How often do you guys have to duck incoming when deer hunting?  I have deer hunted now for 3 of the last four years, and every year I wind up having to duck.  This morning for example.  I beat everyone else out to the stands at o dark hundred.  My stand is on a fenceline with some box elder trees and 15 foot high red willows, back into the brush about 10 feet from a 40 acre corn stubble field.  My wife's cousin is about 100 yards north of me in the corner of the field.  At about 0700, I hear a shot, and zziiiiiing through the trees over my head.  More shots, more zinging sounds past me.  A slug skipped off the ground at the edge of the plowground 10 feet from my stand.  

When I saw him later in the day, he started telling me about this 8 pointer he shot at,  I told him, "yeah, that must have been what you were shooting at when the slug where zingin past me".  He's like, "I didn't know you were out here".  
He knows I am hunting out there, knows where my stand is, can't see me from his stand.  Just doesn't know exactly when I am going to be there since we all work different schedules, and it was dark when he got out there too.  But it still pissed me off.  I sure as hell wouldn't shoot toward HIS stand if I didn't know if he was there or not.

That was my first blue on blue incident, but in past years I have had to hit the deck due to close incoming from unknown sources on the public land next to the land I hunt (my father in law's).

There are also some other people out there that got permission from my Father in law before I married my wife and started hunting out there.  There are only around during deer hunting, have all the best spots taken up, use my Father in Law's farm to stage all thier buddies hunting on the surrounding DNR land (all the friends show up with trucks and pull in the cornfield for thier meetings and stuff...even though my Father in Law didn't give the rest of them permission and he hates trespassers) and are not even real friendly when I have dealt with them.  We are hunting the same 80 acres and they hardly even talk to me.

It's too bad, there are some deer around, missed a 12 pointer at 100 yards yesterday, running flat out right to left.  Took a sighter today and turned out my 1100 was hitting 12" left and 12" low at 60 yards, sights musta got banged on.  But I think I need a new place to hunt, there is no camaraderie and it just ain't real fun.  Even though I love hunting.

 

are you in southern WI?  my inlaws are from richland county and the hunting isn't too bad there.  I myself think I am lucky My grandmother has a 300 Acre farm that is all CRP in the central part of Iowa that I hunt on.  Don't have very many problems there except for the occasional tresspasser. john

Yeah, actually S.E. Wisconsin.  How is the pheasant hunting by you?  That is my first love as far as hunting goes.  Pheasants around here have declined dramatically, you have to hunt your ass off and if you are lucky you MAY see a bird or two.  How are the birds at your in laws?  I have been thinking of taking a Saturday or Sunday trip over towards Monroe, I am pretty sure that although the pheasant counts are down there too, they are a LOT better than around here.

I am lucky to have a place to hunt, but I would sure like to get me and my brother, father in law, brother in law, and a couple other of my friends all together to hunt on a regular basis.
My father in law won't deer hunt, too many people running around he says.  

actually they come to Iowa to hunt pheasants with me we have a great area opening day we saw about 20 roosters by noon
john

That seems to have been very common in southern WI in the past.  I haven't hunted there in over 15 years, so I don't know about it now.  Hunting SW WI near Gov. Dodge State Park, I had rifle bullets zinging all around me in the early 70's.  Then in the early 80's I hunted Mazo & had a guy draw down on me as I came out of heavy brush in full orange.  (Is Mazo still just one big gay nude beach?  I went back there about 3 yrs ago, in the spring, to look around & there were hoards of nude & semi-nude guys around.  It used to be a fairly good place to hunt. ...animals, I mean...)

I stayed out of SE WI during the gun season because I thought THAT was too dangerous.  There used to be some pheasants around there, though, & I've seen & heard some in the last few years.  It was always poor to fair for pheasants.  SW WI is not much better.

Man, that weren't yer wife's cousin - that were yer wife.

Sleep with one eye open, my friend.

[:D]

Actually, the deer have formed a militia, and armed themselves. Now, instead of deer hunting, its more of a war of sorts.

[:D]

Thankfully, I have never had this problem. I hunt public land in CA, and the presure is high. Oddly, these are the most polite people in the state. I have had my stand screwed by guys that have to unload at the end of there day.. I've never felt the need to hit the dirt.

I can tell you one thing that may save you a bunch of trouble one day.  GET A SET OF MOTOROLA TWO-WAY HAND HELD RADIOS.  2-5 Mile range, ear peace with mike and able to pick up wispers.  It could say your life!!! Two sets all tuned to the same frequency would work for 4 people.

Benjamin

I was about to say the same.  Nothing beats full radio contact for safety.  You can tell your hunting partners exactly where you are, where you're going, and where they shouldn't shoot because .  Plus if you twist an ankle or something, you're never more than a radio call away from help.  FRS radios work OK but are only 0.5 watts.  If you have 'em, and care to tote the extra weight around, walkie talkies or 2m handhelds might give better range.  Personally I prefer the FRS.

Oh boy, I can sure tell you're from teh southeast corner of WI... Having lived there for 10 years myself, and my brother still lives there... (and my mother-in-law - whew!) only that area uses 'by' in that manner [:)]

Not pickin' on you, mind you, it's just I can actually hear the accent in your post ...

I used to go hunting up in the Sparta area ... My Brother moved back there from Idaho, and still ahsn't found a good place to hunt - he didn't get out this year.

I hope you find your better spot.  It can be a real pain trying to find a good place to hunt, that doesn't feel like a war zone.

You might want to check your hunting laws before doing this. It’s illegal to use these while hunting in my state.

If they are taking advantage of your in-laws hospitality they need to be put on the go.  I'd kick'em outta there quick fast, and in a hurry.  My family has 1100 acres, and it's taken the last 4 years to break the trespassing.  I've heard every excuse imaginable in the process, I've been threatened etc.etc.  Funniest one was the guy who told me I was'nt "going to talk to him like that".  I did and he took it.  Only way you can get rid of trespassers is to be rude, and prosectute one or two.  We don't let anyone hunt anymore because if you let one guy who asks he brings 5-6 buddies the next time he shows up.  Damn shame people have to be like that.

Ha! Try hunting in NJ, on public land.  It's like going to the grocery store in Beiruit!  I've been shot twice in pheasant season, and had way too many close calls during deer season.

 I have a pair of FRS radios.  For the area we hunt they are perfect.  So does the other party that is out there, but they never did tell me they had them.  Random chance that I found out.  Of course, they just called my father in law a week or so before, and told him they would be out this year, and that's as far as communication went.  I finally went to them to see if they might have radios, they did.  Now we can communicate.  But like I said, they haven't talked to me really at all.  It almost seems like they resent me being out there (not my wife's cousin, but the others).  That kind of ticks me off.  

I think I am done hunting out there for the year.  I am going up by Wausau this weekend where a friend from work has a few hundred acres, surrounded by private non hunters, with year round food plots, etc.  He manages it for trophy bucks, him and his wife and one friend got two 10 pointers and a 16 pointer opening weekend.  It won't be a yearly thing (he rarely has other people up there, he likes to just keep it for his family), but it will be cool.

Hey hondajohn, not to be pushy or anything, but would you be willing to host my father in law and I for a Sat/Sun of pheasant hunting?  I wanted to take a trip to Iowa, but without knowing anyone and not knowing the area, I didn't want to spend the cashola for an out of state license.  But to hook up with a fellow AR15.commer that knows where to go and stuff, that would be shweeeeet.  I would buy the beer...:-)

No teasing now!  I know what you mean though.  I toured with a band in the Dakotas, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan.  They all made fun of our accents...we're like "you are the one with an accent, we ain't got no accent..".  One thing that stuck with me though, is that they call Soda "pop" everywhere but in Wisconsin!  Ever since that tour I always say "pop" instead of "soda".  My wife loves making fun of that.  
I still call a water fountain a "bubbler" though!

As much as I love shooting I think I am going to have to take up archery season.  Too many hunters and not enough land around here unless you head to the UP. (upper Peninsula)



Six

It's illegal to use radios while hunting in Ohio? That's weird.

Michael

Why don't you use a tree climber stand? It would get you off the ground and out of the line of fire. And if you still get shot at I would return fire. But really its better to be off the ground anyway, the do not spot you as easily. I hunt the national forests in texas and have never had a problem of getting bullets coming in my direction.

Yeah, I was originally an FIB [;)] and the first time I asked about where to get a drink, that 'bubbler' thing got me ... I'm thinking 'bubbler, what the heck is that?' ...

Actually WI was basically my summer home - we used to go up near Hayward all the time to a place called Balsam Lake - absolutely gorgious - if course it's probably all built up now.

My uncle owned a campground on Big Round lake near Hayward for awhile.  I really like the NW part of the state - it's a lot like where I live now.

My brother now lives in Delafield.  One of these days I'm going to get back there to visit - in fact the wife is visiting her mom in Fondy even as I type [:(]  I miss her...