New to WA, looking to Hunt in Kitsap County

[Xturn]

Hello,

I recently moved to WA from GA, where I was stationed.

I am looking to get back in to bowhunting, and I hear that the deer up in GMU 627 are a good hunt.
I have been looking over the areas between Gig harbor and Port Orchard, and the area around Gold Mountain.
Anybody have any advice?

[HunterofWA]

I'm in battle ground, welcome to Washington, where the sun no longer shines, and where the deer kill people. Not worth bowhunting black-tail here, but I am any way...  You looking to got black-tail or mulie/whitetail hunting?

[Xturn]

Wait, deer kill people here?
In Georgia all I had to worry about was boar.
All the deer I ever saw in GA looked like the skinny crack-head deer.

I am looking to hunt deer, I don't care what type they are.

[HunterofWA]

what Gmu are you in? where are you planning on hunting? We also have some decent duck hunting up here two...

[HunterofWA]

I'd go for black-tail if I were you. It's a long drive to eastern wa. Talk to Pd http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,198278.25.html

[Xturn]

I currently Live in Bremerton, so the drive to Eastern Washington is a long and sucky one.

[JimmyHoffa]

There used to be quite a bit of hunting outside of port Orchard over to Belfair, not sure how much isn't developed now.  But there was a good sized herd with nice bucks around the golf course in that area.  Some that hung around the farms by Ollala.  Might look around out by Tahuya/Seabeck, see what's even open these days.

[jackmaster]

First off what M.O.S? I can't give info to a pogue welcome to Washington, there is some great blacktail hintn out past the hood canal bridge towards sequim, if I was you I would rifle hunt atleast your first year until you learn some areas and stuff. Plus the early season is super warm, but I know your use to that, I went to basic and a couple other cool schools in Georgia, went there again when my son graduated basic and then again for airborne school..are you from Washington?

[northwesthunter84]

Jackmaster is correct ORM.com is pope resources across the bridge. Free maps walking only. A lot here in Kitsap is private. Some hunting near dewatto area and south of camp union. Thick and super nasty reprod but it can be done. Way different hunting than chasing Whitetail, but it's addictive.

[kball4]

I also live in Kitsap county.  I head out in the union or bear creek area and hunt clear cuts and young reprod.  Don't be turned around by no shooting signs on DNR gates, the small print on the bottom says unless authorized by WDFW or something like that which means basically no target shooting but its open during hunting season.  The private timber companies in Kitsap county and most of mason county still allow free walk in access, except up by Port Gamble.  If bow hunting though I would think about a tree stand I'm going to buy one this year  for rifle season, it gets very noisy trying to walk through clear cuts since they don't burn or scrap up all the crap left behind from limbing trees.  Blacktails around here during the beginning of late archery can be called in sometimes with rattling.  They are out and about right now, its a good time to scout and find the home area of some big bucks, I find that they don't travel very far from their comfort areas with water and food available mostly everywhere.  Good luck, happy hunting.       

[pd]

Boy, there is a lot of good intel on this thread.  X-Turn, your post started out slowly, but you have drawn out some valuable information.  There are a couple handfuls of talented blacktail hunters from this area who have not yet posted; I will monitor this thread, maybe they will finally divulge some secrets.   

[HunterofWA]

I'm hunting on the edge of a 40 acre clear cut (my neighbors) by a southern slope, deer are really using this area to bed down, hide, during the hot summer days. I'm hunting from a stand, I suggest you do too. If you do, make sure to clear some decent trails soon that are close to the stand, (20-30 yards) and then let the deer get conditioned to using them and.... KER_THUNK! meat for the freezer! If you really get into black-tail hunting I suggest you get to know some people with land, and ask them for permission to hunt on it, Make a clover and wheat food plot or two... and you'll see GREAT results in antler growth and body size. If you do get permission from a private land owner, PM me and I can give you some tips, and/or follow my youtube channel. I know I'm just 14... but I think I can give you guys some tips on how to manage the property you hunt for better black-tail habitat etc... at a low cost. If you doubt my suggestions, then just watch my updates to see how they go. (My youtube channel is called: "Hunter's Of Washington") Good luck this season!  keep us posted!

[fishnfur]

Are you in WA already?   Submariner?  If you are, and are (or going to be) stationed at Bangor, then you're already working in BT deer heaven.  Whether the base commander is allowing hunting on base is another matter entirely.

There are plenty of deer throughout the Kitsap Peninsula's unit(s).  You just need to pick an area and scout a bit to figure out what is going on.  Use the WDFW.wa.gov website, hover on the hunting tab, click on GO Hunt interactive mapping, in the upper right corner of the big game map, select public lands, then zoom in to assess the areas in the aerial views.  There are lots of privately owned timberlands that allow public access for hunting - Pope, Green Diamond, Manke to name a few, which require that you use the county assessor websites for Kitsap, Pierce, and Mason counties to determine who owns the parcel you are interested in. 

That should keep you busy for a couple of weeks.   There is a Kitsap hunters group that meets occasionally that you may want to participate in.  Also, you can search the forum for tags like "Kitsap" and get other hunting information and thoughts on specific areas: 

http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,176186.msg2333433.html#msg2333433

[kball4]

I work on Bangor there is no hunting allowed on base, one of those post 9/11 changes.  There are some nice 5x5's walking around though.

[fishngamereaper]

Bear Crk Dewatto Rd or Dewatto Rd. Find a blue or an orange gate. Hike in at least two miles. Look for trails crossing from clear cuts into thick timber. Dive off into that timber and start looking around. Find a place where you can set up and get a trail cut in. The bucks out there don't spend much time in the open. You need to find their home and find a way to sneak into it after shooting light.  The populations aren't what they used to be though. Lots of predators and off season poaching by brush pickers.

You should also check up off North Mission Rd. Lots of good country up there. Just watch out for the Bremerton Watershed boundary. They are running trail cameras in there and patrol it daily.

The biggest bucks in the county are back yard bucks. Private property access is golden if you can get it.