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Mr. Hawk

Mr. Hawk

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 25, 2003
Messages
838
City & State/Province
Putnam co
I've never hunted KY but wondered if there is that big of a difference in the quality of the bucks there vs Middle TN ( I hunt Putnam/Jackson)? I'm considering buying some land up there to have access to mature deer but wanted opinions from those who have hunted both places. Is it night and day or just hype? Was considering the Christian County and surrounding area to grab 100 or so acres.

I've been hunting my area for 23 years and killing a 140"+ deer feels like winning the lottery.
 
140" bucks are not common anywhere outside the Midwest (and not that common even there), but without question, Western KY produces more top-end bucks than most parts of TN, even looking at same-age bucks.
 
We just got a place between Madisonville and Princeton last year and have been very impressed. I grew up hunting in Southwest Mississippi where mature bucks were routinely 120" but it took something special to reach 140+. Now that we are in KY is it normal to have 3-5 bucks on camera in the 140 range each year, with some years having an older deer get much bigger.
 
There are some great bucks in western kentucky. The northern subspecies dips into western kentucky and there are some huge bodied deer there.
 
Yes it's night and day. I've hunted Jackson co. Quite a bit and it's not close to hunting up there.
 
Me n Daryl's place is on Christian/Hopkins co line . I lived in Mid Tn and hunted all over , including Jackson co .
answer is : buy all you can afford and then some in West Ky . I live in Cadiz and the neighborhood bucks are pretty good also , getting better since one known poacher got too old and had to sell/move . Good management type neighbors help a lot . Talk to some neighbors around the property you might look at . A bad one can cut down on your sucess with management . Got bunch of pics on 145 8 point I took last week . Shows he had all the ingredients he needed to stay close and not wander too far I guess. Joe
 
Wky buck
 

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Today is day 6 of hunting hard in Christian county.2nd week of November should have seen a few 140 or better bucks. Have only seen 1. Tomorrow morning just may produce that mythical 170 that is thought to be behind every tree. Good luck with your land purchase. I will say Christian co has some very nice folks living there.
 
KY can vary by location just like anywhere else. Something I use for picking new public land in different states and will work just as well for private land is looking at the boone and crockett maps.

You can buy better land in TN than parts of places like even IA
 
Having hunted both quite extensively, yes it is night and day. Of course, big deer can be held locally by food, cover, and other factors, I'm speaking from a regional standpoint.
 
after leasing a few farms in ky then getting a to good to pass up offer on my farm in marshall county I came up to ky and bought outside dawson springs and princeton. The only sucky part is the drive between nashville and clarksville. this fools can't drive.

if you're serious about buying call mark williams with whitetail properties and ask him to put you with carl. no one will work harder for you.
 
I lived and hunted Putnam and Jackson county for years. Now spend majority of my time in Trigg County and expect 8+ 130 to 140 3 year olds, 6 to 8 135 to 155 4+ year olds and at least 2 160 range mature bucks on cameras on the farms I manage. I can drive 15 miles east into christian county and show you a room full of 160 to 180's mounts taken on that farm between Ft Campbell and I-24. Yes, western KY is far better than middle TN in many ways. We commonly take 130 to 140 pound live weight does with a 162 lb being our largest doe. Also there is far better cooperation for quality management practices from the neighbors than you can find in mid tenn.
and as expected the land prices reflect it
 
Western Ky has the bucks but it also has way too many does in a lot of places. I posted pictures of the damage they did to the bean fields this spring and 2 years ago. Want to see a 140 class buck? There is one right next door to me and I see him almost every day, it's on unhuntable land. He only comes on my property at night, have him on my home security cameras.
 
I run 9 cameras in Trigg and Christian co. Doe population seam to be down a lot and fawns almost non existent. Should mean for bigger bucks. I don't see that either. Coyote? Through the roof crazy numbers.
100 acres I Christian co? Maybe a million dollars now?
 
You don't even have to go that far west for there to be a night and day difference. I can cross the boundary just north of me and suddenly be into much much better deer and Turkey hunting.
 
Popcorn said:
I lived and hunted Putnam and Jackson county for years. Now spend majority of my time in Trigg County and expect 8+ 130 to 140 3 year olds, 6 to 8 135 to 155 4+ year olds and at least 2 160 range mature bucks on cameras on the farms I manage. I can drive 15 miles east into christian county and show you a room full of 160 to 180's mounts taken on that farm between Ft Campbell and I-24. Yes, western KY is far better than middle TN in many ways. We commonly take 130 to 140 pound live weight does with a 162 lb being our largest doe. Also there is far better cooperation for quality management practices from the neighbors than you can find in mid tenn.
and as expected the land prices reflect it
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The deer in that area grow big antlers young. Some stay about the same but some blow up throughout their life
 
You are going to need some capital. CWD will likely reach the area within 10 years too.

You can hunt the same deer cheaply on WMA's, LBL, and even on a lease if you can find one.
 
BSK said:
140" bucks are not common anywhere outside the Midwest (and not that common even there), but without question, Western KY produces more top-end bucks than most parts of TN, even looking at same-age bucks.
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I disagree somewhat. I have been hunting in western KY for several years now. I would not say 140" are common, but it you want to say 130" and above, to 160 class bucks, Western KY sure has them. There has not been one year that I have not seen 1 or 2 giants killed (meaning 170" or better), First year there I saw a nontypical, grossed in the 230's, the Dan Hughes buck, 250's, was killed not to far from where we hunt talked to him, really nice guy, I measured a shed found near Cadiz, one side, 83", I could go and on. And for 130's to 160's class bucks, I see many killed in that range every season. 2 different seasons, on the farm we hunt and a farm or 2 beside it, there has been 6 or more bucks killed that measured from 130" to 160" in the first week of the season. My brother and myself killed a 130's and a 140's class buck on the same day out of the same tree, great memory for sure.

There have been some off years for us to, but every season, I see many super nice deer killed in Western KY. The area I hunt is surrounded by "if its brown, its down" guys. They kill every single deer they legally can. No telling how much better that area would be if they would let more young bucks walk.

Also, does that mean "everyone" kills a great buck every year or that everyone has killed one? Nope, not even close. Is there a pile of deer killed every year that are over 130"? For sure.
 
th88 said:
Outside of the ag/soil differences, that 1 buck limit helps a lot! Helps many a bucks grow older.
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I would disagree with that. Trail-cam photo censuses I've run there show about the same age structure as most of Middle TN. Just much higher antler development per age-class there, which often makes hunters assume bucks are older.
 
Having hunted mid Tn for 30+ years, I've seen the difference in just 30 miles north in the Portland area. Much bigger deer at least body wise.
 
Mr.Bro said:
I run 9 cameras in Trigg and Christian co. Doe population seam to be down a lot and fawns almost non existent. Should mean for bigger bucks. I don't see that either. Coyote? Through the roof crazy numbers.
100 acres I Christian co? Maybe a million dollars now?
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He's right about the high prices. I was out bid at a few land auctions by duck hunters and a group of hunters buying their own land as a group. One thing I saw at EVERY AUCTION I was at, as soon as the gavel fell several guys rushed the buyer wanting to buy the hunting rights right then and there. One time I happen to see a guy pull out $25,000 in cash to give to the new land owner, I have no idea how much the final price was or if they leased it or outright bought the hunting rights. It's crazy.
 
1 buck limit does have to help .IMO
also the 100 ac costing a million is way off too. Around us some is selling for 2000/ 2500 …. But if you got a mil to spare you can certainly have our 105 ac , properly managed with great deer plus stocked spring fed 1ac pond . lol
 
SALTMAN said:
1 buck limit does have to help .IMO
also the 100 ac costing a million is way off too. Around us some is selling for 2000/ 2500 …. But if you got a mil to spare you can certainly have our 105 ac , properly managed with great deer plus stocked spring fed 1ac pond . lol
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I had 100 acres come up for sale this past spring very near me in southern Trigg county that was bought by "AMISH" for $7200 an acre. Thats $720,000 No trees, 35% of it year round wet. I had hoped to buy it for $3500 an acre but didnt even get to raise my bidders card.

A neighbor with 75 acres rough land, no marketable timber too rocky and rough for much other than goats, cattle and deer, I offered $375,000 and they laughed me off the porch

Guess I need to start looking up around your place Joe, I might be able to buy a little up there.
 
SALTMAN said:
1 buck limit does have to help .IMO
also the 100 ac costing a million is way off too. Around us some is selling for 2000/ 2500 …. But if you got a mil to spare you can certainly have our 105 ac , properly managed with great deer plus stocked spring fed 1ac pond . lol
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We bought last year at $1995/ac as part of a deer management property in Hopkins county. It's hilly former coal strip mining land, so no commercial farming value but it's perfect for timber and deer. Stay away from the farmable land and it shouldn't be anywhere near 7k.
 
BSK said:
I would disagree with that. Trail-cam photo censuses I've run there show about the same age structure as most of Middle TN. Just much higher antler development per age-class there, which often makes hunters assume bucks are older.
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I agree with the higher antler development. The Pembroke soils of this region grow everything better. Christian, Todd and Logan Counties will consistently be some of the top 20 counties in the nation in corn production. It's amazing the carrying capacity( ability to hold nutrients at root depth) of the soil in that area and hence the deer are amazing as well.
 

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