The clover I frost seeded back in mid-March is started to come up....looks like I planted it plenty thick. Coupla more weeks and I'll have to mow the rye cover crop from last fall. For now it works to help prevent weeds and retains moisture, but at a point it starts to shade out the new clover. Once established the clover needs to be mowed to keep it spreading and to keep it tender, the way the deer like it. Summer plots will probably go in the first week of June, since the majority of the mix is forage soybeans, and I like them to mature later than the ag beans planted around me. While hunting for Morels earlier this week I spotted a few new travel lanes and bedding areas due to tress being down thanks to the wet weather and the wind storms of last year. have to make the appropriate changes in stand positions. Lots of sign, which is good. State says they are lowering the antlerless tag number this year due to being on goal with the local populations. Numbers on our property are as high as ever. I think focusing on providing food and habitat has made a positive impact.
. I mentioned my lack of property and restrictions in my state and a nice forum member took time to tell me about alternatives - hunting out of state where there's public lands and you can use a rifle. I've been trying to find a private land owner to allow me to hunt with a shotgun (in Illinois ) for years with no luck- around here public hunting land is uncommon and way over crowded from what I'm told. Never considered crossing the state line - I only live 10 miles from Wisconsin border. So I'll go a couple hours north into Wisconsin and check out a few public areas in the next couple weeks. .
Out-of state deer hunters from Illinois, has been a love/hate relationship in Wisconsin since I first started hunting deer back in the early 60s. Bars, restaurants, sporting good stores, gas stations and motels love 'em. Local folks that have to share their local public land with them, not so much. This is no reflection on you at all Obturation, but of those that have preceded you. Far too many come up for a few days and disrespect the land and disrespect the people that live in the area year round. Far too many have few too many woodsmanship/hunting skills/experience and are far too concerned about taking something home. Just don't be one of them. Don't know what areas of public land you are considering, but any small parcel will be swarming with hunters on opening day of gun deer season. Large parcels, while not nearly as bad, will be hunted most heavily anywhere where access is easy, and there are enough landmarks to make getting lost difficult. In the last few years, GPS has helped, but any spot close to a creek, loggin' road, power line or the near edges of clear cuts is hammered. Those spots closest to the road that have any sort of deer sign will be occupied, many times by several different hunters. Do your home work, spend some time in the woods and present a positive image. The state DNR website had good info on public lands. Anything close to the Illinois border is going to be hit harder than the huge areas in the northern part of the state. Areas close to large municipalities will be similar. Don't be afraid to go where you see less obvious sign that may be a bit farther back. Many times, those are the spots deer go to when the guns start going off. Over the years I have had good success on public land here in Wisconsin. I have also been frustrated and disappointed. The success came from knowing the area well and knowing where the majority of other hunters hunted. The frustration and disappointment many times came from not having a second or third back-up stand, or just from butt-hole hunters. success rates in Wisconsin are about 25%. On public land, because of very limited antlerless tags available for them, and high numbers of hunters, success rates are much lower. Hunting an area of public land with lower pressure will increase you probability of success. Public lands also quiet down significantly after opening weekend. Some are almost deserted. While natural deer movement is usually on hold because of hunting pressure, there are still deer left to be still hunted or pushed to standers. Many times, I avoid public land on opening weekend and end up with a nice buck from there later on on the week.
I wish you and your kids luck, and a positive experience. As I said, make yourself and them positive examples of a deer hunter. New hunters many times put unnecessary pressure on themselves, and do things that may not be ethical, respectful or even legal. Again, don't be one of them. Do your homework and expect to have other hunter interference when hunting public land. Give them respect and hopefully they will do the same.