I’ve been a resident of the west for three years, yet I’m still drawn to whitetail deer while living in the heart of elk country. Although the mountains are now what I call home, my Michigan roots keep my mind wandering to whitetails, especially when the November rut rolls around. Outside of my formal stomping grounds, I’ve had my fair share of whitetail hunts around the country in various states including; Kansas, Iowa, Ohio, Colorado, and Oklahoma. On many of these trips I’ve returned home “deer-less” but the experiences I’ve had and the memories made are nothing short of spectacular. If you’re an avid whitetail hunter (like myself) you should highly consider an out of state hunting trip.

The Unknown

The thing that reels me in the most to DIY whitetail trips is the adventure aspect, hands down. There’s just something about diving head first into parts unknown that draws the true adventurer out of me and the anticipation of new landscapes brings heightened energy like no other. Who doesn’t love a road trip with a good buddy and getting to step foot into unseen whitetail habitat?

Seeing new parts of the country and getting to hunt deer in different landscapes also brings new challenges. It takes hunting back to the basics where you have to figure out travel corridors, locate bedding areas, and put the entire puzzle together piece by piece. The adventure is so much more than miles traveled, it’s the experience of hunting in its purest form.

Large Tracts Of Public Land

100 acres was considered a big chunk of property where I grew up in Southern Michigan and up until I was 23 years old, I never knew what it was like to hunt thousands of acres of woods or crop fields. Large tracts of public land were few and far between so I was left to play within the lines of small private parcels, which I usually shared with multiple other hunters.

Many states have endless amounts of public land that are open to premier whitetail deer hunting, some of which are over the counter (OTC) tags. On public lands, you can literally play outside the lines and confines that you are normally subject to on private land. How often do you get to travel a mile into a stand location or cover square miles of acreage in a single day?

Camping and Lodging

The fun part about on an out of state hunting trip is getting to experience something new in a lodging situation. I’ve set up tents on public land, rented cabins at state parks and most recently on my hunt to Oklahoma, I slept in the bed of my truck with an air mattress and a SoftTopper. I’ve also stayed in hotels but I don’t recommend it because it kills part of the adventure on the trip, at least for me. A hotel doesn’t have the rustic hunting camp feel and even the shittiest motel can rack up a credit card bill pretty damn quick. I suggest finding a cabin, bringing a camper, or roughing it in the back of your truck; it will only make the experience better.

Creativity

The beauty part of a whitetail trip is the amount of creativity you can use for strategy, land access, and locating deer. There is no right or wrong way to approach or execute a hunt and you are only limited by your imagination. Who says you have to hunt exclusively on public land? I’ve gained free access to hunt private farms simply by door knocking, thus playing outside of the lines that I thought I was confined to. On my recent 2018 Whitetail Hunt to Oklahoma, I utilized quail hunters to help locate deer by exchanging numbers on the first day with the agreement to let each other know of sightings of the quarry we were chasing. After having a slow couple of days, I followed up with one of the bird hunters and he disclosed the area they were seeing the most deer while hunting for quails. Later that day I hung a stand and killed a doe and buck that same week. There’s no single path to get you from A to Z and that’s part of what makes these out of state trips so cool.

Have Fun!

Above all else, it’s important to remember why we deer hunt to begin with and that’s to have fun. If you’ve lost your itch or are looking to find a new passion, getting out of the same routine and mixing it up in another state can help rekindle the flame or start a fire that will burn for the rest of your life. Sometimes a spontaneous trip can help recharge the batteries for your daily life, regardless of whether or not you return with meat for the freezer.

With the start of 2019 upon us, where will you hunt this year? Will you return to the same back-forty that you know like the back of your hand, or will you experience someplace new? Life is short. Plan the trip, buy the tag, and go hunting!

By Joe Wilson

Just to be clear, I love hunting my home state of Michigan. It’s tradition and will always hold a special place in my heart. But it sucks sometimes. While there is great habitat and deer numbers, there are also about 25 million hunters here (or so it seems) and just as the bowhunting is getting good, gun season comes in and turns the deer herd into schizophrenic homebodies who you swear wear invisibility cloaks.  Rather than whine about this year after year, I highly recommend taking an out of state hunting trip. These trips may seem like a dream that requires extensive knowledge and superior skills but they do not, I am evidence of that. The other thing they do not require is a small fortune. For three years I have traveled from my home state of Michigan to hunt both Ohio and Kansas. These are trips that all gave me legitimate chances at mature bucks and can be done by anyone with a little will power to save the money and a couple hours to plan.

Due to the fact that no one wants to read the novel I have prepared on this subject (unless of course, you are suffering from insomnia), I have split it into two parts. Here in part 1, I will describe to you how much my trips costs, how to find the money for the trips, how to find lodging, and how to apply for tags. In Part 2, I will discuss finding land to hunt, strategies to find the deer once you get there, and one subject some forget about; how to transport your deer home without getting a hefty fine.

Total Cost

Both trips were split two ways as I had a hunting partner. The more buddies you go with, the less you will pay for gas, lodging, and even food so start recruiting. Gas was estimated at $2.40 per gallon. Food mostly consisted of meals made in the kitchen with a couple dinners at restaurants.

Finding the Cash

Most hunters I know hear of my trips and say, “I wish I could take an out-of-state trip but I just don’t have the time or money.” What they are really saying is, “I would like to take an out-of-state trip but I have other things in my life that are more important. Also, I make dumb statements a lot and I probably voted for Hillary.” Okay, so the last part might not be true. The cost of a trip to a state like Ohio should be simple. $430 comes out to saving just over $8 a week. The Kansas trip was a bit more and equates to $82/month or $19/week. That seems like a lot? Do me a favor, keep track of your finances for one month. Put everything into a log and summarize it by category. Now take a minute to call out any expenses that are a want, not a need. Do you really need satellite TV? How many times did you go out to eat when you could have eaten at home? How many coffees from Starbucks did you get? What about that new truck payment, could you have gotten by with a used one? I guarantee you will find the money, it just depends on how bad you want a ticket to deer paradise. As for time? If you really want to go you will find the time. Even a long weekend is better than nothing.

How to Find Lodging

We stayed at a cabin that went for $375 per week. It included a small kitchen (which saved us money on food) and full bathroom with shower. To find it, I simply went to google, put in “Cabin rental (secret hot spot), Kansas” and saw what came up. Later on I even found a ranch that rented out cabins cheaper than what we found initially. Now if you think I am a princess for wanting to stay comfortable, you are probably right. The good news is you can save even more money by not doing so and camping at a state park which will usually have public land close by. If all else fails, find a cheap hotel room. Sure, it will be more expensive but you won’t break the bank.

Applications

Here is where it gets to be a bit tricky. Certain states require you to put in an application in order to draw a whitetail tag.  In some states (Iowa) you need a few years’ worth of preference points in order to draw certain areas. You can find the draw statistics (your chance of drawing) at the sites below. Below I have put together a quick rundown of popular Midwestern states and how to obtain a tag:

Ohio – Over the counter. Price: $150. Archery season: Late September – Early February. For more information go to http://wildlife.ohiodnr.gov/huntingandtrappingregulations

Indiana – Over the counter. Price: $150. Archery season: October 1 – January 1. For more information go to http://www.in.gov/dnr/fishwild/2344.htm.

Wisconsin – Over the counter. Price: $160. Archery season: early September – early January. For more information go to http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/hunt/deer.html

Illinois – By application (application period is in June) but tag is nearly guaranteed. Price: $467.75 Season: October 1 – early January (closed in certain counties during firearm season). For more information go to https://www.dnr.illinois.gov/hunting/Pages/DeerHunting.aspx

Kansas – By application (application period is in April). Price: $540. State is split into 18 units. When applying you will choose the unit you are applying for PLUS one additional unit that touches your unit (Basically you get to hunt two units but they have to touch each other). NOTE: Kansas is getting more competitive each year. I suspect that soon some units may require a preference point to draw the tag. For more information go to http://ksoutdoors.com/Hunting/Applications-and-Fees/Deer

Iowa –By application (application period is in May) Price: $549 + (depending on the unit) preference points ($52 per point). Season: October 1 – early January with a break in December during the Iowa Firearm Season. State is split into 10 units. You get to hunt one unit. For more information go to http://www.iowadnr.gov/Hunting/Nonresident-Hunting.

There you have it. Sit down with a buddy or two and hammer out details on which state you want to get a tag from, fill out your application (if need be), figure out your finances, find your lodging and you are well on your way. In part 2 we will discuss the more fun parts of process; finding land to hunt and then finding the deer.