Category: Deer Hunting
Take Aim With The Future Of Deer Hunting
Like the rest of the GrowingDeer Team, I really enjoy hunting with my kids. The hunting memories that are at the top of my list are those where I watched my daughters take their first deer and turkeys as young girls.
With hunter numbers declining, it’s important to pass along the tradition and recruit new hunters. Hunting is a tradition and pastime that not only boosts the economy but also connects people to their roots. I suspect that many kids might not get to go hunting it if wasn’t for youth season because their mentor would be too busy hunting and would not be focused on taking them hunting.
We always put a lot of work into scouting for youth season. We want the hunt to be enjoyable. If a youth hunt is enjoyable, regardless of a harvest, I consider it a success. The goal is to pass on the tradition of the hunt, a kill is secondary.
By the time youth season starts, we have always made sure both our girls shot a lot of rounds from the bench and hunting positions. They have always been prepared by knowing their weapon. They were confident in their shooting skills and ready to have some fun (watch Rae’s hunt from 2009 here).
This year is no different. Rae has already been hunting with the crossbow while practicing with her Prime Centergy Air. She’s practiced with her rifle. After practice this week she returned proudly showing off her targets. Rae was shooting so well that she cut the same hole on the target! If you followed her season last year (watch Rae’s 2017 hunt here) you will understand why the practice this year is necessary to build her confidence!
My advice for success if you’re taking new or youth shooters out to practice, make sure you’ve got the appropriate safety equipment and what I call “comfort equipment.” I use a Lead Sled to take all the recoil out of the rifle. This way they can concentrate on shooting and having fun with no worries about the kick of a deer rifle.
I hope that this year you invest in the future of hunting. Take time to make it fun. Get some shooting practice in. Put some time into scouting. Pass on the tradition and give thanks to the Creator who made it all possible.
Hunting with a purpose,
Grant
Bow Hunting Success In New Mexico – Episode #411
New Video
Watch as Grant comes down to the wire on his final afternoon of elk hunting in New Mexico. It is a race against time as he tries to sneak within range of two fighting bulls before shooting light ends!
Short Clip:
An up close and personal look at one of our top hit list bucks, Southpaw!
New Weekly Blog:
Hunters using deer calls will enjoy this video blog on deer vocalizations: how, why, and when to grunt throughout the entire deer season!
Tip of the Week:
By cleaning used arrows with a scent eliminator wipe, you can easily remove blood and dirt AND reduce scent for the next hunt!
Deer Hunting Tips: Grunt Calling And Vocalizations
Recently James Harrison and I sat down to do a Facebook live. James is a World Champion turkey caller. Those calling skills don’t end in the turkey woods. James is also an expert deer caller!
The focus of the live event was deer vocalizations that will help hunters get deer in range throughout the whole season.
Watch the video below (and listen carefully to the vocalizations) to learn about: early season, pre rut, rut, and post rut calling strategies, calls for different habitats, blind calling, strength/volume for calling, timing, and more!
Bugling Bulls, Big Bucks at Bass Pro and More! – Episode #410
New Video
Join Grant on a tour of Johnny Morris’ new Wonders of Wildlife National Museum and Aquarium! See some of the biggest bucks in recent history in their Hall of Horns! Then Grant and Daniel head to New Mexico where they encounter more bull elk than ever before.
Short Clip:
You probably all know this hunter! Can you guess who it is by their harvests?
New Weekly Blog:
Hunting season is here and that means fresh venison! This week we share one of our favorite venison stew recipes!!
Tip of the Week:
Trimming the fat, connective tissue and lymph nodes off of venison keeps the meat tasting fresh and not “gamey”.
Opening Weekend Of Deer Season At The Proving Grounds! – Episode #409
New Video
Missouri’s opening weekend of deer season was warm but ended with cool venison in the freezer! Watch as the Team hits the woods and punches the first tag for the season! Plus, the GrowingDeer Prostaffers have been watching several big bucks that they hope to be hunting soon!
Short Clip:
Grant recently spoke to a Kentucky FFA chapter about soil, forestry, wildlife and everything in between! Listen to what Grant shared with these future leaders!
New Weekly Blog:
Whether you own land or not, you can utilize many acres of public land for hunting!! Intern Wes Mason shares how public land can help all hunters enjoy the pursuit of whitetails!
Tip of the Week:
Your “everyday” home clothes dryer produces a lot of scent. Drying your hunting clothes outside is a great way to reduce scent and prepare your gear for storage and use.
No Private Land To Hunt? No Problem! Hunt Public Land
If you’re like me, you spend all year waiting until the temperature cools and leaves begin to drop, itching to get into a tree stand. I’ve been interning for a little over a month and one thought comes to my head daily, “Man! I wish I was lucky enough to have my own Proving Grounds.” I’m sure many others have the same thought when watching GrowingDeer and seeing their success. The good news is that you do have your own Proving Grounds – roughly 640 million acres of it.
Most people do not realize that we are the only country in the world with this unique system of public lands that is available to everyone and most of it is open to hunting. A quick search on your state’s game and fish or natural resources website will yield all of the public lands accessible to you, both state and federal. Most have specific details about each area – maps, regulations, harvest data, etc.
Don’t forget about preparation! Just because you don’t have your own piece of hunting property doesn’t mean you can sit around all year waiting for the season. You don’t have to dedicate your time to planting food plots, putting out trail cameras, hanging tree stands, and all of the other activities that come with having your own property but you still need to use your time wisely! This means scouting, scouting, scouting.
Two of the details I mentioned earlier are the biggest components for scouting public land and you don’t even have to get off your couch. Maps and harvest data for specific locations can give you a great head start on your plan for the fall. Identifying map features such as pinch points and travel corridors for deer can save you time before you scout in the field. Looking at previous year’s harvest data will show you how much pressure will be in the area. Deer dislike pressured areas so if you’re willing to hike further than the next person, you’re one step closer to a public land bruiser.
After learning how our public lands came to be, it makes the thought of harvesting an animal on them that much more appealing. Thanks to people like Teddy Roosevelt who had great foresight to set aside lands for the American people, I’ll be trying my hand at a public land buck this fall.
Weston
GrowingDeer Intern
Disappearing Antlers – Episode #373
New Video
Rae Woods has had a long and testing season hunting whitetails. Watch this video to see the surprising end to her season with a now you see them, now you don’t set of antlers!
Tip of the Week:
As you hit the woods in search of shed antlers this winter be sure to look for any signs of a brain abscess. A buck with a brain abscess can shed portions of their skull when antlers are cast. Read more here to understand brain abscesses: https://www.growingdeer.tv/view/2016/01/29/understanding-brain-abscesses/
Father/Son Deer Hunting – Episode #372
New Video
For many hunters, the best hunting memories are made with family in the stand. Watch the hunts in this video where fathers and sons make memories while making the shot!
Short Clip:
See what’s happening at The Proving Grounds with these highlights from a recent Reconyx card pull! Buck fights, coyote antics, and more!
New Weekly Blog:
Hunting Tips For Late Season Success: If you still have a few days or weeks left of season, check out these tips!
Tip of the Week:
Use your trail cameras year round! Study the behavior and patterns of the bucks – don’t simply count points and estimate their age. By studying their behavior, you can focus your hunting time on bucks that tend to be more active during daylight hours and increase the odds of tagging a mature buck next season.
Hunting Strategies: Seth Tags E.T. – Episode #371
New Video
Pro-Staffer Seth Harker has been chasing a buck with out of this world brow tines. Seth called the buck E.T., extra terrestrial, because he’d never seen a buck near his place with such long brow tines. He hunted E.T. all season and kept shifting strategies. Finally, during the late season E.T. was back. Watch this epic hunt to see Seth’s strategy!
Short Clip:
See the hunting partner that never lets us down in this short clip!
New Weekly Blog:
If you are trapping to help balance predator numbers read the blog at this link! Over the years we have found several tricks that can help you become more efficient with your time.
Tip of the Week:
Look closely before filling antlerless tags as many bucks are shedding early this year throughout the whitetail’s range.
Putting The Odds In Your Favor – Episode #370
New Video
Many hunters are like us and still have a few tags to fill. During the late season deer, especially mature does, can be very alert. Check out these tips for being successful during late season hunts!
Short Clip:
What happens when you shoot a doe early during a hunt? Does that scare the bucks away? Watch this video to see what happens during one of our recent hunts.
New Weekly Blog:
Headed to the woods during the next few weeks? Remember that some bucks may have already shed their antlers. In this blog Daniel shares when and why early shedding occurs.
Tip of the Week:
Even though most does are bred by Christmas throughout the whitetails’ range bucks still frequent scrapes. Placing trail cameras on scrapes during the late season can be an excellent way to locate mature bucks.
