The Big Rub!

I have kept my eye upon this rub high atop a ridge in the Harrison/Crawford State Forest for several years now.  It is in a hard to reach area, accessible from the only pull-off the property has by climbing through the dense undergrowth that a recent selective logging has created.  I hunt this area only when times allows because of the time it would take to get a deer out if the hunt is successful.

 

 

Come October the ridge and its accompanying saddle will be riddled with scrapes and rubs.  Just like it has been every year since I have discovered the place.  Last year I was able to make it in one time.  It was my first hunt of the year and due to the long hike up, the morning sun was well up into the sky by the time I fastened my climber into the tree.  I always tie my bow to the pull up rope with a square knot, but as I felt the weight of the bow on the rope a sinking feeling churned in my stomach -- I thought maybe I first went right over left instead of left over right on my first bend.  My doubt was confirmed when the bow reached about fifteen feet and tumbled back to the ground.  About a minute later, as I unstrapped my stand to climb back down, I glanced to my right and watched a nice eight-pointer -- a deer I definitely would have been happy with -- move past me just within bow range.  If I had put in the locking half-hitch I typically do I think I would have been fine, but I was too anxious to get settled in.

 

Several years ago my hunting partner Kevin killed an ornery looking thirteen-pointer down at the bottom of the ridge.  Last year on opening day of shotgun season we chose this spot to hunt.  But, when we reached the pull-off there were already five vehicles pulled in, so we opted for Plan B instead.

 

 



 

 

 

  

  

 

This year I will go in during squirrel season and do a little prep work on the ridgeline.  There is a large rotting oak I can clear out around its base.  There will be no noisy stand on my back to grab against the underbrush and no pullup rope -- just a light pack with enough food and water to sit all day if I have to.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Strategies for Hunting the Hoosier National Forest!





 

 

Five Steps for Hunting the Hoosier National Forest

I slowly paddled the old canoe down the misty darkness of the small muddy river.  Submerged logs drew the camouflage brute like a moth to a flame, and by the time I bumped my way to the shallow rapids where my stand waited, the forested river bottom was aglow in morning light.  I was arriving late, but I had high hopes for the morning hunt – it was mid November and the rut was swinging into high gear.

During two previous hunts here I had spent ten hours on stand, and in that time I saw over twenty bucks.  Sure some of the deer may have been the same ones, but nonetheless a wide assortment of racks had strolled by.  I passed up numerous shots on decent two year old bucks, and though I was tempted to shoot, my trail camera had given me reason to be patient. 

I had several photos of bucks that looked to be three years old or better.  Their racks were tall, wide, and heavy, and I really wanted to get a shot at a big thirteen pointer with an extra main beam that had stepped in front of the camera. 

Both hunts gave me the chance to see battling bucks yards in front of me.  The clashing and crashing sounds of the fights attracted crows, coyotes, and of course other bucks.  Each fight provided great excitement and a learning experience as well. 

On my first hunt, during early October, the river bottom was grown over with a large patch of wood nettle.  Deer beds were scattered throughout the patch, and the deer were devouring the plants.  With a little research, including some reading from an old A.R. Harding book, I learned that nettle is high in protein and minerals as well as vitamins A and C.  “Who needs to spend valuable time and money planting an early season food plot,” I thought, “especially when Mother Nature provides the deer such a nutritious, delicious food source for free?”

On my second hunt the pre-rut was kicking in and even before I settled into my stand bucks began strolling past.  I saw seven bucks cross over the shallow water, or work the scrape line along the river bottom trail.  As the evening settled in, five bucks moved in to the crossing and mulled about -- as if they were waiting for a doe to move through the area.

A half-hour before legal shooting time ended a big ten-pointer sauntered in and chased off three of the small bucks.  A little five pointer who wasn’t intimidated, lowered his rack and went at him, but the big ten thrashed him good as me and a nice eight-pointer watched from the sidelines.  Though the big ten hung around my stand until shooting time ended he refused to give me the right angle for a good clean shot. 

Now, on this November hunt, the tall nettle plants were brown and faded, but the scrape line along the river trail was still active.  Most of the trees were bare of leaves, and I was glad that I had chosen to place my stand in a maple tree growing next to a young branching beech tree.  Beeches typically hold a good amount of leaves deep into the winter and now those leaves helped to break my outline.

By now you may be thinking that I am fortunate enough to have access to private property with limited hunting pressure.  But actually this spot is a high pressured piece of the Hoosier National Forest.  There is easy public access to the west and east, and some of the hunter’s use their ATV’s to get into the area.  Yes, this is a little frustrating, but if you’re going to hunt public land in Indiana you better get used to a noisy machine sometimes moving past or near you – it’s just something that is going to happen.

For twenty-five years I have hunted the Hoosier National Forest and for the last nine years I have lived within its’ boundary.  Every year is a learning experience and most of the time I learn things I have forgotten from years past, but here’s a few pointers that might help you out when hunting the Hoosier National.

1.      Hunt the Middle of the Week

Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday are the best days of the week to hunt public property.  These days usually have low hunter pressure and if you’re lucky you may be the only hunter in the woods.  Mondays may lack the crowd but the deer haven’t recovered from the weekend pressure and they don’t seem to move as much.  When Friday rolls around there is increased traffic on the county roads.  The sound of wheels on gravel travels for miles and the noise of closing car doors put’s the deer on alert.  They realize it’s time to lay low.  On the weekends many hunters shine at night trying to see what kind of deer are out there, and more and more hunters move into the woods on their scouting trips.  All of these things affect daytime movement of deer.  From my own experience hunting, and commuting on a daily basis through the Hoosier National, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday are the days I typically see the most deer during shooting hours.

2.      Hunt in the thick stuff

These are public land bucks and the big ones aren’t stupid.  They know they’re hunted.  I hunt where I think the bucks feel secure enough to move some during daylight.  Sure it’s hard to shoot in heavy cover, and sometimes a buck gets close enough to touch without giving me a shot.  But, I do know that eventually a buck will walk where I need him to be.  If you can find a big thicket, an overgrown field, a recently logged parcel of timber, anyplace where it’s tough to move about and where most hunters won’t hunt -- you’re in the right spot.

3.      Practice Scent Control

My days in the woods are dictated way too strictly for me to plan to hunt only when the wind is perfect.  When I get a chance to hunt – I hunt.  If I were to wait for the perfect wind I would only get to hunt a couple of days a year.  I adjust for this by taking great care to insure that I am as scent free as possible.  Before each hunt every piece of clothing I wear is washed in scent free soap and stored in a plastic bag with either a cedar bough or a witch hazel stem. I also shower with scent free soap before going to the woods.  A bottle of cover scent goes with me on each hunt and I spray myself down every hour or so.  Sure I still get busted, but I’ve had way too many close encounters with an imperfect wind to think these steps don’t help my hunt. 

4.      Sneak in the Backdoor

I try to use water as much as I can.  Whether I float in or wade in to a hunting spot, I know I’m going in a way most hunters don’t.  Look over any maps of the Hoosier National and you will find lakes, rivers, streams, and small drainages that offer ways in to select hunting spots with a stealth like approach.  If I park in a pull off where other hunters frequent, I try to get to my spot with a route that takes me around high traffic areas.  Most of the time these techniques require more time, more work, and less sleep, but sometimes this pays off.  I am able to slip in and out of the woods while making minimum disturbance to my hunting area.

5.      Use Topographic Maps

Buy them at the Forest Service Offices in Bedford or Tell City and you will be assured they are updated with the most recent purchases of Federal Land.  If you have an old map, take it in and they will update the map for you.  If you don’t know how to read them – learn.  They are without a doubt the best tool you can have in your kit when it comes to hunting the Hoosier National.  Find those hidden shelf’s, saddles, and out of the way pinch points as far from the road as you can.  These are the spots those big bucks are going to take a chance at during daylight trying to find a receptive doe, or hide out in when the pressure gets heavy.

Conclusion
If you aren’t lucky enough to own your own piece of hunting paradise and have to hunt with the masses on the Hoosier National just remember there are probably more bucks there than you realize. Plus, don’t give up on a piece of land you like based on one or two seasons of bad experience.  These public land tracts are always evolving.  Some years there may be a crowd and some years you may be the only person hunting within  several hundred acres:  Hunters buy their own land; move to different locations; have to work; quit hunting, and everything else that happens to us year to year.  Don’t give up on a spot.  Cold spots turn hot and hot spots turn cold.  Go with the flow.

     Oh yeah.  On that last bow hunt of the season that big thirteen-pointer decide to pay me a visit.  He snuck out of a big thicket across the river and slowly waded toward me.  His careful, cautious, calculating, approach told me he knew how to survive on public land. 

     Unfortunately in my rush to get to the stand I forgot to leave my paddle in the canoe.  Halfway to the stand I realized I was still carrying it.  Instead of taking the thing back to the canoe I foolishly stashed it in a patch of tall river grass.  The big thirteen-pointer walked straight to the grass like he was pulled there on a string.  The big buck stuck his nose down, did an about face and retraced his steps back into the thicket.  One thing is for sure – those older public land bucks don’t let you make a mistake!

Patoka River



The Patoka River is classified as a state navigable waterway for 146 miles of it's corridor, and beginning at that point where the river flows under Highway 37 in Orange County to where it empties into the Wabash River it is a navigable body of water open to public use.  That doesn't mean the entire river bottom is open to the public, most of this land falls under private domain and is off limits without granted permission.  But, for the public land water way hunter willing to put forth a little effort, the river provides access to a number of state and federally controlled lands along its' winding path.

Beginning in Orange County the river flows along several remote sections of Hoosier National Forest before it widens out into the Patoka Lake Reservoir.  The Patoka Lake Corridor is controlled by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and this area provides over 17,000 acres of huntable public land.  Last year, during the fall hunting season, the Corps of Engineers held the lake at a low level and the open shoreline would have made a perfect path for a stalking hunting to move slowly along and hunt the wooded hillsides.  This was something I planned to do, but never got around to.  This year not as much of the shore is exposed, but there is still enough for a hunter to work the wooded edge.  Along several sections of the property the Indiana DNR plants crops and grasses, and I have seen an above average number of deer this year in the areas I regularly drive through. 



Moving downriver from Patoka Lake the river winds through several other sections of state and federal properties.  Parts of Pike State Forest (3,089 acres) border the river bottom and the river flows through several sections of the Sugar Ridge Fish and Wildlife Area (8,109 acres). But, possibly the hidden jewel among all of these is the Patoka River National Wildlife Refuge (5,828 acres).  This is a place where I have wanted to hunt and explore since it was dedicated, but am yet to do so.

A Nice Patoka River Ten Pointer on a River Bottom Trail!

Deer numbers have been strong for the past several years in this region of Southern Indiana.  Last year the antlered harvest was up in several counties the Patoka River flows through.  Hunters killed 797 bucks in Orange County, 771 in Crawford County, 698 in Dubois County, and 696 in Pike County.  All of these counties increased their antlered harvest from the year before and if the amount of deer I'm seeing in Southern Indiana this year is any indication of the coming deer season, I'm willing to bet the kill ratio increases again this hunting season.

If you're tired of hunting the crowded roadways of Indiana's public lands get yourself a cheap canoe and discover for yourself just how good these out of the way public lands can be.

August 15, 2010 Squirrel season opens

The good news is this: I have spent two days in the woods moving trail camera's and familiarizing myself with some new territory I plan to hunt, and I didn't get a single mature deer tick or lonestar tick. The bad news is this: I came out covered in turkey ticks.

When I got home I did a little experiment. When I took off my shoes turkey ticks were crawling over my lower legs and ankles. I doused each leg with a beer and I watched as the turkey ticks died away. Who would have thought the solution was so easy.

Though this summer has been hotter than normal we have had a fair amount of rainfall so a lot of the woodland vegetation is still green. In several areas I walked through deer had browsed heavily on stinging nettle and jewelweed. Both of these plants are loaded with vitamins and nutrients and deer seem to enjoy the taste of the plants. If you're crazy enough to walk through a big patch of stinging nettle during the late summer you will stumble upon deer bed after deer bed where all the plants within a bedded deers reach are browsed off -- especially those nettle patches that are miles away from the nearest crop field.

There are quite a few acorns beginning to drop, and some of the oaks are having bumper crops. I noticed some persimmon fruits on the ground too. This is the second year in a row where we have had a good mast and persimmon crop.

News from the Indiana DNR

Roush Lake will become a fish and wildlife area, giving Northeast Indiana deer hunters another 8217 acres of public land.

Wabahiki Fish and Wildlife Area near Terre Haute opened today. This property is part of a state initiative to acquire 43,000 acres of river floodplain that will stretch from Shades State Park to Fairbanks Landing Fish and Wildlife Area. A property map is available at the Indiana DNR website. Call Marty Benson (317) 233-3853 for more information.

Like I said in my very first post -- Indiana is getting serious about wildlife management.

April 25th, 2010

It is no secret Indiana is considered a sleeper state for deer hunting. Every deer hunting magazine has mentioned Indiana as an overlooked big buck hotspot. The QDMA website says this about Indiana: "I believe Indiana is one of the most overlooked states . . . , the southern half of Indiana is terrific, consistently producing some great bucks." The good news for Indiana hunters is things are only going to get better -- especially for public land hunters.

The Indiana DNR is serious about improving wildlife habitat. For years many of the fields on public property were left idle, and maybe cut once every five years. The state is doing a lot of hard work to improve these lands for the sportsman. Controlled burns, strip mowing, and plantings are taking place on just about every piece of state controlled property that I know of. The DNR is also conducting surveys about hunting seasons and harvest changes as well.

The DNR 2009 Biological Deer Report shows good numbers. In 2001 56% of the bucks killed were 1.5 year old bucks. Over this decade that number has steadily fallen to last years harvest where 36% of the bucks killed were 1.5 years old. In 2001 14% of the bucks killed were 3.5 years old or better. Over this decade that number has steadily risen to last years harvest where 24% of the bucks killed were 3.5 years old or better. Hunters are opting to pass on smaller bucks, and as a result there are more bigger bucks. Last year's harvest had fewer young bucks killed than any year this decade. Hopefully, this means more bigger bucks will be roaming Indiana this year.

The pictures on this post are deer killed on public land. The first four pictures are of a buck I killed several years ago. I have let plenty of bigger deer walk past me, but this buck is one I will remember for a long time. I stalked him for over an hour as I waded through a marsh and killed him at ten yards. The drag involved half a day of field work for me, my brother, and hunting buddies. I could fill up two pages telling you how we got him out of the woods. The other picture is a big buck my buddy Kevin killed several years ago in the Hoosier National Forest. This buck has a story as well. Both bucks will be talked about for many deer seasons to come.

Kevin's Opening Weekend Public Land Buck

Though there are no pictures of canoes, kayaks, or waders in this post they have just about everything there is to do with the hunting that takes place from my little hunting camp every autumn. In fact, I believe there is nothing -- I mean nothing -- worth doing that can't be made better by some contraption that will get you over or through the water, even if you are just messing about, but especially if you are hunting. And, for us, hunting is just messing about and spending good quality time in the field.

Sure, as Kevin and I shoved off in the canoe and slowly bumped along the river we had hopes of big bucks walking past our stands. We knew the area well, had spent some time scouting and knew we would both be hunting good spots. As we floated the river in the misty morning darkness no less than eight beavers slapped their tails along side the canoe and we considered the hunt a success just because of it. So, when no big bucks showed up that morning it was no big deal. We rendezvoused on the river's edge and began just messing about.

The afternoon found us deerless and hungry, sitting on a log in the woods, eating a thick ham sandwich covered in mustard, talking and laughing, and trying to catch a nap during the warm Indian Summer Day. We were a little surprised to look up and see a nice buck in the middle of a heavy thicket dogging after a doe. Kevin was able to get a shot, but by all signs the buck escaped unscathed. With a little speed scouting of the area a plan was made for the following morning's hunt.

The next morning the sun was well above the horizon by the time we were in place, but it didn't matter. Kevin had just got into position when this big buck came crashing right to him. He had just enough time to turn and fire as the buck crawled through an opening in the dense thicket twenty feet from him.

It has become a custom in this camp for a person to try and kill a deer as far off the road as possible in the worst place in the world you would want to drag a deer out of. And this year it was Kevin's turn to accomplish the chore. Kevin and I did most of the grunt work in getting the deer out, but when we got the buck to the difficult stuff I went back to the house and recruited help.

My brother Ronnie and buddy Scott and his nephew Chandler had just finished breakfast when I walked through the door. "A buck is down!" I informed them. "Say no more," Ronnie replied, "I know an adventure awaits."