(P) September 24th

First night out this year. Had a NW wind at 5 mph. I videoed my Dad hunting off a food plot hidden in the woods (stand #4). We pushed a small buck, a doe, and a fawn in the east end of the food plot. We had just planted this clover plot 3 weeks ago. It was coming up nicely but on this night we found that it was all gone! Bummer! The deer hammered it down to nothing but dirt. We obviously saw nothing else during the night sit.

(P) Tribute to a Bowhunter

Every year I find today is always a very difficult day for me. Seven years ago on September 19th (2003) my Grandpa Fred passed away unexpectedly. He wasn't just my grandpa, he was one of my best friends and role models. He was a man who lived life to it's fullest, genuinely loved people, and was enthusiastic about everyday. Grandpa Fred was definitely the life of the party in hunting camp each year. Boy, did he like to hunt. I don't know if there was ever a deer season where he slept the night before opening day. I think about Grandpa everyday. However, this day is always more emotional for me.

(Grandpa Fred and his 2002 Kansas bow buck)

I really shouldn't be sad that he has passed on because I know of no one more prepared to meet our maker, our Lord and Savior- Jesus Christ. Grandpa lived a simple life but everyone new he lived that life for God. He didn't have to say a word, you knew he was right with God by the example he set everyday.

Seven years ago today, Grandpa Fred stepped out of his house (which was located on a private Northern Wisconsin Lake) and headed for his favorite tree stand. It was located across the street in a thick Douglas Fir pine tree forest. He climbed up in the tree about 12' off the ground. At 81 years old, he was just as excited about the hunt as he was when he was a teenager. You would have to know him to truly understand this excitement or enthusiasm. Grandpa saw a few does that night but did not shoot anything. After dark, he climbed down out of his tree stand and headed back home. My grandma met him at the door and told him to get ready for dinner. Grandpa was in his trophy room, changing out of his hunting clothes, when he had a heart attack and passed on. I will never forget the phone call that I received that night when I learned what had happened. It tears me apart every time I think of it. It altered my life forever!

I try to remain positive though because Grandpa left this world the way he wanted to. At 81 years old he was still doing what he wanted to do more than anything else, hunt Whitetail Deer! He never suffered or experienced any pain in his last days. Grandpa just made sure he was spiritually ready to meet our God and left this world in a manner that he would have preferred. He was a great man!

Thanks Grandpa Fred for hunting with me every year!

(Grandpa Fred, Me and my Dad)

Don't take for granted the opportunities you have to hunt with friends and loved ones because after the season is over, all we have are memories. Make sure your right with God, it's what Grandpa Fred would have wanted most.

(P) September Deer Activity

Deer activity this month is a bit hard to predict. Most of the deer should be on their feeding patterns for the next month as they begin to bulk up for the rut and winter. We won't see early activity related to the rut until October 19th. To be successful, hunt close to the bedding areas unless you are hunting near a good evening food source (unless otherwise noted below). In the meantime, here are your lunar times for the rest of September:

September- Time
22-1259 (Autumn begins)
23-1333 (Full Moon)
24-1402
25-1443
26-1538
27-1622
28-1718 (Don't be afraid to hunt a transition area in the morning on this day)
29-1813 (Hunt transition areas in the morning and evening)
30-0638/1906 (Hunt transition area in the morning and a good food source staging area in the evening)- Last quarter Moon

* For more information on this topic, read my previous article on Moon Phases (February 2010)

(P) 2010 Opening Day in Kansas is here!

Tomorrow is finally opening day in Kansas. I won't be hunting until the evening of September 24th though, due to my work schedule. I can't wait because we will be hunting for 6 days straight. My cousin Steve and a friend of mine (Monty) are driving down from Wisconsin to hunt with me and my Dad. We are going to have a good time!

I checked some of my trail cameras yesterday and saw 3 nice shooters. Our fall food plots are coming up slowly but surely (I am impatient). Hopefully those big boys will be walking around prior to dark.








Another friend of mine (Rob) drew a special archery tag in the La Cygne area. He will be hunting that area this entire week. They have seen bucks down there in the 160 class on alfalfa fields. I wish him luck. My boss and a friend of mine are down in Texas this weekend chasing wild hogs. I will post their pictures if they are successful.

Well, let me know if any of you guys are out there hunting. Post your comments or send me some pictures. Thanks

(A) 14 Step Season Prep: Step 14- Bringing It All Together

We have finally reached the last step in our quest to be completely ready for opening deer season. Step 14 is basically a look back at all we have accomplished to get ready for the fall and to review all of our hard work:

Step 1- Analyzed our equipment that we used last year to determine the need for any changes.
Step 2- Talked about the basics of shooting form and how to improve our practice sessions.
Step 3 and 4- Pulled our old stands and scouted for new stand locations.
Step 5 and 6- Talked to landowners in an effort to find new farms to hunt.
Step 7- Took a break and hunted thunder chickens.
Step 8- Planted spring food plots.
Step 9- Built or improved buck bedding areas.
Step 10- Began hanging all remaining tree stands (especially in the bedding areas).
Step 11- Summer shooting sessions to keep up our archery skills.
Step 12- Uses for trail cameras.
Step 13- The need for pre-season scouting.

Over the next couple of weeks make sure you complete gear checks for all of your hunting equipment. Be sure to wash everything in scent free soap. Make sure you are shooting your bow well and your broadheads are sighted in. Continue to practice to maintain a high confidence level. Keep checking your trail cameras as you finalize your buck inventory. Keep an eye on your food plots in the event they need a shot of fertilizer. Don't forget to mow your clovers down to 6-8" in mid-September.

I don't know about you but I have accomplished my goal this year. I am completely ready for opening day with no work to be done. This will be a good reference for us to use again after this deer season. What a great feeling to have no pressure, no questions about why I didn't do this or that last spring, and no regrets. It's time to focus on killing a mature buck. Over the next couple of months I will try to stay current on posting moon phases and the best times for buck movement. There will be updates on our hunting progress throughout the season. I will also talk about some of the issues that we face during deer season. And lastly, if I get time, I will share some hunting stories. Good hunting!

(P) Food plots are growing- hanging 1 more stand

I was down at the farm today so we could finish up some brush hoggin'. However, one of the blades broke on the brush hog which required some welding repairs by Dad. While I was at the farm I hung another stand. Your probably thinking, do you really need a 19th stand on one farm?

No, that is probably too many stands for 300 acres but I want to be ready for anything this season. I want to be able to ambush the deer from anywhere. I previously hung a stand in this general location a couple of years ago during December but I didn't see much activity on the two sits. However, Dad thought we should make sure that we didn't need to hunt the area. So, I had placed a trail camera on an old logging road a couple of weeks ago. To my surprise we found that deer were really using the area. With 130 deer pictures on the camera in only a week (sorry no big bucks), I decided to scout the area more thoroughly, finding a couple of hidden deer trails. So today, I threw up another stand in the area to hunt this fall. It will be perfect for a west wind and is only 100 yards away from one of our food plots.

That reminds me of the whole point of this post. I checked our recently planted food plots today (planted 11 days ago) and found them coming up nicely. We received the rain we needed approximately 4 days after planting. I can't wait until the end of the month to see their progress.

(A) 14 Step Season Prep: Step 13- Pre-Season Scouting

Do you have a spotting scope? I would guess that most of you do not. The majority of Midwest hunters don't own one but if you hunt out west, or in western Kansas, I would venture to say that you probably do own a spotting scope. You might be asking yourself, why do we need a spotting scope if we are not hunting out west? Well, you don't. I don't own one either, however, I know I should. Let me explain my thought process and the advantages of a spotting scope.

It is the first week of September. We are only 3 weeks out from opening day in Kansas and 2 weeks out from opening day in Missouri. If you like to hunt early season, when the weather is still warm and the days are long, then it is time to get to work. Early season deer hunting takes a slightly different approach than hunting the rut. There are positives and negatives to deal with.

Let's start with the negatives. It is hot and difficult not to sweat walking to your stand. When the air is warm it also becomes much more difficult to control your human scent (it doesn't rise as quickly as a cold day). The bugs can drive you crazy this time of year and it is hard to see very far in the woods because the vegetation is thick. Now let's move to the positives. The deer are feeding heavily and are fairly predictable on their eating patterns. The bucks are in bachelor groups which means you may see a couple of shooters together. Their racks have just come out of velvet so they are shiny, clean and not busted up yet. The temperatures are warm so you won't be wearing bulky clothing and you aren't going to freeze out like a December hunt. The bucks should not have any hunting pressure on them and are probably bedded within close proximity to the major food sources or a water source.

By doing some pre-season scouting, you can get on these early season bucks. I try to hang observation stands prior to the season starting. These stands are strategically located to keep intrusion down to a minimum while being in a position to see where mature bucks are coming out into the fields to feed. Try to get into these positions at daybreak or sunset. This is where the spotting scope comes into play. High quality binoculars will work too but a spotting scope can really zoom in on the make up of a particular deer's rack. You should be able to get a good idea where bucks are entering and exiting the fields. This will also give you the opportunity to confirm the buck inventory of your hunting property (supported by your trail cameras).

Observatory stands, hay bails, and old country roads are great for scouting prior to the season opening. Ensure that you don't put any pressure on the deer during your pre-season scouting. The season is almost here and we don't want to tip the deer off that our favorite time of year has almost arrived.

Once the season has started, if you are having a hard time getting on a buck, try your pre-season scouting techniques at first light in the morning. Once you locate the buck you are after, quietly set up a stand inside the wood line where he left the field (getting between the food source and the bucks bedding area for the evening hunt). Chances are he will come walking by you if the wind is right in the evening. This year I am going to have a spotting scope for pre-season scouting, even if I have to borrow one! Good hunting and make sure you are shooting that bow a couple of times each week.

One last thing, take a kid hunting or fishing in the next couple of months (you have heard me say this before). It is just so awesome to see the positive impact on them.