Quite a general question. If you want to stalk, and want a chance at a thick racked 200+ pound deer you sure wouldn't want to be in S. Carolina. But on the other hand if seeing a lot of deer is improtant to you and you don't mind harvesting a 120# avg rack deer then you wouldn't pick Maine. I would say that you need to think about what you want out of a hunt (what your goals are), then narrow it down from there.

 

If you are willing to drive all the way to Maine or South Carolina, might I suggest you head west to Ohio, Indiana or Illinois? Bigger deer....more deer....same approximate travel time

 

If you are willing to drive all the way to Maine or South Carolina, might I suggest you head west to Ohio, Indiana or Illinois? Bigger deer....more deer....same approximate travel time

I agree 100%

 

Thanks, for the replies. Just looking for a little direction on this.

 

Like what has been mentioned, it really depends on what you are looking for. I'm sure there are plenty of arguments for just about every state. Plus it depends if you are going DIY or with an outfitter.

Anywhere in the midwest is probably going to put you into some pretty good hunting. My "dream" hunts are Iowa, Kansas, & Illinois. Missouri is good also, plus they have over the counter tags(so does Ohio). Just do a little homework, narrow it down, and go from there. There are a lot of different options.

I'm putting in for a point in Iowa this year. Heading out there in a few years.

 

Ohio ? Really ? I never thought of that place for serious deer. I mean Ive thought of going on a trip there but is it really that good that people would put them in the conversation with "good deer states" ? Just wondering

Sab

 

I would pick Iowa followed by Kansas.

 

If you ever went to Montana or Wyoming to hunt whitetails, you'd never go anywhere else...It has the best of everything, both size and numbers. Sure you read about the mid-west, but few hunters actually get the monsters.Many more come home empty.In Wyoming or Montana, a 130-140 is a "sure thing" if you hold out, and a larger buck is still a better possibility than in the mid-west. And in Montana, it's not hard to see 150-200 whitetail bucks in a weeks hunt.

 

Northern Minnesota,if you can stand the cold.

 

check out the new field and stream. there is a couple page article that ranks top states for any deer, trophy deer, state records, sleeper states and such. just remember, it is opinionated.

 

If you ever went to Montana or Wyoming to hunt whitetails, you'd never go anywhere else...It has the best of everything, both size and numbers. Sure you read about the mid-west, but few hunters actually get the monsters.Many more come home empty.In Wyoming or Montana, a 130-140 is a "sure thing" if you hold out, and a larger buck is still a better possibility than in the mid-west. And in Montana, it's not hard to see 150-200 whitetail bucks in a weeks hunt.

Ummmmm, the record books beg to differ with your assessment, as do I, having hunted Illinois every year for the past five years...

Boone & Crockett entries for 2000-2010....Wyoming had 5, Montana had 17.....Illinois had 574, Wisconsin had 524 and Ohio had 355.

Kinda blows your theory out of the water....

 

Big Ken has it right for the amount of deer and quality Wyoming is tough to beat..Wisconsin would be my 2nd choice though. Having lived out there for several years it has the quality and a tradition that rivals ours. There having deer wars out there like us though the last decade over shooting too many does.

 

I would say any state where you can acess some good private ground. I've seen deer in Pa in private areas that will rival any deer anywhere in the country.

 

I have hunted most of the mid-west states and there is no doubt, at any moment, a deer that is big enough to make you lose complete self control, could walk out! However, having spent plenty of time in Wyoming for work, I can honestly say, it is one of the best kept secrets in deer hunting! Nebraska does not rank anywhere near the top in B&C, but there is a reason why 6 of us drive through Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, and Kansas, to spend 9 days out there, every November! I also own 104 acres in Ohio, which I leave during peak rut, to get to Nebraska.

Sometimes, the best hunting locations, have the fewest accolades!

 

Chester County

 

Boone & Crockett entries for 2000-2010....Wyoming had 5, Montana had 17.....Illinois had 574, Wisconsin had 524 and Ohio had 355.

Kinda blows your theory out of the water....

Nobody said they produce more B&C bucks...How many hunters get a B&C anywhere?...If you want to see a lot of deer, and a lot of nice ones, you simply can not beat Montana or Wyoming...Everyone doesn't need a 170 B&C to be happy...Some guys who hunt the midwest get fantastic deer, the majority still come home empty-handed.

 

Wyoming. I hunted archery deer twice there and came home with P+Y deer both times. Rifle would be a cake walk.

 

I'm a big fan of PA myself, but have hunted Illinois with some success.

 

Boone & Crockett entries for 2000-2010....Wyoming had 5, Montana had 17.....Illinois had 574, Wisconsin had 524 and Ohio had 355.

Kinda blows your theory out of the water....

Nobody said they produce more B&C bucks...How many hunters get a B&C anywhere?...If you want to see a lot of deer, and a lot of nice ones, you simply can not beat Montana or Wyoming...Everyone doesn't need a 170 B&C to be happy...Some guys who hunt the midwest get fantastic deer, the majority still come home empty-handed.

Agreed.

 

I've always wanted to go archery hunting in Wisconsin.

 

Boone & Crockett entries for 2000-2010....Wyoming had 5, Montana had 17.....Illinois had 574, Wisconsin had 524 and Ohio had 355.

Kinda blows your theory out of the water....

Nobody said they produce more B&C bucks...How many hunters get a B&C anywhere?...If you want to see a lot of deer, and a lot of nice ones, you simply can not beat Montana or Wyoming...Everyone doesn't need a 170 B&C to be happy...Some guys who hunt the midwest get fantastic deer, the majority still come home empty-handed.

This is what YOU said....
In Wyoming or Montana, a 130-140 is a "sure thing" if you hold out, and a larger buck is still a better possibility than in the mid-west.

The record books say you have nowhere NEAR the chance of shooting a "larger buck" in Wyoming or Montana than the Midwest. If Illinois, Wisconsin etc. are producing 50 times more 170+ bucks...how many 150s do you think they have?

It's simple math.

 

Ohio is coming on as a whitetail destination but when I am paying I am looking at Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas or Wisconsin. I pretty much have stuck with Iowa and Missouri over the last 20 years - just depends on what kind of hunt you are looking for.

 

Ken, you're right Montana has the deer. Both whitetails and muleys. You've been to Powder River before right? I was surprised at the number of deer there and the size of some of the bucks. You'd think with those numbers bucks would be small. It would be hard for me to spend 1000 dollars on a non res deer license though.

 

I agree with those that said there are better states for deer than those between Maine and SC. Not to say there aren't some good hunts to be had but if you drive the same amount of miles west you'll find some excellent hunts in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Kentucky. If you don't mind traveling farther there are other midwest states that are excellent as are some of the western states such as Wyoming and Montana.

The word "best" has different meanings to different people.
One question I often ask is, "Do you want a hunt where you will see a lot of bucks but the odds are they will score from 120-140 or are you looking for a 150+ and willing to see less bucks and possibly go home empty handed? To kill a bigger buck, you need to go to where they are and you need to be able to pass up smaller bucks. The higher you raise the bar the higher the odds that you will eat your tag. True trophy hunters are OK with that while others feel the need to kill an animal on an out-of-state hunt.

When you honestly answer the question above, it makes the decision on where to go much easier.

Another important factor is whether you are bow hunting or gun hunting. Most states offer bow hunts during the rut and some schedule their rifle seasons during the rut as well. Other states deliberately schedule their rifle seasons when the rut is over. Kansas for example can be a great state to bow hunt in but rifle season can be tough as the rut is pretty much over when gun season rolls around. States like Nebraska, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, Wyoming and a few others have rifle hunts during the rut which really ups your odds of seeing bigger bucks on the move.

The great news about whitetails is that they are thriving in so many states and provinces that you just need to decide what it is you are looking for in a deer hunt - when you do, the right place to match your personal expectations is out there.

 

Slightly off-topic, but I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Texas...