East TX vs. West TX leases

[BrianL]

LOL at West is "shooting". I am in San Saba, not west and I have been hunting the same two bucks for 3 years. Have not been able to get a shot. They should be 150ish this year.

I tend to agree with the "shooting" meaning I could tag out in a weekend out west, maybe in one day. Here in NE I probably could not do it in a season. If you are saying you wouldn't shoot anything less than 150", NEITHER place is easy hunting but 125-150" in more likely out west. You will be less bored out west waiting for that 150+ you may never see. If you raise that number to 170" you are more likely to shoot that deer in ET, but still odds are WAY against you. And you will have many many many boring sets waiting for that monster.

[Burntorange Bowhunter]

That's just because you suck at hunting and smell like BBQ and stale beer!

Puff puff give.

[Burntorange Bowhunter]

I tend to agree with the "shooting" meaning I could tag out in a weekend out west, maybe in one day. Here in NE I probably could not do it in a season. If you are saying you wouldn't shoot anything less than 150", NEITHER place is easy hunting but 125-150" in more likely out west. You will be less bored out west waiting for that 150+ you may never see. If you raise that number to 170" you are more likely to shoot that deer in ET, but still odds are WAY against you. And you will have many many many boring sets waiting for that monster.

The goal is mature deer. Not babies.

[wloftis]

I have always hunted central or West TX and love it.

[BrianL]

The goal is mature deer. Not babies.

I still could with mature deer.... Not 150", but 120-130" 3-4 year old and older.

[Bear82]

I hear the East texas deer season is longer. 365 days - 24 hrs a day

[Bowtech1233]

I think this is the biggest question of them all. To some people anything west of Abilene and Angelo is West Texas. When I lived in Lubbock everyone called it West Texas because it is in the western part of the Panhandle.

Big bodied deer in the Northern Rolling Plains and Panhandle. Pockets of big bodied deer west of Abilene and Angelo.

This^^^ Some people consider the panhandle west Tx. Big difference in deer qualities from panhandle to what I consider west Tx.

[d_e_smith]

Something else to consider is how much time you get off work to hunt. To me a trip to West Texas isn't worth it for anything less than 3 days. With my ETX lease I can on the stand in 45 minutes so I can hunt pretty much any weekend at least a couple of hunts. So when your wife makes Saturday night dinner plans on the October full moon you can still hunt Saturday morning drive home then go back Sunday morning.

That's a big deal. I grew up hunting either a 4wheeler ride from the house or a 15 minute ride to another lease. There was no wait for the weekend when there was plenty of daylight left after school. Unless the weather was just horrible, we'd usually see deer. Give me a evening where the temps already dipped into the 30s and the floodgates would open.

[RLB]

It really doesn't matter if you're a "bait hunter" or a shooter.....if you're a hunter, East Texas is far more rewarding. I grew up hunting in East Texas and didn't know what a feeder was until I got on a lease in The Hill Country. To each his own, I prefer finding the deer and not having them find the feeder.

[lovemylegacy]

I'm looking at getting my first lease and have seen some good options in both East and West TX but I understand they can be very different..

What are y'alls opinions on pros/cons of either?

Is "seeing" deer is important, West Tx is the ticket.

If you want a challenge that will push you to the edge of your patience, East Texas is just for you.

The quality and size of deer may be a little bigger here in SE Tx

West Tx is a target rich environment.

[Smart]

I still could with mature deer.... Not 150", but 120-130" 3-4 year old and older.

3-4 yo old "mature" deer?[emoji848]

[lovemylegacy]

I love hunting the piney woods. I have been leasing our property for 7 years and always kill a deer or 2 every year. Always have a couple 130's and a 150 or two running around. Yes it is harder hunting, some people like it and some don't. There are no deer in East Texas

A friend of mime showed me a pic of that deer in the second picture.

[lovemylegacy]

West Texas proud here for 10 years.

To me...a deer lease is about so much more than inches or lbs..... but West Texas has a nice amount of both. The entire experience is what I look for.

I like seeing deer... even if I don't trip my release all year on a "monster". I enjoy watching deer as much as I enjoy shooting them. I don't hunt to watch birds (turkeys are OK[emoji51].) Seeing deer is fun ...killing several deer a year is even more fun..

I love the people out west. They are a friendly bunch and laid back as a whole. The egos are checked at the gate.

I like the large leases and low members counts. I like leases where the deer herd health/numbers are more important than keeping the cost of the lease fee down. 7 hunters on 2400 acres of oak and mesquite is so much enjoyable than 25 folks on 800 acres of pines with 10 white oak trees. Less folks equals less problems and more deer for everybody.

I love the dry heat.... I also love the dry crisp mornings during winter. I love the lack of mosquitos and bugs in general. Rats and mice are also rare at our place.

I like all my **** to be there when I arrive at the lease. I like being able to leave stuff at my lease and know it's going to be there when I drive up. Hauling back what I have at my lease each trip would be a major PITA. Replacing it all because some methhead stole it would be even more of a PITA.

I like not having pictures of poachers and hog doggers. I like not having my hunt ruined by the guy on his 5 acres next door practicing for World War 3.

I love the smell of burning mesquite and ribeyes searing over it.



I hate..... the drive. .. especially on Sunday.

I hate 105 deg workdays in the summer.

I hated the 2010-2011 drought

My loves and likes far outweigh my hates though....

Did I say I love seeing deer?

How often do you get to go and how long is your drive?

[EastTx]

If you can find a big lease in a proven county in East Tx with an existing management plan that uses age restrictions for buck harvest, I would choose East Tx. Check TBGA records and narrow it to a list of counties that consistently produce big deer then start your lease search. More than likely it will be a timber company lease that meets that criteria. If it's just a "deer lease" in East Tx and you have never hunted here, I have a feeling you will be disappointed for all the reasons listed. There are some good private "deer leases" here, but it would be hard to find one of those places going in blind. If you can't find a property that meets those qualifications in East Tx then I say go West.

[jooger17]

If you can find a big lease in a proven county in East Tx with an existing management plan that uses age restrictions for buck harvest, I would choose East Tx. Check TBGA records and narrow it to a list of counties that consistently produce big deer then start your lease search. More than likely it will be a timber company lease that meets that criteria. If it's just a "deer lease" in East Tx and you have never hunted here, I have a feeling you will be disappointed for all the reasons listed. There are some good private "deer leases" here, but it would be hard to find one of those places going in blind. If you can't find a property that meets those qualifications in East Tx then I say go West.

That's just about the best answer I've seen posted.


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