It’s now late season, you've put in copious hours in the stand, most of the breeding deer have bred, and now it time to switch gears to hunting late-season deer
One thing we like to do when the late-season comes around is actively tracking fresh deer tracks in the snow. Tracking deer in the snow can be one of the most exciting ways to hunt deer and can be pretty addictive.
Read MoreGoose season runs through early September through mid December here in Michigan. Geese are fun to hunt and delicious to eat - especially in the deer blind. Try out this easy recipe and take a healthy & delectable treat out with you next time you do an all-day rut sit. Click here to try to The Perfect Rut Snack.
Read MoreYou’ve setup on a location where all the variables are in your favor. The wind is perfect, the temperatures have dropped off, the rut is kicking in and you are waiting for that big buck to cross your path. But as you sit with anticipation you see a fellow hunter approach your general vicinity from the wrong direction and they walk right through your anticipated deer travel route.
Read MoreIt goes without saying that COVID-19 has significantly influenced our lives this year. From shutdowns to mandatory masks, we’ve all felt the weight brought on by the virus. However, it’s a bit short sighted to say all of its effects have been bad; right now we’re seeing a mass movement back towards the outdoors.
Read MoreImagine this: you're nestled in your hunting spot on opening day, waiting for a big buck to come through the thicket on the edge of a swamp. The more you think about the possibility of a bruiser breaking through that small patch of woods, the more you concentrate on it. Suddenly you hear it - leaves crunching. It sounds like a big boy's headed your way and you feel the blood drain from your legs as your grip your bow.
Read MoreAged meat is something to cherish and there is a good reason to. If you’ve ever been to a fine steakhouse, you’ll know that some of the highest-priced items on the menu are the aged steaks. On average, a 30-day aged beef steak goes for about $50. But why? What makes an aged piece of meat so special?
Read MoreWe’ve hunted for thousands of years and it’s something other animals do on a daily basis. However, it doesn't always go as planned...
I spent the past few weeks camping through the Tetons and Yellowstone with my family. We were able to witness a lot of pretty amazing things but one particular thing sticks out in my mind...
Read MoreWhy do you hunt? Maybe you’ve never taken the time to think through the question. I know I haven’t until relatively recently. In my younger days I would have answered with something like "because it's awesome" (as Kid Rock once said, at that time my thoughts were short and my hair was long).
Read MoreWe’ve covered a lot of information pertaining to scouting during the summer months. From trail cams to entry and exit strategies, we’ve touched on a lot of topics. However, I’m often asked what specific types of tactics I use to help us zero in on a buck and to learn his tendencies in any particular area during the summer. Here are a few things I find to be particularly helpful:
Read MoreWhen the summer heat rolls around, hunters know there aren’t many things better than looking at pictures from your trail camera and seeing a few stud bucks on it. Motion-activated camera technology has been around for a while now and are a great scouting tool for hunters to utilize during the offseason. But what if you have never used one before, where do you start? With so many options to choose from, it's hard to narrow it down to just one camera. Should you have more than one? What should be your strategy? Here are our 7 Commandments of Trail Camera Tactics to stop you from eating your tag at the end of the season.
Read MoreThe first bow that I ever owned was an old PSE Nova. I loved that thing, and to this day, it still is in our family. It’s more of a wall piece now, but the point remains. Shooting that bow was one of my favorite things to do in our backyard. How fast the arrow hit the target was something that mesmerized me. I remember the first time I ever shot 40 yards with it. It looked so far away and I felt like my bow was pointing more at the sky than the target itself.
Read MoreMuch attention is given to perfect tree stand setups, placement, or even height in hunting magazines, blogs and forums. While these are all certainly important, one of the most important aspects of hunting is often overlooked. Determining the best entry and exit route is as important, if not more important, to your success in the deer woods this fall. A truly great stand is made by your ability to get into and out of it without alerting deer. So here are a few tactics we use to get in and out of our hunting locations clean and effective.
Read MoreSo there you are, it’s hunting season and you are heading out to hunt the seasons opener with the first evening hunt of the year. You have a buck patterned down using a certain trail passing by the perfect hunting tree. You’ve hung your stand and cleared shooting lanes previously through the summer and everything is set …..(perfect). But when you walk up, you find your perfect tree blown over from the severe thunderstorm from a few days before leaving you completely SOL. What do you do now? You can't get a stand hung in any of the surrounding trees because of their shape and branches. So you're forced to pull back, and hunt a different day.
Read MoreHunting out of a tree helps stack the odds a little more in your favor. Every year, hunters around the country work to find that perfect tree that will help them put a big old stinky buck on the ground. Though the perfect tree may not actually exist, we’ve found a few things that are common to all good tree stands.
Read MoreWith all the talk of big game cooking, someone needs to look out for the little guy. Small game cooking can be some of the best meals you'll ever have. If you were fortunate enough to bag a few rabbits and/or squirrels this past season, or if you plan on harvesting some this coming season, here is a quick and easy recipe to try for both animals.
Read MoreIt’s hard to find someone who doesn’t like jerky. This Independence Day serve your guests something really special: Sweet, Spicey ‘n Smoked Venison Jerky. It’s easy and will be a definite crowd-pleaser.
Read MoreTarget Panic. The scourge of the archery world. Many archers are afraid to even mention it by name, just in case it’s contagious. However, it’s a very real issue and is something that most archers are going to have to deal with at some point. I started experiencing it after a dozen or so years of shooting a bow and it’s been something I’ve wrestled with off and on ever since. If you find yourself with this problem, don’t lose hope. There are a few things you can do to get back on track.
Read MoreGrowing up, I would always find things to shoot my bow at. Whether it was old hay bales, old pool mats, or even a box with a few blankets in it, I loved taping or gluing a paper plate to them and ripping a few arrows at them. But then one day, my dad purchased his first 3D archery target for us to shoot at. It was your typical whitetail deer standing broadside with a replaceable vitals insert but thought it was the best thing in the world. It was just like shooting at a real animal and I was hooked ever since.
Read MoreThis week, we’re talking about practice. As anyone who’s spent any time with a bow in hand will tell you, practice is critical for finding success in the fall. Archery is a skill that takes some time to get a hang of, let alone master. Before you take your bow out this fall, here are a few ways to sharpen your skills.
Read MoreWe’ve all heard the saying, “If it’s brown it’s down!” However, in recent years, it seem more common that hunters are preaching, “Let them go. Let them grow!” In fact, in 2001, for every 3½-year-old or older buck that was harvested nationally, hunters took two to three yearling bucks. As of 2019 the number of yearling bucks and 3½-year-old or older bucks taken were nearly identical. Much of this change can can be attributed to the prevalence of quality deer management (QDM) and has become generally understood and practiced in some form by the vast majority of deer hunters.
Read More
