Rate your NE MN deer season 2012!

[uptracker]

Let's hear it guys...how did it go? Any complaints? Any stories? What general area?

Big bucks, little bucks, low numbers, high numbers?

[cavalierowner]

Our group of 5 hunts up by Isabella. This year was terrible, not a single deer shot and I saw the only 2 deer. Couldn't get a shot. It's been a LOT of years since we have been skunked. Sure hope I can redeem myself during muzzleloader season!

[Jeff13]

Hunt 246 with a group of 5 on Cass county land. We took 3 deer total, 4 pointer and two really big does. All 5 of us saw deer and we let about 4 does walk, could've all tagged out easily. I decent 8 pt was the only buck even worth talking about. We hunted opening weekend and Monday morning. I was satisfied.

[Jeff13]

Whoops did not see the NE in the post title, oh well.

[certified jumbo]

183. very good. lots of deer in our area. lots of nice bucks on camera and we shot some nice ones as well.

[monstermoose78]

My group ended up with 1 doe and a 6 pointer which I wish they would have let walk, but my uncle wanted some veni. I was not able to make it this year. My brother got the doe other wise all he was was fox both grey and red ones. My dad did not even see a deer. My uncle got the 6 pointer that was the only deer he seen in 9 days. My cousins did not see a deer either. Are cabin is near Hovland. They guys said not much for deer being shot around the tip of the arrowhead. I told them they should have stayed around here. I went bow hunting behind my dads house and saw deer almost every night.

[CANOPY SAM]

Youngest daughter tagged her first deer, a nice young 8-point buck. Made a perfect 60-70 yd. heart shot. Eldest son filled his tag with a mature doe, for the third year in a row. Made a perfect 90 yd. heart shot.

The incredible land I hunt each year was clearly being baited by someone as all routine deer movement was completely absent during the rifle season, with one group in the north end of the same section shooting deer every night.

I'll fill my tag with a mature animal during muzzle-loader season. No complaints.

[Borch]

Not a lot of deer movement or being shot where we hunt near Finlayson. I've passed on the same spike twice and have heard a few others working through the brush. OUt of 6 of us only 3 have seen deer and a decent doe and a nice 10 point have been shot. Doesn't seem to be many deer in our area this year which is a significant change.

[pumper317]

Nothing for 8 guys opening weekend, saw maybe 5 deer between the group. The stay up crew (the ones who get to hunt all week) shot a little 6, first deer, a nice 9, and a nice 7 (8 without a brow) Not much for deer seen in all. Don't get it. I only hunted opening day, since my sons birthday is on the 5th (dont ask) but a all day sit with the first land dwelling creature at 520pm (a mouse) gets long... Last half hour was active, heard chasing and saw one little buck. Overall, SLOW!

[Bear55]

108 was slow again but after 5 years of lotto the numbers are getting better. One more mild winter will really help things out.

[257ackley]

I hunted hard for 7 days in area 178. It was pretty slow for me. I saw 6 deer 5 does and 1 spike buck. Talked to some guys from shacks around us and it sounds like they have had a tough season also. I still got 1 more weekend and muzzy season im not giving up hope yet!!

[graf703]

I hunt near Brimson. 0/5 tags filled two years in a row. We saw more wolves than deer... again.

Good news is all of them had mange.

[WIMN]

Hunting by Nashwauk we had a 12 year old see 3 deer on opener morning, otherwise the other 7 of us were skunked. Had a neighbor tell us he saw feeders on a nearby property while he was up grouse hunting earlier this fall (also said he saw a pile of skeletons behind the shack on that property). He was in a party of 12 and none of them saw any activity over 120 acres.

If I ever see it firsthand I will not hesitate to call TIP, it ruins everybody else's fun.

Had an uncle up there a few weeks before opener and saw deer all over the place. Another neighbor down the road said he saw 12 unique deer on his trail cam during early October. He put the camera back out 2 weeks before opener and checked it night before opener, and the only pics on it were him putting the camera out and then him coming in to pick it up. Makes you wonder where they all went.

[fishhuntwork]

Was 15 miles north of Virginia this wkend and saw only 2 flags. There was on;y 1 deer shot the first wkend, that being a doe. Where did they all go?

[NoWiser]

Pretty rough for us. We had one guy up for 3 days and he saw two deer and a wolf. Doe and fork horn. He passed on both. My dad and I hunted 6 days. Dad saw 3, all anterless. I saw 4. Two flags, a pup, and a spike. We came home empty handed, which I am alright with.

We had some nice bucks on the trail cameras this summer, but it was like they all disappeared. Should have been perfect weather but we just weren't seeing anything. Nobody we talked to saw any bucks chasing does, and it was the same thing we noticed. Oh well, that's more for us to see next year!

[laker1]

Call Tip now they can check it out. They are being dishonest to us all.

[WIMN]

laker1: What's the process? They just swing by the property and check the woods for feeders based on hearsay? AFAIK there's 1 game warden that covers like 8 counties up there or something ridiculous like that. I guess the main reason I am hesitant to report it is because the neighbor who told me about it is on property that directly borders the feeder guys.

The neighbor is kitty corner to our 40, and behind them is a 40 acre piece of potlatch land. behind the potlatch is 40 acre piece where the feeder guys have a shack and their stands w/feeders.

[pikerliker]

WIMN as far as checking on things because of hearsay, that's pretty much most of what they would do. Checking a property would just be to verify whether or not there is a violation there, it shouldn't hurt anybody and the worst that could happen is that they aren't able to get to it because they are too busy. I would think that they actually need our "hearsay" to find people who are violating the rules because of the large areas that they cover, otherwise it would be kind of a crapshoot for them to find something.

[Pinusbanksiana]

They use a plane nowdays to check for feeders. They are hard to hide I guess.

[monstermoose78]

Yeah they use a plane! They will circle you and fly really low if they got a report from someone there was bait out near you. As I have said before we had a run in with a guide on public land and he called tip and said my group was baiting deer. We had a plane circle us for 2 hours while the DNR and forest service and deputies made their way to us. No bait was found, because we dont bait deer. I did not mind having the warden and deputies and forest service out there checking it out. They cut open the stomach of the buck my dad shot but found no corn or grain.

[BRULEDRIFTER]

Hunt in 180 north of Two Harbors. The last 2 seasons have been absolutely horrible!

Between the wolf population out of control and the years oof intensive management, the deer are few and far between up there.

[Bear55]

They cut open the stomach of the buck my dad shot but found no corn or grain.

This is interesting, we don't bait but have shot a few deer full of corn. I would hope a full investigation would prove you innocent but I kind of get the feeling if there is corn in a belly you are in trouble.

[monstermoose78]

That is what we were thinking as well Bear55. It was a crappy feeling when they take your gun and you are standing there as they walk around looking for corn or grain. They had me take 2 officers back to my truck to see if I had corn in my truck. No Corn in my truck!! The CO came to the cabin later and apologized for making such a scene but it was a tip call. We have had a great relationship with this CO and still do. He told us he figured it was a bogus call but seeing it was called in the tip line it got the guys in st paul fired up. I got word on who made the bogus call it was a guide we have had trouble with. I think his guiding is done as his HSOforum is gone. He was leaving barrels in the woods and cutting down trees on the national forest. Which is a no no. I took lots of pictures and they may have been sent to the Forest Service Officer and to the local CO along with GPS cords to the sites.

[maros91]

near Hovland.

I also hunted this area. About 4 miles up the arrowhead trail off Jackson Lake road. Not much for deer or sightings. My dad saw a flag opening morning thats it. Where abouts is your cabin? You also said you had problems with an outfitter. What was his name? Feel free to PM or e-mail me.

[monstermoose78]

We are north greenwood lake. I will not mention the guide even in pm because things have been taken care of with him now. Or that is was the CO told my dad and uncle this last weekend. He normally stops in and checks the deer we have.