Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Hunting North Florida

Could be possibly relocating to North Florida (Just North of Jacksonville). Im currently living in PA, prior to that was in AK for 10 years. So, whats the hunting like in North FL? Is there public access areas like Osceola National Forest worth exploring? Is most of hunting done on private land? Are there affordable leases available or scarce? I wouldnt be very far from Georgia and it looks like there are more hunting opportunities there. Do most folks in the area head north for the hunting? Im a traditional archery, flintlock, and rifle hunter for mostly deer, upland game and turkeys; any info would be much appreciated, not looking for anybodys honey hole, just trying to get a feel for what Im in for. Pm me if you'd like.

Look at Craigslist, they usually advertise for clubs around here. I'm from JAX (never Jacksonville,,,,) and most those guys head to Georgia and leases.

Olustee battle field used to have so good hunting behind it, but it's been years since I was there.

Georgia has some good WMAs near the border, couple hours drive, almost like a reunion with the campers, sort of an annual pilgrimage...

I live near Savannah, got a SMALL lease, hunting sucks but it beats sitting at home wishing you had somewhere to hunt.

You could go to the local gun shops in JAX and ask around.

Thanks Hancock,

Im not a big trophy hunter, just like spending a considerable amount of time in the woods and like to eat some venison in the winter. Sounds like there is enough for me to get my archery fix. I'll probably make my annual pilgrimage to PA around Thanksgiving for rifle season. If I get tired of the miles, Georgia could be another option, as well as North Alabama/Mississippi.

I hope to supplement some of my hunting time with the good fishing the area has to offer. Only surf fished a couple times but will be giving that a go, as well as a boat in the future possibly.

Tom, I have never hunted in Florida, but considered a trip to that area in the near future.. I think I just goggled it and came up with some interesting stuff.. Don't forget hogs..

Yeah, never hunted hogs before, could be interesting.

We were in Tallahassee area about a month ago, really enjoyed it. Never considered that area until then. IIRC you are of PA origin yourself. I wanted to move back west, my wife liked the south, guess who won? Happy wife, happy life, as long as I can plan a couple good trips a year!

Tom-I see you're from Millville. Our deer camp is up past Dubois between Sabula and Penfield. Nothing quite like the Pa. deer opener.

gopher my grandfather on my mom's side was born in Sabula!!

You can get into some good deer in the Panhandle. My heaviest whitetail was killed about and hour NW of Tallahassee

Born and raised in FL, spent most of my hunting time in central and north central FL. I've hunted north FL and south GA, a lot, more recently. There are plenty of deer, plenty of hogs, and plenty of turkeys. There's no difference between a deer on one side or the other of the state line. The further west you go, the bigger they tend to be along that line. Like Steelhead noted, there are some big deer in the Panhandle. Alachua county and the surrounding area, consistently produces big deer, year after year.
In my experience in the area right north and west of Jacksonville, whether GA or FL, you'll be looking at the 150-160 lb range for a good buck, bigger for an eyebrow raising buck.
FL has some excellent public land opportunities,all you need to do is go to the FWC website and do some reading. There is a LOT of public land and it runs the gamut from awful hunting to outstanding hunting. Leasing is common and not hard if you find your way into the club market. But, therein lies the first big difference:
In FL, a good tract is going to be far more expensive than a comparable quality tract in GA. Additionally, in GA for much of the season, you can take does during rifle season. In FL, you cannot; does are archery only. So, for a buck hunter, no problem, but if you like a doe or two for the freezer, you need to get her during archery or hunt GA.
With three kids, my lease is now in south GA for the above reasons. Even with the additional license fees, I come out with a thicker wallet. Some FL hunters have got themselves a very poor reputation in GA for being ill-mannered, disrespectful azzhats, and rightfully so from a few things I've seen, but we've always treated people right, treated the land and game right, and we've been welcomed.
If I want to hunt public land, I'll look to the FL special opportunity hunts.

Thanks Guys, starting to get more optimistic.

Gopher- your right about the opener, I know Ill be missing it come November even though Ive never been very successful the first couple days. Second week has always been good to me.

Looks like Ive got some reading to do to get educated.

Some FL hunters have got themselves a very poor reputation in GA for being ill-mannered, disrespectful azzhats, and rightfully so from a few things I've seen, but we've always treated people right, treated the land and game right, and we've been welcomed.

So true: I live in GA now, originally from Fl, and up here, we don't like the Florida hunters coming up paying WAY too much for a lease then drive around like they're something special.

Also, look at SC, season starts Aug 15, WAY too hot for me!!) and runs to Jan 1st, I believe.
Some refuge hunts (you'll need a boat for some of those).

Here's a 225 pound Florida buck

Good one!!

Yep, beautiful buck, Scott. I think I recall seeing a pic of him back when you were still living between Flippant and Glib, maybe in one of the long lost threads about how tiny FL deer all are. That's not one I mind seeing a second time!

Hancock27 - Yep, sounds like the bad apple gang. I'm acquainted with a couple of them, and that's why they aren't welcome in my very small camp. They're not even welcome on my boat down here at home. But, there are plenty I've met who mind their own and treat people the right way, too, including a few of the ones who don't yet know they're paying too much.

I reckon Tom will be just fine. There's no lack of opportunities, just a whole lot warmer weather during the early season!

Yeah, we very seldom have snow to contend with here, When it does, watch out!! But man, I love hunting in the snow!

Tom,

I'm from Florida, and I've been stationed in Jax almost continuously since 1999. I have hunted a lot of public land across Florida. Back in the early 2000s when I got tired of dealing with the hunter density and ill-mannered people on public land, I joined my first club in SC. I never looked back. The prevailing narrative is that Florida hunters have driven up the per-acre lease cost in both GA and SC. There's some truth to that, but the economies in both GA and SC overall tend to be depressed, as agriculture and manufacturing long ago left large swaths of both states with low salaries and high unemployment. Farmers learned that prime deer land could command high prices, and the local boys lost much of their traditional hunting spots as folks from Florida came up and often paid too much per acre, thereby exacerbating the problem. That they are sometimes poor guests doesn't help.

You can pay anywhere from $700 a year for rights to a very small tract, or one with too many members for the acreage, all the way up to $3-4,000 per year for a trophy club with much smaller membership and prime genetics. I have found that I'm happiest at the upper end of that scale, as I get the low-pressure experience I'm looking for in one of Georgia's better counties. I hunted SC for years until I decided the super long season was a waste, as I have no desire to be sitting in a deer stand in mid-August.

It is aggravating to write that check every year, but I like knowing I have a spot I can go to any time and the deer won't be pressured, and I won't have to compete with anyone.
There is some good public land in FL and GA, but with it comes the challenges that are unique to public land. I got tired of having my stands stolen or jerks hunting right on top of me because they thought it was their birthright to be there. Shoot me a PM if you want specifics. Fort Stewart is good public land hunting that is open to the public and has rules that are enforced (a good thing).

Are you headed to Kings Bay?

Thanks for the info. Job is currently in limbo, keeping my fingers crossed it will all work out in the end and be there this fall.