‘22 Iowa whitetail

[johnp]

Thanks for taking us along. When the drives are well managed and are familiar with most of the hunters they are a very exciting way to hunt .
Not many driving crews in Wisconsin these days. The land is just too fragmented. The average farm here is a lot fewer acres than a ross the Big River.
You Iowa guys and your DNR are obviously doing something right. We've got good bucks here too but mostly because of landowners doing good management.
Still no comparison to Iowa.
Sunday as I was ice fishing by Bagley I could sure hear the Banging away going on your side of river.
Good luck and keep the updates coming!
Are very many of the deer testing positive for cwd ?

 

[Gellar]

Thanks for taking us along. When the drives are well managed and are familiar with most of the hunters they are a very exciting way to hunt .
Not many driving crews in Wisconsin these days. The land is just too fragmented. The average farm here is a lot fewer acres than a ross the Big River.
You Iowa guys and your DNR are obviously doing something right. We've got good bucks here too but mostly because of landowners doing good management.
Still no comparison to Iowa.
Sunday as I was ice fishing by Bagley I could sure hear the Banging away going on your side of river.
Good luck and keep the updates coming!
Are very many of the deer testing positive for cwd ?

I’m ready to go ice fishing. Ice looked black today.

 

[johnp]

I’m ready to go ice fishing. Ice looked black today.

The ice is a little squishy by shore but just fine. The fishing was also fine.
Should still be ok if it doesn't rain!

 

[Gellar]

the late muzzleloader season opens on Monday the 19th. The extended forecast is looking good with temps below zero at night and at or near 0 during the day. A little more snow would be nice, but at least we have some!

 

[OMB]

Real slow hunting the last couple of days, less deer seen, and only a few does. Yesterday was freezing rain until noon. Made it very difficult to walk through the woods. The deer were holding very tight and you almost had to step on them to move them.

I will not be hunting today as I have work obligations. I think our total is at 10 bucks and 5 does. That’s half of what we usually harvest. The dnr biologist came to collect CWD samples yesterday and he said all of the groups he talked with were saying the same.

Nice bucks, our group on the other side of the Yellow only killed one nice 10 in 3 days, two of our youth hunters took younger bucks. We still ended up with 16 does. Numbers are definitely down a bit in that part of the world, but the deer are as healthy as I've ever seen them. We saw more coyotes this year than the last 5 years combined, for what it's worth. I couldn't believe the amount of acorns still on the ground.

I ran cameras most of the summer and fall, and didn't get a single buck on camera that made me go "wow." And that's how the season played out. Lots of bucks that will be nice if they get a couple years to grow. I did have a great buck missing a bunch of points at 30 yards before he headed off towards the park chasing a doe on Monday, hopefully he makes it over winter because I'd guess before the rut he'd be 155-160.

 

[Gellar]

Nice bucks, our group on the other side of the Yellow only killed one nice 10 in 3 days, two of our youth hunters took younger bucks. We still ended up with 16 does. Numbers are definitely down a bit in that part of the world, but the deer are as healthy as I've ever seen them. We saw more coyotes this year than the last 5 years combined, for what it's worth. I couldn't believe the amount of acorns still on the ground.

I ran cameras most of the summer and fall, and didn't get a single buck on camera that made me go "wow." And that's how the season played out. Lots of bucks that will be nice if they get a couple years to grow. I did have a great buck missing a bunch of points at 30 yards before he headed off towards the park chasing a doe on Monday, hopefully he makes it over winter because I'd guess before the rut he'd be 155-160.

Tons of acorns. It has me worried for the late season, especially if we don’t get more snow. I haven’t seen many feeding in the fields since the gun seasons.

 

[JLS]

Cool thread.

 

[OMB]

Tons of acorns. It has me worried for the late season, especially if we don’t get more snow. I haven’t seen many feeding in the fields since the gun seasons.

Run ways coming out of the park aren't what they normally are, guessing that's because of the acorn crop. All of the gut piles I popped my knife into had more acorns than alfalfa or corn (and there's plenty of that around.) I can't remember a year when I've seen this much fat on deer, to the point where I couldn't get my knife through some of it breaking down carcasses on Monday afternoon from deer we killed Saturday.

Obviously not great for late muzzleloader, but I'm ok with having a ton of non-ag food available. Who knows, we might even get some natural oak regeneration in clear cuts that we ran the Cat back back and forth through.

I only know of one buck over 160" in the immediate area, which is very odd. Sort of thinking the poacher that got busted in October has maybe been doing more work than anyone realized.

 

[Gellar]

Run ways coming out of the park aren't what they normally are, guessing that's because of the acorn crop. All of the gut piles I popped my knife into had more acorns than alfalfa or corn (and there's plenty of that around.) I can't remember a year when I've seen this much fat on deer, to the point where I couldn't get my knife through some of it breaking down carcasses on Monday afternoon from deer we killed Saturday.

Obviously not great for late muzzleloader, but I'm ok with having a ton of non-ag food available. Who knows, we might even get some natural oak regeneration in clear cuts that we ran the Cat back back and forth through.

I only know of one buck over 160" in the immediate area, which is very odd. Sort of thinking the poacher that got busted in October has maybe been doing more work than anyone realized.

Heard the same from Marquette to Lansing about the success during gun season. Part of me wonders if it was due to the weather, but there was definitely younger and fewer deer. When the DNR issues 8,000 doe tags between Clayton and Allamakee county annually it is bound to lower the population.

 

[Gellar]

The ice is a little squishy by shore but just fine. The fishing was also fine.
Should still be ok if it doesn't rain!View attachment 254067

Got out ice fishing today. I drug my feet deciding if I was going to go or not but got out around 11:30 and done by 2 with 25 gills and a couple perch. 3” of slush, 3” of good ice.

 

[Gellar]

I’m sitting in my truck watching a field with a snow storm starting. Expecting about an inch tonight and more 6” more Wednesday to Friday with temps below zero. Surprisingly there are no deer in this field, yet.

 

[Gellar]

I went out last night in the cold. It was 10 degrees and about a 5 mph SW Wind when I left the truck. I had 5 does and 3 small 8 pointers in the field.

Tonight we are expecting 4-8” of snow and winds up to 50 mph tomorrow. I got out about 3:45. 16 degrees and east wind <5 mph. To get where I wanted to sit I had to walk on the north side of a ridge about 400 yards, walk to the top until I can almost peak over the ridge and then belly crawl about 30 yards to some 3’ tall grass in the middle. When I got over the top and could see the other side there were already does in the field. Nothing really changed until there was only about 5 minutes of shooting light left. I looked to the east and could see a buck coming at me 150 yards away. I put glass on him and he looked wide, but no mass or brow tines. He came to within 50 yards and I could tell he was in the 120”-130” range. I put my crosshairs on his shoulder and went through the motions a few times as the buck fed to the south of my location. Earlier I saw a buck walking across a deep ravine 75 yards inside the woods. As I panned to my right there he was at the field edge 90 yards away. Wider and with more mass then the other 8 in the field I had a decision to make. This one looked to be in the 130”-140” range….Not tonight, so I backed down the north side of the ridge on my hands and knees until I could stand up and hiked out.

Snow tonight, blizzard warning until Saturday followed by negative lows and single digit highs! Should be good!

 

[Gellar]

No hunting tonight, had to work late celebrating a coworkers last day. -10 when I got home from work. Deer were feeding all day in the wind protected areas. Wish I had time to get dressed and sneak out. Tomorrow!

 

[Gellar]

3 degrees and blowing 25 out of the northwest. I’m going to try and sit in the woods where they've been coming up to the field at. Hopefully it wil be out of the wind a bit.

 

[BrentD]

3 degrees and blowing 25 out of the northwest. I’m going to try and sit in the woods where they've been coming up to the field at. Hopefully it wil be out of the wind a bit.

Slightly crazy, but they are your fingers and toes. Pretty ugly down here.

 

[Nick87]

3 degrees and blowing 25 out of the northwest. I’m going to try and sit in the woods where they've been coming up to the field at. Hopefully it wil be out of the wind a bit.

Go get em. Glad I'm not the only one dumb enough to hunt into his shit.

 

[BrentD]

Go get em. Glad I'm not the only one dumb enough to hunt into his shit.

I used to, but I got smarter with old age. There is no hurry. Although, I know a few bowls where deer will be hanging right now and it will be possible to still hunt to bow range in this sort of mess.

 

[Nick87]

I used to, but I got smarter with old age.

Call it what you want.

 

[Gellar]

I wasn’t going to go out. But my wife called me names so I felt obligated to go. The wind is swirling in the woods. They usually come up the bottom of the ravine before going into the field on the left side of the photo. It’s not terrible in the woods, and the kids were about to go crazy.

 

[duckhunt]

View attachment 257362
I wasn’t going to go out. But my wife called me names so I felt obligated to go. The wind is swirling in the woods. They usually come up the bottom of the ravine before going into the field on the left side of the photo. It’s not terrible in the woods, and the kids were about to go crazy.

Wind doesn't look to bad there. Visibility is only about 60 yards here.