The Best Time to Learn to Hunt is Right Now

Hunting tends to mystify the uninitiated more than any other pursuit. A large portion of the general public sees learning to hunt as a kind of esoteric ruralite knowledge that can only be passed down from older family members. PeePaw takes you out, shows you what deer scat looks like, you sit in a blind for a long time, a deer walks by, you shoot it, he makes you eat part of its heart, etc. However, today there’s really no difference between learning to hunt and learning any other time-consuming hobby. The information is so widely available that you can learn far more from the first page of Google than PeePaw would have ever been able to teach you.

Alternatively, maybe your conception of the hobby is similar to what I described, and you’re actually wondering why anyone would want to spend their time doing something so brainless. Perhaps these simple hill-people have some latent pagan fascination with deer antlers, so they subject themselves to hours of mind-numbing boredom to kill innocent creatures and fondle their bony protrusions. Alas, you would (mostly) be mistaken because the hobby can be—and really should be—far more layered and complex than that, and I’d encourage you to give the method I describe here a try on public land, because it will give you a taste of what hunting really should be.

My Experience

I learned to hunt entirely alone and from the internet around 2020. No one in my family taught me. Like many other young men, I liked hiking, guns, and the idea of being self-sufficient. The algorithm then introduced me to the right kind of content (can’t lie, think I listened to a JRE episode with Steve Rinella.) My point is that I’ve been through the process myself and with proper dedication, anyone can achieve the same success that I have. It’s important to note however that I’m primarily a deer hunter and hunt to fill the freezer, not really for antlers. There are a lot of deer and a lot of hunting opportunities for deer, and I’m an opportunist. Additionally, I’m primarily a public land hunter, who hunts mostly big woods in rolling or mountainous terrain. My advice is colored by this experience, so take that for what it’s worth. Almost all public land in Middle and East Tennessee fits this description though, so the advice ought to be widely applicable.

Why Now?

Mid-December is what many would call the post-rut period for deer. All the leaves have fallen, and deer rut activity has peaked. The season in Tennessee and many other states is nearing its close in January. However, small game seasons are open until mid-March. This presents a perfect opportunity for the beginning hunter. Not dissimilar to the common saying about fishing and catching, there’s a reason they call it “hunting”, not “shooting stuff”. It’s mostly about finding stuff, the last part just solidifies your success. In order to get good at finding the animals, especially on public land, you have to spend time in the woods. An eternally true maxim is that time spent in the woods will always equate to more success. During this time of the year, I use this strategy often to learn new public areas, get important information for next season, and harvest a lot of small game. And it’s perfect for someone just getting started.

The Open Hardwoods Squirrel/Scout Strategy

This strategy works just as well on private land with open hardwoods, but since public lands are often large areas with low deer density, and are available to any new hunter, that’s what I’ll focus on. If you’re new to hunting, or even just hunting on public land, you may not be familiar with how these areas work and may be afraid of running afoul of hunting etiquette or the complicated state regulations. The best way to approach public land is to use a mapping app with property boundaries. I prefer onX. The property boundaries are also obviously important for knowing where you can park and how to navigate the area so this is a must-have.

Once you find a public area on the map, look it up in the comprehensive Hunting and Trapping guide PDF that the TWRA releases yearly. Most states have something like this, and you can also find information in it about required licenses. You’ll also find all Wildlife Management Areas (WMA) listed with any relevant regulations, such as special seasons, times it may be closed, etc. Alternatively, you can go to the TWRA website and there is a handy map of WMAs and their special regulations if you prefer that method. 

Public land varies widely in habitat type and quality, but in Tennessee most of our public lands have lots of open hardwood forest. It can easily be seen from satellite photos taken in winter. These areas contain the majority of squirrels, and the oaks provide acorns, a main food source for deer from September through December. They are also relatively open and easy to travel. However, they do not typically provide good browse, another important part of their diet, or good bedding cover. This means that if this is the only habitat available, deer density will be very low, or their daily routine will overlap with other habitat types, such as open fields or thick cover, so it’s best to find edges, and/or, if in steeper country, places where the terrain creates a funnel, to channel the deer present. This way you’re more likely to find deer sign, and just as likely to find squirrels. A good mapping app is essential to finding these locations.

Once you’ve identified an area of interest there are some things you should keep in mind. I often do this kind of thing alone, but if you bring someone, keep noise to a minimum. Walk slowly, avoid popping twigs. On public land, and especially at this point in the year, even squirrels will take off from a hundred yards if they hear you loudly walking up on them. A slower pace also allows you to take in your surroundings. If you’re set on getting squirrels, it may be good to find an open stand of oaks and sit down for 20-30 minutes and see if any show up. If you’re more focused on scouting for deer, it would be better to cover ground, so feel free to move at a faster pace.

Religiously mark deer sign on your mapping app. Trails, scat, scrapes, rubs, beds, everything. The more sign you mark, the better picture you will have of the deer’s patterns, especially since you’ll be reviewing this information months from now and will likely have forgotten some details. Add pictures and good descriptions to your waypoints, mark trails with lines, and try to figure out which way tracks are heading. It may even be valuable to bring wind-checking powder and record the wind direction in places you think could be potential hunting spots, as the wind has a prevailing direction and may blow the same with a similar forecast during season.

This kind of highly mobile small-game hunting/scouting is a fantastic way to cover lots of ground and get a feel for a large public area. Of course, this also works just as well for rabbits if the place you’re hunting has more thickets and fields. Another tip is that some WMAs in Tennessee have wild hogs and allow you to take them during small game season with weapons allowed for small game. A .22WMR is a great cartridge for squirrel hunting and can reliably take down a hog with a headshot. Check specific WMA regulations to make sure this is allowed.

In Closing

The most important thing to keep in mind is that you’ll never know unless you go. Open the map, find a place that looks cool, drive out one Saturday with a .22 and go walk around the woods. Target the edges, terrain features, and creek crossings. Get away from the roads and go places you don’t think other people would want to go. Be curious, go to the places on the map that make you genuinely think “Huh, I wonder what’s over there”. That’s really all there is to it. Follow this advice, be persistent and you might just find a public land honey hole and put a lot of small game on the table. Don’t let your inexperience intimidate you, because it’s really all about basic observation and being in the woods.

Note If you try this and go after some squirrels, bring a tape measure because I'm running a squirrel hunting competition with prizes with prizes over on my Twitter until 2/15/2025. Submit for a chance to win! Second Place prizes will be announced shortly…