I am leaving the end of this week for a hunt in montana. It got me thinking that I have never really hunted anything other than the wooded hills and farms of Pa. This will be all new terrain.
What is your favorite type of land to hunt with a handgun?

And why of course.

Big timber, old growth firs and pines fairly high around 5 to 6000ft and high country ponderosa stands.

In all sincerity, "wherever the game animals are that I am after."

I have taken them in wide open flat country and in the heavy thick black timber; and everywhere else and in between. As a serious hunter, I believe you have to be able to adapt and be able to hunt how and where your quarry is. I consider myself "adaptable" and ready to do what I need to.

I grew up hunting the thick swamps and open sawgrass prairies of the southern Everglades. I loved standing atop my airboat as the sun was rising in the east and glassing for deer moving between the hammocks. Then I would sneak inside and put a stalk on them as they tried to remain hidden. Once you got past the snakes, gators, leeches and spiders that maintained over watch of the hammocks, the inside of these hammocks were wide open with little ground cover which lent itself to usually easy hunting. And since so few people ventured into these places the deer and hogs had not become conditioned to these intrusions. My second favorite though would be the open country of Colorado and Wyoming. Something about spot and stalk in open country that lends itself to fantastic views, and rewarding challenges that are the essence of hunting.

But if I really have my choice, I prefer to hunt the wide open country of parts of Wyoming and Colorado for mule deer and antelope. I enjoy glassing, and then the stalk. The stalk is what get my heart pumping with excitement

Uh-huh!



Can't imagine why ;-)

+1 to the stalk. Although the gators, snakes and spiders will get your heart racing as well.

I liked hunting the alpine in Alaska for blacktails. You can see forever. Nobody else was crazy enough to hike all the way up there and then carry a deer down.

Any place that allows me to hunt with one of my handguns.

Good answers! I wouldn't mind hunting some of the river bottoms for whitetails.

I just love to mosey around the woods and swamps here in northern MN, especially the day after a new snow.

Brushy creek bottoms,and hardwood flats, sometimes fingers of hardwoods extending out into a swamp.

Swamps, hardwood river bottoms, pine plantations, tangled cutovers, mesquite flats, vast agriculture, CRP, cottonwood drains...I like it all!

Where in Montana are you going to hunt? Montana can be wide open or thick timber more like where I live in northern Idaho. Its all good. Tactics have to match the terrain, but I love it all. Its good to get out of your comfort zone once in a while.

My thoughts exactly! I like to be out where I can see whats going on.

I hunt timber too and have had some success but I'd still rather glass up my game.

at the edge of a cedar swamp and a hardwood ridge. while we are at it let it be snowing some(1st snow)to if you dont mind.

Near trout creek...Clark's fork area.

And bluecow...it can snow :-)

I like variety. Open spaces are nice, but so are briar-thick swamps. I like a challenge.

Our property in South Colorado covers 400 acres. It sits at the base of 4 mountains. It is a collection of 3 major ridges, dark timber, aspen groves, football field size meadows with small creeks, one large open area that runs the ends of the ridges, and two watering holes the size of a Jeep Wrangler. I've seen critters in all of those areas. Never know what is going to show up. Deer, elk, bear, turkey, squirrel, rabbit, and grouse are all possible. My favorite spot is an old rickety cabin facing one of the meadows. I usually take young / new hunters here so they don't have to be completely still, and they still have a good chance of seeing something.

Its my slice of Heaven.

Sounds like a nice slice at that.

I really enjoy the swamps of east central Fl. I grew up in south Fl, enjoyed the glades from a track during the 60's.
Joe

I like moderately rolling terrain. When the weather conditions are right it's especially well-suited to still hunting.

Joe, ever hunt south of loop road, south of the trail?

I've been fortunate to hunt steep terain, a little wide open spaces, but for me I like pocosin bays. I enjoy hunting hard wood ridges in ky,rolling country in middle nc, wide open ag land in eastern nc, but my heart belongs to thick bay areas where encounters with crittiers is up close and very personal. Cut overs(5-6yrs old) come a close second.`Both areas have a few things in common, they are thick, I mean take the shirt off your back thick(cfish,schunter,whitworth I know you guys know), have very few trees to hunt from, so it becomes a ground game, and usually a case of playing the wind, picking the right spot, and quick and decisive shooting. Advantages to these areas usually are they are full of game, animals are usually relaxed because it is so thick they feel safe, and most people avoid these areas due to scratches,cuts,thorns,torn clothes,can't see very far,usually loaded with skeeters and snakes,easy to get lost because no major land features,or trees,and it usually requires lots of walking,and dragging critters after the chess match,can and is a pain in the rear. The older I get the more value the hardwood ridges and bottoms of rolling country,and wide open ag country seem to have but I think my heart will always long for them ol pocosin bays.

You forgot one cotton, those pesky little chiggers. Got a crotch full of me right now. Sorry for the graphic explanation. But I'm itching like a son of a gun. Was actually traipsing around the croatan the other day looking for a place to hunt near home. Brought home a case of the red bug. Grrrrrrr

fortunately all we have is the occasional tick and if you hunt low enough there is poison oak. I stay high which limits both of those issues.

cfish just your mentioning of them made my skin crawl. I have had several run ins with those things, try witchhazzle,not sure about spelling. You use to could get it at wal-mart or lice shampoo. Both have worked well.