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.

The Hillside Thicket!

 



If you have been following this blog you are probably familiar with "The Hillside Thicket."  Several years ago Kevin pulled a nice Hoosier National nine-pointer out of the place and it has become a go to spot for us ever since.  When the hunting gets tough and we want to see some deer -- this is the spot we go.

 

Last year, however, the place just didn't work out for us.  Throughout the months of October, November, and December someone would move into the thicket and sit a spell.  Upon return to the camp the conversation would go something like this:

"Man the place looks smokin' hot -- the deer trails crisscrossing across the flat look like deer highways, and there are fresh scrapes and rubs scattered out in front of the stand, and the deer droppings are so thick I can smell em' from twenty feet up, and . . ."

"Well, how many deer did ya' see?"

"I had a fat fox squirrel climb down the cedar tree and nearly sit on my head, then two coyotes worked up out of the bottom and I could've shot either one, but I just knew a buck was going to work down off the hill so I didn't shoot."

"Well, come on now -- out with it -- how many deer did ya' see?

"I can't believe it, but I didn't see a single deer, not even a doe!"

And that's the way it was all season for the hillside thicket.  Maybe it was a case of being in the right spot at the wrong time, or maybe the deer have caught on to us in that spot.  Maybe I went in one too many times with the trail cameras and deer being no fools they just aren't going to let us by with it.

So this year no cameras are going in and the place won't be disturbed until it's time to hunt and maybe this year there will a different story to tell about the hunts at "The Hillside Thicket."

The Unicorn Buck!

 

The Buck and the Full Moon

 

I have been in the woods off and on all month squirrel hunting and placing and checking trail cams.  The worry is over about the negative effects from the late season frosts and summer drought.  There is plenty of mast in the trees and on the ground.  White oaks, red oaks, chestnut oaks, black oaks and every other oak in between are dropping acorns. 

 

If you know where a good persimmon stand is and the trees hold their fruit for another couple of weeks you just may have a prime time location on your hands for the bow season opener.  Several evenings this week I have watched deer move under the persimmon tree in my back yard cleaning up the fruit that fell during the day.  Several days ago I watched a small four-pointer and a young gray fox chase each other around under the tree trying to get the fruit.  Finally, the buck grew tired of the games and chased the fox off into the woods.  After securing the persimmons the buck triumphantly strolled over to my little cherry tree and went to work on it with his antlers.

 

Rubs, scrapes, and licking posts are all popping up in the woods as the deer transition into the pre-rut.

 

If you're not taking the time to do a little squirrel hunting you're missing a prime opportunity to prep yourself for deer season.  This is a wonderful way to perfect your woods stealth again and tune your senses to the sights, sounds, and smells of the field.  Not to mention the benefit you get from pulling the trigger on actual game instead of a paper target.

Summertime Pictures!

Checking the Camera's!

Hoping for an Otter, but not yet!

Still Hoping!

A Small Buck at the Crossin'!





Placing Trail Camera's on Public Land

     When other hunters learn I place trail camera's on Indiana's heavily hunted public lands there is always one question asked: 

     "Aren't you afraid your cameras will be stolen?"

     "Of course!"  I always reply.  "Anytime I put a trail camera on public land I know I may never see it again."  Then I add:  "But, I have developed a strategy for placing trail cameras on public land that has allowed me to go theft free for the past six years."

     For the past six years I have placed an average of ten cameras on Indiana public land including State Forest Land, Hoosier National Forests, and Wildlife Refuges open to hunting, without a single stolen camera.

     I learned the hard way about placing cameras on public land.  The first year I put them out I had two cameras stolen.  The next year I bought locking cables for my cameras thinking this feature would keep them safe.  Then I had two more cameras stolen and I realized even a heavy lock and cable wasn't going to be enough to keep my cameras safe.  When those camera were stolen I decided I could stop using trail cameras all together or I could change the way I placed my cameras.
    
     Fortunately, I chose to carefully evaluate the way I placed my cameras and made a few simple adjustments -- I have not lost a single camera since.  Making these simple adjustments to the way I place my cameras  -- techniques any hunter can use -- has allowed me to become virtually worry free about trail camera theft.

     Here is my strategy for placing trail cameras on Indiana's public lands:

1. Use Cheap 35 mm Cameras:  I know these cameras are the dinosaurs of trail cameras these days, but here is my case for them:

A.  Unless you are made of money and can afford to lose hundreds of dollars, don't put an expensive camera on public land in Indiana.  There is always the chance a thief will find your camera.

B.  When loaded with 800 speed film these cameras take great pictures.  Somewhere along the line I have heard it takes a sixteen mega pixel digital image to match the image quality of film.  I don't know if it's true or not, but, I know five and six mega pixel images don't match the quality of images from my film cameras.  Buy film in bulk online for $.50 a roll or on sale at a Walgreens.  Even at $2.00 -- $3.00 per roll from Walgreens that's a lot of burnt film in a $20.00 -- $40.00 camera when compared to an expensive digital.

C.  Don't pay to develop the film.  Go to Sam's Club and pay $2.50 to have the film transferred to a disc and then download the images onto your computer.

D.  These cameras fit the old adage of KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid.)  There are only a few things that can go wrong with them when compared to all the features of the modern digitals.  I use cameras fifteen years old and sometimes leave them out all season through rain, sleet, snow, and freezing temperatures.  They are like an old Timex watch.  They take a lickin' and still keep on tickin'.  I still get great pictures with them.  I just don't know how reliable these modern cameras are going to be in a few years with all their wonderful features.

E.  Take the hit and buy rechargeable batteries.  Trust me on this one!

F.  These cameras are relatively small, even when compared to the compact digitals and thus are harder for a thief to spot.

2. Camera Placement:  The greater the distance from the road the safer your camera will be.  (This is where you need to hunt anyway.)

A.  If you have to climb a steep hill, or trudge through water and sucking mud, or battle thorny briers and whipping saplings to place your camera -- not many hunters are going to follow.  (Warning:  If you place a camera by a creek or river or in an area prone to flooding, keep an eye on the weather.)  If heavy rains are in the forecast get your camera out.  Trust me on this one!

B.  Hang cameras in thick cover -- the thicker the cover the harder your camera will be to see.  Just make sure you are absolutely sure you know where your camera is.  Trust me on this one!
A small clearing on a well used deer trail in a dense thicket is a perfect spot to hang a camera.  Likewise, a perennial rub or scrape in the same terrain is a diamond in the rough.

C.  Place cameras away from the rising sun and position the motion sensor somewhere between a parallel and a perpendicular to the area you want to cover, but more close to a parallel.  Bright sunlight triggers the sensor and these cameras react like cold molasses.  The parallel position helps to compensate for the slow trigger speed. 

3. Make the Camera Invisible:  Okay that's impossible, but you can make it hard to see, and if it can't be seen it can't be stolen!

A.  Replace wide straps with parachute cord or thin nylon shoe strings.  Replacing the manufactures straps with parachute cord not only reduces visibility, but also creates unlimited potential for hanging cameras.  Carry plenty of cord because when it comes to hanging a trail camera you are limited only by your imagination -- big trees, little trees, brush, rocks, logs -- with a little ingenuity just about anything you find in nature can have a trail camera tied to it.

B.  Cover your camera in camouflage duct tape to match the surroundings.  Utilize the tree-bark and leafy patterns available.

C.  Make the camera visible from only one angle.  Use natural camouflage, but don't go overboard.  Don't pile brush up on the side to hide the camera and make things look unnatural.  Use just enough to break up the boxy outline of the camera box.

     Over the years I have found almost as much enjoyment of placing trail cameras as actually hunting.  They simply give me another excuse to be in the woods.  I don't use them for scouting or trying to pattern a buck -- I simply don't have time for that.  They do, however, give me greater insight into the habits of whitetail deer and they give me a glimpse of animal behavior I might not otherwise see.  Simply put my trail cameras give me an added enjoyment in wildlife observation.

     Without a doubt though my cameras show me that even on highly pressured pieces of Indiana's public land there are big bucks that would make any hunters heart skip a beat.

The Waiting Game Begins!

September, the longest month of the year for the Hoosier Bow Hunter, has finally arrived.  The October opening is just around the bend and the anticipation is beginning to boil.  I admit I haven't picked up my bow since January, but you can bet I will find the time this weekend between the remnant rainstorms of Hurricane Isaac to do some much needed target practice.

 

 

I have hardly taken the time to wet a line and suddenly I realize it's time to change gears.  Some morning soon will find me toting my old remington 870 over my shoulder chasing a few bushytails in one of my old haunts to check on the acorn mast.  I know not all has been lost with the drought -- my deck is covered with acorn cuttings from the big chestnut oak in my yard, so I suspect there are going to be some hotspots on some of the oak flats in the Hoosier National.



 

Trail camera's will begin to go out and hopefully soon enough to catch some of the bucks losing their velvet.  Those bloody racks with hanging velvet make for some interesting pictures.

 





 

I have seen a lot of deer this year while driving through parts of the Hoosier National and some of the areas that were slammed by blue tongue disease several years ago are making a comeback in a big way.  I've seen more deer in those areas this year than the last four years combined.  Quite a few of the deer have been bucks and some of them were true trophy's by my standards.





 

These are some of the photo's from late season last year so hopes are high that these bucks made it through the mild winter and heat stressed summer.

 



 

Only time will tell, but I'm hoping it will be a good year for the hunters of Indiana Whitetail News!

A Hunter in the Making!

Sometimes I find it hard to believe that today's youth can become passionate about hunting and fishing, or trapping.  Pay attention to any budding teenager equipped with electronic gear and you will notice that their available time is spent talking through the push of buttons.  In a sense it's as if they feel alive because they are electronically connected.

That's why, several weeks ago, Chand's call came as such a surprise.  July had just begun and Opening Day was three months away.  Thoughts of deer season were gnawing away in the back of my mind like a fox squirrel cutting on a hickory nut, but were not yet devouring my thinking like a starving coyote on a fresh gut pile.  (This typically happens when September rolls around.)

Chand's voice held an anticipating excitement that I had forgot existed.  In his hands he clutched his first hunting license, and as he informed me of all the legal requirements he was bound by and the game and limits he was allowed to take, my mind drifted back to August 15, 1984 and I was once again in the squirrel woods with my dad and brother for the first time.

Chand talked of the coming deer season with unmatched enthusiasm, and recalled events of past seasons with a clearness and clarity that left little doubt how important those few days in October and November are to him.

Then and there I decided this deer season would be dedicated to Chand.  For years now he has been a part of deer camp.  Patiently he has waited his turn, quietly listening to the stories -- his time in the woods limited to a noon-day squirrel hunt and the occasional deer drag.  But for Chand, this year is going to be different.