Ideas for hunting VERY PUBLIC land? Metro Park hunt

[Powerstroke]

I was drawn by Three Rivers to bowhunt the CLeary Lake Regional in Prior Lake area. This was my first time applying and I've actually never been there. I've checked out the sat. photos but it won't mean anything till I actually go there to check out things on the ground.

Anybody ever hunted these metro hunts and how do you be successful on very public land?

Ever since I started bowhunting this year I've realized that hunting in the ag zone of the state is very different when you need a deer to close in to bow range. I haven't seen a single deer south of Lake Mille Lacs.

[Mark Christianson]

I did the Crow Hassan hunt last year.

My party of 4 saw plenty of deer, but we also saw plenty of people moving around. Nobody was rude at all, so the experience was not tainted by jerks. The potential for a big buck is very good, but the overall success is pretty poor. I think there were 6 or 8 deer killed in Crow Hassan last year and there were over 100 people drawn if I remember right.

It was fun to do one time. It just wasnt my cup of tea. I like privacy.

[Guest]

I hunted a hunt like this at Murphy-H about 6 years ago.I went there when you were aloud to scout and set-up a stand and then couldnt go,so a friend of mine that also was drawn went in the stand.About 9 that first day he shot a very nice 10 pointer.I personally would get in there as soon as you can, do your scouting and hunt in a less travelled area and then sit as long as you can.Alot of people move alot from truck to stand and if your in yours a little longer you should have a bit better chance.The nicer bucks wont take that kind of ptessure and will move so I believe that if you are in a more remote area your chances at a buck will improve.Thats been my luck anyways.Good luck.

[matthothand]

Distance yourself and arrive early and stay late. Let other hunters move deer to you not away. You can find a great looking spot and have it go to heck once the season opens because of the pressure from other hunters. I like to hunt very near thick bedding areas. Not always where the deer spend most of their time but the spots that deer feel the safest in.

[NELS-BELLS]

I've hunted the Three Rivers Parks hunts since they started it (along time ago) I mostly hunted Murphy Hanrehan. You can scout up to a certain date before the hunt and you are not suppose to leave any stands up over night, although some guys do.

My advice is to look for thick areas or bottlenecks where the deer will travel to or through when pressured. Use the other hunters to your advantage.

When I first started applying, I would get drawn every year. Now I get drawn every 3 years.

Good Luck.

Nels