How picky are you on public land when chasing whitetails

[Keep on]

We kill more deer per square mile in PA than any other state. If you're holding out for a trophy on public you're probably going to be waiting a while. It's better in the Western end of the state, but in the populated South East, I will usually shoot the first legal buck I see, 3 pts to a side, private or public. It was a new experience going out West the first couple times, passing on smaller deer.

 

[Beignet]

Johnny 75 wanted to come home with you! I had a young Mule Deer buck I named Lucky Strike do the same thing for me one complete season. Archery thru the rut, he was always in my way and blowing out other deer! So annoying, but now that I think about it, pretty fun memories too.

Half surprised he wasn’t waiting back at the truck for me.

But yeah, like you and Lucky, it was a fun day all in all!

 

[Wolfshead]

The public I hunt is very pressured (whitetail).
If you’re not a resident then your possibility of getting a Doe tag is extremely limited to not possible.
If it’s legal and I have an opportunity to take it I’m happy with that.
There was a time when, if you got a deer, it was a trophy. Whether it was a spike or six point.

 

[TexanSam]

Wow... Hearing everyone's testimony has me rethinking how lucky I am.

I'm still not shooting a 2 year old though lol

 

[TheGrayRider]

You can’t eat antlers.

 

[TheTone]

You can’t eat antlers.

But you can look at them for the rest of your life

I try to be picky but at the same time I’m a pretty crummy whitetail hunter. If I’m hunting an area where I can glass and see then I’m holding out for a mature deer

 

[TexanSam]

You can’t eat antlers.

No but I can share pictures of them here to stroke my ego

 

[crock239]

I archery hunt whitetails on public in IA. I've gone multiple seasons without harvesting a buck, and like you I don't shoot bucks less than 3.5yrs old.

But when I lived and hunted in SC...I shot the first buck I'd see.

I don't spend nearly as much time whitetail hunting now as I did before I was doing an annual out of state hunting trip, and owned a bird dog.

 

[Pucky Freak]

This is my 11th consecutive year hunting public land WT bucks in Iowa. In 2017 I shot my first antlered animal on public, a yearling. In 2021 I shot a 2-yr-old antlered buck. That’s it. I’ve passed on dozens of bucks 3 yrs old and younger. I much prefer filling the freezer with does and fawns. My walls are full.

I’m shooting a 4-yr-old if I get an opportunity. I’ve so far missed 3 of them (buck fever). I can count on one hand the # of 5+ year-old bucks I’ve ever seen on public.

Bowhunting this year I’ve seen four 3-yr-olds in the same spot, one will probably crack 150” next year. I’m planning to put in some concerted scouting and try and connect next season.

 

[Flynarrow]

Hunting with a longbow and relying on wholesome whitetail every year any close sure shot will do until our meat for the year is secure. Closer to the truck is even better.

 

[TexanSam]

This is my 11th consecutive year hunting public land WT bucks in Iowa. In 2017 I shot my first antlered animal on public, a yearling. In 2021 I shot a 2-yr-old antlered buck. That’s it. I’ve passed on dozens of bucks 3 yrs old and younger. I much prefer filling the freezer with does and fawns. My walls are full.

I’m shooting a 4-yr-old if I get an opportunity. I’ve so far missed 3 of them (buck fever). I can count on one hand the # of 5+ year-old bucks I’ve ever seen on public.

Bowhunting this year I’ve seen four 3-yr-olds in the same spot, one will probably crack 150” next year. I’m planning to put in some concerted scouting and try and connect next season.

I've shot enough 2 year olds in the past. My new philosophy is also to hold out for 4+ year old, and fill the freezer with does, crappie, turkey or anything I draw a tag for our west. It can be rather frustrating though to have logged 30 days in the stand and nothing merited drawing back the bow.

 

[Pucky Freak]

I've shot enough 2 year olds in the past. My new philosophy is also to hold out for 4+ year old, and fill the freezer with does, crappie, turkey or anything I draw a tag for our west. It can be rather frustrating though to have logged 30 days in the stand and nothing merited drawing back the bow.

I clipped the D ring on one of the 3’s, and drew back on another one. No more than a minute after each one left my sight, I was relieved by my restraint - I would have been unhappy to put my tag on either.

I know there are big deer nearby - some are secretive, and some quite nocturnal. Even if a year or two go between shot opportunities, it’s still fun to get lucky or outsmart one the few times it does happen.

 

[MTLabrador]

One of these years I’ll connect on a decent mountain whitetail. They are very fun and frustrating to hunt, and every time I try to track mountain whitetails in the snow I can feel myself becoming a better elk hunter.

 

[Bigjay73]

I'd have to be pretty desperate to chase white tails, would definitely be a meat hunt.

 

[slatebuilder]

It is hard to shoot a truly big deer if you shoot the first 2YO buck that walks by. It is also good to have realistic expectations of what a place produces as well.

 

[undercover]

Doe or buck in HIGHLY pressured public out my back door is my trophy, couple thousand acre track that is poorly managed by our state(Michigan)low deer numbers with little habitat, little food. If I had access to all the private land that I hunted in the past I’d still wait for that calender buck.

 

[std7mag]

It took me 35 years to shoot a buck.
Killed many does.
They just walked in front of me first.

I only hunt public land here in PA.
It's all I have access to.

Personally, antlers are only good for stirring the soup. And not great at that.

If it's legal, I'll harvest it. As mentioned, most of PA requires 3 points on one side.

Oh, and there is no way that my wife is letting me hang a mount anywhere in our house.

 

[NateW45]

I also hunt Kansas and find myself hunting more for experiences now than age class or score of the buck. I would rather stalk into bow range and arrow a smaller 8 point than sit in my stand all season holding out for a bigger buck. Also, there are big bucks on public but I think the golden days in Kansas are behind us. There is a reason they reduced tag allocation in some of the units, including the one I hunt. Numbers just aren’t as good as they used to be.

 

[Dirtybird552]

I have ate enough tags out of state being picky over the years. Now I live by the old saying “ don’t pass on the first day what you would be happy with on the last”

 

[SaskHunter]

Pretty picky on public but only because I have access to good private.

Then again, it's all season dependant and how much time I can allocate to the hunt. I've passed some pretty big bucks in the past that some years I would've begged to even catch a glimpse at. This year, with a caribou, elk, antelope and mule deer in the freezer, I set myself a minimum standard for my late Nov whitetail, public or private. I stuck to that minimum and ended up shooting what I had envisioned as the "minimum" buck I would shoot.