Texas Hunting Forum

Question for public land hunters

Posted By: Jep777

Question for public land hunters - 05/08/17 03:57 PM

I was curious to know, generally speaking, what percentage of the time you public hunt do you come across other hunters when you're out on public land.
Posted By: BPurvisJr

Re: Question for public land hunters - 05/08/17 08:41 PM

That depends.. you talkin in the woods or at the entrance? smile i've never ran into anyone while i was actually out hunting. Best bet is to get as far away as possible from the entrances. i'd usually see less than a handful of cars the times i was out last season.
Posted By: Harrier

Re: Question for public land hunters - 05/08/17 10:29 PM

Also depends on what and where you're hunting. Opening day of dove season near a big city, you will see others for sure. During the week halfway through deer season, you'll probably be the only hunter around for miles.

I've only had one or two bad experiences encountering other hunters (got peppered with birdshot once). All other times I found the other hunters to be friendly and helpful.
Posted By: Whiptail

Re: Question for public land hunters - 05/09/17 01:43 AM


I hunt public land almost 100% and see other hunters almost 100% of the time. On most of the big game hunts you get assigned a particular area and have exclusive use so I never see anyone on my specific area. Bird hunts can get a little crowded at times on certain areas.
Posted By: Palehorse

Re: Question for public land hunters - 05/09/17 04:41 PM

If you are hunting the Sam Houston National Forest on opening weekend, you won't be able to swing a dead cat over your head without hittin someone in an orange hat. Later in the season, or on public lands farther from a big metro area, it's not quite as bad.
Posted By: Bigfoot

Re: Question for public land hunters - 05/10/17 02:32 PM

I dont hunt weekends at all. I have never seen another hunter when I was deer hunting in the field. however there are usually 1 or 2 cars parked at the road where I park at. My walk is about a 1.5 miles in so most guys dont go that far. When I pig hunt in january and february I have never seen a car parked or another hunter in several years. Its my favorite time in the woods!
Posted By: HuntersAnonymous41

Re: Question for public land hunters - 05/10/17 03:44 PM

I always see other individuals during bird season (i.e. teal, duck, and dove). When it comes to deer hunting I have never seen any individuals, but I hunt during the week when I can get time off work. Had a few weird/bad experiences, all when bird hunting. Mostly with people who I believed had just bought there first shotgun and took their hunters ed all in the same month. bang
Posted By: ALM TXhunter

Re: Question for public land hunters - 05/10/17 06:40 PM

When I hunt during the week on public land I rarely see another hunter. Most of my hunts are at least 2.5 to 3 hr drive from Houston.
Posted By: RockDocJoe

Re: Question for public land hunters - 05/15/17 02:54 PM

This past turkey season was my first public hunting - I was available 2 long weekends, and saw hunters every day of those two weekends. I was "chasing" birds though, covering a lot of ground. All the encounters were nice though.
Posted By: duckhunter175

Re: Question for public land hunters - 05/16/17 02:09 AM

Glad to hear people were nice-- turkey hunting seems to be the most contentious hunting on public land for sure.
Posted By: swampthang

Re: Question for public land hunters - 05/17/17 04:38 AM

Originally Posted By: duckhunter175
Glad to hear people were nice-- turkey hunting seems to be the most contentious hunting on public land for sure.


Really? You think turkey hunters are pissy-er about their honey holes than duck hunters? Interesting.
Posted By: 1860.colt

Re: Question for public land hunters - 05/18/17 04:21 PM

welcome ta texasHF ...
some interesting info... would agree with the opening weekends & weekends in general, basicaly same as if on a lease...
OSBWMA was just a hop, skip & a jump away... What suprrised me the most was when they allowed the use of ATV's once the old trails going east of the camp sites..... at first it was walk in only & most hunting was close ta main roads... as pappy once said: finding game is the easy part, work begins getting it out.. if it was easy, every one would be hunting public land ...
they started letting hunters use the old ATV trails after first few years, confused2 figured would see lot more huntets, yet wasnt big increase in activity... from whati seen, most didnt like the safety rules...
Ya cant beat the price... Best wishes flag
Posted By: Ben Lilly

Re: Question for public land hunters - 06/20/17 02:22 AM

I hunt public 90% of the time. I don't see many other hunters.
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