All in all, I had a good year deer hunting in 2023. My knees held-up pretty well, so I was able to make a few trips most of the way up North Mountain to my favorite hunting stand. I didn’t get sick, which is what happens sometimes when I get worn down due to lack of rest. And the weather was good. Cold mornings and cool days for the most part. I would have liked to have had a little snow, but you can’t have everything.
There were reports of nice bucks being tagged up and down the mountain, and even on the other side of the mountain, but not where I was. Overall, I didn’t see very many deer. I saw two 3-point bucks that offered good broadside shots, but chose to let them grow bigger for next year. There were very few scrapes and rubs in the area, and little evidence they were foraging for food, even though you could see random fresh trails in the leaves.
Still, I was for the most part content to spend time in the woods hoping to see a bigger buck. There were reports of a racked buck roaming occasionally nearby and there was another decent buck caught on a trail camera earlier.
Since I’m not that mobile anymore, my hunting area is limited. I not only have to consider where my knees will allow me to go but also where I can drag a buck out. My shoulder hurt for months the last time I drug one off Sawmill Ridge even though it was all downhill. That being the case it can get kind of old, shuffling up and down the same few ridges and hollows over the course of the season. Especially during a year when deer are scarce. Instead of hunting, you end-up just sitting in the woods hoping something walks by. This is quite different from the way I used to hunt. Thousands of acres of National Forrest were at my disposal and I covered quite a bit of it.
Roaming during late black powder season is a great time to find new hunting areas. You can see where deer have been. That is, recent rubs and scrapes are still visible, which can give clues as to where the hot spots may be for the next year. Plus, there is a chance you may be able to walk-up on that previously nocturnal buck during the late rut. Undisturbed deer will be out feeding to fatten-up for winter
After scouting out a new area the previous fall, walking a mile or two into the head of Slate Lick, Straight Hollow, Yankeetown or Dull Hunt during regular hunting season offered the promise of finding fresh rubs and scrapes indicating a wall hanger is nearby. The anticipation of walking into an area that you haven’t been into yet makes hunting much more interesting. Instead of hunting the same ridges day after day, it’s a new hunt each excursion. No, you don’t see that many deer but when you do see a deer in these isolated areas there is a good chance it will be a buck.
Normally I wouldn’t give-up my favorite hunting spots but I’m not able to go back anymore. Besides, there are a lot of ridges and hollows to hunt in those areas. You figure it out!
All of the above produced decent bucks for me over the years, except for Dull Hunt. I know good bucks are there but I never could quite figure out the best way to hunt Dull Hunt Hollow.
It’s the epitome of the pure hunting experience when you scout out a promising hunting spot in the late fall season and go back the following year and tag a nice buck. And there’s nothing like the taste of fresh fried deer tenderloin at the end of the day.
But for now, those same ridges and hollows on North Mountain will have to suffice.
R.D. Cullers
Graduate of Bergton Elementary (Class of ’65)
