No luck hunting in state forests?

Varminting and vertebrate pest control. Small game, hunting feral goats, foxes, dogs, cats, rabbits etc.

No luck hunting in state forests?

Post by RealNick » 16 Jul 2013, 4:21 pm

Hey guys,

I've hunting on private property with some regularity and usually have some luck getting a few foxes, or sitting outside a rabbit warren busting a few bunnies and that's all been fine.

I'm probably going to have less access to this property in the future though so have been branching out and exploring some local state forests north of Melbourne.

Very little luck though so far :(

Have been out half a dozen times and have seen a fox or two, but otherwise no signs of life. Any tips for someone new to hunting in state forests?
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Re: No luck hunting in state forests?

Post by Wheredothebulletsgo? » 26 Jul 2013, 7:48 pm

Hunting in Victorian forests is always hard work especially those closer to the metro area.

No forest is ever shot out as some may put it as the nature of ferals like goats is transient. Just put in the hours and operate further away from areas frequented by others.

Last hunt near Castlemaine we toughed it out for around 6 hours then found a mob of about 20 goats. I shot one then let the rest run. Very satisfying after a long slog.

Also get an electronic caller for a bit of an advantage with Fox and Dogs that would not usually come out easily.
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Re: No luck hunting in state forests?

Post by Lorgar » 26 Jul 2013, 10:04 pm

Wheredothebulletsgo? wrote:Hunting in Victorian forests is always hard work especially those closer to the metro area.


That's about the sum of it.

I used to go out 1-2 hours north or north/east of Melb but quickly discovered it's a waste of time.

The further you can get out the better, places like Mount Beauty are where it's at.

Only downside is you can't really get out for a shoot and back in a day. Need the time to camp out for a weekend when you get out that far to make the most of it.
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Re: No luck hunting in state forests?

Post by oohsam » 09 Oct 2013, 8:31 pm

Lorgar wrote:
Wheredothebulletsgo? wrote:Hunting in Victorian forests is always hard work especially those closer to the metro area.


That's about the sum of it.

I used to go out 1-2 hours north or north/east of Melb but quickly discovered it's a waste of time.

The further you can get out the better, places like Mount Beauty are where it's at.

Only downside is you can't really get out for a shoot and back in a day. Need the time to camp out for a weekend when you get out that far to make the most of it.


Thats the goods right there ^^

I've been out to the 'local' forests. I find they are most heavily used by 4wdrivers and dirt bike riders...I wouldn't say they are hunted out, but they are very thin on the wildlife, or they are very skittish, used to human contact and have a great ability to hide/escape. I have seen rabbits, hares, and deer in the 'hunted out' forests.

We've got a pretty amazing country with some awesome forest/bushland. I'm always in awe when I go out, and don't really care as much if I bag a deer or not. Just love being out there....but they're right, you need to get a bit further out.

I find that heading out friday after work, setup camp and sleep, and then hunt all day saturday, come home saturday evening seems to work and is not too demanding on the body (depending on how hard you hunt) and the mrs is generally ok with it!

You also need to be-careful, as you sound like you're hunting with a smaller calibre rifle, getting caught in the popular deer hunting areas with a underpowered rifle could see that you have some explaining to do.

Spoke to a park ranger recently who told me they had the police confiscate a 22 and 223 off some guys hunting in the forest, apparently for deer, which is a stupid stupid thing to do.
Not sure how you prove you're hunting foxes or dogs and not deer, and not having a game licence either, well..that one is beyond me.

Anyway, if you want some advice, or whatever, pm me.
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Re: No luck hunting in state forests?

Post by sarki » 09 Oct 2013, 9:04 pm

oohsam wrote:Spoke to a park ranger recently who told me they had the police confiscate a 22 and 223 off some guys hunting in the forest, apparently for deer, which is a stupid stupid thing to do.


Plenty of that in the US where they don't have minimum calibre laws in a lot of states :roll:
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Re: No luck hunting in state forests?

Post by oohsam » 10 Oct 2013, 9:46 am

sarki wrote:
oohsam wrote:Spoke to a park ranger recently who told me they had the police confiscate a 22 and 223 off some guys hunting in the forest, apparently for deer, which is a stupid stupid thing to do.


Plenty of that in the US where they don't have minimum calibre laws in a lot of states :roll:


haha yeah, but you can hardly compare Australia to the States when it comes to firearm laws....

You have to admit though, shooting a deer with .22 is not really a responsible thing to do regardless of law, depending on the type of hunter you are. A hunter with ethics and morale would definatley not do such a thing.
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Re: No luck hunting in state forests?

Post by RealNick » 10 Oct 2013, 9:57 am

oohsam wrote:You also need to be-careful, as you sound like you're hunting with a smaller calibre rifle, getting caught in the popular deer hunting areas with a underpowered rifle could see that you have some explaining to do.

Spoke to a park ranger recently who told me they had the police confiscate a 22 and 223 off some guys hunting in the forest, apparently for deer, which is a stupid stupid thing to do. Not sure how you prove you're hunting foxes or dogs and not deer, and not having a game licence either, well..that one is beyond me.


Nah I have suitable calibres. Got the game permit and all that... Just working on getting a good set of hunting grounds down ;)
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Re: No luck hunting in state forests?

Post by sarki » 10 Oct 2013, 10:01 am

oohsam wrote:You have to admit though, shooting a deer with .22 is not really a responsible thing to do regardless of law, depending on the type of hunter you are. A hunter with ethics and morale would definatley not do such a thing.


I agree with you... I wasn't saying we should be able to do it here because they can in the US.

Hunting game the size of deer with a .22 is all sorts of wrong IMO.
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