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Post by 4ward on Aug 23, 2024 20:05:22 GMT -5
Like we ever left.
Feeders are always full but finally slipped the cameras in, we stay almost completely away from our hunting woods as much as possible. It works.
Seeing plenty of freezer meat, and I am happy and thankful for the opportunity that awaits.
I love this time of year…gator,deer, duck and hogs, It’s like my “Christmas morning” these days 😉. Now if I can just get a few days off work….
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Post by swampdog on Aug 23, 2024 20:40:20 GMT -5
Amen to that. It’s interesting that I start out slowly getting my “woods walking” legs under me, and begin to become immersed into the most familiar habitats I relish. I’m most comfortable in our woods and waters hunting and fishing. It never gets old. I put up with town just to enjoy the fruits of my labors in the outdoors.
Can’t wait to send an arrow. Peace and good luck to all our hunting men and women!
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Post by TRTerror on Aug 23, 2024 21:32:29 GMT -5
I've been into my woods 3 times already this week.
Got 93 Thousand acres but I'm a Pro in about 2 Thousand..the rest , Ain't got much of a clue.
It's 5 acres away so I kinda live out there.
Sighted in or checked Zero on my..
6'8 AR , 35 Remington Scout rifle, New Smokepole and my Crossbow all in the last 2 weeks.
Did I mention...I'm freakin Ready.
68 Deg at my house this am.
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Post by swampdog on Aug 24, 2024 11:13:28 GMT -5
Yep - sighted in my .35 Remington and 7-08 two weeks ago. They’re on. I just need to do my part.
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Post by JS84 on Aug 24, 2024 11:49:55 GMT -5
Hung the climber and cut down a few small oaks to clear line of sight last sunday. Thinking about putting out the ground blind next weekend too. My boy will have fun with that.
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Post by TRTerror on Aug 27, 2024 18:30:10 GMT -5
Personally I hate Ground blinds, but I do love a chair with a big ole tree right behind me.
Got about 6 chairs, 8 Ladders and 2 Climbers.
My Climbers are where I prefer to live but I do hunt a bunch of real thick areas and sometimes the chair on the ground gives better visibility , plus if the wind shifts all you got to do is pick up the chair and move 30 yards.
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Post by osceola on Aug 27, 2024 20:55:27 GMT -5
Always great to Return and Observe, no matter how short or long the interval.
In one return visit......A Huge Hog ended up bedding in a camp tent. Reported in the Jacksonville Florida Times Union Outdoor section. Joe Julavits.
First time my feeder was destroyed by Bears.... I was Thrilled! Bears making a comeback! ( Not formally Reported)
Camps have survived hurricane,frontal storms, fire....
I live with my Hunting Area year round.Tramp on it,burn, cut stuff,disc stuff,construct habitat,shoot guns, play loud music......
Yea, Gettin' Ready!! A Dove Hunt Ramble ( and camp dove dinner cook) will be the Grand Official Beginning.
Got a set up on private property adjacent to WMA. When the wind is jus' right,can smoke a cigar there.Even if the wind is not jus' right if you think about it,or even if you don't.
Gettin' Ready is the Best Part. Options!
Will probably leave the property and drive the E Bike out yonder a mile and a half. Or so.For Starters.Exploration. Free to Roam.
At some point,will get spooked over huge multi 100,000 acre public owned landscape and inclination to go in to the most Remote sections.....and then realize this ain't pure "Hunting" any more.Tree Hugger with 30-06 Rifle and/or perfect packin' trail sidearm. Rambler. Raccoon Women might appear. Skunk Ape.Exploration,always scouting for the Hunt Spot....and how does one drag a downed deer over two miles???Back Pack Quarters to nearest waterway/Canoe Kayak or vehicle?
Few Florida Hunters deal with this scenario. Often times,me included.
Skip It.
Options.
Return.
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Post by meateater on Aug 29, 2024 8:32:56 GMT -5
heck between 3 days at dinner island, 3 days at picayune strand, 1 day at ok slough and a couple afternoons in the glades holeyland and rotenberger im starting to get a little burnt out already , did i mention im hunting dinner island again sat,sun and monday and its still archery.
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Post by One Man Gang on Aug 29, 2024 9:28:59 GMT -5
Deer don't stand a chance at DI with Meat and Down4dacount pillaging the place more than once a year!
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Post by meateater on Aug 29, 2024 10:06:41 GMT -5
Deer don't stand a chance at DI with Meat and Down4dacount pillaging the place more than once a year! its really weird, dinner island is the hardest most coveted south zone permit to get it takes years and years to get a permit, over 3 years for archery,,,over 5 blackpowder and over 5 years general gun. 45 permits awarded for 1st hunt,,27 hunters showed up on saturday less on friday,sunday and monday. 2nd hunt only 19 showed up on saturday even less on other days. i dont know numbers for 3rd hunt but will find out saturday since im going on 4th hunt. whats going on, where are these permits going, something doesnt make sense. |
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Post by One Man Gang on Aug 29, 2024 11:14:48 GMT -5
Nothing makes sense in this day and age, Meat.
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Post by swampdog on Aug 29, 2024 11:33:53 GMT -5
Where are the permits going that are not being used? That is interesting and something we should know meat.
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Post by One Man Gang on Aug 29, 2024 11:44:38 GMT -5
Unused permits are one of the biggest problems with this system. Guys like me return them if I cannot use them. I have returned 3 to this place, this season. Most others just burn them, especially if they were obtained in a redraw.
I know they say the unused permits are factored into the overall allotment each season but like most things emanating from government agencies, I call bullshit.
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Post by Crkr 23 on Aug 29, 2024 12:35:12 GMT -5
They need to at least allow enough "walk-ons" to cover for the no-shows.
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Post by tampaspicer on Aug 29, 2024 13:13:55 GMT -5
They need to at least allow enough "walk-ons" to cover for the no-shows. I'm not disagreeing with what you're saying. Would be kind of hard to do that. What happens if they let folks walk in to fill the place up and someone with a permit shows up after it's filled? |
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Post by richm on Aug 29, 2024 13:17:51 GMT -5
Deer don't stand a chance at DI with Meat and Down4dacount pillaging the place more than once a year! its really weird, dinner island is the hardest most coveted south zone permit to get it takes years and years to get a permit, over 3 years for archery,,,over 5 blackpowder and over 5 years general gun. 45 permits awarded for 1st hunt,,27 hunters showed up on saturday less on friday,sunday and monday. 2nd hunt only 19 showed up on saturday even less on other days. i dont know numbers for 3rd hunt but will find out saturday since im going on 4th hunt. whats going on, where are these permits going, something doesnt make sense. It supports the idea of anti-hunters buying the permits. Folks always said it happens at MINWR, could be the other places too. |
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Post by One Man Gang on Aug 29, 2024 13:19:47 GMT -5
I'm sure there's some of that ^^ going on too.
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Post by Crkr 23 on Aug 29, 2024 13:49:57 GMT -5
Check out the way they run Joe Budd WMA. They allow x number of quota hunters and y number of walk-ons. It's been a few years since I've hunted there but back then the archery hunts never filled up.
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Post by olmucky on Aug 29, 2024 13:58:24 GMT -5
Unused permits are one of the biggest problems with this system. Guys like me return them if I cannot use them. I have returned 3 to this place, this season. Most others just burn them, especially if they were obtained in a redraw. I know they say the unused permits are factored into the overall allotment each season but like most things emanating from government agencies, I call bullshit. One of the wma I hunt most often, has never had the full allotment of hunters hunting vs tags given |
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Post by One Man Gang on Aug 29, 2024 14:24:59 GMT -5
So in my mind FL now has a seasonal limit and antler rule for deer. Why do we have all these area specific permits? Will pressure naturally spread itself out once the initial slaughter occurs on the "hot" WMAs and thus allow for a mostly show n go hunt program; like all good Americans should have at their disposal? Or, should the state further reduce the yearly bag limits so there is a little less carnage from the more capable hunters who live near these "hot" WMAs?
What's the solution to this current underutilizaton of resources that might be getting sabotaged by non hunters? I know that when there are more hurdles to hunt a property, I'm less likely to stay engaged.
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Post by wayvis on Aug 29, 2024 21:51:47 GMT -5
So in my mind FL now has a seasonal limit and antler rule for deer. Why do we have all these area specific permits? Will pressure naturally spread itself out once the initial slaughter occurs on the "hot" WMAs and thus allow for a mostly show n go hunt program; like all good Americans should have at their disposal? Or, should the state further reduce the yearly bag limits so there is a little less carnage from the more capable hunters who live near these "hot" WMAs? What's the solution to this current underutilizaton of resources that might be getting sabotaged by non hunters? I know that when there are more hurdles to hunt a property, I'm less likely to stay engaged. The solution is to turn the hunt formats back the way they were 50 years ago. That is have most WMAs open to hunting without quotas and have a few well managed WMAs that are quota only to offer hunters a quality hunt. To get to where we are today, FWC and other area managers used excuses like hunters want more and bigger deer; hunters want a quality hunt, we don't know how many deer is on an area or how many is being harvested so quotas are needed in order not to over harvest; other users also need time to use these areas and don't want to be in the woods with hunters. As it is now most WMAs quotas are one quota per 150 acres or so and they have only 9 days of general gun deer season. Most private leases are now 100 to 150 acres per hunter, and they hunt deer around 115 days a year and most hunt does also, without over harvesting. I guess public land hunters are super hunters because FWC severely limits hunting on most WMAs. The other problem is all the other users of these areas. Over the year's most areas are now open to all users during quota hunts, so the excuse of other users needing time to use the area doesn't hold water. With the limits, antler rules, and a harvest check-in system I see no reason why most WMAs couldn't be opened back up; but I'm sure many will disagree. |
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Post by One Man Gang on Aug 29, 2024 22:05:22 GMT -5
Bingo^^
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Post by cracker4112 on Aug 29, 2024 22:12:08 GMT -5
I won’t disagree Wayvis. I’ve been on clubs that had at least as much pressure as public.
I’d definitely go back to hunt public if I could just go. As it stands, it’s been minute since I’ve done it.
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Post by olmucky on Aug 30, 2024 7:13:39 GMT -5
So in my mind FL now has a seasonal limit and antler rule for deer. Why do we have all these area specific permits? Will pressure naturally spread itself out once the initial slaughter occurs on the "hot" WMAs and thus allow for a mostly show n go hunt program; like all good Americans should have at their disposal? Or, should the state further reduce the yearly bag limits so there is a little less carnage from the more capable hunters who live near these "hot" WMAs? What's the solution to this current underutilizaton of resources that might be getting sabotaged by non hunters? I know that when there are more hurdles to hunt a property, I'm less likely to stay engaged. The solution is to turn the hunt formats back the way they were 50 years ago. That is have most WMAs open to hunting without quotas and have a few well managed WMAs that are quota only to offer hunters a quality hunt. To get to where we are today, FWC and other area managers used excuses like hunters want more and bigger deer; hunters want a quality hunt, we don't know how many deer is on an area or how many is being harvested so quotas are needed in order not to over harvest; other users also need time to use these areas and don't want to be in the woods with hunters. As it is now most WMAs quotas are one quota per 150 acres or so and they have only 9 days of general gun deer season. Most private leases are now 100 to 150 acres per hunter, and they hunt deer around 115 days a year and most hunt does also, without over harvesting. I guess public land hunters are super hunters because FWC severely limits hunting on most WMAs. The other problem is all the other users of these areas. Over the year's most areas are now open to all users during quota hunts, so the excuse of other users needing time to use the area doesn't hold water. With the limits, antler rules, and a harvest check-in system I see no reason why most WMAs couldn't be opened back up; but I'm sure many will disagree. Just to throw a wrench in the 50 years ago. FL isn’t the same landscape now. Ranches sold, acreages sold. The availability of land for deer to roam is shrinking. I know central FL is shrinking and from what I’ve read here and other places is S Florida are as well ( and invasive species taking a toll) I am not as familiar with north of Gainesville area but I’m sure available land is shrinking too. All this probably will affect the herd size etc Not saying what FWC does is right or wrong but a free for all across the board even with retaining a few premium quota hunts might do some long term damage |
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Post by meateater on Aug 30, 2024 10:11:17 GMT -5
its really weird, dinner island is the hardest most coveted south zone permit to get it takes years and years to get a permit, over 3 years for archery,,,over 5 blackpowder and over 5 years general gun. 45 permits awarded for 1st hunt,,27 hunters showed up on saturday less on friday,sunday and monday. 2nd hunt only 19 showed up on saturday even less on other days. i dont know numbers for 3rd hunt but will find out saturday since im going on 4th hunt. whats going on, where are these permits going, something doesnt make sense. It supports the idea of anti-hunters buying the permits. Folks always said it happens at MINWR, could be the other places too. yes im sure theres some anti hunter stuff going on but i would bet the biggest problem is the way the returned/redraw system is set up, you can have 2 gun ,archery,blackpowder permits each and still be allowed to get redraws and since theres no penalty for not returning redraws everybody just enters whether they plan on going or not. hate to say this but maybe have to limit it to 1 redraw per hunt and thats only if you dont already have a permit. if someone already has a archery permit that hasnt been used they should not be allowed to enter, once that permit is used they can apply for another. |
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Post by saltybum on Aug 30, 2024 10:32:27 GMT -5
"Walk-ons" should be more areas without the "NO EXEMOTIONS" for senior citizens and disabled veterans. I'm 70 and 100% disabled vet with very few areas I can hunt (within a 100 miles)on if I don't get drawn.
Last couple years hurricanes and El nino have added to the challenges of available woods being under water. Walk-on was "walk-in" only at Seminole Ranch. Not for me with two TKRs etc.
Yes I do think there should be some special exemptions but FWC does not give a shit for disabled veterans. Not really anybody else for that matter.
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Post by richm on Aug 30, 2024 12:19:20 GMT -5
It supports the idea of anti-hunters buying the permits. Folks always said it happens at MINWR, could be the other places too. yes im sure theres some anti hunter stuff going on but i would bet the biggest problem is the way the returned/redraw system is set up, you can have 2 gun ,archery,blackpowder permits each and still be allowed to get redraws and since theres no penalty for not returning redraws everybody just enters whether they plan on going or not. hate to say this but maybe have to limit it to 1 redraw per hunt and thats only if you dont already have a permit. if someone already has a archery permit that hasnt been used they should not be allowed to enter, once that permit is used they can apply for another. You really want the state monitoring you that much? |
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Post by wayvis on Aug 30, 2024 16:12:24 GMT -5
The solution is to turn the hunt formats back the way they were 50 years ago. That is have most WMAs open to hunting without quotas and have a few well managed WMAs that are quota only to offer hunters a quality hunt. To get to where we are today, FWC and other area managers used excuses like hunters want more and bigger deer; hunters want a quality hunt, we don't know how many deer is on an area or how many is being harvested so quotas are needed in order not to over harvest; other users also need time to use these areas and don't want to be in the woods with hunters. As it is now most WMAs quotas are one quota per 150 acres or so and they have only 9 days of general gun deer season. Most private leases are now 100 to 150 acres per hunter, and they hunt deer around 115 days a year and most hunt does also, without over harvesting. I guess public land hunters are super hunters because FWC severely limits hunting on most WMAs. The other problem is all the other users of these areas. Over the year's most areas are now open to all users during quota hunts, so the excuse of other users needing time to use the area doesn't hold water. With the limits, antler rules, and a harvest check-in system I see no reason why most WMAs couldn't be opened back up; but I'm sure many will disagree. Just to throw a wrench in the 50 years ago. FL isn’t the same landscape now. Ranches sold, acreages sold. The availability of land for deer to roam is shrinking. I know central FL is shrinking and from what I’ve read here and other places is S Florida are as well ( and invasive species taking a toll) I am not as familiar with north of Gainesville area but I’m sure available land is shrinking too. All this probably will affect the herd size etc Not saying what FWC does is right or wrong but a free for all across the board even with retaining a few premium quota hunts might do some long term damage Your right in some respects, but we have more public land now and less hunters than we did 50 years ago. I think last estimate for deer hunts is around 100k and total hunters about 200k. FWC states we have 6 million acers to hunt, if most was open to hunting during the season you would see very few hunters on these areas other than the first days of the seasons and holidays. That is how it was 50 years ago with more hunters and less land in the system than we have now. This all started because hunters started complaining about areas being crowded the first of the season. So FWC stared requiring quotas on some areas the first 9 day (first two weekend). Now we have mostly quota areas with few permits and very short hunts. |
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Post by meateater on Sept 3, 2024 10:12:04 GMT -5
Just to throw a wrench in the 50 years ago. FL isn’t the same landscape now. Ranches sold, acreages sold. The availability of land for deer to roam is shrinking. I know central FL is shrinking and from what I’ve read here and other places is S Florida are as well ( and invasive species taking a toll) I am not as familiar with north of Gainesville area but I’m sure available land is shrinking too. All this probably will affect the herd size etc Not saying what FWC does is right or wrong but a free for all across the board even with retaining a few premium quota hunts might do some long term damage Your right in some respects, but we have more public land now and less hunters than we did 50 years ago. I think last estimate for deer hunts is around 100k and total hunters about 200k. FWC states we have 6 million acers to hunt, if most was open to hunting during the season you would see very few hunters on these areas other than the first days of the seasons and holidays. That is how it was 50 years ago with more hunters and less land in the system than we have now. This all started because hunters started complaining about areas being crowded the first of the season. So FWC stared requiring quotas on some areas the first 9 day (first two weekend). Now we have mostly quota areas with few permits and very short hunts. correct, this all started when 7 or 8 weekend warriors got together from a old south florida hunting forum and started complaining bout never being drawn for dinner island or ok slough. these 7 or 8 sad fellows bombarded fwc with phone calls and emails and eventually got what they wanted, non transferable permits that was the start, now last year couple more complained picayune strand was too crowded on opening weekend so what happened, fwc made it a quota only place. i hunted it 3 days and only other hunters i seen was a couple guys on ebikes. |
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