Whitetail Wizard

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Fooling A Snorting Doe

It happens at least once every fall. A doe, and possibly one that has been shot at with a bow or been close to buck that was shot with an arrow, will start snorting for no apparent reason.

The doe is uncomfortable for whatever reason, and she begins blowing and snorting. If allowed to carry on forever, it could chase all the other deer from the area.

There are a number of things that hunters can do. Nothing works all the time, but any of these little tricks can satisfy her curiosity. Once satisfied that all is well in her little corner of the world, she may move off or stick around but quit snorting and blowing.

One thing to try is a very soft buck grunt. Keep the tone soft, and blow it once or twice, and if she keeps snorting blow it a bit louder. It doesn’t hurt to bang two antlers together once or twice to give the idea that what she thinks she has seen or heard is nothing more than one or two bucks getting ready for the run. Of course, don’t bang antlers if she is in a position to spot your movements.

Many turkey hunters have learned that it’s sometimes necessary to fool the hen, and if the hen comes to investigate, a spring gobbler won’t be far behind. Many deer calls can be adjusted to give a doe or fawn bleat, and that is my second choice. It won’t alarm an incoming buck, and it may fool the doe.

The fawn bleat alone can be an awesome call. Give one or two fawn bleats, and a snorting doe may charge in to determine the problem. A buck standing nearby but out of sight, having seen the doe move, may move in the same direction to check things out. Deer can be very curious, and at other times, are very cautious.

A deer that looks up in the trees may have seen a slight movement. If she continues to snort, try imitating the little pig-like grunting sound of a porcupine. I can make the sound but can’t describe it to someone else. Anyone who has ever been close to a undisturbed porcupine can try to imitate the sound the quill-pig makes as it moves around.

The sound is almost continuous, and scraping the bark slightly (if it can be done without being seen by the doe) will add to the realism. Does often will accept a porcupine on the ground or in the tree if they hear the noise and see and hear bark falling to the ground.

The same holds true for ruffed grouse. It’s not uncommon to see grouse moving about in the bracken ferns just before sundown, and they too make a soft little cooing sound that is easily duplicated. It doesn’t need to be exact but it does need to be soft.

I’ve had ruffed grouse fly up into the tree I’m sitting in, and prepare to roost there for the night. If they make that cooing little sound while in the tree, so much the better. However, if you move or try to come to full draw, the grouse will see the movement and flush loudly from the tree and that will blow most chances for a shot.

I’ve seen this work in just the opposite fashion. A buck will move into the area, startle the ruffed grouse, and it will explode loudly from cover, startling the deer. If the grouse lands in your tree, sit still and don’t move.

If the bird flies 30 feet and lands in a different tree or on the ground, be ready for a shot because the buck will almost always follow the noisy flight of the grouse. Wait until it turns its head to follow the flight, and when the head is turned, ease back, aim and shoot.

As I said, nothing works every time with snorting does. I know people who can call turkeys with their voice, and sometimes the soft contented clucking of a hen turkey will put a snorting doe at ease.

Bow hunters need every trick they can master to fool deer. A snorting doe can be bad news, but occasionally it’s possible for a hunter to turn this into an asset by giving the doe a sound she is accustomed to hearing. Figure out what she wants to hear, as so often holds true when calling turkey, and there is a good chance of fooling her.

Fool the doe, and it’s no problem fooling a buck.—The Whitetail Wizard

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Whitetail Deer Travel Trends

I noticed a trend in deer travel on my land long before it was high-fenced. The deer traveled in two distinct directions, regardless of wind direction.

The animals moved from west to east in the evening, and from east to west in the morning. Back in those days, no one hunted the front woods on November 15, the opening of our firearm deer season.

Hunters set in stands on the east side of the second woods to the west on opening day, and it wasn’t unusual to see 100 to 200 deer move through the front woods and across the big field. Some days they traveled with the wind on the tail, into a crosswind from the north or south, or even into the west wind.

Wind direction seemed to made little difference. The deer headed east in the evening and west in the morning. All the stuff about deer always traveling into the wind didn’t count for much back in those days.

If the easterly evening travel was on a west wind, the deer wouldn’t have any advantage. The opposite was also true in the morning.

And, guess what? The fence has been up for many years, and quite a bit of the deer travel inside the enclosure is still east in the evening and west in the morning. The one thing I’ve learned is wind directions aren’t always as important as some outdoor writers believe.

Deer do follow trends on my land, and will follow a somewhat regimented morning and evening travel route, but if a deer is shot and other deer see human activity, those travel plans are subject to change on little or no notice.

Often, especially with a bow, when a deer is shot, it runs off 50 to 100 yards before falling. Other nearby deer may look to see why it is running away, and then go back to feeding or they run as well.

All of that changes if a doe detects danger by spotting movement, hearing any type of noise or if the hunter tries to climb down too soon after shooting. It makes far more sense to stay seated, and wait for all of the deer to move off before going after the fallen deer.

This is especially true during the cooler weather of the rut. A deer shot in early October, when the weather can still be very warm, places a heavy demand on the hunter to field dress the deer as soon as possible to start the cooling process.

Travel patterns also change as crops are harvested. We try to keep deer numbers at a relatively stable number but if too many animals are taken from one location, we’ll see a minor or major shift in how the deer travel.

These trends are based somewhat on food supply. We don’t have oak trees and acorns on my land, but in areas where mast crops are heavy, it’s much easier to see travel patterns develop as the acorns crop diminishes. A stand of oaks are eaten quite regularly as the animals advance from the first ripe acorns to the last ripe ones. There is almost a visible line in the woods where deer move to feed on late-dropping nuts.

Deer change their travel plans as they start entering standing cornfields in cold weather. A popular stand years ago was a hay-bale set in the middle of a cornfield. The hunters always entered and left along the same path, and the deer didn’t pay much attention. As the end of shooting time approached, the deer would be filtering past the blind in steady fashion. Sometimes they would even stop to snatch a few mouthfuls of second-cutting alfalfa, and several hunters shot bucks while the animal ate their blind.

Once December arrives, and deer are moving through cold weather and often snow, the trend is for deer to lay up during the day fairly close to the food source. October bucks may travel a mile or so to reach a food site, but travel is reduced once cold and snow sets in.

Watching these travel patterns change according to the food supply, hunting pressure, human foot traffic or weather conditions, is one part of the bow hunt that many hunters seem to tune out. They may wonder why deer moved here last week, and are moving somewhere else the following week, but that is about as far as it goes.

Check it out, and you’ll often find some reason for such movement changes. Learn those reasons, and plan for them, and you’ll climb one rung higher up the deer-hunting success ladder.—The Whitetail Wizard

Thursday, July 17, 2008

Gain Confidence & Shoot More Deer

On occasion, I have sold a person a new C.P. Oneida Eagle bow and then invited them to hunt and take a whitetail doe. Some have accepted the offer and others have refused.

Those that have accepted had already taken my course in drawing, aiming and shooting a bow. It’s incredible, but most of them end up shooting a doe the first night with their new bow from a strange stand.

It’s not nearly as difficult as some people would make it out to be. The first thing I do is get people shooting accurately, and praise them on their form, how they pay attention to my directions, and comment on how they have absorbed the lessons.

Confidence is the key ingredient when hunting whitetails and when shooting a deer. The hunter must execute all aspects of the shooting process with confidence and skill. Oddly enough, confidence is the greatest skill builder there is.

Each person is taught the proven methods that work, especially when using a red-dot sight. They are told that they must use the same anchor point, time after time. Shifting one’s anchor point a fraction of an inch can send an arrow somewhere we don’t want it to go.

Correcting old bad habits is difficult. Of course, they listen to me as I teach them to shoot their new bow, but when I’m not around, they tend to relax their training and go back to shooting the old way. Their old way, I demonstrate to them, is the wrong way to shoot.

Hunters with a new bow must show a commitment to learning. My method isn’t difficult to absorb, and can easily be learned in five or 10 minutes. There is no hocus-pocus involved; it deals strictly with a constant anchor point, holding their head up straight, keeping both eyes open while aiming with the red-dot sight, and making a smooth release.

I tell them that a red-dot sight will help them correct any flaws in their shooting form. If they cant their bow, they won’t be able to see the sight. In fact, if they drop their head or cock it sideways, they won’t be able to see through the red-dot scope. If they see only a portion of the red dot, it means they must correct the error, whatever it may be.

Many bow hunters squeeze their bow like they are trying to choke it to death. A too-tight grip can torque the bow in one direction or another, and twist the red-dot sight just enough so it is impossible to shoot with it. The bow should rest gently between thumb and forefinger, and with just enough forefinger pressure to hold it in position. A clenched-fist grip isn’t required.

The form should always be the same. Feet spread apart at shoulder width, head up and both eyes fixed on the target. Come to full draw, and if your head is properly positioned and your anchor point is firm, you will be looking straight through the red-dot sight at the target.

Many hunters close their other eye, and this robs them of proper vision. Having both eyes open enables you to see the target with both eyes, helps prevent torquing or canting the bow, and provides a better chance of seeing where the arrow hits.

Too many hunters have told me, after they’ve wounded a deer, that they hit it in the heart or lungs. Often, after a long trailing job, we find their deer with an arrow in the guts or the rump. Having both eyes open when a shot is taken eliminates the guess work.

One other thing I coach bow hunters to do is follow through. Continue holding the bow in place, and don’t lower it until the arrow disappears behind the animals front shoulder. Then, when you say it was hit in the heart and lungs, it is more than guess work and wishful thinking.

Shooting a bow isn’t difficult. Shooting a deer isn’t hard. If you don’t believe me, stop by my Buck Pole Archery Shop a half-mile north of the Marion blinker light on highway M-66, and let me prove it to you.—The Whitetail Wizard

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Practice Tree Stand Shots Now

I wonder how many people really pay attention when they watch television shows as our host shoots a buck from a tree. Many of those shots are taken from 25 or 30 feet in the air, and some appear to be even higher up the tree.

A deer traveling very close to the tree will offer a very small target. Watch most of these shows, and it appears that some television hosts know little about shooting down at deer.

I finally watched a show a few nights ago, and the host knew what he was doing. He came to full draw, bent from the waist, and shot a bear feeding at a bait site.

Study some television shows, and the shot is taken in broad daylight, but it’s long after dark when the deer is found. Brush or grass is piled up near the entrance wound, and they prattle on about the buck only went about 80 yards.

If that is so, why did it apparently take a few hours to find the animal? I often wonder about such things.

It may sound as if I’m against television hunting shows. I’m only against them when they do one thing, and it’s shown on the screen, and the next thing we know hours have passed while they look for a buck killed with a “great” shot.

Shooting down from an elevated position is a great way to miss or make a bad hit, and the higher up in a tree, the easier it is to make a bad hit or miss completely. The higher the hunter, the more acute the angle. Most such shots sail harmlessly over the deer as they shoot high.

The hunter who shoots with a steep downward angle and bends only from the shoulders will probably make a bad hit or a complete miss. Often the hunter is shooting at something that appears to be two inches wide.

The hunter who concentrates on a firm anchor point, maintains that anchor point while bending from the waist, will probably kill the deer. Whenever the anchor point changes while shooting at a steep downward angle, the odds of missing are high.

This is a shot that requires considerable practice. It comes naturally to some bow hunters but seems uncomfortable or awkward to others. It’s easier to stand upright, bend a bit at the shoulder, and such shots usually go high.

Is there a better way of shooting deer? Not really, especially if the hunter is high up in a tree? Shooting that same buck from ground level would be much easier, but many hunters do not have that option.

Take turns working with a fellow hunter. Have one person in the tree stand, and another on the ground to move the target and retrieve the arrows, and practice often to make certain the shot is perfect every time.

Many hunters shoot while sitting down, and this means clearing their legs out of the way for a smooth draw and an easy release. Sitting down and drawing on a deer well below you eliminates some of the exaggerated angle from which a bow hunter must shoot.

There is another reason why some hunters miss these steep downward shots. They are standing, leaning out against the tension of a full body harness, and whether they will admit it or not, there is a fear of falling.

We’ve all seen those tree stand ads where a hunter leans out, and they are not perfectly balanced. The body will always attempt to correct the balance when such shots are taken, and a tiny twitch when the arrow is released is enough to throw the shot high or wide… or both.

If you hunt from up high (over 15 feet off the ground) it pays to practice this downward shot. It is not an easy position to shoot from, and the closer the deer is to the tree, the steeper the angle is. One of my hunters made a straight-down shot on a buck last year, and the Carbon Express arrow went through the spine, exited through the sternum, and the deer died under his tree.

I repeat: these shots are rarely taken, and shooting down at a steep angle can cause the arrow to shoot high if your anchor point shifts. Now is the time to practice such shots. Don’t wait until October to practice on live deer.—The Whitetail Wizard

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Remembering Some Old Stands

Today seemed to be one of reflection. My topic on this windy day concerns some tree stands and ground blinds from many years ago.

It is rather amazing how a stand will be productive for several years, and then fall into disfavor. It’s not so much the blind or stand wouldn’t still produce a nice whitetail buck, but for whatever the reason, I don’t hunt there anymore.

Sometimes a stand dies a sudden death because crops are planted elsewhere, or because another nearby stand turns hot. In some cases it is because the stand is no longer just right for the prevailing wind direction, is uncomfortable to sit in, or for many other reasons.

Thirty years ago I had a crooked tree that was so uncomfortable to sit in that a person needed a Posturpedic mattress, chiropractic adjustment and time in bed to recover. The tree produced plenty of bucks over the years but anyone who hunted there needed a new mattress, and that set became known as the Posturpedic tree.

Another old favorite tipped over years ago. It was a dead popple tree near a fence crossing, and it was in steady demand by me and some of my friends. Hunters could sit there, watch deer walk toward the fence hole, step through and offer a clear shot.

I hunted it one night, heard a creak deep in the dead tree, and didn’t move around much after that. I climbed down, and walked away, looking back at what once was a popular stand. It fell down the next day, and no other nearby tree could offer such an advantage. When it went down, a long-standing tradition went down with it.

The old Execution Knob was a pit blind on a hill. It offered a great view of the area, and it was made for firearm hunting only. I can’t remember how many bucks were taken from that stand. but if I had a Ben Franklin ($100 bill) for each one, it would go a long ways toward paying my feed bill and property taxes this year.

The Knob grew into disfavor. Why? Who knows, but I quit hunting it once we were able to hunt from elevated stands with a firearm. A new bow coop now sits on Execution Knob, and it produced a really big whitetail buck for me this past season.

The Beaverpond Corner coop was another favorite. There are two elevated coops, one on the south and one on the north side of the beaver pond, but this corner coop set on the ground alongside the main north-south road.

If offered clear shots for 200 or more yards to the north and south, and people who sat there during the firearm season always shot bucks that the hunters in the other two nearby coops never saw. It too fell into disfavor, and was moved somewhere else.

There used to be an old foundation back in a field, and it was crumbling and falling into the basement. One day I had a bright idea, and pushed the rest of the cement into the basement with a dozer, filled it with dirt, packed it down, put more dirt on top, and built a 15X30-foot building filled with windows on all sides.

It sits outside of my enclosure, and offers shots in four directions. The only bad thing is that hunting in the old foundation was like hunting from a gigantic pit blind. Every day an ermine would come out for a visit, stare at the hunter, and go on about his business of killing and eating. The ermine disappeared when the foundation was filled in.

Another stand that died a quick death stood 15 feet up an old willow tree. A person could only hunt from it on a calm day because it swayed in any kind of wind. It got hit by lightning, and lost most of its branches. The tree is still there, but it hasn’t been used as a stand in many years.

There are many other ground blinds and tree stands that have disappeared, but whenever I pass one of the better ones that is no longer being used, a bit of nostalgia settles over me.

Nothing lasts forever, and that can certainly be said for ground blinds and tree stands. The deer change their patterns, move elsewhere on the ranch, and they stop getting used, and new and better stands take their place.

But, on occasion, I like to remember those blinds and stands that have gone before. All were good at one time, and were then replaced. It like so many things in life. They get used until they are used up, and are soon discarded.

It’s fun, however, to remember way back when ...—The Whitetail Wizard

Sunday, July 13, 2008

What About Moon Phases & Solunar Tables?

Millions of deer hunters are found across this great nation, and we all seem to have different philosophies on hunting. We seldom agree on wildly varying topics.

Some hunters refuse to hunt various wind directions. Anything from the east is bad. For years, October featured south and southwest winds and then west and northwest, and by December we were hunting northwest, north and northeasterly winds.

My philosophy is that a deer hunter won’t get much hunting in if they sit out every day with a bad wind. I hunt but switch from an open tree stand to an elevated and enclosed coop on such days. A few stands are set up primarily for an east wind, and they are in demand when the wind goes sour.

Many are the deer hunters who believe they should only hunt during the dark of the moon. Others only hunt the week before the full moon, and others never hunt during a full moon.

There are those who believe in hunting around the Harvest Moon, the Hunters Moon, the Rutting Moon, and some who will only hunt just before the second full moon after the autumnal equinox. The nice thing about living in a free society is each of us can indulge such pleasures.

I personally don’t care which day of the week it may be, which way the wind blows, what the moon phase happens to be, or anything else. I find it difficult to kill deer while sitting in the house rather than hunting.

There are others who place great emphasis on hunting the rut. Little do they know that the 10 days before the full rut begins, deer go through the chasing stage or the pre-rut. It is a wonderful time to be hunting, regardless of the moon phase or wind direction.

Many feel the rut begins Oct. 20-25, and that is the beginning of the chasing stage, and it will last for about 10 days before the full rut begins. It’s possible to find many people who would disagree on when the rut actually begins.

The peak of the rut near my ranch will occur on or about Nov. 3-4, and it is winding down before the Nov. 15 firearm season kicks off.

There are variations, depending on where you hunt. Weather conditions and people pressure can alter these dates a bit.

Some hunters are addicted to the Solunar Tables. These tables, first invented by John Alden Knight many years ago, are based on the sun and moon and their effect on tides and the earth. They contend there are normally two minor and two major periods each day when fish bite, and when wild game move about.

Some sportsmen hunt according to the Solunar Tables and kill deer, and I know other folks who hunt whenever they can, and they also have good hunting success while hunting outside of these major and minor periods.

I’ve hunted many years with great success. Good hunting habits bring wonderful hunting success, and simply being afield whenever possible is a good reason for being more successful.

I forget about all this other business, and go on doing what works best for me. That means that I hunt whenever possible, and try to hunt every day of the season.

Take the normal precautions with the wind, stay downwind of the deer, and it becomes fairly easy to build

Wednesday, July 09, 2008

Choosing East Wind Stands to be ready for Opening Day

It’s human nature. Many hunters fall in love with their opening-day ground blind or tree stand because we’ve thought about it for months on end.

Does this mean this so-called hotspot will be hot on opening day? Perhaps it will and maybe it won’t. It all depends on wind and weather conditions, and sadly many people don’t play the wind properly.

One major problem hunters face is setting all of their stands for the prevailing wind direction. During Michigan’s bow and firearm deer seasons, the prevailing direction is south and southwest in October, west to northwest in November and northwest and north in December.

So here is this hotspot stand set up for opening day. It has the stand downwind for a south or southwest breeze. Good thinking! Come Oct. 1, Joe Hunter has been thinking about it for weeks and plans to sit in the stand and shoot a deer that he has patterned.

However, if you’ve followed wind patterns the past several years as I have, you’ll remember that nearly half of our October days featured an east or southeast wind. An east wind, unless stands are specifically placed for such wind currents, makes other stand locations nearly impossible to hunt without being detected by approaching deer.

It’s easy to advocate having stands in key hunting locations for an east wind, but it’s sometimes quite difficult to find good spots where it will work.

Most bow hunters, like me, prefer hunting out of a tree. One way to get around this problem is to hunt from an elevated coop. Keep the windows closed until it’s time to take a shot. It’s certainly not like being out in the breeze, and feeling the wind on your nose or cheek, but it allows a hunter to effectively hunt when bad winds blow.

A choice can be made. Hunt from an enclosed coop or don’t hunt. To hunt out in the open when the wind is wrong simply courts trouble.
The best way is to look at how deer travel, especially on an east wind, and locate that one key spot where whitetails filter through. Try to be downwind of the whitetail traffic, and don’t move.

Fishermen have long known that angling success often takes a nose dive on an east wind, and deer hunters - especially bow hunters - know the same holds true for them when hunting on an east wind.

I’ve long known that an open tree stand may cause your scent to drift to the deer when the wind huffs from the east. An enclosed and elevated wooden blind with shooting windows can save the day.

One thing is certain. The hunter who deliberately puts himself upwind of deer on an east wind will probably ruin that hunting spot for the rest of the season unless he can prevent deer from smelling him. A simple V-shaped wooden structure, and forced down between two limbs with just enough room to shoot, gives the hunter something to stand on. It can work if a box-type blind is not available.

Just try to stay downwind or at least crosswind whenever possible. Hunting on an east requires some checking around, some good luck, and the ability to pick the ideal tree. It’s not easy, but good thinking and proper placement, can make the hunt work.

If an east wind blows on the opener, and your stand is not placed properly for that wind, it’s better to sit out the day than to risk spooking all the deer from that location. Once deer are spooked from your hotspot stand, the odds are that they either won’t roam past that site or will approach it with a great deal of caution.

So try to be a savvy hunter. Play the wind like a fine violin, and never discount the ability of a whitetail deer to catch your scent. - The Whitetail Wizard

Tuesday, July 08, 2008

Hunting Means More Than Killing

It’s become something of a habit for me. Once the fall hunting season ends, there’s a good chance that once a day I’ll think back to another hunt from another year where a big buck was taken or the opportunity was lost for one reason or another.

It’s this ability to recall past hunts, successful or not, that allow us to wallow through nine months of not hunting deer with a bow. It’s rather easy to look at one of the big bucks on my wall, relax, kick back, and dredge up a fond memory or two to help me through the day.

There was a big buck running around my hunting area several years ago, and he was as regular as a dish of prunes. The problem was he was back in thick cover, and would eventually leave it. Each time he stepped out, he was in a slightly different location than before.

All too often he was just a bit too far away for a clean shot, and shooting that 10-pointer wouldn’t have been easy. My decision to wait until he exited the tag alders within 20 yards was an easy one to make because I couldn’t and wouldn’t take a bad shot.

Day after day I’d see him. Sometimes he was close but 10 feet back in the tags, and the next day he would be 65 yards away. I believe he bedded in those alders, and moved around a bit each day. Deer don’t always bed down in the same location, and this guy championed the art of bedding and exiting tags in a different spot from day to day..

This buck was a tempting rascal but I’d hunt other blinds to avoid becoming patterned at this nearby stand. I was always downwind of him, but it was always just before shooting time ended when he stepped out. I felt he occasionally would make his move a little earlier, and it was a matter of being there when he did. Hopefully, his move would let him step out, and take several steps that may put him within range.

Once I saw his high and wide rack, all glistening white, coming through the tag alders. If he stayed his course, he would come out only 18 yards away and in a perfect location for a good shot.

His head swiveled back and forth as he tested the wind, studied the nearby terrain that day, and his ears were cocking forward and to each side in hopes of getting an early warning of possible danger. He was 4 1/2 years old, and had had many opportunities to practice his moves before coming out to feed.

He kept coming at a very slow pace. There was no hurry-up in this guy. Each move was a well managed lesson in survival. He’d take a step, stop, stand motionless for a minute or two, and then take another cautious step or two.

The buck would hold his head high, lower it to change the angle of his gaze, and move again. He had all the patience of a stalking cat, and moved as if he were ready to bolt at any second. Bolting wasn’t what I wanted him to do, but sometimes these things happen.

Suddenly he stopped, and gazed hard at something nearby. A big mature doe had walked out of the brush on the other side of my stand, and was standing there, watching the buck. Live decoys like this doe that had appeared out of nowhere can be a good thing. As long as she doesn’t spook, he may come closer.

The buck was upwind of me and the doe, and she wasn’t going to walk over and introduce herself, so the only course of action was for the buck to move toward her. He made a slow approach, and my arrow was nocked on the bow string, and my Gator Jaw release was attached.

She turned as if to leave, and the buck moved quickly to intercept her. The buck popped out of the tags like a jack-in-the-box, and after many sightings, there he was 20 yards away.

I let him move slightly, and offer a quartering-away shot. My red-dot sight was nestled low behind his front shoulder, and as that leg moved forward for another step, I laid my finger on the release trigger.

The buck moved right at that instant, turning away, and such low percentage shots seldom produce. I waited for him to turn and offer a quartering-away shot, but the doe walked over to him and they walked away like two old lovers. It had been a close call, but the buck had won another round.

There is a great deal of satisfaction in hunting one specific buck, and having everything eventually work out or fall apart because of a doe’s action. I’ve hunted numerous bucks where great planning just didn’t work, and that is why they call this hunting, not killing.

If we were to succeed every time we hunted, bow hunting would soon cease to hold any appeal. The challenge of hunting one buck to the exclusion of all others is what works for me.

Sunday, July 06, 2008

Dreaming Ahead To Bow Season

Opening days, and last days, are a continuing part of the cycle that is bow hunting. We no more than end the 2007 hunting season, and are now looking forward to the Oct. 1 opener nearly three months away.

There never seems to be enough time to get everything done that we need to do before the next season opens. This past year was spent building or refurbishing new hunting coops.

These new coops are almost completely air-tight until a shooting window is opened. The stands have a solid floor underfoot, and can be a bit noisy but I’m hoping to carpet the floors and walls to muffle any possible sound.

I suspect we will build two or three more coops, and that will make a big difference because it will enable me to put stands in a few places where they are needed but where no stands currently exist. Each year we find two or three key locations where deer move but where there are no elevated or ground blinds available.

We’ve got to solve another issue. The north end of my property produced very few deer this past season. It’s almost as if the animals moved away from that end. At this point, I can see no conceivable reason why there weren’t as many deer there, but hunting success at that end was very low this year.

I suspect many of the deer moved south and west because it seemed as if there were more deer in that area than before. Further studies need to be done to determine how many animals are living in the northern part of the ranch.

Another issue that must be addressed is placing a drain tile along a new road that we constructed last year. By the time we wanted to place a drain tile for the creek to flow through, heavy rains had come, and the ground became too soft to work on.

Once everything freezes solid, we may go in, insert the tile, and try to fix the road. This trail is needed to connect two major hunting areas, and perhaps during the winter or the summer may be the time to finish this job. Everything depends on the weather, and available time, but in this case I’ll have to make the time to complete it long before the season opener.

Several other existing blinds will require some work, and hopefully we’ll be able to get this job done. New coops can be placed anytime before the season opens, and they are much nicer than some of the original ground blinds.

Fixing other ranch roads is always necessary, and it is a costly project. Adding gravel to these roads helps keep them from developing major ruts, but when the rain is as extensive as it was this past year, it is doubtful whether adding more gravel will help. The ground holds too much water, and it doesn’t drain well. The result is rutted and sometimes impassable roads except on a four-wheeler.

There is always plenty of work to be done on a deer ranch. Fences must be mended if a tree comes down across it in a wind storm. More than one ranch has lost most of its animals if the fences aren’t mended promptly.

Maintaining a deer ranch means much more than hunting deer, managing doe levels, and providing food to deer. There is a great deal of hard work required to make stands safe, and locating them in the right locations for a shot. In fact, I keep a list of things to do in my head, and rarely are there free days when nothing must be done.

It may be hard work, but for me, it fulfills a lifetime dream of raising my own deer, producing large bucks, and satisfying those who wish to hunt here. It may be hard work, but it is fun.—The Whitetail Wizard

Tuesday, July 01, 2008

Mapping Out Hunting Land

There is nothing better than putting down boot leather when it comes time to learn a new hunting area, and that is what most people do. A few take this “learning-the-land” proposition two steps further.

The use of topographical maps is one key element of learning new land, and aerial photographs is still another. Combine these three strategies, and a hunter will have a recipe for possible success.

Nothing is 100 percent when it comes time to hunt whitetail deer, but having a firm grip on the terrain is very important. There is a quarter-mile field that runs mostly north and south on my land, and through this open field are a series of small rolling hills and dips in the land. Deer have learned to use those tiny valleys and tiny hills to sneak through the open terrain.

Walking such an area is one way to learn how deer travel, and doing it with some snow on the ground is even better. There are places where bucks can enter the field on the west side, and by moving left and right, they can stay down in the dips and out of site of most hunters.

What I’ve done is build hunting coops and they are strategically placed so that most of these travel routes can be covered. Deer often move east in the evening and west in the morning, and hunters can place themselves in key positions to waylay the animals as they pass.

However, when hunting strange land that you’ve never hunted before, topo maps and aerial photographs, when combined with walking the terrain will enable hunters to determine good spots to hunt.

Funnels are an absolute deadly spot to hunt. A funnel is created by a narrowing of heavy cover. It can be a brushy fence row that connects a wood lot and swamp, two wood lots, a wood lot and a pine plantation, and other such thick and narrow places where deer movements are funneled through. They are natural travel corridors to hunt.

The bases of hills are another hotspot. Often the thicker cover is at the lower elevations, and if there are three hills, only one will be vitally important to hunters. Deer often choose the one that offers the easiest access and exit routes to heavy cover, and they will ignore other nearby hills.

Field corners that border on swampy or wooded areas are great, Again, only one field corner is most likely to produce deer, and again, it is usually the thickest corner that still provides animals with a good view of the field.

Saddles or breaks in flat or low-lying area or ridges that allow easy access to feeding fields are good. Such locations may have one good trail that leads from higher ground, down through the saddle, and through swampy or wooded areas that border the crop lands.

Dry or wet creek or river bottoms are especially good because there is a good deal of cover, the possibility of mast crops such as acorns and beech nuts, most bottom land areas are thick with berry bushes and other cover.

Walking this land is fine, but putting aerial photos and topo maps together enable hunters to obtain a birds-eye view, and the topo maps will show contour changes. Most topo maps have contour lines and special colors or symbols that indicate hills, wooded areas, swamps, creek or river beds and much more.

Spot the funnels, saddles and other topographical features, find their relationship to the aerial maps, and plot the best method of moving into these areas to hunt. Find such key locations, determine the bedding and feeding areas, and then begin scouting for active deer sign.

Locate the food source, and then find the bedding area, and the trails deer use will be relatively simple to find. Determine the prevailing wind direction. and start looking for good trees for a stand.

Finding hotspots in new areas isn’t terribly difficult but it requires some scouting time. Most of all, carry a compass or GPS, and know how to use them. Finding such out-of-the-way areas, where other people seldom hunt, and you’ll have your own little gold mine for deer.—The Whitetail Wizard

Monday, June 30, 2008

The Art Of Treestand Placement

There are those who walk through the woods, look at the trees, and decide here is a great spot for a tree stand. Sometimes they are right, but more often they are dead wrong.

The chosen tree may be good for the hunter, but it may be all wrong for stand location. It may offer little or no chance for a sportsman to get a clean shot at a buck.

A good tree stand, whether it is manmade in a factory or created by the hunter, must meet several criteria. It must be somewhere downwind and within 20 yards of where two or more active deer trails connect. It must offer some concealment from approaching deer that are out of sight of the hunter.

A tree that stand will be placed in must have an open spot where a stand can be easily placed without having to cut big limbs out of the way. It also should offer hunters at least one clear shooting lane without having to trim away limbs. A fifth reason, and this is a personal thing, is I prefer that deer approach me from behind and on my left side.

The tree and other limbs or pine boughs should cover most of my body silhouette. A cedar or pine tree in the midst of some ash, maple or oak trees is good. You’ll hear the deer approach from behind through the leaves, and once they pass the stand, they will offer a quartering-away shot.

How high is just right? I like most of my stands between 15 and 20 feet high. If you have the right set of circumstances, there may only be one open area for a shot, and it’s up to you to know where the deer travel before establishing the tree stand position.

Some hunters act like they are married to a tree stand, but a wise hunter will have three or four stands to cover various wind directions. Get one step ahead of other hunters, and have a stand set up for an east wind. You’ll be able to hunt when others cannot.

Pick your sites wisely, and only after watching deer move through an area. You must know the stand location, and how deer utilize it, before the stand is in place. Steer clear of stands along the open edges of fields. Granted, you’ll see more deer this way but may have fewer shots. The deer often move out into a field and be too far away for an accurate shot.

Pick spots 100 to 200 yards from an active feeding field, and find where two or more trails merge. Check around, and find a good bushy tree that is downwind, but within easy bow distance. Watch deer travel through the area for several days, and learn which side of the tree the deer will pass, and you’ll have narrowed down the search.

I prefer either a permanent stand or a ladder stand. These two, if properly constructed, are very safe. I wouldn’t use a climbing stand at my age, and I want to feel safe and secure in a stand. It has to be anchored securely to the tree, and accessing the stand must be easy.

The stand must offer good concealment. I dislike open hardwood trees that lose cover as the leaves fall. The only other alternative is to climb higher, and my preference is to shop around until you find the right area with the perfect tree in the perfect location. Add a stand, and make certain it is securely attached, and stay out of it until the season opens or whenever the wind is perfect.

Too many hunters play with fire when choosing stands. A perfect stand must be perfectly placed to work. A poorly positioned stand in the wrong area will ruin more deer hunts than anything else.

Pre-season scouting is the key to choosing tree stand sites wisely. Watch key areas, see where deer naturally travel, and don’t forget about having two or three entrance and exit routes to prevent being patterned by deer. Don’t crowd too close to bedding areas, and don’t get too close to the edges of feeding areas.

Deer are most comfortable at 100 to 200 yards from the food site. This often offers much thicker cover, and hunters must spend enough time watching an area to know precisely how the deer travel through it.

Put time into pre-season scouting, narrow your stand placement area down to the best possible location, place the stand well so deer will come from behind you without being downwind, and choose different ways into and out of the area without having to cross deer trails. Get all of it right, and you’ll be hunting in a hotspot.—The Whitetail Wizard

Saturday, June 28, 2008

What Do Deer See?

The vision of a whitetail deer is truly impressive. It’s uncanny how they can pick a bow hunter out of a bushy tree or a ground blind.

Hunters often question this ability. They claim their hot new camo clothing eliminates being spotted. They claim their scent-killing clothing and sprays will defeat a whitetails nose test.

In many cases they are wrong. The clothing and the sprays can help, as can deer scents, but the deer can spot a hunter. They can sniff out a hunter, and accomplished sportsmen know that. They know what will work and what will not.

Nothing is absolute unless you stay indoors and never venture outside. What hunters need to realize is they must be smarter than the deer. They must use their brain to figure out how to avoid detection.

Years ago I often sat in tree stands and watched the deer and their interaction with humans. Many sportsmen think if they can’t see the deer, the deer can’t see them.

Whitetails are masters at standing in heavy cover, and studying the terrain in front of them before they commit to a move. Some deer have stood without any visible movement for 30-45 without moving any part of their body except their eyes.

Follow this example. One day I had a man hunting, and he talked a good story about being able to sit still. I sat in another stand 200 yards away with binoculars, and watched him. I had an advantage because I knew where the deer would come from at his location.

Half of my time was spent watching him and half was spent watching the area where the deer would come from. He couldn’t see the routes the deer used to approach his stand as well as I could, and the deer were much closer to him than to me.

This gent was spotted time and again. Many hunters believe that when a deer spots a hunter, it will snort and run off. Sure, that happens often enough but the animals often will remain silent and take a wide stroll around the unsuspecting hunter. The hunter figures if all remains silent the deer never spotted them, and that is an inaccurate assumption.

I watched deer stand 200 yard away in thick cover, and they would pick up the hunter quickly. A slight movement, a slap at a buzzing mosquito, some wayward drifting scent—anything can spook a deer. Once scared, a buck or doe can steal away through heavy cover without being seen.

It has become a mantra for me. There are only so many ways to tell a hunter how to sit still. They jerk, twitch, try to look behind them, and they feel the deer can’t spot them if they can’t spot the animals.

Folks, that assumption is dead wrong. Take a long look at your tree stand or ground blind. Are there an adequate mix of light areas and dark shadows?

Have you mastered the art of having cover behind you that will break up the human silhouette? Have you learned to memorize the light areas at various times of day? Move at the wrong time, and suddenly blot out an area that normally contains a brighter zone, and deer will spot that movement.

Deer are not stupid. They depend on their instincts, and if they see something out of place, something that wasn’t there the day before, they don’t consciously suspect that area of danger but on an instinctive level, they seem to know that something is different or out of place.

If a bow hunter sits in a tree, and blocks out a bright spot but moves and covers it up when a deer is looking, the chances are great the animal will pick him up.

This sitting still and studying the bright spots and shadows is an art. Study your stands long before the season opens, and note where shadows and light areas are found during that two-hour period before shooting time arrives. Do that, and you’ll learn where these areas are and how they change as the sun starts going down.

This is not calculus or rocket science. This is more a matter of common sense. Know your surroundings, know what provides shadow, and know when the moving sun will be more of a handicap than an asset.

Study your tree stand site, and do it from all angles. Too many hunters view their stands only from in front or slightly to the sides. Most forget about standing 50-75 yards to the rear, and looking for moving objects.

Bow hunters can bet that a deer will do that. Savvy bow hunters are simply smarter than the deer they hunt. Being smarter just means paying more attention to your hunting site, your surroundings and try to look at things from a deer’s point of view.

Learning to think like a deer will pay off.—The Whitetail Wizard.

Monday, June 23, 2008

Reading & Interpreting Deer Sign

Reading deer sign is something that has always made sense to me. It gives me more knowledge of the animals, where they feed, where they travel, and in the end, it’s this knowledge that makes hunters more successful.

I’m so mindful of a big buck from several years ago. I’d seen him on two or three occasions but didn’t know where he lived. It took me a week of reading October deer sign to pin down his whereabouts.

The area was in fairly heavy cover. I knew the buck had an exceptional 10-point spread, and reasoned he would be working over some big trees to strengthen his neck muscles before the rut began.

I’d moved slowly through the heavy cover without seeing much buck sign except for a few small rubs on some tag alders. I came out the other side of the tag alders, and entered a 25-yard by 25-yard stand of cedars and pines. That is when I worked out this whitetail puzzle.

One of the cedars was scarred by a pre-rutting buck. Lower limbs were broken off, and the trunk was scrubbed hard from a foot above ground to five feet off the ground. Mind you, I couldn’t circle my arms around the tree trunk. This gigantic rub was truly huge.

Checking around was a faint trail that rain toward another cedar, and it too was rubbed by the same buck. Three trees within 25 yards formed a minor rub line, and the trail had exited the cover I had just walked through. This buck was leaving the tag alder to rub the cedar and pine trees, and most likely, the deer was moving out just before dark.

A nearby tree was perfect for a stand. There would be no clattering and banging required to erect a tree stand here. I’d attach a rope to my bow and my belt loop, lay the bow down flat, climbed 10 feet up the tree and stand on two thick parallel limbs that grew close together. Another limb came out at waist level, and I could stand on two limbs and lean back against the other one.

Two nights later as the sun was sinking into the western sky I caught the glint of sunlight hitting brownish-white antlers. The buck went to the first tree, thrashed it hard for several minutes, looked around, and went to the second tree and repeated the process. Fifteen minutes later it arrived at the tree just 15 yards upwind of me.

It took a minute for the buck to rake the tree to a pile of fuzzy bark curlings at the base. He nosed his handiwork, lifted his head, moved around the tree to work on the opposite side. The deer was quartering-away at 15 yards, and it was an easy shot.

It’s not my policy to advise anyone to stand on cedar or pine boughs and lean against another one, and I don’t suggest you follow my lead. However, I knew the limbs would support me for one evening of hunting. I was certain it would lead to a shot at the big buck on the first night, and it did.

That buck was a creature of habit, and such habits can put a deer in trouble. Once the buck stopped rubbing and visiting the nearby scrape, this idea wouldn’t have worked. My adventure with that big buck was timed perfectly, and that is where knowing something about the rutting activity comes in handy. From the end of October through mid-November, that tree might not have paid off as the buck hazed does through open fields and thick cover.

Hunting one buck is an adventure, a matter of going after them one on one. It means knowing as much about the area as is possible, and being able to translate that knowledge into an action plan.

There are countless other ways of reading deer sign that will pay off in a big way, and we’ll cover some other examples in the weeks to come. The important thing to realize is that studying deer sign is as much a part of deer hunting as carrying a bow into the woods.

Be alert to deer sign, read what it says, and you’ll be on your way to becoming a better deer hunter.—The Whitetail Wizard

Sunday, June 22, 2008

Find The Hidden Travel Routes

Reading deer sign is something that has always made sense to me. It gives me more knowledge of the animals, where they feed, where they travel, and in the end, it’s this knowledge that makes hunters more successful.

I’m so mindful of a big buck from several years ago. I’d seen him on two or three occasions but didn’t know where he lived. It took me a week of reading October deer sign to pin down his whereabouts.

The area was in fairly heavy cover. I knew the buck had an exceptional 10-point spread, and reasoned he would be working over some big trees to strengthen his neck muscles before the rut began.

I’d moved slowly through the heavy cover without seeing much buck sign except for a few small rubs on some tag alders. I came out the other side of the tag alders, and entered a 25-yard by 25-yard stand of cedars and pines. That is when I worked out this whitetail puzzle.

One of the cedars was scarred by a pre-rutting buck. Lower limbs were broken off, and the trunk was scrubbed hard from a foot above ground to five feet off the ground. Mind you, I couldn’t circle my arms around the tree trunk. This gigantic rub was truly huge.

Checking around was a faint trail that rain toward another cedar, and it too was rubbed by the same buck. Three trees within 25 yards formed a minor rub line, and the trail had exited the cover I had just walked through. This buck was leaving the tag alder to rub the cedar and pine trees, and most likely, the deer was moving out just before dark.

A nearby tree was perfect for a stand. There would be no clattering and banging required to erect a tree stand here. I’d attach a rope to my bow and my belt loop, lay the bow down flat, climbed 10 feet up the tree and stand on two thick parallel limbs that grew close together. Another limb came out at waist level, and I could stand on two limbs and lean back against the other one.

Two nights later as the sun was sinking into the western sky I caught the glint of sunlight hitting brownish-white antlers. The buck went to the first tree, thrashed it hard for several minutes, looked around, and went to the second tree and repeated the process. Fifteen minutes later it arrived at the tree just 15 yards upwind of me.

It took a minute for the buck to rake the tree to a pile of fuzzy bark curlings at the base. He nosed his handiwork, lifted his head, moved around the tree to work on the opposite side. The deer was quartering-away at 15 yards, and it was an easy shot.

It’s not my policy to advise anyone to stand on cedar or pine boughs and lean against another one, and I don’t suggest you follow my lead. However, I knew the limbs would support me for one evening of hunting. I was certain it would lead to a shot at the big buck on the first night, and it did.

That buck was a creature of habit, and such habits can put a deer in trouble. Once the buck stopped rubbing and visiting the nearby scrape, this idea wouldn’t have worked. My adventure with that big buck was timed perfectly, and that is where knowing something about the rutting activity comes in handy. From the end of October through mid-November, that tree might not have paid off as the buck hazed does through open fields and thick cover.

Hunting one buck is an adventure, a matter of going after them one on one. It means knowing as much about the area as is possible, and being able to translate that knowledge into an action plan.

There are countless other ways of reading deer sign that will pay off in a big way, and we’ll cover some other examples in the weeks to come. The important thing to realize is that studying deer sign is as much a part of deer hunting as carrying a bow into the woods.

Be alert to deer sign, read what it says, and you’ll be on your way to becoming a better deer hunter.—The Whitetail Wizard

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Whatâ??s Your Arrow Choices, Sir?

There is very little discussion these days about arrow shaft construction. There are only three basic choices, and from there, several secondary choices.

Aluminum, carbon or wood? Only some long bow and recurve bow shooters still shoot wood arrows although many have switched to either one of the other two choices. The secondary choices are manufacturer, size, weight and length.

Compound bow hunters are locked into a choice between aluminum and carbon, and there is little to discuss. Very few compound shooters still choose aluminum these days.

I still like aluminum shafts for bow hunting but much of the time carbon arrows are in my bow quiver. There was a time 10 years ago when aluminum arrows had a death grip on the arrow market but times have changed.

In my Buck Pole Archery Shop, at least 90 percent of my arrow sales are carbon. Some other shops report 95 percent carbon over aluminum shafts.

Years ago there were plenty of arguments against carbon shafts, and many were unfounded. Some of the early carbon arrows were too skinny, some had ugly out-serts that attached to the shaft, and the broadhead screwed into the out-sert. Another argument that has passed by the boards was that carbon arrows would shatter inside a deer.

Believe me on this: I resented carbon arrows and resisted using them. My buddy Dave Richey told me I’d lose arrow sales if I didn’t stock carbon, and soon I noticed that people were passing up the aluminum shafts and going elsewhere to buy carbon arrows. That was like throwing away money.

It took some time but I eventually began to stock carbon, and began shooting these new shafts. They flew extremely well, and that settled the argument for me. I now stock and sell carbon arrows.

Why shoot carbon? One excellent reason is the arrows are extremely straight, and the tolerance level is much tighter (less than half of one percent) than with aluminum, in most cases. Several years ago Archery business magazine found carbon arrows were more perfectly formed, more precise, and in most cases, stronger than aluminum.

The magazine said that Eastman Outdoors’ shafts, and especially their Maxima shafts, have the tightest tolerances in the arrow industry. It means, that with practice, a hunter or target archer can become a better shot with these arrows.

Carbon arrow companies have relegated the skinny carbon shafts of yesteryear to the back shelf, and are producing shafts with much the same diameters as aluminum.

The bigger shafts help increase down-range energy, and this allows the arrow to hit with greater force. The down-range force produces better penetration, and with increased accuracy, this means a chance for more killing shots.

Carbon arrows require a properly maintained and tuned bow. A bow that is out of whack won’t shoot any arrow well.

This means the hunter needs a well-tuned bow, a quality bow rest, and a good mechanical release. They will help produce far more accurate shots than most people ever knew was possible.

Most quality archery shops can do a fine job of tuning your bow, and it’s common for people to bring their C.P. Oneida Eagle bows to my Buck Pole Archery Shop in Marion for an annual tune-up.

A properly tuned compound bow and carbon arrow should be paper tuned. A properly tuned arrow will cut a perfect hole when shot through paper. Out-of-tune bows will cut or tear ragged holes with feathers or vanes cutting high, low, right or left when they go through the paper.

This requires further tuning, and when the rest, nocking point and other factors jell, there is a perfectly round hole. And, with our great line-up of bows which include the Extreme, the straight-nock travel produced by these bows make for the most accurate compound bows on the market.

Some people continue to fight the trend toward carbon arrows. I know I did, but I’ve seen the light.

A well-tuned bow, quality carbon shafts, a good rest like the Bo-Doodle that we install on our bows, and a broadhead suited for that shaft, will make any bow hunter a much better shot at deer and targets.

Tough? A buddy of mine shot a black bear, caribou and whitetail deer with one arrow. That’s right—one carbon arrow. He sharpened the broadhead after each kill, and the arrow was still straight after killing three big-game animals.

That puts a capital T and A on the words Tough Arrows.—The Whitetail Wizard