January Ice Storm Effects

[AKBowman]

Spent the last 2 days in the woods scouting for west side deer. I could not beleive the amount of limbs, tree tops, he'll entire trees that were on the ground. I think it would do a couple things 1: change the trail networks of the deer and 2: add a ton of available food to their diets by allowing the deer to graze on all the forage that fell from above, opening up some of the ground to more sunlight and making the ground more fertile in years to come with all the additional natural fertilizer on the ground.

Can anyone think of any other effects that the big ice storm will have on west side deer and how might it change your hunting strategies?

[saylean]

It sure made going to one of my bear spots a pain....although it was already a pain...hopefully this will keep other bipeds out.

[bobcat]

I've been out to my usual areas quite a bit since the ice storm, and yes, it did drastically change everything. The trails I used to walk are covered with downed trees, tops, and limbs. I've had to detour around a lot of the worst spots. The worst are the areas with lots of alder and maple. The firs lost a lot of limbs and some tops but entire trees didn't come down. I was thinking the same thing, that this will increase the feed as a lot more sunlight will be getting in, and all the alders and maples that broke off and/or came down will be re-sprouting and providing lots of food for the blacktails.

It's a lot noiser now walking through some of these areas, with all the limbs laying on the ground. I'll be going in and clearing out some trails so I can get in and out quietly.

[AKBowman]

That's a good idea Bobcat. It is a LOT noisier walking around in the woods. It is a lot of work but it would be worth it to go in there and clear some trails. My guess is you could probably create some new trails by clearing the brush that has fallen and alter the deers path to the hunters advantage.

[Alaska316]

I remember watching a hunting show right after Hurricane Katrina. And in Alabama, the hunters were saying how all the downed trees, limbs, and leaves would provide a lot more food for the Deer. However, it makes it a pain to navigate. Just driving up Hwy 18, you can see into the woods.

[AKBowman]

 

Tell me about it. Navigating through that crap with 70# pack all weekend. You should see my shins!! They definitely take the worst of it with all of this downed stuff, a lot of it seems to be shin high, I'm seriously thinking about wearing some of those soccer player shin pads under my pants next time out.

[bobcat]

I carry a machete and a small, folding hand saw.

[Cascader74]

I was hiking last weekend & must have crossed 15 downed trees in 3 mile stretch on an old logging road trail, I used my hatchet to clear the limbs to get by. The snow was anywhere from bare to 2' & I was only about 1500-1800'.

[grundy53]

We didn't lose to many trees on our property but the alder patches are noisy as heck with all the branches that broke off. Definitely going to clear some trails....