who hunts sherburne nwr

[USPENAMC]

what are your experiences heading to that place today around noon and ill report back. I have never been there so it will be a first

[Shack]

Crazy! Sounds like a war zone! A ton of people and deer drives are going on every where!

I would stay away for the first weekend and then it calms down a little!

Roads are packed before sun rise! A lot of crazy people and stuff goes on! Its kind of cool to see! Some of the groups gathering on road shoulder's are groups of 10 to 20 people! Deer drivers! Get there very early, because if you have an area you would like to hunt, there is a chance you might not get to park right by it!

I cut threw on Co 9 from 1 over to 5 on the way to the private land I hunt! It gets thick with people and you end up driving slow because of all the people!

I am sure you will cross paths with many, many hunters! So be careful I never hear of any on getting hurt, but I am not looking in paper for this either! I am not far from the national wildlife area, and I can hear the hundreds of gun shots going off every morning! Some guys take 3-4 shots at what ever they are shooting at! Its shot gun and slug only! I think some forget this, because I can hear the crack of a rifle at times!

To much action for me! I am sure its better than Carlos Avery though!

I hunted it once in the early 1990's and vowed never to do it again! They get deer out there, but you will see 5-6 hunters before you will ever see a deer!

If you head out their, stop by the old school house on Co. Road 9 around noon on the opening day! People register and weigh deer in and you get to see what's coming out of their this year!

Good luck!

[Cheetah]

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what are your experiences heading to that place today around noon and ill report back. I have never been there so it will be a first

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I bowhunted there twice last year, and once this year. Both times on the SE corner. It's a huge area, and I'm sure gets pounded by the gun hunters. I saw plenty of bowhunters last year too, not so much this year.

In general, I saw lots of deer sign while scouting. The problem was the deer weren't there... I don't know where they go, but once the hunting pressure builds up, they learn to dissapear fast. I have some ideas where, and it isn't where most hunters would try to get into, if you know what I mean.

Anyway, if you go for gun season, good luck. Don't get shot.

[bb2323]

We usually hunt in western MN but last year we weren't seeing many deer out there so we stayed near home and hunted the refuge. Also we used to hunt it years ago. Last year we ended up shooting 10 deer for seven of us and 5 of them came out of the refuge. I hunted both weekends and all week and I never had another hunter even walk by. I saw a few in the distance and heard a lot of shooting but none where we were. The key is to get out of the oak woods and into the swamps. There are places that we need hip boots to get into. On Saturday last year it took 7 of us from 5:00 to 8:00 to get 2 deer out because of what we had to go through but we always see and get deer. There is plenty of area but get there early and stay away from the easy stuff and be prepared to walk. Good luck.

[Shack]

The only hunting experience I have is when I hunted and area on the south end, off of CO. RD 4. I had found a nice downed tree (broke off 4-5 feet up in air), that had a crevasse in it I could sit in, adjacent to a well traveled deer trail! I had got their early and waited for sunrise! I hunted that spot until noon and counted 14 hunters that walked by. Never did see a deer!

Again, the interior I am sure does not get much pressure, since it is very hard to get to some of the oak Islands out their! I figured this is where deer must go also!

Bow hunting is a possibility! I would say the first week or two see’s some pressure, but it twiddles off a bit, until the gun crazies show up.

The two things that would keep me from gun hunting this area are two things I have seen when driving threw on CO. RD 9!

First is a group of guys with beers in their hands before sun rise. I will never forget that mind picture!

Second, I have seen people opening up a brand new gun right out of the cardboard box for the first time, when going out to hunt! Must have just picked gun up at walfart on the way up to hunt! Scary!

[tealitup]

I grew up less then a mile from the SNF. Forget about gun hunting there.

I once saw a deer try to run the river bottoms off of Co. Rd. 4.

not less then 25 shots at the deer (even when it was down).

Forget it!

[Shack]

I hate to knock the place, but it is true!

If I were to try any where, it would be the North West corner up by Blue Hill.

If you can, right before sun rise, drive along CO RD 9 west from CR1 to CR 5. This is a 55 mph zone and you would be hard pressed to get above 30 mph on opening morning for about a 4-5 mile stretch of CR 9. There are more cars parked on the side of the roads. People in cars driving around, trying to find a parking spot!

The first year I started to hunt the private land west of Orrock, I came around the bend by the bigger pond on the left side of CR 9 and curved up and around to the first point of refuge and BAM! Instant hit your brakes! When you get up by the river or the old school house, it gets even thicker with people!

I will try to get some pics and post them if I go that way this year! It is a neat thing to see and if you are in that area on opener, drive by and look for your self! Hunters, deer being weighed at the school house (around noon). Every creed, race and sex is out hunting this area.

During the week, it does slow a little. But the opening Sat. morning is like being at The Sportsman show or Deer Classic!

[Shack]

I will eat some crow now!

But, I went by Sherburne NWR this morning earlier than normal and still counted 40 trucks and cars on side of road an hour plus before shooting could start. I figured this is a low number, but it being early, this could be the reason why.

All day today, I did not hear the amount of shots that I have heard in past years over there (it being only a 1/2 mile from were I hunt).

I drove by around 5:30 p.m., and I counted only 29 vehicles on CR5 from my turn on up to CR9 and then over to CR1. No one at the weigh in station, when I went by (A couple cars parked in parking lot). Maybe I missed the mad rush, but it looked pretty slow going.

I did see three trucks with hooves sticking out of box area and one real big buck on a back slide in hitch area rack. It was a 12 pointer (I had to pull over and check it out).

These were all hunters that had got deer and went back out to hunt.

If any FM'er wants to try SNWR, I am sure it will not be busy!

Hunter must not be going out, like they say!

It sure aint like 2 years ago!

[Shack]

P.S.,

I had camera ready, but being so early, there was nothing to catch a image of.

[maros91]

My father comes from Monticello to our private hunting area in Zimmerman. He goes to Orrock and takes a right on CR 4. He said it is just a nuthouse coming through there. After our morning hunt today(Sat) I drove through the Sand Dunes and every parking spot was full and people pulling off the dirt road for extra parking. I don't know how a deer makes it out alive in there on the weekend. I will say this, come Tues, Wed, and Thursday it does slow down alot in the Sand Dunes. I have taken 2 deer out of there, with the last being in 2003(7pt, nice doe). Both have came during the week. I tried it again in 2004, I came around a corner on the trail and there was 5 people of a different race roasting tweedie birds over a campfire. I stopped and looked around and there was a guy cleaning a Blue Jay just to my left. I haven't been back there since and never will.

[Shack]

Biff,

I can not argue with you on the roasting of birds. I have seen it my self. Some people are just in to different things.

Like I said, I could of totally missed the mad rush.

Most years I am in a mad rush to get to spot. I drive threw around 15 minutes before shooting starts. This year I was very early and I came through very early. I might have miss the whole thing.

[maros91]

After my morning hunt today I drove through the Sand Dunes. I went to the part that is by CR 32. Took the dirt road off of 32 that leads into the Dunes. Took that road all the way to the T and took a right. Took my next right that takes you to the cul de sac and went home the same way. I counted 39 cars and 2 campers. This was at 11am. I am sure a couple more went to lunch somewhere. My mother lives off of 32 and when she was younger she rode horse back in there and encountered the tweedie bird hunters a couple of times. Unreal.

[RustyBucket]

I grew up just to the west of the refuge. About a mile from CR 48 I agree sounds like war. I have heard of people fighting over a deer that was shot not just arguments actual fist fighting. Vehicles being shot, people having bullets fly by there head. Moral of the story, without a flack jacket and an army helmet I would not go in there for Firearm season. I like the refuge for other times of the year to get away from civilization.

[Steve Foss]

Oak islands surrounded by marsh/swamp are deer magnets of the first order, especially once the acorns mature and fall to the ground. Deer love these spots so much they'll congregate there in excellent numbers. Not to mention that 90 percent of the hunters won't go through the hassle of wading through hundreds of yards of swamp to get to them.