Mid-Late Season Sucess

By now, the acorns are slowing in their drop, and whitetails are looking for other foods to get ready for winter.  But the rut is also starting to kick in.  Here's just a couple tips to help during the rut.

• Hunt does to find bucks.  You've probably heard this one before, and it's quite simple.  It explains itself.  And if you want to shoot does, hunt the does!
• Try calling.  Doe grunts and buck grunts would be good now.  Tending (estrous) grunts might work.  Don't try fawn bleats, because the fawns born this year should start to be acting like does or young bucks.
• Keep practicing with your weapon.  By now your guns and bows should be sighted in (I'm a little behind in the gun department, I've been on vacation with family).  But keep familiar with it, which shouldn't be a problem.

Happy hunting!

Mid-Season Sucess

How is the deer season going?  I have yet to take a deer, but I've only been out 4-5 times, twice I didn't see anything (well, except a doe and fawn 150 yards off), twice I've seen deer, and ultimately both times they spooked.  And lastly on a hunt I saw a coyote while hunting on the ground, I didn't stay to see if there were more.  But I'll give you a few tips and try to follow my own advice here:

• Try calling.  Doe grunts may work, and fawn bleats might still do the trick.  
• Have a strategy.  Know when, where, and how your going to hunt a particular area.  Let someone know where you are, just for safety.  
• Hunt food sources.  Acorns are now starting to fall, so head over to some oaks.  Food plots may also be productive.  
• Any hunt you can walk away from is a good hunt, so stay safe.

Have a good weekend!

Don't Forget the Does

A lot of the hunting world today revolves around bucks.  You'll see on websites "How to get a bruiser in the early season" or "Where to catch the big boys" and so on.  And many lose sight of the does.  And actually, they have a lot to do with genetics and herd health.  Not only that, but they offer more opportunities to shoot and give kids an opportunity for a deer.  And, you hunt does to find bucks in the rut.  But here we go...

• Does give half of the genetics to the fawns.  So they give just as much genetics as bucks.  An unhealthy or sickly doe will not give great genetics even if a great buck breeds her.  
• Not only that, but the more does there are, there is less rut activity.  If there are more does, then it will be harder to pinpoint where a buck will be if there are a lot of places does could be.  If there are less does, then bucks will have to search out for them more, leading to more buck activity.  
• The more does there are, the higher the population of deer.  You may ask, "Isn't that good?"  Yes and no.  More population means more deer which mean more hunting opportunities.  No because if the amount of food a deer population eats exceeds the amount of forage a piece of land produces, then the herd suffers.  Less food means less nutrition.  Less nutrition leads to smaller deer and unhealthier deer and smaller racks and fawns. 

Yes, I did read about some of this, but all you need is a little logic to get to those conclusions (I mean no disrespect to anyone).

Till next time!

Pinpoint Hunting Spots

In prep for hunting season, make sure you know where to hunt on the property (or properties).  Many hunters look at a good looking spot, hoping deer are in the area.  Sometimes they get lucky, other times, not quite so much.  I don't want anyone to be like that.  So, here is a list of places that would be good spots:

• Look for trails leading from bedding to feeding areas.  Trails leading to oak trees would be dynamite spots when the acorns fall.
• Funnels.  Look for places that narrow deer movement to a small area.  An example would be a thin strip of woods in bordered by fields on both sides.  Or, there might be a field on one side and a river on the other, with a little bit of woods in between.  
• In public land, look for places other hunters don't go!  Many hunters on public land (or even private) may not go that far from their trucks to their hunting spots.  Go twice as far as they do.  Also look for places that hunters look over.  Those places will probably hold deer since they are unpressured in that area.

In all, look for food sources and unpressured areas.  Does will go there, and bucks will follow.

Get your license and hang up stands!  It's just around the corner!  'Till next time!    

Recent Camera pics...and one of the cutest so far

I've put the camera back out.  I've gotten a good bit of pictures too, mostly at night, since it's close to a driveway.  But I'll share some of the day pictures:

The doe in the above picture is the mother of the fawn.

 As I was scrolling through pictures this morning, not expecting anything but does (which I got, except the fawn!). I was about to bounce off my seat because that's the first picture I've gotten of a fawn with his/her mother (most of her :).  It's also one of the few pictures of fawns I've gotten and the best one.  Just want to see the bucks now!

Get ready!  It's only a few weeks away!  But keep things in focus, God, school, work, and family come first! Till next time!