Missed winter and early spring, Northwoods. When would you scout for '23 rifle season?

[Leverwalker]

Some medical issues this year and I missed my intention to scout the WI Northwoods late winter-early spring. Been 7 years since I've hunted, so have no idea how things have changed up there. I intend to go up and primitive camp to scout, before season opener (11/18), heavy boots on the hunt covering a ton of miles, for up to a week. I'd thought to go around end of October, but thought it might be more fruitful to hit it closer to season, if not just the week before. What would you do?

 

[Macintosh]

How are you hunting? Stand, still hunting, snow, etc? Any other seasons open before rifle?
If big woods there is anything like here, I’d probably go up in late October and go bird hunting, and just look for deer sign around bird covers. Mark those areas with plenty of doe sign, then go back and start there during the rifle season.

 

[Leverwalker]

How are you hunting? Stand, still hunting, snow, etc? Any other seasons open before rifle?
If big woods there is anything like here, I’d probably go up in late October and go bird hunting, and just look for deer sign around bird covers. Mark those areas with plenty of doe sign, then go back and start there during the rifle season.

We'll be stillhunting and tracking if possible (done some bare ground tracking but mostly on snow - and it's been a long while). Nice tip on the bird covers, thanks. Used to grouse hunt but not set up for in anymore - only rifles (couple handguns) in the home.

Hope to get back into bowhunting, but just starting back and trying to get some chops back one thing at a time. Never bowhunted anything but woodlots and ag edges in the S., so Northwoods would be different there, too. I'd wondered about late October into 1st week or so of November, v. middle to opener. Sounds like original plan to head up in late October might not be a bad idea. Thanks again.

 

[Leverwalker]

Bump

 

[ZipsNLbs]

Here up state Ny the deer got no pattern yet so . Look for food look for bedding and hope for some luck !

 

[sconnieVLP]

I grew up and all my family still lives in WI so I hunt the rifle season there every year. Hunt in Southern Farmland so it’s different, but I’ve found that the game totally changes during rifle season based on the pressure. Most of my strategy when I have a rifle in my hand revolves around hunting the pressure from neighboring properties.

I’ve never hunted northern WI, but based on your desire to still hunt I’m not sure I would burn a week going up there just to scout and do what you were planning on doing in-season without a rifle.

I’ll echo what was said above about combining scouting and bird hunting. At a minimum it’s a good excuse to go buy a shotgun.

 

[Leverwalker]

I grew up and all my family still lives in WI so I hunt the rifle season there every year. Hunt in Southern Farmland so it’s different, but I’ve found that the game totally changes during rifle season based on the pressure. Most of my strategy when I have a rifle in my hand revolves around hunting the pressure from neighboring properties.

I’ve never hunted northern WI, but based on your desire to still hunt I’m not sure I would burn a week going up there just to scout and do what you were planning on doing in-season without a rifle.

I’ll echo what was said above about combining scouting and bird hunting. At a minimum it’s a good excuse to go buy a shotgun.

Thanks. You're right, and I'm overthinking this. I think somehow missing the last several years brought me to think I need some extra time in these woods, but unless it's totally foreign grounds, and these aren't, I scout while I'm hunting though I do try to get in later winter and early spring. In 2016 outside of a grandfather and his grandson, we had the entire St. Peter's Dome area to ourselves, so didn't even have to account for pressure and just still-hunted and tracked. At any rate, thanks. Used to scout a lot in farmland and woodlots along the Mississippi, but since hunting on the move up north it's never made much sense to me.

OTOH, my son has his 12 gauge pump. Not an ideal grouse gun, but maybe a box or few of 7 1/2's....!

 

[sconnieVLP]

Thanks. You're right, and I'm overthinking this. I think somehow missing the last several years brought me to think I need some extra time in these woods, but unless it's totally foreign grounds, and these aren't, I scout while I'm hunting though I do try to get in later winter and early spring. In 2016 outside of a grandfather and his grandson, we had the entire St. Peter's Dome area to ourselves, so didn't even have to account for pressure and just still-hunted and tracked. At any rate, thanks. Used to scout a lot in farmland and woodlots along the Mississippi, but since hunting on the move up north it's never made much sense to me.

OTOH, my son has his 12 gauge pump. Not an ideal grouse gun, but maybe a box or few of 7 1/2's....!

I’m very much a “let it rip and see how it turns out” kind of guy, and that probably carries over into hunting as well. That approach has worked out okay this year so far as I hunt on a military base right now and the “scouting season” (yes, they only allow scouting for a set period) opened two days before the archery season opened so I just never scouted and have been doing hang and hunts to get the lay of the land.

That pump gun works just fine! My first “adult” gun was an 870 combo I got when I turned 12. I killed all kinds of things from upland birds to waterfowl to deer with that gun.