Eagle Creek WMA Deer Hunting

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Ghost_Hunter

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Are there any hunters familiar with the Eagle Creek WMA and the quality of deer hunting there? I normally hunt the Percy Priest WMA, but I have yet to even draw blood on a deer this season. I have a little brother who is in the 8th grade that is wanting to put a deer on the ground as well, but we have yet to see a deer on the Percy Priest WMA this year. Hunting land is scarce and the season ends very soon, so I am hoping to have some luck sent our way soon. I was thinking of heading to Wayne County to check out this Eagle Creek WMA this week as we have a place to stay about 30 minutes down the road, but I don't want to waste my time if it is over hunted and we risk the chance of not seeing anything there either. Let me know of any input that could be useful on this topic. Thanks!
 
The hills are the least of my worries. I am pretty used to climbing hills and have drug deer out of some of the steepest valleys I have ever seen. It isn't fun, but it has to be done sometimes. As long as there are deer there, I would love to give it a try. Anything is better than the land that I have been hunting lately.
 
South side not as steep at the North. Lots of deer but they pattern the hunters fast. Try going in when others are coming out or stay longer. You do not have to go to the deep, hard-to-reach places. You would be surprised what sneaks through less than 100 yards of the roads.
 
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No offense but Priest has a ton of deer. Should be able to at least kill a doe there and not take to much time.

Eagle Creek basically has 2 directions, straight up and straight down. Lots of deer but mean terrain.
 
The statistics show that Priest has had more deer killed this year than Eagle Creek, but maybe I am just hunting the wrong spots. Not sure what I am doing wrong this year, but something isn't working out for me. I have been hunting some spots on 840 that have previously been somewhat productive for me, but everywhere I have been this year hasn't proved to be successful. I have also hunted in Smyrna off of Florence Road a couple of times this year and haven't had any luck. The deer tracks and signs are there, but I have yet to see the deer. It's not like I don't know what I am doing or anything like that. I have been hunting for over 20 years in Tennessee. I am only 27 years old, but have killed many many deer in my short time including a few trophy bucks. I know how to hunt and in my opinion know how to find where the deer are at. It's just that I have recently had to resort to hunting public land as the land that I had permission on was invaded by another hunter who somehow got permission and shoots anything that walks. I recently quit hunting that land due to the fact that it wasn't worth my time to park the truck and then be walked up on by the other guy or show up to later find out that he shot at 3 deer, missing a buck and a doe and only killing a small doe. So maybe me being fairly new to public land and not really knowing where to go is part of my problem. Is the terrain at Eagle Creek anything like Laurel Hill? I have hunted the Laurel Hill WMA before during quota hunts and don't mind the hills there. They definitely aren't my preference, but sometimes the hills come with the experience of deer hunting and there's nothing we can do about that. Also, if anyone has any tips or pointers on hunting Priest (not asking for you to give away your latitude and longitude location, but a general area would be a good start for me), it would be greatly appreciated as whatever I am doing now is not working out in my favor. Unfortunately, season is almost over and I only have one more week to put down a few deer to put in the freezer. Like I said, maybe I am hunting all of the wrong spots. Or maybe I am just always at the wrong place at the wrong times...unlucky. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
 
Your season has unfortunately been flip-flopped. My personal approach has always been to hunt public land more often in the muzzeloader and (sometimes) first week of gun season. By that time, the pressure causes them to be very nocturnal, which is probably why you aren't seeing deer.

It's also possible that they have patterned hunters to the point of only coming out in mid-day, which is a worthwhile tactic to try.

Hunting only public land in the late season usually means hunting harder AND smarter to be successful, especially while you are still building some tactics in your proverbial playbook.

As a general comment, I would also recommend that you pull maps of the areas that you have been hunting and look for a few out-of-the-way places. You might break tradition and go in 15 minutes after first light (after most hunters are in the woods), using parking areas to tell you whether your hunches are correct. I pretty much can't stand parking next to another soul on public land, unless I'm hunting a really big area with narrow access points. Your results may vary. My goal after about December 15th or so is to find the out-of-the-way sanctuaries for the does, and consider decent bucks to be a bonus that I won't expect to see.

Most folks on this site talk about hunting a lot during the rut. When I'm on public land, I hunt more/harder in the pre-rut when MZ season opens, because I'm seeing and killing deer and filling the freezer on a more regular basis.

When the rut comes along, I (usually) have 2-3 deer in the freezer, and then I can hunt horns if I want, or just help someone else get one that didn't have as much fore-sight as me.

Best of luck. I've never hunted either WMA that you describe, but I know what it's like to get after late-season pressured deer on public land!
 
laurel Hill is like walking across a yard compared to Eagle Creek. Eagle creek land has 2 directions for the most part, straight up or straight down.
 

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