Just need a little coaching.
 

Hi folks how are you all doing? I was wondering if any body in this web sight fourm hunts public land, and if so were would be some realy good spots to go with in about 150 to 200 miles of the DFW area? I just got started in this bow hunting thing about the end of last deer season. I also just bought a Hoyt usa ZR200 bow to hunt with this year. Also I could use some hunting and scouting tips when out in the field looking for deer. Because this is a :roll: new thing to me and I am realy pumped about it. I have been practiceing alot about three times a week so I could use all the info I can get to help me in the feild. Thanks a bunch and good luck hunting. From the hunting and fishing buff 1hoyt,hunter...... :roll:

Welcome to the site!

Have you narrowed down a few areas that you thought you might like to hunt?

I know Tomme does alot of hunting around Ft. Hood. Beleg hunts around Granger and some other areas that are in the PLHP.

I hunt alot in the Sam Houston National Forest and learned to scout as much during the off season, then again a few weeks before season to find productive areas with lots of sign and the vegetation that the deer prefer to browse on.

I'll look for the link for the site I've used that refrences the prefered bowse for whitetails in the various geographical areas and post it.....my personal pc is being worked on and that link is saved to favorites. I found it by doing a google.com search.

Also getting off the "beaten path" helps as well when hunting these areas. Find heavy trails, old rub/scrape lines and areas with lots of food and set up. Most hunters hunt within a few hundred yards of the main roads, so going deep pays off, that and it is more enjoyable as you will see more game of every type. Acorns are the preffered mast crop and whitetails will seek them out first. Whites are preferred over Red acorns thought hey will eat them after the whites are gone or if the are has more red oaks then white.

Also...remember that the deer on PL's aren't "programmed" the way they are on leases or private land that relyon feeders. They move when they want and I have killed most of my deer between 11 and 1 O'clock as they are not conditioned to hit a feeder programmed to sling feed at first and last light. Though the golden time of pre-dusk is always good where ever ya go.

Let us know what areas ya had in mind and I'm sure there are folks who have hunted it.

public land thoughts......
 

hey thanks bowjunkie. I would like to learn more about lake whitney and lake aquilla. I also heard about caddo national grasslands, lake tawakoni, and ray roberts are some good places to hunt deer and hogs. What do you all think about were would be some realy good spots to go on thoes places or were else would be a good spot to go? Thanks evey one from 1hoyt,hunter.

Lake Whitney is an easy permit to acquire. Whitney is a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lake and as with all Corps of Engineer property, you have to have Hunter Ed in order to hunt. Here's a link to the Lake
Whitney webpage.

http://www.swf-wc.usace.army.mil/whitney/pages/

Lake Aquilla is a Corps lake but the wildlife is managed by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD). You need to purchase a $48 Annual Public Hunting Permit (APHP) from any place that hunting/fishing licenses are sold in order to hunt APHP areas. There is a lot of land in the APHP system. Bowhunters have opportunities to hunt management areas that aren't open to gun hunters. Here is a link to public hunting on TPWD webpage.

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/hunt/public_hunting/

Caddo National Grasslands is part of the U.S. Forest Service. Portions of the grasslands are managed by TPWD under the APHP program and part of the grasslands are under Forest Service control. I haven't hunted the grasslands in so long I can't help you with any information.

Ray Roberts and Tawakoni are under the TPWD Annual Public Hunting program.

Lake Benbrook is open to bowhunters and you can still apply for a permit. The next application deadline is in October so you have plenty of time. Benbrook is just outside Ft. Worth. Give them a call and they will mail you an application.

Benbrook Project Office
P.O. Box 26619
Fort Worth, Texas 76126-0619
Phone: (817) 292-2400
Fax: (817) 346-0021

Hope this helps. There are a lot more public hunting opportunites than most people realize. Check with the Corps of Engineers, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Hagerman NWR and Aransas NWR), Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, U.S. Army (Ft. Hood), some of the Texas river authorities have bowhunting opportunities (Coleto Creek), etc.

So far this season I will be hunting Corps of Engineers (I have permits for Lake Georgetown and Whitney), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Hagerman NWR, Segment D), Texas Parks and Wildlife (Special Permit at Richland Creek WMA) and others I won't reveal over the internet due to the competitive nature of getting drawn for the hunts. Good luck.

I'll just chip in a couple of words about Ft Hood. It's about 120miles from Dallas and Ft Worth. You have to have a Ft Hood hunting permit which costs about $105, but the good news is that you can hunt the whole post in October and that there are areas which are reserved for bowhunting only even during the rifle season. Lots of land and lots of deer.

Tomme,

Check out the latest edition of Buckmasters Magazine. There is an article about a monster buck taken on Ft. Hood. Once this info gets out you may have some serious competetion for hunt space on the reservation.

Thanks, I'll do that, but I've found that most folks won't go through the hassles to get the passes, even though the cost is a bargain. Even of those who do, a lot of them stop bowhunting when rifle season stops.