Deer Plans & Scouting - Lake Panasoffkee WMA Special Opportunity Hunt

I stood at the gate staring down into the swamp. I wouldn’t be able to drive my truck any further. The road into the dark was steep – a rough ride back up on bike. Bikes didn’t matter, though. I didn’t have one with me. Middle of July, I wasn’t about to walk into that skeeter pit.

This is going to be a tough hunt, I thought.

I pulled a Lake Panasoffkee Special Opportunity Archery permit for 12/1-12/4. With twins on the way in September, my chances of driving far and wide for deer appeared awfully grim, so I made a desperate tag grab for anything close to home. Luckily, it all panned out, and I may salvage part of this season.

The FWC markets Special Opportunity Hunts as the opportunity to hunt “large areas with lots of game and low hunter quotas and (that) provide excellent opportunities to bag trophy deer, wild hogs, quail, wild turkeys or doves.”

Much of this is done in conjunction with other agencies, in this case the Southwest Florida Water Management District commonly known as “SwiftMud.” You pay for the privilege to hunt here. Pay to apply, pay if you are successfully drawn and want the hunt. It is difficult to draw a tag. This is the first time I have been successful. You can apply for as many hunts as you want to help up your odds. I applied for three. Drew Lake P; am currently on the waiting list for two Green Swamp West deer hunts. One hunt I’m 353rd in line. The other, 435th. So I’m feeling pretty lucky about what I did get, especially since this hunt has a limit of 20 hunters.

But, wow, now the work starts. Lake Panasoffkee WMA is nearly 9000 acres of floodplain forest. From Google Earth you can see the land is mostly swamp and wetlands with scrub and flatwood habitat on the northern end of the property. With a large equestrian camp on the premises and being part of the Great Florida Bird Trail, I am assuming the roads and paths – 26 miles total - will be easy to travel.

The greatest trouble with hunting swamp like this is figuring where to set up. For starters, there’s no telling how much water will be standing come December. I betting not as much as there is now – and that makes scouting difficult, as well. All it takes, though, is a hurricane or tropical storm to fill up those bottoms through most of the season. Next, swamps – at least those from my experience – lack many of the funnels and edge territory that one would normally queue on when setting up a stand. Scouting from the sky doesn’t help a whole lot. Also, I’ve not found much in my research about the property.

And to top it off, it’s an archery hunt with a four-point on an antler rule. Really limiting my odds, people.

Ideally, in a swamp like this, I’d find a promising locale, hang a lock-on, and pour corn 'til it shined through the canopy. Of course, I’d probably end up with a whole lot of hogs and not many deer. And it's illegal on public land anyhow.

Hunting in the swamp is much different than hunting broken and mixed terrain. I could sit and percolate on this hunt for a while and makes desperate guesses and assumptions of how it’ll play out, but it’s just going to take shoe leather. Look for some oaks, old rub lines and trails. It's standard issue scouting, just much more difficult to know where to start.

I’ve signed up for a tough hunt, no doubt.

Florida Deer Journal 2010 - The Upper Hills Hunt

Behind me, I heard the dry leaves of the cypress swamp Corn Flake as the deer approached at a trot. It was coming fast. Though the weather was clear and beautiful all weekend with temperatures in the 40’s, after 12 hours perched in the stand with nothing to report, action couldn’t come fast enough.

I glanced over my right shoulder and finally saw the large-bodied buck. His antlers, tall and tobacco-stained in color, curved straight forward like lances. Points, I cannot say. It was too thick for a shot, at least with a bow.


He paused briefly then resumed his pace into the Thickness of Central Florida. I grunted on the Knight & Hale a couple times, but I knew Mr. Deer was history. He was the only buck I have seen in Florida all season.

I was satisfied. So be it. Save an unexpected invite somewhere, that was probably my last chance for the year. At least it ended on somewhat of a high note. Seeing a Swamp Buck is always a thrill.

But something felt askew. Why was he running? I thought at first he may be chasing a doe that slipped past unseen. January and February is Rut Time in this part of the state. Heck, it’s the reason I applied for the bowhunt here. Usually, though, when on the tail of a skirt, bucks will be nose-to-the-ground. This guy was heads-up and high-stepping. He was spooked.

Maybe another hunter pushed him. This was public land, after all. The evening before a gentleman and a portly young fellow crashed my set-up. Heard them coming - sounded like a herd of elephants walking down the trail. People don't realize how loud they can truly be. The pair politely moved along, but I knew they probably lurked close.

Another thought was more pervasive, however. Dad was hunting the northwest side of the cypress head, maybe 200 yards away straight line. And he’s had all the luck with seeing game lately. Problem is, I’m not sure he could kill a deer with an arrow if it had heat-seeking capabilities and a thermo-nuclear broadhead.

Had to check the texts.

“I just missed my buck.”

Sigh. The night before, he said he let a nice buck slip under his stand and couldn’t find an ethical shot in the remaining light. Nothing more frustrating than when you aren’t seeing anything and having to endure kith and kin bemoan their lost opportunities. It’s like, put me in the game, Coach!


Upper Hillsborough WMA is a few thousand acres in Pasco County. They offer only a few hunts a year, all by quota drawing and all primitive. The rut, as I said earlier, is late winter. On this hunt, I was finding fresh rubs and scrapes, sign that’s gone long cold in southern regions of the state. (Actually, the picture of the rub in the header of this blog was taken here last year.)

I’ve only hunted Upper Hills a few times; I get the sense there is not a ton of deer. The land is comprised of cypress bottoms interspersed with pine and palmetto flats and sand scrub. It is pretty land but without much in the way of nutrition, not all that conducive to a large population. (I’m also guessing a Cracker Season has been in effect in this area a long time, further suppressing numbers.)

This is not to say there aren’t a few nice ones. One person this year tagged a 198lb. nine. Not too shabby for these parts. As I said, Dad has had all the luck, but it correlates to the scouting he had done. The eastern end of the property can be reached only by bike and the trails open during game seasons are closed the rest of the year. You’ll need your hiking boots and a two-wheeler if you plan on advance recon.

This has been a strange year in Florida. A biologist buddy of mine reports harvest numbers are down across the region. It’s the way things go.

Next year things will be different. Next year I’ll do more scouting. Next year things will work out.

Next year I’m following Dad into the woods, clubbing him over the head, and hunting his stand.

2010-11 Florida Limited Entry Hunts

Time to break out your pencils and calendars, boys and girls, and commence planning for the 2010-11 Florida hunting season – the application periods for limited entry hunts are near. So, let’s get started.

First on the list, Special Opportunity Fall Hunts; St. Marks NWR Archery, General Gun, Mobility Impaired; and St. Vincent Island NWR Sambar Deer hunts all have an application period that begins May 4th and ends June 10th. This won’t be the year I go after the sambar, but that day is coming. St. Marks is usually a pretty good hunt, from what I hear. And, just for the fun of being opinionated, looking down the list of available hunts this year, I’m not real sure what is so special about the Special Opportunity offerings – in the past they’ve had quite a variety of properties. Doesn’t appear that way any longer.


I’m sitting that first round out. Of more personal interest, your earliest chance to apply for gator tags is May 5th and ends May 18th. Last year was the first time FWC utilized the random-draw system; I loved it. I got drawn. I’m not sure what the merits are of the first-come, first-serve system, but random draw is certainly the most egalitarian. Gator hunting is a ton of fun, something everyone should give a try at least once. Plus, it starts in August when there’s really nothing else going on, and, hey, it’s Florida – there’s a gator in every ditch.

Finally, June 1st is when hunters can apply for quota hunts on WMA’s. Worksheets for individual WMA's should be out mid-May, and I'm curious to see how they are adjusted for the new seasons Florida just constructed. Like last year, you can apply for archery, muzzleloading, and general gun permits. Each successful quota hunt applicant is allowed a buddy tag to tote along a worthy friend or family member. The number of WMA's increase seemingly every year; check out your neighborhood public land to see what they offer.

Sure, Spring just sprung, and autumn is a long ways off, but the time to plan is now.

Good luck!

FL Wild Hog Quota Application

For you fellow fun-seekers out there, just wanted to post a reminder that today is the first day you can apply for quota hunts to chase the ol' wild piggie on public land. The application period runs until April 12th. The applications and hunts are free. Those of you who enjoy running dogs, there are some options for you as well.

Check here for more information. Oink oink!

Last Call for Florida's 2009-10 Deer Season

Deer season is winding down in the Sunshine State. The South Zone closed two weeks ago, and the Central Zone calls it quits the 24th. Only the lucky nuts in the Northwest Zone can keep after whitetail. The General Gun season there ends February 17th but a blackpowder season picks up on the 18th and runs until the 28th.

Be prepared for some major changes next year. The FWC, in an attempt to put hunters in the field during peak rut times, has completely altered deer seasons throughout the state. Archery season in the current South Zone would begin July 31st. A new area, Zone B, which includes a majority of Polk and Pasco counties, would start general gun season December 4th and end February 20th due to the late rut in this region of the state. So, the traditional seasons of Florida’s deer hunting are about to be history unless something drastic occurs.



(Click here for the FWC’s list of changes)

Until then, there are still plenty of hunting opportunities. A number of WMA’s sport small game seasons. Whether you want to plug some bushytails or call predators, the chances are available. Hogs are plentiful and fun to hunt this time of the year. Load up your shotgun with buckshot on WMA’s (where allowed) and pop some prime pork.

You can also take this time to scout for the upcoming turkey season. Identify likely roost trees, or just get to know your way around the woods better. Scouting now for deer is also productive as you can discover old rub lines, sheds, and trails. Doing so in February will earn you a leg up when going to hang stands later in the year.

For those of you not quite ready to give up the ghost on this season, concentrate on finding that buck near food sources. Scrub oaks should be dropping acorns. The bucks don’t move a whole lot so it takes some precise planning, but they are still there!