| I've got a copy of BOWHUNTER mag in front of me and it says Tenn.
has an estimated population of 650k whitetails.(Hell of a lot more
than NH!) It also states a 15 deer per sq. mi. density which is
real good. It gives the bag limit in Tenn. as 2 or more depending on
unit hunted.
Yet in comaprison, there are 11 states listed with higher densities
with some of them being well within reach(Penn,N.J.,N.Y.) of you
in N.H.
I'd get some references first, cause this could turn out to be either
great, or a flop if you go into it with blinders on.
If your checking the back of mags, Alabama boasts the highest densities
in the country, and a bag limit of 1 per day. There are plenty of
lodges which cater to deer hunting, and the weather would be similar
if that's an issue for you.
I put a lot of stock in deer densities, yet I'm thinking more about
bowhunting. If I were to hunt with a rifle, and was gonna plan a
guided hunt for deer, I'd look into states like Montana, Alberta
Texas and places like that where they grow big racks. Yet these
places would likely run you lots more money than Tennesee!
I was seriously considering Anticosti Island this year, but when I started
digging, I got turned off by cost, methods of hunting used there
generally, and what seemed to be the move'em in take their 2k, move
'm out mentality of the outfitters there. I found this out by speaking
to several people who made the trip, not by reading the brochures
the outfitters send out!
I'm settling for Maine instead! Get to hunt with my rifle, they
get lots of 200+ bucks each year, and you don't have to fight any
crowds.
I'll bet you gotta work alot harder though! ;^)
Barry
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| We have decided, due to lack of cooperation of the Tenn lodge to go to
a lodge in N. Carolina. They seem much more serious and are a hunter only
lodge, as opposed to the lodge in Tenn which I get the impression is a
marina and since they have nothing better to do guide hunters in the fall.
The lodge in Tenn would not furnish me with references.
The lodge in N.C. is in N. Hampton county, last year the 2nd highest
harvest/sq mile in the state (they had 4.88, number 1 had 4.89 ).
I have a question about how often you think hunters miss though.
My hunting partner has done most of the phone work with this place and
it sounds like alot of deer are in the area, but not many are taken,
possible due to bowhunters missing. Here are the stats he gave me, as
they were told to him:
1988: 80 hunters (rifle, muzzleloaders and archers) 48 deer taken 65
MISSES.
1989: Arhcery: 8 hunters, 1 deer taken, 2 wounded, 23 MISSES
Muzzleloader 5 hunters, 12 deer taken, 2 misses.
This seems like an incredible number of misses to me, though only
exposed to rifle hunting thus far. It seems from this years stats
(rifle season not yet started) that the majority of the misses are by
the archers (I understand it is much easier to hit with a scoped gun).
My question is, is this a typical thing for archers, or are these guys
just bad shots, also, how often do you miss with whatever you hunt
with?
all hunting is done from stands, most of them in trees, so I would
assume the deer are not running.
Just curious.
--Bob
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Well I went down and hunted from 12/14 - 12/16. Had alot of fun and
got alot of experience, also found out why there are so many misses
that I asked about in .11, oh ya, I got a couple deer also.
The reason for the misses is simple, alot of the shots are at long
distances (200+ yds), this is a long way for a New Englang boy. I did
try a couple at broadside deer standing still though. I have had the
rifle on a range at long distance so I understood the ballistics. My
biggest problem was estimating distance.
Here is the deal that we got and other info on the lodge. The price
for a 3 day hunt (4 nights) is $600. This include everything, if you
provide your own license its $520 and if you book before April 1 it is
a discount rate (not sure how much). The food is excellent and its all
you can eat. They try to serve everyone Venison once, we had fried
venison that was excellent. The hunting is all from stands, they drop
you off at 6ish in the morning and pick you up at 10ish. Most morning
stands are in teh woods, swamps etc, looks alot like NH hunting, thick
with limited visibility. After they pick you up a 10ish you go back to
the lodge and have lunch. If you want to stay in the woods you are
welcome to, but you must stay on a stand. They bring you back out at
2ish and pick you up after dark. They drag/clean/skin and semi-butcher
your deer, they don't have time to make steaks and rap for you, I
brought, mine back quartered, tehy will usually bone out the backstrap
and tenderloins. The success rate this year has been good. We arrive
on a Wed and teh 8 that were leaving Wed night got 14 deer. There were
3 of us and we got 5. It seems that if you want bucks you have to go
before Dec, out of the 19 deer I saw, only 2 were bucks and they were
button bucks. Gene (the owner)said this was unusual, but in Dec there
are always more does than bucks taken. YOu can take does after Dec 1.
I am not clear on what happens before Dec 1. THey have pictures of
some of the bucks taken this year, some monster racks.
Anyway, here's how things went for me. First morning I was sitting in
an overgrown clearcut with a trail about 8 feet wide going through it.
The stand I was in was sort of like a fort, 3 walls made of canvas
nailed to a 2x4 frame and a roof (As Gene told us, you pay $200/day you
don't want to get wet). Well as it go light enough to shoot I heard a
deer coming up from behind me, if he went straight he would come out
about 30 yds to my right. I was told that when he stepped into the
trail, that would be my chance for a shot, but don't expect him to stay
there long. So I shifted my weight to spin to the right alittle. Well
the stand was frozen and it made some noise. Needless to say that deer
is still out there.
First afternoon, I was overlooking a harvested soy bean field,
afternoon hunting is like this, over looking a field. About 4:00 I saw
2 deer jump into the field, about 200 yds away in the corner of the
field. As I reached for my gun, 2 more came out, one of them looking
right at me, while we watched each other a couple more came out. By the
time I got the gun up there were 8 - 10 of them just wandering around.
I picked out the biggest on, put the cross hairs on her and shot. Well
sort of, I think I was so sure she was gonna go down that I lifted my
head to find the next one to shoot at. Well I missed. She ran into the
woods. The others were just sort of hanging around, so I picked one
that was standing broadside and shot again, missed again. Now there is
one little yearling left in the field, so I lined up on it and missed
again. When the guide came to pick me up we went and checked for any
signs of a hit and tracked them into the woods for awhile, yup, never
touched a hair. It seems I need some practice at distance shooting and
estimation. THe other two guys both scored, my friend got a button
buck at 150 yards, the other guy took a yearling doe at 225yds (he has
been hunting for along time and all over the world, he's a good shot.)
Next morning nothing happens for anyone. That afternoon, I am sitting
over a field again, and 2 deer walk out of the woods at about 225. I
start debating whether to take the shot since they are further than the
ones I missed the day before. I decide if one turns broadside I will
try it since I have a very firm rest. Well the big doe turns broadside
and puts her head down. Ok, here we go, crank the scope up to 9x,
put the cross hairs on the spine, alittle higher for luck and squeeze
off the shot. Click!, the gun misfires, I cycle the bolt (autoloader)
and as I let the bolt go forward the deer leave. The heard the firing
pin at that distance with wind going from them to me. Oh well. Maybe
tomorrow.
I check the action of the gun and somehow there is dirt in the bolt. I
cleaned it out as good as I could and reloaded. About a half hour
later 2 more does walk into the field, these at 125 yds. This shot I
know I can hit. I aim at the back doe and shoot, down she goes, shot
took out both lungs. Well the other doe kind of turns around to see
what all the noise is about and stands there. Oh boy I said, I can get
2 (limit is 2/day 5/year 2 bucks, 1 doe, 2 hunter choice). I look
down at the gun to check if it jammed (lots of confidence in it since
the misfire) and low and behold it did. I assume it jammed on the
reload, so I fix it and aim at the deer, squeeze the trigger, nothing.
The gun jammed on the unload, I quickly cycle the bolt, as I get the
deer in the cross hairs she is jumping over the bushes into the woods
so I don't shoot. Got one.
Next morning it is cold (15 deg, real cold for them), they ask if we
want to hunt or stay in, I say, this will make me feel at home, I gonna
shoot another one. They all laugh. They drop us off at 6, by 8 the
other 2 guys are back in the lodge, they guide waited with the truck
in case someone got cold and wanted to go home. Well I stayed. In the
woods, leaning against a tree freezing, this is just like being at
home hunting in NH. At 9:30 I have my face huddled down in my
sweatshirt figuring I will hear the deer on the frozen snow so it is
safe to warm my face up for a couple of minutes. Well crack, something
make aloud noise. I slowly look around, don't see anything, I look for
a couple minutes and assume it must have been a tree cracking in the
cold. I huddled back down. A couple minutes latter something made me
look up and there's the deer, walking to my right about 30-35 yards
through the trees (NH style). As I stood and raised the gun she saw me
and decided she would be better of someplace else and ran. One shot at
about 50 yds on the run and she tumbled like lightning hit her, I got
off the stand to make sure she was dead. She was, bullet went in about
8 inches behind the shoulder, took out one lung then went up to the
spine, must have bounced off the rib. Deer number 2.
Last afternoon, I don't see anything. The guy from Virginia gets a 120
lb doe, one of the biggest doe they ever got at the lodge.
all in all a good time and I believe a good deal. Gene and Troy (Father
and son who run the place) are very nice, great food, good company and
lots of deer. Learned alot, got experience on how to act when I see
a deer and learned to butcher them.
Had a good time. If you want more info on the lodge feel free to call
or send me mail, glad to talk about it.
--Bob
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