Georgia Hunting experience

[Railroader]

This is the redneck equivalent of someone living in public housing complaining that their house isn’t big or nice enough and saying the shouldn’t have to “settle” for it when the people in the gated community up the street have a nicer and bigger house.

You mean socialism???

 

[Nimrod71]

If you don't find enough deer sign to hunt in your area you have to expand you area. This is simple business, expand your marketing area - expand your hunting area. I have seen good huntable sign on both Bullard Creek and Big Hammock WMA's. There plenty of deer on Fort Stewart and a hunting pass is very economical.

 

[Browning Slayer]

Lots of whining.

And grown men doing it!

 

[furtaker]

And grown men doing it!

Maybe taking up golf or fantasy football is the answer.

 

[Browning Slayer]

Maybe taking up golf or fantasy football is the answer.

Probably spend more time playing hunting video games than actually getting into the woods.

 

[C.Killmaster]

Here’s the thing, and I’ve seen it posted here before the classic, hunt harder, hunt deeper find the sign… trust me, i know. It’s not a fact of clubs and food plots. In 1 weeks time, first week of November, not going to name the area, it is popular and it is large, also in an area that should have a good many deer, I put 6.2 miles of boot leather down, 6.2 miles! I found 1 place with good buck sign, but more people sign to go with it. The lack of sign and deer sightings was poor. As a matter of fact the only deer seen in those 5 days were on private land about a mile up the road. I’ve been through swamps, pine thickets, a ton of private land edges along creeks, ridges ect. I could find a little sign here and there around significant food sources. Most of the food sources aren’t even utilized. We’re below our carrying capacity, especially on public lands. As far as gated access I have 2, not 1 but 2 ebikes, they’ve got 180 miles on them already each. I hunt the mountains too, ironically I’ve found more buck sign in the mountains than I’ve found on said “WMA” some of the mountain access 1 place in particular is 2.2 miles from the gate to where I park the bike and walk another 400 yards. Lack of scouting and knowledge is not the problem here. I’d love to really say what I think about our management but it falls on deaf ears and most are to ignorant to know any better. The comments about what it was like in the 60s 70s is even more ignorant LOL. Go tell a black dude if he thinks he dealing with racism, tell him well it’s better than the 60s. I don’t understand why anyone is satisfied with mediocre and don’t expect better results. I get it, it’s all run by the government after all. I see a lot of hypocrites as well, one obviously is blessed with great private land, he post the photos and most of you drool over it and worship the guy, then he says some stupid like it’s better then it was. Ok wise guy, let’s turn you lose on these lands a while and see if you have a change of heart?

Here are a few points to consider.

-Our WMA system needs to provide places for quality bucks, places with a lot of deer, hunts with limited numbers of hunters, and places that are open for long periods so there's at least some WMA to go to most days in the fall. All WMAs can't be all of these things. The area you mentioned is one that is open for a lot of days, so yes there could be fewer deer.

-If you look at the harvest per square mile on that WMA, you will also see that it averages the same number of deer killed per square mile as the surrounding private land. https://gadnrwrd.maps.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/a8c09f55918b41e7af6e54abf1dc3a1c

-If your concern is the effort put forth managing the WMAs, here's another consideration. We have 120,000 more acres of WMAs than we had 20 years ago, but the same number of technicians to manage them. Most of the increase is state-owned land, which requires a lot more effort since we burn and manage the timber on it. We've doubled the number of CWD samples our techs and biologists have to collect over that time. We are heavily involved in disaster response (hurricanes, tornadoes, COVID supply transport) that our field staff weren't doing 20 years ago. We have dramatically increased the acreage of dove fields in that time due to public demand. I know you brought up the funding thing in another post, but we don't have much of a funding problem right now due to firearm/ammo sales. The problem is a lack of new positions for all these added obligations and there isn't much appetite to increase the size of government right now.

 

[HughW2]

DNR does a really fine job with the limited budget and manpower they have. I wish more state budget could find its way to increase DNR but you are right that most voters would probably not support it. I know most DNR law enforcement are spread think (one man covering a county or possibly more). I can only imagine how thin the biologist staff is.

 

[Spotlite]

Here are a few points to consider.

-Our WMA system needs to provide places for quality bucks, places with a lot of deer, hunts with limited numbers of hunters, and places that are open for long periods so there's at least some WMA to go to most days in the fall. All WMAs can't be all of these things. The area you mentioned is one that is open for a lot of days, so yes there could be fewer deer.

-If you look at the harvest per square mile on that WMA, you will also see that it averages the same number of deer killed per square mile as the surrounding private land. https://gadnrwrd.maps.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/a8c09f55918b41e7af6e54abf1dc3a1c

-If your concern is the effort put forth managing the WMAs, here's another consideration. We have 120,000 more acres of WMAs than we had 20 years ago, but the same number of technicians to manage them. Most of the increase is state-owned land, which requires a lot more effort since we burn and manage the timber on it. We've doubled the number of CWD samples our techs and biologists have to collect over that time. We are heavily involved in disaster response (hurricanes, tornadoes, COVID supply transport) that our field staff weren't doing 20 years ago. We have dramatically increased the acreage of dove fields in that time due to public demand. I know you brought up the funding thing in another post, but we don't have much of a funding problem right now due to firearm/ammo sales. The problem is a lack of new positions for all these added obligations and there isn't much appetite to increase the size of government right now.

Y’all are appreciated by the majority!

 

[Spotlite]

DNR does a really fine job with the limited budget and manpower they have. I wish more state budget could find its way to increase DNR but you are right that most voters would probably not support it. I know most DNR law enforcement are spread think (one man covering a county or possibly more). I can only imagine how thin the biologist staff is.

I think most voters would support more manpower, they’re just not going to support more “policy”.

Just my opinion.

 

[C.Killmaster]

I think most voters would support more manpower, they’re just not going to support more “policy”.

Just my opinion.

To voters it's all lumped in state government as a whole. Just look at how many state agencies there are in GA on page 2.

https://cviog.uga.edu/_resources/documents/services-and-research/georgia-organizational-chart.pdf

The legislature has to approve any new positions.

 

[gma1320]

But y’all are talking about trial and error and fooling with hunters that are most likely “trophy” minded or will be once they see a nice buck in a bean field while the man is losing crops that = money.

Permits are regulated more than you think. I’m on an Alabama permitted hunt…….the owner tried “hunting management” and the hunters wanted to trophy hunt.

We’re told what day to come “party” and kill every doe you see. It’s not hunting and shouldn’t be thought of as hunting. It’s killing bean eaters.

Even not leasing (free hunt) turns into a headache; too much complaining about tractor noises. Farmer is there to make money - not farm around hunters and cater to their needs.

I agree, farmers want dead deer, not a fella to let em all walk so he can kill a deer to mount. I've actually known 2 people who lost some fine hunting ground because they wouldn't kill deer and that's what the owner wanted. Unfortunately the owner had enough with hunters after that and now nobody gets to hunt it.

 

[buckpasser]

This is the redneck equivalent of someone living in public housing complaining that their house isn’t big or nice enough and saying the shouldn’t have to “settle” for it when the people in the gated community up the street have a nicer and bigger house.

You’re just mad you missed the action! Don’t be jealous.

 

[Redwood1199]

@Spotlite, it’s just this simple for me, and it’s not popular here; Famers are not so special that they should have privileges that supersede those of the average person, period. People have been arrested for doing exactly what the permits allow. Deer are regarded as the finest game species we have here. Limited, seasoned, and sought after with huge money spent by residents and nonresidents alike. Under permits they’re shot like rats. I think there may be some place for the permits, but currently they’re being abused, and that’s why people complain about them.

My wife’s grandfather was once issued permits to shoot them in his back yard pea patch in Quitman because he noticed some tracks out there. He never caught up with any deer (because there wasn’t a problem to start with), but it opened my eyes to how stupid and easily abused the system is.

Agreed if the farmers want the deer cleared off their land to protect the crops let them open their land to hunters. Nowadays you could have an app that connects farmers and other folks with large properties that want to protect their gardens. I would even pay a small fee or split venison to hunt land by me. I live in Hall county some of the best deer hunting in the state and drive 1 to 2 hours to hunt. I don't mind most of the time but sometimes you want grab a quick sit but don't feel like driving past deer to go sit somewhere else.

 

[JustUs4All]

@Redwood1199, the biggest problem with your idea is the usual one, more Government when we already have too much Government. The landowner would have no say in who gets to use his property.

Most landowners, especially farmers, would not voluntarily give the control over who has access to their property over to the Government. Farmers have way too much to loose. The average resident of Georgia today is nothing like the average resident was even a generation ago. Sadly, there is a high percentage of those who I would never allow on my place for any reason.

 

[ucfireman]

I have lived in Ga my whole life, soon to be 48 years. All in the metro area so I will speak of this area.
As a young kid there were few deer around. I lived in Stone mtn. and there was a "farm/field" behind our neighborhood. We never saw deer or turkey but would hear quail.
Then around the 80s or so I got to be friends with a neighbor that deer hunted. They would go somewhere way off and kill a few deer a season but it wasn't like killing one every hunt.
Deer started to show up around the early 90s pretty regularly and got to be everywhere, turkeys showed up about this time too.
I started hunting around 90-91, bow hunting in Gwinnett and Dekalb on property that was "vacant" and newly cut in neighborhoods. Deer were easy to see and kill if you wanted to.
Then the olympics and the influx from hurricane Katrina. And the 1st building boom. Things stayed pretty steady. But lots of land was lost, The populations stayed because the deer still had food and could hide.
The coyotes arrived and the turkeys disappeared. The quail had been gone since the early 90s.
Deer were small "brown its down"
Hunting was still good but loads of deer were getting killed on the roads. The populations were decreasing but still good.

Now we are in a BUILDING BOOM and MAJOR INFLUX of people from everywhere.
Deer are still around but you cant hunt them (I know some have figured it out but not the common person). Turkey are around in some areas but you cant hunt them.
Metro is expanding at an exponential rate along any interstate.

My take, Deer hunting in Ga is still good (for now). The deer seem to be bigger (bucks and does). Numbers may be down from the 90s but still good. Turkey numbers are down. I don't really hunt them but don't see the numbers I used to.

As for changes, I would like to see the state buy or lease more lands as WMAs, while there is still some to. We have something like a 2.2 Billion tax surplus and all anyone can think about is giving folks "bonuses".
Killmaster said it well, we have a bunch more land but the same number of techs, and more demand. The state legislature need to address this.

As for all the fighting over deer permits, I would like to see the state try again (with the hog idea) but for deer too. See if maybe the state can compensate the land owner for their allowing hunters (maybe a managed quota hunt, I say this because I believe folks will behave themselves if they are being watched) access. Be clear its a management hunt and maybe even a "earn your buck" idea, kill 1-2 does to get a buck.

As for now I believe Ga is great for hunting, I just don't know how much longer it will last with all the development. And for all you that hunt Morgan, Jasper and Newton. Get ready there is an Automobile plant coming that way with all the other crap that will bring.

 

[furtaker]

I have lived in Ga my whole life, soon to be 48 years. All in the metro area so I will speak of this area.
As a young kid there were few deer around. I lived in Stone mtn. and there was a "farm/field" behind our neighborhood. We never saw deer or turkey but would hear quail.
Then around the 80s or so I got to be friends with a neighbor that deer hunted. They would go somewhere way off and kill a few deer a season but it wasn't like killing one every hunt.
Deer started to show up around the early 90s pretty regularly and got to be everywhere, turkeys showed up about this time too.
I started hunting around 90-91, bow hunting in Gwinnett and Dekalb on property that was "vacant" and newly cut in neighborhoods. Deer were easy to see and kill if you wanted to.
Then the olympics and the influx from hurricane Katrina. And the 1st building boom. Things stayed pretty steady. But lots of land was lost, The populations stayed because the deer still had food and could hide.
The coyotes arrived and the turkeys disappeared. The quail had been gone since the early 90s.
Deer were small "brown its down"
Hunting was still good but loads of deer were getting killed on the roads. The populations were decreasing but still good.

Now we are in a BUILDING BOOM and MAJOR INFLUX of people from everywhere.
Deer are still around but you cant hunt them (I know some have figured it out but not the common person). Turkey are around in some areas but you cant hunt them.
Metro is expanding at an exponential rate along any interstate.

My take, Deer hunting in Ga is still good (for now). The deer seem to be bigger (bucks and does). Numbers may be down from the 90s but still good. Turkey numbers are down. I don't really hunt them but don't see the numbers I used to.

As for changes, I would like to see the state buy or lease more lands as WMAs, while there is still some to. We have something like a 2.2 Billion tax surplus and all anyone can think about is giving folks "bonuses".
Killmaster said it well, we have a bunch more land but the same number of techs, and more demand. The state legislature need to address this.

As for all the fighting over deer permits, I would like to see the state try again (with the hog idea) but for deer too. See if maybe the state can compensate the land owner for their allowing hunters (maybe a managed quota hunt, I say this because I believe folks will behave themselves if they are being watched) access. Be clear its a management hunt and maybe even a "earn your buck" idea, kill 1-2 does to get a buck.

As for now I believe Ga is great for hunting, I just don't know how much longer it will last with all the development. And for all you that hunt Morgan, Jasper and Newton. Get ready there is an Automobile plant coming that way with all the other crap that will bring.

And the bad thing is, lots of people moving to this state are Yankees and Californians who voted to ruin their own state and now they're gonna keep voting the same way and ruin ours.

 

[rugerfan]

I have lived in Ga my whole life, soon to be 48 years. All in the metro area so I will speak of this area.
As a young kid there were few deer around. I lived in Stone mtn. and there was a "farm/field" behind our neighborhood. We never saw deer or turkey but would hear quail.
Then around the 80s or so I got to be friends with a neighbor that deer hunted. They would go somewhere way off and kill a few deer a season but it wasn't like killing one every hunt.
Deer started to show up around the early 90s pretty regularly and got to be everywhere, turkeys showed up about this time too.
I started hunting around 90-91, bow hunting in Gwinnett and Dekalb on property that was "vacant" and newly cut in neighborhoods. Deer were easy to see and kill if you wanted to.
Then the olympics and the influx from hurricane Katrina. And the 1st building boom. Things stayed pretty steady. But lots of land was lost, The populations stayed because the deer still had food and could hide.
The coyotes arrived and the turkeys disappeared. The quail had been gone since the early 90s.
Deer were small "brown its down"
Hunting was still good but loads of deer were getting killed on the roads. The populations were decreasing but still good.

Now we are in a BUILDING BOOM and MAJOR INFLUX of people from everywhere.
Deer are still around but you cant hunt them (I know some have figured it out but not the common person). Turkey are around in some areas but you cant hunt them.
Metro is expanding at an exponential rate along any interstate.

My take, Deer hunting in Ga is still good (for now). The deer seem to be bigger (bucks and does). Numbers may be down from the 90s but still good. Turkey numbers are down. I don't really hunt them but don't see the numbers I used to.

As for changes, I would like to see the state buy or lease more lands as WMAs, while there is still some to. We have something like a 2.2 Billion tax surplus and all anyone can think about is giving folks "bonuses".
Killmaster said it well, we have a bunch more land but the same number of techs, and more demand. The state legislature need to address this.

As for all the fighting over deer permits, I would like to see the state try again (with the hog idea) but for deer too. See if maybe the state can compensate the land owner for their allowing hunters (maybe a managed quota hunt, I say this because I believe folks will behave themselves if they are being watched) access. Be clear its a management hunt and maybe even a "earn your buck" idea, kill 1-2 does to get a buck.

As for now I believe Ga is great for hunting, I just don't know how much longer it will last with all the development. And for all you that hunt Morgan, Jasper and Newton. Get ready there is an Automobile plant coming that way with all the other crap that will bring.

I will agree with the state adding lands to the current WMA's and maybe the national forest lands.

 

[Redwood1199]

@Redwood1199, the biggest problem with your idea is the usual one, more Government when we already have too much Government. The landowner would have no say in who gets to use his property.

Most landowners, especially farmers, would not voluntarily give the control over who has access to their property over to the Government. Farmers have way too much to loose. The average resident of Georgia today is nothing like the average resident was even a generation ago. Sadly, there is a high percentage of those who I would never allow on my place for any reason.

Where did I mention more government? I was talking about an app on you phone to link land owners who want to decrease their local deer population and hunters.

 

[Nimrod71]

57% of Georgia population live in the Atlanta area. The Atlanta area can control the whole state. It is estimated that over 6,000,000 people live in the Atlanta area. Getting them to support the purchase of new WMA lands would be a win fall, but what are the chances.

 

[furtaker]

57% of Georgia population live in the Atlanta area. The Atlanta area can control the whole state. It is estimated that over 6,000,000 people live in the Atlanta area. Getting them to support the purchase of new WMA lands would be a win fall, but what are the chances.

I stay away from that place as much as humanly possible. I despise it.