Our second year of ownership of a small place in northern Duval County.

Compared to 2021, this year had:

• Spring and summer nasty drought
• Quite a bit of rain late summer/early fall that greened things up big time
• Fewer deer seen on camera
• Fewer deer seen while hunting

However, I did take this buck opening weekend that we let walk last season. I've never had a buck scored but did this one for shiats and giggles.

• 135 and change
• 142 lbs. field dressed
• 5.5 years old

Montague County - Saw good numbers of bucks for our place. We don't see a ton of deer but there is the potential for a really nice deer every couple of years. This year, the really nice deer took a break (drought) and we were still able to take an older decent 8 point. Love holding out for the older deer.

Lots of fun.

Aggiewes '87

Houston County - very disappointing year all around. Think we had 4 deer shot on our 1300 acre lease (all does). Just never did see any mature shooters and overall buck numbers were way down. We've had multiple good bucks each of the last 5 years or so, but nothing that met the definition of mature and legal this year. Even the rut action seemed pretty tame and just not much running around compared to years past. Still had a lot of fun with my boys getting in the woods and I at least shot one of the does, so not empty handed.

Mason, TX area

We took 4 cull bucks this year between me, my dad and my brother in law. Not sure the totals from the other guys on the lease off hand. There was a lot of green for the deer to eat up until late December, so most deer weren't coming to feeders until then.

Saw very few does on our cameras, never saw any while sitting in our stands. Saw a handful of does while we'd be driving around the place. We're a little concerned, since last year there was an abundance.

Western Llano county.. worst ever (nearly 40 years) in alot of ways. The truth is before season and even first weekend or so was good. Saw alot of really good bucks, a couple of WOW!! bucks. Very few does, I have night vision and thermal vision the deer are seemingly still around...just don't show themselves much this year during shooting hours.

Oh and 100 million acorns, the west wind stirred today and still have acorns falling on porch/roof even if there aren't leaves???

Mason County: 90 acres

A lot of deer as usual, but there was definitive lack of quality bucks.

We feed corn and protein year round (with multiple water troughs nearby), but the neighbor's cattle that graze our land in the summer ate everything within reach.

We ended up taking one doe and two culls off our property. And the neighbor was nice enough to let us shoot two axis does off his property for helping him get his tractor running this past summer.

Not deer related - but we seemed to have a lot more toms hanging around the feeders this season. They normally move to the neighbor's property once the hunting pressure kicks in. This year, not the case.


Freestone County: 200 acres

Fewest amount of deer we have ever seen.

This time last year I was having approximately five-six deer per day hanging around my feeder. This year, I haven't had a single deer stop by my feeder since December 12th. And the protein feeder they emptied within a week last year, hasn't been touched since I filled it in October.

Not deer related - but the coyote population has seemingly exploded over the last few years. I can't help but think it's making an impact on the local deer herd. These encounters are usually within narrow openings so getting a shot off has been difficult. We've managed to kill four this season.

Maverick County - Believe the drought cost us 15-20% of antler length.

I'd be very curious how many fawns people saw this year. In Lee County across the 5 places I hunted I saw maybe 2? And agreed on the coyotes. I think they've made a dent in the deer population. A lot more coyotes than normal right now.

Much slower in east Brazos county per the cameras. Luckily, I
shot this one after being in the stand for less than an hour.

My theory on the uptick in coyote sightings….drought.

Less to eat. More hunting required. And thus they are being seen more often as they move around more to find food.

It's been dry out there for a lotta folks.

Dimmit co. Didn't seem like we saw as many deer, but size seemed okay. Lack of numbers was probably due to the available browse. They weren't hitting the feeders or cottonseed like normal years.

Definitely less fawns than normal. Seemed like the fawn crop was half of what it should have been.

For me personally though I had the best season of my life. I shot less animals this year than I have in probably 10+ years, but the animals were much more special. Got my whitetail during bow season, then checked off a 20+ year itch with my blackbuck.

Worst season ever. Not one deer seen or on camera.

Been hunting the past 10 years or so on a friends place that he's had for awhile in Duval County. We always hunt same time of year. This year was good but bucks a bit lower in weight, lots of does and spikes. Fawn numbers a bit down. Greenest its been out there in a long time. We try to target older deer and it usually works out for the group. Pics are of the one i took this year and the "nicest" one taken amongst us, both aged at 6.5

You shoot Rudolph's cousin Randolph, the black nosed whitetail deer?

good, but numbers and mass were definitely affected. got this deer on my last morning hunt in schleicher County. sat in the blind a few times with my 8 and 11 year old boys in bowie County. wish we would have seen something, but getting them into hunting is good.

Anthrax hit us hard in 2019 but we have bounced back way better than I expected. I had a really good season in Kinney County. Our ranch was in way better shape than most South Texas with rain totals. I took a nice axis and couple solid bucks. I got this nice no brow ten point the last weekend of season. We had no trail cam history at all and guessed his age to be 7 plus. Killed out of an old tripod in a sendero. Our future is very bright if Mother Nature leaves us alone.

Edit not sure why I cant add pictures anymore

Didn't see much of anything this year except for pigs, small does, and not legal bucks.

Don't see much at my hunting area at the lease, it's a great deal but with my wife's nursing schedule and running a business I don't make it out there enough to justify it anymore. Thinking about letting it go this next year and just trying my hand at public hunting.

Coyote SZN

JSKolache said:

---

Coyote SZN

---

No luck on 2 TPWD drawn hunts (HCSNA for me and Choke Canyon for my son). My son culled a beauty from family land. Both TPWD biologists said their fawn survival rate was down and they expect it to take a couple good years to recover.

yeah coyotes were bad too. opening morning I had a group of 5-7 run through right by my stand..

It was great. I found someone to get me a doe.

I'd say strong to quite strong

Place near Boerne - consolidated from a half dozen to just 2 running feeders. Had corn chilling on the deck for a month + this fall. It started to sprout. Deer just weren't coming in to eat it. Occasionally a mature buck traveled through, and there were a couple lazy youngsters, but I expect acorns were a big factor.

My family's high fence place was great, but that's what happens when they don't go anywhere and you feed all year.

My lease in Gonzales County was a giant kick in the nuts. Corn would sit all day until the pigs showed up to eat it at night. The positives, there were plenty of young deer, so I have hope for the future, and I was able to get my two does and a spike. Also, the two large tanks on the lease now have water, so lets hope it last until next season. The downside is I only saw one mature buck all season on camera, he must have been passing through.

So based on the information from this thread + the feedback and conversations I have had with folks thus far, it would seem that:

• South Texas - Average to even above Average year
• Hill Country - appears to be down for just about everyone
• Central Texas - seems to be either good or bad, not a lot in between
• East Texas - I have no idea...

I appreciate everyone sharing information and feedback here. This is primarily an exercise to help me benchmark what is going on in the rest of the hunting world.

We've been hunting at this place for a very long time and have done all of the right things (supplemental feeding, management, limited harvest, etc.) but this last year was pretty frustrating. Although we have some other things working against us, I was just hoping to gather some data to determine if the problem was isolated or not.

Central Gillespie County. Lots of small acorns, whitetail deer population down around our place. We have a year around creek running through us and good bottom with lots of trees. That part is not game fenced so normally lots of deer. Saw one mature 8pt., 4 yr old, on game cam and from the blind several times. Far fewer whitetail does. But, axis have really moved in. 8-10 nice bucks, lots of does, fawns and spikes. One axis herd ranging through the creek bottom has about 30-40 animals, there may be other herds as well. No doubt that has driven whitetail out. Game can wander this un-fenced creek for miles across multiple properties and obviously axis are expanding their range here. That's ok, would much rather eat axis.

East Texas - I have no idea...

I can add that I did bow hunt and rifle hunt in Cherokee County near the town of neches on the National Refuge. While the deadwater lake was low and out of water nearly the area was healthy and rather green. 3 bucks were killed, 1 by me with rifle, 1 by buddy with bow and 1 by guy that parked by us everyday. We saw a lot of doe and reports of many doe by the other hunters. They manage the place well. Buddy saw good buck number every day I saw 2 mature bucks walking into my stand mid day on the bow hunt.

Mine rifle


Guy parked by us



Old Sabine in Lindale the guy running the hunt said he would rate deer numbers this year at a 6+ out of 10. Youth hubt killed a broken 10 we saw a dandy of a 10point and many doe and a few other bucks. So I'd say E Tex was good.

how does one participate in this kind of hunt? im down the road from cherokee county

Great year. We've been in Rocksprings for 20+ years. parents live out there now. this is the first buck I've killed off there worthy of a mount. Took a doe also.

Bet the middle one was fun to clean

You smelt that picture too, huh?

I smelled it through my phone. Also had flashbacks to some of my less ideal shots