Opening MZL weekend numbers are in...

[jlmustain]

Hard not to attribute it to the lower bag limit. I was actually thinking that I'm seeing a lot more good bucks in pics on here and FB.

 

[SKFOOTER]

What's going on ? I pulled the cam cards today thinking it would have picked up. I got nothing to speak of again. This is the worst year I have had since running cams.

Same for me. I've been saying for several years now that we just don't have the deer that we once had. And the same for turkeys.

 

[AXL78]

Been really slow where I hunt. I honestly think more and more people are losing interest and not hunting, and more people are becoming selective at the same time. Saturday's weather didn't help though.

 

[redblood]

Been really slow where I hunt. I honestly think more and more people are losing interest and not hunting, and more people are becoming selective at the same time. Saturday's weather didn't help though.

i think you are right. i have seen tons of deer, but i am in a very high deer population area with little pressure. i say the biggest factor is the reduced limit. but i think we are still a long way from the rut, so shooters bucks are probably still holed up somewhere.

 

[tndfs]

All you guys crying about not seeing any deer. Now you know what it's like to hunt unit b. LMAO

 

[Yeppers]

Bow opening day I saw nothing, then the next hunt saw two does, but nobody else in our small club (10 people, of which about 5 or 6 were there) saw anything. I have hunted about 6 times since (typing from stand now) and seen nothing since. I'm in north Fayette county. Usually one of us has a kill by now. Saw nothing all day yesterday, but my buddy saw some fawns and a doe.

 

[HuntNShoot]

I have been out 4 times so far and saw 1 doe, 3 does, 2 bucks chasing about 5 does, and then on Saturday evening saw a 4pt following a doe and a nice 8pt chasing a doe. My turkey population used to be 2 groups of 20-30 each that dropped to only around 8 last spring all the way into the fall. I have had this land for 3 years and its only 80 acres but that 8 pt was the biggest buck I've seen not on camera. This has actually been my best year for sightings but I think that is because I have very few acorns so they are stepping out into the food plots I have set out. Also seeing a lot more coyotes on cameras in groups now.

 

[huntinkev]

I can only speak for my place, but this is the first ml open weekend that we didn't kill a deer. I can guarantee it was not due to the 2 buck limit. The weather was bad, we didn't see anything. I seen one doe running at mach 3 through the woods and it was gone in 2 seconds, my dad didn't see anything, and the other 2 guys saw 1 and 2 between them but couldn't get a shot off. Most every ml open weekend for the last 25 years we have killed at least 3 or 4 deer every year by Sunday afternoon.

 

[csi-tech]

I didn't kill anything. The deer were definitely clinging close to cover, I had does blowing behind me in thick stuff never venturing out. My buddy killed a very nice 11 point that just stepped out of the understory to browse but was still deep in the woods. I caught a glimpse of a 120" or so buck bounding through the dense clearcut growth yesterday but that was it for me. In fact you could count the total number of gunshots both mornings on two hands. Very slow.

 

[redhunterZ71]

So now we have around 6,000 more buck alive than this time last year. Pretty soon the bucks will be breeding the bucks. Lmao

 

[deerkiller300wsm]

Didn't think the weather was THAT bad ? Around here anyway. Showers Saturday morning but nothing even a halfway decent rain shell couldn't of deterred. Rain slacked and light winds sat. evening. Sunday morning colder with light winds again. And perfect Sunday evening. I did hear the fewest amount of shots I can remember hearing in awhile. Weather did not affect the deer imo but may have affected hunters more than I realized also.

I see weather being a huge factor. I hunted hard this weekend and didn't see a deer from the stand, didn't jump a deer, and never heard a deer blow. All I did was prove that my rain gear sucks.... Oh well, better than being at work

 

[8 POINTS OR BETTER]

So now we have around 6,000 more buck alive than this time last year. Pretty soon the bucks will be breeding the bucks. Lmao

Total is just a few minutes ago, 10,858 more bucks alive than this time last year.

 

[TboneD]

So now we have around 6,000 more buck alive than this time last year. Pretty soon the bucks will be breeding the bucks. Lmao

Total is just a few minutes ago, 10,858 more bucks alive than this time last year.

How do you figure? The weather and reduced buck limit has both been factors, but could it also be that there are fewer bucks in the woods? Dead does don't produce bucks.


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[8 POINTS OR BETTER]

So now we have around 6,000 more buck alive than this time last year. Pretty soon the bucks will be breeding the bucks. Lmao

Total is just a few minutes ago, 10,858 more bucks alive than this time last year.

How do you figure? The weather and reduced buck limit has both been factors, but could it also be that there are fewer bucks in the woods? Dead does don't produce bucks.


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How about I change it to we have killed 10,858 less bucks than this time last year.

 

[jm1981]

I think we may be our on worst enemy. Everyone wants to see more deer but they also want to kill more. I'm all for the twra doing away with the 3 a day limit in unit l.

 

[TboneD]

So now we have around 6,000 more buck alive than this time last year. Pretty soon the bucks will be breeding the bucks. Lmao

Total is just a few minutes ago, 10,858 more bucks alive than this time last year.

How do you figure? The weather and reduced buck limit has both been factors, but could it also be that there are fewer bucks in the woods? Dead does don't produce bucks.


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How about I change it to we have killed 10,858 less bucks than this time last year.

Gotcha


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[TboneD]

I think we may be our on worst enemy. Everyone wants to see more deer but they also want to kill more. I'm all for the twra doing away with the 3 a day limit in unit l.

THE COMMISSION sets the limits, and unfortunately, appears to have blinders on to the average joe's deer hunting. They and their buddies have properties big enough to hold deer, and like the "efficiency" of multiple doe harvests so they have more days to get their bucks. Why else would they add the unit L private land doe days at the end of the season? Nobody wants their target trophy buck to be shot by someone else while they're just trying to keep the buck/doe ratio in check. Just thank God they designated it for only private land.

The guys that buy licenses every year to pay the bills need to let their voices be heard and I'm all for a petition or something. It's going to take serious political pressure to get the Commission to start caring about the average guy's deer hunting and not just their's and their friends. I'm not trying to vilify the commission. Only calling it as I see it in the arbitrary limits and regulations for WMA's, open public state forest lands, and private lands. It shouldn't be arbitrary and political. There was NO legitimate reason to restrict Old Hickory Lock 5 Refuge as they did. If it's water under the bridge it's a dangerous precedent that one day could happen near you. If Cheatham and some other WMA's are properly managed than the rest of Unit L's should be as well. Why not common sense rules like MS has? They have more deer than people but last I checked only allow three does an entire season on open state forest lands. When are folks gonna take the blinders off and realize they're pretty fortunate if they're seeing deer every sit? Every farm I've ever had permission to hunt ended up sold, and it could happen to some of y'all as well. Then you might have do like I do and spend more time scouting than hunting until you find another property. You guys that hunt Yanali, wouldn't y'all like a little less competition? Think there's an endless supply of deer there? Sorry for rambling on. Just keeping it real. Overall, I just think the way Unit L deer is being managed is just a crying shame. It's like the only places they give a hoot about are suburban, developing, or big private properties...and select WMA's.


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[jm1981]

I know some folks in my area that constantly gripe over lower deer numbers. Yet you will see them taking advantage of the 3 a day limit. I can't remember the exact year that unit l started but I believe it's past time for it to be changed.

 

[HuntNShoot]

I think we may be our on worst enemy. Everyone wants to see more deer but they also want to kill more. I'm all for the twra doing away with the 3 a day limit in unit l.

THE COMMISSION sets the limits, and unfortunately, appears to have blinders on to the average joe's deer hunting. They and their buddies have properties big enough to hold deer, and like the "efficiency" of multiple doe harvests so they have more days to get their bucks. Why else would they add the unit L private land doe days at the end of the season? Nobody wants their target trophy buck to be shot by someone else while they're just trying to keep the buck/doe ratio in check. Just thank God they designated it for only private land.

The guys that buy licenses every year to pay the bills need to let their voices be heard and I'm all for a petition or something. It's going to take serious political pressure to get the Commission to start caring about the average guy's deer hunting and not just their's and their friends. I'm not trying to vilify the commission. Only calling it as I see it in the arbitrary limits and regulations for WMA's, open public state forest lands, and private lands. It shouldn't be arbitrary and political. There was NO legitimate reason to restrict Old Hickory Lock 5 Refuge as they did. If it's water under the bridge it's a dangerous precedent that one day could happen near you. If Cheatham and some other WMA's are properly managed than the rest of Unit L's should be as well. Why not common sense rules like MS has? They have more deer than people but last I checked only allow three does an entire season on open state forest lands. When are folks gonna take the blinders off and realize they're pretty fortunate if they're seeing deer every sit? Every farm I've ever had permission to hunt ended up sold, and it could happen to some of y'all as well. Then you might have do like I do and spend more time scouting than hunting until you find another property. You guys that hunt Yanali, wouldn't y'all like a little less competition? Think there's an endless supply of deer there? Sorry for rambling on. Just keeping it real. Overall, I just think the way Unit L deer is being managed is just a crying shame. It's like the only places they give a hoot about are suburban, developing, or big private properties...and select WMA's.


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Agreed. I have been lucky to see the few I have seen on each sit.

 

[TX300mag]

Generally from my experience in area with low deer population it is difficult to kill 3 does per day.

I know some real killers and very few of them have killed 3 a day more than once or twice. And that's hunting areas where there are good deer populations.


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