How's the hunting in 9p?

[Bolt Action]

I'm going down to look at a potential camp this weekend in the Birdsall area. I used to hunt near Hornell and miss hunting in the woods. The camp is 10 acres and currently has no structures, but state land is close. Gas Springs and Jersey Hill forests are both less than a mile away. 

Has anyone hunted the state land in this area? I've mentioned before that I love the idea of a little camp where my boys can grow and create their own traditions. The idea of a wall of pictures from past hunts and the people you've shared them with strikes a chord with me. It looks like doe tags are hard to come by in that area, so I may have to balance time at this camp (if it moves forward) with time spent at the farm in 8A. Doe tags in 8A are given away like candy. 

I have a few buddies who hunt near Birdsall, and their success rate is pretty low. These are the same guys though that head out to the Inn the night before opening day and close the place down. They stumble out to their stands in late morning stinking like the night before, so I take their low success with a grain of salt. 

Any insight into the area is appreciated.

[hueyjazz]

There's plenty of deer but there's also plenty of Amish.  Doe permits are hard to come by which I've never understood.  The deer jump out in the road without warning pretty often on any of the back roads.   DEC most seasons require 2 preference point to get a doe tag.   With that said, I haven't had a problem getting a deer.   As far as a camp, it's a nice area.  Water generally isn't an issue if you need a well.  And there's many outdoor activities not that far away.  Swain Mt ski, Allen Lake, Lecthworth, Allegany, etc.

[Bolt Action]

Does having Amish around have a negative impact on hunting? 

I know when I hunted in 8X which is basically "next door", it was common to get 2 doe permits each year. I wonder why the disparity when the WMU's share a border... 

 

[Skillet]

I've hunted around Birdsall. Saw plenty of deer, just never got one. 

Nothing like having your own place. Best of luck on the purchase.

[hueyjazz]

My experience with some Amish is they hunt year-round.   Another thing I've seen them do is drive the woods to excess with loads of people and I doubt they have hunting licenses.

I live in the 9P area and I much enjoy it.  In fact, I started with land and a hunting cabin and ended up buying a log home that bordered my property.

   Spending quality time on your and any nearby State land scoping it out will enhance your deer success.   There's plenty of sign out there now if you want to scope it out before sale.  Lots of doe with fawns.

[Bolt Action]

I appreciate the feedback. It turns out that my buddies who hunt in the area have a cabin that is at the end of the road I'm looking on. Totally by coincidence. They say that their hunting experience is much as you describe it. I'm stoked to see what this property looks like.

[Bolt Action]

I went down to walk the land Sunday. It definitely had potential. It would take a few years and a bunch of sweat to reach that potential (both for a family camp and a deer hunting camp), but that's the fun in it, right? The wife wasn't able to make it down with me, so I had to share pictures with her when I got back. She wasn't onboard, so the project isn't moving forward at this time. I have a hard time walking away from it, but at the end of the day we're a team, and I won't commit this much money on something unless I have her buy in. I called the owner to update him, and he said that he doesn't mind holding it for a while for me if I think she'll come around. Real nice guy. 

[jperch]

A family camp is a few miles from there and borders state land.  There is very little pressure during archery season.  During gun season the state land is driven hard and I have made the decision to hunt elsewhere during the boomstick season.  I think the deer population in our area is growing, the state has been doing some timber harvesting which is improving things for deer.