Driving deer is legal in MN as far as I know. I wouldn't have a problem driving deer for archery hunting. But, I would never participate in driving deer either as a driver or a stander during rifle season. Far too dangerous!

We do it every year. Keep your group to people you know and trust and all is good.
No screwballs allowed.
I have been doing drives for about 40 years. Never an incident.
Have a plan before your start and everyone wears orange.
Should not be an issue.

Down in the Lower Wisconsin River valley. I've set up a number of different tents depending on how many will be in camp. Deer camps, IMO, add dimension to the gun deer season.

Same tent setup . . .





Several years back by myself. Friday set up with snow that evening.





Just one buddy of mine and me.

Again, snow on Friday night.











Ground blind built Friday at crossing with two beaver dams.



And how it looked Saturday with fresh snow.



Wood stove going, pot of stew bubbling, purrs of Coleman lanterns, pegging on the cribbage board. Up in the morning, breakfast in the skillet on the stove, gear up and head to the stand from the tent.

Ah . . . . life is good.

Awesome set up muskrat.

we use to do the same thing and saw tons of deer and no one got hurt, now no one gets together to hunt or let you on their land. James must not have any hills in his part of the country!

Some of the most productive hunts I have been on were short drives of small tracts, using a bird dog or a jump dog. One driver and 0ne or more standers on trails deer were using to go around heavily used permanent stands. many times I would get to the camp and the previous hunters would say "the deer just aren't here" or "deer just aren't moving". I remember several times that happening and seeing over 30 by three hunters in just a few hours and always having good luck. Many times the hunters would be in climbing stands not to start the drive until a few hours after sunrise.

A well trained dog that only jumps the deer is a wonderful thing to see.

Deer drive safety falls on the hunters. Period. They can make it as safe as possible or as dangerous as possible.

I could care less about the hunter safety when guys do deer drives. If you choose to put yourself and your group at risk, that's your decision.

However, when I did participate, I saw way too many bad shots being taken at running/walking deer...which is often the case due to the nature of a deer "drive". Lots of gut shots or shot in the hams. Wasteful. Or, someone would shoot a red fox or coyote with their .270 and ask me if I wanted to "skin" what was left of it. Uh...no, I don't.

But again, if that is how you want to do it, by all means you should.

I agree driving deer is as safe or as dangerous as you make it.

As far as deer being gut shot or blasted in the hams, that's up to the hunter. If he didn't have a shot, and shot anyway, that's his fault.

What's wrong with shooting a fox or coyote or bobcat while hunting? When I'm hunting, I hunt.

One thing that someone above said, about "sharing the glory" or something like that. You know, when I'm out hunting with friends, I'm happy if they get the "big one", it's good to know that we kicked it out, got it on it's feet and put him down.

Another thing, I've killed my share, and some of my friends that are getting older or can't walk for whatever reason, let them watch. I like to move around and love to hunt. It sounds like some of you guys are just jealous. Some folks are better hunters than others, just the way it is.

One other thing that I read above, about not shooting in 180* area in front of you. When I hunt, I'm hunting 360*. I don't "drive" much, when I do and know that there's someone off to my right or left, they'll have their "safe" zone. Same as when I'm hunting alone and happen to bump into another hunter.

Around here, our terrain makes things much safer. I've been on drives where the "drivers" are on different ridges. Our mountains run north/south, put a man on the south side of each ridge and take it off. He can shoot 360*, with the exception of the skyline until near the end of the drive. I'm thinking about big drives. If you're just doing a little thicket or small patch, that's different. Get out near the man/men watching and hold up for 20 minutes or an hour. Even better when you have radios and are talking, and know for sure what's going on.

On those days when the deer are sitting tight, nothing is moving, driving can be fun, it can also be very safe.

I believe that is true. But I've seen enough instances of someone losing their cool when game pops up. I was once shot by a friend in high school who was shooting at a rabbit running toward me. Fortunately the range was at least fifty yards. I saw the shotgun come up and had time to turn my back. The pellets stung some on my legs (I was wearing a heavy jacket) but none penetrated skin.

Like I said, I'm envious of those who know ten or whatever number of guys who can be counted on not to lose their heads when the buck of a lifetime is running in front of them. Under those circumstances, I would participate in a drive.

Jim

Hi Jim, just want to say that sometimes I do not agree with you but I enjoy your posts none the less.
Here in New Jersey driving deer usta' be a big thing and some still do it but it has dropped off as more and more houses are built. Here we can use buckshot which works much better on driven running deer provided you know the range limitations of your shotgun. A good buckshot barrel or screw-in-choke is a rare find and the prized possession of the owner. Be aware I am talking shooting OO or OOO not #4Buckshot which is not much more than glorified birdshot. Lots of chokes or barrels will shoot #4 but few shoot the bigger pellets in a dense enough pattern to floor a deer up to 80 yards or so. My son has a modified screw-in-choke for his 3 inch 870 that will consistently put 12 of 15 OO pellets in a pizza box at 70 yards. A deer hit with that drops on the spot as the pattern usually takes out the spine, neck or multiple legs. This eliminates deer that run off 100 yards or so to die in someones back yard like a deer shot with a shotgun slug or muzzeloader will. Eric

Driving deer are very unsafe
On motorbikes the lack the thumb to operate the blinker. That makes lane changes somewhat unpredictable and when they drive cars the antlers get in the way of the rear view mirror and they have no idea what’s going on behind them.
I think that deer should not be allowed to operate any form of motor vehicle

I do know this. If I were a lawyer, I would not participate in a deer drive...
Too much accident potential.

X2

James, If you think a deer drive might pose a safety issue or 2 you'd probably have a stroke if you saw my coyote hunting buddies chasing butt sniffers across the open prairie with a flatbed full of greyhound boxes and the tac redlined. Hint- all 4 wheels do actually touch the ground but its very brief and then you bounce back up into the air! LOL

In my neck of the woods, if it has 4 legs it dies. Yotes, fox, coon, possum, squirrel, rabbit, etc.
Local farmer would host 36 hunters to push timber (often on the sly) and they slaughtered everything in sight.
As a boy, i wasnt allowed in the timber during shotgun deer season.
It was/still is not healthy.

Down here too. James should come to the swamps of south Ga and get him a taste of this. Thirty 4x4 trucks surrounding a block of timber and swamps....20 hounds after one yearling......did I mention the hunters all have rifles.

It is fun!

My question is how did this come back up as the alst post was 11/02/2019?

I started diving deer for the Evergreen Hotel when I was fourteen, Father set up drives for years. we hunt in the woods. No problems no safety issues. cant say anything about where or how you hunt but as far as here drivng was a accepted how to hunt deer. No Mossey oak camo though.