Iowa whitetail

[huntwriter]

I have heard this too. Over a million deer in states the size of Vancouver island. I thought I read somewhere that in Alabama you can buy as many deer tags as you want because they are so over run and the hunting pressure is low. I once worked with a guy from Wisconsin and I remember him saying that there he could buy as many doe tags as he wanted or maybe it was limited but it was a big number. But that is really all they get to hunt, other than the odd black bear and turkey.

That’s correct. In Alabama if you take advantage of all the options you can shoot as many as 20 deer. In Wisconsin you can enter for as many as 20 does and then take part in the earn a buck tag programm that lets you kill another 10 does and earn a free buck tag that lets you kill up to five bucks in addition to the over the counter buck tags or any deer tags if you apply for all seasons, i.e. archery, muzzleloader and rifle. Imagine having up to 30 deer in your freezer.

But make no mistake, despite the huge deer populations, it is not that easy to limit out. In fact hunters rarely limit out. Deer are very jumpy and hunter smart. I find American whitetails much thougher to hunt then Canadian whitetails.


These generous tag applications plus very long season (September/October to the end of January, sometimes February) are one of the reasons why I love to hunt south of the border. Although in many states it is getting quite expensive for non-residence to hunt. Illinois is now with everything near 300 dollars plus travel and lodging, or outfitter fees of up to $ 3,000.

[Ron.C]

When I was in high school, I went to a hockey Tournament in Pennsylvania. We were boarded with kids from the host team. The family I was with asked me if I wanted to go for a drive after dinner and see some deer, I was all over that. We'd pull up to a farm field, hit it with the truck high beams and there would be literally hundreds of deer. I still have not seen anything like that. I was amazed. Apparently at that time, there were mass winter die offs of thousands of deer during the harsh winters. So in some of these areas, you are doing the deer poulation a favour by taking several animals. And alot of these states have excellent programs in place where deer can be donated to feed less the fortunate.

[jml11]

That’s correct. In Alabama if you take advantage of all the options you can shoot as many as 20 deer. In Wisconsin you can enter for as many as 20 does and then take part in the earn a buck tag programm that lets you kill another 10 does and earn a free buck tag that lets you kill up to five bucks in addition to the over the counter buck tags or any deer tags if you apply for all seasons, i.e. archery, muzzleloader and rifle. Imagine having up to 30 deer in your freezer.

But make no mistake, despite the huge deer populations, it is not that easy to limit out. In fact hunters rarely limit out. Deer are very jumpy and hunter smart. I find American whitetails much thougher to hunt then Canadian whitetails.

Yes my former co-worker from Wisconsin did say that even though he can pretty much have all the tags he wants his success rates were not that high. He was primarily an archery hunter and really only took part in those seasons. Plus he was a single guy and only needed a couple of deer to sustain him for the winter.

[deer nut]

I'm sure the antis would love to get their hands on these photos. A little gross when you see them stacked like cord-wood. Individual trophy shots are OK but this looks like something from the 50s!

IMHO, the shows on Wild TV etc. that show Bubbas in their tree stands overlooking a food plot or a feeder are pretty lame! Try ground hunting or spot & stalk for a change! Hunting WTs in BC seems to pose more of a challenge - more time on the ground, less time sitting on a honey hole in a tree stand, with a rest .....

While I'm in mid-rant (sorry), how about the shows portraying black bear hunting over bait? Any opinions? I'm sure getting to and from the stand is exciting but I was throughly disgusted when I saw one with a pile of week-old donuts on the ground! How is this hunting? Please enlighten me!! It may be legal (outside BC) but it sure doesn't seem sporting! In BC since we only allow true hunting of bears - i.e. spot and stalk! While I like the dialogue and news from other areas, as much as possible let's keep "Hunting BC" about BC (or Canada at least!).

[mark]

While I'm in mid-rant (sorry), how about the shows portraying black bear hunting over bait? Any opinions? I'm sure getting to and from the stand is exciting but I was throughly disgusted when I saw one with a pile of week-old donuts on the ground! How is this hunting? Please enlighten me!! It may be legal (outside BC) but it sure doesn't seem sporting! In BC since we only allow true hunting of bears - i.e. spot and stalk! While I like the dialogue and news from other areas, as much as possible let's keep "Hunting BC" about BC (or Canada at least!).

When used to hunt bears, at times Ive seen as many as 20 bears in a day that could of been shot from the truck, and that my friend is how 95% of bears in BC are hunted and shot! Wow real sporting isnt it, why dont you rip on every bear hunter on this forum.

Now consider venturing into the woods, setting up a tree stand, and stocking it with bait for a while til bears find it, sounds like a heck of a lot more work to me!

[huntwriter]

IMHO, the shows on Wild TV etc. that show Bubbas in their tree stands overlooking a food plot or a feeder are pretty lame!

From your (rant) I gather you never hunted over a food plot or a bait. It’s not as easy as it looks like. Trust me on that, I talk from experience.


Thanks to modern editing TV hunting shows always look easy. They do not show the hours and days we sit in the stands freezing our butts off.

[huntwriter]

Yes my former co-worker from Wisconsin did say that even though he can pretty much have all the tags he wants his success rates were not that high. He was primarily an archery hunter and really only took part in those seasons. Plus he was a single guy and only needed a couple of deer to sustain him for the winter.

That’s one of the problems. Many hunters a re reluctant to shoot more deer then they need. In America they have several programs like Hunters Feed the Hungry, but not many hunters shoot additional deer to donate to these food banks.

When I met my wife on a visit to Canada I took here back to Illinois where I lived at the time. The next morning she asked me. “Is that a deer farm across the road?” I said, “no why?” She replied. “I have seen at least 100 deer in the pasture early this morning.” She couldn’t believe that we had so many wild deer. Despite the fact that the previous night from the drive from the O’Hare airport to our small town, 70 miles north of Chicago, I pointed every dead deer out to her laying on the side of the freeway. About every two to three miles I went “here is another one run over by a truck.”

Then years later when we moved here to BC, the birth place of my wife, I asked her the second week. "Where are all the deer? Are there any deer here?"

[Blainer]

That’s one of the problems. Many hunters a re reluctant to shoot more deer then they need. In America they have several programs like Hunters Feed the Hungry, but not many hunters shoot additional deer to donate to these food banks.

When I met my wife on a visit to Canada I took here back to Illinois where I lived at the time. The next morning she asked me. “Is that a deer farm across the road?” I said, “no why?” She replied. “I have seen at least 100 deer in the pasture early this morning.” She couldn’t believe that we had so many wild deer. Despite the fact that the previous night from the drive from the O’Hare airport to our small town, 70 miles north of Chicago, I pointed every dead deer out to her laying on the side of the freeway. About every two to three miles I went “here is another one run over by a truck.”

Then years later when we moved here to BC, the birth place of my wife, I asked her the second week. "Where are all the deer? Are there any deer here?"

Sounds like Australia,with dead Kangaroo and Wallabies all over the roads.I took a trip to Australia a year back and said to my mate,"everyone has pushbars on there vehicles here like on T.V.",that's when he started pointing out the wallabies,ect. on the side of the road.
They are like bloody flies and they are more concerned about damage to the vehicle.