# Teach me about WMA deer hunting



## DYI hunting (Jun 28, 2010)

I have not hunted WMA's except for Ogeechee WMA on  muzzleloader hunts and one at Redlands on a rifle hunt.  

-How is the hunting and deer sightings?
-How crowded or how many hunters walk up on you while hunting or set up near you?
-Where is the best place to get maps?


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## 7Mag Hunter (Jun 28, 2010)

If you try to hunt creeks/hardwoods that are close to the road,
you will see people....If you hunt close to convenient parking spots
you will see people....
If you walk moderate distances thru or in mixed pine areas, and 
use Topo maps to find remote HW drains or funnels you will see 
more deer and less people....
Deer will seek thicker cover when trucks ride the roads, and 
campfire smoke enters the woods...
Hunt pine/mixed pine areas, hunt high, go in early and try to stay
past noon.....Deer "can" be pushed around mid morning and noon
time when hunters go to lunch....
Most WMA hunts I go on, I carry lunch and a P jug and try to stay all
day....

In the July or Aug GON they publish WMA deer harvest #s and
deer per sq mile estimates for all WMAs...I try to review the stats
and pick 2-3 hunts per year.....
WMAs are not like hunt clubs where hunters are in the woods year
round...Hunters go to WMAs on 1-2 times per year for 2-3 or 4
days....
Deer seek thicker cover when humans invade their space.....

Did I say hunt the pines ??????

Good Luck !!!


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## stev (Jun 28, 2010)

Go deep off the beaten path .Do understand folks do still venture deep ,but very few for fear of getting lost.


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## DYI hunting (Jun 28, 2010)

What other public places should I be looking into around the northeast Georgia area?

Also, are any of these big enough to need a GPS or is dead reckoning enough to get off the beaten trail?


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## 7Mag Hunter (Jun 28, 2010)

.Lots of N GA WMAs and the Chatt Natl Forest....

I have used compass only for many years....Topo maps are
avail for all WMAs and the Chatt and ONF areas....
No real need for a GPS if you know how to use a topo and compass...


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## DYI hunting (Jun 28, 2010)

7Mag Hunter said:


> No real need for a GPS if you know how to use a topo and compass...



I loved land nav course, I prefer a map and compass.  Cheaper, no batteries or reception problems, and something not everyone can do.


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## hoghunter2009 (Jun 28, 2010)

get u a gps dude. thouse mtn, can and will trick you if this is your frist time hunting up there, them bears up there get hungry,lol.........


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## 7Mag Hunter (Jun 28, 2010)

DYI hunting said:


> I loved land nav course, I prefer a map and compass.  Cheaper, no batteries or reception problems, and something not everyone can do.



I took it at Ft Bragg...In the swamps....

A group of us are going up to the Chatt Natl Forest
this year for Bear....You might consider going with us....


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## DYI hunting (Jun 28, 2010)

7Mag Hunter said:


> I took it at Ft Bragg...In the swamps....
> 
> A group of us are going up to the Chatt Natl Forest
> this year for Bear....You might consider going with us....



I took mine in Schofield Barracks.  Always up for a hunt, never hunted bears before.


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## bany (Jun 29, 2010)

ATTN; Some hunters you may not see [right away]if you stillhunt, til you stay too long and they get upset and put their orange on and start to whistle and wave and so on.


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## DYI hunting (Jun 29, 2010)

bany said:


> ATTN; Some hunters you may not see [right away]if you stillhunt, til you stay too long and they get upset and put their orange on and start to whistle and wave and so on.



I am no fan of still hunting on public property.  I will be in my climber.  No way I could take my vest off on public property, too many idiots in the world.


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## snook24 (Jun 29, 2010)

My favorite time is hunting a full moon during the middle of the day and get way back in the woods...Ive had most of my luck like this


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## Khondker (Jul 11, 2010)

7Mag Hunter said:


> If you try to hunt creeks/hardwoods that are close to the road,
> you will see people....If you hunt close to convenient parking spots
> you will see people....
> If you walk moderate distances thru or in mixed pine areas, and
> ...



Where I have better chane of seeing a deer, area full of *hardwood* or area full of *pine tree* or *pine and hardwood mix*?


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## Swamp Man (Jul 11, 2010)

Buy yourself a Georgia Gazzateer book of maps of Georgia.  It shows all the  WMA's and Federal wildlife refuges.  And it has topo markings too.  Then, get on Google Earth, if you have a computer.
 Click on a town or city close to the area you want to hunt,  then walk your way into the management area with your tools provided by Google.  You'd be amazed at the detail you can pick up on these aerials!  You can find funnels, creeks, swamps, etc. very easily.
  Then, get yourself a good hand compass.  Good luck!


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## C.Killmaster (Jul 15, 2010)

*WMA maps*

http://www.georgiawildlife.com/maps/hunting

Line, Topo, and Aerial Infrared for every WMA in the state.


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## Pagosa (Jul 24, 2010)

DYI hunting said:


> What other public places should I be looking into around the northeast Georgia area?
> 
> Also, are any of these big enough to need a GPS or is dead reckoning enough to get off the beaten trail?



    I recently purchased a Bushnell "BackTrack" GPS. Very basic with few waypoints and affordably priced . Check the Internet for best price. Very simple to use and saves the bucks you would spend on a fancy GPS. Select a waypoint at your vehicle and when your ready to go choose that waypoint and follow it out. Nothing wrong with compass and Topos. Great skill to have.
Pagosa Kid


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## Killer (Jul 25, 2010)

the only way to learn how to hunt no matter where you hunt, is to actually spend time  scouting and hunting.  Tons of land in the NW areas should be plenty of game.  However it probably will never met your expetations if you have hunted private land before.


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## Y.T. (Sep 14, 2010)

DYI hunting said:


> I am no fan of still hunting on public property.  I will be in my climber.  No way I could take my vest off on public property, too many idiots in the world.



Is still hunting without orange on public land even legal?  The way I understand it is that it is not...

Just saying...


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## jjasonbbo1 (Sep 14, 2010)

Everybody got it all pretty well summed up so far but they forgot one main thing... CORN CORN CORN... 

Oh wait.. this isn't texas.. Nevermind the corn thing... 





bany said:


> ATTN; Some hunters you may not see [right away]if you stillhunt, til you stay too long and they get upset and put their orange on and start to whistle and wave and so on.



I actually had this happen at johns mt.. I got there way early sit down on a ridge overlooking a nice hardwood bottom and about 9 am rolled in I got up and this dude I never saw stood up in his stand waving his orange around like a nut case... He either spent the night in that tree or was awful quiet gettin in it cause he was only about 75yds away.. How he didn't see me and my bright orange self I don't know but he was nice and camoed up there in his stand... I left went home and never been on another WMA gun hunt since.. that was 2003... People are way to dumb to be totin high powered rifles and not obeying the laws...


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## Claybuster (Sep 20, 2010)

Some sort of navigational tool is in order, be it compass or GPS. Especially on the national forest. Get there early and stay late. Bring some patience and a sense of humor with you. You will see other hunters, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. Interference is almost always unintentional and I only ever came across one person who showed absolutely no respect for the area that I was hunting. Usually people will be considerate and may even offer up some tips on good spots.

Wear your orange and keep your eyes open.


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## Catfish369 (Sep 20, 2010)

A fiend of my brother's killed a nice 8 and a heavy beamed 10 ptr within a hundred yards of a main road in a pine thicket.  He had knee surgery and couldn't hike all over the WMA so he paced off roughly a hundred paces and went up a tree.  He won't tell us exactly where the area is.  He said the 10 was laying behind a red dirt pile beside a secondary road and lowered it's head when a truck drove by, within 20 yards of it... The movement of it's head was what drew his attention.  After the truck went past, the deer stood up and watched it drive away.  As it started into the pine thicket he shot it about 30 yards from his stand.  His story.  Not all the big ones are deep into the wilds.


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## toddboucher (Sep 23, 2010)

DYI hunting said:


> What other public places should I be looking into around the northeast Georgia area?
> 
> Also, are any of these big enough to need a GPS or is dead reckoning enough to get off the beaten trail?



Lake russell


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## Paymaster (Sep 24, 2010)

My .02.

Patience is a must. Get in early and stay late. People make WMAs work. It is people that move the deer around. When someone walks by you don't get upset , get ready! I have killed my fair share of deer that came up on me trying to avoid someone walking in the area. People are restless and get up and move. This activity will move the deer around that normally would be bedded and still. Good luck. BTW... never take your orange off on a WMA during a firearms hunt. Illegal and dangerous.


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## Maduro on Point (Oct 1, 2010)

Paymaster, SPOT ON! That is what I tell my son, dont get bent out of shape when someone walks up on you. Let them know you are hunting the area and they will pass and have had many a time where they ended up scaring a few my way. I have hunted several WMA's around GA without issue. Getting in early, staying through lunch when many are pulling out can be a great time to drop deer that are being pushed. Respect, Respect, Respect is all you have to remember. I will take a crowed WMA over a crowed I-75 anyday!


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## Fire Eater (Oct 3, 2010)

I pretty well hunt ONLY on mountain WMA's and/or National Forest...contrary to what some here have stated, the frequency of walking up on another hunter or having one come in on you is few and far in between. This may not apply to public land in central GA such as Cedar Creek or Redlands. Yes, wear plenty of blaze orange.

Based upon my experience, the key to hunting public land in the mountains is to find food-intense PRIVATE LAND bordering your intended hunting area...the further away from crops/gardens you get, the fewer deer you will see. 

Hunt UP not down...mountain deer tend to travel just under the ridgeline. Saddles between two ridgetops make good ambush sites. Needless to say, it is a lot easier to drag them downslope than the opposite.

You will rarely see a mountain deer DOWN during daylight hours...they come down off of those ridges to feed at night, a good time to scout from the road.


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