The 5 Best States to Hunt White Tail Deer

Am Shooting Journal ^ | 12/9/20 | C Rice

[w1n1]

Want to bag a buck? Head to the South and Midwest, where the huntin’s good for America’s deer.
The deer hunting sector has been changing over the last few years, with new entrants moving into the top positions as far as the number and quality of white-tail deer hunting is concerned. Judging which states are working hardest to produce a high number of deer for hunting can be difficult, but there have been many changes to the states that sit at the top of the list in the last few years. The best States for deer hunting are spread through the eastern half of the nation and take in areas from Kentucky to Texas and east into Georgia.

Texas
The state of Texas has been growing in white-tail deer hunting importance for the last decade or so. The Lone Star State has seen impressive gun-deer harvests for the last few years, with 2018 and 2019 being more than 800,000 with the success rate climbing.

Georgia
Back in 2017, Georgia was sitting in tenth place on the list of the top ten best white-tail deer hunting states. The state of Georgia has risen to the number two spot on the list with the consistency the state has shown over the last five years with a white-tail deer hunting harvest of over 350,000 in 2019.

Michigan
The Midwest has been changing the way it addresses hunting, with Michigan now at risk of falling way down the list of white-tail deer hunting states. Michigan is still ranked in the top echelon of deer hunting regions but runs the risk of falling away in the coming decade. Read the complete best states to hunt white tail here.

[Flatus I. Maximus]

My back yard. They aren’t rarely seen big game animals anymore, they’re frickin’ rabbits with antlers. They’ve become so numerous and so complacent around humans that you can practically walk up to one and kick it before it’ll move.

[Blueflag]

I eat what I shoot, so I have never gone for trophies. The medium deer here in GA are quite good to eat ;-)

Freezer is full, and gave some away. All good.

[TermLimits4All]

I agree with GA. I got 2 monster bucks this year on my property. Would post the pics but don’t know how on this forum

[USS Alaska]

I live in PA and while I still hunt deer, I stopped shooting bucks 15-20 years ago {doe taste way better, and I have enough mounted racks}.

My biggest is an 11 point, my best is only an almost perfect 8 point.

When I hunted bucks, anything less than an 8, I would nail the racks to an oak tree in the back yard and the squirrels would eat them {for the calcium}.

I butcher my own deer, so I only make steaks, back straps and ground meat.

I may make some jerky.

Young hunters can take all of the wall hangers, I'll just get some great eating doe.

There are still about a million deer hunters in PA and as long as I can, I will continue to be one.

[Bob434]

Big whitetails in both north east and Canada, Alaska too I would imagine. They gotta be big because of the cold I guess?

[curdogmen]

here in southern Mo. we have CWD problem. We have been on a no feed order for two years. Deer are every where. It is wreaking my raccoon hunting with dogs. The big farms we hunt are not putting out feeders, making it a little harder on the dogs and I

[JBW1949]

I taught my son and his friends that you can’t eat antlers...Take the first legal deer you see....

[Islander7]

Mississippi is over run with the rats with hooves.

[Blueflag]

I never take a first year doe, at least 2 years old. But yeah, Antlers make lousy chili.

[SJackson]

Outdoors/Rural/wildlife/hunting/hiking/backpacking/National Parks/animals list please FR mail me to be on or off . And ping me is you see articles of interest.

For what it's worth, Top 10 Trophy Whitetail States

In order, Wisconsin, Ohio, Kentucky, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, Minnesota, Texas

[KevinB]

Virginia. A car is all you need. (Ask my insurance company how I know.)

[MIA_eccl1212]

I say Washington.

[Salamander]

Only in Montgomery county.

[LeonardFMason]

Any list that does not include PENNSYLVANIA is a JOKE and can’t be taken seriously.

PA has the second most deer hunters(Behind ONLY Texas) based on data from Quality Deer Management Association’s (QDMA)survey at approximately 700,000.

The top 3 states for Whitetail harvested:

1. TEXAS
2. MICHIGAN
3. PENNSYLVANIA

389,431 Whitetail deer were harvested by Tag count in 2019-20.

[bert]

My Yard

[dirtboy]

Not only that, but PA has vastly more public hunting areas than Texas as a percentage of total area, and that is one of their criteria. 1.5 million in PA versus 1.6 million (not billion as the article claims) in TX.

[Bikkuri]

And tears in beers?

[CodeToad]

I’ve got a dozen or two 10-12 point bucks at any time laying in my yard. Heck, I think they have become so domesticated that you could walk right up and take one by the antlers and go for a walk.

[dirtboy]

And that does not even cover 2.2 million acres of state forests and the Allegheny National Forest.

[Hot Tabasco]

Michigan now at risk of falling way down the list of white-tail deer hunting states.

The state recently outlawed baiting and feeding, but the harvest still sat above the 300,000 marks to keep the state rising in the annual lists of best white-tail deer hunting states.

Well, which is it?

With the exception of this year do to the Covid, there have been fewer hunters in recent years as older people “age out” and fewer younger people don’t have the time or may have other priorities.