Oklahoma.....

[Lostinthewoods]

Edit: just realized I was replying to a STRONG bump.... geez... 2010!

 

[okie_hotrod]

Not all "Controlled Hunts" are Super Dooper (see my last post). Some of the areas hosting Controlled hunts also allow regular public hunting. Canton is the only one I know off the top of my head.

Yeah there are only a few archery hunts and they generally suck. You've got to be careful when thinking about whitetail hunting. As a general rule, attacking whitetail in OK and most places east of the rockies is not a glassing/spot&stalk endeavuor. Most whitetail reside in thick river/creek bottoms and ag areas which is relatively flat. Food source hunting is the best approach unless you have the time to pattern deer and their travel corridors. Most hunts outside the rut (Mid Nov-Early Dec) will generally mean a low buck percentage kill and almost no mature bucks.

Check out the Results from 2008
http://www.wildlifedepartment.com/controlhuntresults.htm

I make spreadsheets every year so I can focus on areas with high percentage buck kill ratios. I also cross check this with dates to check rut correlation. Send me your email and I'll send them to you.

As for deer tags here is the scoop:
OK has 3 seasons (Archery, ML and Any Weapon(Rifle)) you have the option to buy each one and to get a buck and doe tag for each season...thus 6 deer/year if you bought a buck/doe combo for each of the 3 seasons.
Archery runs from Oct-Mid Jan and this tag is good even during ML and rifle season but you better not have a ML or GUN if all you have is an archery tag
ML runs a couple weeks in late Oct. You can hunt with a bow or ML with this tag.
Rifle runs 19 days around Thanksgiving and is by far the most popular and in OK Thanksgiving is called "Deer Season". This hunt is generally right around the rut in most parts of OK. You can hunt with any weapon if you have this tag and the archery tag runs concurrent with this. Although you better not be caught with a rifle if all you have is the archery tag. Get the gist?

Oklahoma is a lot like Texas as most of the state is private. Public land is realtively small and will be crowded, especially during the rut. However there are still folks with good hunting land in OK that can be leased for nothing or very little if you are a smooth talker.

Hope this helps. I wish I could help you out more on the public hunting scene but I don't do much of that.

If you are interested in high success, low pressure and fun hunting look into Feral hog in Texas and Oklahoma. It's a blast, the meat is good and there are a lot of hogs! Heck most ranchers and farmers will almost kiss you to come irradicate them! Plus you can hunt them 365 days a year and even at night.

Most of that is true, but not all. First, an archery license is good for a buck or doe so 2 licenses could get a buck and a doe or 2 does or 2 bucks.
Also, Oklahoma has a 6 deer limit but only 2 can be antlered regardless of what season they're taken.
Where I live and hunt in SE Oklahoma, the chasing part of the rut generally happens the couple weeks in between ML and rifle. That's when calling and rattling has gotten bucks into bow range best for me.

 

[Lostinthewoods]

Most of that is true, but not all. First, an archery license is good for a buck or doe so 2 licenses could get a buck and a doe or 2 does or 2 bucks.
Also, Oklahoma has a 6 deer limit but only 2 can be antlered regardless of what season they're taken.
Where I live and hunt in SE Oklahoma, the chasing part of the rut generally happens the couple weeks in between ML and rifle. That's when calling and rattling has gotten bucks into bow range best for me.

You are correct about a resident tag being good for a buck or a doe. So two tags would be the two does, buck and a doe, or two bucks (depending on the season), etc
For a non-resident if they purchase an archery tag they are eligible for the 6 tags. (minding the two buck and four doe limit)
2 bucks are the limit, but only one may be taken during rifle and only one may be taken during muzzleloader. The only season you can take two is archery.

I hunt SW Oklahoma too and similar to you I've had some of the best luck Nov 14-24th. To note I killed my biggest public land buck in OK on Nov 28th.
I've always been interested in rattling because I hear all about it's effectiveness, but I always get stage fright when in the field. Mostly because I am so used to hunting deer as silently as possible.

 

[okie_hotrod]

You are correct about a resident tag being good for a buck or a doe. So two tags would be the two does, buck and a doe, or two bucks (depending on the season), etc
For a non-resident if they purchase an archery tag they are eligible for the 6 tags. (minding the two buck and four doe limit)
2 bucks are the limit, but only one may be taken during rifle and only one may be taken during muzzleloader. The only season you can take two is archery.

Yes, that's right. I just didn't want anyone getting confused thinking they could kill 3 bucks. That would get expensive quick.

I do some light rattling in late October but the 1st and second weekend after ML season( and obviously during the week as well but I don't get many of those days off) I take it up a few notches and start getting aggressive. I love the Extinguisher/Black rack combo for getting bucks fired up. I've had at least 2 easy P&Y bucks come running in ready to fight but didn't present a shot. I combine estrus bleats and buck grunts as well as aggressive breeding grunts then hit the antlers like you mean it. If you know the age class of the deer you're chasing it's a lot easier to adjust volume to keep from being too aggressive. I know there's a buck where I hunt that would have been close to Booner status year before last probably got killed. Last and only daylight picture of this monster was November 8th.

 

[WildWill]

Yes, that's right. I just didn't want anyone getting confused thinking they could kill 3 bucks. That would get expensive quick.

I do some light rattling in late October but the 1st and second weekend after ML season( and obviously during the week as well but I don't get many of those days off) I take it up a few notches and start getting aggressive. I love the Extinguisher/Black rack combo for getting bucks fired up. I've had at least 2 easy P&Y bucks come running in ready to fight but didn't present a shot. I combine estrus bleats and buck grunts as well as aggressive breeding grunts then hit the antlers like you mean it. If you know the age class of the deer you're chasing it's a lot easier to adjust volume to keep from being too aggressive. I know there's a buck where I hunt that would have been close to Booner status year before last probably got killed. Last and only daylight picture of this monster was November 8th.

View attachment 85581

I don't remember the exact year it changed but not very long ago Oklahoma was a 3 buck state. That post was from 2010 that may have been correct at the time. Never had much luck with rattling in SE Oklahoma but have had luck in the NW corner of the state. I like the first two weeks of November the best also thing's really heat up especially with any cold front. This year like last year muzzleloader season will run into the first several days of November I can't wait.

 

[okie_hotrod]

It's very possible, I left Oklahoma for almost 9 years for college, jobs, and opportunities so alot probably did change.
Work kept me from ML season last year and it may be the same story this year as well, especially since I'm taking 10 days off for my Colorado elk trip. If not, I hope we get the cold winter everyone's been talking about. It's gonna make work absolutely miserable but the hunting should be awesome.

 

[Rzrbck918]

Amen to that ^^^

 

[Trslabaugh]

Just a heads up to any of you guys that may be coming to Oklahoma to hunt whitetails... If you do gutless method, I'd verify what the game warden requests you do in the area you hunt. I contacted two wardens to confirm that it was legal and what needed to be done in areas that I hunt. Both gave me a different interpretation, so make sure you check!