Friday Banquet Features a Passionate Address by Shane Mahoney
Friday Recognition Banquet
Friday, April 12, 2013
Hilton Anatole Khmer Ballroom
Dallas, Texas

DON’T MISS THIS INSPIRING, IMPRESSIVE AND ENTERTAINING PRESENTATION FROM WORLD RENOWNED LECTURER SHANE MAHONEY!

Hunting remains a critically important conservation mechanism as well as a profoundly influential tradition in the lives of millions of people.  Its importance in launching the great wildlife recovery in North America that commenced in the latter days of the nineteenth century is beyond dispute.  How will the many changes in our society affect its future and what role must hunters play to ensure that hunting remains a force for the common good of wildlife and people in the 21st Century?

Internationally acclaimed biologist and conservation leader Shane Mahoney is uniquely positioned to address these issues.  Mirroring Theodore Roosevelt’s call to conservation arms, Shane Mahoney will deliver the keynote address and call on hunters to renew their pledge to conservation as the first and most important responsibility of their citizen activism.  Always passionate and inspiring, and deeply committed to hunting and wildlife conservation, Shane Mahoney will without doubt deliver an intense and challenging address to banquet attendees.

Don’t miss this rare opportunity to hear one of hunting and conservation’s best!

Shane Patrick Mahoney is considered one of today’s leading international authorities on wildlife conservation and is beyond question one of the conservation movement’s most eloquent spokesmen.  A rare combination of poet, historian, scientist and philosopher, he offers a unique and evocative perspective to wildlife conservation issues, one that has motivated and inspired audiences around the world.  Sometimes referred to as the Canadian Leopold, he is an impassioned communicator widely recognized as an expert on wildlife management and North American conservation history and policy development. 

Born and raised in Newfoundland, Shane Mahoney brings to his work a profound commitment to wild nature, rural societies, and to the sustainable use of the earth’s natural resources.  Formerly the Head of Wildlife Research for the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, he founded and is currently the Executive Director for the Institute for Biodiversity, Ecosystem Science and Sustainability (IBES).  He is a recognized expert on the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation, and is widely credited with spearheading outreach efforts on this concept, a framework originally articulated by his close friend and mentor, Dr. Valerius Geist, and now firmly entrenched within conservation debates today.  Shane has lectured and written extensively on this issue.

Shane is the voice of the Boone and Crockett Country television series and has produced many conservation oriented films. 

Click here for a more-complete resume on Shane’s involvement in the conservation world: www.pope-young.org/email/ref/shane_mahoney/shanemahoney_resume.pdf

The Boone and Crockett Club’s outgoing President, Ben Wallace (fellow P&Y Regular Member), will introduce Shane and will showcase the Boone and Crockett Club’s 125th Anniversary this year.

Also on tap for the Friday Banquet:

*Presentation of the P&Y Conservation Award, the Stewardship Award and the Lee Gladfelter Memorial Award.

*Recognition of the 28th Biennium Panel Judges

*Photo and Art Contest Awards

*Live Auction of a few select hunts

Check out the complete convention agenda.  Click here:

http://pope-young.org/convention/2013_details/agenda.asp

Make plans now to attend the Pope and Young Club’s 2013 national convention in Dallas, Texas, April 10-13, 2013.

Additional information about the P&Y Convention, including hotel reservations, registration, banquet tickets, auction hunts and more is on the website.

http://pope-young.org/convention/default.asp

Don’t miss out on this grand celebration of bowhunting!  Network with fellow bowhunters from all over North America, check out great bowhunting opportunities in the Outfitters Area, learn from authorities during the seminars, see new World’s Records and other top animals from the last two years, and so much more!

REPOSTING ON BEHALF OF THE POPE AND YOUNG CLUB, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Pope and Young Club
273 Mill Creek Road – PO Box 548 – Chatfield, MN 55923
Phone: (507) 867-4144 – Fax: (507) 867-4144
Web site: www.pope-young.org – Email: admin@pope-young.org

2013 P&Y LIVE AUCTION
SATURDAY, APRIL 13TH
P&Y CONVENTION
HILTON ANATOLE
DALLAS, TEXAS

A significant portion of the money raised for our Conservation and Outreach Program activities comes from the auctioning of generously donated hunts, select artifacts and handmade items at our biennial convention.  Hunts secured so far include:

6-DAY SOUTHEAST ALASKA BLACK BEAR HUNT & FISHING COMBO donated by Homer Ocean Charters

BRITISH COLUMBIA WOLF HUNT donated by Chilanko Forks Outfitters

BRITISH COLUMBIA SPOT AND STALK MULE DEER AND BLACK BEAR COMBO HUNT donated by Chilanko Forks Outfitters

6-DAY CANADA MOOSE HUNT IN NEWFOUNDLAND donated by Ray’s Hunting & Fishing Lodge (in association with Bowhunting Safari Consultants)

5-DAY TEXAS WHITETAIL DEER HUNT donated by the Barnes/Keith Ranch

3-DAY OSCEOLA TURKEY HUNT IN FLORIDA donated by Tall Tine Outfitters (in association with Bowhunting Safari Consultants)

5-DAY WHITETAIL DEER HUNT IN OHIO donated by Wide Rack Outfitters (in association with Bowhunting Safari Consultants)

6-DAY SPRING BLACK BEAR HUNT IN NEWFOUNDLAND donated by Roberts Outfitting

6-DAY ROOSEVELT’S ELK HUNT IN OREGON donated by Spoon Creek Outfitters (in association with Bowhunting Safari Consultants)

6-DAY MONTANA ELK/DEER/BEAR COMBO HUNT donated by Crow Creek Outfitters

7-DAY COUES’ DEER HUNT IN MEXICO donated by Primero Conservation Outfitters

10-DAY ALASKA BROWN BEAR HUNT donated by Barela’s Alaskan Outfitters
 
10-DAY SOUTH AFRICAN SAFARI donated by Kuru Safaris (in conjunction with World Class Safaris)

5-DAY SPECIAL INVITATION WHITETAIL DEER HUNT IN BUFFALO COUNTY, WISCONSIN donated by Stan and Carolyn Godfrey

5-DAY CALIFORNIA COLUMBIAN BLACKTAIL DEER HUNT donated by Arrow Five Outfitters

5-DAY SPRING BLACK BEAR HUNT IN NEWFOUNDLAND donated by Ironbound Outfitters

10-DAY ARIZONA COUES’ DEER AND JAVELINA COMBO HUNT donated by Ward’s Outfitters (in association with Bowhunting Safari Consultants)

5-DAY MANITOBA BLACK BEAR HUNT donated by Adrenaline Outfitters Ltd.

5-DAY PRONGHORN ANTELOPE HUNT IN SOUTH DAKOTA donated by Milliron Outfitters (in association with Bowhunting Safari Consultants)

6-DAY NEWFOUNDLAND CANADA MOOSE HUNT donated by Tuckamore Lodge (in association with Bowhunting Safari Consultants)

7-DAY MONTANA ELK HUNT donated by Jack Creek Preserve and Jon Fossel.  For a youth under 21, a woman, or a man over 65.  Jack Creek Preserve special access.

LIMITED ENTRY CONSERVATION ARCHERY BULL ELK PERMIT IN UTAH (LA SAL UNIT) provided by the Utah Bowmens Association

More details for each hunt, and additions to the list, can be found in upcoming issues of the Club’s journal and on the Club’s website: www.pope-young.org

Make your plans NOW to attend the Pope and Young Club’s 2013 National Convention in Dallas, Texas (April 10-13, 2013).  Click here for more info.   

Official invitations and registration packets are being sent to the membership in mid-December.

Established in 1961, the Pope and Young Club is a non-profit North American conservation and bowhunting organization dedicated to ensuring bowhunting for future generations by preserving and promoting its heritage and values. The Club also maintains the universally recognized repository for the records and statistics on North American big game animals harvested with the bow and arrow.

Pope and Young Club
273 Mill Creek Road – PO Box 548 – Chatfield, MN 55923
Phone: (507) 867-4144 – Fax: (507) 867-4144
Web site: www.pope-young.org – Email: admin@pope-young.org

Today’s modern arrow assemblies are nothing short of impressive.  Composite arrow manufacturing processes yield exquisite, consistent shafting to build upon.  Following suit, we have an ever-widening selection of broadheads and fletching options to choose from.  In the end, a loaded quiver of hunting arrows is a sizeable investment for today’s bowhunter!

Protecting your investment and ensuring your arrows are ready to perform in the field is critically important.  LimbSaver’s new “Pod” solutions – the Broadhead Pod and Fletch Pod – protect your broadheads and fletching independently and inexpensively.  Watch the video for all the details.

Additional Sizing/Fit Details:

• Broadhead Pods fit shaft sizes: .25” to .35” diameter, fixed 3-Blade Broadheads with a max cutting diameter of 1.375” and most expandables.
• Fletch Pods fit shaft sizes: .25” to .35” diameter, maximum fletch height .55” x 4.2” length.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWl80hhC4cU

It’s finally springtime in the Pacific Northwest!  If you’re looking for a fun-filled family outing to jolt you from months of hibernation, look no further than Tulalip, WA, just 40 miles north of Seattle.  Thursday, April 19th, 2012 marks the Grand Opening of the third Cabela’s retail store location in the Pacific Northwest.  After an exciting ribbon cutting at 10:45 a.m., doors will open to the public at 11:00 AM sharp.

Cameron Hanes will get things started by cutting the ribbon with his bow!

To get the party started, well-known bowhunting author and Under Armour Arsenal Athlete, Cameron Hanes, will be on hand with his Hoyt bow to perform the official ribbon cutting.  A large crowd is expected.  I recently spoke with Cam about dealing with the pressure of making the shot.  He said, “I like putting myself in high-pressure situations; with the crowd, the media, the cameras – I can’t miss.  I leave on Saturday for my first Alaskan brown bear hunt and will be using the same bow and arrow set up.  This shot represents the focus I’ll need to get the job done.”

The Outdoor Channel’s Matt Eastman, TV host of “Wanna Go Fishing?,” will attend the ribbon cutting and make an offer to one lucky guest that is certain to excite fishing enthusiasts.  “Wanna Go Fishing?” is known for randomly selecting people and giving them five minutes and two phone calls to decide if they’ve “got the guts” to go on an adventure of a lifetime to one of the finest fishing locations in the world.

Opening day and the following weekend will feature outdoor experts, hunting and fishing celebrities, sweepstakes and giveaways, live music and family and outdoor activities.  Come out and see: CJ Buck, Matt Eastman, Ralph and Vicki Cianciarulo, Jim Burnworth, Fred and Michele Eichler, Bob Fromme, Scott and Tiffany Haugen, Cameron Hanes, and others!

The store is located within Quil Ceda Village along Interstate 5 at exit 202.

There’s Something for Everyone!

• Designed and Made in the Pacific Northwest!  LimbSaver, out of Shelton, WA will be on-hand to share their some of their hot new products, such as the new Fletchpod, Broadhead pods, the Kodiak Lite Sling, and Kodiak Compound Bow Sling.  And don’t miss the chance to meet Professional Hunter and Limbsaver Pro Staff Member, Bob Fromme, who will be on hand Saturday and Sunday.
• Representatives from conservation groups such as Ducks Unlimited, the National Wild Turkey Federation, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, and others will be there ready to share information about all they do to benefit wildlife across country. 
• Learn Boat Safety from the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary.
• Learn about the Wounded Warrior’s Project and all the fantastic work they do for our Military Heros.
• Enter to win a 3-day, 4-night fishing trip for two to the Beacon Hill Lodge in Ketchikan, Alaska.  The package includes lodging and guided fishing (valued at more than $5,000), a $1,500 travel voucher and $500 Cabela’s gift card.  See below for the full schedule of activities and events.
• Check out Beretta’s Mobile Showroom with more than 40 Beretta firearms to view along with the latest knives, ammunition, clothing and accessories.
• K9 KiNGS have the world’s largest meet & greet and pet area, 13 professional dogs, free giveaways and routines with daredevil dog agility, multiple trainers and dogs, comic book superheroes, fastest Frisbee dog in the world and multiple Frisbee dog routines.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Detailed Schedule of Activities & Events

Thursday, April 19

9-10:30 AM     Live music from Monroe, Wash. cover band Bucking Horse

10:45 AM        Official Cabela’s ribbon cutting ceremony with an arrow shot by Cameron Hanes

11:00 AM        Cabela’s doors open to the public

11 AM–3 PM Cameron Hanes – Under Armour Arsenal Athlete

11 AM–1 PM  CJ Buck – President and CEO of Buck Knives

5 PM–6 PM     CJ Buck – President and CEO of Buck Knives

ALL DAY        Beretta Mobile Showroom with more than 40 Beretta firearms to view along with the latest knives, ammunition, clothing and accessories.

Enter for a chance to win a 3-day, 4-night fishing trip for two to Beacon Hill Lodge in Ketchikan, Alaska—a trip valued at more than $5,000—plus a $1,500 travel voucher from Cabela’s Outdoor Adventures and a $500 Cabela’s gift card. Must be or 18 years or older to enter and win. Limit one entry per customer per day.

Enter for a chance to win a complete Coleman package valued at $1,500. Must be 18 years or older to enter and win. Limit one entry per customer per day.

Friday, April 20

OPENING       Cabela’s three-piece stainless steel BBQ tool set valued at $39.99 as a grand opening giveaway to the first 100 customers through the doors. Must be 18 years or older.

10 AM–4 PM  “All Things Turkey” presented by the local chapter of National Wild Turkey Federation

10 AM–4 PM  Kids Casting with the Puget Sound Anglers

10 AM–4 PM  Washington state Department of Fish and Wildlife TIPS Trailer (Turn in Poachers) and Cerulean Bear Dogs

12 PM–4 PM   CJ Buck – President and CEO of Buck Knives 

5 PM–8 PM     CJ Buck – President and CEO of Buck Knives

ALL DAY        Beretta Mobile Showroom with more than 40 Beretta firearms to view along with the latest knives, ammunition, clothing and accessories.  Enter for a chance to win a 3-day, 4-night fishing trip for two to Beacon Hill Lodge in Ketchikan, Alaska—a trip valued at more than $5,000—plus a $1,500 travel voucher from Cabela’s Outdoor Adventures and a $500 Cabela’s gift card. Must be or 18 years or older to enter and win. Limit one entry per customer per day.

Enter for a chance to win a complete Coleman package valued at $1,500. Must be 18 years or older to enter and win. Limit one entry per customer per day.

Saturday, April 21

OPENING       Cabela’s flashlight valued at $14.99 as a grand opening giveaway to the first 100 customers through the doors. Must be 18 years or older to win.

9 AM–12 PM CJ Buck – President and CEO of Buck Knives

10 AM–5 PM  R. Lee Ermey – ‘The Gunny’ actor – Brought to you by SOG Specialty Knives and Tools.

10 AM–2 PM Ralph and Vicki Cianciarulo – television show hosts of ‘Archer’s Choice’ and ‘The Choice’

10 AM–3 PM  Bob Fromme – Professional hunter and Limbsaver Pro Staff Member and Jim Burnworth – host of ‘Western Extreme, Adventures Abroad,’ and new series titled  ‘Choose your Weapon.’

10 AM–4 PM  “All Things Turkey” presented by local chapter of National Wild Turkey Federation

10 AM–4 PM  Kids Casting with the Puget Sound Anglers

10 AM–4 PM  Washington state Department of Fish and Wildlife TIPS Trailer (Turn in Poachers) and Cerulean Bear Dogs

10 AM–4 PM  Marysville Fire Department with Arial ladder truck and EMS; and boating safety with U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary

10 AM–4 PM  Boating Safety with the US Coast Guard Auxiliary

10 AM–4 PM  Local chapter of Ducks Unlimited

10 AM–4 PM  Fun activities with volunteers from the Wounded Warrior’s Project

10 AM–4 PM  Video Game Shootout with Safari Club International

10 AM–4 PM  Hanging with Birds of Prey by Sarvey Wildlife Center

10 AM–4 PM  Outdoor Experts:

Fred and Michele Eichler – Fred is host of ‘Easton Bowhunting TV’ and ‘Predator Nation’ and owner of Fulldraw Outfitters. Michele is host of Muzzy Bad to the Bone Bowhunting TV.

Bill Saunders – Bill Saunders Calls and Gear and expert Western Washington waterfowl hunter

Scott and Tiffany Naugen – Cabela’s Pro Staff

Jim and Jennifer Stahl – owners of NW Fishing Guides

Captain Gary Krein – “Professor of Puget Sound” and All Star Fishing Charters

Captain Nick Kester – All Star Fishing Charters

12, 3 & 6 PM   K9 KiNGS Flying Dog Show with J.D. Platt, sponsored by KEEN. K9 KiNGS have the world’s largest meet greet and pet area, 13 professional dogs, free giveaways and routines with daredevil dog agility, multiple trainers and dogs, comic book superheroes, fastest Frisbee dog in the world and multiple Frisbee dog routines.

ALL DAY        Beretta Mobile Showroom with more than 40 Beretta firearms to view along with the latest knives, ammunition, clothing and accessories.

Enter for a chance to win a 3-day, 4-night fishing trip for two to Beacon Hill Lodge in Ketchikan, Alaska—a trip valued at more than $5,000—plus a $1,500 travel voucher from Cabela’s Outdoor Adventures and a $500 Cabela’s gift card. Must be or 18 years or older to enter and win. Limit one entry per customer per day.

Enter for a chance to win a complete Coleman package valued at $1,500. Must be 18 years or older to enter and win. Limit one entry per customer per day.

Sunday, April 22

OPENING       Cabela’s gift card valued between $5 and $20 as a grand opening giveaway to the first 100 customers through the doors. Must be 18 years or older to win.

10 AM–4 PM  Troy, Jacob and Chase Landry – TV’s Swamp People

10 AM–2 PM Ralph and Vicki Cianciarulo – television show hosts of ‘Archer’s Choice’ and ‘The Choice.’

10 AM–3 PM Bob Fromme – Professional hunter and Limbsaver Pro Staff Member and Jim Burnworth – host of ‘Western Extreme, Adventures Abroad,’ and new series called ‘Choose your Weapon.’

10 AM–4 PM  Skins and Skulls presented by the local Mule Deer Foundation chapter

10 AM–4 PM  “All Things Turkey” presented by local chapter of National Wild Turkey Federation

10 AM–4 PM  Kids Casting with the Puget Sound Anglers

10 AM–4 PM  Washington state Department of Fish and Wildlife TIPS (Turn in Poachers) Trailer and Cerulean Bear Dogs

10 AM–4 PM  Hanging with Birds of Prey with the Sarvey Wildlife Center

10 AM–4 PM  EMS card and boating Safety with the US Coast Guard Auxiliary

10 AM–4 PM  Local chapter of Ducks Unlimited

10 AM–4 PM  Fun activities with volunteers from the Wounded Warrior’s Project

10 AM–4 PM  Video Game Shootout with Safari Club International

10 AM–4 PM  Local chapter of Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation

10 AM–4 PM Outdoor Experts  Bill Saunders – Bill Saunders Calls and Gear and expert Western Washington waterfowl hunter

Scott and Tiffany Naugen – Cabela’s Pro Staff

Jim and Jennifer Stahl – owners of NW Fishing Guides

Captain Gary Krein – “Professor of Puget Sound” and All Star Fishing Charters

Captain Nick Kester – All Star Fishing Charters

12, 3 & 6 PM   K9 KiNGS Flying Dog Show with J.D. Platt, sponsored by KEEN. K9 KiNGS have the world’s largest meet greet & pet area, 13 professional dogs, free giveaways and routines with daredevil dog agility, multiple trainers and dogs, comic book superheroes, fastest Frisbee dog in the world and multiple Frisbee dog routines.

ALL DAY        Beretta Mobile Showroom with more than 40 Beretta firearms to view along with the latest knives, ammunition, clothing and accessories.

Enter for a chance to win a 3-day, 4-night fishing trip for two to Beacon Hill Lodge in Ketchikan, Alaska—a trip valued at more than $5,000—plus a $1,500 travel voucher from Cabela’s Outdoor Adventures and a $500 Cabela’s gift card. Must be or 18 years or older to enter and win. Limit one entry per customer per day.

Enter for a chance to win a complete Coleman package valued at $1,500. Must be 18 years or older to enter and win. Limit one entry per customer per day.

(Cameron Hanes Photo courtesy of Cameron Hanes)

Tulalip, Wash. (March 2, 2012) – Cabela’s Incorporated, the World’s Foremost Outfitter® of hunting, fishing and outdoor gear, will open the doors to its new Tulalip store at 11 a.m. on Thursday, April 19. There will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10:45 a.m. Opening day will be part of a weekend-long celebration featuring outdoor celebrities, special guests, giveaways and more.

The store is located within Quil Ceda Village along Interstate 5 at exit 202, about 30 miles north of Seattle.

The Tulalip store will be the second Cabela’s in Washington, joining the Lacey location opened in 2007. Cabela’s also plans to open its first 40,000-square-foot Cabela’s Outpost Store this fall in Union Gap. Cabela’s currently operates 34 stores across the United States and Canada.

“Washington is rich with outdoor recreation opportunities, and many people in this area are longtime Cabela’s catalog and Internet customers,” said Cabela’s Chief Executive Officer Tommy Millner. “We’re excited to open another store in the Evergreen State, making our services even more accessible to its hunters, anglers and outdoor enthusiasts.”

The new store will sell thousands of products, including hunting, fishing, camping, hiking, boating and wildlife-watching gear, as well as clothing, gifts and furnishings. Cabela’s is known for a strong brand and world-renowned reputation for delivering quality merchandise, value and legendary customer service. The Tulalip location also will feature two 7,000-gallon aquariums, a boat shop, Gun Library and Bargain Cave, which offers discounts on select merchandise. It will also include a deli called Eagle’s Nest.

“We recently completed the hiring process for our new store and there’s a buzz in the community surrounding our opening,” said Kevin Weeks, store manager. “I know there is enthusiasm for the new store in other parts of the state and Canada as well.”

The exterior will reflect the company’s traditional store model with log construction, stonework, wood siding and metal roofing. The inside will highlight the company’s next-generation layout, designed to maximize product assortment and availability while surrounding customers in the outdoor experience with wildlife displays and trophy animal mounts.

About Cabela’s Incorporated

Cabela’s Incorporated, headquartered in Sidney, Nebraska, is the world’s largest direct marketer, and a leading specialty retailer of hunting, fishing, camping and related outdoor merchandise. Since the Company’s founding in 1961, Cabela’s® has grown to become one of the most well-known outdoor recreation brands in the world, and has long been recognized as the World’s Foremost Outfitter®. Through Cabela’s growing number of retail stores and well-established direct business, the company offers a wide and distinctive selection of high-quality outdoor products at competitive prices while providing superior customer service. Cabela’s also issues the Cabela’s Club® VISA credit card, which serves as its primary customer-loyalty rewards program. Cabela’s stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “CAB”.

Set-Up Fundamentals

Wrapping up this 6-part series, I want to relate the information covered thus far to some fundamental rules-of-thumb for the proper use of treestands, ground blinds, and ways to maximize your shot opportunities. 

Treestands

I’ve hunted from portable treestands out west for 20 years and I find it odd that they are not used more widely for blacktails, mule deer, and elk.  I meet people at seminars all the time who’ve never hunted from a treestand, or even considered it for that matter.  Today, hunters have a lot of choices when it comes to treestands so if they present a new approach for you, do your research and select the right stand for your needs.  In any case, here are some key tips to consider:

Safety First

• Never hunt from an elevated stand of any kind without a full-body harness – and know how to use it properly BEFORE the first day you hunt in it.  Most accidents occur when climbing onto a stand or when exiting, so be sure that you are securely tied in at all times.  One slip could end your life.  Take your time – and live!
• Practice setting up a new stand at ground level to ensure you understand how to get a proper fit and bite into the tree. 
• Practice shooting from your stand well before your hunt, and understand the nuances of elvated shot angles.
• Always use a pull-up rope for your bow or gun, or a bulky pack that makes climbing cumbersome.
• Always let a loved one know where you will be hunting, even for those short day hike hunts.  Things can happen that you have no control over.  Make it easy for people to find you.

Early Season

• Most bow seasons begin well before the leaves start dropping so take advantage of the canopy when placing your stand.
• Set up downwind of the area you expect to see deer and if hunting a crossing, set up two stands in order to cover shifts in prevailing wind currents.  Check the wind direction regularly during your hunt and switch stands or move your stand if the wind is wrong. 
• Early season deer will be on somewhat regular summer patterns.  Set up between bedding and preferred primary food sources in the area to maximize shot opportunities.
• Hunt until the final minutes of legal shooting light as hot weather may keep bucks bedded until dusk.
• If you hear deer movement but they don’t show themselves until dark, you may need to move your stand “upstream” to the staging area they prefer.

 Late Season

• Refer to your detailed maps and identify Core Rut Zones, hot trail crossings, and core doe areas.  Use this information in combination with late fall prevailing wind patterns to identify key locations for your set ups.  Set up on the downwind side of any “feature” you are hunting and monitor wind currents throughout your hunt.
• Hunt doe groups by focusing on funnels between Core Rut Zones and doe bedding areas, between feeding and bedding areas, and trail intersections.  As bucks begin to cover ground and scent check doe groups, you’ll want to be in position.
• Most deciduous foilage will be falling by Halloween, so make sure you are not silouetted against the sky from a deer’s ground-level perspective.
• Hunt as high as you are comfortable to avoid visual detection.  This will also help keep your scent up and away from approaching deer.  I like to be 18-20 feet up minimum.  Practice shooting from your preferred height with the late seaons clothing you will be hunting in.  Your practice must match your real world hunt conditions as closely as possible.
• Hunt daylight until dark when possible and don’t hesitate to move your stand if you have good reason to do so.
• Prepare for cold weather and dress for the long haul sit.  Many bucks become unpredictable during the rut.  You may find that you will hunt longer and be more focused by hunting 10AM until dark.

Ground Blinds

Many of the same set up rules apply when employing ground blinds, whether they are naturally constructed or commercial pop-up style blinds.  For example, you always need to set up downwind of your shooting lanes.  No brainer, right?  But unlike most antelope, deer can and will react to a pop-up blind that suddenly shows up in their kitchen, especially if it smells musty or is flapping in the wind.  So let’s review several key considerations:

• Air out your blind well before you intend to use it.  I set mine up in the backyard for a week or so and I give it a good dose of SEEMZ T.H.E.E. KRUSH odor elimination spray.
• Follow the 50/100 rule as defined by Keith Beam and Brooks Johnson from Double Bull.  Those two guys have spent more time in portable blinds than most, and have perfected the art of duping cagey whitetails at spitting distance.  The rule is simply this, if a deer will see the blind inside 50 yards, brush it in really well.  If they will see the blind at 100 yards, such as at a field edge or larger opening, you don’t need to brush it in as well if at all.  The point is, deer can react negatively to things out of place so don’t surprise them.
• Always keep all the blind windows closed up except for those you intend to shoot from.  Backlighting through the blind will highlight your silouette like a beacon, even if you’re wearing all black clothing.
• Practice shooting from your blind a lot.  Your depth of field can be thrown off when peering through an opening.  Also practice shooting through mesh if that is your intention.
• Clear out all vegetation on the ground inside the blind, down to raw dirt.  You want the floor of the blind to be dead silent to allow you to move without detection.
• Be sure you have no ‘wind flap’ occuring on any surface of your blind.  Some of the more inexpensive pop-up blinds tend to flutter with the slightest breeze.  That subtle movement cans spook deer.

This post wraps up my 6-part series on post-season scouting.  I hope you’ve gained some new insights to help you unravel the deer in your hunting areas, or those on new ground.  As always, I would love to hear your feedback.  Be sure to check in at our FreshTRAX Outdoors site for more informative content, and “Like” our Facebook page.

(c) Tom Ryle 2012, FreshTRAX Outdoors, All Rights Reserved

We want to provide a brief introduction to some of the gear we are testing this fall.  We aren’t in the business of conducting reviews in the comforts of the office, so to speak.  Instead, we utilize every product as we would – as YOU would – in real hunting and back-country conditions.

We are professional product developers and while we may be a bit more picky than most, we are all about objectivity and honesty.  We tell it like we see it.  Otherwise, what’s the point?  In the end, we want manufacturers to produce better products so hunters and outdoor enthusiasts can enjoy better value for their hard-earned dollars, and in turn, better outdoor/hunting experiences in the field.  And we want to provide you, our readers, with valuable information to help inform your purchase decisions.

This fall we are using a lot of new gear from the following companies (and likely a few others as the season progresses) and will be publishing our formal reviews during the post-season.  Along the way, we will share our experiences to provide a glimpse into the context of use.  Most importantly, we look forward to your questions and feedback along the way.

As many of our readers know, after 16 years of applying, Stan finally drew the coveted Wenaha Archery Elk tag in Oregon.  There have been nearly a dozen scouting trips over into this country leading up to his hunt, and the gas bill alone is staggering!  It’s truly a once-in-a-lifetime hunt.

Stan has been over in the Wenaha Wilderness of NE Oregon for the past week.  Base camp is set up and he and our good friend Chris are getting dialed in some good bulls.  We’re going to do our best to share the daily progress of Stan’s hunt here.  Another good friend, Joe, is heading over tomorrow to join in on the fun, and finally, I’ll be heading over shortly as well.  We are purposely staggering ourselves to keep Stan equipped with “fresh” help.  This country is horrendously steep and deep with little water.  Google it and you’ll see what I mean.

I’ll be posting up trailcam photos, video clips, and updates to the hunt as frequently as possible to keep you all up on the action.  I have posted up some photos to our Facebook Page so you can always stop in, “LIKE” FreshTRAX Outdoors and keep current there too.

Check back for updates – stay tuned!

FreshTRAX Outdoors

 9-2-11 UPDATE

Stan and Chris were jolted out of a dead sleep as a bull came through their spike camp at 4AM bugling his head off.  They later glassed up another nice 6×6 this morning and said they are seeing a LOT of nice 6’s, but still looking for something special. So today they are glassing ridges and covering country trying to locate some bigger bulls.  He said it’s tough to be passing on 320 class bulls but it’s early in the hunt.

Later in the morning they called up this 6×6 who came in quickly before they could get the tripod set up…gotta love it when that happens!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYHZG34ESF4

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 9-3-11 UPDATE

Chris wrapped up the first week and headed home today.  Along the way, he likely crossed paths with Joe who is bringing over more food and some new gear to test, including a Benchmade Bone Collector knife, Alpen 20-60X spotting scope, among other items.  Formal Product Reviews are a big part of what we do at FreshTRAX Outdoors, and we always put gear to the test under real-world conditions in order to provide our readers the most valuable information. 

The Wenaha-Tucannon Wilderness is full of game despite the vast expanses of sheer rock faces and grassy slopes that seem to drop forever into the canyons.  Big mule deer bucks, mountain goats and bighorn sheep have been spotted on numerous occassions thus far, not to mention a couple “booner” rattle snakes and this cougar who wandered by a trailcam in broad daylight.

Yesterday evening Stan and Chris worked a big 6×7 down in a hole but it got dark before they could put anything together on him, so they backed out.  They are seeing many 6×6 and better bulls daily but with the 95 degree temps, the bulls are holed up in the bottoms.  The rut is heating up but it seems a bit early yet so Stan is playing the game carefully to conserve energy over the long haul.  Most of the bulls seem to be very vocal at night as the temps are dipping down to the 40 degree mark.  That is a daily 50+ degree temperate swing!

The strategy thus far has been to spike camp out from the wall tent camp for 2-3 days at a time and spend a lot of time glassing in order to locate a shooter bull.  Mountain House meals are pretty tasty but when you’re living on them for days on end, energy conservation is key with the heat and steep terrain.  Hiking into the bottoms doesn’t make much sense unless you know you’ve got good reason due to the toll it would take on your body to make the trip down and back in the extreme heat.

Chris will be back home soon and will be sending me over all the photos from the first week so I’ll get those up here as quickly as possible.  Stay tuned!

9-4-11 UPDATE

Joe indeed arrived late in the afternoon yesterday.  Stan met up with him and due the time, they opted to head out to a spot Stan had seen a couple good bulls instead of settling Joe into camp.  They arrived to the ridge where Stan has been keeping tabs on a couple bulls. Stan broke out the new Alpen 20-60X spotting scope that he’s reviewing to get a better look, and after dialing in the scope, they figured one of the bulls with cows was a solid 350+ class bull!  He was bulging a lot and putting on a show but it was too late to go after him.

The next morning came early and they were out of camp well before daylight.  Stan bugled in the pre-dawn grayness and within minutes a bull started raking loudly not 200 yards away.  Now, one thing about this unit – it is open for spike hunting with an over the counter tag, so Joe was packing his bow as well.  The raking continued as Stan and Joe closed the gap.  Moments later, not one but two raghorn bulls emerged like a couple of dumb teenagers.

They bailed and moved quickly to another area Stan and Chris had been monitoring previously.  They glassed one  good bull with a handfull of cows and located a groaner of a bull that they couldn’t get a look at.  He was down in a hole with timber so they noted the location as an option for tomorrow morning.  This evening they planned to check out another hole that looks really good.  This will give them two options.  The rut is definitely ramping up despite the fierce heat.  Stan and Joe will leave in the morning with loaded packs for a 2-3 excursion from base camp so it may be a couple days for another solid update.

Chris returned and sent me a bunch of photos.  I will add these and a bunch more photos to our FreshTRAX Outdoors Facebook page.

9-5-11 UPDATE

So picking up where we left off on the evening of the 4th, Stan and Joe decided to drop into this new “hole” Stan had his eye on.  They worked side-hill around the upper slopes where it wasn’t too steep for covering ground.  It wasn’t long before they spotted a herd of a dozen or so cows with a nice bull.  They had to move to a spot where they could set up and get a good look at his antlers.  They decided he would score around 315-320”, which isn’t quite what Stan is looking for.

They dropped down over the side and worked down toward some of the timbered creases in the landscape.  Two 5×5 bulls were down in there with a pile of cows.  Stan and Joe waited it out to see if there were any bigger bulls in the mix but never saw any before darkness fell.

Stan was up for a surprise when they returned to the wall tent.  His wife sent some Omaha Rib Eye steaks along with Joe, who cooked them up with some spuds for dinner.  (Sounds like a real nice man date to me, boys!)  Stan told me he’s been living on freeze-dried meals since he got over there, so it was good to load up on real protein.

The morning of the 5^th, they decided to head back into a good area where Stan has seen a number of nice bulls thus far.  At first light they glassed a smallish 6×6 with a pile of cows and another 350-class bull.  A little further in, around 7:30 AM, they encountered another herd of nine cows under the thumb of a monster 7×7 that would push 370” – a definite shooter.

The bull was on the move to bed, pushing his cows as they dropped down into the canyon.  Stan and Joe moved quickly and got closer but there was no way to cut them off.  The thermals are transitioning at that time of the morning which makes closing the gap even more difficult.  So, the plan is to keep tabs on him and see if they can identify where he is bedding down.  When these elk are up and moving in this steep country, it’s nearly impossible to keep up on the side-hills.  They simply move too fast and the country is not conducive to circling around in front of moving animals.

For the evening hunt they were possibly going to check another area but I have not heard back from Stan yet…stay tuned!

9-8-11 UPDATE

I was just heading to lunch yesterday when I got this text message from Stan.  It stopped me in my tracks!

“Well you are going to call me crazy but we moved in on a bull that sounded huge down in a nasty canyon.  Worked in on him as we usual do - Joe hung back and worked the cow calls and bugling while I stalked in on him the last 100 yards.  I played it perfect and was at full draw at 10 yards from a 350 class 6x 7 with huge fronts.  He was really big on his 6 pt. side but he wasn’t huge on his 7 point side.  I passed because it is only a week and a half into the season and that other 7 point we saw was bigger.  Biggest bull I have ever had a good shot at AND I PASSED!  I can’t believe it!”

Now, I’ve known Stan for over 20 years and I trust his instincts but holy cow.  I know he and Joe are spike camped out, and I expect delays in getting updates but now it’s killing me because I’ve not heard a thing since!  I know he was wanting to get back on the big 7×7, and I can only hope that’s what they’re doing.  I’ll post another update as soon as I hear from them…

 9-9-11 UPDATE

Stan was able to call me today and fill me in on the past couple days.  He also sent over a new batch of photos to share.  It’s been insanely hot but the bulls are very active early and late.  The mid-day hours are more quiet but they’ve been into multiple in the timbered ridges almost daily.

After Stan let that 350-class bull walk on the 7th, they regrouped and headed into a new area Stan hasn’t spent much time scouting ahead of the season.  Almost immediately they located a gorgeous, perfectly symetrical 360+ 6×6 herd bull.  They didn’t know how big he was at first, or that he had a small collection of cows.  The situation was dicey with a large opening between them.  There was no hesitation; Stan pushed the envelope and quickly closed the gap to about 40 yards as Joe hung back hoping to catch the remaining glory moments on film.

At about 38 yards Stan was once again drawn on a monster bull and needed the him to take another step forward to clear his chest.  Unbeknownst to both Joe and Stan this bull’s cows were just below them – downwind.  It wasn’t long before the house of cards crumbled with thundering hooves pounding the sun-baked earth.  Any veteran elk hunter has lived through this scenario across the west, but that fact offers little relief.

 More and more rubs are appearing as the rut heats up.

With two 350+ shooter bulls inside bow range within a few hours, they were pumped…and soaked with sweat under the mid-day sun.  They backed out to give this bull a rest and moved up to one of the upper ridges they’ve camped on.  It was so hot and there wasn’t any bugling action at all. They used the time to rest and decided to set up camp for the night.

Sunrise on Friday morning. 

This morning they dropped into an adjacent area where they glassed some elk and heard at least three bulls bugling repeatedly.  They headed back into this area tonight and will be spiked out for the next two days.  They are pretty stoked about the game plan for the next two days.  They have at least three bulls located in this deep canyon.  Stan told me to expect a 2-day delay in any updates, assuming he doesn’t kill a bull. 

They have found a lot of dry and wet wallows, and will be putting some time on one of the more active muddy wallows.  When I head over on the 15th, I’ll be taking a variety of treestands so we can set up for long mid-day sits with the camera.  Again, assuming Stan doesn’t tag out by then.

As you can imagine with the extreme inclines and heat, scent control is always a concern.  Keeping your body and clothing clean and as fresh as possible is a priority.  There is very little water around unless you drop into the very bottom of the canyons.  When they do find water, they filter & fill their hydration bladders and get cleaned up.

Here Joe pretends to slurp from a funky spring.  We never drink unfiltered water.  Ever.

Stan using the mid-day lull to catch up on laundry.

9-14-11 UPDATE

On the morning of the 11^th, Stan and Joe were working a herd bull in the timber.  He was really carrying on and tearing up trees as they closed the gap.  He obviously had cows so they used the thick cover to carefully close the distance but he was up on the steep slope above them across a small creek, if I’m not mistaken.

They kept him excited and continued to make him feel the pressure of another bull encroaching on his harem.  It worked and they could hear the bull coming down toward them.

Joe got the camera set up as Stan moved ahead to set up.  Joe was set up perpendicular to the path the bull was on, so if you think about a “T” shape, the bull was coming left to right across the top of the “T”, Stan was on the right side of the “T” and Joe was on the bottom leg.

Stan watched the 330-class bull for about 10 minutes as he entered the opening and began to rake a tree a mere 30 yards away.  Joe couldn’t see any of this from his location.  Then the bull just marched right in, leaving his cows up on the side-hill to lay down the law with the intruder.

If you watch closely, you’ll see Stan’s head is located toward the right side of the frame about ½ way up.  It’s a blob that looks out of place amongst the vegetation.  The bull was inside 15 yards but Stan felt there were better bulls in the area just as ready to pose for him, so he let him walk.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l03ND4fB8PI

Joe left on Sunday for home so Stan has been doing it alone since then.  As of last night he had four bulls going nuts around his bivy spike camp.  He’s been in nearly every bottom, hiked every ridge, and otherwise covered the wilderness area in search of a special bull.  There are about four bulls that he’s after.  I will be driving all night to join Stan for next week of excitement.  I fully expect we’ll be closing out this hunt with the heavy weight of a great wilderness bull on our backs.  We will do our best to provide updates from the field but it will likely be a few more days to see any update.  In fact, we may have more luck providing Facebook updates, so be sure to “Like” FreshTRAX Outdoors to see and hear about the final act in this epic DIY bowhunting adventure!

Just got a text from Stan so here’s a real-time update: “Got into two bulls this morning neither of which panned out.  Saw five other bulls on the opposing ridge one of which is a clear shooter!  We will get it done I am very sure.  See you soon!”

 9-27-11 UPDATE

Sorry for the long delay in posting an update.  I met up with Stan last Thursday morning (15^th) after driving all night.  We organized our gear and got ready for a 2-3 day pack in.  It was raining and cool, which was a major change in the weather up to this point in the hunt.

We hiked in about 7 miles into one of the major drainages in the Wilderness area, then hooked upstream into one of the feeder canyons where Stan and Joe hunted several days prior.  Stan was eager to show me the series of fresh wallows that littered the canyon bottom, and it wasn’t long before the amount of fresh sign increased dramatically.

We set up our bivy camp (dumped the packs and laid out our bags) and headed up canyon for the evening hunt.  We located a bull on the crest of a smaller ridge and decided to pop over the top and work him.  He was a talker but not all that interested in closing the distance.  In this country you’ve got to work on bulls who want to come in and play otherwise you can expend too much energy chasing “recreationally vocal” bulls.  So we pushed up the bottom and hoped it would open up.  But it didn’t.  It got tighter and tighter so as the sun began to sink, we elected to lock in the hubs and climb up and out.  As it got darker, we traversed across the ridge until we crested its back, following it back down to our meager camp. 

I was pretty well dead to the world after a full day of hiking on the backside of no sleep the night before so I don’t remember much after climbing into my bag.  I was jolted from my coma as Stan flopped across the ground in his bag, trying to kick me into consciousness.  Turns out we had a bull bugling from about 10 yards away!  He bugled twice and just walked on by.

After the next morning’s hunt and deciding to move our bivy camp upstream a mile or so, Stan and I worked on several “meaty” sounding bulls over the next two days.  But as vocal as they were, they were not willing to commit to closing the gap, even when we got inside 50-75 yards.  Frustrating to say the least.

We hiked out and headed back to the main wall tent camp where we met up with my good friend Matthews Cook.  He came down from Pullman, Washington for a couple days of glassing and scouting, and it was good to spend some time with him.  He killed a really nice bobcat in Washington the day before we met up with him and we discussed bobby backstraps for dinner (as Stan was sorting through his stash of Mountain House meals).

The next couple days Stan and I worked a bunch of canyons and located quite a few bulls.  I cow-called in a really nice 350-class bull that came on the run from one side of an open canyon clear across to our side (.8 mile as the crow flies on the GPS!) only to have him hang up inside 50 yards just below Stan’s set up, bugling his head off.  We set up in the thick stuff to force him to come into Stan’s shooting lanes but our set up also prevented us from seeing him as well.  So we couldn’t move.  We threw the book at him trying to force him to commit but he stood firm and eventually moved back down slope.  We pushed hard on his back-trail but he wasn’t coming back up.

I worked several good bulls that behaved similarly – they’d come in hard, barely giving us time to set up.  We’d set up and get the camera rolling, and they’d just stand there screaming at us.  I captured some killer audio on a few of these set ups.  We decoyed them, I backed away cow calling, we raked (and they raked), and it just started to get old after a while.  Lots of talk, no action.  Naturally, we had to watch the wind carefully, especially when our set-ups wore on.  Heck, I worked two solo bulls for nearly two full hours, keeping them vocal so Stan could try to sneak in for a shot.  He got to the bulls and at 50 yards let out a couple soft cow calls.  They just bugled more but showed no interest in investigating.

On 9/20 we dropped down the spine of a long ridge to locate bulls in a deep perpendicular canyon.  A couple miles in, we got out to the crumbly rocky outcropping overlooking the big canyon.  I let out a few cow calls and the place erupted with bugling.  It was a nasty, loose, and very steep drop-off into the canyon – the GPS indicated it was ~1,800 vertical feet in just a quarter mile.  With five bulls sounding off and a known herd in the bottom, the decision was easy.  The hard part was making progress without sending loose rock crashing downhill, which would only spoil our efforts.

We closed the gap on the nearest bull and within minutes found ourselves in the midst of a herd that was being pressured by another bull in the bottom.  As the cows filtered up through the steep ravine, we got ready.  A 4×4 bull was staring holes through us at 30 yards so I popped out the Montana decoy and held it between us to calm him.  It worked, and we were able to walk past him in the wide open without any issues.

The herd bull screamed from below as a satellite bull raked a tree up to our right.  I could see the tree swaying violently as the bull stripped it of its limbs.  Stan moved forward hoping to get between them as I cow-called frantically.  I wanted the herd bull to become enraged and charge up the draw toward Stan but instead he moved his cows up and over a ridgeline out of bow range.  Bulls screamed all around us and while it would seem almost easy to slip an arrow into a bull in this circumstance, it wasn’t.  They moved so much and the wind was swirling all over.  It was hectic to say the least.

Once we got the chance to move ahead, we quickly dropped into the very bottom where we hoped the wind would stabilize, and it did somewhat.  Moments later we had a nice chocolate sow at 25 yards looking at us.  Her cubs were just over to the right a bit so we weren’t too concerned about her becoming aggressive.  A neat encounter and I’d have loved to have filmed them, but we kept moving to keep tabs on the herd.

I cow-called hard and sharp to get a reaction from one of the satellite bulls.  Just above us, the “canyon crossing” 350-bull from the previous day roared back.  His bugle was very distinct and today he was hot!  We found a place to move up the steep dirt bank that lined the creek.  As we scrambled up to the small bench 20 yards above us, we could hear him moving through the brush.  He was coming so we quickly got set up.  But unfortunately we believe he winded us shortly thereafter because he went silent on us in the following minutes, followed by his bellows of frustration from further down the creek.

As we assessed the situation, we decided we needed to start heading back up and out of the canyon.  It took us several hours to get back to the truck but at least we were able to complete the steep climb out without headlamps.  It was slow going with some tricky steep spots that would have been dicey at night.

This hunt was coming to a close and it was not looking good for Stan in terms of tagging a mature bull.  The bulls were hot but I had to head back, and Stan had to start thinking about his Montana tag.  We spent the next morning (21^st) taking down the wall tent camp, discussing solo strategies, etc., and then I was on the road home by 1:30.

The rut was in full gear and Stan was on his own now.  The rain subsided after I left and the hot late summer heat returned.  He hiked into another area with a full pack and located a bull down in the canyon but the bull kept distance between them so Stan hiked out to try another area.  He saw a 300-class 6×6 near the crest of the ridge but had no shot opportunity in the fading light.

The next day Stan returned to an area where earlier we’d located a gnarly sounding bull a few days prior.  We never got an eye on him but he sounded and behaved like a mature bull.  Stan got him talking but it dark on him before he could put anything together.  He slept on the opposite side of the canyon and worked him at daylight the next morning.  Just as it was getting light Stan had him at 50 yards, and a 4×4 came out of the periphery of the herd to his calling.  The young bull came inside 20 yards but Stan passed on him.  The bull was confused and started barking causing the big bull to move off.  Stan continued to call to the big bull to keep tabs on him when a 5×5 came in through the trees.  He coaxed the bull into 15 yards and given the season was all but over, he decided to take him with a well-placed arrow.  Stan packed him out in the heat down through a huge ravine.  The ground distance was over 2 1/2 miles each way.  I wish I was there to have helped him.

I wasn’t able to get a photo of Stan’s bull before he left for Montana so I will add it once I get it.  In the meantime, I want to say “thanks” for following along on this adventure.

In closing, I have to say that DIY elk hunting with a bow in the Wenaha-Tucannon Wilderness of NE Oregon is quite difficult.  It’s a fallacy to assert that a premium tag is a slam dunk on the bull of your dreams.  If you choose to forgo the road systems of the National Forest land and dive headlong into the wilderness, you’re doing it the hard way, and the reasons for doing so run deep.  The steep, unforgiving terrain would bring many otherwise “fit” bowhunters to their knees after day 1.  No amount of exercise can prepare your muscles for miles of steep incline hiking with a pack.  Unless you train in these conditions, you simply can’t fully emulate it with a workout.  Stan has hiked over 300 miles of this country since the summer – much of those miles in 90+ degree temperatures with a full pack - and though he was holding out for a big non-typical bull, it just wasn’t in the cards.

Yes, he passed on some great bulls, and that is a personal decision every hunter must make at the moment of truth.  It is often a difficult moment because we all know the risks.  But hunting is and should remain pure and personal for each individual.  Stan got to experience one of the west’s most incredible places with good friends, a bow, and an elk tag.  He came to this place a stranger and left with a deep connection to all of it – the ups, downs, and shared memories.  Personally, knowing Stan the way I do, I found it quite fitting that in the final hours of the season, he once again found himself alone; deep in a canyon, doing what he loves most – bowhunting elk one on one, and getting it done.  Some measure success by antler size, and that is fine.  To each his own.  I measure success by the intrinsic value one derives from the entire hunt experience, and in this case Stan enjoyed wild success!

FreshTRAX Outdoors

Food Source Considerations

First, I need to apologize for the huge gap in time.  Summer is always a flurry of activity with family, friends, and preparation for the upcoming hunting seasons.  And we’ve been very busy with building FreshTRAX Outdoors along the way.  For those of you who I met at the Cabela’s Big Game Classic – thank you for coming!  As you know, I covered most of the points in this series during my Blacktail Strategies seminars.

Ok, in Part 5 we’re looking at natural food sources and how they fit into your overall post-season scouting strategy, and ultimately how that information dovetails into your fall hunt strategy.  The topic of food plots is gaining popularity across the board these days, and while they are appropriate for blacktails as well, I’m not going to get into that subject here.

Western Washington and Oregon are home to over 800 species of plants and over 700 of those are native.  A sizable portion of the Columbian Blacktail’s home range up the Pacific coastline is a virtual salad bowl, providing literally hundreds of choices for deer throughout the seasons.  Southern Oregon and northern California serve up a drier climate and associated plant species.

Learn to Observe

The best way to collect information about what deer eat, and when, is to actually observe them in the field.  Many times when we see deer out and about they are in fact feeding.  But how many people take the time to figure out what they are eating?  Not many.  And that is simply a missed opportunity to learn.  I keep notebooks in my truck and my pack.  If I see a deer feeding, I do whatever it takes to figure out what it is eating.  And I note the date, weather, etc. as well.  Can’t hurt.

Summer and Early Fall

Deer have the widest variety of food sources from spring through late June.  After June, most of the tender shoots and buds are filled out and become more fibrous as they mature.  Still, there are lots of choices such as the tender leaves of most berry species, which continue to grow into late fall.  Elderberry, thimbleberry, and salmonberry, are a few examples.  Nettles, hazelnut leaves, lichens, are on the favorites list for blacktails.  Also, they are apt to nibble off the tops of most native ferns, such as sword and bracken varieties, as they unroll their new tender tops to toward the warmth of the sun.

 Elderberry provides nutrition throughout the summer into fall.

I key in on primary feed areas that are somewhat secluded and provide good security cover.  And through careful observation of vegetation, I do my best to figure out what the bucks are eating as they build antlers for fall battle.

Late Fall and Winter

As summer fades and crisp, cool mornings become the norm, all deer will be keying in on food sources that provide the most nutrients to prepare for winter.  Again, direct observation will provide you the most accurate and useful information.

Wherever I am hunting, whether it be a remote clearcut in the foothills or the back 40 of an abandoned farm, I will key in on the best deer browse available.  Because the rut is a factor from October through December, bucks will be difficult to pin down on a food source.  But, when I have observed pre-rut and even peak rut bucks feeding, it’s usually on blackberries (vine tips and leaves).  I walked up on a P&Y class buck last year during the rut as he fed alone behind a wall of blackberries.  Unfortunately, a blunder on my part sent him packing before I could get an arrow to full draw.

During late winter, I often find bucks feeding on the low-hanging curtain of cedar boughs.  In fact, a very successful shed hunter I know gave me this tip a few years ago when he revealed that during years of heavy snow or harsh temps, he’s found quite a few sheds up under cedars.  Not only do these trees provide food, but they provide thermal cover as well – all in the exact same spot!  (hint: write that down).

Cedars play a crucial role in diet and survival during the winter months. 

Deer love apples all year long.  Wild apples or any fruit-bearing tree still producing fruit on old farm sites are always great bets for late season.  I have a few of these spots secured and they never disappoint. 

Another habitat condition I look for is a south-facing edge of big timber bordering a 3-5 year old clearcut.  The southern exposure keeps the growing season longer for vegetation and big bucks love those edges near big timber late in the year.

As the rut winds down after the peak-breeding phase, bucks will revert back to focusing on nutrition for winter.  If you identify some of these key prefered food sources and feed areas, you may well cross paths with a good buck.  I believe the older a buck is, the more likely he will restrict his movements dramatically post-rut.  So you may need to find the right combination of security cover, food, and water in order to pinpoint likely haunts.

In the final installment of this series, Part 6, I will go over some fundamentals of Set Ups for treestands and ground blinds.

The Significance of Shed Antlers

I’ll be the first to admit I’m a shed antler fanatic, especially when it comes to blacktail sheds. Each time I find an antler, a surge of energy rips through me as I frantically begin scanning the ground for the match. Unconsciously my mind conjures up images of the buck on the hoof and what he was doing – and more importantly, why.

Looking back, there was a time I didn’t care too much about sheds. I might haul one out with me during a fall hunt from time to time but I certainly never put any thought into looking for them in the winter or early spring. All that’s changed over the last decade.

Today, I look forward to the late winter and early spring nearly as much as the opener of early bow season. There are sheds to be found and they play a key role in my overall blacktail strategy. Before we dive in, let’s examine the physiology involved.

 The Science

The length of daylight, or photoperiod, decreases in late fall. The diminishing amount of daylight reaching the back of the deer’s eye triggers the pituitary gland to produce fewer hormones, which in turn, drops the level of testosterone coursing through a buck’s body. This reduction in testosterone is the major catalyst that drives antlers to drop.

When testosterone levels drop significantly, bone-eating cells called “osteoclasts” form at the pedicle, where the antler attaches to the skull. These osteoclasts reabsorb calcium from the antler, drawing it back into the skull. Eventually, so much calcium is reabsorbed that only tiny, threadlike connections called “spicules” hold the antler in place. When these connections become too weak to support the antler, it falls off. The process happens so quickly, scientists have noted you could literally hang a moose by its antlers one day, and the antlers would fall off under their own weight the next. As a result, antlers release from the pedicle anytime, anyplace.

The Significance

The significance of shed antlers is multi-faceted. First and most obvious, cast antlers reveal the size/age-class of bucks that survived beyond the close of most hunting seasons. This fact alone should be motivation enough to turn off the ball game and hit the woods. Secondly, the specific location where you find antlers provides insight into what that buck was doing and where he chose to be at that particular time. For example, was the antler at the edge of a blackberry patch (preferred food source) or was it cast along a brush-choked trail leading into a bedding thicket? These special finds are telling you a story and if you listen carefully and remain curious you can come away with much more than another bone for the pile.

I have found many sheds in or around core rut zones (see Part 2). I believe there are two primary reasons for this. The rut runs through December and does are settled back into their core areas, or have shifted to quality food sources adjacent to rutting areas. Bucks are still interested in sniffing out those last few estrous females and concurrently I’ve seen bucks void of antlers in late December.

Another aspect to consider is habitat change over time. If you are finding old sheds in the same area you are finding fresh sheds, this tells you that bucks are wintering in this particular area for a reason. Your job now is to understand why. Most likely it’s an area that provides a key winter food source but there may be other reasons as well. Security cover, thermal cover during cold winters and/or an easy place to hole up and conserve energy. Keep a notebook with you on your shed hunts and log the as many relevant details as you can. I also plot them on an aerial map and update it annually for the areas I hunt.

For Example

In 2007 I moved from Oregon back to my home state of Washington and I was once again learning new areas. That winter while hiking through a brushy area that looked “bucky”, I found a small 3pt antler that was at least one year old, if not two. A couple minutes later I found another fork-horn antler from a different buck based on the shape and weathering. I’m not known as the most lucky of shed hunters so finding two in less than 5 minutes was a big deal! I knew I’d located a preferred wintering area for at least a handful of bucks.

Time passed and hundreds of hours were logged hiking this and other new areas as I collected data. I found another half-dozen sheds along the way and noted the particulars – date, time, size, location details, age of antler, and weather conditions (for example, if the shed appeared to have been dropped before or after the last snow, was the winter mild, severe, etc.).

The first 3-point I found on the left, and the match set found the following year.

The following winter I was back in the area and after considerable time invested and without finding any antlers, I decided to move up the ridge into a patch of reprod. 2008 was a harsh low-land winter so my reasoning was that bucks would be seeking the canopy cover provided by the mature stand of Douglas Fir and the 15-year growth that bordered it. Bingo! Not 10 minutes later I found a great 4×3 match set laying side by side beneath the heavy reprod canopy.

Obviously the same buck 

Several trail cameras finally revealed the buck I was after.

Finding blacktail sheds in western Washington and Oregon can be challenging.  Consider these photos below.  Finding fresh sheds is an all-out race with spring green up.  Finding old blacktail sheds is not about glassing open hillsides for sun-bleached antlers.  Instead you’ll need more luck than anything.  Big leaf maples and red alder trees literally cover the ground with a blanket of leaves each fall so any antlers from the previous year will likely get covered up in mixed forest areas.  In openings and clear cuts, you will contend with sword ferns and salal, both of which reduce visibility to almost nil.  Oak habitats provide and easier go but in my experience you also complete with a lot more squirrels.  So there’s no easy answer.  The buck above has (3) more sets of antlers strewn across my hunting area somewhere.  I have yet to find any of them.

Part 5 of this series is all about natural food source considerations for the time of year you hunt.

 The white blob looked out of place…

 The Prize!  A match that took me four years to find.

 See anything? A brute of a buck dropped this 6 point shed in an open area. It went un-found for at least 4 or 5 years.

 The Pacific Northwest covers antlers in leaves and moss in short order.

A long day and not much to show for it, but these old sheds play a key role in my overall blacktail strategy over time.