I got drawn for the Boggy area of McAlester in a couple of weeks. Anyone going to be there?
Any advice for me if you've hunted it?
Thanks!
TCP
Any advice for me if you've hunted it?
Thanks!
TCP
McAlester anyone?
- Thread starter TexasCowPoke
- Start date
I have been. great times. Talk to as many white hats as you can. Ask them questions. Hunt hard, sit on stand. Passes to come back many times are given if you shoot a doe. This year they are not granting them. Acorns, if you can find them, are great place to start.
Take a small sack and if you see some, keep some to pile beneath your stand. Also, some people bring in some corn I believe with them. Can give you more info later.
Results of previous weeks hunts were pretty poor I believe although there was a HUGE one brought in during non-ambulatory x-bow.
Take a small sack and if you see some, keep some to pile beneath your stand. Also, some people bring in some corn I believe with them. Can give you more info later.
Results of previous weeks hunts were pretty poor I believe although there was a HUGE one brought in during non-ambulatory x-bow.
Thanks guys. I have heard you don't need to go far at all from the road, but I wonder about hunting after 3-4 earlier hunts have take place. I have mapped out on Goggle Earch a couple of green field, which may not be green, and ponds, which I might sit on if it's been very dry between now and then. Located some choke points, but it will look very different at ground level I'm sure. What have heard about key locations in Mc? The way pork prices are skyrocketing, I'm up for shooting a 100 lb pig and a skinhead given the chance, but really want a nice buck. I hear they frown on anything under 140... is that right?
There never has been, nor probably ever will be another post written more from the perspective a a successful prison escapee (or even not successful) in the history of this board.
White hats. Passes. Nuts. Have a small sack. Protect your corn(hole). Shhh, more. info. to. follow. Over.
Let's all go to Big Mac to hunt! Sounds fun! And dangerous. And...well...
I don't recoomend hunting green fields unless there is zero acorns. Hunting acorn, trails, and scrape lines is your best shot IMO. Don't feel like you need to get along way from the road. just find a spot where deer cross. When I was there if you killed a buck over 120 they would let you go back and hunt another buck to reward you for shooting big bucks rather than little ones.
There are no acorns this year but a few "Water Oak acorns" remain. They say look for wetter areas and look for a leaf that looks just like a ducks foot (you can google for good pictures).
I hunted Boggy back in 2010, and, like this year, it was very dry. A few things that you hear, that are completely true.
You do not need to venture far from the road at all: The deer on base will be seen under lights, in parking lots, on porch steps, sleeping on the playgrounds, etc. Take this mentality to the field. These deer are under no pressure year round and know no enemies. In the hunting areas this means that you will find them right by the bunkers, along the roads, etc. which is in direct contradiction to normal public hunting areas as we know it.
Unlike NW OK and other areas, they say that the bucks down there are VERY VERY vocal: This can be a good thing and bad thing. Grunt call with caution but keep your ears open all the time. Hearing vocal bucks before seeing them is very common on MCAAP. When I was down there, I had walked to the pickup for lunch, opened/shut doors, ice chest lids, etc. My buddy walked up, and we talked in normal tone. A few minutes later, we heard grunting across the road in what I call a median (between bunker road and main road). The median is probably 100 yards wide, wooded, grassed, etc. The grunting was nuts to a point we thought it was another hunter joking around. We grabbed bows, and I borrowed a set of rattling horns from another hunters truck bed. Walked across road to ditch and started hearing fighting. Rattled the horns, and to make a long story short, a very nice buck stopped the fracous to come look for us almost offering a clean shot. Never seen nothing like that up here in my neck o the woods.
Latest reports from MCAAP is that they are now offering Quality Passes (return free next year) for does.
I would not look for green wheat, food plots, etc as they are a long ways in and other hunters who do not know better will go to them first. There are deer everywhere. I took my deer on the N side of the non-huntable boundary area. There is a fire break trail, road, etc that runs sw from the bunker. I would look at from where the convoy turns S at the fire station, a mile or so S there is a creek of main draw that runs from road up towards SW side of Brown lake. That area always looks good.
Most hunters choose to go W of lake, sometimes it is better to just go where most don't which is the east route s of the lake. Ask the whitehats if possible. Note: you will put a pushpin on a map where you want to hunt.
You will be asked to be a driver or not. I encourage driving as you have a little more leverage from a decision standpoint (but scrub your vechicle before arrival for ammo, cigs, lighters, etc.)
You MUST post a recap of events. Also, be ready for the morning CALLOUT for the drivers. His call is legendary.
I hunted Boggy back in 2010, and, like this year, it was very dry. A few things that you hear, that are completely true.
You do not need to venture far from the road at all: The deer on base will be seen under lights, in parking lots, on porch steps, sleeping on the playgrounds, etc. Take this mentality to the field. These deer are under no pressure year round and know no enemies. In the hunting areas this means that you will find them right by the bunkers, along the roads, etc. which is in direct contradiction to normal public hunting areas as we know it.
Unlike NW OK and other areas, they say that the bucks down there are VERY VERY vocal: This can be a good thing and bad thing. Grunt call with caution but keep your ears open all the time. Hearing vocal bucks before seeing them is very common on MCAAP. When I was down there, I had walked to the pickup for lunch, opened/shut doors, ice chest lids, etc. My buddy walked up, and we talked in normal tone. A few minutes later, we heard grunting across the road in what I call a median (between bunker road and main road). The median is probably 100 yards wide, wooded, grassed, etc. The grunting was nuts to a point we thought it was another hunter joking around. We grabbed bows, and I borrowed a set of rattling horns from another hunters truck bed. Walked across road to ditch and started hearing fighting. Rattled the horns, and to make a long story short, a very nice buck stopped the fracous to come look for us almost offering a clean shot. Never seen nothing like that up here in my neck o the woods.
Latest reports from MCAAP is that they are now offering Quality Passes (return free next year) for does.
I would not look for green wheat, food plots, etc as they are a long ways in and other hunters who do not know better will go to them first. There are deer everywhere. I took my deer on the N side of the non-huntable boundary area. There is a fire break trail, road, etc that runs sw from the bunker. I would look at from where the convoy turns S at the fire station, a mile or so S there is a creek of main draw that runs from road up towards SW side of Brown lake. That area always looks good.
Most hunters choose to go W of lake, sometimes it is better to just go where most don't which is the east route s of the lake. Ask the whitehats if possible. Note: you will put a pushpin on a map where you want to hunt.
You will be asked to be a driver or not. I encourage driving as you have a little more leverage from a decision standpoint (but scrub your vechicle before arrival for ammo, cigs, lighters, etc.)
You MUST post a recap of events. Also, be ready for the morning CALLOUT for the drivers. His call is legendary.
Ok, Postgame wrap-up!
This was the first time in 30 yrs I have hunted MacDeer. We had a great time. People were friendly and helpful. The weather was pretty good for us. Very cold, and we had a freeze two mornings. The deer were moving some. We hunted Boggy as was mentioned before, and got in an area near the western border without many people around. They did close the blasting area and MAN, that is some percussion when those that old ammunitions gets destroyed!
Boom and the ground shakes and the shock wave hits you. ( can always hear and sometime feel those blasts all the way 6 miles on the other side of Harshorne!... some 25 (or more) miles away.
The deer were moving just OK with the cooler weather. But we did have high winds that kept deer movement down a good portion of the time. My partner and I didn't shoot anything, but he missed two different does (hoping to get a pass for next year). (He was using arrows that were not close to being tuned to his bow and couldn't make a group very well but that's another story). I never had a shot, but saw a lot of deer. Mostly does, but a few bucks and was busted a half dozen times, several by bucks. If we had another day, I think we improved our understanding of what the deer were doing to have had a much better chance of being in the right place at the right time. We should have been hunting the oak ridges or right in the creek bottoms. We saw many deer walking right in the bottom of the dry creek. My buddy saw a Pope and Young buck at 45 yds but he didn't want to come in. Will put in again for next year and hope to get drawn. It's easy to see why hunter to get the McAlester bug want to go back every year if they can.
We had 3 P&Y killed for sure... the ones I saw but think another one was killed and removed before I could see it.
Quite a lot of does were killed the on Saturday and some on Sunday. It was a good weekend and I'm looking forward to next year.
This was the first time in 30 yrs I have hunted MacDeer. We had a great time. People were friendly and helpful. The weather was pretty good for us. Very cold, and we had a freeze two mornings. The deer were moving some. We hunted Boggy as was mentioned before, and got in an area near the western border without many people around. They did close the blasting area and MAN, that is some percussion when those that old ammunitions gets destroyed!
Boom and the ground shakes and the shock wave hits you. ( can always hear and sometime feel those blasts all the way 6 miles on the other side of Harshorne!... some 25 (or more) miles away.
The deer were moving just OK with the cooler weather. But we did have high winds that kept deer movement down a good portion of the time. My partner and I didn't shoot anything, but he missed two different does (hoping to get a pass for next year). (He was using arrows that were not close to being tuned to his bow and couldn't make a group very well but that's another story). I never had a shot, but saw a lot of deer. Mostly does, but a few bucks and was busted a half dozen times, several by bucks. If we had another day, I think we improved our understanding of what the deer were doing to have had a much better chance of being in the right place at the right time. We should have been hunting the oak ridges or right in the creek bottoms. We saw many deer walking right in the bottom of the dry creek. My buddy saw a Pope and Young buck at 45 yds but he didn't want to come in. Will put in again for next year and hope to get drawn. It's easy to see why hunter to get the McAlester bug want to go back every year if they can.
We had 3 P&Y killed for sure... the ones I saw but think another one was killed and removed before I could see it.
Quite a lot of does were killed the on Saturday and some on Sunday. It was a good weekend and I'm looking forward to next year.
That was great! Also, I'm blocking on the name of the odw guy there, but he was hilarious. When asked every weekend by new hunters where to hunt he says" Go walk in the woods, find some old trail marking tape. Follow the tape until you find the tree with the empty vienna sausage cans under it, and climb that tree."
Bill Starry is right! Nice guy. I could tell it is well rehearsed. Very good time though. It was nice to see two of the biggest deer I've ever seen bagged with a bow while there.
