2010 Archery hunt

[NWPAHunter]

I am looking into hunting with these guys next fall. www.kentuckybowhunter.com..
ever heard of them? do they kill good deer near Nebo KY? What type of weather do I expect the last week of Oct - first week of Nov? as well as deer activity.
Any and all comments appreciated?

[SHKYBoonie]

I have never heard of these guys but they look to be on the up and up. I would still ask if they have any referral contacts and do a little checking on them.
 
 I have two farms on the other side of Western KY Parkway from where they say they are located. I don't imagine the deer would be to much different than where I hunt. You can probably expect 120" to 130" deer on the norm and 140" and bigger will be in the area. I would asked about how much damage they got from the ice storm last year. It really put a hurting on our deer population in upper Christian Co. We didn't have nearly as many opportunities to harvest deer this year as last and EHD (blue tongue) put a hurting on us the year before that. I'm sure their numbers are down as well.
 
The temps in late Oct. can be very different from year to year. This year, as well as the year before, the temps were very mild to warm. I have seen it in the teens the last of Oct. first of Nov. before though. If you go, it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to pack some warm clothes just in case.
 
All in all, West KY offers as good a chance as most of your better known hot spot States and a little less than some like IL or IA for a really nice P & Y quality buck. Things have changed a little over the last couple of years because the numbers are down. The biologist say that things should be back to normal in the next couple of years.
 
Hope this helps!

[NWPAHunter]

 I am trying to get the best feel for the area and the outfitter I can before I make a decision. They already emailed me a list of references. The guy I spoke with was very informative and easy to talk with. As stated on their website they have a 125" minimum or 16" wide 8..
I would really like to put a tag on a buck 130" or better. Guide said seeing 10-15 deer per day was the norm or you had a "bad hunt".
 
I am looking at a hunt in Illinois also but the tag is draw and MUCH more expensive than KY as well as the hunt itself is a few hundred more..
 
Thanks again for all the info you provided...btw are your farms open for hunting???!!!LOL 

[SHKYBoonie]

I wish I had enough land to let everyone I have made friends with on the forum come hunt. I would in a heart beat! Seriously, I have two different farm in KY that total almost 1000 acres. I have about 4 or 5 different close friends that I let hunt with me. A couple of them I let have free run on the farms because they are on the same page as me on management goals and they do alot of work for working toward these goals. In the last 4 years, the length of time we have been practicing QDM, we have taken only 12 bucks. 1 was a 168" 11 pt., 1 156" 10 pt., 1 143" 8 pt. and another 130" 8 pt. These bucks were all taken this year and they are the biggest we have ever killed on the farms. We have pictures of several really big bucks on cameras. Some of them estimate in the high 180's, but haven't been able to tag on of them yet. I've had one of them close 2 different times but just could close the deal.
 
We have seen a really good increase in big deer but a decline in deer over all. We are missing the numbers in the .5 and 1.5 year old range. This is directly due to the blue tongue and the ice storm. I am having the area private land biologist come out the end of this month to give us some ideas that will better the natural habitat so we can get recruitment from the areas around the farms.
 
Here's an idea for you. One of my farms are bordered by Pennyrile State Park. It is bow only except for one weekend quota muzzle-loader season. They have been on a buck program now for many years. They only allow deer with 15" spread or better. I know it is hard to come from out of state to hunt in an area that you haven't scouted, but there are many people I meet that have been coming up there to bow hunt for several years. They have a nice camp ground or a resort on site. There are some real monster sized buck on this property. Just this year I help a guy drag out 160" 8 pt. he killed on the back side of my farm. They take several bucks a year that score in the 140's.  There isn't very much pressure on this State Park. This may not be your cup of tea but I figured I would mention it anyway.
 
These are a couple of the pics from my farm. I think you would probably see the same on any farm in West KY that has been managed right.

[SHKYBoonie]

156" 10 pt. - This is my buck for the year!

[SHKYBoonie]

This is the buck I had seen in the stand 2 different times this year but couldn't make it happen. I have watched this deer grow for the last 3 years. Looks like he made it through another season.

[NWPAHunter]

Those are some NICE DEER!!!
I wish you the best of luck with that 12 pointer. He will be one MONSTER of a buck next season!!!!
 
Thanks for the info on the Pennyrile. I will do some research on that as well. I am not afraid to do some speed scouting and set stands. That could be a very affordable hunt. It should be easy to find some topos and aerials of it to help with the scouting in advance. Heck if I save money on the guide I may use up more vacation and hunt longer!! Thanks again!

[SHKYBoonie]

If you do decide to do the Pennyrile hunt let me know when you will be around. I'm sure I'll be in the area and I'll do my best to point you in a good direction. I've gotten to know alot of the local people up there and they give out some good information if they know who you are. There are a few areas of Pennyrile that only local people really know about. There are some hidden areas on the State land that you wouldn't really know about unless you lived around the area. The maps they have at the Park Headquarters do not give much detail.

[NWPAHunter]

Will do!! Thanks again!