This was my first season trying to deer hunt. I hunted NF up in the mountains of north Georgia. It rough country with a relatively low deer population. But it is what i had access to.  I worked hard at it, scouting, walking, sleeping in the cold, reading everything i could. I spent several days a week out there for the entire open season. Today was my last day out there and i struck out. I saw one doe all season. Had a perfect shot on her but it was buck only so i let her walk. I learned a lot and got to spend a lot of time outside hiking. I feel good that i gave it a honest try rather than just talking about it like i had for years or just going out just one weekend. But i sure would have like some meat in the freezer. Anyone else strike out this year? Maybe i am not the only one with a empty freezer.

Shot a buck this year....after a two year dry spell....thats why they call it hunting.

lol. About 20 years running now here.  
I passed on a bunch of does and a couple small bucks like I do every year, then regretted it when the season was over, like I do every year.
My trail cams have 3 nice deer moving through my property, but always late at night.

Struck out 2 years in a row.
If it was easy everyone would do it.

I got my son his first deer early in rifle season, then had a hard time punching a tag myself. Passed on a little basket 8 that the landowner wants to see grow another year, passed a poor shot on a doe. Hunted another two and a half days without seeing a thing then finally whacked a doe with my flintlock on the last day of muzzleloader season about fifteen minutes before I’d have lost shooting light.

I haven’t seen a shooter buck in a few years but I had them on camera.

I did get a couple of does.

Don't get discouraged.  When I started hunting I didn't get a deer for the first four years.  I had seen them, so I knew I was doing something right.  The thing is even if you see deer it isn't a guarantee.  They don't always present themselves for a good shot.

You went into what you claimed is a area with limited deer population and you still saw a doe, so you were doing something right.  Some of the guys I hunt with haven't even seen a deer in five years and we hunt in an area with a massive deer population.

Public land hunting is hard as well.  You get a lot of other hunters out there that put a lot of pressure on the deer.  Most hunters won't go too far in, which is where the deer go as hunting season lingers on.  I walk about 3/4 of a mile into the woods when I hunt public land.  You want to hunt where you know other hunters won't be.  This was actually my first year in a while where I didn't even see anything on public land and again I hunt in an area with a massive deer population.  I did end up getting a couple doe and a buck this year, but that was on private land which is much easier to hunt than public because you're not competing with other hunters.

I sometimes forget how blessed I really have it owning and living on my own property.  I grew up hunting state land in the U.P. and for the 1st couple of years it was amazing and then it slowly kept getting worse and worse.

Now, I don't shoot unless it's a buck that reaches my age cutoff (3.5 years old) and it's pretty easy to do in less than 10 afternoon sits if I was serious about my off-season regimen.

I feel for  you guys limited to public land.  I highly recommend watching Jeff Sturgis of Whitetail Habitat Solutions on Youtube.  It's free and he was (and still is at times) a state/public land hunter.  Good advice.

No deer for me this year.  

My daughter got her first though, so if my kids keep shooting deer, I don't have to.  

I had plenty of opportunities.  I could have shot 50 doe on different occasions with the bow.  Had 3 or 4 opportunities at 120-130" deer.  Looking for that 150 class deer, and with only one buck tag, you can't shoot a 150 if you shoot a 130 first.

Started deer hunting to this year. Got my first doe and I’m grateful for the meat. Went out a lot after I shot her and haven’t seen crap since.

We passed up a ton of deer this year early on.  That was a mistake.

Muzzleloader season in October was like a zoo, deer were everywhere.  

November rolled around and the deer must have gone on Vacation.

December was very quiet.  From Thanksgiving to January 1, I saw 3 deer total.

Last year we got 13 deer and a bear.   This year we got 3 deer and a bear.

I guess the old saying "don't pass on a deer the first day you would shoot the last day" is real.

Pressure on deer in public hunting areas make deer (who survive) very good at NOT being seen.

Good for you for getting out in the wild to try.

Hunting shouldn't be like the drive through at McDonald's.

When you succeed in a hunt, you'll enjoy the satisfaction of a job well done !!

Bigger_Hammer

The latter is the way it should be.  Want a mature buck? Then don't blast a spike.  One buck tag states have it right.  Want meat?  Shoot a doe or 3.

I've been on our lease more to put out corn this year than I have to hunt. Haven't seen a damn thing to kill, other than squirrels. Based on how much I'm working vs how much I'm hunting, I'll probably be without a kill this year.

Damn shame, because I really wanna give this new Winchester 44 it's first kill

Wow I feel for you gents that dont see or get any deer.
Here in Ohio, we can pick and choose who gets to be dinner.

But dont get discouraged..  re look at your methods and dont be afraid to try others if the one you are currently using is not working.

Best of luck all..  

We were the opposite this year in South Texas. It was an extremely wet year, so numbers and weight were up significantly. I can't post a picture but we are up over 4:1 despite killing 30+ doe off of our 1800ac. I've got pictures of so many deer in a feed pen that they could barely walk around. I passed on a 170"+ 14 because he was 3.5yo, ended up taking a too-tall/narrow BC 10 at 162".

Any more description of your hunting situation? Feed, acreage, previous harvest rates?

that is just poor country with a low carrying capacity. there's a reason a lot mountain folk were always poor. but it's better than working.  i don't know if you have the ability to put out a stealth feeder or something to try and concentrate animals. or find some lowlands to hunt where they have something to eat year around.  national forest kind of limits your options.

In this part of Iowa, you can have a nice size buck or doe within an hour or 2, easy.  And if you don't shoot one, you may hit one driving along.  

Good luck in future.

Watch the Hunting Beast (Dan Infalt) videos. He makes very good videos on scouting for deer and hunts public land almost exclusively.  

You can watch/listen to Hunting Giants with Don Higgins podcasts.  He’s a hunts old bucks only, but he has very good insights on buck activity.

Don’t get hung up on “shooting big bucks”. That will come in time with experience. Shoot any deer you can at this stage of your hunting career. Learn, experience, enjoy.

Look at some additional land options for this year.  Are there military bases that allow hunting in your area?  Those are often good places.  Scout some more public that is closer to agricultural fields.  Keep at it.  Get a bow and get out earlier when there is less pressure.

I'm an adult onset hunter and the one thing I've learned really is that time hunting is the biggest factor to killing a lot of deer/ big deer.

I follow a lot of the advice from "experts" but I just think time in the woods is what kills deer.

Keep it up OP.

Yes and not being quite so choosy unless you can accept the unfilled tag instead of a four point.  I have two seasons now with no deer but I was self imposing 8 or better.  I could have and should have grabbed a doe early and put meat in the freezer but we had quite warm temps so I skipped a couple early weeks of hunting.  I process my own deer so I prefer to wait until it is cool enough to hang a deer.  

This last season I struck out at the farm near the house where I spent most of my time.  The farmer had a new kid living in the farm house who when the farmer was away was driving the fields nightly with his pals.   Totally screwed things up and the deer stayed out of the fields.   Since I live next door I often sit in my own blinds on my property line between us.  The kid has instructions to shoot varmints near the chicken runs so I put up with several free fire zone incidents while I was in the woods in late bow season.  Tough year.  Last night the kid was running his new to him two stroke ATV or dirt bike up and down the road til 11:30pm.

If you want to kill deer, you have to go where deer are. For years I hunted public lands despite having family property that held deer, never again.

I hunt my own land now and lease an adjoining track of land (mainly to keep other folks out and reduce hunt pressure). I also have exclusive access to a couple thousand acres that holds really big deer for FL. We kill nice deer every year. Deer hunting is like real estate, location, location, location.

Put $100 a month away and next season get into a nice club/lease or get your own lease. By the time you factor in your time, gas, etc., being in a good lease will give you satisfaction.

If I were to lose my property, lease, and other land access, a good club/lease would be my go to vs. ever stepping foot on public lands again.

How did you hunt?  Spot and stalk or sit a stand.  


Whitetail tends to be a sit and watch hunt.

@dana

I don't claim to be an expert, but some things I've learned the past 18 years:

1) It's all about timing.  There are some guys who make it a point to hit the stands as often as possible.  I hear them say "You can't get any deer from the couch!"  While I suppose this is true, I think it's possible you're doing more harm than good.  For one, this can be exhausting. More importantly, I think we run the risk of burning a stand.  If you watch the weather a week out, you'll be able to eliminate certain days.  For instance, if you see a day that has highs of 37 and steady rain, I'd pass on that day.  Maybe the day before, but I've always had bad luck in that weather (as my wife reminds me).  

2) Use other hunters to your advantage.  For instance, gun hunting is very limited in Ohio.  Even if you're bow hunting only, I'd still recommend hunting during gun week.  I hunt on private property, and like to get there plenty early to get set up.  The guys to the north of me tend to get there very late, and I see them moving around all the time.  I'm not sure if they're just trying to get their steps in, or what.  Either way, if I can see and hear them, I'm sure the deer can as well.

Plus, the gun shots and extra hunters keep the deer moving, and out of their comfort zone.  Of course, all this goes out the window if you've got the Amish doing their pushes, banging away on pots and pans, and you're unlucky enough to be in their path.

3) Try to take scent and sound seriously.  I drink coffee a little bit in the stand, and pee off the side all the time.  It doesn't seem to bother them.  Still there's some scent spray you can get, and it seems to work.  Don't use deoderant or body wash when you go out.  

4) It sounds like the property you hunted is fairly remote.  I'd consider getting some cameras.  Yes, there's a chance they'll get damaged or stolen, but hear me out.  These things can be a game changer.  Once you realize certain locations are good for night sits, and some are better for morning sits, it's a huge advantage.  There are cellular plans for them, and they aren't terrible expensive.  If possible, maybe go out and plant some food to keep them coming back in the fall?  Something to consider, although it may not be worth it for your set up.

End of the day, keep at it, and find someone you can learn from.  I'm sure there are Facebook groups for hunters in your area.  Maybe make some friends on there and see if anyone will give you any pointers on good spots.  There are plenty of good YouTubers around as well.

Check out The Hunting Public on YouTube.  Some of their move and shoot videos are pretty impressive.  I'd love to know what public land they're using where they aren't bumping into other hunters all day.

It depends, but whitetail tend to be more alert IMO.  They just don’t do well in a spot and stalk hunt.  YMMV.

Where in GA were you hunting?

I have two leases. One around Athens and one in middle GA. Of course it’s private land, and the deer aren’t pressured. I shot a 12 pointer last year. I won’t shoot a buck unless I’m willing to pay to mount it.

For public land, I’d offer a small amount of advice.
First, the deer you saw, is just the deer that hadn’t seen or smelled you yet. It took me a long time to realize that moving around in the stand or on the ground does a lot of harm. Just sit still. It sucks, but you make a lot of noise in the woods. Think about just shifting your body around. You can hear yourself, and the deer has much better hearing that you. They can smell better too. Just be still.
Second, the thing with most public lane is that 90% of hunters are lazy and won’t go too deep into the woods. They don’t want to walk all the way back when they get done. So walk to where you think you want to hunt, then keep going. Deer that are pressured tend to move deeper in the woods, away from all the hunters walking in and making noise. Especially big bucks. They’ll move right to the thickest thicket or briars. So keep walking in deep, and look for rubs and poop. Depending on how thick you’re going, there may not be scrapes. Hunt near thick pines or thicket. If there’s a spot you wouldn’t want to walk through, that’s where they will.

I’d advise getting on one of the GA hunting pages on Facebook. Lots of people advertising openings in clubs. Just do your due diligence. Most hunters are greedy and selfish, and the rules will reflect that. Stands should open for anyone. And if they don’t allow four wheelers they suck. You are supposed to hunt and have fun, without feeling like you’re in nazi germany.