Camp Ripley Successful Tips!

[Finlander]

Just got selected for Camp Ripley this fall for the second weekend.

Anybody have any tips that have worked for you?

[tunrevir]

I have hunted Ripley on 3 occassions here is what I found. Get off the road atleast a half mile, look for saddles in the ridges or chutes and setup within shooting distance. Pack a pee bottle, lunch, water bottle a comfortable climber and plan on sitting all day. Some of the highest times of deer activity for us was about the time that people would get off stand and mosey out to warmup, for lunch and again on the way back in to where they were sitting for the evening sit. If you can find a spot where two or more types of cover converge say thick brush adjacent to open woods or cattails all the better. We would see deer all day long not just at dawn and dusk. Good luck and have a great hunt!

Tunrevir~

[Rob M]

Thanks tunrevir

Couldn't you just close your eyes and throw a dart at the map? I have no clue where to go. I figure that I should just be in the woods all day and hope to intercept a moving deer. Does anyone have any other tips for first timers?

[Wanderer]

Don't expect too much.

If you've never seen the place before and don't have a spot someone brings you to, wait till first light on your first day.

It'll do little good to be one of the first ones in only to stumble around in the dark.

Spend your first day looking at areas before you decide to hunt. It's well worth it. You might even bump into something to shoot while you're at it. Be ready. Deer show up in any place at any time out there.

Hunt seriously that evening or the next day.

The place is huge and varied in terms of terrain and cover. It takes a few days to get used to - meaning your second time drawn should be better than your first.

[Bear55]

Thanks tunrevir

Couldn't you just close your eyes and throw a dart at the map? I have no clue where to go. I figure that I should just be in the woods all day and hope to intercept a moving deer. Does anyone have any other tips for first timers?

That is pretty much what I have done, spent a lot of time driving around and scouting the first year I went. Ripley is kind of like a lotto play for a big buck, just find a spot that looks decent and get lucky enough that a nice buck gets chased to you or happens to wander by. I have also bumped a couple of nice bucks going through some nasty swamps so if you get in the thickest nastiest stuff possible you might bump into one or have someone chase a buck your way.

[Finlander]

Does anybody use ground blinds there?(Primos)

Last year a friend of mine said it rained all weekend and a ground blind would be nice to have just in case!

[Wanderer]

Yes, some do. But like anywhere else you should brush it in.

And yes, they're nice in the rain, but so is a Buckwing Umbrella.