# Public Land



## gohabs1985 (Mar 20, 2010)

Pretty new to deer hunting and access to a friends private farm just fell through. I assume it's too late to attempt to set a stand up on public land (don't want to piss people off).

Question is....is it stupid/rude/annoying to simply go to a public plot of land and still hunt on the ground? Just pick a spot and sit/stand for a couple hours?

Thanks for any help


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## squidlips2020 (Jul 3, 2012)

Not at all


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## rayscott (Nov 3, 2012)

Wayne National Forest in Washington County and Monroe County has excellent public hunting. You have a chance to kill a trophy buck of a lifetime. Some of the biggest bucks I have ever seen have been on Wayne National Forest north on Rt 7 from Newport, north to Fly, OH. You can get topo maps with all the public lands marked. Just go to the Forest office at Reno, OH


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## rayscott (Nov 3, 2012)

Moving around a little, setting and standing on the ground is the best way to hunt it. Stealth hunting will produce more than spending all your time in a tree stand.


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## chrisrf815 (Jul 6, 2014)

Its public hunting land, do what you want, and hope for the best. Not stupid or annoying to set up where you want... Accept for the few that think its their land!


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## fastwater (Apr 1, 2014)

If it were me and I wasn't real familiar with the plot of public land I was going to hunt, I think I would leave the climber at home, ease into the woods, find a ground stand and post up on it for awhile. If there's a lot of hunters in the woods, you've probably got better odds of having a deer run towards you by another Hunter than anything else. If your moving, chances are you either won't see the deer or not get a shot at it.
Again, if there are a lot of other hunters, chances are, after the first hour or so of daylight, most all deer hunting tactics as far as regular travel, feeding patterns etc. go out the window. The deer are just running.
If you know where a natural choke point is at, such as a crossing place in a deep ravine which deer can cross easily only in that spot but not anywhere else in that ravine, that would be a good place to set up. They'll use that as an escape route.
Also, about 11:00 or so, stay alert. Many hunters start coming out of the woods around lunch time. Very good chance they'll push deer your way. Have killed many deer on public land between 11-12 due to other hunters driving deer my way as they come out of the woods for lunch.
Good luck...and stay safe!!!


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## Flathead76 (May 2, 2010)

Find an escape route and sit there.


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## sherman51 (Apr 12, 2011)

i hunted public land and hunted on the ground for the 1st few yrs that i hunted and had great success. i got a deer every year that i hunted. but sometimes i wouldn't get anything during our gun season but would score during the ml season. now the 1st yr i hunted i hunted on a dead fall in gun season and had a few does come out of the swamp and pass at less than 15 yrds. so i moved down in the swamp on the trail the does used. i went to the river and set up on the ground against a tree where the trail crossed the river. i had several does cross the river and came out within 10 yrds. the next morning a decided to climb the tree where i was hunting. about 9 am there was a big doe came down the trail on the other side of the river. she turned to her left at the river and walked down about 30 yrds through the brush. i had always heard if a single doe came by to watch her back trail for a buck to be following her. well sure enough about 10 minutes later i see antlers moving through the brush on her trail. i got my gun up and got ready. the buck came down and started to cross the river. he had his front feet in the water. then the doe grunted and he backed out and headed down towards the doe. i found an open spot in the brush and when he was clear i let him have it.

i had a friend that never hunted from a stand and got plenty of deer. he would walk slowly for a few yrds then stand by a tree for a few minutes then he would repeat this over and over during the day. and i have killed a few deer myself while walking out of the woods for lunch.
sherman


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## buckeyebowman (Feb 24, 2012)

fastwater said:


> If it were me and I wasn't real familiar with the plot of public land I was going to hunt, I think I would leave the climber at home, ease into the woods, find a ground stand and post up on it for awhile. If there's a lot of hunters in the woods, you've probably got better odds of having a deer run towards you by another Hunter than anything else. If your moving, chances are you either won't see the deer or not get a shot at it.
> Again, if there are a lot of other hunters, chances are, after the first hour or so of daylight, most all deer hunting tactics as far as regular travel, feeding patterns etc. go out the window. The deer are just running.
> If you know where a natural choke point is at, such as a crossing place in a deep ravine which deer can cross easily only in that spot but not anywhere else in that ravine, that would be a good place to set up. They'll use that as an escape route.
> Also, about 11:00 or so, stay alert. Many hunters start coming out of the woods around lunch time. Very good chance they'll push deer your way. Have killed many deer on public land between 11-12 due to other hunters driving deer my way as they come out of the woods for lunch.
> Good luck...and stay safe!!!


Popped a big, really nice doe years ago in Brush Creek the first time I hunted the place! The entire story is much too long to tell here, but I just still hunted up a big hollow in the afternoon. I heard a gun boom off to my right, and here came a doe out of a little side hollow, and ran across in front of me at about 60 yards. I spined her, she went down, kicked twice and was done! 

A lot of guys would have seen all the vehicles and guys in the woods and said, no way! But sometimes all of that can work to your advantage. Can't get 'em sitting on the couch!


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## fastwater (Apr 1, 2014)

buckeyebowman said:


> Popped a big, really nice doe years ago in Brush Creek the first time I hunted the place! The entire story is much too long to tell here, but I just still hunted up a big hollow in the afternoon. I heard a gun boom off to my right, and here came a doe out of a little side hollow, and ran across in front of me at about 60 yards. I spined her, she went down, kicked twice and was done!
> 
> A lot of guys would have seen all the vehicles and guys in the woods and said, no way! But sometimes all of that can work to your advantage. Can't get 'em sitting on the couch!


I think with the warm weather this week, gonna need some hunters in the woods to kick em out. Talked to 4 different groups of guys I know tonight that are all hunting different parts of the state and its been unanimous...deer just weren't moving that much. Couple guys passed on a few smaller does and one passed on a smaller 8 and that was pretty much it.

Wife just came home from town and said the fields were full of deer.


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## G-Patt (Sep 3, 2013)

You're good hunting the ground on public land. That's the only method I use and have been very successful. I get busted too many times in a tree. I think the deer get accustomed seeing hunters in a tree, especially on public land. Good luck!


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