LI Public: Tooo many hunters and hikers on a nice day.

[ChrisW74]

Went out on Saturday to Wildwood. Got in early and found one legal hunting parking spot still left and got in before sunrise.

The weird part is it seems, with the parking allowed, there should only be 12 hunters on the whole property yet I bumped into more than 20 fellow hunters during the day. 

Assuming people are having more than 2 per car, walking in from local neighborhoods or parking illegally.  

At one point while trying to find a new spot/tree to set up, after getting frustrated the hikers kept walking up into my spot while going around the blockade closing of a certain trail, I seen 6 hunters in  almost a straight line about every 30-50yds. lol

Seen a lot of deer but mostly all were on the run after being spooked by other hunters or the never ending hikers and joggers that came out Saturday (it was a beautiful day), some of which were stopping thru the middle of the woods off trail.

When I was spotted most were nice enough to back out and go around back to the trail but ended up having 2 separate groups come right up to my tree to ask me questions (in a friendly way) "get anything yet?" "cool, what's that thing called?" (i'm in a saddle w/ DRT ropes), "what do you do if you have to go pee?" (haha, i laughed at this one from a younger kid with his family),.

I even had a deer spooked off when a jogger ran by on the trail with headphone and yelled over "Good Morning, good luck!" ..... haha, what can you do, most were all so friendly.

Near sunset though I did have a, seemingly drunk, couple on a sunset hike come out to me to "inform me" that "hunting here is illegal" and "this is a protected animal sanctuary" (lmao) they then proceeded to run off-trail thru the woods and blow out that section for any of the other hunters in that area.

Walking back to the car I felt like that day was like trying to hunt in times square..... I'm now looking forward to the snow more than ever.

You guys ever have days like that on Long Island Public too?

 

[Northcountryman]

Wow , that is the future for upstate , I’m afraid ; sorry that happened 

[crappyice]

Not on Long Island but yes to most of the above. It’s simply part of the game when deciding to hunt public lands that are also open to other recreational activities. Go deeper...pay attention to where those deer run off to and find the most likely terrain that will not be used by the casual hiker (or hunter). Deer will burrow through and climb over some crazy terrain so don’t rule out a spot as too thick or nasty until putting eyes on it.

And my final (craziest) thought...set up close to main lots. I have seen more deer bed down right near parking lots and watch all the hunters/hikers walk away to never suspect them laying right there.

Glad your encounters were friendly enough- once that turns uglier time to find a new place to be in my opinion

 

 

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[Northcountryman]

It’s kind of like that at Sterling too from what I’ve found , depending where you go . Don’t even bother going anywhere near cuz it’s loaded with people on those trails . Maybe it’s feasible with bow but no way during rifle , not a chance . 

[Kmartinson]

29 minutes ago, Northcountryman said:

Wow , that is the future for upstate , I’m afraid ; sorry that happened 

I'm calling bs on that one. I see ten vehicles all archery season in my upstate public lands.

[Kmartinson]

I would travel a little bit. In my end of the world region 7 has lots of public that is basically unhunted til Xbow and rifle.

[DirtTime]

31 minutes ago, Northcountryman said:

Wow , that is the future for upstate , I’m afraid ; sorry that happened 

I'm with @Kmartinson that this is flat out not true!

 

Maybe when you're hunting well over populated areas in a large metro area like LI or those places downstate near the City. Yet I'm sure you can still avoid other people/hunters down there as well.

 

But upstate? You're very mistaken. I have more then one public land place I hunt that gets a good amount of traffic from hikers, cyclists, and bird watchers, yet I can find a place well away from the beaten path and never see another person. The trick is simple- Don't hunt 30 feet off a frikin' hiking trail. Even area's in the Catskills you can find places that other people don't go. You really want to get away from people get yourself some 4 season camping gear and hit the ADK's, you can be as "alone" as you want to be up there. Or, you can rent a cabin.

 

There's a very HUGE MISCONCEPTION of what "UPSTATE" truly is/means.

[Nomad]

First folks have to agree on what “ upstate “ means ., something that decades of debate has yet to define , to most peoples satisfaction.

For some it’s an area just above NYC , for others it’s anything in NY other then NYC . 

Myself I I hunt Western NY . 

[Northcountryman]

6 minutes ago, DirtTime said:

I'm with @Kmartinson that this is flat out not true!

 

Maybe when you're hunting well over populated areas in a large metro area like LI or those places downstate near the City. Yet I'm sure you can still avoid other people/hunters down there as well.

 

But upstate? You're very mistaken. I have more then one public land place I hunt that gets a good amount of traffic from hikers, cyclists, and bird watchers, yet I can find a place well away from the beaten path and never see another person. The trick is simple- Don't hunt 30 feet off a frikin' hiking trail. Even area's in the Catskills you can find places that other people don't go. You really want to get away from people get yourself some 4 season camping gear and hit the ADK's, you can be as "alone" as you want to be up there. Or, you can rent a cabin.

 

There's a very HUGE MISCONCEPTION of what "UPSTATE" truly is/means.

Man , I sure hope you guys are right ; and , even if you are right now , what will it be like in 30 years ? I’ve thought a lot about this , and , I’m thinking that eventually , they ( ie , the State) will have to designate certain tracts as “ Hunting Only”  so that hiking isn’t allowed and vice versa in other tracts . There’s getting to be more and more hikers and some are anti hunting  and they will ( and probably do already) complain. Eventually , someone’s gonna get hurt and it’s gonna come to the forefront and state govt will address it ( I sure hope I’m wrong but afraid that I’m right on this )

[Nomad]

Where I hunt snowmobile trails don’t open till after gun season . The town I live in has a bow hunt on town land ,lots of hikers , there’s big signs saying bow hunting  is taking place , and hunting hours / days are such to minimize conflict with most hikers . 
 

[ChrisW74]

Not on Long Island but yes to most of the above. It’s simply part of the game when deciding to hunt public lands that are also open to other recreational activities. Go deeper...pay attention to where those deer run off to and find the most likely terrain that will not be used by the casual hiker (or hunter). Deer will burrow through and climb over some crazy terrain so don’t rule out a spot as too thick or nasty until putting eyes on it.
And my final (craziest) thought...set up close to main lots. I have seen more deer bed down right near parking lots and watch all the hunters/hikers walk away to never suspect them laying right there.
Glad your encounters were friendly enough- once that turns uglier time to find a new place to be in my opinion
 
 
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Most of the areas that are dense there that I seen deer run into and I have no idea how to hunt look like this pic (that’s 6-8ft of thorns). Only place to set up and wait for them to come out is the trail trees which you have to be 50ft off trail. So the areas that don’t look like this are packed with hunters (especially when more hunters than legally allowed). At this particular park the hiking trails are plenty. The distance between most of the parallel trails is only 100-250ft. Yeah totally part of the experience and not mad at anyone. Was just a frustrating day.

I did get to see a guy take a doe from a ghost blind for the first time which was cool.


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[DirtTime]

There's a lot of public/state land that doesn't even have hiking trails. I highly doubt that even in 50 years they will become over populated. Most hikers aren't going out to blaze new trails in desolate areas. So, as a hunter on public land, we need to adapt and get outside that cozy little comfort zone and go into those areas where not everyone will venture.

 

When you live in a box you will hit a wall no matter the direction you take. Step outside the box, and the world is yours.

 

If one chooses to hunt only those highly populated areas, in any part of the state, it's on them. They know what's involved and continue to go there and then piss and moan about other people.

 

I have an area I flat out will not hunt because of over population of "outdoor" people. There are good bucks killed in there every year. For me, it's a personal choice not to hunt there, and I give those who do a lot of respect dealing with the place. It's just not for me.

[Northcountryman]

2 minutes ago, DirtTime said:

When you live in a box you will hit a wall no matter the direction you take. Step outside the box, and the world is yours.

Great quote , I like it !! 
 

Finding public land with no trails not a bad idea But , may not be realistic for guys in metro areas ; they’d  have to come upstate. This isDoable , of course, but probably more of a weekend event rather than just part of the day on a Saturday, for example . 

[Kmartinson]

Scout scout til your boots wear out. Different spots are hot all season. I live in an area with 10s of thousands of acres of public within 50 miles of home. Deer on all of them. It is legal with permits to camp there. I find lots of opportunities on public all season, I scout those properties year round. I almost always kill at least one deer on public every year. This is not the Midwest 150 inch bucks dont walk around all day, however I would say I have a 110 inch buck or better encounter every season.  I will take anyone and show them all of the places I hunt. Show them how the land works and how i approach it. My fortune is directly related to the amount of time I put in. Forums inform us, boots on the ground refine us. Come hunt with me!

[steve863]

It is quite simple.  You need to get at least 80-100 miles away (and probably more) from NYC to get away from this kind of stuff.  Most preferably upstate because you surely won't escape this kind of stuff anywhere on Long Island.  It will probably require you to stay over at a motel or somewhere for a couple of nights if you don't have a camp, but the further away from the mobs of people in the NYC radius you are, the more at peace you will be while hunting.

 

 

 

[ChrisW74]

haha since I specifically posted this in the Region 1 forum I wasn't really expecting  all the  "you should hunt upstate" type replies but no worries... hahaha. But if any of you upstate want to host a couple of new hunters that live in NYC for a long weekend to show us the upstate ropes let me know.

 

It comes with the territory of public, was just wondering if anyone had relatable stories in the area... Likely won't be as bad once the weather gets a little colder and we get some snow down here. 

Edited November 16, 2020 by ChrisW74

[rachunter]

I don't hunt long island anymore[except shotgun] it's out of control not many follow the rules plus all the non-hunters that are entitled to use the land.You need to try and find an area away from all that.Most hunters gravitate to the same area it's the guy's  that think outside the box that have more success.My brother does very well and he's only been hunting a few years.It's hard to go deeper on long island without popping out on a trail.If i remember correctly the biggest park is only 3000 acers with trails all through it.At this time of the year[rut] it's a crap shoot a buck can show up anytime or place.I was racking leaves in my yard this afternoon when is guy popped out.We had a stare down for a few seconds then i moved and let him go on his way.

[gpscoqn]

I might be reading the map wrong , but if you check the dec website at https://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/40399.html and look at the Wildwood map the legal amount of hunters is 6 not 12 as originally posted and while the season open on October 1 in most of NYS, Wildwood does not open until November 1st.

[cdbing]

Encountering more than the allotted number of hunters is fairly common on LI public as well all sorts of other walkers, bikers, motorcycles, atv riders, off road trucks, horseback riders, etc. I haven't experienced anything as bad as the OP has, but I can relate. I've also done the drive 100 -150 plus miles upstate to hunt and that gets old fast. I've adapted to suburban hunting I guess. For what it is worth, weekdays are generally better.

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[phantom]

On 11/16/2020 at 6:50 AM, ChrisW74 said:

Went out on Saturday to Wildwood. Got in early and found one legal hunting parking spot still left and got in before sunrise.

The weird part is it seems, with the parking allowed, there should only be 12 hunters on the whole property yet I bumped into more than 20 fellow hunters during the day. 

Assuming people are having more than 2 per car, walking in from local neighborhoods or parking illegally.  

At one point while trying to find a new spot/tree to set up, after getting frustrated the hikers kept walking up into my spot while going around the blockade closing of a certain trail, I seen 6 hunters in  almost a straight line about every 30-50yds. lol

Seen a lot of deer but mostly all were on the run after being spooked by other hunters or the never ending hikers and joggers that came out Saturday (it was a beautiful day), some of which were stopping thru the middle of the woods off trail.

When I was spotted most were nice enough to back out and go around back to the trail but ended up having 2 separate groups come right up to my tree to ask me questions (in a friendly way) "get anything yet?" "cool, what's that thing called?" (i'm in a saddle w/ DRT ropes), "what do you do if you have to go pee?" (haha, i laughed at this one from a younger kid with his family),.

I even had a deer spooked off when a jogger ran by on the trail with headphone and yelled over "Good Morning, good luck!" ..... haha, what can you do, most were all so friendly.

Near sunset though I did have a, seemingly drunk, couple on a sunset hike come out to me to "inform me" that "hunting here is illegal" and "this is a protected animal sanctuary" (lmao) they then proceeded to run off-trail thru the woods and blow out that section for any of the other hunters in that area.

Walking back to the car I felt like that day was like trying to hunt in times square..... I'm now looking forward to the snow more than ever.

You guys ever have days like that on Long Island Public too?

 

that sucks , I guess that's why every one I Know out there for some reason drives way upstate to hunt public land . if you like travel and have time there are lots of place in this state that don't get hit hard  by people   don't  expect them to be easy to get to .

[rachunter]

22 hours ago, gpscoqn said:

I might be reading the map wrong , but if you check the dec website at https://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/40399.html and look at the Wildwood map the legal amount of hunters is 6 not 12 as originally posted and while the season open on October 1 in most of NYS, Wildwood does not open until November 1st.

You are correct it does say November  first and two hunters per vehicle,But not many hunters follow the rules out here on the island.I've never hunted that park but used to park in a one car spot go in and when i got out there'd be up to five sometimes more.Talking to my brother the other day i asked him if it's still going on he said hell ya.It doesn't seem to bother him at all.He shot a nice six pointer two days ago someone walking by kicked it over to him.It's not for everyone that's why i gave it up eight years ago.

BTW the op posted this Monday NOVEMBER 16th 

[DoubleDose]

Hunting 1C public property is frustrating with all you have to share the land with.  Horse back riders, illegal quads and motorbikes, bicyclers, hikers/runners, dog walkers, mushroom pickers (which is illegal), other hunters (legal and illegal), etc etc etc

[Spear]

Hunting 1C public property is frustrating with all you have to share the land with.  Horse back riders, illegal quads and motorbikes, bicyclers, hikers/runners, dog walkers, mushroom pickers (which is illegal), other hunters (legal and illegal), etc etc etc

You said it. Very frustrating to deal with that, although those people seem to dwindle as the season goes on. That being said, I’ve had hikers, motorbikes and quads push deer my way many times. That’s the only “good” part if you will.


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[LICOASTIE]

I’ve run into hikers many times during January firearms season on LI. It is frustrating. I do try to to think that they are at least moving deer around. I wonder if there is less hikers/bikers etc. the farther East you go on LI during archery and gun?

[cdbing]

My only experience hunting the Hamptons on LI was in a swamp 2-3 times. Nobody was out in the swamp except one other hunter in the adjacent parking spot each time. However, lots of bikers and walkers on the public roads. I did not run in to any anti-hunters, but figure if you go to the Hamptons frequently enough, odds are you will run into some.

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