Ok so the talk around the finger lakes is “ where are the deer”.. is your area different this year

[Water Rat]

I believe the EHD has effected my hunting areas. Not hearing any shots on Opening day is something I've never experienced in 40+ years of deer hunting.

[CharlieNY]

I own property in the heart of the Finger Lakes located between Owasco and Cayuga Lakes. I have seen a steady decline in the quantity and quality of deer I see during the regular firearms season. The early archery season has been the time I see the most deer and the best bucks. By the time firearms season roles around the mature bucks which survive have gone nocturnal and my trail cams prove it. All I usually see after firearms season are small young bucks and does with fawns which I will not shoot. I know a lot of local hunters in my area and they all tell me the same thing. I personally think that the deer seasons are too long and that too many tags are given out which has greatly reduced the quality of deer hunting. Every year I pass up on young 1.5 year old bucks only to later find out that they have been  shot by neighbors. This year I have observed less hunters out as the season progresses and I have observed this each year. I believe that the hunters get discouraged with the hunting due to the lack of sightings and quit hunting early  and this results in less deer movement as the firearms season progresses.      valoroutdoors.com 

[phantom]

Hunted  7 opening  weekend 3 of us  didn't  see a thing .

Edited December 7, 2020 by phantom

[luberhill]

1 hour ago, phantom said:

Hunted  7 opening  weekend 3 of us  didn't  see a thing .

7 people ?

[46rkl]

I hunt mostly on my own land on the southern edge of 8H. All of the changes in deer numbers/ daylight sightings have been due to two factors. First, the large landowner to the west has tightly posted his property due to a couple of a**hoes hunting his land without permission and setting stands about fifty yards from his horse barn. Can’t say I blame him for posting it. There is a large (100+ acre) wood lot and about 30 acres of pasture that have become a deer sanctuary. Drive by any evening and you’ll see 20-30 deer in the horse pasture. Second, the land to the South and East of me (300+ acres) used to be largely owned by two absentee landowners who were fine with locals hunting on it. The total land area is perfect habitat. Agricultural fields, wood lots of varying ages and a large swamp in the middle of it. Four years ago, both landowners leased their lands to two different groups of hunters who have brought a large number of hunters to the area. One group, in particular shoots every deer that moves. This large increase in hunting pressure has really made daylight deer movement dwindle along with pushing even more deer into the sanctuary area to the West. One group, in particular has been pretty reckless, shooting at 6:30 on opening day and after 5:00 in the evening along with trespassing on the horse farm sanctuary. Ethics aside, the result is a sharp drop in deer sightings/movement as soon as the guns start blazing. Nothing new about that but I’ve had it so good for so long prior to that. 
This year is more typical of the new normal. I’ve taken three doe and most of the small bucks I saw during bow have been killed on the leases. Mature bucks that survived the gun opener have gone nocturnal. Camera shots have proven that. Deer numbers are down only slightly but the dynamics of my hunting area have changed dramatically.

[Jeremy K]

I think our deer sightings are about the same as every year in 9P . 

[50calpeephole]

Trail cams are sending back plenty of deer pictures, but they're not moving in daylight hours.

 

I read somewhere in the spring turkey licenses were up 30%, if you even just assume that the number is the same for deer licenses (and I'm going to assume there's more people interested in deer than turkey) you could be looking at the same 30% or maybe as high as 50% more hunters in the woods- That's a shit ton more pressure. Just in my own hunting property this year I we added 2 people to our hunting party, the abutting property added one, and another abutting property (which is a private rod and gun club) went from having 1-2 cars outside during the season to 4-5. The deer know what's up, if they haven't been bagged by the extra pressure (every deer processor I knew was closed to new deer by Wednesday of opening day) then they've certainly felt/smelled the heat in the wild and are bedding down tight.

 

If you have a black powder tag, I bet it'll be a decent season, along with late bow.

[DanD]

Things have been slow everywhere I have hunted: 8X, 8G, 8N, etc. Some of my challenges are certainly weather related as I won't hunt a few places without snow because I can't see well or track if needed. I know the DEC said they sold 15% more hunting licenses, but I'm not seeing a correlation to hunting pressure in the areas I have hunted which includes public and private land. Most pieces of public that I have hunted since opening weekend I've had to myself or maybe 1-2 other trucks.

Not throwing in the towel yet. One more weekend and then late season which hopefully brings some snow  

[Nomad]

I believe it’s very specific to areas ,some very small areas. My spot which has been easy hunting both bow and gun for the majority of the 32 years I’ve hunted it ,dried up in bow this year  ,fewest sightings ever .

But being in a wood lot surrounded by thousands of acres of crops all with there own wood lots ,thickets , creek bottoms , gives them options on where to go . This year everything by me was cut early , then either chisel plowed ,or covered in manure , sightings dropped accordingly. 
 

Id bet those 1/2 mile to 1 mile away still with standing corn are doing quite well though . Just a weird year I don’t believe numbers are down overall ,just that they’ve left for greener pastures , next year corn will be in two sides of me beans one and clover the other .

DanD ,agree, I’ve seen one hunter out on the pieces next to me , next to no trucks along roads .

Edited December 7, 2020 by Nomad

[steve863]

9 minutes ago, DanD said:

 I know the DEC said they sold 15% more hunting licenses, but I'm not seeing a correlation to hunting pressure in the areas I have hunted which includes public and private land. Most pieces of public that I have hunted since opening weekend I've had to myself or maybe 1-2 other trucks.

N

5 minutes ago, Nomad said:

 

DanD ,agree, I’ve seen one hunter out on the pieces next to me , next to no trucks along roads .

 

And all the folks here panicking before the season that there would be tons more hunters out this year. LOL.  Since the hunter safety courses were given online this year, the only reason those additional licenses were sold was so existing hunters could get their hands on additional DMP tags.  Most folks are just as lazy as ever and the last thing they want to do is get up early in the morning to freeze on a deer stand, so I couldn't imagine an influx of hunters just because hunter safety courses were given online this year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[luberhill]

29 minutes ago, steve863 said:

 

And all the folks here panicking before the season that there would be tons more hunters out this year. LOL.  Since the hunter safety courses were given online this year, the only reason those additional licenses were sold was so existing hunters could get their hands on additional DMP tags.  Most folks are just as lazy as ever and the last thing they want to do is get up early in the morning to freeze on a deer stand, so I couldn't imagine an influx of hunters just because hunter safety courses were given online this year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Agree... I’m not seeing or hearing usual hunting pressure .

my cams were busy before crossbow , not much since except after hours 

[Five Seasons]

From 8F to 7J it's all been the same story. Those that I know who've gotten deer have been right place right time. I've punched some tags but in general my sightings are way, way down. The weather has really been poor.

I wonder how much some of the ancillary effects of covid are affecting movement. More people home, less driving, maybe more hunters? How has covid affected crop harvest? i don't know...

[phantom]

10 hours ago, luberhill said:

7 people ?

  region  7 

[Hock3y24]

Hunting pressure in 7s is way down. Not nearly as many trucks, shots. Even in PA some camps were empty for the first time ever as far as I know of. 

[Ladyhunter]

I've seen 2 deer in the woods since early October, 8F. Hunted many times. Heard 1 gun shot late on opening day. Very discouraging. Farmers are wiping out and fencing a lot of natural habitat for apples. Nothing in the freezer this year

[Sir-diealot]

I have not seen any since the second day of the season and I am hunting 2 different private properties.

[LetEmGrow]

Just something to keep in mind folks.  There was a lot of human activity in the woods this year with the COVID.  A lot of people were home and they were out and about.  I believe the deer were subjected to a lot of human pressure throughout the summer when they normally are not.  I know a lot of people who have struggled to see deer this year across the state.  Things were very different where I am at as well (Finger Lakes).  The deer were very skittish and hard to see until about the peak of the rut.  Once gun season opened, everything seemed to stop around here.  Same for others I have talked to in various places.

Some years are like that based on food sources, water, etc... But I don't think it should be lost on anyone that there was a lot of human activity in the woods last summer.

[Pygmy]

Things seemed about normal down here in Dogpatch...A local deercutter had a record bow season and several days into the middle of opening week, several local cutters were turning away deer because they had more than they could handle...

Somebody's killing them...

[suburbanfarmer]

22 minutes ago, Pygmy said:

Things seemed about normal down here in Dogpatch...A local deercutter had a record bow season and several days into the middle of opening week, several local cutters were turning away deer because they had more than they could handle...

Somebody's killing them...

Sir your county cant be compared with for example Genesee, Ontario or Orleans. The number of single gun shots at dusk during bow season this yr was insane.

Edited December 10, 2020 by suburbanfarmer

[Tughill Tamer]

I haven't seen a deer on watch in region 6 since about November 20.

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[Swamp_bucks]

My areas have been like a ghost town but that's not uncommon for me after opening week.