Taking my Handi to Kentucky

[capnduane]

My daughter has just moved to Oldham Co, Kentucky. I am going to visit her in November, which just happens to coincide with the Whitetail Deer season(what a coincidence!) I am hoping to take my 270 Synthetic Handi with extra 20ga bbl. Any of you Kentucky Handiholics have any helpfull info on where I can hunt, seasons and game available? She is buying a 26 acre farm and it has woods and a creek down in back, don't know if I will be able to hunt her property, or if rifles are legal? Sure would like to line up on a nice whitetail buck, I've hunted the tiny ones in Arizona quite a bit, but never a regular back east one. Duane

[capnduane]

270 Handi with extra 20ga bbl

[xhare]

I hunt in the Bowling Green area.  Oldham county is a beautiful area of KY but Louisville (Jefferson Co) is definitly growning into that county.  It is generally an upscale area, in some places very upscale.  Some areas of the county are still quite remote however. I am not aware of any public lands there open for hunting but there certainly may be. 

As far as I know, rifles are legal there for modern gun season.  I am unaware of any restrictions.  A standard tag gets you 2 deer, a buck and/or doe, and a doe.  Depending on how long you stay, KY fall turkey season is split with a week and 2 weekends on one side of deer season, and the same after deer season (muzzleloader included I believe).  Fall turkey allows you to take hens if you prefer.   

By the way, I got my M.S. in Biology (Aquatic) at University of Louisville and we had a field station on the Ohio River in the tiny town of Westport.  I have been in that area quite a bit.

You can get more specific details online.  The Kentucky laws and hunting guides are available online as pdf files.  They list the seasons county by county as they differ a bit over the state.  It should have any specifics on Oldham county or counties nearby as well as any Wildlife Management Areas. 

[xhare]

One other thing.  The deer are thick there.  I used to travel I-71 quite often and the number of dead deer along the road is more than any place I have ever seen.  Be careful as you come in.  The north and south bound lanes are split for several miles with 200-300 meters between them.  The deer really like it in there.  Lots of oak trees and a nice size stream runs through much of it.  No hunting pressure there either.  In the fall deer are often right along the road grazing the right of way.

[capnduane]

Thanks for the info, Xhare. 10-4 on the deer population, my daughter was back there a couple of weeks ago and said she saw lots. And upscale is right, she's moving into a 5100sq ft house!   I'll be flying there, too far a drive from So. Calif........ Any tree squirrels in that area? Just love squirrel stew!

[.308 Win.]

We've got deer everywhere, doesn 't matter if it's in town or ten minutes from downtown, deer are there, my friend.  Squirrels?  Oh yeah, many squirrels and they are both the fox and gray variety.  We have cottontail rabbits, too. As far as armament, you can feel free to use your centerfire on the deer because we don't have that stupid regulation of having to use slugs like the folks in Indiana do. I'd be willing to bet if your daughter has 23 acres with timber and a creek running through it, you'll find some deer and all the squirrels you'd ever want. 

Good luck and welcome to Kentucky.  The native Americans here called this place a name that resembles the name Kentucky that meant "dark and bloody ground" because this was the hunting grounds for many Indian nations at one time.     

[xhare]

308 Win is right.  Squirrels are everywhere.  Fox squirrels are typically found in more wooded areas and gray squirrels can be found anywhere as long as there are a few trees. 

If you get the time, go to The Falls of The Ohio across from Louisville in Indiana.  It is an area of exposed bedrock in the river bed that is loaded with fossils.  Louisville exists as a city because that section of the Ohio River was an area of rapids and river boats could not pass, going up or down.  So boats had to stop, unload their cargo, portage the cargo, and then reload on another boat.  Before the locks and dams were put in I understand you could walk across the river at that point if it was a dry summer.  It was also one of the few and maybe only location on the Ohio where Bison and Elk could cross the river, thus you can see why the area was such a big hunting ground for Indians. 

[darat100]

capnduane

I am not familiar with oldham county much except that it is definately more "upscale" as you guys say.  I don't know how far you are willing to go from your daughter's, but western ky is FULL of dear.  I am in henderson, less than two hours from louisville, and as you come this way, there are dear everywhere.   Plenty of public land to hunt, as well as private.  We hunt public and never fail to see and harvest plenty of the little suckers.  It is quite difficult to get a GREAT deer on public land, but easy to kill all you want.  Lots of the mining companies around here sell permits for $50-100 for their reclamation areas.  Funny how that $100 really keeps the quality of deer a little higher.

Good luck when you come visit us.  you shouldn't have any trouble finding a place to hunt. 

[capnduane]

Thanks guys, for all the good tips and info. I am looking foreward to my Kentucky visit, and hope to set my sights on a buck. Or a doe, I mainly want to stock my daughters freezer with some good eating venison. My 270 Handi has been a good shooter with Remington 130gr factory ammo.  But it seems to shoot higher as it heats up, and each year that I buy a new box of ammo, it seems to shoot to a different spot. I have the same problem with my Mauser. I don't think the Rem ammo is consistant year to year. I have just lately been working with the 130 Sierra and H4831 powder. The load that I have , that shoots into an inch in my mauser 270, is too hot for the handi, some cases stick. The Rem ammo never sticks, just is not consistant.

[xhare]

If you hunt a doe, you can probably wait till one gets good and close, that way it wont matter if your shots are a little inconsistent.  I shot one at less than 10 yards last year, nice head shot.  I typically hunt in the woods and was just off a well used trail. 

[digger658]

If you go on a sight seeing tour while here you have to check out the Frasier Arms Museum in downtown Louisville. I would bet it is the finest arms museum in the country. Plan to spend at least 3 or 4 hours.

As others have said, deer in Ky. are plentiful. I live about 45 min. from Oldham co. in Bullitt co. Oldham county was a top producer of deer several years ago, may still be one. Tell your daughter to put out some salt blocks down by the creek.

p.s. Saw 3 deer in the front yard this morning.

[capnduane]

Salt blocks down by the creek!   I have a pic somewhere of a guy in a hot tub, on the back porch, with a beer, and getting ready to shoot something out in the pasture. My daughter and I have been chuckling about that one...........

[capnduane]

Found the pic, Texas Deer stand!

[xhare]

At least he has the required blaze orange hat.  Looks legal to me.