Starting over in a new state
Life is mysterious and takes us in many directions. Health, work, and family can take us all in many directions. Trough out our lives we move towards and away from pass times and hobbies. What do we do after life’s curveballs?
This is a part of life that can be challenging. Where it gets hard is forgetting some of the things we have learned or got comfortable with over time. We also need to remember knowledge and tools we may not have had to use in some time.
We will find ourselves at a new crossroad for a pastime we enjoy lacking the mentorship we had at the time in the beginning. I have been blessed with being able to move around and live many places. With the numerous new experiences comes some setbacks as well. Fishing and hunting are my go-to pass times but with every move to a new area or state even I am forced to start over. I will admit this is substantially easier for me. Like everything in life, the more you do it the better you get.
Where to start it is the mind set
I never move to an area or state and own my land. This means I am going to be hunting state land. I will be in direct competition with great people that have hunted that land for decades. Its overwhelming to start over but I have a few tips and tricks to ease the pain.
Remember the beginning. The time and excitement when everything was new to you. The adventure of the chase not only in your target species but in pursuit of knowledge. Forget the same old same old you know remember the traits tactics and behaviors. I love the adventure of learning a new place or area.
Map Study
I always start with map study. We need to identify the public land available to us first. Once I start to identify areas that have public access. I research the rules and regulations for each area. You don’t want to spend a lot of time deep diving into map study just to find out an area is under special regulations. Some areas are true refuges with no hunting others are by permit or draw. Some area requires reservations. You will want to know all the rules before you deep dive.
Second, I look at access points. This is critical. I need to know where everyone can be coming from at any given time. Here is a juicy tidbit. I am more concerned at the habits of the hunters than I am of the hunted. Yes, you read that correctly. Knowing what the hunter is doing will also dictate what the hunted are going to do. I have out classed allot of public land hunters by knowing what they are doing.
Boots on ground
After I figure out the access points, I will then start breaking down the lay of the land. Finding natural travel corridors, bedding areas, food sources, and thermal cover for large game like deer. If I am in pursuit of waterfowl. I look for roosting areas, food sources and a rough fly zone based on wind directions and roosting areas.
After I have done my map study and I understand the laws I put boots on the ground. I am here for two reasons. First, I am getting familiar with all the access points looking at each location advantage and disadvantages. Second, I am also looking at the amount of use each spot gets rough idea of how many people can park at each location are more people parking in an area even along side a road for overflow etc.
After I have canvassed the access points noting if anybody was there and how much activity is at any of the locations, I go to the location with fewer signs of people activity. I will think why it is this spot gets less traffic. Is there a huge obstacle in the way like a swamp or gorge? Does the prevailing wind just not line up for this location? Or is it just to thick with cover and not easy walking?
Once I put my finger on what that something might be I will go to work. I will hike the area figuring out how to get to what I believe is the main travel areas used to move between the bedding areas and feeding areas. After I identify those areas, I start looking for secondary travel areas that are harder to find and easier to miss when scouting. In all my experience if I can find a way to access an area from a totally different direction that everyone else is coming into it will equal more opportunities for me.
Putting it all together
I now know what my fellow hunters are doing and what the game is doing. Now its time to put a plan together. My first trip I go with no expectations because I don’t have proof that any of these best guesses are true. I will be to my area hours before anyone else. I want to know if my judgments are true and if I am not the first person in, I will not know if I put everything together or not.
I will do all the standard things check wind, weather, and activity charts before I go. I will also lay up for a better vantage point that may not be ideal for shooting but would still provide a comfortable opportunity. By doing this it will also allow me to observe the hunters just as easy as the prey. I will have all my senses on high alert.
A good percentage of the time I am using my fellow hunter’s activity and skill level against them and to my advantage. This has worked in my favor countless times especially when chasing the good old thunder chickens aka wild turkeys. I create the right spot at the right moment.
Tools I use
First off for map study you can’t beat google maps for a free option https://www.google.com/maps/@32.9752949,-97.5355564,15z . I also use ONX hunt app I pay for the premium version that gives me access to all the states for 100 dollars a year https://www.onxmaps.com/ .
I will utilize the states department of natural resources website for rules and regulations. I will also look at the state universities data base on any studies that have been conducted in an area. These scientific articles will provide population densities and conservation efforts. Look at harvest information this is also an indicator of population density. Look at weather data NOAA https://www.noaa.gov/ for rainfall totals historical and current. This information can help you gauge food abundance and shortages. This will also let you identify areas that may be holding water for migratory birds that don’t normally do. It will also show you if areas that normally hold water that may be dry on a drought year. Always ground truth a water area.
Finally make some friends utilizing social media or joining local organizations of common interest. If you don’t come across as a spot stealer or looking for the easy way out, you can gain greater knowledge quickly. I have several great hunting buddies in several states from New York to Wyoming.
Thank you for reading. I hope this helps you get moving in the direction of enjoying what we first enjoyed about hunting. I hope this helps ease the pain and fear of learning it all over again.
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