ILLINOIS TROPHY WHITETAILS : Illinois deer hunting information.

                  New for 2012 season we will offer a small number of turkey hunts in Schuyler county.

                        SCHUYLER COUNTY ILLINOIS IS RATED # 2 IN THE NATION FOR TROPHY WHITETAILS.

                           Illinois Deer Hunting At It Best In The Golden Triangle.

                                             ( With No Trophy Fees )

 What makes Illinois such a great deer hunting state? There are many factors, but low pressure and great genetics, along with a healthy age structure, make Illinois the best destination for hunting mature whitetails. Within Illinois, SCHUYLER County is one of the top premier counties for trophy whitetails. SCHUYLER County is located just north of pike and brown county. This fertile land has all the minerals whitetails need, along with an abundance of agriculture mixed in with just the right amount of hardwoods and cover that whitetails desire. All whitetails are free roaming .

2012 Deer Hunting Season Dates from Illinois Department of Natural Resources

• Youth Firearm Deer Season - 10/6/2012 to 10/7/2012
• First Firearm Deer Season - 11/16/2012 to 11/18/2012
• Second Firearm Deer Season - 11/29/2012 to 12/2/2012
• First Muzzleloader Deer Season - 11/29/2012 to 12/2/2012
• Second Muzzleloader Deer Season - 12/7/2012 to 12/9/2012
• First Late Winter/CWD Deer Hunting Season - 12/27/2012 to 12/30/2012
• Second Late Winter/CWD Deer Hunting Season - 1/18/2013 to 1/20/2013
• Deer Archery Season - 10/1/2012 to 1/20/2013

Welcome to Illinois trophy whitetails. We offer excellent whitetail deer hunting for you on well over 2000 acres in Schuyler county in western Illinois. As you may already know, western Illinois is the home to many of the biggest trophy whitetail bucks ever taken.

Western Illinois is known throughout the world as a hunting destination not only for trophy bucks but also as a state that allows all hunters a good chance at killing a whitetail.

According to the Department of Natural Resources, there are about 750,000 whitetail deer currently in Illinois, so the hunting season should once again be a success. Our bowhunting harvest is at record levels, firearms totals are outstanding and stable, and hunter success is high. Trophy deer are consistently taken in Illinois. See Illinois 2008-09 whitetail deer hunting stats.

We offer semi-guided 5 day whitetail deer hunts. All deer hunts include lodging.

Several different hunting locations are available, and they are all prime whitetail habitat. There is a high concentration of whitetail does here that bring in big bucks from all over. Our property has acres of filter strips and CRP along with corn, soybeans and wheat.

We have lock on and ladder stands in place but you can bring your own climber or ground blind to maximize your hunting opportunities. We look forward to meeting you.

For all deer hunting license and permit information please visit the Illinois Department of Natural Resources website at http://dnr.state.il.us or call them directly at 217-782-7305. All hunters are required to have a current valid Illinois whitetail deer hunting license.

We require that you use a safety harness or safety vest at all times while hunting from a tree stand. Please bring your own personal safety harness! You will also be required to sign a You will also be required to sign a personal liability wavier

You will need an Illinois license and Illinois permits and habitat stamp. Go to http://www.dnr.illinois.gov/hunting/Pages/default.aspx or call 1-888-6permit for more information. You can also go through us to buy this. If your date of birth is on or after January 1, 1980 Illinois Requires that you have a valid Hunter Safety Card. Illinois requires that all firearms and weapons be in a case or rendered inoperable when traveling on any road in Illinois. They also require it to be encased when traveling on any motorized vehicle whether on or off road.

Please bring a suitable case for all weapons.

No one will be allowed to get out of their stand and roam around. This insures that everyone involved will have a quality hunting experience. Persons who fail to follow this rule may be asked to leave .

We enforce a minimum score of 130 inches. Violations will be charged an additional fee. That is why we have big bucks . We have lots of crop lands around the hard wood for good hunting. All deer harvested must be tagged immediately

We have lodging available with kitchen facilities . We will have some snacks and drinks available but we do not supply all meals. If you want to bring your own food or for more info contact us.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Can I bring my own treestand?

A. THE ILLINOIS TROPHY WHITETAILS Staff has scouted areas with stands already in place, but we also have designated areas for people who like to use climbing stands.

Q. Can I hunt by myself without a guide?

A. YES

Q. Can I bring my wife or child?

A. We encourage all family members to go afield, depending on if they hunt, the price will be adjusted.

Q. Does ILLINOIS TROPHY WHITETAILS assist in field dressing the game?

A. Yes we do for a small fee.

Q. Do I have to pay for my hunt in advance?

A. No, Illinois Trophy WHITETAILS requires a fifty percent non-refundable payment the day of the booking.

Q. Can I book a hunt with a disability?

A. Yes, ILLINOIS TROPHY WHITETAILS will make every effort to assure your hunt is comfortable and sucessfull.

Q. Can I hunt from the ground?

A. Yes, ILLINOIS TROPHY WHITETAILS has sponsors such as Ameristep, that provide ground blinds.

Illinois deer hunting is the best whitetail hunting that you will ever experience.

Illinois has more trophy bucks then any other state in the nation.

Here is some info for you to read about illinois and schuyler county.

Being an agricultural state, Illinois has 95 percent of its land in
private ownership. Most is used for either urban development or farming. The
latter lands provide excellent food sources to grow big deer.


Most of the popular deer-hunting counties can be found along major
rivers in the wooded bottomlands that are adjacent to grain farms. A quick
view of a map with the top harvest counties shows that those counties seem
to be shifting southward. In 2006, the best counties seemed to be in the
upper middle of the state. The 2007 harvest finds that the best areas are in
the lower middle of the state. The following is a quick analysis of the
record-book entries by zone from the 2007 hunting season.


ZONE 1
Located along the western border of Illinois in the upper northwest
section, Zone 1 is best described as rolling hills, wooded valleys, and high
bluffs along the Mississippi River.
In 2007, it produced 24 trophy entries. The top counties were Henry
(6) Mercer (5) and Knox (4). Other entries came from Warren (3), Whiteside
(2), Carroll (1), Rock Island (1) and Henderson (1).


ZONE 2
Just to the east of Zone 1 and some three hours from Chicago is Zone
2. This one extends from the Wisconsin border down the center of the state
to near the Peoria area. The habitat here includes the southern edge of the
natural range of white pine trees, a good cover for deer.


Thirty-two trophy bucks from this region were entered in the record
book during 2007. Peoria County leads the list with eight entries. Tazewell
and Bureau counties both had four entries. Marshall had three. Woodford,
Putnam, Boone and Stephenson counties all had two each. Ogle, Lee and Stark
counties each provided a single entry.


ZONE 3
As might be expected, entries from this zone were the lowest of all
zones in the state with a total of nine. Zone 3 includes the city of Chicago
and the collar counties around it. Most of these have limited, if any,
hunting. This is not to say that there are not big deer residing in the
forest preserves and parks of the zone. As the deer population in this area
continues to expand, there is increasing pressure for an urban hunting
season. Perhaps at some future time some real trophy bucks may come out of
this zone.


The top county was Will with four trophy deer, along with McHenry,
Kendall, Kankakee, Livingston and Ford producing one trophy buck each.





ZONE 4
With 42 entries, this west-central area is the second most successful
trophy area in the latest survey. The area's top three counties can be found
along the Illinois River watershed.


Mason County leads the field with eight entries followed by Schuyler
with seven. Fulton County came in third place with five. Macoupin follows
these counties with four entries, and then McDonough, Morgan and Calhoun
with three, Pike with two, and Cass, Hancock, Scott, Greene, Jersey and
Madison with one each.


This area of the state, with numerous river bottoms, wooded hills and
agricultural fields, is known for producing big deer. However, much of this
land is in private hands either to lessees or landowner outfitters. Hunting
by non-Illinois residents is high in the area and it may be that many bucks
taken are not entered in Illinois records. There is no way to be sure this
is the case.


ZONE 5
Trophy hunters in this area were the most successful in taking
record-book deer during 2007. A total of 52 entries were recorded.


A deer found in Menard County is of particular interest. Quail hunters
on property owned by John Grosboll of Petersburg found a dead 24-point buck.
Because coyotes had devoured much of the deer, the exact cause of death is
unknown. Grosboll had the rack measured and it scored 246!
Another deer on property near Ramsey State Park in Fayette County had
evaded hunters for some time. But 15-year-old Jeremy Cauble downed the
21-point buck on Nov. 21, 2008, with his muzzleloader. The buck scored 238!


This zone incorporates the central Illinois counties with its corn and
soybean fields, coupled with wooded hilltops and gently sloping ridges.
Agriculture is the prominent means of land use.


McLean County topped the harvest data with nine record-book bucks.
Second place was taken by Bond County with eight. Third place goes to the
seven entries from Logan County. Dewitt and Moultrie counties recorded four
trophy entries each, with Macon, Shelby and Fayette having three each.
Christian County had one entry.


ZONE 6
This east-central area has flat, expansive farm fields edged by wooded
shelterbelts. Much of the area is similar to that of Zone 5. Zone 6 was the
third most successful area for trophy deer hunters with 36 entries recorded
in 2007.


Vermillion County had nine entries, followed closely by Champaign
County with eight. Third place was Edgar County with five entries. Coles and
Jasper counties recorded three each, and Richland had two. Douglas,
Cumberland, Crawford and Clay had one each.


ZONE 7
This area is on the southwest part of Illinois in the western half of
the Shawnee National Forest. Owned by the U.S. Forest Service, much of the
land is open for public use and hunting. The 270,000 acres of forest, woods
and bluffs are home to a sizeable number of whitetails. The forest contains
five different ecosystems and provides a variety of habitats.


Here in the west, woods and sandstone are the most prominent features.
Some areas contain narrow ridgetops, steep slopes and narrow creek bottoms.
In the western part of this zone, there are fertile bottomland farms that
provide plenty of grain upon which deer feed.


The 2007 season produced some 18 record-book bucks taken in Zone 7.
Perry, Randolph and St. Clair counties each had four entries each. Other
counties with entries include Washington with three entries and Alexander,
Pulaski and Monroe with one trophy entry apiece.


ZONE 8
This area includes much of the densely forested portions of the
Shawnee National Forest. Although the U.S. Forest Service and various other
governmental agencies own much of the land, there are still small farms
scattered through the counties. Hunters need to take care not to trespass on
private property.


Much of the area consists of deep canyons and high bluffs. There is a
good deal of flat land, too. Not heavily populated, Zone 8 is not
overcrowded with hunters, except on opening weekend of the firearms deer
season.
In 2007, there were 11 trophy-class bucks taken in Zone 8. Hamilton
and Gallatin counties reported two entries each. The counties of Marion,
Wayne, Edwards, Wabash, White, Pope and Hardin all reported one each.


Although record books and reports of hunter success do not provide
exact information about the whereabouts of that big buck, they do give an
indication of possibly places to consider. Virtually every county in the
state has the potential of producing great deer. Just where to hunt this
fall is up to the hunter.

The emphasis on doe harvesting has allowed more bucks to reach into
their 4th or 5th years where they develop larger bodies and antlers. The
term "trophy" means different things to different hunters. But a big rack on
a big deer is a trophy in anyone's book. Good luck and skill finding yours
this season!