New Jersey 2022-23 Deer Harvest Results

[Bonefreak]

4 hours ago, fab said:

Carol was great.  Gave amazing data.  Was almost always ignored. She since retired

 

nj doesn’t really have room for deer.  Gardens farm damage car crashes.   98 percent are a libality for nj.   That’s all they see. Suburban areas can end up like virgina.  Hunt 9 months a year. I don’t see deer now   Hence y I really don’t go much. Boring seeing nothing 

 

What’s happened in Virginia?  We just went to Williamsburg and saw some beautiful fields and woodlines and not 1 deer spotted at dusk. Couldn’t believe it!!  
 

Only deer I saw was 2 does inside Busch Gardens and I don’t think they were the park’s captive animals….actually thought it could be dangerous for people if the deer ever got near any of the roller coasters. 

[hammer4reel]

9 hours ago, Lunatic said:

I get the part about being easier. I killed more deer by far with compound than any other weapon so I understand. In fact the main reason I hunt now with crossbow is because it is easier. Don’t be sad for me, I love my crossbow and I’m happy 




 

And your 1 of about 4 people that are actually honest about that .

And there is nothing wrong with that . I have convinced trad guys to stop using their recurves wounding animals and move to a crossbow to ethically harvest what they chase .

 

I personally like all the variations , stickbows , compound and xbows .

each having a time and place during the season for me. 

 

what gets me is  the guys with bullshit excuses , oh I’m old . Oh my shoulder hurts , oh my neighbor uses a crossbow . Oh I’m so busy I have no time to practice .

with 85% let off bows it takes very little to shoot a 45 pound bow that requires holding  less than 7 pounds 

 

an archer looks to see how far he can shoot , a bow hunter sees how close he can get .

it honestly is just a different mindset .

 

When there was only trad guys , they had to practice and get close to their quarry , and do it in a short season .

it was a challenge , and required  some dedication 

just getting close was only half the game , then you had to complete drawing and getting the shot off .

 

hunting with a crossbow is ten times easier than that , and the season is 5 months long .

little movement taking a shot , and most guys are pushing the envelope to distance gun hunters didn’t have before good slug guns .

 

that intense pressure makes it much harder to weapon down .

every Weapon gets a ridiculously long season , why can’t their be a small season for traditional hunting .

stickbows. And flintlocks  for a month for those who want to hunt the hard way .

 

instead the season is  entirely catered to those who want to do it the easier way .

 

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Edited April 29, 2023 by hammer4reel

[Woodsman416]

Crossbows are the transgenders of bowhunting! 

[bucky]

11 minutes ago, hammer4reel said:

And your 1 of about 4 people that are actually honest about that .

And there is nothing wrong with that . I have convinced trad guys to stop using their recurves wounding animals and move to a crossbow to ethically harvest what they chase .

what gets me is  the guys with bullshit excuses , oh I’m old . Oh my shoulder hurts , oh my neighbor uses a crossbow . Oh I’m so busy I have no time to practice .

with 85% let off bows it takes very little to shoot a 45 pound bow that requires holding  less than 7 pounds 

 

an archer looks to see how far he can shoot , a bow hunter sees how close he can get .

it honestly is just a different mindset .

 

When there was only trad guys , they had to practice and get close to their quarry , and do it in a short season .

it was a challenge , and required  some dedication 

just getting close was only half the game , then you had to complete drawing and getting the shot off .

 

hunting with a crossbow is ten times easier than that , and the season is 5 months long .

little movement taking a shot , and most guys are pushing the envelope to distance gun hunters didn’t have before good slug guns .

 

that intense pressure makes it much harder to weapon down .

every Weapon gets a ridiculously long season , why can’t their be a small season for traditional hunting .

stickbows. And flintlocks  for a month for those who want to hunt the hard way .

 

instead the season is  entirely catered to those who want to do it the easier way .

 

.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you want to make it a real challenge, take the corn piles away

[hammer4reel]

1 minute ago, bucky said:

If you want to make it a real challenge, take the corn piles away

Deer hunting in NJ has transformed into deer killing . Not deer hunting .

 

.

[bucky]

21 minutes ago, Woodsman416 said:

Crossbows are the transgenders of bowhunting! 

I would say hunting from a deer blind is more transgender than a crossbow

[vdep217]

9 hours ago, archer36 said:

The word management by itself means nothing. You can manage for numbers or quality. If you look at the deer regs across the country, they are the strictest where the most land and least population exists. It's because the deer have little interference with humans. In areas of high population and less land, the limits are liberal to minimize human interaction. NJ is one of the most populated states and has the most cars per square mile than any other state. Their "management" is to keep numbers down. You think they care about bucks growing to 4 1/2 years old? Get used to it. 

Game animals are managed to carrying capacity of the land.  More deer does not necessarily mean a healthier heard and neither does big bucks.  I can bring you to areas in January where all low browse is gone wich is a sign carrying capacity is exceeded I can also bring you to areas in the sane zone Where low browse isn't touched these areas are mostly among houses.

Here's somthing we have zones that you are only allowed one deer per season and have the shortest seasons.  The buck to doe ratio is way out of walk why because those zones guys only hunt bucks for the most part.

The one thing I've always said about new jersey regs is theirs somthing for everyone. 

Don't like earn a buck hunt a zone without it.  Don't care for gun hunting hunt a zone that has 6 shotgun days 1 doe day and 6 muzzleloader days.

Want antler restrictions hunt a zone with them

[jumpthestring]

25 minutes ago, hammer4reel said:

Deer hunting in NJ has transformed into deer killing . Not deer hunting .

It's been that way for a long time. Unlimited tag - BINGO !

.

 

[archer36]

31 minutes ago, hammer4reel said:

 

 

.

It's no different than most other states. The same methods are used. The difference is in the bag limits. 

Edited April 29, 2023 by archer36

[JHbowhunter]

10 hours ago, Lunatic said:

The beauty is everyone has a choice and this is the only part we should care about!

And I was just stirring the pot.  It’s miserable out and I wanna go fishing. 
 

[Rusty]

There was no shortage of deer this past season,  could the lower harvest be due to lower hunter participation this year?   

[archer36]

3 minutes ago, JHbowhunter said:

And I was just stirring the pot.  It’s miserable out and I wanna go fishing. 
 

People's opinions on such matters mean nothing to me. I don't run my life based on the opinions of others. 

[hammer4reel]

Just now, Rusty said:

There was no shortage of deer this past season,  could the lower harvest be due to lower hunter participation this year?   

Not enough target bucks 

[archer36]

4 minutes ago, Rusty said:

There was no shortage of deer this past season,  could the lower harvest be due to lower hunter participation this year?   

I hunted as hard as previous years and had much less success. In the EHD year, deer were present as normal. Last year they seem to disappear. There are so many factors that affect deer hunting. It could be one, two, or multiple factors. We can only speculate.  I hunt a area that's about 150 acres of swampy woods below an apple and peach orchard. It is surrounded by houses. Lots of deer present in early season. They disappeared when the fruit was gone. We usually hunt them successfully in the woods later in the season but not last year.

Could it be that a new resident moved in and was feeding them? Who knows?

Edited April 29, 2023 by archer36

[MGHunter66]

I blame it all on the elitist Mathews shooters. 😂