There is no doubt this was Dana's year. She started it on opening day with an incredible 14 point buck. You can find a link to see that video on the homepage. But she didn't stop there! She got back out there and managed to tag an antlerless deernext, and saw a nice 8 point standing over it as she moved in to make the recovery. We found ourselves a bit short on time after that, but when the opportunity to get back out and hunt again came around, she jumped at it. Late season can be a tough time to hunt, but she managed to take another deer after a fresh snow. Scrolling down, you'll find the video of her hunt in the snow below. But she still had one more tag burning a hole in her pocket. It was her last tag for the season, and after a few hunts in brutal cold, a week after the Snow Day 8, she climbed in her stand and used that tag on yet another great point buck! What a way to finish a season we wont soon forget!
DANA'S SNOW DAY 8
There's something special about deer hunting after a fresh snowfall. It's not that often that we even have snow on the ground when our seasons are in progress here though. But this year we had a storm deposit about 5 inches of snow overnight, with a strong front that knocked temps down into the teens and twenties overnight into the next day. Just the kind of conditions that Dana thought might get the big buck she's been after on his feet during daylight hours. So she slipped into an extra layer of clothes, grabbed some hand warmers, and headed over to the neighborhood for an evening sit. It was an added plus that this snow happened the night before our late season three day firearm split. In effect, this gave her an extra tag for an antlered deer. While the deer she was after didn't put in an appearance, a nice 8 point buck decided to present himself for a shot, and she made it count! After a short track job, that extra tag she had for the firearms split was put to good use. Click below to tag along on the hunt this cold winter day, and be sure she'll be out again trying to put her second archery tag on her nemesis!
FLOODED TIMBER FOR LATE SPLIT DUCKS
Most states run split duck seasons. You'll have an early split, sometimes a mid season split. During those seasons you'll be hunting resident ducks, or the early migrations of birds like teal. But in the lower 48, the late split is when the migrations are in progress. These late season birds are often very wary, having been hunted already in their early season haunts, as well as along their migratory routes. So scouting food sources is key, and all the better if you can find out of the way locations that don't receive a lot of pressure. While scouting deer for the rutting season, Mike had found some flooded timber on a public hunting area that was loaded with red oaks dropping their acorns in ankle deep water. This made an ideal, sheltered location to toss out a few decoys and try for a few late season ducks! LATE SEASON DOVE HUNTING
Late season also offers opportunities to hunt migratory birds other than ducks. There are usually a few weeks open to get out and hunt a late dove split. These winged speedsters offer a challenge for those who enjoy wingshooting. This time of year the birds have usually gathered in large flocks. Their activity in the winter centers on feeding, so scouting cut corn fields looking for birds coming and going, or resting in the treeline at the edge is a good way to locate some action. As long as there is open water nearby, the birds should continue to hold on an available food source until that freezes over. These birds not only offer fast action when opportunities for other game slow because of colder weather or hunting pressure, but they are also excellent table fare as well. In this video, Mike and Michael head out to a large corn field where birds were found to be collecting to feed on the waste grain left behind. After the hunt, Mike shares a favorite recipe he enjoys for them at the end of the video, Dove Kabobs. If you get a chance to get out, be sure to give them a try! You wont be disappointed. You'll also find some more recipes for the game you've gotten by scrolling down and watching our video Spoils of the Hunt!
POST SEASON SCOUTING FOR WHITETAIL DEER Hunting season never really ends. Novice or seasoned hunter, constant scouting is essential to success. Scouting is in fact the heart of the hunt. It allows you to locate the game you seek, and if done right, will put you in a position to tag that game on the first trip to the woods when the season opens. Especially on heavily hunted public lands. One of the best times to scout is right after the season closes. If you can locate where the deer are located when the pressure is on, you'll probably be in a good position to put one on ice when the hunting season is in progress. You'll know right where they'll be heading when the shooting starts! Below Mike walks you through a few methods that he has used to take many deer, a few nice bucks included! Be sure to put them to good use when your seasons close!
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While it's rare for us to get ice thick enough to fish
on in our area, that doesn't keep us off the water! Winter trout stockings provide an opportunity for us to continue fishing into the winter even when the rest of the other fish have gone deep and become lethargic. They can be very willing to bite and offer us a chance to enjoy some time fishing after the hunting seasons have closed and there's not much else to do. Click on the thumbnail below to join Mike and Dana on a cold winter day as we venture down to the lake and hook a few fish!
Winter can be a slow time of the year with the cold and poor weather that we often have to face. Not to mention that when the hunting seasons close, it sometimes makes one less inclined to enjoy the outdoors. But that's OK. No reason to get feeling down. We mentioned on the homepage that we often plan outdoor adventures for the next spring and summer over the winter season. The video below resulted from one of these adventures. It is sort of ironic that during the coldest parts of the year a trip was planned to visit Alaska. But we did so the following summer, and while we did play tourist and see the sites, the chance to do some fishing there was too much to resist. So we booked a trip and were dropped at a dry cabin in the Alaskan Bush for three days, and taught ourselves to fly-fish while there! Join us for the action!
One of the big rewards of our outdoor lifestyle is all the tasty game and fish we bring home for the table. This self renewing, non-polluting resource not only provides an excellent source of protein, but helps keep those big grocery bills down too! So we've put together a playlist called Recipes Included. Here we feature some of the great recipes we've discovered for fish and game. This one in particular is a quick and easy way to prepare a delicious meal with venison.It will work with beef as well, and is easy to prepare, It would make a great addition to the menu at deer camp! Be sure to click through and try this one, if you like it, use the link to view the entire playlist! We'll add more as we come across them!
While planning trips during the winter, there's no reason to wait for spring and summer if you want to head south. That's exactly what happened when this video was filmed. A February trip away from the ice and snow to sunny Florida was taken to see a concert Dana had won tickets to. Since there was some down time, and the temperatures were in the mid 80's, We grabbed the cameras and decided to try our hand at herping. While some of the other members of our crew are experts at this, Mike and Dana are novice, but since south Florida is the epicenter of the invasive species problem in that state, they found some very interesting creatures!
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