I am trying to figure out what I am doing wrong.I have been on a lease / hunting club for two years in the Nac area and have not seen a deer during hunting hours. I am considering this the Piney woods area. I have two areas to hunt. One area is about 40 acres with a creek or ditch to the main creek and hills. I have a feeder next to a draw coming off the hill down to the creek. I had a food plot on the old logging road last year, but opted to not put one in this year since I had nothing but pigs coming to the feeder according to the cameras. I do have fun shooting the pigs. I moved my camera and did manage to get one doe in a months time.
Area two I have put an L shaped food plot of about a 1/4 to 1/2 acre that sets next to a creek arm and 300 hundred yards from the power line. I have seen more deer on the camera at night than area one, no shooters, but several deer. These areas are pretty thick since I like to bow hunt.

I have put in my time in the stand, and scouting, but do not see sign like I would expect. Out of 3000 acres and about 29 hunters, I have seen about 10 deer shot in two years. This group of guys are about shooting the mature older deer.

Is it me or the county area?

man you need to move to a different lease.
If I didnt see a deer on a weekend of hunting I would throw in the flag.
Texas has way to many deer for you to be wasting your time at a place like that. I know of a piece of public land a stones throw from my house that there has already been over 10 bucks and 5 does killed this season alone. You are only getting older and i dont know about you, but I value my time in the woods,, at least make it worth your while.

find you a good creek or short pines and be there often.

That's E Tx for ya. Might try taking the feeder out. Worked for me anyways.

From my experience, deer in East Texas seem to shy away from feeders til after dark. I hunt a travel corridor now and see way more deer way more often. You could try hand throwing corn. That seems to work better for me. East Texas deer are a totally different breed. They get hunted year round so they are much smarter imo.

Yes we have a place in jefferson and for the longest time didnt see any deer there during season, After we did some work we have started seeing more deer on cam, mostly at night. This yr how ever a brusier was spotted crusing thru the place. East tx is abit harder to hunt in.

I feel your pain. I've been hunting in Nacogdoches for 7 years now and it's not as easy as S. Texas. Deer have plenty of cover and plenty of food. Just like you, I failed my first two years, but could see signs that there were deer. Not to mention that the other hunters on the lease managed to kill deer, so I sucked in my pride and realized that it was me that was problem. I did the research, bought a game camera, put in the time, and started to see results by my fourth year. Now I see deer every time I go out. This is what you need to know in order to survive in Nacogdoches Texas... Piney Woods!

1. Don't do deer feeders. Reason: The first thing I did was put up a deer feeder when I got the lease and was excited to see deer tracks. Wow! I have deer coming to my feeder.. I'm going to kill a [censored] load of deer... wrong. There is so much food out there during the summer that they stop by once a week just to nibble at the corn. The only time they really start hitting the deer feaders is in late December around this time because everything is dead. That gives us (the hunter) a 2 to 4 week opportunity to hunt the deer feeder. Also I put a game camera looking at the feeder and would see the does and spikes stop by once a week, but never a monster buck. I thought, hell there are no bucks out there. Then hogs knocked down my feeder and I was forced to move the game camera. So I tied it to a tree away from the deer feeder and bam... buck after buck after buck. Thats when it hit me... bucks (in Nacogdoches) don't like deer feeders. They stay away from them. So I took down the deer feeder and read a story about corning the roads. So 4 months before hunting season I would corn the roads 1 to 2 times a month. I would throw 2 bags of corn all along the trail in my area about 100 yards. This is a quick and easy way to get them going to your area. Because if there not there is because they already have a favorite spot they like to hang around in. It's so wooded in Nacogdoches your furthest shot is probably no more than 60 yards. They probably travel 2 miles max in a small area and once they have a favorite spot they stay there. I see the same deer over and over all year round. I can give them names if I wanted. It's only when the shooting starts that you start seeing other deer that you haven't seen before. But corning the roads is by far the fastest way to get them to notice your area. On a side note. I tried corning the roads during spring, but quickly realized that the deer stopped eating it. The corn that I threw was actually growing corn. I guess there was so much food now that they preferred the green stuff better.

2. Make a food plot. I've tried Biologics, Whitetail Inst, Tecomate, and some academy brand thats really cheap. They all worked and they all attracted the deer and kept them there. I've tried clover, Brissica, Power Plant, and buck beans. The one that worked the best and was designed for providing the most tonnage per square foot was Power Plant by Whitetail Institute. It is also the most expensive. It cost about 120 dollars for 1 acre. Ya I know... I'm a dumb [censored]... well I plant the stuff as the directions describe and bam my stuff is growing great. It's got sorghum, peas, beans, and sunflowers.. It was about 2 to 3 months into it and you can see the deer starting the graze on it big time. I had tons of pictures of deer just eating the [censored] up.... but here comes the sad part. I show up one day and realize hey my sorghum is starting to turn red. Right now it's about 5 feet high and it's thick you couldn't even walk thru there if you wanted to. You could actually see the trails deer made through it and man I was excited. So two weeks later I come back to check on the pictures and my food plot was gone. Everything was on the floor, I though some one chopped up my food plot. I was pissed.. I started looking at the floor for signs of tire tracks or foot prints. But I saw something else. I saw pile after pile of hog [censored]. I guess they like sorghum. So I switched to Buck beans from Tecomate during the spring. It's got Peas and beans... and it's like 30 dollars a bag. They keep it nice and trimmed during the summer. I'd say about 3 feet high at most. Then I switch to no plow (Brissica) from White tail Institute for fall 30 bucks. I tried the Academy brand (has Brissica, clover, and Rye grass)and it also worked 14 bucks I think.... it's cheap but works. Doesn't look as good as the White Tail brand but when your broke... or don't have the time just stop by academy in Lufkin. It was only after I made my food plot that I started to see large amounts of deer hanging around my area during the spring and summer.

3. Location, Location, Location. I'm not completely sold on this one. In the pined woods of Nacogdoches I think they can be anywhere. The one thing that can affect you is your shooting lanes. If your like me I have 60 yard shots. You see deer for a max of 8 seconds before they disappear and they don't even make a noise. So you have to stay awake and you have to be on the look out. It's not like south texas were it's wide open and you can see them 300 yards away for 30 minutes. In Nacogdoches there is still so much food for deer in October, and November that once the shooting starts the mature bucks don't come out during the day (won't see them until it gets cold as [censored]) I've shot mature bucks 4 years straight every year except for last year. (damn that 13 inch rule) Always when it's freezing. Temp usually around the high 20's in the morning. I'm guessing it gets so cold that instead of the deer moving at night they bed down in some thermal cover. (deep brush that blocks out the cold wind). So the deer are forced to eat during the day when it's warmer.

Other than that... it's all about luck. But when you do get something, let me tell you... it's way better than any south texas deer. It's something that you know that you had to work hard for. South Texas may have a [censored] load of deer and they could more than likely max out in one day and look at east texas hunters and say what's wrong with you what do you mean you haven't shot a deer. But they just don't understand. It's hard work and actually learning more about deer than your own wife. Once you get that deer even if it's got a 13 1/16 inch spread... your going to want to hug it and kiss it and brag to all your friends even mount it on the wall right above the bed.

Anyways... hope this helps... Good Luck out there...the cold front just come through and the temps are dropping... you got 4 more weeks of hunting... since you can't shoot doe anymore this is the time to hit the stand...

Why do you consider that you're doing something wrong?

How are the other hunters on your lease doing?

What is the area around your lease like?

What does the deer sign for your lease look like?

Has it everbeen survey?

How much pre-season scouting have you done?

If you find a more productive area of the lease, can you move off of area 1 and onto the new area?

Believe me when I say I know your frustration. When I first started hunting deer, is Louisiana, it took me 3 years before I ever shot my first deer. I was on a lease that was a Pine plantation and yes it got frustrating not seeing deer. What kept me going was the fact the lease did produce deer. We had 2200 acres and 33 members. Other then opening weekend, I don't think we had more then 12 hunters on each weekend, except the 7 of us that were there each and every weekend.

Like you I had two stands, one I never saw any deer on at all, and the other I saw a couple, but I never took any deer from my stands. The deer I shot was on one of the other members stand, who wanted to see me get my first deer. On Rodney's stand he had deer coming to his food plot, which was large 50' x 100' in an open area. His stand was 50 to 100 yards away, and was a box stand. He had the deer patterned pretty well, and on that evening day, he called it. The deer came in right at dusk. His only deal was I didn't shoot the buck, which wasn't a problem, since I had 2 does and 2 fawns come in. Once I saw which doe wasn't the moma, I busted the other.

I don't believe you're doing anything wrong, which is why I posted my questions. I can't tell you the number of hours I put in trying to get my first deer. Folks can say what they want about the Hill country area and how the deer are tiny, but after hunting a pine plantation and not seeing deer, I'll take tiny deer any day of the week. I don't have to shoot anything and everything, but on a Pine plantation, you need to take the first one you see, if you want some meat in the freazer.

Hang in there and see where else you can hunt. With 3000 acres and 29 hunters, there has got to be areas, you can set up on with either a mobile stand or a ground blind. Find the pinch points. Also, on your spots, if you're only hunting on the weekend, remember the deer pattern you like we pattern them. Try taking a Wednesday off and get to your stands.

Now before you give up completely, find some place new to hunt. I've yet to get a lease and feel my public deer hunting in Texas are limited.

Great advice here so far. Now, it's been touched on here, but I think still overlooked: I don't think there's a large compatibility between large numbers of deer and large numbers of hogs. In fact, I am sure of it. They both compete for habitat, etc. And the sooner us deer hunters get on the hog eradication wagon, the better off we and our deer herds are going to be. Hogs are invasive, destructive and non-indigenous, and in my opinion, a detriment to quality deer hunting.

I am now a hog exterminator and every other deer hunter concerned about their herd and habitat should be too.

[quote=TheDrunk]
Other than that... it's all about luck. But when you do get something, let me tell you... it's way better than any south texas deer. It's something that you know that you had to work hard for. South Texas may have a [censored] load of deer and they could more than likely max out in one day and look at east texas hunters and say what's wrong with you what do you mean you haven't shot a deer. But they just don't understand. It's hard work and actually learning more about deer than your own wife. Once you get that deer even if it's got a 13 1/16 inch spread... your going to want to hug it and kiss it and brag to all your friends even mount it on the wall right above the bed.

[quote]


dude...I was wondering about your name.....now I think you may actually be drunk.

I've shot deer in the hill country, south texas and east texas, and I can say with no uncertainty that my south texas experiances have been way more magical and fun than any hill country or piney woods bullsh*t.

We hunted in the piney woods for 4 years when I lived in houston....we had too places..one 90 acres that was mostly pines and then 600 acres that was a good mix of hardwoods and pines.

we hardly ever saw deer on the 90 acres, so I never hunted it. we saw tons of deer on the 600, and I usually only hunted a 100 acre section. 6-10 deer per sit was common.

I think you need to get a new hunting location.

also, the by the above posters statement its obvious he has never hunted south texas....its not about killing A deer, its about killing THE deer

It sounds like you may need to look at some other leases. East TX hunting is harder than South TX or the hill country, but it's not that hard. I've hunted East TX my whole life, and never had a place that the hunting was as slow as what you are describing. This year has been very slow in East Tx on my place, and pretty much everybody around here is saying the same thing, but last year was a great year here. Even this year I've only been a few times when I didn't at least see some does. They haven't been hitting feeders hard because there are lots of acorns in the woods, or there were anyway, they are hitting the feeders better now from what I'm seeing. If it's been that slow the last 2 years for you, you might need to move. If you can't swing a new lease, at least maybe try to get a different stand location on the lease you are on. Good luck!!

THE deer is avoiding me like the plague this season.





East Tx (Nac Co)isn't that much different than hunting other places. If deer are showing up on feeders at night, but not daylight hours, they are still in the area, they could just be feeding right past the feeder and not coming out in a shooting lane. There are plenty of deer in the county, and you can see them if pressure is limited, but it seems that 29 hunters on 3000 acres with the ability of having 2 stand locations will have the deer a little skiddish of walking out in any opening. We have very limited pressure on the areas we hunt and bucks usually have no problem staying out in openings.

find a active trail that crosses the creek and set up a blind... East Texas hunting can be hard.

There is no need to get upset. I understand it's about getting the deer. But, if the man wanted advise for hunting in Nacogdoches that's exactly what I gave him. Obviously if it was only about that monster buck... I would have told him to go out and pay for one. I'm sure spending 10,000 at a top dollar management ranch will give him that. Also, I've hunted in Mexico, and Rio Grande Valley for 5 years and it's nice to see deer walking up to the feeders every day all day. It's nice to be able to pass up on 8 pointers even 10 pointers because you want to see that monster buck. When your so use to seeing that and you go to Nacogdoches and see nothing... ya.. I could see where you would say go find another lease. But then that's not hunting is it? The guy wanted advise on How to hunt Piney woods. I'm sorry if you think that is a bad idea, but I didn't see anything the first year I was there... on a 600 acre land... with 10 hunters... the average deer taken was 1 per hunter all does and spikes. After all my hard work to make this lease work for me, (because i hated driving 6 to 10 hours to go hunt the valley and Mexico not to mention the money that I spent). Now everyone around me including myself will get their 2 does and get a chance to shoot at a nice buck. The problem I have now is that other hunters on the lease use my blind when I'm not there. When you put in the work to get the deer to go and stay in your area, it sucks when people just show up and kill off your blind. That's hunting in Piney woods for you... I feel like Gollum from lord of the rings... My precious! Mine.. Mine.. Mine... My precious.... Give it back!

I haven't read through this entire thing, but if this has been repeated, I apologize. If you have the ability to do so, and it's not a violation of the lease, clear yourself some paths through the area you hunt and make yourself some good shooting lanes and some nice edges. Deer are like the rest of us, and like to take the easiest way they can when they go anywhere.

I had a place south of palestine and we saw one deer there the first year. Before the second season started, we had a new member go in with a brush hog and clear out some paths and we all seen a lot more deer that season.

Set up a stand and hunt where the acorns are dropping which is going to be in the woods where tons of oak trees are located. This has improved my hunting a bunch. You are just going to have to spend as much time in the woods as possible looking for trails that run through the oak tree bottoms and hardwoods.

I think what TheDrunk said up there is true - especially the part about feeders.

I've got a 3,600 lease in Sterling County (West Texas south of Midland). Deer are everywhere out there. My 11 year old son took two large mature 10 pts. in two days during Youth Weekend. It is always easy out there to get big bucks out there.

I live in Longview. Sterling County is a 7 1/2 drive for me. Just for fun this year I put out two feeders and game cameras on my land in Gregg County.

I have spent several months looking at pictures of good bucks but always outside of hunting hours. I finally decided to put up a blind. I put it down in a draw looking up a hill with oak trees and lots of green clover and grasses. To my surprise, the doe and bucks were coming in and going right past the feeders and not paying them any attention and going straight for the acorns and green clover on the hill. These deer never showed up on my game cameras because they never stopped at the feeders.

To make a long story short, I shot my first East Texas buck this past Thursday night. He was a beautiful 8 pointer that I am going to have mounted. He was a 4 1/2 year old buck and one that I am as proud of as any of the "trophy" bucks I have taken out in Sterling County.

East Texas is different - it is harder to hunt but it is possible to get some nice deer if you are willing to put the time in the blind.

The only thing I don't like about East Texas is that since it is so hard to see a nice buck during shooting hours, alot of young bucks are taken by hunters that should have been given another year or two to develop into a better buck.

That seems to be a problem in East Texas that you don't run into out West.

ONE OF THE BEST POST IVE EVER SEEN LMAO

i have a lease in nacodgoches county. Last year we saw a good number od deer. This year has been tough, especially earlier in the season, acrons were everwhere. I had to leave the pipe line ridaway and hit the white oak bottom. Found where they were crossing the creek comming from the thick stuff, and got 2 does and cull buck. These last few weekends been back on the ride away and am seeing some deer come to the feeder. guess what i am trying to say is...hour after hour in the stand.

If you can tell the difference between white oaks and red oaks, then find a white oak tree and set up stand on or near the tree. Make sure it has acorns though. They love them white oaks. Might have to wait until next year though for the acourns to be on the trees.

Thanks for all the information. I have picked the two areas I am hunting because I like to bow hunt so I wanted the thicker creek bottoms(with oaks)and hill sides. The guys on the piplines and cleared areas do see more deer. I have seen deer on my buddies area almost every time. I am going to give it one more year, plant spring and fall food plots, move and fence in my feeder (after shooting several more pigs). There have been 3 spikes and several doe, and 4 or 5 trophy bucks shot this year. The lease has a 14 inch stipulation on antlers instead of the 13 inch. I finally have a good shooter buck on camera in my food plot (spot #2). It was at night on Thanksgiving.
Spot #1 where my feeder is I do not have any room for food plots. But I do have some oak trees I can set up on for Bow hunting.

I'm out on my lease in Sterling County tonight, but here is a picture of a 8 pt. I took last week on my land in Gregg County. There are some really nice bucks in East Texas, but you do have to put in a little time to get them. Then again, it makes it more rewarding having to work hard to get a nice buck instead of sitting in front of a feeder watching a parade of deer feed in front of you.

I hunt both West Texas and East Texas. Totally different techniques, but I like both areas and both styles of hunting. just different.

East Texas can be and usually is some tough deer hunting my friend but I love East Texas.

I loved hunting in East Texas. Didn't care for the locals huntin on the property year round and our feeders, blinds, etc getting stolen. Seems a different breed of folks in the Panhandle. Maybe there are just fewer hiding spots out west.

I know everyone isn't like this. Thought I'd throw that out before we had some buttsore East Texas guys defending their turf.