teach me about deer hunting in francis marion

[urbancommandox]

I've got books of regs and maps. I'll most likely be walking or sitting on the ground becAuse I'm to poor for a stand. I'll probably mount a cheap bushnel 3-9x on the sbr and get some 70gr tsx ammo. Also need to know about some processers. Any advice on where to go and what to look for? Maybe a hunting mentor? Also I see some people saying neck shots but most shooting the rear of the front shoulder blade. I never see people taking head shots. I don't plan on taking a shot over a 100 yards. Open to hogs or deer.

 

[Tigerstripe]

broadside through both lungs, middle of the ribs and you dont ruin any meat. there will be a good trail to follow but it wont go far. unless you see them crash dont follow for 30 minutes. if you do and they get up they wont stop running.

 

[Enjay]

Most places that I've looked at seem to recommend shooting a hog through the shoulder because the heart and lung cavity is small and difficult to hit. It also helps to disable the hog in case your shot doesn't kill it immediately, they can't run you down as fast if their leg is shattered. I hear they get a might touchy about being shot. :roll: silly things.

 

[urbancommandox]

I know field dressing on wmas is a no no. But things like where to park and good places that there are a lot of deer habitating. I know to look for buck rubs. A lot of people say hike to where you think everyone would hunt then hike two miles more. I'm In pretty good shape and hiking or dragging weight is no problem. But where to park and where to go is still iffy. Don't want to be near roads or anything dangerous. Also from what I understand dawn and dusk is the best bet. Mid day is a no travel time for deer.

 

[PCShogun]

Good post as I am a hunting noob for game larger than squirrels. I've also wondered about hunting in Francis Marion. How do you know where other people are hunting? I personally do not want to be shot stalking or walking to the site I selected.

If you cannot dress or butcher in the WMA, where can you do it?I know you can take the carcass to a processor , but I am really trying to do this old school and dress and butcher a few myself (assuming I get lucky).

I studied white tail anatomy and thought that a shot just behind the shoulder blades would be best in a broadside shot and would be good to hit the heart and lungs. Not sure about a head on or rear shot though. I had planned on using a Russian 7.62*54 soft point, or .50 caliber lead ball as my hunting round as I'm not a big shot gun fan.

 

[Tigerstripe]

dragging a 180 lb deer even level and downhill at 200 yards is no walk in the park. 2 miles or more the hide will actually be worn off. i have a friend that goes as deep as he can. why? where do YOU see deer? (crossing a road) they are everywhere not hiding in the deep woods.

as to where are the other hunters? first you need to be scouting a while before the season. then make them know where you are. to be in a tree stand before light you have to travel to it in the dark. use a big flashlight, go early. especially when the time changes i have screwed up and been in the tree an hour before i could even see a deer.

as for doing it the old fashion way, why? if you get the deer to a processor in a couple of hours(4 for the 2 mile drag) they will clean it hang it quickly and cool it. mine is great with packaging. pick it up and pay for it. yeah if i had a good grinder and cuber and a cooler i could do it, but ive helped a processor and its a lot of extra work and expense.

just my 2 cents. everybody does it their own way.

 

[urbancommandox]

I'm 6 ft 250 pounds of muscle dragging the deer is my last worry. Plus I've seen those little one time use sleds. During my hunters safety class they said no matter how much Orange your wearing don't carry it unless its completely covered and in a bright Orange carrying device od some idiot will take a shot at you


Edit to add: ill take recommendations on processers to.

 

[PCShogun]

as for doing it the old fashion way, why? if you get the deer to a processor in a couple of hours(4 for the 2 mile drag) they will clean it hang it quickly and cool it. mine is great with packaging. pick it up and pay for it. yeah if i had a good grinder and cuber and a cooler i could do it, but ive helped a processor and its a lot of extra work and expense.

just my 2 cents. everybody does it their own way.

To be honest, I simply want to know if I can do it. In a survival situation, there will not be a processor nearby. Can you not field dress an animal in the woods? That would take a lot of the weight away. I was always told to keep a bag of ice in a cooler to throw in the cavity to cool it down.

What does a processor charge to "Process" an average deer?

 

[urbancommandox]

Wma you can't gut them in the woods unless you carry all the guts out to. Private land or but clubs are different.

 

[Tigerstripe]

as for doing it the old fashion way, why? if you get the deer to a processor in a couple of hours(4 for the 2 mile drag) they will clean it hang it quickly and cool it. mine is great with packaging. pick it up and pay for it. yeah if i had a good grinder and cuber and a cooler i could do it, but ive helped a processor and its a lot of extra work and expense.

just my 2 cents. everybody does it their own way.

To be honest, I simply want to know if I can do it. In a survival situation, there will not be a processor nearby. Can you not field dress an animal in the woods? That would take a lot of the weight away. I was always told to keep a bag of ice in a cooler to throw in the cavity to cool it down.

What does a processor charge to "Process" an average deer?

an average deer is around 50 bucks. some charge for gutting and most charge for caping, for a mount. as for doing it, im sure you can. unlike TV shows, blood is weird. it gets EVERYWHERE. then you are picking up dirt, leaves... i learned from a processor that he just discards the ribs saying thats where the gamey smell and taste comes from. thats ok if you clean kill it through the ribs, lung shot. if you hit a leg, shoulder you must cut away all the meat that has blood and concussion from the blast.

giving it a go is an idea. plenty of people do. get yourself a refridgerator to hang it in or another way is to quarter the deer, plus the backstraps, and put it in a large cooler. cover with ice water, drain and replace daily for 2 or 3 days. all the blood will come out of the meat. it will look white. some say thats the best way.

when you go to cut, cut the seperate muscles apart. thats best for a grinder or cuber but thats all i want, cube and burger. take a quarter and put it on the bandsaw if you want steaks.

you can visit a processor and watch. they dont care. well maybe not the meat cutting but you can watch them get one ready for the cooler.
might sound wasteful but its not really. i shot a young deer, took it home, hung it up, slice the skin on the rear legs and pull down to the neck, cut out the backstraps, remove legs and discard the rest. no gutting. place meat in cooler.

as many options as opinions.

 

[PCShogun]

I've thought about go to a processor and donating some time to have them show me the process, or perhaps a 12 pack if they do not want / need the labor.

 

[Guitargene82]

Thinking about the same sorta things, anyone familiar with or tried http://www.thelowcountryoutfitters.com/

$75 for a morning or afternoon seems reasonable enough.

 

[Enjay]

Dismantling game isn't that difficult but it is a fair bit of work and I can understand why someone might prefer to have a processor do it. Still, I think it's a skill worth having. I would make one strong suggestion, and that's tick repellent. You probably don't want to wear it while you're hunting because the scent might put the game off, but once you've shot your quarry I'd suggest giving yourself a good spritz before handling it, especially as the animal starts to cool off and the critters start looking for new homes. I would be wary of hefting game up onto my shoulder for that reason alone.

After gutting and skinning the animals I quarter them and keep them on ice in coolers for at least 24 hours, up to 2-3 days. With boar hogs I add a gallon or so of milk to the cooler for the last 24 hours as I find that helps to neutralize the strong odors and flavors. Deer are susceptible to a disease called Chronic Wasting Disease that they can carry in their nervous system, bone marrow and glandular tissues. While the epidemic seems to be mostly in the central/midwestern states and is not much of a problem here I prefer to dispose of these tissues just to be on the safe side.

I've heard from a lot of people that they throw deer ribs away. We strip the meat off of them and grind it into hamburger with a little bit of bacon ends and pieces and I've never noticed a difference in taste or gaminess but your mileage may vary.

Good luck and keep us updated if you decide to go hunting.

 

[Hillbluffer]

Hunting on public land seriously, you need to look at a stand. I've still hunted on GMA land with little success. Using a stand makes things a lot nicer. It's worth the money for the increased chances of a successful hunt.

 

[PCShogun]

Thinking about the same sorta things, anyone familiar with or tried http://www.thelowcountryoutfitters.com/

$75 for a morning or afternoon seems reasonable enough.

Seems like a good idea for a beginner, like me.

Even if you don't take a deer, having someone to talk to about it could be worth the while, and the cost.

 

[urbancommandox]

Website isnt phone friendly. when I get on a computer I may shoot em an email. See how much they would charge for a walk along. Haven't bought any of the hunting licenses yet. Also deciding if I will use the ar in 5.56 with a bullet of the tsx variety or use the x39 with the 152? Grain soft point people rave about. Don't know if I want to pick up another caliber.

 

[Tigerstripe]

PCShogun, ill take you hunting for $75.00. 40 years experience.

i killed a small buck opening day for gun season, and saturday i let a small doe go, let her mill around as bait till she wandered off.

im in the upstate though.

 

[Tigerstripe]

.

 

[Tigerstripe]

urban, ive killed deer with a 223 but 762x39 would be better to start with. done it with that also.

 

[urbancommandox]

Right now anyone want a walk along buddy to go hunting with in Charleston county shoot me a message. Willing to help drag, gut, spot, ect but won't be hunting myself just learning. Hogs of deer doesn't matter.