Anyone have any success working with another hunter to drive deer? I have heard of a hundred different tactics, if youve done it how did yall go about doin it? Effective method to hunt or un-ethical shortcut?
Easily Successful. All you need to know is where they are laying and the wind direction, me and my good buddy walk a few patches this time of the year typically and the does catch hell. Wear orange, know where your partner is at all times and only shoot out front and your golden.
Do yall walk within eyesight of each other? I’ve been anxious to give it a shot , ive heard its best to walk staggered?
“The further one gets into the wilderness, the greater the attraction of its lonely freedom”
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Originally posted by red.hunterDo yall walk within eyesight of each other? I’ve been anxious to give it a shot , ive heard its best to walk staggered?
“The further one gets into the wilderness, the greater the attraction of its lonely freedom”
Haven’t done a two man drive since I was a kid, My brother and I would never separate more than 20 yards and seldom do that. We killed a couple. But IMO it is very ineffective unless a really cold morning, deer seem to hear a human from a long ways off and slip off quietly. Usually you hear em get up and run but seldom see them unless they hit an open spot.
Horse driving! you can talk and still get almost on top of a deer before they jump. It’s almost unbelievable how close you can get to a bedded deer on horseback.
IMO the best man drive is several walkers making LOTS of noise and standers way ahead of them in known locations. Many times the “drivers” won’t even carry a gun, just a pot and a stick if in dense forest.
Give it a try and do like Salty said and dress Bright! Good luck to you!
We walk within eyesight where we know they are laying and if you play the wind they rarely slip. Walked a broomstraw patch 2 weeks ago without the gun and ran 3 does and an 8pt out to my little hunting buddies, they killed 2 grown does and the 8pt wasn’t big enough nor was the other doe. Had I had my gun I could’ve killed all but one doe, 8 pt and 2 does ripped up 15yds out. And we don’t do it unless its a cold morning with a nice frost, perfect weather for it this week!
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Originally posted by red.hunterAnyone have any success working with another hunter to drive deer? I have heard of a hundred different tactics, if youve done it how did yall go about doin it? Effective method to hunt or un-ethical shortcut?
“The further one gets into the wilderness, the greater the attraction of its lonely freedom”
I dont know why anyone would think stalking deer is unethical. Sounds like real ‘hunting’ rather than ‘shooting’ which is what I think sitting in a tree over a corn pile with cameras in place is. Maybe I’m missing something. Maybe some Bwana Don can explain it to me.
I used to think dog hunting was bad too, though. Till I actually witnessed it. Especially from horseback like Fred says. Skilled dog handlers, horsemen and marksman pretty impressive. I know a lot of people dont like hunting with dogs either.
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Originally posted by P-Kquote:
Originally posted by red.hunterEffective method to hunt or un-ethical shortcut?
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I dont know why anyone would think stalking deer is unethical.
I didn’t catch that. Nothing unethical. Probably about as basic and primal as hunting gets.
For that matter , I see nothing unethical about still hunting . If your managing the deer , its easier to tell the deer’s age and condition from a stand vs a dogged deer running by
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Originally posted by salty849Easily Successful. All you need to know is where they are laying and the wind direction, me and my good buddy walk a few patches this time of the year typically and the does catch hell. Wear orange, know where your partner is at all times and only shoot out front and your golden.
What he said.
When you choose to “drive”/stalk deer, best where no other hunters. Creeping through the woods can be dangerous during deer season. Even on your own land…poachers are always a possibility as I found out.
I prefer solo stalk hunting. Slow down and enjoy.
Thanks for all the advice, plan on giving it a shot in the next few days and will keep yall posted on how it goes!
“The further one gets into the wilderness, the greater the attraction of its lonely freedom”
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Originally posted by natureboyFor that matter , I see nothing unethical about still hunting . If your managing the deer , its easier to tell the deer’s age and condition from a stand vs a dogged deer running by
Me either natureboy. One thing for sure, a Deer shot peacefully eating your corn sure tastes better than one that’s been run in front of a pack of dogs for a couple of hours. Not knocking dog hunters doing it right! Just stating a fact. 
If it wasn’t for dog hunters and man drives many deer would never get taken. I’ve got several bucks on different cameras that have yet to to be active during daylight.
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If it wasn't for dog hunters and man drives many deer would never get taken. I've got several bucks on different cameras that have yet to to be active during daylight.
Nonsense. Just because a deer isn’t active on a bait site during daylight hours doesn’t mean he’s not active during daylight hours. We killed 2 grown ones this year, a 5.5 and a 6.5+ that never made a daytime appearance on a camera, we hunted them where they lived not close to a corn pile.
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Originally posted by salty849quote:
If it wasn't for dog hunters and man drives many deer would never get taken. I've got several bucks on different cameras that have yet to to be active during daylight.
Nonsense. Just because a deer isn’t active on a bait site during daylight hours doesn’t mean he’s not active during daylight hours. We killed 2 grown ones this year, a 5.5 and a 6.5+ that never made a daytime appearance on a camera, we hunted them where they lived not close to a corn pile.
I agree persistence and location is a prime factor, but it still remains that deer are nocturnal by nature. I’ve got a couple of camera on non-baited trials and acorn trees and I certainly agree a few buck do make day time appearances… but who’s gonna be there if dog drives get banned? You, me and a handful of other hunters.
I don’t think it is nonsense at all to believe if dog drives end Many deer will not be taken and deer population will explode. We will have to agree to disagree salty. For you sounds like nothing will change, but for many areas there will be no way possible to keep up by still hunting. we have too much dense areas that deer bed down in during the day.
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Originally posted by salty849quote:
If it wasn't for dog hunters and man drives many deer would never get taken. I've got several bucks on different cameras that have yet to to be active during daylight.
Nonsense. Just because a deer isn’t active on a bait site during daylight hours doesn’t mean he’s not active during daylight hours. We killed 2 grown ones this year, a 5.5 and a 6.5+ that never made a daytime appearance on a camera, we hunted them where they lived not close to a corn pile.
Agree 100%!!!
Yes, the older (wiser) a buck gets, the more nocturnal he gets. Some biologists believe a 4.5 year old and older buck will spend 90%+ of their time active at night but that’s not to say he’s 100% nocturnal. A deer has to eat/drink every 4-5 hours so they’re going to be on their feet at some point during daylight hours. The rut is another time you’ll catch that same buck on his feet during daylight hours. The thing with bait piles is deer realize they can feed on them whenever they choose and since they feel safer at night, that’s when you’ll get a lot of activity on your bait piles. That’s why, if you’re going to hunt over “bait,” I’d recommend feeders with feeding times programmed during daylight hours. Dictate when the deer can feed if they’re going to use your bait sights as opposed to a 24/7 buffet (bait pile).
“…be a man and PM me.”