Archery
Public Land Scouting/Hunting Spot
I just assume on any public land, state park, VPA, MFL, CRP that I am going to find stands or cameras, atleast in the SE WI areas I and buddys have hunted throughout the years, seems any spot that you get into no matter how far you go you will find a stand, blind, mt. dew bottle or cigarette buts, and if its not that its pheasant or squirrel hunter johnny. its public land and that's what its for so to try and deer hunt them is kind of a waste in most cases unfortunately. there are a few gems out there but even those every now and again there will be a truck or 2 parked so what do ya do? Only upside is the deep large marshes wade in 2 hours early and wade out after dark and hope you can get one out without dying if you do down one.
goodhuntin all!
lovestohuntandfish, Pro tip: when you find a stand left in the woods, lay a large branch across the seat. Next time you come through, if the branch is there, the stand hasn't been used. If its gone, its been used. And if there is no corners left, I'll just cross that property off and move on to another.
"I don't get why people get upset about people leaving stands out, for real. I wish everyone would leave a permanent stand out at "their spot" would make it MUCH easier to determine the 1 or 2 corners of a property where people don't go. "
CM1234....If this were the case, you wouldn't have 1 or 2 corners to even worry about...there wouldn't be any.
So, quite a few years ago I also thought people and their damb ribbons! So a buddy and I took all of them down. Cone to find out the DNR had marked the trees they were taking out! Oops we still laugh about that....
Honest mistake! But I have cleaned alot off trees that were trails to stands
On the subject of ladder stands in tree's on public ground (where they are not authorized) I always contact the local warden. Do not always have my phone when scouting/hunting so I have even walked a warden into these spots a couple of times to help get illegal stands. Trying to secure a spot by leaving stands in trees does not give a person the right to hunt the area. First guy/gal to a spot gets to hunt it. Pretty simple concept.
There's a spot I hunt in SE WI, live about a mile down the road from my access point, so I have been able to scout this area pretty well. I have had 3 issues in there in the years I have been hunting it.
First issue, i have had one particular truck stop on the road and watch me walk in, almost every time I go in there. Not sure how he knows I am there unless he has a cell cam watching the access, which is possible. He will sit in his truck with binoculars and watch me. No big deal, until I find his boot tracks following mine in. Again, nothing illegal or whatever about that, now I just do a big loop well past my spot and circle back into it thru a creek. Cant leave boot tracks there, HEHE.
Another one, again not illegal, but dude, use your brain. Guy accesses off the road, using reflective tacks every 3 feet, and walks directly through the main bedding on this piece, gets about 30 yards past it, and then turns around and looks into the bedding are he just blew up. Part that sucks is the spot i hunt is also fed by this same bedding area, but I loop around it. So in order to have any success here, I have to hunt in before end of October.
3rd and favorite one, Had a cell cam in tight to bedding, monitoring an area I don't want to walk into. Great spot as i have only ever had one person on this cam. The 1 person I did have on this cam, decided the best way to deal with seeing a camera was to shoot it with his shotgun. What he doesn't know, is he didn't see the second camera, and that camera has him, his dogs, and the shotgun going off all in HD. Watched that weekend as the same guy steps out of his car after pheasant had closed for the day, and shot a pheasant in the ditch right from the gravel on the roadside. Guess he didn't notice the DNR truck parked just down the road from him. LOL
Gotta love southern WI public land.
So I had my first experience with a climber cabled to a tree while out public land hunting tonight (no I didn't take it and turn it in). I did however call the DNR tip line. I gave coordinates and the gal said she would contact the warden this evening. Anyways, it feels good to do the right thing. I did ask the gal if the warden could follow up with me because I have some questions. Anyways, to the OP...I feel your pain. And this was about a mile back in. Disappointing when you lug all your stuff back in deep and then find a claimed spot. Also in SE WI public land.
I hunt County forests in marinette County and they allow stands to be left overnight for up to two weeks before they have to be moved the way it was explained to me was that anyone who comes upon it could sit in it and unless you are going to move it they don't have to vacate the stand if they don't want to. A buddy of mine had a guy sit under the tree he had his stand in and when he said he planned to hunt from the stand the guy told him that he wasn't moving and would call the warden's on him for harassment. So I hunt spots that most people won't
