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Eastland County (and your county) Review
#5529482
01/09/15 12:52 PM
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Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 6,652
Novemberyet
OP
THF Trophy Hunter
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OP
THF Trophy Hunter
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 6,652 |
As many of you know, Eastland county seems to be very popular. Although we have "a lot" of deer, there are some negatives that oh along with that: 1)hunting pressure, 2)hunting pressure, 3)this year we had timely rains yielding a good acorn crop (even though we are below average in rainfall), 4)it was hot....again, 5)hunting pressure, 6)hogs are pushing deer out, yada-yada-yada. I stopped by my processing plant (Rust on Hwy 6) and Kevin was telling me this has been the slowest year in the history of his business. 2-3 years back was really tough due to a drought but this year had everybody guessing. He didn't give me any numbers, but seemed very disappointed.
What say you?
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5529613
01/09/15 02:04 PM
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Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 124
Ketchn
Woodsman
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Woodsman
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 124 |
I had a typical year just below eastland county and my buds who own a ranch up there did well I do know if you hunted over deer feeders in these areas you were pretty much wasting time though at least until late December when the acorns were done lower than normal harvest amounts were most likely the work of the acorn crop
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5529663
01/09/15 02:26 PM
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Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 32,506
kmon11
junior
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junior
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 32,506 |
Average year for me, well really above average considering how little I got to hunt this season . Deer hit the feeders all through season though a lot of it was at night, there were enough daylight sightings to keep it interesting. The only acorn trees on the lease that had any were the few live oaks. The rest there wasn't a crop at all so the deer hit the corn real good. Although there were some timely rains we did not get some that others did in the Spring which really hurt the acorn crop.
Lack of a good fawn crop concerns us for the future more than this seasons results. Out of 10 does that hit the feeders regularly only 2 fawns with them. I need to kill more yotes and bobcats, which might help fawn survival.
lf the saying "Liar, Liar your pants on fire" were true Mainstream news might be fun to watch
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5529836
01/09/15 03:36 PM
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Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 3,410
Tye
Veteran Tracker
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Veteran Tracker
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 3,410 |
I spoke with Kevin last week and he told me the same thing. I would say this year was average. Deer were coming to corn and food plots pretty good. As far as buck sightings, it's was a little below average. I have bucks on our property, HFed, that no one ever saw. My brother put out cameras 2 weeks ago and some of the bucks showed up on them. The survived, but didn't show themselves during regular season. Fawn crops have been down over the last 4-5 years. The hogs have moved off our place for now, but they will be back. Maybe next year will be better. We didn't shoot any "trophy" bucks this year. Maybe they will be bigger next year.
If you shoot a young deer because a neighbor will shoot it, you are that neighbor.
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5529843
01/09/15 03:38 PM
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 399
KCH
Bird Dog
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Bird Dog
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 399 |
I have always thought that area was overpressured and underpopluated with deer...Stephens, Eastland, Palo Pinto and even Comanche...lets face it alot of DFW hunters will always hunt that area. Back in the late 90's we had a lease near Sipe Springs, it looked great but we hardly saw many deer much less mature bucks...these places will always stay leased because so many guys want to hunt but as far as a value for what you pay for, Texas has better places than these counties imho...
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5529856
01/09/15 03:44 PM
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Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 2,072
cabosandinh
Veteran Tracker
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Veteran Tracker
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 2,072 |
I have good doe population and some very nice bucks up to 10 pts
they were mostly nocturnal, except for short period during ruts where they came out during day
my problem is not lack of deer, it's their night feeding habit
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: cabosandinh]
#5529901
01/09/15 04:01 PM
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 399
KCH
Bird Dog
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Bird Dog
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 399 |
my problem is not lack of deer, it's their night feeding habit
this is most likely due to overpressure, imho do you have hunting around your place?
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: KCH]
#5529973
01/09/15 04:31 PM
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Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 2,072
cabosandinh
Veteran Tracker
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Veteran Tracker
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 2,072 |
my problem is not lack of deer, it's their night feeding habit
this is most likely due to overpressure, imho do you have hunting around your place? there are hunters all around me, they all said the same thing deer showing up at night
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5530361
01/09/15 07:07 PM
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Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 16
Prewitt
Light Foot
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Light Foot
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 16 |
Im east of rising star. Got lots of pictures of deer, all at night.
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5530496
01/09/15 08:05 PM
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,440
Shotgun Willie
Pro Tracker
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Pro Tracker
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,440 |
Pretty much what everybody else said, lots of deer at night, very little feeder presence, and my food plot was pretty much left alone. Only saw one deer on my plot during daylight, but the tips were eaten off a bit, so they must have been getting groceries at night. Oats came up great, the wheat not so much. Saw a good amount of deer, but they were small, and the bucks weren't mature. I have three bucks coming in regular that will be real nice next year if they make it. North of Cisco near the county line.
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5531929
01/10/15 06:09 AM
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Joined: Nov 2011
Posts: 309
krazy kris
Bird Dog
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Bird Dog
Joined: Nov 2011
Posts: 309 |
1st season we bought our small 10acres in Eastland co. Never seen a deer with my eyes. Have a ton on camera at night and a handfull durring the day. Does hit the standard feeders and the bucks were very skiddish around those feeders and most of the pics of the bucks came at my redneck feeders.
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5531950
01/10/15 06:41 AM
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Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 19,498
Erathkid
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 19,498 |
Erath cty has been about the same. Most bucks on camera at night. The gun season opener started with a bang then kinda' fizzled down. That's pretty normal though. If you don't get your buck by Thanksgiving, you probably won't get one.
Last edited by Erathkid; 01/10/15 06:42 AM. Reason: Adolph Coors
Life is too short, as is. Don't chance it. Don't text and drive.
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Erathkid]
#5532067
01/10/15 01:21 PM
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Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 10,472
DQ Kid
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 10,472 |
Erath cty has been about the same. Most bucks on camera at night. The gun season opener started with a bang then kinda' fizzled down. That's pretty normal though. If you don't get your buck by Thanksgiving, you probably won't get one. Unfortunate but often true in those counties closer to metromess...
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: KCH]
#5532146
01/10/15 02:08 PM
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Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 124
Ketchn
Woodsman
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Woodsman
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 124 |
I have always thought that area was overpressured and underpopluated with deer...Stephens, Eastland, Palo Pinto and even Comanche...lets face it alot of DFW hunters will always hunt that area. Back in the late 90's we had a lease near Sipe Springs, it looked great but we hardly saw many deer much less mature bucks...these places will always stay leased because so many guys want to hunt but as far as a value for what you pay for, Texas has better places than these counties imho...
sipe springs area has some really nice bucks roaming around it my bud took a 148 there this year and they take several off that 1200 each year in that range the deer are super slick and there are a bunch but they pattern hunters WAY better than hunters pattern them for sure I have watched 8 does under a feeder just vanish when someone rattled the chain on the gate coming in 300 yards away seen that same routine hundreds of times ....they are there in good numbers ...the man that runs the place forever says this ... hunters didn't see lots a deer but the deer sure seen lots a hunters
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5532713
01/10/15 06:47 PM
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Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 350
Texmel
Bird Dog
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Bird Dog
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 350 |
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5533155
01/10/15 11:02 PM
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Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 16,350
aeb
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 16,350 |
Callahan/Eastland County line. Ditto, ditto and ditto again. Few deer seen during the day. In fact, I never saw a deer in my wheat field during daylight but plenty of tracks. Fawn crop way below normal. Hunting pressure on the ranch is deliberately low. The situation is very discouraging.
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5533278
01/11/15 12:00 AM
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Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 210
Twotoes
Woodsman
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Woodsman
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 210 |
NE Eastland County, same here with lots of acorns and mostly nocturnal deer. My place is surrounded by large lands that aren't leased for hunting. Everyone here is talking about a poor fawn crop due to the very hot and dry weather that started in June.
Past performance is the best predictor of future behavior.
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Ketchn]
#5533302
01/11/15 12:08 AM
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Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 2,072
cabosandinh
Veteran Tracker
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Veteran Tracker
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 2,072 |
[quote=KCH] but they pattern hunters WAY better than hunters pattern them for sure I have watched 8 does under a feeder just vanish when someone rattled the chain on the gate coming in 300 yards away seen that same routine hundreds of times ....they are there in good numbers ...the man that runs the place forever says this ... hunters didn't see lots a deer but the deer sure seen lots a hunters that's what I've observed deer have learned to pattern us, and we didn't realize it with our jacked up diesel trucks, humming ATVs, unusual lights and all kinds of commotions when get together to talk smack about how one of us is going to whack that big boy game cams show a correlation of deer movement before our arrival/ after our arrival the only time they're careless is during ruts
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: cabosandinh]
#5533851
01/11/15 03:27 AM
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Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 107
Get'n Jiggy
Woodsman
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Woodsman
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 107 |
I have good doe population and some very nice bucks up to 10 pts
they were mostly nocturnal, except for short period during ruts where they came out during day
my problem is not lack of deer, it's their night feeding habit I'm on this lease with San and I've never seen a deer out there in Eastland off Hwy 16. We have different opinions about the place that's for sure.... Scouting before bow season I never bumped a deer or saw one. No scrapes No rubs No tracks. Climbed the mountains and glasses the flats... Nothing! Maybe just my lease but zero deer out there and I'm talking ZERO that I've seen. San said it took 2 yrs for him to see 1 deer durring day time. My advice is never get on a lease site un-seen like I did. Always walk the property and don't take someone's word on the Internet or trust game cam pix. This lease had been the worst lease I've ever had in 30yrs of hunting in Texas.
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5534004
01/11/15 04:27 AM
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Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 3,410
Tye
Veteran Tracker
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Veteran Tracker
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 3,410 |
Sat out tonight looking for does or cull bucks. Had a 3 point come in 30 minutes after feeder went off. Then had 2 bucks, one was decent, come into the food plot about 300 yards away. 3 does also hit the field at the same distance. No intrest in corn at all. A decent sized pig came running across the field and spooked the bucks and does. The bucks returned at dark with 2 more. Couldn't tell much at that distance and near dark. We thought we were going to get skunked, but at least something showed up
If you shoot a young deer because a neighbor will shoot it, you are that neighbor.
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5534218
01/11/15 01:20 PM
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Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 3,410
Tye
Veteran Tracker
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Veteran Tracker
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 3,410 |
Back in the blind this am....
If you shoot a young deer because a neighbor will shoot it, you are that neighbor.
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5534331
01/11/15 03:07 PM
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Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 3,410
Tye
Veteran Tracker
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Veteran Tracker
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 3,410 |
Feeder didn't go off. Did have 2 does and a fawn just come in. Misfire, a member on here, got a doe with his 300 bo
If you shoot a young deer because a neighbor will shoot it, you are that neighbor.
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5538564
01/13/15 12:48 AM
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Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 33,367
bigbob_ftw
Big Sprocket Bob
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Big Sprocket Bob
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 33,367 |
This weekend is my last chance to get something. Cisco has been dry!
Ultra MAGA '24.
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5539160
01/13/15 03:55 AM
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Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 19,498
Erathkid
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 19,498 |
I've seen lots of deer in Somervell during daylight hours, both bucks and doe. Erath has been a lot slower. Funny thing, the properties I hunt are only about 8 miles apart as the crow flies, yet 3 times more deer in Somervell
Life is too short, as is. Don't chance it. Don't text and drive.
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Re: Eastland County (and your county) Review
[Re: Novemberyet]
#5542964
01/14/15 09:34 PM
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Joined: Dec 2014
Posts: 58
noland
Outdoorsman
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Outdoorsman
Joined: Dec 2014
Posts: 58 |
I hunt in Erath county and we have had a awesome year. Early season was the best in a long time. But we seen mature shooter bucks almost every outing. Had my brother in laws gun misfire on last weekend of season on good buck. Did I mention it misfired 3 times lol
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