Anybody willing to take me deer hunting?

[mugs79]

I've always been a bit... averse to deer hunting. It just never appealed to me. Before I'd spent time with rifles, it seemed to easy. Wait for the deer to show up, then point your expensive scope at it and blammo. I've recently discovered that it is indeed more difficult than that, and unfortunately, since the start of the season this year, I've talked to enough hunters that I'm feeling somewhat obligated to give it a shot, before I talk down on it much more. And, truth be told, I'd honestly like to try it.

So is anyone willing to take on a rookie? I've never been, but I've hunted plenty of waterfowl and upland birds, and I'd call myself somewhat competent and very safe. I don't have a gun capable of killing a deer, though I've been thinking about picking up a .308. If you're willing to take me for a day or two, I'm very willing and wanting to learn, and I'll buy you a burger and a beer at the end of the day.

I'm in Mecosta county, MI. If you're seriously willing to let me tag along, post or send me a private message.

 

[MCgunner]

Long way from Michigan. But, just to say, there's more types of deer hunting than stand hunting. Some folks don't seem to know that there are other styles of deer hunting and indeed other species of deer. Where I'm at, stands rule and feeders are legal, though far from effective much of the time. Sometimes I think that's more of a moral boost than a tool to bring 'em in. Seems to work better on hogs, but we do have a good acorn crop this year. And, I guess it don't help that the hogs eat all the corn as fast as the feeder feeds it, but hell, I prefer pork anyway.

Now, out west, spot and stalk is the king. This is MY favorite way to hunt when I can get out there. You just sit on the edge of a canyon, glass and find those big mulies, then comes the hard part, trying to plot a stalk that won't spook 'em. They have radar antennae on their heads and they'll hear a rock slip from a mile. That and their noses (keep the wind in your face) and eyes (use natural terrain) and the advantage is to the prey even when you're packing a long range rifle.

Then there's still hunting which in my experience works best in areas where cover is not so dense, savanna type terrain, and where deer populations are high. I'm thinking Llano and Mason county Texas here.

There are other types of hunting, but these are the three I've done. Living and hunting in the state of Texas with forays to New Mexico, I have been exposed to a good variety of biomes and styles of hunting in those biomes. Stand hunting is the most boring and requires the most patience and is what I'm stuck with for a while, but it could be a lot worse, I could be in a position that I didn't have a place to hunt at all. Texas has very little public land and private is all leasing, who has the money gets the land.

 

[Kimber1911_06238]

fly to CT and you can definitely tag along

 

[dakotasin]

Wait for the deer to show up, then point your expensive scope at it and blammo.

you can bore yourself to tears waiting for a deer to show up, or you can go hunt deer.

if you want to hunt, that is, if you can handle the work, come on out to wyoming, and let's go.

you'll need a dependable rifle and scope, tags, quality boots, and a burning desire. i've got the rest.

 

[oklahoma caveman]

same for oklahoma. its a pleasure to introduce someone to hunting

 

[qajaq59]

Reminds me of the time my boss told me that my coon hunting was a snap. "You just let the dogs go, they chase the coon up a tree and you shoot him. What's hard about that?" I told him he had left out the trudging thru 10 miles of swamps between the letting the dogs go, and the, you shoot him. :banghead:

 

[Art Eatman]

mugs, check the sticky at the top of this page, and see if there's anybody from Michigan who's offered to be helpful...

 

[mustanger98]

I've found knowing the areas the deer use regularly helps.

Oh, and my Daddy says with coon huntin', you spend more time hunting your dogs than you do hunting the coon. He said he'd been on a few coon hunts when he was a kid... it was rough... we generally stick to deer.

The way we do it in the South... you do have to know how to shoot; that's a given because you do want the most humane kill you can get. But really, once you pull the trigger, unless you take your deer to the packers, that's when the work starts. But like I said above... knowing the deer in your area helps a lot. If you know the does, the bucks are easy because during the rut, they're mostly following the does.

BTW, plenty of guys in the South hunt deer with dogs. It's legal here and a good time can be had be everybody. Another case of it being about watching the dogs work.

 

[.45Guy]

Mugs, late season ends this weekend, but if you ever feel up to making a trip across lake Michigan, I've got a safe full of rifles and the land to hunt on.