Hi I’m Adam Lewis and welcome to Deer IQ and our High IQ TOPICS series. This is different than our normal, curriculum podcast episodes, and are stand alone topics that go along with our High IQ videos on YouTube. They are shorter, and supplement our normal podcast in this way with direct tactics to help up your deer hunting game. In this episode we’re going to look at the first 2 of 8 approaches for success on pressured public lands - something that all hunters who hunt public probably have struggled with, especially recently with hunter numbers increasing . If you’re a hunter who is sick of getting hunts messed up by other hunters, or who struggle to consistently see deer or get opportunities at good bucks on public land, I think this will really help you. Before we get into the nitty gritty details of that, a couple things real quick, especially if you’re new here.
And, stay to the end because I have a few takeaways and challenges for you that you’ll really benefit from - you won’t want to miss that.
Ok, so here are the first 2 approaches for pressured public land success.
First, let’s look at the reason I believe public land hunting has increased in pressure over the past few years and what ignited this powder keg. I feel this is important to understand. This has really been ready to blow for years, but some key things kind of tipped it over the edge, or ignited it if you will, which I believe and made the pressured terrain we are seeing today. First, we have the high number of hunters to begin with, that was added to during the pandemic. More hunters simply hit the field. Second, we’ve been seeing for quite some time the decrease in available private land hunting. Where you used to be able to get permission much easier, now that’s kind of disappeared mostly and leases have taken its place. And many people can’t afford to pay for hunting land - whether buying it with high loan interest rates, or leasing it which is also expensive. The third leg of this stool and what kind of blew up public land hunting is the popularity and exposure of it, making it cool so to say by various YouTube channels, podcasts, and social media in general. With around 90% of deer harvested on private land, that leaves a lot of people competing for that 10%.
On top of that, the “secrets” to finding deer on public have kind of been put out there, and with the advent of gps and apps that show you much about the land, there’s very little that the normal guy can’t see and this has really leveled the playing field and made inaccessible spots of the past very accessible now to about anyone. So, some new approaches, or tweaks to old approaches are needed. And I will say some of these 4 are tweaks, but it only takes a slight shift in aim to drastically alter your final destination, which in our case would be shooting a good buck. These are coming from a handful of experts I interviewed on the podcast for this season, and those guests go into more detail in those episodes. So if you like these, make sure to subscribe, follow us on the platform you listen to podcasts so you can hear from those experts, which I will refer to in this video. And there is a free guide with these that lists 8 approaches you can see linked below, but for now & time’s sake, we’re going to hit the first 4.
Approach #1: Hunt the other hunters
A huge paradigm shift is needed to find where the big bucks are actually hiding on public land. Within a few days of season opener, the deer know they are being hunted and start avoiding any area given even the slightest pressure. Where they go to hide might not be the obvious spots on your hunting app (where all the other hunters probably already are). So, how do you re-find them and get on their new patterns?
Instead of frantically looking for deer sign, relax a bit and take the time to start scouting the other hunters. Where are they parking, where are they accessing and leaving hunting locations, how are they using the landscape? Since deer will immediately react to this, you need to as well. This pushes deer into different locations than scouting and sign may have told you in the summer or first few days of season, so thinking like a deer and how they will respond to this pressure will give you a big clue as to where to now hunt them. Actually staying out of the woods, driving around and documenting which parking lots are full, and observing the hunters and their habits will get you further than doing blind hunts on old deer intel. You need hunter intel. Resist the temptation to compete for a spot and add even more pressure to an area - this is counterproductive. My friend Manni takes a different angle on gathering data - he strategically puts his trail cameras in locations to not only monitor deer, but also other hunters. Kinda tricky. Knowing when and how they access areas tells him how and when he can access it differently to get a crack at the deer avoiding these hunters, and drastically ups his odds. Hunting the other hunters is a high IQ approach to put you where the deer actually are on highly-pressured public land.
Manni chased this buck he called Frazier for 5 seasons on public land in Michigan, patterning him and getting several cracks at him before his eventual demise. It’s a testament to this strategy he used, and also an incredible story. He details it and his exact strategies in our in-depth interview, which will be on our podcast if you want to check that out and hear exactly how he did it.
BREAK: And if you’re getting something out of this podcast, I invite you to leave a comment, and consider sharing it with a friend. It’s your help that really helps this podcast grow, and it’s greatly appreciated. Also, do you know your deer iq? Do you think you’re deer smart? Why don’t you take the deer iq test and find out! It’s fun, easy, and you can compare it to a buddy’s score too and see who’s smarter. Check it out in the notes. Alright and now back to Approach #2.
Approach #2: Up Your Pain Tolerance.
Let’s be honest, a lot of us are wimps. Most people tend to gravitate toward what’s easy, or a lazy approach to hunting. Me included - we’re human. We may say we are going the “extra mile” in the effort department, but are we really? The reality is that most of us aren’t as tough as we like to think, and don’t do the extremely tough or painful stuff to get where the big bucks hide. So, up your pain tolerance if you want to separate yourself from the crowds. Dr. Jeff Kelly - a common guy with uncommon success in multiple states over the last 25 years, gets away from the crowds by biking miles into areas, toting an inflatable raft in a bike trailer, then rafting across unwadable waters just to give himself a chance. Actions like this are a minimum if you want to get into uncharted, or unhunted territory. If it’s not really that hard for you to get to, then expect company because it isn’t for the other hunters either. Basically, if your brain isn’t trying to talk you out of it and telling you it’s way too much work, then its not hard enough to get to or hunt. Ask yourself what you are actually willing to do to punch a tag on public land, and then ask if you can do more. Get a workout routine, dedicate to it year round, and work at removing any mental or physical barriers standing in your way. Do what’s necessary to up your pain tolerance - it’s the cost of putting some real estate between you and other hunters and having success on ultra-pressured public lands.
Ok, so there’s your first 2, and stay tuned for 3 and 4 of all 8 coming out soon