Public-land deer hunting is vogue now. That wasn’t always the case, mind you. It was oftentimes regarded as a second-rate option for hunters who couldn’t afford to own or lease land. Everyone wanted to hunt posh pieces of private, and if you didn’t, some hunters looked down on you.

Today, the script is flipped, and public land is finally having its day. Hunters across the nation are excited about hunting ground that’s open to all, and they aren’t afraid to tell everyone. Many of these hunters will say those who hunt private land have it easier.

For starters, regardless of whether you’re a private or public land hunter (or both), don’t bash the other side. Neither public nor private land hunting is easy. And most importantly, we’re all in this together. Hunting isn’t a competition.

That said, for those who want a challenge, here are some of the hardest public-land deer hunts to consider. Deer call these places home for a reason: it’s hard for hunters to access these. But if you have it in you, give it a try. You just might tag a stud.

1. Big Island Sanctuaries

Whitetails have been inhabiting islands since the beginning. While it takes significant effort to get to these places, deer can easily get away from hunters and other predators. Water serves as a major deterrence to hunters, coyotes, wolves, and other toothy critters. Deer know this, and they take advantage of it for survival.

In some places, islands are well away from shorelines. In some cases, they’re even out of site, and deer must swim great distances to reach these. Interestingly, deer do so anyway. That’s the drawing power these places have on deer, especially mature ones. Some of it is passed down behaviorally from does to their fawns. That isn’t always the case, though. Deer just like to live on islands.

Most hunters don’t like to hunt these, though. And that’s why they avoid them. Islands are hard to reach, and virtually impossible to access without a boat. Few hunters have one, and those who do oftentimes fail to approach tactfully. If deer see, hear, or smell you coming, it’s over before it starts.

Tips to Achieve Success: Despite the significant challenges, hunters can do things to stack the odds in their favor. Large islands are almost always several miles from shore, making it necessary to use a safe, reliable boat with a good motor. You need to beach it (or anchor down) away from where you plan to hunt, and so it’s important to bring a canoe or kayak along to make it the last short distance to shore.

Given the nature of smaller islands, it’s hard to use a large motor due to its loud sound. Deer can hear you approaching form anywhere, regardless of the side you land on. This usually makes it necessary to use a trolling motor, canoe, or kayak, to reach smaller islands.

Place to Focus On: Islands can be found along most medium- to large-sized lakes and rivers. Where regulations allow, some of the islands along the great lakes offer incredible hunting opportunities.

Some of the best island hunting is located up and down the Mississippi River, especially from the Illinois side. Hunters looking to target really large public areas with the potential to get well away from other hunters might consider the Mississippi River Pool areas. Oftentimes, these areas are technically islands, and hard to access. This makes them prime for those who are willing to work to get there.

In Wisconsin, the Pine Island Wildlife Area has several tracts that are surrounded by water. These areas are very difficult to access, and deer know it.

Aside from the Lower and Upper Midwest, don’t sleep on the East Coast, either. There are many islands off the coast of Maine. Not all of them are public land, but those that are hold some good deer hunting.

2. Huge Marsh and Swamp Ground

Sticking with the water theme, marshes and swamps offer security to deer, too. Deer find pockets of dry ground within these areas. Like river, lake and ocean islands, dry ground within marshes and swamps offer sanctuary. As deer get older, they realize these places protect them from hunters.

Generally, deer (and hunters) must wade through water to get to such places. Sometimes it’s shallow. Other times it’s deep. Regardless, most of the time, there aren’t land bridges to these hidey holes. When there are, these become peninsulas rather than islands, which deer still use, but not as much.

These areas are difficult to hunt for several reasons. The most obvious is water. Sometimes it’s shallow enough to wade, other times it isn’t. But you don’t know until you try, and it can be dangerous to wade through the sticky, muck marsh.

It’s also very difficult to navigate, especially if you aren’t familiar with the property or aren’t good with maps and compasses. Visibility is poor in head-high cattails and swampy areas that perpetually look the same. Fortunately, apps such as HuntStand, make it simpler to get back to the truck after the hunt.

These areas are also difficult to hunt because getting into position without spooking deer is extremely difficult. Getting the wind right is crucial, and hard when you have limited access. Plus, these animals see and hear well. So, if cattails start shaking and water sludging, they’ll know something is amiss.

Tips to Achieve Success: Fortunately, if hunters take the time to scout in advance, it’s possible to learn water depths in a safe manner. Scouting in pairs, hunters can determine where buck beds are located, what winds deer are likely bedding there on, and how to get into position to hunt them.

Of course, choosing the right entry and exit routes is important. If you can’t access on food with rubber boots or waders, it’s time to deploy a canoe or kayak. Learning how to load these with gear, and safely, quietly paddling into position, are important things to do long before the hunt.

Places to Focus On: In the Midwest, some of the best marsh ground can be found in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Other states in the region offer it, but on a lesser scale. In the Southeast, Louisiana, Mississippi, and parts of Alabama, Georgia, and Florida, have pretty swampy public, too. As for specifics, check out Florida’s Apalachicola WMA, Louisiana’s Maurepas Swamp and more.

3. Big-Timber Hideouts

Water isn’t the only hinderance to hunters. Massive tracts of big timber make hunting more daunting, too. Hunters look at all the available cover and quickly become overwhelmed. It’s hard to whittle down where and where not to focus on.

Even when you choose the right locations, that doesn’t make them easy to hunt. It can take a mile or more to get to these areas, and to get away from hunting pressure. Being willing to put in that kind of effort isn’t on the table for many hunters. It’s too hard for them. Most hunters aren’t willing to walk. Research shows most hunters stay within a half mile of an access road. Among those, a large percentage stay within about ¼ mile, or about 500 yards.

That might get the job done on young bucks and does. But unless it’s an overlooked area hunters aren’t touching, or unless it offers a buck premium bedding where it can see, smell, and hear danger coming, most mature deer are farther from roads, and will be found ¾ mile, to a mile, or even further, from the closest vehicle access. Generally, on smaller pieces of public, this means bigger deer are hugging close to private-public property lines.

If deer can’t get that far away from access roads, they’ll likely vacate onto neighboring private lands (if less pressured), find the thickest cover around, or get especially crafty in their bedding area selections. Regardless, these deer become very difficult to pursue.

Tips to Achieve Success: One of the best ways to break down a large hunting property is to use apps or maps. Aerial, topo, and hybrid maps are your best bets. These are very useful for finding bedding areas, food sources, water sources, travel routes, pinch points, etc.

Locating specific terrain features is especially important. In flatter terrain, pinpoint edge habitat, such as where hardwoods meet conifers (cedars, pines, and spruce), creek crossings, and other areas that deer tend to use. In hillier terrain, find benches, clear cuts, hubs, leeward (downwind side) ridges, ridge endings, saddles, and water seeps. Both solar (southeastern facing slopes) and thermal (conifers) bedding cover are identifiable via apps and maps, too.

Places to Focus On: While big timber can be found throughout most of the country, the Northeast is king. Give Connecticut’s Mansfield Hollow Lake, Maryland’s Dan’s Mountain WMA, Rhode Island’s George Washington Management Area, and others a try. Don’t sleep on the Midwest either. Indiana’s Clark State Forest is 24,000 acres and Ohio’s Shawnee State Forest is 60,000 acres. The Southeast is full of it, too. Arkansas’ Muddy Creek is 150,000 acres and Louisiana’s Maurepas Swamp is 61,000 acres.

4. High-Elevation Haunts

Higher elevations often present multiple challenges. These are mountainous or hilly lands, and much of their makeup is challenging, and even unforgiving. Dangerous overhangs, outcroppings, and sheer bluffs pose problems and risks.

Higher elevation takes significant energy, too. Climbing several hundred or thousand feet isn’t for those who are weak or out of shape. Exercise aplenty before embarking on these hunts.

Exercise aside, higher elevations can be difficult even for fit hunters. Higher elevation means less oxygen. The only way to overcome this challenge is to acclimate to it. That takes time, not just exercise.

Finally, finding deer isn’t easy, either. Determining what elevation deer are spending the most time at begins with an educated guess, but it takes effort to confirm what you believe. And if you’re wrong, it takes even more time.

Tips to Achieve Success: Spend several months getting in shape prior to the hunt. Then, arrive well before your hunt starts to get acclimated to local oxygen levels. This also provides extra time to scout, which is necessary when determining what elevations deer are spending time at. These areas are vast, and large swaths of land see minimal action. Deer tend to congregate.

Places to Focus On: When most think of higher elevations, the West immediately comes to mind. Places like Colorado, Idaho, and Montana reign supreme. Public lands are literally everywhere.

Consider the Southwest for Coues deer hunts. Arizona’s Units 36A, 36B and 36C are great. The Buenos Aires NWR is too. So is New Mexico’s Lincoln National Forest.

And don’t sleep on the East. There are some great places to hunt up and down the Appalachians.

5. Standing Corn Country

People say ag country is easy to hunt, but vast acreages of standing crops is anything but that. I’ll take a big timber hunt over massive lands full of standing corn any day of the season. Deer literally disappear in these large standing corn fields and killing them becomes extremely difficult.

This is true for several reasons. Deer oftentimes bed and feed in these areas, never really needing to come out, especially if water borders or cuts through fields. Sure, deer do come out of the standing corn, but they don’t have to, and if pressured, they won’t.

Fortunately, rarely does standing corn last more than a month or so into the season. It’s usually limited to the early season and pre-rut. Nonetheless, it’s challenging for those who find themselves in such as situation.

Tips to Achieve Success: Hunting along edges where corn fields meet high-traffic areas is the ticket. Inside field corners, ditch crossings, thick staging areas, water sources, and other travel routes are great spots to try.

Places to Focus On: The Midwest is corn country. Virtually all states have corn fields, even on public lands. Iowa, Kansas, Illinois, Missouri, Indiana, Ohio, and others are popular ag states. Drilling down, give Ohio’s Dillon Wildlife Area a try.

Universal Truths

All things considered, several things can make public lands more difficult to hunt. Obviously, hunting pressure is factor No. 1. The more there is, the harder the hunting, especially if you can’t find overlooked pockets of ground.

Subpar access makes properties harder to hunt, too. As does dangerous terrain, difficult topography, and long hikes in. All of these and more pose challenges, which deter most hunters. But not you. You won’t back down. You’ll prepare, charge ahead, tackle the elements, and just might fill a tag. But you’ll have fun regardless. I know I will.

— For more information on public-land hunting, visit www.YouTube.com/DDHOnline.

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