Western hunter going east

[Selkirk6x]

Hi all, I'm new here, but thought I might get some insights here

I've spent decades hunting the Idaho panhandle, and only the panhandle.
For the last 9 years, I've used a rifle once, preferring archery and muzzy. Mostly spot and stalk, elk, deer, and occasionally bear. (And one moose, which was that one rifle use)

I'm thinking of relocating to the blue ridge mountains. Obviously elk won't be a reliable thing for me without travel, but I'm wondering about deer. Seems like everything I see east of the divide has people hunting in stands or blinds. Is whitetail behavior still comparable to what I'm used to? Any other thoughts?

 

[Btaylor]

Apple and an orange for the most part. There are conditions which make still hunting a very viable option for whitetails. Not going to be much in the way of spot and stalk in the western sense pretty much anywhere in the east.

 

[Rich M]

The woods are too thick to do much stalking. You can sneak around in wet leaves and shoot a few.

Gonna be better finding travel routes, pinch points, and bedding areas. Wait for the deer to come to you so you dont blow em out of the county.

 

[Selkirk6x]

The woods are too thick to do much stalking. You can sneak around in wet leaves and shoot a few.

Gonna be better finding travel routes, pinch points, and bedding areas. Wait for the deer to come to you so you dont blow em out of the county.

That was one of the things I've wondered about. I've spent a bit of time down there, just never hunting.

Not sure if you've hunted the panhandle, but a lot of it up here is thicker than hell. But, also the difference between mixed hardwood and almost exclusively conifer.

Are behavior patterns similar? I was wondering if home areas for individuals are smaller, assuming more varied food sources and more water.


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[FLS]

Deer density in most of the blue ridge is much lower than piedmont and coastal plains.

 

[loganwayne]

Blue ridge mountain is a fairly large area. In my county we are .65 bucks per square miles. I can drive a couple hours and get into 3-4 bucks per square mile. There a few places that you can spot and stalk. VERY FEW


But depending on where you are wanting to come to there is plenty of room to roam

 

[Selkirk6x]

Blue ridge mountain is a fairly large area. In my county we are .65 bucks per square miles. I can drive a couple hours and get into 3-4 bucks per square mile. There a few places that you can spot and stalk. VERY FEW


But depending on where you are wanting to come to there is plenty of room to roam

I'm looking at selling a piece of my land here, buying in northwest North Carolina or southwest Virginia. Leaning mostly toward the Grayson to Pulaski county areas of VA


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[loganwayne]

I'm looking at selling a piece of my land here, buying in northwest North Carolina or southwest Virginia. Leaning mostly toward the Grayson to Pulaski county areas of VA


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I'm further south around the asheville area

 

[Billy Goat]

Needs to be really, really good reason for you to leave where you are at.


The hunting isn't bad, but in no way is it the same.

 

[Selkirk6x]

I'm further south around the asheville area

I've got family there, and some in Sylva. My little town up here has turned into not so rural feeling anymore. Asheville area feels huge to me.


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[loganwayne]

I've got family there, and some in Sylva. My little town up here has turned into not so rural feeling anymore. Asheville area feels huge to me.


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I live in Waynesville right below the blue ridge parkway. Wife works in sylva I work in asheville.
For what it's worth I hate asheville but that's where the money is at

Scouted public today walked 6 miles, found 2 stands, evidence of 2 more. But I did find 3 beds.

I travel down east to do most of my deer hunting

 

[N2TRKYS]

Stand hunting is harder than the spot and stalk hunting that you’re use to.

 

[Selkirk6x]

Needs to be really, really good reason for you to leave where you are at.


The hunting isn't bad, but in no way is it the same.

I've got my reasons.


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[Billy Goat]

I've got my reasons.


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Not saying you don't, and it's not that hard to travel west for a week or 2 per year.



Point is in general the east is getting more and more crowded, harder for me to stay, but I also have my reasons.


If I had taken my chances earlier and gotten out there, I would have stayed. 0% of my friends returned.

 

[Selkirk6x]

I live in Waynesville right below the blue ridge parkway. Wife works in sylva I work in asheville.
For what it's worth I hate asheville but that's where the money is at

Scouted public today walked 6 miles, found 2 stands, evidence of 2 more. But I did find 3 beds.

I travel down east to do most of my deer hunting

Same story here, in elk country, at least. I have no idea how many cameras I saw this year, but it was dozens. Temps were high 80s through the first couple weeks of sept, so I couldn't get too far from my truck, ethically. Saw trucks blocking roads into drainages, people putting sweet corn out in public land, etc...

I don't think there's much escaping pressure without a horse train anywhere in north idaho anymore


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[EdP]

I live in Washington Co Va. Grayson is the county immediately east of me. SW VA is a good conservative area in a state ruled by liberals in Richmond and the greater DC area. When I was relocating 7 years ago I wish I had been able to find something close by in Tn. As far as hunting goes here west of the Blue Ridge, it is VERY difficult in the mountainous areas (public land). The habitat for deer in the national forest areas has been degrading for decades and the state cannot do anything about it. They say so in their Deer Management Plan. Federal restrictions and numerous small Wilderness Areas prevent logging and other activities that would benefit wildlife. There are deer in the national forest but there were many more deer here 30 years ago. I have hunted northern Idaho and it is nowhere near as thick as in the southern mountains. If you have to move east I would recommend east Tn, away from Knoxville, Pigeon Forge, and the whole Smokey Mtn Nat Park tourist mess.

 

[jimh406]

The country is not as big and that means that in most places, the vegetation varies a lot more. Whitetails adapt, so not exactly the same. There are a lot more types of trees that whitetails use including many varieties of acorns, for example.

There are a lot more people. That can be an advantage if you know how to hunt pressure.

You may find you have more success in a tree stand and staying put, but there is no rule that you can't use the same methods. Fwiw, the Elk herds are expanding back East.

 

[Selkirk6x]

I live in Washington Co Va. Grayson is the county immediately east of me. SW VA is a good conservative area in a state ruled by liberals in Richmond and the greater DC area. When I was relocating 7 years ago I wish I had been able to find something close by in Tn. As far as hunting goes here west of the Blue Ridge, it is VERY difficult in the mountainous areas (public land). The habitat for deer in the national forest areas has been degrading for decades and the state cannot do anything about it. They say so in their Deer Management Plan. Federal restrictions and numerous small Wilderness Areas prevent logging and other activities that would benefit wildlife. There are deer in the national forest but there were many more deer here 30 years ago. I have hunted northern Idaho and it is nowhere near as thick as in the southern mountains. If you have to move east I would recommend east Tn, away from Knoxville, Pigeon Forge, and the whole Smokey Mtn Nat Park tourist mess.

You're assuming I like conservatives any more than I like liberals.

Joined this forum today to ask a question about hunting and the relative behavior of eastern and western whitetails. Super happy to discover people find the need to virtue signal to strangers on here as much as every other online site.

I really miss old Idaho, where the hippies and loggers all hunted elk and deer, drank beer, hippies making moonshine and others growing weed, and everyone pulled each other out of the ditch.

But then a bunch of right wing conservatives moved here and ruined it.

Turn about is fair play.


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[Billy Goat]

You're assuming I like conservatives any more than I like liberals.

Joined this forum today to ask a question about hunting and the relative behavior of eastern and western whitetails. Super happy to discover people find the need to virtue signal to strangers on here as much as every other online site.

I really miss old Idaho, where the hippies and loggers all hunted elk and deer, drank beer, hippies making moonshine and others growing weed, and everyone pulled each other out of the ditch.

But then a bunch of right wing conservatives moved here and ruined it.

Turn about is fair play.


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Just wait til you meet an eastern hippie....


I'm probably just a panhandle moonshiner.

 

[Selkirk6x]

The country is not as big and that means that in most places, the vegetation varies a lot more. Whitetails adapt, so not exactly the same. There are a lot more types of trees that whitetails use including many varieties of acorns, for example.

There are a lot more people. That can be an advantage if you know how to hunt pressure.

You may find you have more success in a tree stand and staying put, but there is no rule that you can't use the same methods. Fwiw, the Elk herds are expanding back East.

Thanks for answering, and giving me some info to chew on.

One of the things that seems most intimidating is learning a new forest ecosystem. The forest here is really bare bones by comparison. I've got maybe 12 species of tree on my property, and that's because I'm fairly low elevation.

I've been getting better and better at patterning humans the same as I pattern ungulates for hunting purposes. But, if I go, I'll probably be looking at a larger piece of land, hoping for min 50, ideally 100 plus so as to not need to rely on public lands as heavily.

Do you notice the same pressure patterns on personal property?


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