I've noticed the same thing. If I walk across my farm, I might see one deer a week. On the quad or in the truck, I'll usually see two or three a day.

They don't recognize the sound as something to fear. What scares a deer, and especially what scares turkey (my hunting) is steady footsteps. It signifies an animal moving with confidence. To a grazer, an animal moving with confidence usually does so for a good reason, so they had best steer clear of it. This is why you want to break up your footsteps when stalking - you want to sound like a grazing animal, not a predator.

The problem I've seen with atv's and hunting is this - I may be careful and respectful, you may be, but there is a high percentage of slobs that are not. They make a mess, tear up the ground. The atv simply lets them tear up things a lot faster.

It's interesting to note that deer season is when I have real problems with idiots and loaded guns on my farm. Turkey season is no problem, you have to be a serious hunter to take that on, so you respect the sport. But whitetail, they're so thick here in KY that any moron can get one. And that draws out the amateurs.

 

I've used mine for the last 5 years to hunt.
I've parked it right next to my blind and have had deer literally
walk past it and take a smell.
They are just another tool in hunting like any other in the given situation.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: JohnO

I've noticed the same thing. If I walk across my farm, I might see one deer a week. On the quad or in the truck, I'll usually see two or three a day.

They don't recognize the sound as something to fear. What scares a deer, and especially what scares turkey (my hunting) is steady footsteps. It signifies an animal moving with confidence. To a grazer, an animal moving with confidence usually does so for a good reason, so they had best steer clear of it. This is why you want to break up your footsteps when stalking - you want to sound like a grazing animal, not a predator.

The problem I've seen with atv's and hunting is this - I may be careful and respectful, you may be, but there is a high percentage of slobs that are not. They make a mess, tear up the ground. The atv simply lets them tear up things a lot faster.

It's interesting to note that deer season is when I have real problems with idiots and loaded guns on my farm. Turkey season is no problem, you have to be a serious hunter to take that on, so you respect the sport. But whitetail, they're so thick here in KY that any moron can get one. And that draws out the amateurs.</end quote></div>




I have noticed I also see more deer when on an atv than when walking; but I think it has more to do with distance traveled and the suddenness of my arrival rather than the noise.

I also have slob riders on my farm, but it is during the off-seasons of hunting rather than during deer season. This is most likely because during deer season there are too many people about.

 

old topic, but I'd like to chime in having bought a quad primarily for hunting and trail riding.

I have handicapped plates on my truck, and I just can't walk on terrain much harsher than level, and certainly not that far. So my days of even getting into elk or bear woods are otherwise over, much less hauling that meat out. Even duck hunting with all the associated decoys, guns, blinds, shells, etc- just more than I'm carrying to a hide site.

For me- a quad opens a world of hunting otherwise no longer available. Since I got hurt my hunting life has become a rare day out instead of my usual weekend. I mostly hunt rabbit now in the flat prairie. I love rabbit, I take my daughter with me hunting them- but I haven't been able to do much big game hunting.

Also- from a purely hunter's point of view.. 99% of hunters never get more than a mile from their trucks. It's simple statistics. A quad offers a hunter the ability to get much further into the back country, upping the odds of a better animal. And that game is less likely to be educated to human intrusion.

It also helps in management of some harder to reach herds that don't see much human predation, while other herds in certain easy to reach ranges get over hunted.

The environmental impact is so minute as to be really, just a strawman. Sure not all quads are tightly sealed and of course there are always the yahoo's that tear *** around and do damage. But again- the exception not the norm. Judging ATV's for the sins of a few is a well worn, weak tactic invoked by pretty much anyone when they have no rational argument to make.

Considering the massive pollution from any number of other things- and that ATV's for hunting use are relatively new and hence, tend to have stronger emmisions control- it's just not a persuasive argument that ATV's are the boogeyman.

How much pollution does just one NASCAR, MotoGP, IRL, Superbike, NHRA Drag, event cause? It'd take an army of poorly tuned quads to belch that much exhaust, use that much oil, etc.

If used in the true wilderness, single trips tend not to really do alot of damage. In areas with well defined trails, the trails themselves are testament to people not running over every inch of nature- but preferring to have one single impact on the environment as access.

Just my opinion. Obviously biased. But I have seen some negative effects of ATV use and I will own up to them. However that is mostly because there is so little public riding land that any little piece of ground people find quickly attracts attention and gets overused and eventually closed down. This just happened to a spot I rode at last week. Two days ago it was fenced off and No Tresspassing signs up.
There was more than 20 trucks there last week, and alot of people were riding on the paved road that accessed the area, forcing cops to kick everyone out after a complaint.

So as soon as one guy with an ATV found it, it was over run and rednecks ruined it for everyone. I won't deny this happens. But so much of CO is private land, it's not easy finding riding spots, and those that are found get ruined fast. Given better access and land open for ATV's, this cycle might be broken.

 

atvs in the back country have no place in my book. Thats why its called " the back country" I walk in every time i go hunting. The terrain is to rough for an atv and a horse would break its leg more than likely. Yes its steep and very thick up here so if you want to beat up your atv go for it but you won't get very far. We killed 2 bulls this year and had no trouble getting them out on our backs. The first bull was 7 miles and the second one was 13.5 miles. No atv needed. Perhaps you should get into shape and go hunting instead of sitting around and typing on the computer. Or drop the rifle and go bow hunting. Stealth is the key so an atv would not be a good choice for the bowman. Thats how I feel but hey thats my opinion. Good luck in the hunt everyone

 

Defination of a "Red Neck" please?How about a "Gangsta"? isn't it the same?I guess we should go back to "drags" and toss the wheel?Maybe get rid of all electronics?Live in a cave?Some people arn't able to walk up a mountain.Forget a bow,its to modern,maybe a sling and a river rock?Just being on the planet disturbs it!

 

I find 4x4s do the most damage, atv's dont do much damage on normal ground i usualy ride 5 miles and walk 3 or 4, its on range land and the live stalk does the most damage making most of the game move back but we'v gotten an elk every year for many years now. it seems the game like the atv trails they seem to use them alot. just wish the bears were more weary in my hunting area they seem to stay right on the trail till ya get close.

 

Rednecks. I'll give you a good example right out of the pages of Quad magazine.....

An entire article supposed to be about using quads to go duck hunting. Something I can't do because of being handicapped, so it's an article I'd be interested in.

What do they show? Jackasses pulling a john boat in a swamp- tearing around EXACTLY like what causes us to get banned from the woods! I mean the author didn't even know the difference between a rifle and a shotgun, and yet wrote a worthless piece for a magazine that gets some circulation.

How embarrassing. It's worthless as a hunting article, and worse than useless as an ATV article.

If I ride a quad up close to my hunting area- chances are that isn't going to hurt the environment. You won't make a trail that way, unless you pour gas on the ground, it won't hurt anything. Repeated use over the same path will.

But then you have the people like in that magazine that don't actually hunt and just rip up the woods to look cool in pictures. REDNECK.

Clear?

 

I live in Ga. and there is only one Cycle / ATV trail system that's open during Deer Season and it's open to cycles/Atv's and mountain bike's , you can use an atv to get to the trail's that lead to where you hunt ; but it's illegal to hunt from the quad's themselves or on the trail's themself's but you can use atv's to retreive downed game in the wood's !

While there are some rider's who ride this trail system on sport quads that tear up the trail's , they only ride these trail's once and never come back ; because there are no flat track's to race on and the terrain doesn't allow them to really open up their quad's !

We have some great rider's who keep the trial's open after a storm , or damage done to the trail's by the few rider's who do damage to the trails ; there are many who keep the trail's open and we all pick up trash left by other's everytime we ride !

I see alot of wild game on these atv's trail's the Deer , wild turkey and even black bear like to use these trail's during the open big game Season ; cycle's and quad's don't seem to bother the wild life and logger's who have clearcut part of the forest at the entrance to the access road that leads to the parking lot of the trail head have told me that Deer come out in the clearcut area's from the sound of their chainsaw's just check out the noise and then continue to graze as if it's a normal everyday ocurrence !

And i'm sure that anyone who has the ability to hike into the outback to hunt doesn't like to see atv's in these hard to get to spot's that only a few could get to before , and as far as the use of horses being used to access these wilderness area's ; the DNR and Forrest Service here in Ga. have determined horses do more damage to the forrest and have been banned from the Clumberland Trail for the damage they do to the trail and endangered plant species !

Fact is there's no motorized vehicle's or horse's allowed in the wilderness area of this Management Area , infact there's only 4 trail's to ride on ; but only one that's open year round !.....

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: PacNWelkHNTR

atvs in the back country have no place in my book. Thats why its called " the back country" I walk in every time i go hunting. The terrain is to rough for an atv and a horse would break its leg more than likely. Yes its steep and very thick up here so if you want to beat up your atv go for it but you won't get very far. We killed 2 bulls this year and had no trouble getting them out on our backs. The first bull was 7 miles and the second one was 13.5 miles. No atv needed. Perhaps you should get into shape and go hunting instead of sitting around and typing on the computer. Or drop the rifle and go bow hunting. Stealth is the key so an atv would not be a good choice for the bowman. Thats how I feel but hey thats my opinion. Good luck in the hunt everyone</end quote></div>




First of all, not all "back country" is too rough for either horses or ATV's, and some that is too rough for an ATV will often allow the hunter to shorten the distance a few miles. Second, not everybody hunts as "we"; I know I sure don't. I almost always hunt as "I". I kill it, I gotta get it out by myself. Third, I wouldn't assume everyone typing in these blogs are out of shape. Stealth is good but I see far more game while driving or riding, and I know people that have killed more deer with a car than they have with a rifle or bow[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]!!!!! Good luck to y'all.