drives or no drives

I know this is going to stir the pot with some people, but I am just wondering what everyones opinion is on this idea. What do you think of doing deer drives on opening day? I grew up hunting not doing very many drives except for 1 or 2 at the end of the season. The group I hunt with now want to start driving the only piece of property that we can hunt at 9 am on sat. morning and then wonder why we dont see any deer sat. night and sunday. I dont have a problem with doing drives and believe they are very effective if done correctly. I do however not like the idea of doing them right away opening morning and having the only place to hunt have most of the deer kicked out of. Then this brings up another point. They have hunted this land for 30+ yrs and in the last 8 that I have hunted it we have never done a drive the same way and that is not because of the elements . Very seldom do they plan it out and then everyone is just walking and nobody knows what is going on. I guess it just frustrates me to no end to go through this. Every year I say something but I am just married into the family. Anyway if anything else I just wanted to let out the frustration.

IMO i don’t do drives and never will especially on opening day. I don’t gun hunt and i think that “unnatural” movement is bad for your piece of property. But thats my .02

I could write a book but I only got a few minutes. I love WELL DONE drives, and I hate sloppy drives. I think small drives 6-7 people, with alot of posters on escape routes and a couple of drivers who know where to walk, are the most effective and least disruptive. However, we usually don’t drive on opening day, but on the 2nd day we do.

I can’t sit in a stand for a whole day, much less a whole week. The most important question might be what do the neighbors do? If you are the only ones driving deer, it may make it suck for you. If most of the neighbors do, or at least have alot of people walking around the woods at various times, it should be fine.

I agree, If they’re done correctly they can be very effective. But not on opening day. There is nothing worse than going to your evening sit knowing that you just drudged through the whole thing a few hours earlier. you know that feeling when you crawl in your stand and like 3 minutes later you realize that you’re not going to see anything,and you have 3 hours to go.. I hate it. My family and I try to stay away from the home territory alltogether and drive some of the small patches. Those are much easier to run and are more effective IMO. No sens in pushing out an 80 acre woods with no real path for the deer to run.

Over the years my group has done less and less deer drives. I never was a big fan of them anyway. I always ended up as one of the pushers and I did not like the safty factor at all ( I know they can be done saftly )I’m with you I’m not sure why you want to drive all the deer out of the area you plan to hunt that evening. For you sake I hope all the other hunters in the area do the same and they may push a few deer into your area. I would guess that the other hunters in the surronding area love hunting next to your group. I feel for you. Hang in there and best of luck to you. Hopefully you can shoot open opening morning before the push out of your area occur’s.

I am not a fan of deer drives as well. I feel that if done correctly, they can have a very high success rate, but most are just poorly though out. Some of the obvious I notice is taking too large of a piece of woods to drive, putting too much distance between drivers, walking a section too fast, and making too much noise during a drive. I also feel that they mess up a section of woods for consecutive days, thus limiting areas that can be successfully hunted by others.

Where I hunt in NW Wisconsin, deer drives are more popular than NASCAR. Most sections of public land within 10 miles of town are hit consequtively thoughout the season. Some groups have fair success at it, but I feel that the amount of deer taken overall would be higher had drives not been executed and hunters spent that same time sitting still in the woods.

Sorry for the rant guys, but I guess I just have a bad taste for drives especially where I hunt. I have witnessed some very unethical things in the past few seasons, as I have had guys knowingly stand within 10 feet of me in my stand and post up for drives, I have witnessed many posters shoot across highways and other major roads, and I also have seen many drivers have no regard for posted property as well.

I know there are some that are able to execute these drives ethically as well as strategically, and I respect them for doing so. Unfortunately there are not many of these taking place by where I hunt.

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The most important question might be what do the neighbors do? If you are the only ones driving deer, it may make it suck for you. If most of the neighbors do, or at least have alot of people walking around the woods at various times, it should be fine.

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I agree…if the neighbors are not doing any drives then maybe you guys shouldn’t….you’re only pushing the deer towards them. We do drives on the second weekend only. Our neighbors push everything starting on opening day through the second weekend. We like to sit for the first weekend and then we are back the second. And we usually don’t push anything until late Saturday evening. (Gives the deer a safe place to hang out for the week.)

But your situation is tougher because you don’t own it. Continue to speak your concerns and possibly try to fnd some people who share your hunting ideas.

I had a cousin shot and almost killed on a deer drive. I am not sure I want to take chances on my kids or my lives just for a deer. When my kids are on their stands, I know where they are and they know where I am. I personally like it that way. I know many other people who drive, and that is fine by me. I’m just saying it is not my cup of tea. I remember about 10 years ago in WI driving a few woodlots with neighbors of my bro-inlaws. I knew nothing about these people. We had lost sight of them and evidently beyond us to the right, one or more of them kicked up a couple does. We saw the does…and the shots started coming! Problem was, WE were in line with their line of fire! We both hit the ground and slugs were smacking into pine trees all around us. After checking each other for holes that weren’t there before we started, we both agreed to leave and went back to the truck and home thankful to be alive. I know that the rules are in most camps that the pushers don’t shoot, and only posters do. That wasn’t the case here unfortunately.

To me it comes down to this question: What is it you are out there for? If your goal is to see/kill a deer, a well orchestrated drive can be effective. That’s not why I hunt. I crave seeing a deer in his/her element. Not fleeing. Not a flash of brown. That slow crunch, crunch, snap…growing louder with every step. That’s why I’m out there.

Either by sitting in the stand, or executing a really disciplined still hunt – it’s that encounter, of either intercepting natural deer movement, or seeing them before they see you. THAT’S why I hunt.

My .02

I just don’t get people who wait 51 weeks to go hunting, then sit for 3 hours and get bored or whatever. Wait all year then want to start driving woods the first day! in this case the only woods they have. I don’t mind a well executed thought out drive, but 2.5 hours after sunrise on opener? I’m sorry I just can’t fathom hunting with these people, family or not.

If you can’t talk them out of doing drives right away, volunteer to be a driver and hold back(or get turned around ) at the beginning of the drive. There are a lot of nice deer shot sneaking between the drivers heading back toward the direction the drive started.

I love drives that are done well. We shoot most of our big bucks on drives, which is not the norm.

I also agree with the posts about hunting pressure. On an old farm we hunted, there was a 45 minute drive that we drove twice a day. And we always pushed deer out. But we had neighbors on all sides that were running deer all day too.

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The most important question might be what do the neighbors do? If you are the only ones driving deer, it may make it suck for you. If most of the neighbors do, or at least have alot of people walking around the woods at various times, it should be fine.

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I agree…if the neighbors are not doing any drives then maybe you guys shouldn’t….you’re only pushing the deer towards them. We do drives on the second weekend only. Our neighbors push everything starting on opening day through the second weekend. We like to sit for the first weekend and then we are back the second. And we usually don’t push anything until late Saturday evening. (Gives the deer a safe place to hang out for the week.)

But your situation is tougher because you don’t own it. Continue to speak your concerns and possibly try to fnd some people who share your hunting ideas.

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These responses would mirror mine. We have gotten alot of nice deer on drives, but like stated, you have to be able to trust the group your driving with, no deer is worth not being safe and aware of your surroundings. We would never drive deer on opening morning. Drives were done on small patches of woods around our main woods, and the main woods was not driven at all, or after lunch on sunday if the deer were holding tight BTW, many were shot in their beds….

big G

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To me it comes down to this question: What is it you are out there for? If your goal is to see/kill a deer, a well orchestrated drive can be effective. That’s not why I hunt. I crave seeing a deer in his/her element. Not fleeing. Not a flash of brown. That slow crunch, crunch, snap…growing louder with every step. That’s why I’m out there.
Either by sitting in the stand, or executing a really disciplined still hunt – it’s that encounter, of either intercepting natural deer movement, or seeing them before they see you. THAT’S why I hunt.
My .02

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I could not agree more I gun hunt like I bow hunt sitting in the stand, I want to see deer in there natural deer movement. It is not always about killing something every time out. We also manage the land we hunt so that is another reason we do no do drives, Mature bucks will not tolerate this they will leave the area and not come back. The number one reason I do not participate in drives is the safety factor plus the fact that on most drives you are shooting at running deer and that is something I will just not do.

Wow, I’m glad to see that someone posted this as I was thinking the same thing this weekend!
We have taken a couple of decent bucks and a number of does as the result of driving so it is a proven tactic that works. However, many deer have been missed, shot and never recovered, and wounded. It is also true that mature bucks do not tolerate drives and may disperse from the area indefinately. For this reason I do not like the driving tactic. I believe there are many other tactics that provide more of a chance for success (i.e. patterning, spot and stalk, still hunting…).
I had a horrible hunting experience this weekend back on the family farm back in Wisconsin with my dad, brother, brother-in-law, and uncle. I work hard and spend a lot of time and money year round in order to provide a successful hunting experience for ALL OF US! Bowhunting is my passion, but I also enjoy the commeradery of gun hunting. I’ve talked with my family about trying different tactics versus driving with no success. This weekend was a hard lesson learned for me…
I love to sit on stand all day at least for the first two days. I walk to my stand where I’m set-up 45 minutes before first light. I do not exit my stand until 45 minutes after last light. Personally, this is what I like to do to provide myself with the most success in the field. I DO NOT expect everyone else that I hunt with to do this – and they do not. They sit for 2-3 hours at a time and switch stands often. That’s fine with me and that’s what they like to do – I respect that! It would be nice if I got the same respect in return…
Sunday morning my dad said they were going to make some drives. I asked him if they would not drive the piece of property that I was hunting on. So…I hear them driving the entire property late morning, then at 11:30 they start driving behind me, to my left, in front of me, to my right, and even under my stand. They kicked a doe out of her bed – of which I spotted with my binoculars early in the morning. My dad shot and missed. She ran broadside to me at 155 yards. Minutes later my bro text me and said “what happened?”. I replied by saying “it’s hard to make an ethical shot at a deer that’s bounding and running 100 mph. That’s why I think driving is old school and overrated. It most likely would’ve came out later on it’s own”. He replied by saying “sounds like you’ll have to lease some land to do what you want with. This is more than just hunting its about family and commeradery to us”. Then, about and hour later my bro and uncle set up a blind 100 yards to the side of me. They traveled up with their 4-wheelers three times before my uncle finally sat in the blind for the last hour of daylight.
To say the least, I felt (feel) used and disrespected. I would never do this to anybody! I’m lost for words and feel like I should do just what my bro said – find some other place to hunt. They would be lost without all of my strategically placed stands and not knowing what’s out there with no trail cameras or scouting… However, I do not want to do this as I love my fam and I have worked hard to making this a successful property for everyone! Commeradery to me is sharing the experiences and talking about what may come in the future – not disrespecting your fellow hunters or family!!!
I just don’t get it!?! Does anyone have any intelect or ideas for me…I could use it!

I feel for ya Maneck Thats one reason why i hunt by myself, scout by myself, and try to stay away from the crowd. I have a spot where i hunt that would be a prime hunting ground if there weren’t so many idiots hunting it as well. I park by a gate, get ready and head to my spot. If i see another truck/car there before i get there, specifically at night, i wont hunt! I turn around, and decide which other property im going to sit for that morning or evening depending on the wind.
Sounds to me like you should find a spot next gun season and hunt it yourself…it doesn’t sound like youre fulfilling your happiness there, and that no one else is great full for what you do…Some people don’t understand how much WORK goes into hunting; scouting, checking cameras, waking up early in the morning multiple days a week, hanging stands, moving stands, etc.
Some people wonder why MN and WI are not considered “trophy” states is because all of the drives and small bucks that are shot Ive even heard guys in Iowa say that driving is almost unheard of down there, it drives mature bucks out of the property that some people work so hard to manage You don’t see this with bow hunters!! its the gun hunters that are causing this reputation Another reason to take up the tactic

If everyone in your area is doing pushes, where are the mature bucks going to go?

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To me it comes down to this question: What is it you are out there for? If your goal is to see/kill a deer, a well orchestrated drive can be effective. That’s not why I hunt. I crave seeing a deer in his/her element. Not fleeing. Not a flash of brown. That slow crunch, crunch, snap…growing louder with every step. That’s why I’m out there.

Either by sitting in the stand, or executing a really disciplined still hunt – it’s that encounter, of either intercepting natural deer movement, or seeing them before they see you. THAT’S why I hunt.

My .02

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i couldn’t agree more. the gun deer season is so short, that i like sitting in a stand or still hunting.

for action, i love pheasant hunting and driving coyotes out of sloughs. when i want a social hunt (almost like golfing), i love hunting birds and coyotes.

I heard deer drives are illegal in Minnesota. Is this true?

A guy Ive known for a long time was hunting with his father down at the reserviour area years back. They knew there were other hunters driving deer so they decided to stay put and chose an area where the deer would go through running from the other hunters. They both were standing up against a couple trees when they decided to sit down and take a rest. A couple minutes later the other hunters started shooting at deer they were kicking up and a slug hit the tree where Bobs dad was standing just a few minutes earlier right above him, the slug hit the tree right at head level. They immediately left and went back to the car.
Drives can be done safely and when they are well thought out is the only way Id go on one. Deer will run on certain routes more ofthen then others even when pushed by a few guys driving them. Personally I think a drive is much more effective with a couple or just a few guys pushing and the rest of the guys posting on certain trails and in areas that the deer frequent more then others. It would pay to go a couple days befor hand and find those escape routes then post a guy or two and its much safer. Also with a couple guys walking slowly and pushing the deer won’t run as fast and will be an easier shot for the posters. A well though out drive is much safer then a shoot anything as soon as its jumped drive and more deer can be taken. Be careful out there guys and know where the posters are going to be when shooting.

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I heard deer drives are illegal in Minnesota. Is this true?

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You heard wrong, deer drives and party hunting are perfectly legal in MN.

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A guy Ive known for a long time was hunting with his father down at the reserviour area years back. They knew there were other hunters driving deer so they decided to stay put and chose an area where the deer would go through running from the other hunters. They both were standing up against a couple trees when they decided to sit down and take a rest. A couple minutes later the other hunters started shooting at deer they were kicking up and a slug hit the tree where Bobs dad was standing just a few minutes earlier right above him, the slug hit the tree right at head level. They immediately left and went back to the car.
Drives can be done safely and when they are well thought out is the only way Id go on one. Deer will run on certain routes more ofthen then others even when pushed by a few guys driving them. Personally I think a drive is much more effective with a couple or just a few guys pushing and the rest of the guys posting on certain trails and in areas that the deer frequent more then others. It would pay to go a couple days befor hand and find those escape routes then post a guy or two and its much safer. Also with a couple guys walking slowly and pushing the deer won’t run as fast and will be an easier shot for the posters. A well though out drive is much safer then a shoot anything as soon as its jumped drive and more deer can be taken. Be careful out there guys and know where the posters are going to be when shooting.

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To stand in the middle of someone elses drive unknown to them on a known escape route no less is just plain foolish. I was in a situation a few years back where the hunter/tresspasser had to hide behind a tree to avoid being shot. I think his tresspassing days were over at that point.

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Deer will run on certain routes more ofthen then others even when pushed by a few guys driving them. Personally I think a drive is much more effective with a couple or just a few guys pushing and the rest of the guys posting on certain trails and in areas that the deer frequent more then others. It would pay to go a couple days befor hand and find those escape routes then post a guy or two and its much safer. Also with a couple guys walking slowly and pushing the deer won’t run as fast and will be an easier shot for the posters. A well though out drive is much safer then a shoot anything as soon as its jumped drive and more deer can be taken. Be careful out there guys and know where the posters are going to be when shooting.

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I could not agree with this more. I was actually just talking to my friend about tomorrow, we were talking about sitting the morning, then in the afternoon doing a litle push with one driver who would slowly meander the area and 4 posters on the known escape routes. The more and more I do small pushes, the more I think you need less drivers and more posters. Especially if the land has not been driven hard before. The more untouched the land is, the less drivers are needed.

We do them on our 320 acres but not on opening weekend and in small parties. We pushed 100 acres of swampy pasture land on Monday and kicked up 3 deer of which we got two. The problem (and I hate to admit it) is that one was a spike, that we all thought was a doe. Here we thought we had two does but instead had one of each.

In the fast action, it’s not always possible to make a 100% accurate id. And for that reason, I’d prefer not to do them. Of course had we kicked up a 10 or 12 pt. buck, I’d be on the other side of the coin today.

Back at it, Fri-Sun.

Eric