Anyone canoe or kayak in for deer?

we did it one year for youth season , I had wanted to try it many times , time or weather were usually the factors

we went out pre dawn floated down the river , had to deal with a portage we hadn't expected we did see nice buck but he was a tail before my son could get the gun up.

with better scouting and a plan of where we were going and put in to be at "the spot" pre dawn and set up it could be very good especially on public where people are very likely to pressure deer from land to you just by being there.

I had a teacher who used to hunt some backwaters every year they had apparently figured out where the land hunters would park and send deer out through a swamp to sort of an island that involved stomping through a swamp or taking a short swim to get to. he was very secretive about his spot , did talk about more than once the person in the front of the canoe breaking ice with a hatchet to get to shore. but going in in the dark they didn't apparently make too much noise the often had deer within an hour of first light and were often hauling 2-3 out by mid afternoon

it is a lot of work and planning

No but Jon boat with 4 stroke and troll motor is a great way to gain access and get where others can't.

One place we hunt like that the bank to the creek is so steep we un hook the boat trail and use the winch to lowered the trailer with the boat on it down into the creek. Depending on water level we may have to get out and push the boat over beaver dams. On the flip side it's also dangerous becuse that creek runs into the river and the water rises feet in very short amount of time when they open the dams. So we snap glow stick and put them on the high ridge and down it so when we come out and what was dry ground is now covered with water we know where the high spots are and don't walk off into a deep hole over our heads.

When I was much younger we would float down the Susquehanna island to island in a canoe.

I've used a canoe and kayak many, many times deer hunting. It's a great way to escape hunting pressure and get into areas with undisturbed deer. I haven't done it in a number of years but I'm thinking of doing a couple overnights mid-month if I can work out the logistics. I need to do it before the streams start icing over.