Thursday, October 28, 2010
(P) October 28th
Well, I have been so busy hunting that I have fallen behind on reporting what has been happening in the woods. My buddy Rob shot a nice Mainframe 10 today. The buck was looking for does in the morning at daybreak. Rob thought he would score in the 150" class.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Does for Confidence
You know, it takes a long time to wait for deer season to arrive every year. I shoot my bow almost year round. So why do many of us struggle to make the pressure shot on a mature buck in the rut? One reason is because the whole experience could be over in seconds. The other reason is buck fever.
Let's define buck fever- It is a nervousness and adrenaline rush that we experience when we see an animal (especially a trophy buck) that we want to harvest. This condition causes us to experience an increase in excitement, blood pressure, pulse and shallow- rapid respiration's. Buck fever is real and is one of the reasons why we all love bow hunting. We get pumped up!
Now I am not one to blame missed shots or bad shots on this condition. I like to experience the adrenalin rush of buck fever but I also like to keep it somewhat under control. There are a couple of things that I do. I practice shooting a lot (especially at 3-D deer targets). Over the years I have also gained more experiences hunting which increases our knowledge and understanding. But one thing that really helps me build confidence is shooting does.
I have a brother-in-law who is a great archer. He can shoot from almost any position and he practices religiously. He has shot some great deer in the past 7 years. However, like most of us, he has missed some really nice bucks too. Every year that he has shot a mature buck was initiated first by him shooting a doe. The misses were the times that he had not yet harvested a doe. On some occasions, this was my fault because I would sometimes discourage him from shooting a doe if I thought it would hurt the potential of that particular stand location for bucks.
Another reason to shoot a doe is for the meat. Does usually taste better than a big old buck. Does usually browse on crops more than bucks (who are more likely to browse in the woods) which can have a positive impact on their taste. Their muscle tissues are also less dense and more tender than most bucks. My wife prefers that I shoot one or two does in the early season to ensure we have good quality meat for the rest of the year. This also takes a little pressure off as I am chasing mature bucks.
If you can, try to shoot a doe prior to the rut. This means there will be less pressure on your food plots and more competition for bucks to find a doe in estrous. The better the buck to doe ratio the more aggressive bucks become. The more aggressive they are, the more receptive they are to calling and rattling. Eliminate some of the female competition.
Lastly, I try to shoot a mature doe who has one or two button buck fawns. Over the course of a season, I let a lot of bucks walk so they can grow up. I want to see the full potential of their racks and genes. However, these genes will be leaving your farm if you don't harvest some of these does. You see, once the button bucks are one and a half years old, the mother will chase them out of the area so there is no cross breeding. The fawns and there big buck genes will be gone. I try to shoot these does before they chase these fawns away, keeping them around to grow up.
Now go shoot a doe for confidence and meat in your freezer. The rut is almost here!
Let's define buck fever- It is a nervousness and adrenaline rush that we experience when we see an animal (especially a trophy buck) that we want to harvest. This condition causes us to experience an increase in excitement, blood pressure, pulse and shallow- rapid respiration's. Buck fever is real and is one of the reasons why we all love bow hunting. We get pumped up!
Now I am not one to blame missed shots or bad shots on this condition. I like to experience the adrenalin rush of buck fever but I also like to keep it somewhat under control. There are a couple of things that I do. I practice shooting a lot (especially at 3-D deer targets). Over the years I have also gained more experiences hunting which increases our knowledge and understanding. But one thing that really helps me build confidence is shooting does.
I have a brother-in-law who is a great archer. He can shoot from almost any position and he practices religiously. He has shot some great deer in the past 7 years. However, like most of us, he has missed some really nice bucks too. Every year that he has shot a mature buck was initiated first by him shooting a doe. The misses were the times that he had not yet harvested a doe. On some occasions, this was my fault because I would sometimes discourage him from shooting a doe if I thought it would hurt the potential of that particular stand location for bucks.
Another reason to shoot a doe is for the meat. Does usually taste better than a big old buck. Does usually browse on crops more than bucks (who are more likely to browse in the woods) which can have a positive impact on their taste. Their muscle tissues are also less dense and more tender than most bucks. My wife prefers that I shoot one or two does in the early season to ensure we have good quality meat for the rest of the year. This also takes a little pressure off as I am chasing mature bucks.
If you can, try to shoot a doe prior to the rut. This means there will be less pressure on your food plots and more competition for bucks to find a doe in estrous. The better the buck to doe ratio the more aggressive bucks become. The more aggressive they are, the more receptive they are to calling and rattling. Eliminate some of the female competition.
Lastly, I try to shoot a mature doe who has one or two button buck fawns. Over the course of a season, I let a lot of bucks walk so they can grow up. I want to see the full potential of their racks and genes. However, these genes will be leaving your farm if you don't harvest some of these does. You see, once the button bucks are one and a half years old, the mother will chase them out of the area so there is no cross breeding. The fawns and there big buck genes will be gone. I try to shoot these does before they chase these fawns away, keeping them around to grow up.
Now go shoot a doe for confidence and meat in your freezer. The rut is almost here!
Sunday, October 17, 2010
(P) Crab Claw 10 and October Lull
Well, I put in a couple of hunts this weekend. I went down to one of our farms and hunted Friday evening. I saw 12 does and fawns but no bucks. One of the button buck fawns that I saw was being harassed by a coyote. The fawn ran past my tree stand location. The coyote was so intent on staying on the fawns trail that he did not notice me up in the tree. I let the coyote have a taste of my G5 Striker broadhead at approximately 25 yards. It was a complete pass through which means the coyote would not go far. That made my weekend a success and I had only been in the stand for 2 hours.
The next day I got up early to try my first morning hunt of the year. I was in the stand about a half hour before day break. It was fun to be in the stand again and watch the sun rise. The morning was full of anticipation but I only saw one doe over a 3 hour period. I got down for the day and returned to hunt the stand for the evening hunt. I was disappointed to see only 3 does. No bucks for me. I found it interesting that the does were of a different age class and came from different directions. None of them had fawns with them. One of the does looked old so she maybe could not have fawns anymore but the remaining two does should have had babies with them. I began to wonder if coyotes had been hitting the fawns hard on our farm in the spring/summer while they are smaller. I will have to look into that some more.
Dad hunted the evening hunt on one of our food plots. We checked our trail cameras to find that we only had pictures of one mature buck regularly hitting our fields. It was the Crab Claw 10 point buck (see August 28th post- Food Plots are Finished for a picture of this buck). He was hitting this particular field between 11pm and 3 am. I thought Dad should hunt that field in the event that he came out early on this night. As luck would have it, the does and fawns did not enter the field until the last 15 minutes of light (not a good sign but it was 80 degrees). The Crab Claw 10 showed up right at dark (too dark to shoot) and stayed out beyond Dad's shooting distance. He visited a cedar tree that he has been rubbing regularly. Then he put his head down and began to check the does in the field. After pushing the does around, he left the field and the hunt was over.
Other than the Crab Claw 10 sighting, I think everyone is experiencing the October Lull from Wisconsin to Kansas. Some of you may be asking what the October Lull is. Well, it seems that mid-October has little to no buck movement. There are a couple of reasons for this. One of them is the bucks are beginning to become more aggressive. They break away from their bachelor groups and began to challenge each other to work out their pecking order of dominance. This is also a time when many of the crops (corn, soybeans, milo, etc) are being harvested. The deer have moved away from the early season feeding patterns. Many deer stay in the woods and feed on falling acorns under oak trees. Leaves are beginning to turn color and fall but there is still a fair amount of browsing in the woods close to the forest floor, so the deer don't move much. Sometimes it seems like the bucks scatter, disappear and become nocturnal. It is a tough time to kill a buck. However, we are only a couple of weeks away from the pre-rut activity. We just need the weather to cooperate.
The next day I got up early to try my first morning hunt of the year. I was in the stand about a half hour before day break. It was fun to be in the stand again and watch the sun rise. The morning was full of anticipation but I only saw one doe over a 3 hour period. I got down for the day and returned to hunt the stand for the evening hunt. I was disappointed to see only 3 does. No bucks for me. I found it interesting that the does were of a different age class and came from different directions. None of them had fawns with them. One of the does looked old so she maybe could not have fawns anymore but the remaining two does should have had babies with them. I began to wonder if coyotes had been hitting the fawns hard on our farm in the spring/summer while they are smaller. I will have to look into that some more.
Dad hunted the evening hunt on one of our food plots. We checked our trail cameras to find that we only had pictures of one mature buck regularly hitting our fields. It was the Crab Claw 10 point buck (see August 28th post- Food Plots are Finished for a picture of this buck). He was hitting this particular field between 11pm and 3 am. I thought Dad should hunt that field in the event that he came out early on this night. As luck would have it, the does and fawns did not enter the field until the last 15 minutes of light (not a good sign but it was 80 degrees). The Crab Claw 10 showed up right at dark (too dark to shoot) and stayed out beyond Dad's shooting distance. He visited a cedar tree that he has been rubbing regularly. Then he put his head down and began to check the does in the field. After pushing the does around, he left the field and the hunt was over.
Other than the Crab Claw 10 sighting, I think everyone is experiencing the October Lull from Wisconsin to Kansas. Some of you may be asking what the October Lull is. Well, it seems that mid-October has little to no buck movement. There are a couple of reasons for this. One of them is the bucks are beginning to become more aggressive. They break away from their bachelor groups and began to challenge each other to work out their pecking order of dominance. This is also a time when many of the crops (corn, soybeans, milo, etc) are being harvested. The deer have moved away from the early season feeding patterns. Many deer stay in the woods and feed on falling acorns under oak trees. Leaves are beginning to turn color and fall but there is still a fair amount of browsing in the woods close to the forest floor, so the deer don't move much. Sometimes it seems like the bucks scatter, disappear and become nocturnal. It is a tough time to kill a buck. However, we are only a couple of weeks away from the pre-rut activity. We just need the weather to cooperate.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
(P) Gary's Goat Quest and Big Kansas Buck
I have mentioned previously on this blog that I have a friend named Gary and hunt on one of his farms. After numerous years of putting in for a mountain goat tag, he finally drew a tag this year. Gary successfully harvested a nice billy a couple of weeks ago in Colorado with his recurve bow! That's right, he used a recurve bow. I learned that there are 10 big game species listed in the Colorado record books. If Gary can shoot a whitetail in Colorado this year, it will be the second time that he has harvested 9 of the 1o big game species in Colorado with his recurve bow. That is impressive to have 2 cycles with a recurve bow (this includes shooting two moose). Here is a picture of his billy. Gary told me he had to run down the mountain as soon as he shot it to catch the goat. The terrain was so steep that the goat would have rolled for 500 yards and may have been busted up by the time it reached the bottom. Congrats Gary and great job.
I also received word that a friend of one of my friends (got that?) shot a huge Kansas buck just north of Manhatten. I can't confirm this but I heard the buck green scored 212". Wow! Nice buck.
I also received word that a friend of one of my friends (got that?) shot a huge Kansas buck just north of Manhatten. I can't confirm this but I heard the buck green scored 212". Wow! Nice buck.
(P) October 16-31 Deer Activity; More Does
After I shot my doe last week, a couple more have been harvested by the Wisconsin Boys. My cousin Steve shot one and a few days later Monty shot one in Wisconsin. They both made excellent shots. Congratulations fellas! This is a good time of year to take does for a few reasons. With the rut around the corner, a good shot on a doe builds confidence for those high pressure shots we will hopefully soon have on big bucks. The does are also beginning to fatten up and the meat won't taste any better than this time of year (before the chasing and breeding of the rut where they lose fat and muscle). Lastly, the more does you shoot before the rut, the more competition the bucks will have trying to breed them. This means they will be more aggressive and receptive to calling or rattling. There is a fine line here though because you still need a moderate herd of does on your property to keep the bucks around. Otherwise they will leave your area in search of more does.
Dad and I will be hunting over the next two days. He is determined to shoot a mature buck this month. I will keep you posted on our success. Happy hunting!
October Dates- Best Times- Places to Hunt
16- 0844 (hunt transition areas for the morning and evening)
17- 0925 " "
18- 1004 (hunt transition areas in the morning and near bedding areas during the evening)
19- 1046 (hunt near bedding areas in the morning and evening), bucks may start the seek faze.
20- 1122 " "
21- 1207 " "
22- 1251 " " Full moon.
23- 1326 " "
24- 1416 " "
25- 1519 " ", Bucks will begin checking does for the remainder of the month.
26- 1610 (hunt near bedding areas in the morning, transition areas in the evening)
27- 1704 (hunt near bedding areas in the morning, transition areas in the evening)
28- 1802 (hunt transition areas in the morning and food sources in the evening)
29- 1853 (hunt transition areas in the morning and food sources in the evening)
30- 1918 (hunt transition areas in the morning and evening), Last quarter moon.
31- 2010 (hunt transition areas in the morning and evening)
* For more information on this topic, read my previous article on Moon Phases (February 2010)
Dad and I will be hunting over the next two days. He is determined to shoot a mature buck this month. I will keep you posted on our success. Happy hunting!
October Dates- Best Times- Places to Hunt
16- 0844 (hunt transition areas for the morning and evening)
17- 0925 " "
18- 1004 (hunt transition areas in the morning and near bedding areas during the evening)
19- 1046 (hunt near bedding areas in the morning and evening), bucks may start the seek faze.
20- 1122 " "
21- 1207 " "
22- 1251 " " Full moon.
23- 1326 " "
24- 1416 " "
25- 1519 " ", Bucks will begin checking does for the remainder of the month.
26- 1610 (hunt near bedding areas in the morning, transition areas in the evening)
27- 1704 (hunt near bedding areas in the morning, transition areas in the evening)
28- 1802 (hunt transition areas in the morning and food sources in the evening)
29- 1853 (hunt transition areas in the morning and food sources in the evening)
30- 1918 (hunt transition areas in the morning and evening), Last quarter moon.
31- 2010 (hunt transition areas in the morning and evening)
* For more information on this topic, read my previous article on Moon Phases (February 2010)
Thursday, October 7, 2010
(P) Doe headed to the meat locker! Thanks kids!
October 7th-
Ashlynn (my 8 year old daughter) and Ryder (my 6 year old son) had been waiting all year for this day. It was their first hunt of the season for a doe. We got up in the morning and had a big homemade family breakfast (thanks to Liz/Mom). All 3 of us showered up to stay scent free. Then we loaded up all of our hunting gear, picked up the trailer with the Sportsman Ranger, and headed down to the farm. The 3 of us were very excited. The drive seemed to take forever as the anticipation was thick like a morning dew. What would we see tonight? A shooter buck, a few does, some thunder chickens, or would we see anything? Which food plot should we hunt? We had a uncharacteristic east wind at 5 mph. The temperatures were in the low 80's and would drop into the mid 60's overnight.
We sang songs together, told jokes, I acted silly, all to pass the time. We arrived at the farm around 2:30 pm. We quickly unloaded the Ranger and headed out to check 3 of our Bushnell trail cameras. I was hoping they would tell us where to hunt. I threw up a Primos Double Bull ground blind on one of our food plots and a Primos Vision ground blind on the other. With the kids still relatively young, I love hunting with them in a ground blind. They can move around, eat snacks, listen to music (with ear buds), read books, color or draw, and sit with me when they are bored. Ground blinds also help to reduce your scent but I still hunt with the right wind. Now I had to pick between the 2 food plots.
Let me stop and explain how we can just throw up a ground blind without spooking deer on a food plot. Last year Dad and I built 2 wood frame box blinds and placed them on two different fields. The box blinds sit on the ground and have canvas tarps covering the openings which were strategically designed for the ground blinds. We built these wood box frames with, no roof, to allow the ground blinds to fit inside of them. When we are ready to hunt we place the ground blind inside the wood box and drop the canvas tarps which usually cover the windows. Turkeys and deer never know we are there. I have yet to have anything spook from the changes to the wood box blind. I know they are not camouflaged in but they have been sitting there for over a year and the animals eventually got used to them.
Anyways, the kids and I raced back to the car and unloaded all of our gear. My Dad has a 5th wheel travel trailer that he keeps down on the farm during deer season. As we were getting situated, I discovered that we had lost power to the trailer over the last couple of weeks (since we were down there last). It was too late to get the power company out to check a breaker on one of the power poles. So, Dad drove all the way down to the farm (while we were hunting) and brought us a generator (thanks Dad!). We looked at some of the trail camera pictures and decided to hunt over a clover food plot where we had just placed one of the ground blinds.
The kids and I got dressed and headed out to the woods. We arrived in the ground blind a little late but were all settled by 5 pm. I have learned that my kids can survive in a ground blind for a maximum of 3 hours and 15 minutes (which is pretty good for their age). The kids and I took turns shooting little video clips of each other while they would pretend they were hunters like those found on common hunting videos (they have seen them all). Around 5:30 we had a mature doe followed by 2 nubbin' bucks come into the food plot. I really wanted to shoot her because next year she will chase those two bucks and their genetics off our property. As I worked to maneuver around the kids, I just could not get a good shot angle on her. As they were leaving the food plot, more deer began to filter in. Ashlynn was videoing the deer and tried to show the impact shot as I took one of the does at 3o yards. She fell out of sight around 55 yards away. She was the first deer that I had shot with my Mathews Z7 and a Rage broadhead. The 2 inch cut went through the lower portion of her breast plate and through her heart. The kids were so excited when we found her.
Dad was still at the trailer when we finished hunting so he helped me gut the doe, clean her out and he took her home for me. The kids and I stayed to spend the night in the trailer. The following morning we ate breakfast (Captain Crunch- sorry Mom). Liz took the deer to the meat locker for us. We shot bows, checked trail cameras, adjusted a stand, picked up our ground blinds, explored the woods and creek, and packed up the trailer. I let Ryder drive the Ranger with me then I taught Ashlynn how to drive it by herself. As she drove by me one time she yelled "I'm living the dream". We had a great time just being together. Based on past experiences with the kids, I know this will be a memory that they won't forget. I sure won't!
Ashlynn (my 8 year old daughter) and Ryder (my 6 year old son) had been waiting all year for this day. It was their first hunt of the season for a doe. We got up in the morning and had a big homemade family breakfast (thanks to Liz/Mom). All 3 of us showered up to stay scent free. Then we loaded up all of our hunting gear, picked up the trailer with the Sportsman Ranger, and headed down to the farm. The 3 of us were very excited. The drive seemed to take forever as the anticipation was thick like a morning dew. What would we see tonight? A shooter buck, a few does, some thunder chickens, or would we see anything? Which food plot should we hunt? We had a uncharacteristic east wind at 5 mph. The temperatures were in the low 80's and would drop into the mid 60's overnight.
We sang songs together, told jokes, I acted silly, all to pass the time. We arrived at the farm around 2:30 pm. We quickly unloaded the Ranger and headed out to check 3 of our Bushnell trail cameras. I was hoping they would tell us where to hunt. I threw up a Primos Double Bull ground blind on one of our food plots and a Primos Vision ground blind on the other. With the kids still relatively young, I love hunting with them in a ground blind. They can move around, eat snacks, listen to music (with ear buds), read books, color or draw, and sit with me when they are bored. Ground blinds also help to reduce your scent but I still hunt with the right wind. Now I had to pick between the 2 food plots.
Let me stop and explain how we can just throw up a ground blind without spooking deer on a food plot. Last year Dad and I built 2 wood frame box blinds and placed them on two different fields. The box blinds sit on the ground and have canvas tarps covering the openings which were strategically designed for the ground blinds. We built these wood box frames with, no roof, to allow the ground blinds to fit inside of them. When we are ready to hunt we place the ground blind inside the wood box and drop the canvas tarps which usually cover the windows. Turkeys and deer never know we are there. I have yet to have anything spook from the changes to the wood box blind. I know they are not camouflaged in but they have been sitting there for over a year and the animals eventually got used to them.
Anyways, the kids and I raced back to the car and unloaded all of our gear. My Dad has a 5th wheel travel trailer that he keeps down on the farm during deer season. As we were getting situated, I discovered that we had lost power to the trailer over the last couple of weeks (since we were down there last). It was too late to get the power company out to check a breaker on one of the power poles. So, Dad drove all the way down to the farm (while we were hunting) and brought us a generator (thanks Dad!). We looked at some of the trail camera pictures and decided to hunt over a clover food plot where we had just placed one of the ground blinds.
The kids and I got dressed and headed out to the woods. We arrived in the ground blind a little late but were all settled by 5 pm. I have learned that my kids can survive in a ground blind for a maximum of 3 hours and 15 minutes (which is pretty good for their age). The kids and I took turns shooting little video clips of each other while they would pretend they were hunters like those found on common hunting videos (they have seen them all). Around 5:30 we had a mature doe followed by 2 nubbin' bucks come into the food plot. I really wanted to shoot her because next year she will chase those two bucks and their genetics off our property. As I worked to maneuver around the kids, I just could not get a good shot angle on her. As they were leaving the food plot, more deer began to filter in. Ashlynn was videoing the deer and tried to show the impact shot as I took one of the does at 3o yards. She fell out of sight around 55 yards away. She was the first deer that I had shot with my Mathews Z7 and a Rage broadhead. The 2 inch cut went through the lower portion of her breast plate and through her heart. The kids were so excited when we found her.
Dad was still at the trailer when we finished hunting so he helped me gut the doe, clean her out and he took her home for me. The kids and I stayed to spend the night in the trailer. The following morning we ate breakfast (Captain Crunch- sorry Mom). Liz took the deer to the meat locker for us. We shot bows, checked trail cameras, adjusted a stand, picked up our ground blinds, explored the woods and creek, and packed up the trailer. I let Ryder drive the Ranger with me then I taught Ashlynn how to drive it by herself. As she drove by me one time she yelled "I'm living the dream". We had a great time just being together. Based on past experiences with the kids, I know this will be a memory that they won't forget. I sure won't!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)