2020 Lanai State Land Axis Buck

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Did the state land archery hunt on Lanai last week and connected on day 3 with a gorgeous hard-horn buck, which is hard to find during archery season! These deer are so fun to hunt, and it's amazing how challenging they are. Even at 20 yards, he jumped so fast that instead of a broadside heart shot at release, he was quartering away hard when the arrow arrived and it went in behind his ribcage and through his opposite shoulder blade. I've even seen perfect 30-yd heart shots on unaware deer that end up missing. These things are just on rails. Anyway, happy to be home with 50 lbs of meat in the cooler and a euro mount coming soon! He had a real big body, he's the one on the left in the pic below.
If you've got the chance, this is one of the better ways to do a Hawaii vacation. Been doing it for a few years and it's such a blast, and not very expensive (compared to other out of state hunts) if you don't stay at the Four Seasons.

[carpsniperg2]

Congrats axis are psych deer for sure. I guess that comes from being from tiger country always on guard and the smallest thing sends them off at 100mph. Fallow and axis are 2 of my favorite wild game meats. I try to shoot one of the 2 every year.

[253shotgunner]

Great pics...great hunt! 253shotgunner

[bearpaw]

Nice eye guards on that stag!

[Limhangerslayer]

Awesome!  Congrats

[dilleytech]

That’s awesome this hunt might be a reality for me in coming years. So you did just a public land hunt and saw descent numbers of animals? I hear so much conflicting info it seems. Thanks

[Tracker0721]

That’s awesome! Congrats! It’s a bucket list hunt for me. So you just bought a non res tag and found em on public land huh? I’ve heard people say it’s easy to find the goats and axis on public and other people say it’s near impossible. I’m planning to go just for the experience but the meat and one of those hides would be awesome!

[avidnwoutdoorsman]

That's a nice stag! Congrats. They are tough as heck to hunt with a bow! Always more than one and usually more than 10 when I hunted them. Lots of eyes watching you. Does would bust you and bark/huff. Bucks didnt look just ran, the does would look for a second then run. Good work!

[Switchback]

That’s awesome this hunt might be a reality for me in coming years. So you did just a public land hunt and saw descent numbers of animals? I hear so much conflicting info it seems. Thanks

Yep! There are deer everywhere. We catch a lot of them walking downhill toward the beach in the morning, and then walking back up toward the top in the evening. First couple days you see a ton because there are a lot of other hunters bumping them. We always just found a nice gulch with a good trail, sat down in cover and waited. Then you get a nice lunch break from 11-3, and back out for the evening hunt!
So many deer, if you seriously just picked a trail and sat in the same spot for a week, you'd get a few shot opportunities. Pick a good trail with lots of activity, and you'll get way more than a few. Stalking is tough because they are usually in groups - but it's doable, just have to pick your deer wisely (smaller herds, favorable terrain/wind). If you try and stalk every herd you see, you'll probably waste a lot of time. Best option is seems is to set up in a good spot and just wait!

[Switchback]

That’s awesome! Congrats! It’s a bucket list hunt for me. So you just bought a non res tag and found em on public land huh? I’ve heard people say it’s easy to find the goats and axis on public and other people say it’s near impossible. I’m planning to go just for the experience but the meat and one of those hides would be awesome!

Correct - bought the NR state land tags (you have to buy a doe tag at minimum, so 2 total tags even if you only want the either sex tag) and hunted the state land. We always see tons of deer - they travel down just about every gulch, and bigger trails aren't too hard to find. Lots of sheep around too. I always go into this hunt with the mentality that I'm on a Hawaii vacation, and if I get to come home with a cooler full of meat then it's a bonus!
Easy to get on them, tough to connect, even at 20-30 yds. My best advice is to take the first ethical shot you get, as you may need a few of those before the stars align and you connect with vitals.
Even though we do the state land hunt, which is just one week, you can do the company land hunt year-round. They have land available where all you need for archery is a $150/year permit, and you can get a couple deer each day I think. Would be cheaper than state land but we just like the state land thing. Some company land is guide only, but there are other parcels just for archery, and they have a bunch of deer as well. Many locals exclusively hunt company land because of the price and year-round access.

One budget tip - get a group together and split an airbnb and rental car. We do this trip annually and it comes out to just under $2k/person all-in (airfare, lodging, car, food, tags, etc.) - which is cheaper than many out-of-state hunts, even if I drove and camped in my truck. I think I'll break the $2k mark this year, but only because I'm getting a euro mount and paying to have it shipped back here (didn't want to break the skull plate and check the antlers).

[dilleytech]

That’s awesome this hunt might be a reality for me in coming years. So you did just a public land hunt and saw descent numbers of animals? I hear so much conflicting info it seems. Thanks

Yep! There are deer everywhere. We catch a lot of them walking downhill toward the beach in the morning, and then walking back up toward the top in the evening. First couple days you see a ton because there are a lot of other hunters bumping them. We always just found a nice gulch with a good trail, sat down in cover and waited. Then you get a nice lunch break from 11-3, and back out for the evening hunt!
So many deer, if you seriously just picked a trail and sat in the same spot for a week, you'd get a few shot opportunities. Pick a good trail with lots of activity, and you'll get way more than a few. Stalking is tough because they are usually in groups - but it's doable, just have to pick your deer wisely (smaller herds, favorable terrain/wind). If you try and stalk every herd you see, you'll probably waste a lot of time. Best option is seems is to set up in a good spot and just wait!

Good info. Sounds really fun

[p-ohana]

Grew on Maui so I've hunted axis deer on Lanai growing up. Its a blast for sure. congrats on a great Buck.

[Tracker0721]

Thanks for the advice! I’ll save it and hopefully sometime within a few years I could go. Again, congrats on the hunt!

[sjhgraysage]

Congrats that is a great looking deer!
 

[Whitpirate]

Is there a rifle season there?  How tough is it to bring a rifle to HI?  I'm assuming no worse than shipping your bow?