It's about as slow around here as my grandad telling a story(he stutters but I love it). So I have a question. Why are a lot of people so reluctant to hunt public land birds? I have my own opinions but they probably aren't right. Here's my thoughts. People walking in on birds I am working is probably my biggest gripe. That can usually be avoided with some extra effort and thought tho. I don't believe the birds are any tougher than a pressured bird on private land. I do see a difference in pressured vs unpressured birds but that's about it. All are killable but some take a bit more effort and thought. Just seems like when I mention public land around here people cringe and want no parts of it. So what do you fellows think?
Public land can vary a lot from state to state. I've hunted public land in TN and KY and it was as good or better than most private I get to hunt in Ga and AL. Hunted public land in Nebraska and it was better than any private I've been on. Now go to public land in Florida and most people will struggle to kill birds. There are some really good special op hunts, but that's not your typical WMA. Then there's some public land you couldn't pay me to hunt, especially in camo.
I don't see that much difference, i feel if a turkey is right and you can get on him without another hunter in between, you can kill him as easily as a bird on private land. On public land you are going to run into other hunters who may know or not know how to really hunt turkeys. Birds that are pressured and heard everything may not respond as well as private birds. So people on public ground don't always play by rules of the game. Ethics plays a big factor in hunting these birds. It's all a matter who gets up earlier and has the best place and parking space. It's like being first in line and having respect.
Well here in GA the opinions vary. I think most people are simply intimidated by the various factors which make it different. People hear horror stories of getting shot at, a confrontation over parking or where you are hunting, the check in, check out, the extra fees for WMA, etc, etc. I personally will hunt public land if it's national forest but not wildlife management areas. Those are a little more crowded. Turkey Hunting requires more space than deer hunting when it comes to public land. Depends on who you are.
I definitely believe it has more to do with hunter encounters as much as anything. And granted, a bird that gets bumped and squawked at on a regular basis may become more difficult to kill. But there are numerous large contiguous tracts of public ground in the western end of Maryland (45,000 - 55,00 acres) that can offer up some quality hunts - especially mid-week, and after the first week or two of the season.
I hunt public land in Iowa 99% of the time. We don't have huge hunks of land in my part of the state, so I usually hunt smaller areas and river bottoms. My favorite years I need to wear hip boots to get to where I want to hunt. Other times, I walk in as far as possible. Thanks to Iowas four season structure, hunting pressure isn't too bad. My success is better than average, but being semiretired, I get to hunt more than most guys and gals.
Central and South Florida are a lot different than North Florida (where I hunt). I hunt public all the time. Had a guy kill a bird that was working him from the other side of the creek this year. He flew down to his side, not ours. No biggie, it happens. Was nice to hear the BOOM so we could look elsewhere.
I have some quality private spots and only so many days to hunt, so I hunt both. I kill more on private, but they are smaller pieces and no where near as fun to hunt. When it is raining, I have a killing field on private and a killing field on public. I have to race to the public one, so if it will be hard to get up early, I go private. I killed one on the public field last year. It is part of a 550,000 acre Nat Forest. Big lease for $26!
I have been messed up by other hunters equally on private leases as I have public ground, but I am now in a lease with family and have a place to myself. I have another place that is private, to myself I did not even check out this year - killed my two birds so quick I never even looked at it. It will be there next year.
I get a little more satisfaction calling one in on public, but that is probably just ego and not much based in reality. I mess up plenty on private land too!
Good question and I'm guilty! I'm surrounded by public land where I live now and never hunt it. Instead I choose to drive back home where I grew up and have access to thousands of acres, which is an 80 mile drive. I guess my problem is I get too busy at work and constant travel that I just don't take the time to scout out public ground in my back yard. Every year I tell myself I'm going to find a place to hunt close to my house but always end up just going back to the homestead to hunt the hot spots I grew up on.
I agree with guess who, kind of depends where your at. I have hunted public exclusively and killed many birds. In fact I never saw another hunter last year. But this is on 50,000+ acres. From what I've read on here, sounds like the public ground in some of the southern states is crowded.
I hunt public land in Maryland pennsylvania and ohio every year. The number one biggest challenge is hunting pressure and hordes of novice hunters on the weekends. I have had near 100% success filling my tags over the past 20 years. Scouting and hunting the first week of each states season are my best odds. We can only hunt till noon at that time but I am out every evening roosting birds and hunt every day no matter what. Persistence patience and nevery quit attitude. Have all three and you will kill birds on public.
All I hunt is public land in 4 states. Early archery only seasons draw me in ,spring and fall. At home ,in IL, I always get guys walking in on me. It's always the I need to kill type of hunter.
It all depends on the state and the area. I'm know there is tons of lightly pressured public land out there. Here in PA, we have one of the highest hunters per capita in the country. Public land can get a bit crowded. So can public access private ground. But I can't afford (nor can I justify) paying for land just to hunt or paying to lease ground. So I join the crowds and hope for the best. I do see a trend of hunting becoming a paying game where success is determined more by the size of your wallet than the amount of skill you have.
It's been good to me! But, it ain't for everybody. Their loss my is gain if they don't want to hunt public for some reason or another.
I think there are lot's of reasons though. I have a buddy of mine who's family has a few thousand acres that borders right up to a large romp and stomp WMA here in FL. I've killed some nice birds off the WMA and he can't believe it. Him and his family have worked hard on their property and really do a great job. He won't step foot on the WMA though.
It's funny 3 or 4 years ago I shot a really, really nice bird off the WMA 2 or 3 miles from his property and the first words out of his mouth were, "I bet that gobbler came off my property". I got a good chuckle out of that and just thanked him for doing such a good job and told him to keep up the good work so I can keep shooting em on the WMA. He didn't like that response much!
A turkey hunter needs the woods to himself. If somebody hears a gobble here they come. Your gonna loose some turkeys because someone else will try to get between you and the gobbler turkeys can be frustrating, having another hunter mess you up is worse. My worst example, was hooting and moving in on a gobbler in a place I've never seen anyone hunt before,turkey was far I had to hoot 4 times to find my way. Just as I was moving in low looking for a good tree another hunter shoots this gobbler out of the tree just as it was getting light in the east . I'll be hunting public land from September to April. Get there first,and get away from other hunters.
Here in western NC, I have access to millions of acres of Natl Forest land but I am always looking for private land to hunt.
The pressure and the people do not bother me. We've always been able to get away from people, I've never really had an issue with people coming in on me while I work a bird. Our problem is the lack of quality hunting on public land. For a long time now the feds have largely ignored the vast expanses of NF land, much of it has reverted back to a " big woods" setting like it was 50 or 60 years ago. There's very little cutting, thinning or management as a whole. Fields that were cleared for planting 20 years ago have been allowed to go fallow, maybe they get bush hogged every 5 years and every once in a while they will replant one...maybe.
NC is a very diverse state and most of the public land that gets any attention is in the eastern part of the state. We do have some good draw hunts on public lands in the eastern half, and I do apply for those with success, but those tags are getting harder to draw.
While I do live within spitting distance of millions of acres, the land is poor and we barely found a few turkeys this spring. Ten years ago, I would know the location of 10 gobblers when the season opened, this year I found one, I killed my gobblers this year on private ground....
The deer and turkey are both gone, they've moved on to better ground...and bigger corn piles, but don't get me started on that...
Gods of Thunder
2015 Old Gobbler contest Champions
As others have said, it just depends on where you go. In Ohio, I will not hunt public land. It doesn't matter how far in you go, you're going to bump into hunters. If you hear a bird gobble more than once, prepare to see other hunters. Your best bet is to out scout everyone else and know where they are going after flydown. Otherwise, you are depending on gobbling birds that everyone else is hearing.
I've gone out of state in KY, TN and NE for 7-10 days and never seen another hunter in the woods. I hunted public land in WV and ran into hunters twice, but they were a great group of guys. We briefly chatted, wished each other well, and went in opposite directions.
I hunt both private and public land. Around 50/50 either way.I sometimes have to put up with poachers on private land. On public land I have to put up with other hunters. The biggest thing on public land is showing respect for me. If someone beats me to a spot I go somewhere else.
Well, the answer is simple for me. No reason to at the moment. I've got access to some good private ground and if that fails, I'll go to the club. It's about like public land at times. If public is all I had, I'd be there but since there are better options, I'll stick with the private at the moment. Now, if you want to take me to your public honey hole next spring, I'll be right there. Assuming I can get the time to go.
As long as I have a reasonable chance of finding some gobbling turkeys, I actually prefer to hunt public land rather than private. In most cases, public areas are going to be larger in size, which generally will allow for those like me who like to search for a vocal, and hopefully cooperative, gobbler a bit more room to explore and seek those birds out. I also like the challenge of hunting gobblers that anybody else can hunt, as well,...again, as long as there are reasonable numbers of turkeys available to hunt.
Having said that, there is definitely a "tipping point" to my attitude about public land hunting. If there is so much pressure on a place that I lose the feeling that there is a "reasonable expectation" of finding a few gobbling toms, I will search for another place to hunt. To me, turkey hunting has always been about calling to turkeys and having them respond. Once I get to the point that I don't feel that is going to happen, it is time to move on.
There are too many places where turkeys are willing to act like turkeys and carry on a conversation with you to waste time on those places where they get hunted so hard that they won't.
Quote from: wvmntnhick on July 27, 2016, 02:26:55 PM
Well, the answer is simple for me. No reason to at the moment. I've got access to some good private ground and if that fails, I'll go to the club. It's about like public land at times. If public is all I had, I'd be there but since there are better options, I'll stick with the private at the moment. Now, if you want to take me to your public honey hole next spring, I'll be right there. Assuming I can get the time to go.
You know your always welcome. Only rule is your not allowed to cuss me for the exercise that will ensue. ::)
Here in Iowa it seems to depend more on population distribution. I live near (+/- 15 min) a large WMA and you could not pay me enough to turkey hunt there or shotgun hunt deer anymore. It's either a death wish or guaranteed confrontation.
20 minutes further away, is a small, county area, which I choose instead to frequent. I have shared the parking lot a grand total of 2 times in 3 years. I hunted opening day pheasant there 2 years ago and there was one other guy. This year I had it to myself.
DIfference is, the WMA is between two of our biggest cities in a huge metro area. Iowa has a handful of "metros", CR/IC, W'loo/CF, Des Moines, Sioux City, maybe Council Bluffs, and Quad Cities. Get away from these and public really isn't bad.
Get too close to them and get ready for mushroom hunters, people making love (seriously), dog walkers, birdwatchers, amateur photographers, and perhaps worse d-bag hunters that have no respect for safety and personal space.
I myself have hunted public and private and don't see to big a difference in the intelligence/behavior/whatever or birds. But the safety factor makes me think twice about public. Throw decoys into the equation and it gets dangerous REAL fast.
I do 90% of my hunting on public ground by necessity and find it more difficult because of the people effect on turkeys. On un pressured private ground one is able to find turkeys with which to establish.a close personal relationship and I miss that. On public ground, if you miss a day you may find yourself hunting a ghost when you go back.
Think you hit nail on head
Quote from: silvestris on July 27, 2016, 09:02:18 PM
I do 90% of my hunting on public ground by necessity and find it more difficult because of the people effect on turkeys. On un pressured private ground one is able to find turkeys with which to establish.a close personal relationship and I miss that. On public ground, if you miss a day you may find yourself hunting a ghost when you go back.
This is so true and another great point. Good post.
Quote from: Happy on July 27, 2016, 04:38:51 PM
Quote from: wvmntnhick on July 27, 2016, 02:26:55 PM
Well, the answer is simple for me. No reason to at the moment. I've got access to some good private ground and if that fails, I'll go to the club. It's about like public land at times. If public is all I had, I'd be there but since there are better options, I'll stick with the private at the moment. Now, if you want to take me to your public honey hole next spring, I'll be right there. Assuming I can get the time to go.
You know your always welcome. Only rule is your not allowed to cuss me for the exercise that will ensue. ::)
I'll never cuss you. Might cry like a little girl but even then I try to make sure you're not watching.
I've killed some great wma birds. And as its been said it really depends on the spot. Most places around me get hit hard the first week, but after that pressure decreases. In the late season I've literally had thousands of acres to myself.
Killed my first public land bird this spring! I will no longer sit in a pop-up blind all day on private ground wishing that something would pass through. Id rather walk over acres of public ground with birds gobbling and some hope in my heart than I would have a short walk to a pop-up just to read a book and sweat all day. If there are birds to work on the private ground then that's where Ill be. If there aren't, then Ill be headed to some public ground.
I feel safer hunting private ground even though people can and have trespassed where I hunt even though the majority of it has been in our family for many years or I have sole permission for the season I hunt on neighboring ground . I feel less likely for people to mess up my hunt or some moron to shoot me or my boy.
About 1/2 of the gobblers I've killed were taken on public land in Florida. It took me a few years to find which WMA's were worth hunting. Now I stick to a select few and have excellent success when I get drawn, which is getting harder and harder to do every year.
If given the opportunity, I'd rather hunt private though. I absolutely hate having hunters walk in on me while hunting, whether it was intentional or not. I also travel a lot in my quest to kill a turkey in all of the lower 48 states before I die. I'd prefer when I go to those lengths and that expense to have improved odds, and not get walked on by Wally's (what my friends and I call bad hunters who walk in and ruin other guys' hunts).
But I'm not afraid to hunt either public or private as long as I have gobblers to chase.
I have the option to hunt private and public land and hunt both. I enjoy hunting thousands of acres of National Forest where I can walk for hours even if the land is no longer being managed well. Still there are Turkeys to be found and hunted. I also find that hunting public land is harder, more demanding, time consuming and at times frustrating. I find that other hunters are not a problem as very few travel far from the roads.
When I tire out, get discouraged or simply need a break I head to a real honey hole of a farm I lease. I have been privileged to hunt this farm for decades. I know every inch of this ground but it is not a give me because the surrounding area gets hunted hard so the turkeys are pressured a bit. The grounds are not as steep as the mountains so I can hunt while resting up. (Yes I do hunt from a blind some) as well as ease around calling. I normally kill my bird in three to four days. Then its back to the mountains and the tranquility only the hills can bring. There is a reason I log on as Mtns2hunt I just love the hills and Mtn's whether it's Virginia, Wyoming, Montana or lately Northern New Mexico.
I want to hunt where there are both birds and no people.
Public hunting in California takes a considerable amount of time and energy for success. It can be done, and there are plenty of areas to do so...
Or, I can take a bit of time here and there and approach land-owners to have access to better quality areas with no hunters... This summer on the way to here or there, I have stopped and asked permission to hunt... Most say no, but I get one yes, and I have a place I can take my kids, friends, or family, with a decent chance of success and a low chance of interference from other hunters.
I will admit that there is a bigger feeling of accomplishment taking a bird off of public land though... And, when going fishing or traveling with the kids or family, I am always on the look-out for productive areas to hunt, public or private.
We have had a couple of low production breeding seasons, and are seeing a reduced population of mature birds in the areas I hunt... If we have another productive season this spring (as we did last spring), I will probably look a bit harder at some public areas as well as private...
I've killed every bird in my home state of PA on public land, not by choice, but only because I don't have any private land to hunt. I'd rather hunt on private land any day of the week, especially in the spring season. I just can't get into rubbing elbows with other guys when I'm trying to hunt, doesn't matter if I'm hunting turkeys, deer, geese, or squirrels. And due to my work schedule and where I live, I usually only have Saturdays and vacation/sick days to hunt, so my time is pretty limited, I'd rather hunt where I know there's a higher chance of success. I'll probably feel different once I'm retired and free time isn't such a premium.
The public lands I hunt in central NC have a few different options. We have hunts by drawing, limited days per week, or unrestricted access gamelands. I can't speak for the draw hunts, because my name hasn't been drawn yet, but I have successfully hunted the unrestricted and limited access lands. The unrestricted land obviously gets the most pressure, though the limited days per week lands are closer to more populated area so it gets a lot of drive-by hooting, crowing, and yelping. The bigger pieces of land that offer more out of the way & harder to get to places are my favorite public places to hunt. Getting as far off the road seems to be the key. The turkeys aren't as stirred up and they act closer to lightly pressured private land birds. I've been walked up on by other hunters a couple of times there.
The private land I hunt most of the time these days gets quite a bit of pressure around it and the thing that helps it the most is an area of swamp that provides a buffer that is difficult for other hunters to cross. The turkeys are definitely more wary around the private than public. I've had other hunters, joggers, hikers, and horse riders screw my hunt up there.
My old lease used to get minimal surrounding pressure and was as great a place to hunt as I've ever been. We regularly held off for a crack at the biggest gobbler in the area and had many birds to choose from. We had a few trespassers mess up some hunts, but not many.
Jim
I've recently been hit with a conundrum. I've been hunting on a guy's land for a few years. It wasn't great deer ground, wasn't great turkey ground, but it held a bit of each. Honestly, it was far better squirrel hunting than anything. However, the fella recently died. Hunting his place was a lot like hunting public land as he'd let more guys in there than the land could support. With his death, all permission was denied by his daughter. I've been helping them get some vermin off the property this summer and from the sounds of it, I may get sole access to that piece of property. That'd be nice to say the least but the issue is still going to be with the trespassers. Don't want to cause a ton of issues with them in fear that they'll start cutting fences and ruin it for everyone or shoot some of the horses/cattle. Not real sure how to handle it at the moment but I've got to figure something out or risk hunting ground that's very similar to public land only significantly smaller in size. Kind of off topic but I felt it fell in here somewhere.
Quote from: wvmntnhick on August 31, 2016, 06:46:11 PM
I've recently been hit with a conundrum. I've been hunting on a guy's land for a few years. It wasn't great deer ground, wasn't great turkey ground, but it held a bit of each. Honestly, it was far better squirrel hunting than anything. However, the fella recently died. Hunting his place was a lot like hunting public land as he'd let more guys in there than the land could support. With his death, all permission was denied by his daughter. I've been helping them get some vermin off the property this summer and from the sounds of it, I may get sole access to that piece of property. That'd be nice to say the least but the issue is still going to be with the trespassers. Don't want to cause a ton of issues with them in fear that they'll start cutting fences and ruin it for everyone or shoot some of the horses/cattle. Not real sure how to handle it at the moment but I've got to figure something out or risk hunting ground that's very similar to public land only significantly smaller in size. Kind of off topic but I felt it fell in here somewhere.
I don't envy you! That's just a bad situation all around. When people hunt a piece of ground for years and are suddenly told they can't it can lead to some pretty hard feelings. As long as you're not friends or acquaintances of the denied hunters then the hard feelings won't be directed at you so much. But, like you said, they could cause issues for the land owner. I'd say if you like the ground and want to hunt it, and have permission, then hunt it. As a land owner I have denied permission before. I never had issues with any damage because of it, but if I would, I'd never blame the folks that I let hunt. It's not like you suddenly came in and stole their ground. I'd feel worse about leasing ground that others hunt and having to be the one to tell them to stay off.