Ok you east coast SOB's give up them honey holes

[wayno945]

Being a former masshole myself... I would tell you that you're making a mistake. The Western States are better in every way. Deer hunting there is either sitting in a tree stand or being a participant in a deer drive. The only guys that are doing spot and stalk are doing it from the road in their pickup. Deer seasons are Archery, then Shotgun, then Muzzy. Doe permits are via draw. The majority of good spots are posted and there are plenty of anti-hunters that are more than willing to call the cops on you. The gun laws are ridiculous and State AG thinks she can reinterpret the law at will. The only thing I miss is going to catch a game at Fenway.

 

[mdhunter]

I can get you dialed in on the opportunities on the Eastern Shore of Md (and there are plenty of them). Good times are where you find them. I like the ability to hunt deer, duck, turkey, and combo that with outstanding fishing either inshore or offshore. You wife will probably like the beaches down this way as well.

Stay away from the sea ducks...fun to shoot but hard to eat.

 

[el unit]

My condolences

 

[Mainewoods]

I live on the Cape now and it took me a while to adjust, but there’s some great whitetail hunting southwest and west of Boston. Using tree stands has the most success, but still hunters do ok to. Just need to adjust.
I prefer to hunt up in northern NH and ME all on public land, which there is a lot of including what’s is owned by the timber companies. Tracking and still hunting is my thing and I’ve taken some real nice bucks while doing it. There’s some good remote fishing to, which helps with the scouting. And you don’t see a sole in the woods usually.
Since I live on Cape Cod the saltwater fishing is phenomenal and having fresh black Seabass and fluke for dinner all summer is pretty nice.

 

[jt13]

NY and PA public land is great archery season whitetail hunting but generally a zoo in gun season. PA gives non-residents good bang for their buck. A standard hunting license comes with an antlered/flintlock tag, spring gobbler, fall turkey, small game, and access to 4 million acres of state lands to chase them on. For a truly unique experience chase whitetails in the after Christmas Flintlock muzzleloader only season.

NJ has infinite amounts of deer if you can find a place to hunt.

MD has sika deer and piles of whitetail deer, again, if you can secure a place to hunt. Chesapeake bay MD waterfowl hunting is world class as well.

I'd go north (ME/NH) for rugged grouse, snowshoe hare, and black bears. Also apply for some moose draws in NH and ME and elk draws in PA and KY.

Dont forget fishing! Lakers and King salmon on Lake Ontario and walleye and steelhead in Lake Erie are two of my favorites

 

[VAspeedgoat]

What is whitetail hunting like down in VA/West VA?

Like was already stated, VA is very different from county to county. The coastal plain can range from marsh to thick coastal forests. I've never hunted there that much but there is a heavy dog hunting influence. So a lot of those guys don't even hunt till late November when chase season begins. There are counties where it is shotgun only because of that. In the Piedmont, there is still dog hunting but rifles are allowed. I've hunted those areas more because the rifle season goes from mid November to the first Saturday in January. I have several friends that join hunting clubs that run with dogs but what they do is hunt the archery and muzzleloader season and first two weeks of rifle. They usually do pretty well. Many of the clubs and even public land has been logged and is mostly replanted pine. If you find a deep "hollow" with oaks you can do pretty well. Then as you come into the western part, the rifle season is only 2 weeks but there is more public land. It is illegal to use dogs except for bear, which chase season doesn't start till after rifle season. With your big game license you get 5 deer in Western VA which 3 must be antlerless and 6 in eastern VA also 3 must be antlerless. Some of the county to county stuff is a pain so if you look into it and have some questions let me know and we can just pm. Also several VA guys on here to help.

 

[live free or die]

Honestly, having hunted out west as well as Hawaii and 6 trips to New Zealand diy. My personal fav is tracking monster whitetail in northern NH. We also have some fantastic trout and salmon fishing, partridge and woodcock is epic. Deer density very low in north , higher down south but too many houses, people for me

 

[stealthy_bowman]

NJ has infinite amounts of deer if you can find a place to hunt.

Lots of public land in NJ, including some fantastic limited access areas that are insanely easy to get permits for because no one seems to bother any more. Just need to do some homework. All the info you need is provided on the NJ Fish and wildlife site.

Edit: I'm going to make it easy...Public Deer Hunting Land in NJ and NJ Div of Fish & Wildlife site

 

[rwc101]

What is whitetail hunting like down in VA/West VA?

Varies widely. If you're making the trip, avoid any county that allows dog hunting.

EDIT: @VAspeedgoat covered it. I worked at the Great Dismal Swamp NWR in high school. It's a neat place to chase bears if you're looking for more of an experience vs. meat hunt.

 

[VAspeedgoat]

One thing to get used to in the east is some states don't allow Sunday hunting. Maine is one. Virginia allows it but not on public land.

 

[Dinkshooter]

LOL Eastern Tenderfoots are funny!

 

[thusby]

Big woods whitetail is going to eat your lunch for a few years. It is one of the most challenging hunts I have endured for the past 7 years.

 

[1_pointer]

Couple things I'd be looking into:
-Spring bear hunts in Maine on reservation lands
-snowshoe hares behind dogs
-bear trapping in Maine
-stripper/shark fishing in the salt
-sea ducks
-ruffed grouse hunting

Get close to IN let me know.

 

[crock239]

On public land are you guys using climbing stands and packing them in?

For me, quite often yes, the meat shelf on a quality pack makes for pretty easy climber packing. I've got a Lone Wolf climber that's especially good for this as it folds down almost completely flat.

Other times/places I'll use inexpensive hang-on stands w climbing sticks....inexpensive is key as a decent chance it'll grow legs if u leave it on public, but still cheaper than most leases!

Good luck with your move!

 

[VAspeedgoat]

Hadn't seen the stand question. If I am on public I wouldn't waste time with a stand unless I'm bowhunting. If it's rifle/muzzleloader you will need to put in too many miles unless you just find a honeyhole. I know a few guys who will chain a ladder stand but my preference is a lock on/hanger. Put a lock on the stand and use screw in steps. When you come out in the evening you unscrew the last 6 feet. Keeps most people at bay and won't break permanent stand regulations on public. A climber can be done similar. Chain it to the tree and chain it together so it can't be used.

 

[Slm864]

Growing up hunting eastern whitetails I always had the impression that you had to drag all your deer out of the woods because that is what my grandpa had taught me. Once I hunted out west I realized I could break deer down and pack them out on my back which greatly increased my range. I wish it wouldn’t have taken me years to learn something so simple but implementing backcountry methods definitely translate well to hunting big woods whitetails on public land IMO.

 

[Slm864]

Put a lock on the stand and use screw in steps. When you come out in the evening you unscrew the last 6 feet. Keeps most people at bay and won't break permanent stand regulations on public. A climber can be done similar. Chain it to the tree and chain it together so it can't be used.

A lot of public lands have rules about screw in steps or sometimes even leaving permanent stands in place. A good lightweight climber has always been my go to.

 

[BAKPAKR]

What is whitetail hunting like down in VA/West VA?

West Virginia has a lot of deer and fairly liberal bag limits. There are also a lot of bears. We are fortunate to have quite a bit of National Forest land, including several wilderness areas. Unfortunately, the deer numbers don’t appear to be as high in counties with a lot of National Forest. However, based on the way I hunt, I would much rather be free to wander over miles of public land with lower deer densities than be confined to a small private tract. There are also several state-managed public hunting areas.

I have never taken a good buck here but some are shot each year. I think most of those are found on private property.

Although there are many hunting opportunities in West Virginia, if I were living in Massachusetts, I would probably head to the big woods of Maine, New Hampshire, or Vermont and try some of the tactics of the Benoit family.

 

[JFish]

I will second carrying a climber in. Several models and price points.The Lone Wolfe stands, although pricey, pack down small and are fairly light, also super quiet to set up. I strap mine to my mystery ranch and don’t even know it’s there. If you are a member of guidefitter lone Wolfe offers some generous deals.

I also rig a ladder stand on a bicycle and carry it in to set up ahead of season on public land for my dad. However I do stress that we will find out it’s missing at about 0530 am during peak rut.

Ive toyed with the idea of going down the rabbit hole of trying a saddle but the initial startup cost turns me away.

 

[stealthy_bowman]

Growing up hunting eastern whitetails I always had the impression that you had to drag all your deer out of the woods because that is what my grandpa had taught me. Once I hunted out west I realized I could break deer down and pack them out on my back which greatly increased my range. I wish it wouldn’t have taken me years to learn something so simple but implementing backcountry methods definitely translate well to hunting big woods whitetails on public land IMO.

Totally agree with this. So many ridiculously stupid drags, over shale rock and up and down hills, could have been so much easier by simply breaking the animal down and packing it out. Don't know why that never occurred to me until I started hunting west...