deer hunting... way too many variables to say exactly why. Most likely, it is a combination of several.

I realize that you can't take our state and and make it identical to the Midwest. But don't you want to see us better our hunting anywhere we can ? I mean if it weren't for folks like Dr.Warren Strickland whining (if that's what you want to call it) we would still be at the buck a day rule. I know some of you guys don't like rules and regs but it was absurd to tell a man he could shoot a buck a day for near 3 months. I and others before the 3 buck limit was passed pleaded with wildlife heads to put a limit on harvest and it fell on deaf ears. They told us basically that everything was fine and you could just keep killing and they would keep multiplying. I didn't buy into it. And if you went to where I lease land in the Midwest and backed of on the rules and regs and said Have at it ,in a few years you have a wasteland. I want us to move forward. Some of you guys don't know it but Forever Wild recently purchased one of the finest tracts you ever laid eyes on. I know personally the man who overseen this approx. 2000 ac. Alabama river tract. And it has been managed for years for trophy bucks. I can almost guarantee you it will , under the states control will have little or no buck regulations and in a few years dramatically alter the hunting there and not for the better. I would like to see us move forward and whether you agree or not rules and regs can make a big difference in the quality of hunting.

Bingo. Need to go back to the 10-14 day doe harvest season for at least 5 years.

There is no doubt unless your property has passed its carriying capacity causing does to be in poor enough health not to produce fawns. Less does absolutely meens less fawns which meens less bucks. Not sure how dumb you have to be to not comprehend that.

Another logical conclusion would be that winter has taking more of an effect on the local browse, another logical conclusion could also be that every tom, dick and harry is trapesing through the woods hunting the rut, and/or blasting everything that walks into the food plot and the deer have changed there routine. theres alot of variabels that go into deer movement.

That's how I feel about it.

If we go back go 10-14 days of doe days I'll sell my stuff and hang it up. I know a bunch of older guys that quit hunting when we went to 3 bucks

All that is true. Can safely say there won't be corn sacks decorating the county roads .

I wish they would go back to doe days shorten gun season by about a month, and make it mandatory to call in your kills and double the price of a hunting liscence. And then all the people that claim they would quit hunting if they done any of those things could take up knitting or bird watching. We would have more deer less hunters and lease prices would go down. It would be a win win for everybody.