I haven't been able to kill a deer since I moved to MI in 2005. I'm so sick of this ****. Doesn't help my state won't issue doe permits for my county. All I see are does. I don't have a problem killing a doe, I hunt for meat not antlers, it's just that I can't legally kill one. If I don't get a deer this season, I'm giving up hunting. This is BS.
"A man may not care for golf and still be human, but the man who does not like to see, hunt, photograph, or otherwise outwit birds or animals is hardly normal. He is supercivilized, and I for one do not know how to deal with him." - Aldo Leopold
Live generously.
that stinks, wish I had a suggestion.
I know how frustrating that can be. I am fortunate that I live in a county that does issue doe permits. That's one of the reasons I like living in southwest lower Michigan. Wish I could help you out. Hate to see anyone giving up deer hunting.
Get you temporary permit from a state that allows the killing of does,but don;t give up.When the dry spell turns you will have a good time.
Good luck i know were you are coming from and to make it even harder in some counties you now required to get a buck with at least three points on one side i am with you if they pass that here i will not buy a license. I do have doe permits here and got one Saturday.
When I think back on all the **** I learned in high school it's a wonder I can think at all ! And then my lack of education hasn't hurt me none I can read the writing on the wall.
Maybe it's time to get a piece of **** car and hit the back roads....
Hitting a deer just sucks.
I know this is a gun forum but have you ever thought of bow hunting? For several years I traveled from New York to Michigan and bow hunted in the Huron National Forest and I got a deer every year I hunted there. Does are allowed with the bow although I did kill a couple of bucks with the bow also. Lots of deer there and I always had a great time. Four of us went and we all killed deer every time.
May I suggest trying a neighboring county, or picking up a bow or crossbow? Does are legal with archery gear. Who knows, once you start taking the steps to start hunting "close" you might even see a few good bucks. Good luck...there is excellent deer hunting in Michigan....not always easy....but the deer are there.
Do you think it might help to post a thread on this forum asking to hunt with another forum member in a different county that lets you take does and go hunt there?
Dec. 6 till the end of the month we can muzzle load for 2 weeks, last week is our late doe season, in mid Michigan. Take a drive down here and try some state land hunting.
If there is does there , there is also bucks, at least that is how it usually works. Something about your method is not right for bucks, timing or location of stands or something.
Are you not even seeing immature bucks?
I am starting to understand how you feel. The county I hunt in only has a 4 day antlerless season this year. Of course, the only deer I have seen so far are antlerless. Even the bucks have restrictions on antler size. The deer herd must have been hit hard by the last couple of years of drought.
That is why its called "hunting" and not "getting"
If youre seeing does... there has to be bucks. Have you tried calling them? Grunt calls or rattling? Use any doe in estrus scents?
Think outside of the box.. try something different
We are lucky here to have over the counter doe tags for private land. If I had more land I'd offer you a spot but my 1.8 acres is pretty crowded with me on it.
I have been where you are and have the "tee" shirt as they say. I can say that things will change for you if you will hang in there a little longer. I have talked to others about this situation and seems lots of us have gone through it. Once you break through you will start having some success at bagging your deer. I think the suggestion to branch out to another county would be a good thing to do. That will help shore up your confidence and teach you a lot about hunting the whitetail. They call it hunting and not shooting for a good reason. Those buggers live on high alert 24/7. They usually don't make too many mistakes. I can say it this way for me this week- If it were the other way around and the deer have the rifle, I would have been dead meat two times. Seems they have been seeing me first lately. Hang in there and don't give up.
Mark 5:34 And He said to her (Jesus speaking), "Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace and be healed of your affliction."
Deer are where you find them. I used to go into the woods and I was on a mission. It panned out many times, but quite often I was discouraged, and after all it was hard work, expensive, etc. etc.
I think that if I would have kept that attitude I would have given up hunting. For some reason I changed. Don't really know why either. I go now for the sights, smells, experiences of doing something I don't normally do.
Some folks have deer right in their backyard, and they hunt them right off the porch. Well...to me if that fits someones idea of hunting that is fine, this is an individual sport after all. For me, it is about being at one with nature. I don't mean like a hippie. I mean like an injun, or like one of my ancestors in Europe did when they lived in caves a few hundred years ago. Almost primal. I become a predator. I am after blood. And though I hate to see an animal die, I love to see the animal die. Along the way though, I have learned to appreciate a nice sunset. I have learned to appreciate the hush that falls over the woods when snow falls. I can think back now many decades and I don't recall years, but events. Like the time I shot a bear and when I was butchering it about five miles from the nearest road, it started to snow real hard. I packed out the hide and went back for the meat. It was late that night when I ate supper and went to bed in a pop up camper. Then it started to blow. It went from 20 degrees to 80 degrees. It was a mono wind, and I could hear trees falling in the forest. I thought about getting out of dodge, but I just stayed there and rode it out. Because of the heat the hide on that bear skin slipped. And I vowed that this was the last bear I would shoot.
Anyway, this is hunting. Hunting is NOT what you see on TV. I am not looking down my nose at those men. I just do it different. I don't expect a good deer. But I do expect to be greeted with a unique experience EVERY time I am outdoors.
That is hunting. You can't get that watching football. At least I can't.
There is a website where you can shoot a buck using your PC. They have the trigger controlled, the camera. And you aim and fire. Then I guess you would get your deer. They send your venison packaged to your address.
Do you see the difference? I sure as heck do.
Take care.
Last edited by Suo Gan; 11-27-2013 at 02:14 AM.
Lotta people die in bed: Dangerous place to be!
oh heck wipe the snot off your lip and stop whining.
When I first read the tittle of your thread I thought maybe you were from Vermont. Deer huntin has been tough in this state for a number of years.
Being human is not for sissies.
How is that QDM working for you in MI?
You can shoot deer in Vermont almost every year. My friend does it and gets a couple each year. He does work hard to do it and hunts every season (bow, rifle, muzzleloader etc). I shot one every few years but was not that hardcore at it. Is southern Vermont different from Northern Vermont in the deer herd size?
I Am Descended From Men Who Would Not Be Ruled
Fiat Justitia, Ruat Caelum
Deer density is very low in Windham county - as are doe permits. Sometimes I go over to Wells. Lots of doe over there - But mostly see only spikes. We saw a unicorn spike this year. One small 8 point taken in the area we hunt in. I have always had a problem with the late muzzle loader season and doe permits here in VT. Shooting a doe that's already been bread is taking two deer out of the pool for next year. Something just doesn't seem right about that to me. I do not like the way fish and wildlife manages things in this state. Now you got me started. I apologize. Too many good years of hunting in Montana spoiled me.
Being human is not for sissies.
Posting Permissions
| BP | Bronze Point | IMR | Improved Military Rifle | PTD | Pointed |
| BR | Bench Rest | M | Magnum | RN | Round Nose |
| BT | Boat Tail | PL | Power-Lokt | SP | Soft Point |
| C | Compressed Charge | PR | Primer | SPCL | Soft Point "Core-Lokt" |
| HP | Hollow Point | PSPCL | Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" | C.O.L. | Cartridge Overall Length |
| PSP | Pointed Soft Point | Spz | Spitzer Point | SBT | Spitzer Boat Tail |
| LRN | Lead Round Nose | LWC | Lead Wad Cutter | LSWC | Lead Semi Wad Cutter |
| GC | Gas Check |
Reply With Quote
DougGuy