States to take my 6yr old son to hunt deer

[Tulsa Reiner]

We are from Oregon and my son is dying to shoot a deer! He currently shoots a 6.5 creedmoor. He will start hunting deer here in Oregon when's he is 9 but we are looking for some ideas/states to hunt before then! Thanks in advance for the info!

Oklahoma offers a 3 day youth whitetail season in mid Oct, just before the muzzle loader season. The license for a youth is $100 (either sex), and $30 for antlerless. You would be welcome to bring him to hunt my 373 acres of managed woods, located 31 miles outside of Tulsa. PM me if interested.

 

[jeffreyjwilliams]

In TN he can hunt deer. Bring a tent and sleep at a campground on public land. Your biggest expense will be gas. We are overrun with deer. If you make the trip, let me know, I'll help you get where you need to be. No sweat.

Where is a good place for public hunting in TN?

 

[Deleted member 115360]

Where is a good place for public hunting in TN?

There are so many. I live in hardin county and I hunt 50k acres in different parcels within an hour of my home. I went to east TN on a bear hunt in November and camped in South Cherokee national Forrest. I accidentally killed the biggest buck of my life there. By accidentally, I mean that I wasn't deer hunting per se, and walked into this old mountain monster. The pictures don't do him justice, and he had 20-30" broken off. Probably weighed close to 300lbs on the hoof.

 

[wv270wsm]

Nice buck

 

[Tulsa Reiner]

There are so many. I live in hardin county and I hunt 50k acres in different parcels within an hour of my home. I went to east TN on a bear hunt in November and camped in South Cherokee national Forrest. I accidentally killed the biggest buck of my life there. By accidentally, I mean that I wasn't deer hunting per se, and walked into this old mountain monster. The pictures don't do him justice, and he had 20-30" broken off. Probably weighed close to 300lbs on the hoof.

Did you age his teeth?

 

[Deleted member 115360]

Did you age his teeth?

He barely had any. Incisors in the front and about 4 ground down molars. I think he may have been 10 years old. He was the oldest buck I've ever had my hands on

 

[Dakota79]

South Dakota I believe.

 

[Buck1970]

In Texas, youth under 17 are not required to have hunters ed, as long as they are accompanied by an adult who does or was grandfathered not to have to have it. That being said, I have 10,000 acres of low fence, free range hunting. I'd be glad to help you introduce hunting to your son. We even have a youth only season that starts two weeks prior to the general season and extends two weeks after the general season ends.

Let me be clear, I am not a hunting ranch. I farm and ranch for a living and have a little hunting on the side. I will not gouge you for a high price for a deer for your son. I do have a few feeders set up, but for the most part, they are to keep the deer around all year. I like to hunt wheat and oat fields, spot and stalk. I don't have blinds set up at my feeders. If this is something you'd be interested in, send me a PM. I know Oregon is a log way from Texas, and that may be problematic, but I'd love to help you out.

David f
Not sure what part of the state black dirt cowboy is from, but if you don't jump on this I will.
Since you have a 6 year old I'll assume you were born after September 1,1971 and you will have to take our hunter Ed course or, if you have taken one already in your home state it should work.
Also, Texas has over 1,000,000 acres of quality public land, Many wildlife management areas have quotas for doe that don't get met annually and many offer youth only hunts regularly.
Good luck and I hope he gets his doe this year somewhere.

 

[David F]

Thank you everyone for your help and offers! A lot of great info has been shared! We are trying to narrow down dates, seasons and logistics. He is super excited and is going to be part of the planning process!

 

[Buck1970]

Thank you everyone for your help and offers! A lot of great info has been shared! We are trying to narrow down dates, seasons and logistics. He is super excited and is going to be part of the planning process!

Enjoy him while you can, before long he will be 18 and he will only won't to go duck hunting with his buddies.

 

[JimmyO]

We have high deer densities in Pennsylvania and a lot of public access. Someone here already mentioned the 1.5 million Acres of State Game Lands. There is also the Allegheny National forest with another 500,000 acres.

In Pennsylvania a young hunter under the age of 12 may hunt without a license through the youth mentored hunting program while accompanied by a licensed adult.

So you would need to purchase a non-resident hunting license which only costs $101.90. That license includes 1 antlered deer tag, 1 spring gobbler tag, 1 fall turkey tag, and unlimited small game hunting. The youth mentored hunter (your son) would use your tag for any big game animal he killed. Meaning you would not both be able to harvest a buck in the same year.

If you were trying to do more than one hunt you could start with the West Virginia firearms season which begins the Monday before Thanksgiving followed 5 days later with Pennsylvania's opening day of deer season.

Here is a picture of my cousin's hunting buddy's trophy killed in The Allegheny National Forest last fall.

 

[Orange Dust]

He can hunt in Arkansas. Both my daughters killed their first one at 5. For youths the first deer they kill every season doesn't need to be legal. Any deer for the first one. Increases the odds for success a bunch. However, anything else they shoot does have to be legal. Great law, great way to get cull bucks out of the heard too.

 

[jeffreyjwilliams]

He can hunt in Arkansas. Both my daughters killed their first one at 5. For youths the first deer they kill every season doesn't need to be legal. Any deer for the first one. Increases the odds for success a bunch. However, anything else they shoot does have to be legal. Great law, great way to get cull bucks out of the heard too.

I live in TX and hunting here and public hunting is tough. If you own land or have a lease it's great. . How is it for an out of state hunter on public land? I have two boys that love to hunt.

 

[Orange Dust]

I live in TX and hunting here and public hunting is tough. If you own land or have a lease it's great. . How is it for an out of state hunter on public land? I have two boys that love to hunt.

Arkansas is blessed with a lot of public land, and many Wildlife Management areas. You can target deer, hogs, turkeys, or waterfowl depending on the area. We also have the best Brown Trout fishery in the world that is public. Stripers and hybrids in the Ar river and several lakes. WMAs are located in different types of terrain, Coastal Plains, Hardwood bottoms, Pine forests and Mountains. Plenty to target. Waterfowl they limit hunters and access to allow better success. There are also guide services that are much more reasonable than Texas. Private land deer leases are cheap. Most folks pay $300-500 a year for a lease. Waterfowl not so cheap. I share my waterfowl lease with a guy from Georgia. He makes the drive, so getting in a lease isn't out of the question for you, esp if you and your boys want to hunt more than once. Under 16 they don't have to buy a license, but if memory serves they have to buy one if they kill a deer and tag it. I'm with adult kids and grandkids still too young so haven't kept up. Spend some time on Arkansas Game and Fish website and look at the rules and maps. How deep into Texas are you? The drive could be an hour or 10 LOL Forgot to add, unless it has changed Non Resident licenses are Reciprocal with neighboring States. We charge you what you charge us. I can tell you which areas have the most of what.