The amount of time spent in the woods provides you with information and opportunity. The more time in the better hunter you can become. I listened to folks at the office or family functions of look at this gadget or new gun and tales of how bad they want to hunt. That's great, but I can sit back and say, this is what I saw in the woods or check out pictures of the deer I harvested. I certainly don't do it to gloat. At the beginning of the year, my goals were set and I was going to do everything to complete them. Right off the bat I have an advantage, no kids (yet) and a great wife which lets me hunt a lot. So that leaves work as my only limiting factor to hunting time. Luckily my job role is flexible, I put extra time at night or on the weekend to make it possible.
So with the full moon shining and keeping a close eye on the trail camera, I am ready for the rut. A hunting program on TV yesterday with a deer biologist took the time to explain the status and timing of this years rut. Based on air temperatures and moon phases, this years rut is only days away. He even provided insight on big bucks showing their faces a few days before this full moon phase. He was right on, as we have two occurrences of the young 8 point buck during the morning and evening hours during daylight. This is something we haven't seen since August. I hunted hard after each day we saw him during the day, but nothing, he is like a ghost.
This buck can't take all the credit though, we have a total of five 8 point bucks that are now roaming the area. If it wasn't for the trail camera, one may have discredited this hunting spot a long time ago. Although we have been capturing their movements on camera for almost 4 months now. Its the second set of eyes you always wanted. I am sometimes more excited to download the camera rather than sitting in my stand. We knew there were bucks in the area though, based on tracks we observed throughout the season. For any area I plan to hunt though, I will always try to utilize a trail camera. Come black Friday, I will be looking for another camera on sale.
Its now crunch time, days away from the rut breaking loose. With only a few days of office work and meetings at the beginning of this week, I will find myself burning vacation to be in the woods come Thursday. Its the time to be in the woods and I don't plan on missing an opportunity on a monster buck.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Rut No, Six Please.
Well its been a while since I have posted on my blog, simply because I have been in the woods. I have spent the last two weeks hunting hard with 3-4 sits a week. I wish I could say that there is a bunch of deer on the ground to show for the effort. I did get a shot at a 6 point buck though. My first encounter with him, I had mistaken him for a smaller deer. This really made me wonder if it was the 5 point buck we had on camera for the past few months. His tines look so much bigger and body was massive. With only seconds to make a decision, I passed. I struck it up to better karma down the road.
One week later as I sat in my ground blind, the small spike crossed in front and then back again. He was checking out the food plot and then went back to his bedding area. I laid back in my chair to relax but then noticed movement to my right. A small flick of an ear or tail caught my eye. A buck had come up out of the bottom and was strolling around. From the first sight of him, I knew he was mature and a shooter. I quickly put my binocs on him and confirmed his 6 pt rack. I had to do a bit of shuffling in the blind to be able to shoot.
I have been using a camera tripod to steady my shot, but in this case it was on the wrong window of the blind. With a few adjustments I was then ready to make a shot. The buck seemed to be about 40 yards out and was quartering away from me. I put my 40 yard pin on him in the middle of his body, took a deep breath and squeezed the trigger. Like before, I heard the arrow make a smack sound on impact. With only limited view through the blind window and thick forest cover I was only able to see a few steps of the deer as he left.
I was confident at first that I made a solid shot, it was only a week before this I dropped a doe at 65 yards. I exited my blind and took a walk to the area where I shot. To my dismay though, I couldn't find any blood. I took to the area I thought he ran and walked further into the bottom. Before I knew it, I was at the end of the bottom which is outlined by a creek on two sides. With a miss on my mind, I turned and followed the other side of the creek back up the hill. Ah ha, antlers on the ground and the body of the deer with it. The trail that I took was not where the deer had ran, he actually turned back over the hump of the hill and had gone after 20 yards. By following the blood trail in reverse it led me right to my arrow.
Now the real work would start, the bad thing about solo hunting is draggin a brute of a deer out by yourself. With no truck access and a long uphill drag I knew this would take a while. Two hours later, the mature 6 point was loaded up and beginning his trip to my freezer. Some lady gave me a dirty look as I drove down the highway, I found it hilarious. The drive gave me time to think about this deer. He had never been on camera, and I believe it was him the week prior that I could have shot. Where did he come from. The rut is about two weeks out, so why did this deer magically show up. The answer lies with someone smarter than me in deer logic, until then his backstraps are in my freezer.
Below is a picture of the what I call the Straight Six buck. He is the widest and most mature deer I have ever harvested.
One week later as I sat in my ground blind, the small spike crossed in front and then back again. He was checking out the food plot and then went back to his bedding area. I laid back in my chair to relax but then noticed movement to my right. A small flick of an ear or tail caught my eye. A buck had come up out of the bottom and was strolling around. From the first sight of him, I knew he was mature and a shooter. I quickly put my binocs on him and confirmed his 6 pt rack. I had to do a bit of shuffling in the blind to be able to shoot.
I have been using a camera tripod to steady my shot, but in this case it was on the wrong window of the blind. With a few adjustments I was then ready to make a shot. The buck seemed to be about 40 yards out and was quartering away from me. I put my 40 yard pin on him in the middle of his body, took a deep breath and squeezed the trigger. Like before, I heard the arrow make a smack sound on impact. With only limited view through the blind window and thick forest cover I was only able to see a few steps of the deer as he left.
I was confident at first that I made a solid shot, it was only a week before this I dropped a doe at 65 yards. I exited my blind and took a walk to the area where I shot. To my dismay though, I couldn't find any blood. I took to the area I thought he ran and walked further into the bottom. Before I knew it, I was at the end of the bottom which is outlined by a creek on two sides. With a miss on my mind, I turned and followed the other side of the creek back up the hill. Ah ha, antlers on the ground and the body of the deer with it. The trail that I took was not where the deer had ran, he actually turned back over the hump of the hill and had gone after 20 yards. By following the blood trail in reverse it led me right to my arrow.
Now the real work would start, the bad thing about solo hunting is draggin a brute of a deer out by yourself. With no truck access and a long uphill drag I knew this would take a while. Two hours later, the mature 6 point was loaded up and beginning his trip to my freezer. Some lady gave me a dirty look as I drove down the highway, I found it hilarious. The drive gave me time to think about this deer. He had never been on camera, and I believe it was him the week prior that I could have shot. Where did he come from. The rut is about two weeks out, so why did this deer magically show up. The answer lies with someone smarter than me in deer logic, until then his backstraps are in my freezer.
Below is a picture of the what I call the Straight Six buck. He is the widest and most mature deer I have ever harvested.
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Staying Alive, Staying Alive
The last week of hunting has presented a few small signs of the rut starting. A few small bucks were circling around sniffing up does that were bedded down about 20 yards from my ground blind. During my trip to Michigan for work, I saw a mature buck along Rt 80 chasing a doe like a junior high boy seeing his first girl. Although all good signs, it still seems to be sporadic. I would imagine in the next week it will break loose. It been about a week past the full moon, and from what my uncle indicated from his intimate knowledge, that after the first two frosts rut should begin.
It was just yesterday where is was sunny and comfortable while sitting in my ground blind. Today, its snowing, in October. Really? I told myself this is okay though. This Nor'easter is going to be the cold spell to finally push that rut to begin. I have spent the last few weeks manging out some does from the herd and rarely seeing a buck during the daylight. I didn't envision this based on the early trail camera pictures. I thought I would have a set of antlers on the wall for the Halloween party to talk about with the guys. I even have a few new bucks that have showed up on camera they we haven't seen before.
A new 7 point with one small brow tie is quite impressive. His tines have some good length and present a high rack. Certainly worthy for the hit list. Again though no shooter bucks have broken the night time feeding pattern. The one buck that does haunt my woods is the 5 point. It took a while to capture him on camera but I had seen him before that. I am trying to determine if he is a mature buck because his nose and approach tactics hint on his abilities. Every time I have encountered him, he has ended up checking downwind of me and busting out of the area.
Yesterday, I had the 5 pointer at 12 yards to which I could have ended his stuck up lifestyle. He snuck in on me from the corner of the blind I could see out. Even at 12 yards, I could decide to pull the trigger or to let it ride. His tines are rather long and his strut made it seem like he had a mature swagger. With a hope of good Karma to come, I let him pass. He moved on to the food plot and a few minutes later he came running out. Did he catch my wind....I thought it unlikely. Maybe Brian's dad came out in the backyard and spooked him. Either way this buck has been the only deer to bust me. I hope is nose doesn't mess up an opportunity at a shooter buck for me. A 20" arrow could have secured that fate yesterday to my advantage but will let things play out on fate. Or a cross bow arrow if he shows up again.
Below is that 7 point buck I mentioned. Although two brow ties are present, I believe only one will score.
The mature bucks are doing a great job though staying alive. If only night hunting was legal.
It was just yesterday where is was sunny and comfortable while sitting in my ground blind. Today, its snowing, in October. Really? I told myself this is okay though. This Nor'easter is going to be the cold spell to finally push that rut to begin. I have spent the last few weeks manging out some does from the herd and rarely seeing a buck during the daylight. I didn't envision this based on the early trail camera pictures. I thought I would have a set of antlers on the wall for the Halloween party to talk about with the guys. I even have a few new bucks that have showed up on camera they we haven't seen before.
A new 7 point with one small brow tie is quite impressive. His tines have some good length and present a high rack. Certainly worthy for the hit list. Again though no shooter bucks have broken the night time feeding pattern. The one buck that does haunt my woods is the 5 point. It took a while to capture him on camera but I had seen him before that. I am trying to determine if he is a mature buck because his nose and approach tactics hint on his abilities. Every time I have encountered him, he has ended up checking downwind of me and busting out of the area.
Yesterday, I had the 5 pointer at 12 yards to which I could have ended his stuck up lifestyle. He snuck in on me from the corner of the blind I could see out. Even at 12 yards, I could decide to pull the trigger or to let it ride. His tines are rather long and his strut made it seem like he had a mature swagger. With a hope of good Karma to come, I let him pass. He moved on to the food plot and a few minutes later he came running out. Did he catch my wind....I thought it unlikely. Maybe Brian's dad came out in the backyard and spooked him. Either way this buck has been the only deer to bust me. I hope is nose doesn't mess up an opportunity at a shooter buck for me. A 20" arrow could have secured that fate yesterday to my advantage but will let things play out on fate. Or a cross bow arrow if he shows up again.
Below is that 7 point buck I mentioned. Although two brow ties are present, I believe only one will score.
The mature bucks are doing a great job though staying alive. If only night hunting was legal.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
New Bucks in Town
I have been finding myself sneaking into the hunting area about an hour before sunrise. The full moon phase had been keeping the deer in the area until the early morning hours. So as I slide into the woods this morning, I pushed deer out from the food plot. The stampeding off of the deer had heavy impact sounds to the ground depicting decent size deer. At this pace, I would just have to sleep in my ground blind to beat the deer to the area.
So at the end of day and loading up a large doe that I managed to harvest, Brian and I downloaded the trail camera. Just as my luck goes, there was a decent buck in the food plot that I spooked out. This would be one of two new bucks they have showed up in the last week. Although not huge bucks a 5 and 7 point from preview of the pictures showed, the bucks would be a good match for Jenn to hunt. The 7 point, which we have deemed as the Lucky 7 has a really high rack but lacks on brow ties as the one is barely a countable point.
The crazy eights have manged to disappear again but signs of the rut beginning have be confident on their return. I have a trip to Michigan that will keep me away for about a week. I think it will be just enough time to get the rut in full swing. Next Saturday should be a pretty opportunity to finally harvest a quality buck. I am also taking advantage of stopping at the Pines (family farm ~600 acres) on my return trip from Michigan. A good report of decent bucks on the farm may provide an buckertunity as well.
So at the end of day and loading up a large doe that I managed to harvest, Brian and I downloaded the trail camera. Just as my luck goes, there was a decent buck in the food plot that I spooked out. This would be one of two new bucks they have showed up in the last week. Although not huge bucks a 5 and 7 point from preview of the pictures showed, the bucks would be a good match for Jenn to hunt. The 7 point, which we have deemed as the Lucky 7 has a really high rack but lacks on brow ties as the one is barely a countable point.
The crazy eights have manged to disappear again but signs of the rut beginning have be confident on their return. I have a trip to Michigan that will keep me away for about a week. I think it will be just enough time to get the rut in full swing. Next Saturday should be a pretty opportunity to finally harvest a quality buck. I am also taking advantage of stopping at the Pines (family farm ~600 acres) on my return trip from Michigan. A good report of decent bucks on the farm may provide an buckertunity as well.
Robin Hood would be jealous
So another day in the woods ended up with more meat for the freezer. I have to say when I realized I did hit the deer with my arrow, I was impressed. It was only a few days ago when Shawn came over with his new crossbow purchase. While he was sighting in, I took the time to take a few shots. It came to my attention that my bow was a bit off. It could have easily been knocked off center from trudging through the woods in Maryland or the boat rides to get to the hunting grounds. Its good to check you bow every week or prior to hunting trip, (especially if you traveled far).
By the end of the night both mine and Shaun's crossbows were spot on. I have still yet to shot more than 20 yards to check the pins in my scope. If I only knew my bows potential, I could have taken some of the hit deer earlier. Saturday morning came quickly, after a long stressful week of work. I used my ground blind again, as it provides a great view of the woods rather than my tree stand. It wasn't long until I started to see some deer movement.
It was Spike, who came across the woods to stop by the food plot and then back out the same way he came. After that, a few doe appeared in the thick brush, luckily no bucks slipped by with them as they provided no clear shot. Once this small group emerged it was apparent that they we the soccer mom clan. Two moms and three little ones. The little ones have really grown since August. So at 20 yards they decided to bed down. The setup of the ground blind was perfect with the wind and the sight of it didn't even draw any interest from them.
20 minutes later, here came Spike again, chasing the does. Yes, its the first sign that the rut has started. And before I knew it, another small buck showed up to chase the same does. The bucks gave up pretty easily and the clan laid back down, at least they were a little further out of sight so I could relax and eat some lunch. I decided to stay a bit longer in the blind hoping for a larger buck to arrive but that never happened. I did though see the doe that Jenn missed last week and had another mature doe with her.
The two does came out pretty far away and crossed in front of me. They were going to utilize the same travel route as spike. So using a few trees, I decided that my shot would be around 50 yards. I chose a shooting lane and waited their return. The first doe passed by a bit quickly, and not enough for a shot. The second one lagged a bit, stood behind a tree and then finally appeared. I used a tripod stand from my camera to steady my shot and put the 50 yard pin in my scope on the top of her shoulder. Without hesitation I squeezed the trigger. It was like a scene from Robin Hood, the arrow took flight and weaved its way down the tree line and I saw the deer kick and start to run away. A smack sound of the impact soon followed like a lag of time for distance.
I gave it a few minutes, I thought I hit the deer based on the reaction after the shot. I soon took a trip to the general area to check for blood and my arrow. It felt like I walked in circles and ended up going back to my blind to determine the exact area of the shot. Again, I saw no blood and no arrow. I even checked for the recent foot prints to see the direction of travel. With that I just decided to look in the direction where they ran. With only a few steps I saw the deer piled up. I was amazed. I knew my bow was spot on from left to right but my long distance had never been tested. My shot had taken the deer down at a distance of 65 yards and was an almost instant fatal wound.
The deer had been quartering away and had it's front leg extended forward which opened up the heart for a direct hit. The arrow had enough energy that it did pass through all the way and landed a few feet after it jumped on impact. With this new found ability to take longer shots, it will provide more opportunities to take confident and quality shots. I have definitely put my new cross bow through the hoops and look forward to a buck stepping out, even at 60 yards.
By the end of the night both mine and Shaun's crossbows were spot on. I have still yet to shot more than 20 yards to check the pins in my scope. If I only knew my bows potential, I could have taken some of the hit deer earlier. Saturday morning came quickly, after a long stressful week of work. I used my ground blind again, as it provides a great view of the woods rather than my tree stand. It wasn't long until I started to see some deer movement.
It was Spike, who came across the woods to stop by the food plot and then back out the same way he came. After that, a few doe appeared in the thick brush, luckily no bucks slipped by with them as they provided no clear shot. Once this small group emerged it was apparent that they we the soccer mom clan. Two moms and three little ones. The little ones have really grown since August. So at 20 yards they decided to bed down. The setup of the ground blind was perfect with the wind and the sight of it didn't even draw any interest from them.
20 minutes later, here came Spike again, chasing the does. Yes, its the first sign that the rut has started. And before I knew it, another small buck showed up to chase the same does. The bucks gave up pretty easily and the clan laid back down, at least they were a little further out of sight so I could relax and eat some lunch. I decided to stay a bit longer in the blind hoping for a larger buck to arrive but that never happened. I did though see the doe that Jenn missed last week and had another mature doe with her.
The two does came out pretty far away and crossed in front of me. They were going to utilize the same travel route as spike. So using a few trees, I decided that my shot would be around 50 yards. I chose a shooting lane and waited their return. The first doe passed by a bit quickly, and not enough for a shot. The second one lagged a bit, stood behind a tree and then finally appeared. I used a tripod stand from my camera to steady my shot and put the 50 yard pin in my scope on the top of her shoulder. Without hesitation I squeezed the trigger. It was like a scene from Robin Hood, the arrow took flight and weaved its way down the tree line and I saw the deer kick and start to run away. A smack sound of the impact soon followed like a lag of time for distance.
I gave it a few minutes, I thought I hit the deer based on the reaction after the shot. I soon took a trip to the general area to check for blood and my arrow. It felt like I walked in circles and ended up going back to my blind to determine the exact area of the shot. Again, I saw no blood and no arrow. I even checked for the recent foot prints to see the direction of travel. With that I just decided to look in the direction where they ran. With only a few steps I saw the deer piled up. I was amazed. I knew my bow was spot on from left to right but my long distance had never been tested. My shot had taken the deer down at a distance of 65 yards and was an almost instant fatal wound.
The deer had been quartering away and had it's front leg extended forward which opened up the heart for a direct hit. The arrow had enough energy that it did pass through all the way and landed a few feet after it jumped on impact. With this new found ability to take longer shots, it will provide more opportunities to take confident and quality shots. I have definitely put my new cross bow through the hoops and look forward to a buck stepping out, even at 60 yards.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Grounded for a Buck
Another day in the woods but still no shooter buck. I spent the morning in the stand and on the ground. The forecast was going to include some windy conditions from the southwest but area I hunted didn't seem to affect the woods too much. Before daylight even hit the cedar stand of forest a deer spooked out from underneath me.
I hadn't heard any movement in the woods but this could have been due to the continual rain every few days. The last three weeks have been a mushy walk into the woods which helped me sneak in almost like a ninja. I guess the deer get to take advantage of this muddy condition by trying to sneak past me as well. After about two hours I got restless in the stand, and went down to the ground. Using a tree to sit against and staying low I setup shop. The woods still have a decent ground cover to hide me in my gilly suit.
The cedar forest has a low canopy which the tree stand limits the view. On the ground is a much better view although your stealthiness has to be up to snuff to beat a deer eye to eye. I sat on the ground two weeks ago and had a doe come in, do the stare down and then she continued to feed. You have to be prepared for the red face test, I was always good at winning a staring contest but it includes keeping absolutely still. You have to give that deer no reason to think you are a predator even if you seem out of place to them. Use ground cover and good camo to break up your outline. Cover your head and face so only your eyes are exposed. Beating one deer can be easy or hard but the real challenge comes with multiple deer.
If you do go with the ground you have to be ready. So you are covered up in vegetation, back to a tree, and laid up in your best camo outfit. You beat the stare down and are ready to shoot. Wait, do you have to pickup your gun or bow?... If you have too this is crunch time. This movement can blow your cover. I use a crossbow and have it set on my leg pointed at the area I anticipate the deer to be for my shot. A gun can be used the same way. A bow though may give you some problems. I tend to setup behind a tree when using my compound bow on the ground. Using the tree as my initial cover and then peaking on either side. I tend to be on my knees to give me a bit of elevation so the my bow clears the ground.
I prefer this method of hunting. as it gives up a more heads up challenge against the deer. I make sure to clear out all leaves and small branches as I sit on the ground to reduce any noise making. My trusty tree stand cushion acts to make that ground like a pillow for my behind as well. Yesterday I had a four point buck come in and give me the heads up battle. For being a younger buck he was smart as the first view of me he then angled to my downwind side. I gave him a run for the money though. I was practically laying on the ground with only me head on the tree trunk. At 12 yards the battle was on.
His rounded rack almost made a complete circle as he stared at me. His goal was to cross the dry creek bed behind me to follow two does. It was like watching a bobble head in slow motion. Back and forth he steps trying to break me. The black eyes felt like they were burning into my forehead. Then has he gave in he started to graze. I picked up my grunt call and gave a quick call. Then the battle continued, I just blew his mind with the call. He had first saw me as something out of place, then gave in, and now he hears the sound of another buck. I sensed a bit of anger from the buck.
The deer started to move away in the cedar forest when I did it again. A short grunt call and then a snort wheeze. Yup that pissed him off. He came stomping back in to about 10 yards and angled even further to my down wind side. It wouldn't be long before he busted me. He would now be able to put the smell of me and something not being right together. He gave a few short feet stomps and snorted off into the forest. What a little girl, I totally owned him.
I love getting the up close action and beating the deers predator cues. I could have shot this deer at any point but he just wasn't a shooter. I planned to hunt the afternoon a bit further into the woods and set up my ground blind. I would even bring Jenn out to hunt for some fun.
I hadn't heard any movement in the woods but this could have been due to the continual rain every few days. The last three weeks have been a mushy walk into the woods which helped me sneak in almost like a ninja. I guess the deer get to take advantage of this muddy condition by trying to sneak past me as well. After about two hours I got restless in the stand, and went down to the ground. Using a tree to sit against and staying low I setup shop. The woods still have a decent ground cover to hide me in my gilly suit.
The cedar forest has a low canopy which the tree stand limits the view. On the ground is a much better view although your stealthiness has to be up to snuff to beat a deer eye to eye. I sat on the ground two weeks ago and had a doe come in, do the stare down and then she continued to feed. You have to be prepared for the red face test, I was always good at winning a staring contest but it includes keeping absolutely still. You have to give that deer no reason to think you are a predator even if you seem out of place to them. Use ground cover and good camo to break up your outline. Cover your head and face so only your eyes are exposed. Beating one deer can be easy or hard but the real challenge comes with multiple deer.
If you do go with the ground you have to be ready. So you are covered up in vegetation, back to a tree, and laid up in your best camo outfit. You beat the stare down and are ready to shoot. Wait, do you have to pickup your gun or bow?... If you have too this is crunch time. This movement can blow your cover. I use a crossbow and have it set on my leg pointed at the area I anticipate the deer to be for my shot. A gun can be used the same way. A bow though may give you some problems. I tend to setup behind a tree when using my compound bow on the ground. Using the tree as my initial cover and then peaking on either side. I tend to be on my knees to give me a bit of elevation so the my bow clears the ground.
I prefer this method of hunting. as it gives up a more heads up challenge against the deer. I make sure to clear out all leaves and small branches as I sit on the ground to reduce any noise making. My trusty tree stand cushion acts to make that ground like a pillow for my behind as well. Yesterday I had a four point buck come in and give me the heads up battle. For being a younger buck he was smart as the first view of me he then angled to my downwind side. I gave him a run for the money though. I was practically laying on the ground with only me head on the tree trunk. At 12 yards the battle was on.
His rounded rack almost made a complete circle as he stared at me. His goal was to cross the dry creek bed behind me to follow two does. It was like watching a bobble head in slow motion. Back and forth he steps trying to break me. The black eyes felt like they were burning into my forehead. Then has he gave in he started to graze. I picked up my grunt call and gave a quick call. Then the battle continued, I just blew his mind with the call. He had first saw me as something out of place, then gave in, and now he hears the sound of another buck. I sensed a bit of anger from the buck.
The deer started to move away in the cedar forest when I did it again. A short grunt call and then a snort wheeze. Yup that pissed him off. He came stomping back in to about 10 yards and angled even further to my down wind side. It wouldn't be long before he busted me. He would now be able to put the smell of me and something not being right together. He gave a few short feet stomps and snorted off into the forest. What a little girl, I totally owned him.
I love getting the up close action and beating the deers predator cues. I could have shot this deer at any point but he just wasn't a shooter. I planned to hunt the afternoon a bit further into the woods and set up my ground blind. I would even bring Jenn out to hunt for some fun.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Young 8 on Tap
I had spend a few days playing cat and mouse with the old 8 point buck which was fine. Then like when you know it will happen his partner in crime showed up right after I left the stand and a little later he posed for the camera. The young 8 point buck. I wouldn't know this until I had returned from my sika deer hunt in Maryland though. It was like a little kick in the private area to know they were only coming into the hunting area after I left. Thats hunting though.
The moon phase was still keeping them up all night like it was 1999. So as these big bucks party like rock stars through the night hours, I am formulating a plan of attack. Its actually kind of simple. First to wait out the moon cycle to provide more deer movements at dawn and dusk. The second is the timing of rut. This is when the bucks are going to chase the ladies around the woods. They trade in a bit of brain power for testosterone. When this happens their guard will drop a bit, maybe enough to make the harvest.
Below a picture of the young 8, it has been almost two months since he had showed up. It looks like he grew a bit out of his velvet rack and seems a bit taller. Either way, he looks good. Its time for me to step up my game.
The moon phase was still keeping them up all night like it was 1999. So as these big bucks party like rock stars through the night hours, I am formulating a plan of attack. Its actually kind of simple. First to wait out the moon cycle to provide more deer movements at dawn and dusk. The second is the timing of rut. This is when the bucks are going to chase the ladies around the woods. They trade in a bit of brain power for testosterone. When this happens their guard will drop a bit, maybe enough to make the harvest.
Below a picture of the young 8, it has been almost two months since he had showed up. It looks like he grew a bit out of his velvet rack and seems a bit taller. Either way, he looks good. Its time for me to step up my game.
Sika Me This
My first sika deer hunt with a co-worker down to Maryland proved to be a exciting and some what successful. I loaded up the boat on a Thursday afternoon and headed south. You may be asking why are you taking a boat? The sika deer are found in marshy coastal areas along the eastern shore. Maryland actually has state game lands or wildlife management areas for hunting. The areas we were going to hunt are located in the fishing bay area, which is southeast of Cambridge, MD. The specific hunting areas we were after are only accessible by boat.
This was definitely a first for me and it was an experience. My buddy Josh had suggested this hunt as he had hunted for sika deer before. Although the area he hunted did not require use of a boat. So with an early start the next morning we launched the boat and followed the maps provided by MD fish and game. The boat ride to the first stand of forest was a couple of miles. As we approached there was already a boat parked on shore. With this being are first hunt like this and the use of public land, we respected the hunter for being their first. We moved on another mile or so to the next stand of woods.
We slightly miscalculated the amount of time needed to get to the hunting locations via boat. As we unloaded out gear, a faint bugle of a sika stag could be heard in the marsh. The excitement of the hunt set in. By the time we arrived, day break was upon us. Josh popped up my ground blind while I moved in a bit further to take refuge under a tree. We sat for the morning and then began to scout the area. We were looking for travel pathways and signs of deer presence. After this we loaded into the boat and cruised a bit further down the creek. We check a few more launch points to land the boat and do some more scouting. We decided to stay out until the evening hunt and laid up on a sandy hill to pass some time.
While sitting on this sandy hill over looking the marsh, we had a red fox give us some company as he pounced through the grass looking for rodents. We had been having a full conversation but it seemed to not bother the fox at all. Josh would be hunting a nice stand of hard woods in the middle of the this forest as I would over see a horseshoe shaped marsh outlined by forest. Both spots seemed promising based on location. One thing I learned about the marsh area was the marsh grass could hide small elevation changes (1-2'). I was in my ground blind watching the marsh when three white tail doe stepped out. At first they could be seen to about mid chest but then with a few hops into the marsh, only the tops of their ears were visible. The grasp in front of me was only about 2 feet high.
I later hoped that the hadn't hid any sika deer that passed in front of me in the marsh. It is typical to see tripod type stands to gain elevation over the marsh grass to see the sika deer. You have to remember you are hunting something the size of a medium to large dog. Day one came to a close, a dark ride back to boat ramp only lit by moonlight overhead. Back to the hotel for food, a shower, and soft bed. We planned to get up an hour earlier to gain time in the morning for travel via boat. We even stopped for our food and gas that night to save time.
What only felt like minutes in bed came to an early morning. Another moonlit ride to the hunting area on my Carolina Skiff on a cool morning. We decided to hunt the same area for the morning from the previous day. The morning was supplemented by sika stag bugles from across the marsh in another stand of woods called chance island. This was enough to have us plan our evening hunt at chance island. I had taken refuge under a fallen tree on this morning, with the nice broad leaves hiding my body outline. Josh had traveled further into the woods by a pinch point near the marsh.
As I laid under tree around 9 AM, my phone rang. Josh had shot a stag and it was down. I quickly bagged up my stuff and moved toward him. He had hit the stag on the first shot, but it had hit the deer in the rear spine. He ended up shooting his whole quiver of arrows to lay this deer to rest. After a few minutes of enjoyment of the harvest, we field dressed the animal and headed toward the boat. We would pack it up with some ice prior to heading back out for the evening hunt.
The evening hunt was set for chance island. We arrived early and stalked in pretty far. We even passed two old cars from the 50's in the woods. How they got there was a mystery. An area surrounded by marsh and water was not accessible via cars. We scouted and chose a spot with a pond of water surrounded by marsh which was just outside of the forest edge. We were hoping to catch a deer coming out of the woods toward the marsh or vice versa. The ground blind was brushed in as I always carry some clippers with me.
So we sat, and sat. Time ticked on from seconds, to minutes, and to hours. The spot had seemed so promising and we even used the sika caller to try and lure in some deer. This evening hunt would not give us a chance to harvest a sika from chance island. We packed up, headed to the boat, ramp, truck, and home. The hunt was still worth it. The experience of using a boat to access hunting areas that are not accessible in other means provided an isolated feeling from the everyday hunter. This wasn't the typical drive to the woods edge in my truck and walk in a couple hundred yards sit down.
I am not big on quotes but this although a bit biblical says it all.
"Now then, get your weapons--your quiver and bow--and go out to the open country to hunt some wild game...."
Genesis 27:3
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Old 8 Playing Hard to Get
So it has been almost three weeks since a decent buck has presented itself on the trail camera. The ship finally came in, the Old 8 pointer has been visiting the area for a three day streak now. He is hanging out the soccer moms like a huge extended family of 7 deer. Although the it was great to see the buck again, the timing was not to my advantage. The buck was only there during early morning hours and an hour after dark.
This timing ended up relating to the moon cycle which I posted in a seperate blog. But be that as it may, I hunted hard with hopes on getting a shot at him. I even pasted up Lindsay Lohan with a clean 15 yard shot oppurtunity. Today I got in the woods early but I got the erie feeling that I pushed the deer right out of the area. It was almost as if I could see their shadows but by the time light came, the area was clear. I sat for awhile but with not action by 10 Am I got up. I tracked the entire group of deer through the area.
The fresh tracks followed down toward the edge of the property where it slopes down into a small valley. As my uncle alway said, they go down in the morning and up at night. This is just what they were doing. So in hopes of catching their evening movement, I set up with a makeshift ground blind along a fence panel. Yes, there is some fencing in the woods from Brian's dad. I made a good location about 20 yards off of their travel path where they would come up from the valley. So I waited, and waited, and yes waited. Before I knew it, the sun had set and forest was completly dark.
My setup was perfect, with a wooded blind and my cross bow at the ready. I was just missing the deer to complete the package. Again the moon had shifted the deer movement to past dark and not during my hunting time. I will use this setup later one the moon provides a better hunting oppurtunity. Now the make shift ground blind I made was pretty sweet. The forest I hunt have ample dead fall from the cedar trees and in about ten minutes I had a good blind. The benefit of the a good blind is it hides your movement or breaks up your outline. Camo is great but if a deer can see your outline its kind of pointless.
I backed myself up to the fence paneling and a small tree. This would only leave me two sides to built up some fallen limbs. I built up to about chest height when I am in a sitting position. I used smaller branches to fill in gaps and run them vertical to fill in the blind. Then with a solid limb across in front of me I was able to lay my cross bow out for easy access. All I would have had to do is lean forward into the scope and aim at a deer. I use a small tripod seat and wear my gillie suit from head to toe. I knew I would have had to fool about 5-7 deer before the buck would have showed up so passing the red face test with lots of eyes is essential. I would be able to make slight movements but still be cautious when they arrived. The blind is set but will have to wait for a better moon.
This timing ended up relating to the moon cycle which I posted in a seperate blog. But be that as it may, I hunted hard with hopes on getting a shot at him. I even pasted up Lindsay Lohan with a clean 15 yard shot oppurtunity. Today I got in the woods early but I got the erie feeling that I pushed the deer right out of the area. It was almost as if I could see their shadows but by the time light came, the area was clear. I sat for awhile but with not action by 10 Am I got up. I tracked the entire group of deer through the area.
The fresh tracks followed down toward the edge of the property where it slopes down into a small valley. As my uncle alway said, they go down in the morning and up at night. This is just what they were doing. So in hopes of catching their evening movement, I set up with a makeshift ground blind along a fence panel. Yes, there is some fencing in the woods from Brian's dad. I made a good location about 20 yards off of their travel path where they would come up from the valley. So I waited, and waited, and yes waited. Before I knew it, the sun had set and forest was completly dark.
My setup was perfect, with a wooded blind and my cross bow at the ready. I was just missing the deer to complete the package. Again the moon had shifted the deer movement to past dark and not during my hunting time. I will use this setup later one the moon provides a better hunting oppurtunity. Now the make shift ground blind I made was pretty sweet. The forest I hunt have ample dead fall from the cedar trees and in about ten minutes I had a good blind. The benefit of the a good blind is it hides your movement or breaks up your outline. Camo is great but if a deer can see your outline its kind of pointless.
I backed myself up to the fence paneling and a small tree. This would only leave me two sides to built up some fallen limbs. I built up to about chest height when I am in a sitting position. I used smaller branches to fill in gaps and run them vertical to fill in the blind. Then with a solid limb across in front of me I was able to lay my cross bow out for easy access. All I would have had to do is lean forward into the scope and aim at a deer. I use a small tripod seat and wear my gillie suit from head to toe. I knew I would have had to fool about 5-7 deer before the buck would have showed up so passing the red face test with lots of eyes is essential. I would be able to make slight movements but still be cautious when they arrived. The blind is set but will have to wait for a better moon.
2nd Brown down
The previous Friday I hunted I ended up getting soaked by the rain. When instead, I should have held out for the Saturday hunt with clear weather. I gambled and lost, but that's hunting and you if to be in the forest to hunt. So I rested up, took care of work through the week and started hunt-cation on following Friday. I climbed in my stand, and waited for movement. If wasn't long at all before a pair of does came right into the field of view. At 15 yards I was able to make a solid shot and released a crossbow bolt to her vitals.
By 730 I was back down on the ground and tracking the deer, my shortest stay in a tree stand yet. I tracked the deer pretty well, as the shot did hit vitals and produced a solid blood trail. She ended up crossing a road and then a ditch which led to a semi open area with grass. The blood trail disappeared. I had starting tracking the deer almost instantly which I would discourage. The deer ended up going so much further because I pushed her from laying down to expire. Even a solid shot to vitals can allow the deer to travel pretty far and wounded animals should be given ample time to lay down.
The hunters on tv shows do this all on the time but not usually for the animals benefit. They don't want to track the deer down at night and do their big video shot in the dark. So they wait until morning, say they were thinking about the deer all night long, and first thing in the morning do their hunting show deer search. Well I am not hunting star but tracking down a wounded animal is imperative. I take high percentage shots and commitment to the animal I shoot.
So when I did find the deer I shot was with a bit of luck. The other deer that had been with this doe when I shot remained around her when she finally laid down. I was trudging through the woods and spooked the other deer. Then I could see the deer I shot laying under some thick bush. I was so glad to have finally found it, but since I pushed the deer so far, it on significantly increased the distance to truck. This meant a lot more dragging by myself. Yet another benefit to not push a wounded animal after the shot. This was the second deer I was able to harvest and it will be used to make some sausage with my new grinder. Now the work begins.
By 730 I was back down on the ground and tracking the deer, my shortest stay in a tree stand yet. I tracked the deer pretty well, as the shot did hit vitals and produced a solid blood trail. She ended up crossing a road and then a ditch which led to a semi open area with grass. The blood trail disappeared. I had starting tracking the deer almost instantly which I would discourage. The deer ended up going so much further because I pushed her from laying down to expire. Even a solid shot to vitals can allow the deer to travel pretty far and wounded animals should be given ample time to lay down.
The hunters on tv shows do this all on the time but not usually for the animals benefit. They don't want to track the deer down at night and do their big video shot in the dark. So they wait until morning, say they were thinking about the deer all night long, and first thing in the morning do their hunting show deer search. Well I am not hunting star but tracking down a wounded animal is imperative. I take high percentage shots and commitment to the animal I shoot.
So when I did find the deer I shot was with a bit of luck. The other deer that had been with this doe when I shot remained around her when she finally laid down. I was trudging through the woods and spooked the other deer. Then I could see the deer I shot laying under some thick bush. I was so glad to have finally found it, but since I pushed the deer so far, it on significantly increased the distance to truck. This meant a lot more dragging by myself. Yet another benefit to not push a wounded animal after the shot. This was the second deer I was able to harvest and it will be used to make some sausage with my new grinder. Now the work begins.
Moon Light, deer lite.
So I have hunted hard the past few days. Between morning and evening hunts, I have put some serious time in. But the past few days has proved to be very slow on deer movement. The trail camera proved to be generous with pictures of deer and even the Old 8 buck. I didn't realize until today that the moon cycle was providing the night time feeding for the deer. Each day this week I saw less, and less deer. I feel like a rookie making this mistake. I got over excited with the trail pictures and hunted with out taking the moon phase into account.
The weather the past couple of days wasn't the best, overcast or cloudy and even a bit of rain. With that being said, the moon was out sight and out of my mind. So yes, two weeks ago I was seeing 5-7 deer by 8 am. The past three days, I haven't seen 3 deer. I really should have stopped to check the moon phase before I hunted. I am willing to admit my poor planning and taking this as a good lessons learned. So in my future planning, its weather, wind, and moon phase.
The weather the past couple of days wasn't the best, overcast or cloudy and even a bit of rain. With that being said, the moon was out sight and out of my mind. So yes, two weeks ago I was seeing 5-7 deer by 8 am. The past three days, I haven't seen 3 deer. I really should have stopped to check the moon phase before I hunted. I am willing to admit my poor planning and taking this as a good lessons learned. So in my future planning, its weather, wind, and moon phase.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Scent Control Not an Ancient Chinese Secret
As promised in a previous blog, I would lend my experience and best practices in scent control. Some of my tactics come from reading, some are from doing, and some are things that make sense to me. As you there are a variety of commercial available scent control detergents and soaps. In addition to that, there is a huge amount of scent blocker or controlling clothing. They may be great but again, you will pay for it.
My first outing this year, I purposely didn't go to the extreme of my scent control steps. I wanted to see want I could get away with first. With that being said, three deer came right into my downwind direction. At 2o yards, I could see and hear the lead doe trying to feel me out. A grunt wease and stomping her feet like Dirty Dancing. I found it hilarious. But with nothing to link the scent with a predator, they kept moving closer. At five yards she finally locked eyes with me and knew something wasn't right. The three deer turned away and disappeared into the thick cedar forest. I could have taken her or the other two deer at different points, but I needed to know what I could get away with. If this was a trophy buck situation, that buck would have been down before I got busted.
So here is what I do for scent control. All my hunting clothes or cloth material gear which I feel is capable of absorbing scent gets treated in my scent control process. So lets start with your hunting clothes, as they are most used item in the field besides you. Start from scratch, you buy a new hunting outfit (T-shirt and pants). Its been sitting in the store, with possibly hundreds of folks touching it and walking past it, the little kid with ice cream on his hands or the over baring wife with too much perfume on. What I am getting at, is the clothing or media that you are wearing is constantly absorbing the smells it is subjected to. So every new outfit gets washed right away utilizing a commercially available scent eliminating detergent or you can use baking soda.
So washing is the first step to neutralize and clean clothing. This can be used for new clothing or clothing from the field that was used. When drying the clothes, you can use the dryer but skip any fabric softener or drying sheets. My endpoint on scent control is to end up as neutral or matching the environment. So then your clothes are dry, what do you do with them? You have to block any smells that will start absorbing back into them. Now you will be wearing underwear, socks, and most likely an undershirt. All of these items need to go through the same process. So storage is you next step.
Storing you clothes is just as important as washing them. Plastic binds or seal able storage bags are usually the best choice. My hunting clothing and gear spends 8 months of the year in the attic, in plastic totes. Sealed with some carbon packets to soak up any smells that could infiltrate my plastic totes. These are available at any fish store or pet store, you can also you baking soda but it is bit harder to keep from spilling. If moisture is a concern then a few silica packets can also be placed in there. These are aspects of staying neutral but what about matching the environment that you will hunt. My colleague at work got me interested in this aspect. Throwing in some oak leaves or oak chips in your clothing storage can help you smell like a tree. But if you are sitting in pine trees, then oak scent may not be a good match.
Think about going out to the bar for an hour or two. It takes not time at all to smell like the bar. But you don't know it until you leave there, you typically find yourself sitting at breakfast the next morning with family and wreaking like cigarette smoke and adult beverages. The same situation would apply to a deer that is coming into from the downwind direction. Now you think you don't smell but a deer has 10 times more scent receptors than a human. So don't assume you are in the clear, know you are. Any food or drink you bring in the field should again go neutral as possible, water is an easy one. In the winter maybe make it tea. Food is harder though, try to fill up before the field, avoid aromatic foods like bacon. Take in snacks like trail mix or granola bars. My favorite is the variety pack of crackers. Something quick and doesn't draw much attention.
It's now time for your big day in the field. your clothes are coming out of the plastic totes to be worn. I wait until the last possible second to put on my field gear. It may mean leaving it all in the truck rather than in the lodge with grandpa and the good ole boys smoking cigars or cooking greasy foods. Avoid what can -- smells that is. You should be fresh out of the shower by using a scent control soap or body wash. Why is this important?... Well besides the overbearing smells from the good ole boys, your body has bacteria and natural scents that build up. You want to clean and become as neutral as possible. Then stay that way from your lodging spot to your stand. I try to scent control my truck also, on your long trip to your hunting area can experince road food, cigar smoke, and gas from fueling up. Hunting gear is kept separate or sealed up in containers still. Multiple cartons of open baking soda are placed in the truck as well.
I wear my base layer out to the truck and then gear up with the rest of my outfit depending the temperature. I use a stock spray scent controller on my base layer, then add on my outer layers and spray again. Don't forget about your boots. It is ideal to have a pair of boots you only use in the field for hunting. The material of the boots is important, leather can carry smells into the field. You can spray them down but its hard to cover up like fuel from the gas station (gas up the night before). Its best to go rubber here. I own a pair of insulated muck boots. They are easy to wash down, they carry minimal scent, and can be put on in a heartbeat to go into the field.
Make your way to the stand, everything should have been placed a week to 10 days such as your stand or blind. It provides time for deer to get used to the new object and for scent to dissipate. Use wind to your advantage to get to your hunting spot. This may not always be the case so don't fool around and get into your spot, quickly and quietly. You should have cleared pathways of leaves and sticks to make it super sneaky. Once in the stand give another spray of cover up before settling in. I know I sometimes work up a sweat which I try to minimize. There are even deodorant sticks that you can use to mask you sweat smell from your armpits. I find my feet sweating, so a bit of deodorant there can help that.
Know your wind direction at your hunting spot and it should have been checked prior to getting there. You should have planned ahead. If wind direction is unfavorable, than make a judgement call. You may have went for it anyway and ended up not seeing anything. Think about, you know your spots the best, should you have seen a deer. The deer can smell you from pretty far away, maybe even out of your sight line depending upon the setup and topography. Take notes when you do get busted because it can help bring down the big one later on. Don't let your smell risk your trophy of a lifetime.
My first outing this year, I purposely didn't go to the extreme of my scent control steps. I wanted to see want I could get away with first. With that being said, three deer came right into my downwind direction. At 2o yards, I could see and hear the lead doe trying to feel me out. A grunt wease and stomping her feet like Dirty Dancing. I found it hilarious. But with nothing to link the scent with a predator, they kept moving closer. At five yards she finally locked eyes with me and knew something wasn't right. The three deer turned away and disappeared into the thick cedar forest. I could have taken her or the other two deer at different points, but I needed to know what I could get away with. If this was a trophy buck situation, that buck would have been down before I got busted.
So here is what I do for scent control. All my hunting clothes or cloth material gear which I feel is capable of absorbing scent gets treated in my scent control process. So lets start with your hunting clothes, as they are most used item in the field besides you. Start from scratch, you buy a new hunting outfit (T-shirt and pants). Its been sitting in the store, with possibly hundreds of folks touching it and walking past it, the little kid with ice cream on his hands or the over baring wife with too much perfume on. What I am getting at, is the clothing or media that you are wearing is constantly absorbing the smells it is subjected to. So every new outfit gets washed right away utilizing a commercially available scent eliminating detergent or you can use baking soda.
So washing is the first step to neutralize and clean clothing. This can be used for new clothing or clothing from the field that was used. When drying the clothes, you can use the dryer but skip any fabric softener or drying sheets. My endpoint on scent control is to end up as neutral or matching the environment. So then your clothes are dry, what do you do with them? You have to block any smells that will start absorbing back into them. Now you will be wearing underwear, socks, and most likely an undershirt. All of these items need to go through the same process. So storage is you next step.
Storing you clothes is just as important as washing them. Plastic binds or seal able storage bags are usually the best choice. My hunting clothing and gear spends 8 months of the year in the attic, in plastic totes. Sealed with some carbon packets to soak up any smells that could infiltrate my plastic totes. These are available at any fish store or pet store, you can also you baking soda but it is bit harder to keep from spilling. If moisture is a concern then a few silica packets can also be placed in there. These are aspects of staying neutral but what about matching the environment that you will hunt. My colleague at work got me interested in this aspect. Throwing in some oak leaves or oak chips in your clothing storage can help you smell like a tree. But if you are sitting in pine trees, then oak scent may not be a good match.
Think about going out to the bar for an hour or two. It takes not time at all to smell like the bar. But you don't know it until you leave there, you typically find yourself sitting at breakfast the next morning with family and wreaking like cigarette smoke and adult beverages. The same situation would apply to a deer that is coming into from the downwind direction. Now you think you don't smell but a deer has 10 times more scent receptors than a human. So don't assume you are in the clear, know you are. Any food or drink you bring in the field should again go neutral as possible, water is an easy one. In the winter maybe make it tea. Food is harder though, try to fill up before the field, avoid aromatic foods like bacon. Take in snacks like trail mix or granola bars. My favorite is the variety pack of crackers. Something quick and doesn't draw much attention.
It's now time for your big day in the field. your clothes are coming out of the plastic totes to be worn. I wait until the last possible second to put on my field gear. It may mean leaving it all in the truck rather than in the lodge with grandpa and the good ole boys smoking cigars or cooking greasy foods. Avoid what can -- smells that is. You should be fresh out of the shower by using a scent control soap or body wash. Why is this important?... Well besides the overbearing smells from the good ole boys, your body has bacteria and natural scents that build up. You want to clean and become as neutral as possible. Then stay that way from your lodging spot to your stand. I try to scent control my truck also, on your long trip to your hunting area can experince road food, cigar smoke, and gas from fueling up. Hunting gear is kept separate or sealed up in containers still. Multiple cartons of open baking soda are placed in the truck as well.
I wear my base layer out to the truck and then gear up with the rest of my outfit depending the temperature. I use a stock spray scent controller on my base layer, then add on my outer layers and spray again. Don't forget about your boots. It is ideal to have a pair of boots you only use in the field for hunting. The material of the boots is important, leather can carry smells into the field. You can spray them down but its hard to cover up like fuel from the gas station (gas up the night before). Its best to go rubber here. I own a pair of insulated muck boots. They are easy to wash down, they carry minimal scent, and can be put on in a heartbeat to go into the field.
Make your way to the stand, everything should have been placed a week to 10 days such as your stand or blind. It provides time for deer to get used to the new object and for scent to dissipate. Use wind to your advantage to get to your hunting spot. This may not always be the case so don't fool around and get into your spot, quickly and quietly. You should have cleared pathways of leaves and sticks to make it super sneaky. Once in the stand give another spray of cover up before settling in. I know I sometimes work up a sweat which I try to minimize. There are even deodorant sticks that you can use to mask you sweat smell from your armpits. I find my feet sweating, so a bit of deodorant there can help that.
Know your wind direction at your hunting spot and it should have been checked prior to getting there. You should have planned ahead. If wind direction is unfavorable, than make a judgement call. You may have went for it anyway and ended up not seeing anything. Think about, you know your spots the best, should you have seen a deer. The deer can smell you from pretty far away, maybe even out of your sight line depending upon the setup and topography. Take notes when you do get busted because it can help bring down the big one later on. Don't let your smell risk your trophy of a lifetime.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
The Hit List
So with over a 1000 pictures of deers on the property, we have developed a small list of deer with names to help tracking them. The term hit list does not mean all of these deer are marked for death, just a cool expression to entice the reader.
On the girls or does list are the following: Lindsay Lohan and the Soccer Moms. So lets start with Lindsay, this doe is always on the camera, day, night, and even happy hour. She is always hogging the camera with an occasional flash of her backside. She also seen with her boyfriend who we named Fez (the 4 point buck).
The soccer moms a pair of does with four fawns. They drag their little ones by the camera to catch a quick meal and then off to play in the forest. It is unfortunate to learn that one of the little fawns were hit by a car about two weeks ago. Brian was able to care for the little one and put her at rest. I have no intentions of breaking of the family for freezer meat and tarnishing my karma with mother nature.
On the boys side we have the following: Fez (4 pt), the Basket 6 (6 pt), the old 8 and young 8 (both 8 pts), Spike (2 pt), and not on camera but seen from my tree stand yesterday was another 6 point buck which I call the Player. I caught him trying to woe two does as once. I can call these deer names all day long, but lets put a name to face with some pictures.
Fez
On the boys side we have the following: Fez (4 pt), the Basket 6 (6 pt), the old 8 and young 8 (both 8 pts), Spike (2 pt), and not on camera but seen from my tree stand yesterday was another 6 point buck which I call the Player. I caught him trying to woe two does as once. I can call these deer names all day long, but lets put a name to face with some pictures.
Fez
The Basket 6
The Soccer Mom
Old 8
Young 8
Lindsay Lohan
Lindsay Lohan
See its 2 AM and she is out and about for the camera.
Processing a deer at home.
So does processing a deer at home make you a hillbilly? If so, than I better change my name to Bill Bob and marry a cousin. It would only though take a hillbilly to realize the savings by processing a deer at home. Does it take a rocket scientist to figure out how to butcher a deer, absolutely not. At the average cost of $100 per deer to get it processed by a butcher and a few you-tube videos was enough to give it a whirl at home.
The equipment you need to do this at home is actually not much. I can tell you that you don't need a shop full of high priced machinery. So a few sharp knives, a sharper, a saw that is capable to cut through a couple of bones, a hoist (which is probably the big ticket item), and some general supplies and you are in business. So I sat back for an hour and watched some you tube videos of a butcher that was willing to share the butchering process and his secrets.
My garage happens to be equipment with a metal beam in the overhead so a pulley was easily installed and I lifted the deer up to working height. With few short cuts of the hide and some pulling the deer was skinless in about q0 minutes. I have to giggle here, because the wife walked in just as I finished this task. She was terrified and ran back out of the garage.
Now came the quartering process, I removed the front legs and shoulders which was relatively easy. Just cut right up the armpit and ensure to cut all the way around the shoulder plate. The next step is downsize the rib cage and half the the body. Take the tip of the knife and score the inside of the ribs at the halfway point. Then taking you saw cut straight down your lines on both sides. The remaining intact section will now get detached just below the loins. This spot is basically right along the last rib and follow it across to the backbone. Use a knife to first cut any meat or tendons and then finish off the backbone with the saw.
There is one more section to cut out before separating the hind legs. Use the tenderloins as template to cut out this portion. So cut up toward the inside of the legs above the top of the tenderloins. Again cut all the way through until the backbone again and saw through it again.
The last thing to do is cut the pelvic bone out which is holding the hind legs together. Basically take you knife and follow the contour of the bone to do so. If you get close enough, you may be able to pull the legs apart exposing the bone. Just finish the removal of the side that is left en tact. This portion is could be easier by removing the two hind legs from the hoist and doing it on a table.
So lets review what parts you should have in front of you now. The two front legs with shoulders, the rib sections, the neck and upper back section, the lower back section with has the loins and backstraps, and the two hind legs. I can describe the most of the sections and how to further remove meat except for the legs. I would suggest watching the you-tube video as is helps to see it in performed.
I have included a picture below on the general breakdown of meat cuts from the body.
The equipment you need to do this at home is actually not much. I can tell you that you don't need a shop full of high priced machinery. So a few sharp knives, a sharper, a saw that is capable to cut through a couple of bones, a hoist (which is probably the big ticket item), and some general supplies and you are in business. So I sat back for an hour and watched some you tube videos of a butcher that was willing to share the butchering process and his secrets.
My garage happens to be equipment with a metal beam in the overhead so a pulley was easily installed and I lifted the deer up to working height. With few short cuts of the hide and some pulling the deer was skinless in about q0 minutes. I have to giggle here, because the wife walked in just as I finished this task. She was terrified and ran back out of the garage.
Now came the quartering process, I removed the front legs and shoulders which was relatively easy. Just cut right up the armpit and ensure to cut all the way around the shoulder plate. The next step is downsize the rib cage and half the the body. Take the tip of the knife and score the inside of the ribs at the halfway point. Then taking you saw cut straight down your lines on both sides. The remaining intact section will now get detached just below the loins. This spot is basically right along the last rib and follow it across to the backbone. Use a knife to first cut any meat or tendons and then finish off the backbone with the saw.
There is one more section to cut out before separating the hind legs. Use the tenderloins as template to cut out this portion. So cut up toward the inside of the legs above the top of the tenderloins. Again cut all the way through until the backbone again and saw through it again.
The last thing to do is cut the pelvic bone out which is holding the hind legs together. Basically take you knife and follow the contour of the bone to do so. If you get close enough, you may be able to pull the legs apart exposing the bone. Just finish the removal of the side that is left en tact. This portion is could be easier by removing the two hind legs from the hoist and doing it on a table.
So lets review what parts you should have in front of you now. The two front legs with shoulders, the rib sections, the neck and upper back section, the lower back section with has the loins and backstraps, and the two hind legs. I can describe the most of the sections and how to further remove meat except for the legs. I would suggest watching the you-tube video as is helps to see it in performed.
I have included a picture below on the general breakdown of meat cuts from the body.
So I will briefly describe how I processed my sections. I do not have a grinder yet, so any meat that did not get steaked, put into a loin, or a roast then I just cubed up the meat for stew. The next deer will allow me to do some grinding for ground meat or sausage. So the first section that I did was the neck and up back. I cut the loin meat on the top of the back. Take your knife and follow the backbone down and the contour of the ribs. You can trim this up to make a loin or steak out the meat into medallions. Any remaining meat on the neck and trimmings can start your ground meat or cube meat pile.
Next was the lower back section. On the inside of the section is the tenderloins. On the top are the backstraps. For the backstraps follow the same process as the upper back and neck section. The tenderloins on the underside just need to be trimmed out of the body. The back straps can be kept whole or cut down into smaller steaks. Again, any extra meat from trimmings can go into your ground meat or cube meat pile.
The ribs can be kept whole, or you can cut all the meat out that you want. I kept them whole and am going to attempt to smoke them later today. This is the extent of my experience as this was my first time butchering a deer. You want to make sure you have your knife sharper ready as your knife will dull over time. Also have your working surface prepared and cleaned. I use large trash bags to lay out all the sections. Then laid a wet towel with a cutting board on top (the wet towel keeps the board from sliding around). I had a five gallon bucket for crap meat and fat as you make your cuts. It also contained the head and hide from the skinning process. By the end the bucket was full and simply dumped it into a heavy duty trash bag for disposal.
This was my first time processing the deer, if you are handy with a knife and brave enough to try it then you will join in the savings. Remember to have you packaging ready for finished cuts. Before cutting your steaks out, you can put that meat in a freezer or cooler with ice to firm up the meat. Hope this is helpful and enjoy your harvest.
New Archery Equipment
So last year I spent 2800 miles on the road just for hunting season in Pennsylvania. This cost alone should have been the whisper in my ear to tell myself to purchase better archery equipment. Although my equipment wasn't completely at fault, I missed two solid opportunities on quality bucks (deer that is).
So in early 2010, I started my research into a quality bow package that would assist me in my hunting effort. I wasn't sure if I wanted to go with a new compound bow or a cross bow. Cross bows in PA are now legal for archery season for all hunters. I had a few reasons that lead me to going the cross bow route for this season. First, with it pin point accuracy and take down power was important to me. Unlike TV, real hunting opportunities come few and far between for the average hunter. Hunting can dig into your vacation time at work and with limited chances on the weekends to get out in the woods doesn't make it easy.
Like any hunter, you want to have every a chance to be successful. In my mind this includes equipment like a quality up to date bow. My current bow is a USA Spirit by PSE, which is an early compound bow from the early 90's. My second reason for the cross bow was the flexibility of users, it can be used by a left or right handed person, older or younger, and even for my wife. This was a major decision point for me. The third reason was cost, the quality bows that are marketed all over TV run in the $800 range. I would have also had to purchase a separate bow then for my wife which would have cost more.
So with those reasons backing my decision, I was able to narrow down my search to a Parker cross bow (the Enforcer 160). I tested this bow in early 2010 and finally pulled the trigger on the purchase about two weeks ago. The pin point accuracy of the bow is incredible and easy sighting in made the setup easy. My first shot at home lead me to buying a better target because the cross bow bolt almost passed through the target. For a comparison standpoint though, my old PSE compound bow only penetrates the about 3 inches. This was money well spent, and I already have a deer in the freezer.
So in early 2010, I started my research into a quality bow package that would assist me in my hunting effort. I wasn't sure if I wanted to go with a new compound bow or a cross bow. Cross bows in PA are now legal for archery season for all hunters. I had a few reasons that lead me to going the cross bow route for this season. First, with it pin point accuracy and take down power was important to me. Unlike TV, real hunting opportunities come few and far between for the average hunter. Hunting can dig into your vacation time at work and with limited chances on the weekends to get out in the woods doesn't make it easy.
Like any hunter, you want to have every a chance to be successful. In my mind this includes equipment like a quality up to date bow. My current bow is a USA Spirit by PSE, which is an early compound bow from the early 90's. My second reason for the cross bow was the flexibility of users, it can be used by a left or right handed person, older or younger, and even for my wife. This was a major decision point for me. The third reason was cost, the quality bows that are marketed all over TV run in the $800 range. I would have also had to purchase a separate bow then for my wife which would have cost more.
So with those reasons backing my decision, I was able to narrow down my search to a Parker cross bow (the Enforcer 160). I tested this bow in early 2010 and finally pulled the trigger on the purchase about two weeks ago. The pin point accuracy of the bow is incredible and easy sighting in made the setup easy. My first shot at home lead me to buying a better target because the cross bow bolt almost passed through the target. For a comparison standpoint though, my old PSE compound bow only penetrates the about 3 inches. This was money well spent, and I already have a deer in the freezer.
Hard work paid off and savings in my pocket.
A month and half of work has finally provided its first profit. Yesterday I was able to harvest a nice deer from my new property in PA. Back in the end of July started our scouting and site preparation and over 1000 trail camera pictures in our possession. With the first opening of a limited anterless deer season, we were able to capitalize.
The first morning in any tree stand provides that feeling of wonder and freedom. This morning was no different, listening to the sounds of birds and watching the first movements after dawn. It wasn't long until the first signs of life began to show move through the forest of cedar trees. Yup, a huge skunk ran right under my stand and starting sniffing around. A quick beat of my boot on the tree stand was enough to scare the little guy away though. The first deer as expected to see at some point of the day was the 4 point buck known as Fez. He looped through past the trail camera and was gone.
The next deer to arrive were a pair of does with a new 6 point buck that has never been captured. Of course he will be added to the hit list to track in the future. The lead doe in the group was very experienced, and was able to recognize something was not right. By doing so, I was able to get a clear shot and held off on trying to shoot my cross bow. It wasn't long after they bugged out that another group of deer moved in.
Three does were moving right in toward my stand. I found myself going from one to the other trying to setup a shot with an anxious feeling. I knew though, that waiting for the deer to move closer and not rushing a shot would present a clear and more precise shot. With that being said, one of the does following a small trail in front of my stand stepped out at 10 yards. Without further ado, I squeezed the trigger with my 10 yard pin just to the right of the shoulder. It was like listening to a baseball hit exposed skin at high speed. The doe quickly circled around and trotted down into the woods.
I gave a quick text to Brian to come help me track her down and load her up in my truck. The next step of this adventure was to process the deer at the house instead of paying over $100 for a butcher to do so. There will be a separate blog entry on how that went but it proved to keep money in my pocket. Below is the best picture the trail camera as captured yet.....sucess. 
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
10 Days until the Soft Opening -- PA Bow Season
Just like the casinos, Pennsylvania offers a soft opening for deer season. It provides an opportunity to hunt does in mid September in WMUs near major cities like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. The WMUs in the Philly area extend into Bucks county which provides some lush area for deer. Although huntable land is hard to find, the deer are plentiful. This gives me a great chance to get settled in my new property I am hunting by my house. It will be good practice for the statewide opening on October 1st.
This new property which just over 2 acres provides a good funnel for deer to travel from bedding to feeding areas. When we first scouted the area with the landowner Brian, we observed the deer trails are packed with hard dirt from the constant travel. The wooded area is relatively thick and is filled with mature red cedar trees. The far back corner of the property is more heavily wooded area which is most likely the bedding area. The back and side of the property have a dry creek bed which allows another secluded travel path for deer. Aerial photos were also reviewed as to not miss any steps in the information gathering process of scouting. Since the initial visit, a dedicated trail camera has kept eyes on the main trail to log deer movements and track the bucks. 
A few final preparations are in order before the 17th. One is to hang my stand on of the larger trees that overlooks the travel paths, another is to pickup my new crossbow and get it sighted in, and the final step is clothing to cover ever day scents. Now I am no expert on scent elimination but I do take it very seriously. I will provide my ancient Chinese secrets in my next blog.
Lets me take a minute to talk about our most recent scouting results from our new property. All photos from the trail camera up to this point only presented a small 4 point buck and a few doe. My buddy Brian emailed me on a Saturday morning and to my surprise the pictures showed some decent bucks. Two nice eight point bucks in velvet filled the camera in mid August. Their is also a pretty unique six point buck with some basket rack antlers but still looks pretty cool. Take a look at the eight pointers below. One is old and one is young.
This new property which just over 2 acres provides a good funnel for deer to travel from bedding to feeding areas. When we first scouted the area with the landowner Brian, we observed the deer trails are packed with hard dirt from the constant travel. The wooded area is relatively thick and is filled with mature red cedar trees. The far back corner of the property is more heavily wooded area which is most likely the bedding area. The back and side of the property have a dry creek bed which allows another secluded travel path for deer. Aerial photos were also reviewed as to not miss any steps in the information gathering process of scouting. Since the initial visit, a dedicated trail camera has kept eyes on the main trail to log deer movements and track the bucks. A few final preparations are in order before the 17th. One is to hang my stand on of the larger trees that overlooks the travel paths, another is to pickup my new crossbow and get it sighted in, and the final step is clothing to cover ever day scents. Now I am no expert on scent elimination but I do take it very seriously. I will provide my ancient Chinese secrets in my next blog.Until then, quiet stalks and precision shots!
Friday, August 5, 2011
Early Season Scouting
So I purchased a trail camera during black Friday in 2010. I thought I got a good deal, paid about 70 bucks and walked out the door. Then rifle season came, of course I was too lazy to get the camera out on the farm to get some snapshots. Winter and spring passed by as the camera lay sleeping in the attic with the rest of my hunting gear and the resident raccoon. Which his lease is now up. I finally broke down and setup my camera on local hunting spot through a co-worker. We laid out some corn and setup the camera.Three days later I received a call from Brian (co-worker) to let me know that the camera had 60 pictures already. I was amazed that there were so many. Than I thought about it, maybe we didn't set it up right and it is capturing a moving branch or sunlight movement. Brian had the same idea, "you are going to have all pictures with squirrels in them". Geez we weren't being very positive about this. I went early in the morning to meet Brian and we downloaded the photos. We noted that after five days all the corn was gone....
Well we were both wrong, the camera found what we had originally hoped for. Deer! As you can see in the photo at the top of the page, our first resident doe is the cover story of most of the photos. She found our food source within 5 hours of putting out.
Check out the Infrared photo, I didn't realize the camera was capable of such crisp and details pictures.Well she wasn't the only star of the photos. We had a whole flock of turkeys and a small group of raccoons feeding with the deer at night. Incredible, with only a few days of photos we captured so much wildlife. So lets talk about the camera equipment. Wildgame Innovations have a whole line of trail cameras, and as mentioned above, I took advantage of some early season Christmas specials at Dick's Sporting Goods. The camera is the IR 3.5 and is able to accept a 2 GB memory card (not included). The camera requires 4 C sized batteries or can be powered by an external battery pack. The camera can take day and night photos as seen in the blog, and you can be the judge of the quality. Obviously the slower the animal moves passed the camera the less fuzzy the image is. I was blown away with the good deal I got on black Friday, I want to correct myself and say "I got a great deal".
Wildgame Innovations provide lower and higher grade of trail cameras with more bells and whistles like more memory, video capability, and better distances. I believe I got just the right equipment for my need. This camera as shown me so much about the area I plan to hunt and would recommend it to anyone.
With that being said, make sure you share you feedback with others when purchasing hunting and fishing equipment. Its through lessons learned and personal feedback that we can improve the techniques, approaches, and equipment used on our adventures. Don't be a turkey!
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Shark River, Belmar NJ - Striper Fishing
My first time fishing out of New Jersey came this year, 29 years it took me to realize that such a valuable fishery was so close to home. So taking up the offer of a co-worker (Capt Dave) to join him on his boat for a NJ fishing trip was in order. Within an hour we at the waters edge from leaving the house. After a short cruise to the inlet we hit the ocean with hooks ready. It was quite a rough day and there was a mass of boats hugging the coastline to the south. We setup on the outskirts of the fleet and dropped in some live bunker. A helpful fisherman leaving the dock provided us some fresh bait when we were launching the boat (much appreciated).
After about 40 minutes of drifting along the fleet, one of the reels went screaming. I popped up quickly and grabbed the rod. This was such a similar feeling to a tuna pulling off line from the initial hookup. I wasn't expecting such a strong fight this early in the morning. I can say it kicked my butt. Within about 10 minutes the fish was in the boat that measured 38". Awesome, I have never caught a striper, no less a huge one. But the action was short lived, as we floated along for another 1 hour without a bite.
We decided to move up north and do some flounder fishing (Fluke for NJ folk). Our spot of choice was Red Church fishing area. Using Capt Dave's high tech sonar from HumminBird we drifted the hills and lumps identifying good spots. It wasn't long before we had 5 or 6 keepers in the boat. Capt Dave takes real pride in his flounder fishing techniques and tackle. After my early retirement from offshore fishing career (...summer job) I focused on my own approach to mastering flounder fishing. We made floundering look easy that day and reeled up the lines around 5 o'clock to head back to the dock.
After a long day on the water, we could see the inlet within view. Then we noticed a small group of boats before that. Dave slowed the boat down, and we both realized what the boats were doing. A large school of bunker was being hammered by stripers. Dave's son and I grabbed the spinning reels with large treble hooks to snag some of the bunker. It was only minutes when we floated the live bunker back into the school. Whammy! Two fish hooked up right off the bat. This was the most excitement I had in long time. I remember the days during chartering when we would get multiple hookups at one time. This was the same case, in turn, the boat was filled with chaos and adrenaline.
We found that once you had your live bait ready to pull right up to the school and feed the line out quickly. An hour later we had fish in the cooler (overflowing) and two fish laying on the deck. Now began a trip back to house to fillet up half dozen huge stripers and flounder. When midnight rolled around we finishing up our fish cleaning with giant smiles on our faces.
Until next time, tight lines and screaming reels.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Cooler box for my Skiff - Part II
So it dawned on me that having a cooler on the back of the boat would be awesome. So with one more livewell box to install I put my thinking cap on. With some foam board insulation, fiberglass resin, and an idea, my cooler box became a reality. I cut pieces of the foam board insulation to cover all the sides of the box and held them in place with some masking tape. Then with some fiberglass resin I began a base coat or two. Then with fiberglass matting and more resin I began creating a sturdy covering on the foam insulation. Before I knew it the inside of the box was rock hard with fiberglass. But if this was going to be a cooler box, I didn't want ice and other items to beat on the fiberglass directly. So a trip to West Marine to pick up a can of gel coat was in order. The first couple of batches didn't turn out right, for some reason I ended up with a cup of spongy gel coat and could spread it across the surface of the cooler box. What a pain in the ass. So I thought it was too cold out, this meant waiting until warmer weather.
So June came along and an 80 degree day. Perfect timing to try it again, but the same thing happened. Not sure what I did wrong but it kept happening. So I just took straight gelcoat and painted the whole inside of the box. I didn't care at this point if I had to wait a month for it to cure, which is what it took. So some final touches and 6 months after having the boxes, it was time to attach my cooler box. A tube of 5200 sealant and a few hours of installation paid off. Both my livewell box and the cooler box have identical drains in the bottom of the boxes with removable plugs. In the picture you can see the livewell on the left and the cooler box on the right.
Next is to make a tight fitting lid for the cooler box to complete the cooler. The lids in the picture only flip down over an opening and does not seal the boxes from the outside.
Livewell and Cooler on my Skiff - Part I
After months of fabrication and curing of gel coat, my livewell and custom cooler box have been installed on the transom of my boat. The project for my Carolina Skiff started almost 8 months ago. I was looking to outfit my skiff with space saving ideas to open up room on the deck. Then it happened, I came across transom mount livewell boxes made by Carolina Skiff. So I tried tracking down a dealer, about 20 some calls across the east coast and mid west. I even called the senior sales rep from CS and was told that they had already discontinued the boxes. Finally a marina in Florida confirmed they had two in their inventory. I paid cash money and had them sent to the house. It wasnt long before two huge boxes showed up in front of the house. It kind of reminded me of the scene from Uncle Buck where John Candy is flipping the pancakes with a snow shovel. And he turns to the little kid and says the bacon won't even fit through the door.
Without wasting any time I tore apart the boxes to see my new purchase. I took one out to dry fit it to the back of the boat, crap, the edges of the boxes were oversized. It was obvisous that they would have to be trimmed down in order to fit, which was not an easy job. So I enlisted the help of my friend and co-worker (Capt Dave) to assist. We took our time using cardboard and a compass to create a template for the cuts. After several trips to local hardward stores for stainless steel hardware we were finally ready to drill through the hull (18 times) and attach the first box. 4 hours of hard work paid off. The livewell box came out great. So before final attachment, I installed a livewell pump, light, and plumbing to circular the water. Then with two tubes of 5200 sealant I made the final attachment. A leak test, water volume calculation, and it was ready for use. I installed one overflow about half way up the box with allows about 4 gallons of water which plenty for minnows. In the future I plan to put in one more overflow below that one. I feel too much water is being stored during getting on plane (a bit too much weight in the transom).
Then I made a cooler...
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
42 Days until hunting season
Its as if I can feel the brisk cool mornings of sitting in my tree stand overlooking the western extent of the christmas tree field in Indiana, PA. In the weeks coming it will become a reality. I have my gear boxed up and organized in the attic to which I will soon break out. Anything that can be deodorized has to be washed or sprayed and kept away from distinct odors. All doe tags and licenses have been purchased for the 2011 season. I have added a small property to hunt from one of my co-workers about 45 minutes from the house. This will definately help with the long trips to western pa to the family farm. I am hoping to provide some early harvest for the hunting camp when the statewide archery season opens at the farm. I have never been so excited and prepared for a hunting season.
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