Do It yourself Public land Deer Hunt

[grizzlyxx]

My brother and I are planning a out of state deer hunt next year and I'm looking for suggestions.  I know its early but never to early to start planning.  Looking at midwest states: Illinois, Nebraska, Missouri, or Kansas. Been to Illinois couple of times but thinking about something different.  Thankful for and advice.

[stick flipper]

Ohio is very non-resident friendly. around $150 for lic. and tag. and additional antlerless tags for $15. good public land in SE ohio.

[vtmtnman]

Originally posted by stick flipper:
Ohio is very non-resident friendly. around $150 for lic. and tag. and additional antlerless tags for $15. good public land in SE ohio.

x2

I went to OH for shotgun last season and this year I'll be back with bow in hand.Their public land hunting is better than private land here!  

[pokeanhope]

x3 brush creek state forest ohio. Best twang for your buck haha lol

[Jerry Jeffer]

I'll agree with the Ohio Vote.    

[8leg-lover]

I'm not sure what non-resident tags cost but I can hook you up with some killer spots in south central Missouri near the Rolla area. Lot's of conservation ground and thousands of acres of Mark Twain National Forest.

Carl

[Morgan Anderson]

Ohio

[stick flipper]

Ohio's bow season runs from the last saturday in sept. to the first saturday in feb. There is 3 good sized parts to wayne national forest, but my vote would be to look into salt fork wildlife area. It is located in ohio of the top producing counties in the state.

[vtmtnman]

Originally posted by stick flipper:
Ohio's bow season runs from the last saturday in sept. to the first saturday in feb. There is 3 good sized parts to wayne national forest, but my vote would be to look into salt fork wildlife area. It is located in ohio of the top producing counties in the state.

That's where I hunted.I loved it.

[moose eye levi]

Can't beat good ol' Ohio especially AEP recreational land just outside of cumberland It's where the great ohio deer and squirrel hunt was held thousands of acres of public land

[RRock]

Come on all you folks from Ohio, you all know there are no deer here. You really need to stop misleading all these poor folks.

[Delaware93]

In Illinois the Shellbyville area is awesome. Great hardwoods and lots of public ground. Check out the IDNR sight. I have been skunked only a handful of times over the years. Always see deer.

[Doug in MN]

I am partial but there is a lot of public land in Minnesota and there a more than a few decent deer taken here every year.

Season is mid Sept-Jan1 the best may be the last 3 weeks of October.

[zipper bowss]

Minnesota has awsome deer hunting!!I know that word is over used these days,but the Minnesota deer population deserves it.IT is AWSOME!
Ohio is ok too,but I still go to Minn. to deer hunt.
Bill

[grizzlyxx]

Thanks for all the replies fellows.  We are going to check into Ohio.  What is the terrain like, are there a lot of crop lands on the public land also. Anybody out there from Nebraska?

[Archer Fanatic]

If you go to Morgan County there is a wildlife area called Wolf Creek Wildlife Area. It has 3600+ acres and is surrounded by 1000's of acres of the Wayne National Forest. They have food plots and the deer flock to these ares and also there are some big oak trees on the ridge tops that attract the deer. This area doesn't get that much pressure during the early part of bow season. There is also a primitive camping area with water. Hope this helps.

[grizzlyxx]

Thanks for all the info Guys. We have settled on Ohio.  Lot public land and fair prices.  This will be me and brothers first solo trip together since we were teenagers, I'm fixen to turn 40. We both are pumped about it and looking forward to the whole experience. Thanks again.

[GingivitisKahn]

If you care, OH tends to be hillier south and east and flatter north and west. The AEP land has lots of free camping (need to go to their site to get a free permit to hunt there) and a fair amount of game though the place is a bit ... scrubby.  A number of us have been meeting there annually for a Ohio Trad deer hunt - if you time things right, you're more than welcome to join us.  Someone needs to show us how to kill a deer from that place.  :D

You can get maps of most of the public hunting areas from the ODNR site as well as info on camping and so forth - if that suits you.

Happy hunting!

[stick flipper]

AEP land is reclaimed strip mine land. you will need the free permit and a current map to show where you can hunt. The area changes due to active mining I believe so those areas are closed. I have never hunted AEP but I have gone fishing in many of the ponds scattered about. A good bit of it is "scrubby" due to the mining....not sure how much mature timber is left? Wayne National Forest is always a good bet. Like I said before there is 3 "chunks" of the forest. I personally would be looking at some of the bigger wildlife management areas. The only thing to watch out for that I can think of is there is a long weekend early muzzleloader hunt in mid-oct. on a couple of the WMA. So once you get a date set feel free to PM me with any questions. I would be more than happy to help if I can.

Chris

[Morgan Anderson]

I live right in the middle of the AEP land. I went out to check beaver traps this morning and I only drove about 7 miles and saw 20+ deer. They are around there is just alot of land so you really need to scout hard.