And…..we’re off! With a bang this weekend, my food plot work began and we’re officially off to the races. Friday afternoon my shipment from Whitetail Institute arrived with about 2 acres worth each of Imperial Whitetail Clover and Winter Greens! The farm I live/hunt on is in soybeans this year, so my plan with these food plots is to provide a large and attractive food source for September – December to keep deer on my property after the harvest of the beans. With that in mind, I’m planting 1-2  acres of clover to provide that attraction from September – November, and then once a good hard frost hits in late October/early November my Winter Greens brassicas will become the hot item to carry me through the end of the hunting season. With my plan set, we got to work this weekend.

The one issue for me currently is that I don’t have the equipment necessary to carve out large food plots. I’ve done some small ones with Round Up and a push roto-tiller,  but 3-4 acre’s of food plot making requires some more substantial equipment. Luckily, I have a few friends with just the right tools who are actually getting into the business of helping people put in plots. Travis and Tyler Cortright were kind enough to come on down to my farm and help me out and step one was cutting down the current vegetation. A brush hog pulled behind a tractor does wonders on an overgrown field.

Once we had the two fields cleared out it was time to spray down the fields with weed/grass killer to knock out any competition for my soon to be planted food plot. In the past I’ve used a 4 gallon backpack sprayer to clear my plots, but a ATV sprayer like these guys had makes much quicker work than I ever could have done. In just a few hours work, we had about 3.5 acres of field cleared, sprayed and ready to roll.

We’ll now wait about a week for the chemicals to kill off the rest of the vegetation and then it will be time to till up the ground. Once we’ve worked the dirt I’ll be able to work in the neccessary fertilizer and lime, followed soon after by seeding! Hopefully in a matter of weeks I’ll have some fresh green plants popping up and my plans for a succesful 2012 hunting season will be one step closer to fruition!

On a side note – if you’re in Southern Michigan and need help getting your food plots in, call Tyler or Travis Cortright at the following numbers…

Tyler – 517-425-9294   Travis – 517-425-7874

It’s an interesting thing – failure. It can sting. It can poison your thoughts. It can slowly crush your confidence.

But at the same time it can push you to new heights. Force you to look yourself in the mirror. And in the end – make you better.

What’s the difference between these two outcomes? It’s simple really – it’s attitude.

This past Sunday night, I slowly trekked across a freshly planted bean field with a big bag full of turkey decoys over my shoulder and an unpunched tag at the end of my season. Some would say this was a failure – but I am not willing to let that be the case. I may have failed in my ultimate pursuit – the harvest of a turkey. But the successes that occurred along the way to that point were too important to disregard so quickly. I may not have a 10 inch beard and full fan to show off, but I’ve got some damn good stories and a few life long lessons to put in my back pocket to boot.

I won’t lie and say that I don’t get down on myself when I fail – but with a forced attitude adjustment or a refreshed perspective on the situation, I can usually find plenty of silver linings on the cloud. Falling into failure is easy – but taking the effort to examine your attitude – that takes work. I’d be willing to bet you my best slate call though that it’s worth it.

Now how about my past two whitetail hunting seasons? I put in nearly 200 sits, across 5 states – with no antlers on the wall to show for it. But did I really fail? Can you call my first encounter with a 160 class buck in my life a failure? Or how about the fact that I had more close calls with mature bucks this year than ever before. Isn’t that worth something?

Yes – failure can hurt. A mature whitetail flagging away, a poorly hit buck, or an unfilled tag can all leave an unpleasant taste in your mouth and a squelch in your gut. But don’t let that take away from the experiences along the road that led you to where you are today. Failure is a reality – but it isn’t a finality. With the right attitude, any “failure” can be turned into an opportunity. An opportunity to learn, to grow, to face your fears and challenges.  And ultimately to overcome.

So next time when you “fail” in your hunting pursuits, don’t let it keep you down for too long. Pick yourself up, brush the autumn leaves off your shoulder and get back in the proverbial deer stand. Cause life is actually pretty good in the woods and you never know what might be coming down the next trail.

Shoot or don’t shoot. That’s the million dollar question, right? When the moment of truth arrives and the buck steps into your lane, do you slowly squeeze the trigger or do you watch him walk on by.

The answer to that question is very different for every single person, and in many cases for unique reasons. And because of that – I wanted to try something here on Wired To Hunt over the coming months. We’ll post a picture or two of a buck, with a few details – and then you tell us your gut reaction. We’ll post some pics of giants, some on the small end and some that are “tweeners”. Standards for bucks vary widely – and in my opinion there is no right answer. But none the less, the question is still an intriguing one. Shoot or don’t shoot?

Now that being said – a yes or no answer may not tell the whole story, so please post your explanation for your decision in the comments section too!

So today – the Shoot or Don’t shoot decision is for this pictured buck in Northwest Iowa, photographed near the end of October. What would you do? Shoot or don’t shoot?

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

I’m a deer hunter first and foremost- but I really have come to love turkey hunting. And as was demonstrated by our poll last week, it appears that many of you do too! That being said, I had to share a short story form this weekend thats a little more turkey related than we usually are.

My turkey hunting season here in Michigan opens up one week from tomorrow, and over the past week or so I’ve been getting the itch and have started some early preparations. I’ve been shooting the bow, glassing some fields and yelping away on the old slate call. But one of the most rewarding forms of preparation so far has been the work I’ve been doing with trail cameras this spring.

I run trail cams all the time for deer, but this spring I decided to use them to better understand when turkeys were visiting certain areas of my property. I did this by placing cameras in likely locations for action and then sweetened the deal by adding a combination of corn and BB2 in front of the camera. Because in this scenario I’m really only using the BB2 right now as an attractant for the turkeys, I’ve mixed it with corn to help increase the longevity of my BB2 supply. With a two parts corn, one part BB2 mixture I’m being conservative, but am still getting the strong scent and taste that attracts deer and turkeys like crazy.

So far this combination has been working like clockwork, with a boat load of different hens, jakes and toms coming into the camera on a consistent basis. I’ve gotten loads of trail camera videos and pictures, and I’ve now got a good idea of when these locations are prime for the turkeys in my area.

Now as great as this little strategy is – it seems to have backfired a little bit! Yesterday AND today (Sunday) I wanted to sneak out to a back corner of a corn field behind my house and put up a pop up blind. And on both occasions that I snuck out to this location, I’ve popped over a hill to find turkeys everywhere! Yesterday there were four gobblers strutting along my creek and heading towards the camera location. And then again today, I thought I was in the clear – when I got about 50 yards from my planned location for the blind and two toms came strutting out into the field. My blind prep hijacked at the last moment again.

So while my trail camera tactics have certainly been a success in regards to figuring out where the birds are, I now just need a trick to find out when the birds aren’t there, so I can finally get set up!

For more information on Big & J’s BB2 supplement and attractant – visit the Big & J website.

I was greeted last night with a nice surprise as I discovered some great videos on my trail camera, but I was excited for a much different reason than I usually am. It wasn’t the deer I was excited about on this trail camera pull, rather it was the frequent turkey sightings that got my blood boiling! Turkey season is raring across most regions of the US, but here in Michigan we don’t get started til April 23 and I cam chomping at the bit.

As I’ve gotten more into turkey hunting over the past few years, I’ve found it  to be a really great time, a very good excuse to get in the woods during the spring and a good warm-up for deer season come fall. In my opinion turkey hunting can actually help you as a deer hunter in several ways…

1. It Forces You To Get Out In The Woods: It is super important to be out in the woods this time of year, just before the complete overgrowth of greenery that comes with summer erupts. Being out on your property now will allow you to spot sign and do some additional scouting before the plant growth covers up old trails, scrapes and rubs. Be sure to keep an eye out for this kind of sign and in those slow moments do some brainstorming about possible new stand locations or new spots for food plots and other habitat projects.

2. It Sharpens Your Killer Instinct: Any time you’re in the high pressure moment of making a kill shot, it tests your mettle and the more opportunities you have to do this, the more relaxed you’ll become. Hopefully with a couple turkey kills and lots of practice, you’ll have a slightly better handle on your buck fever this fall!

3. Turkey Hunting Can Strengthen Your Decision Making and Strategic Thinking Skills: Again, this is an example of exercising a part of your brain now – that you’ll need again come deer season. Strategically thinking about an animals behavior and how you can take advantage of this knowledge is a key to both deer and turkey hunting success. Assess what you know about the turkeys and habitat on your property, make assumptions based on that information and plan an attack. When it all comes together (which we hope it will), look back at how your decision making process worked out and how you might be able to apply lessons learned to upcoming challenges during deer season!

So all that being said I have two questions for you, the Wired To Hunt Nation. First, I’d be interested to see what percentage of you whitetail freaks actually like to turkey hunt as well?

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Secondly, I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on how how turkey hunting can help you as a deer hunter. Please share your thoughts in the comments section!

Today I want to introduce you all to Hunter Stier, a fellow young whitetail addict hailing from the great white north of Michigan. Last year Hunter had the opportunity to work with one of the most prominent, experienced and respected whitetail biologists in the country, Dr. Grant Woods. And I’m excited for Hunter to share some of his experiences and learnings with the Wired To Hunt Nation over the coming months. Today, Hunter gives us a brief glimpse into some of the most important, but sometimes over-looked, aspects of a successful whitetail management strategy. – MK

I’m a young hunter… trying to learn everything I can about whitetails while being short on money, busy with school, and searching for a career. That being said, I am definitely still eager to learn and experience everything I can related to whitetails.

That brings me to this past year. After watching episodes of GrowingDeer TV with Dr. Grant Woods (a web based show discussing whitetail management and hunting strategies), I decided to email him and ask him a few questions regarding his career.  Through a series of emails and phone conversations, I was blessed with an internship position. I had no idea what to expect when making the long drive from Northern Michigan to Missouri, but I was excited to learn as much as I could about the habitat and whitetail management that Dr. Woods performs on a day-to-day basis.

So now as I look back and after putting in many hours at The Proving Grounds and other properties that Dr. Woods manages, it’s safe to say that I learned a lot about whitetails and their habitat. But there were a few specific aspects of  Dr Woods’ management practices that really caught my attention and I wanted to share those with you today. Those being…

• The importance of setting realistic goals
• Managing for successful hunting
• Predator control
• Managing property year round

Although these ideas may not be considered your typical “key whitetail management topics”, they are characteristics of good management that should not be overlooked. Let me briefly expand on these.

• Setting Realistic Goals:
• It is incredibly important to know that whitetail/habitat management does not yield results overnight. Some management practices may in fact take years to show results. Also, when making a management plan consider your property’s location and set realistic expectations based on that. For example, when setting your goals – be sure to also consider your neighbors’ management goals, local harvest criteria, etc and factor that into what your expectations and plans are.
• Manage for successful hunting:
• Strategically place your food plots, roads, bedding areas etc. for successful hunts – not just for where its convenient.
• When making these placement decisions, think about stand entrances, exits, and wind.
• Consider how your habitat improvements will affect deer movement by creating travel routes and funnels.
• Converting 100% of your property into perfect habitat may make it difficult to get within bow range of a mature buck. Try to find a balance that allows you to not only grow big bucks, but kill them as well.
• Predator control:
• Predators are direct competitors to hunters. It is important that predator populations are controlled on your property to lower the impact they have on your deer herd. Trapping is a very efficient method for removing predators. Aside from helping your deer herd, trapping can also be very rewarding by itself and may even improve your deer hunting skills.
• Property management is year round.
• It is important that you care for your land and deer herd throughout each part year. For example, during hunting season it is easy to neglect management when you are focused on actually hunting. But you can make your time on stand part of your management practice by recording deer sightings, travel routes, browse pressure, etc. Monitoring food abundance throughout the year can also help you assess your properties population capacity to maintain a healthy herd.

Dr. Woods is a veteran whitetail biologist, habitat manager and an all around great guy. I am thankful for his time and was glad to help him this past summer. I certainly learned a lot and hopefully a few of these main lessons can stick with you as well.

On a side note – If any of you young guys have the opportunity to pursue an internship position in a field of interest to you, I would highly recommend it. It was a very nice change to be learning outside with hands-on application rather than being stuck in a lecture hall. Watching Dr. Woods interact with clients and inspect new properties was a learning experience that only exists in a real world setting and cannot be mimicked in a classroom.

- Hunter Stier

For more from Dr. Grant Woods – visit GrowingDeer.TV

Like big sheds? Take a look at this monster. This pic arrived on my phone via a text from a pal, exclaiming that this shed was supposedly found in Iowa recently. Word on the street is that it scores 121″! Now that being said, details are thin and after looking around further online it looks like the rumors are running rampant. Some say this shed was found off a free range whitetail in Western Iowa, while others claim it’s gotta be a pen raised buck.

So I have two questions for you. #1 Do any of you know anything about this shed? If so, we’d love to hear! Please post the latest news in the comments. And #2, do you think this shed is legit? Or just a pen raised buck?

This morning I wanted to share a little “Shed Porn”! On my trip out to Iowa a couple weeks ago, a friend brought out an absolute stud of a shed that he found the year before. It’s just a big main frame 4 point side, but it has triple brows and tons of mass. The picture doesn’t really do the antler justice, but this is one heavy bone that brings the mass out all the way to the end of the main beam. Speaking of mass, as you can see in the picture below, the bases on this antler are stupid. Just about as big around as a pop can, this shed has some incredible mass measurements – and those kickers coming off the base are just sweet. Truly an awesome shed.

Anyone else find a big ole gnarly shed like this yet in 2012?

The power of one. It’s the idea that any one person can make a difference. There’s certainly truth to that – but I think it’s safe to say that we’d also all agree that the power of a group can take that single person’s action to a whole new level. One person can start a movement – but it’s the group that comes of that which really makes big change. This idea can certainly be seen in the whitetail hunting world today, in the form of Quality Deer Management Co-Ops.

A Co-Op is a group of people in a given area, agreeing to adhere to a given set of deer management practices. If you start practicing QDM on your property it will definitely help the deer hunting situation in your area, but if you can get your neighbors involved – the change will be even more noticeable. That’s really what a cooperative is all about. This co-op idea has really turned into a massive movement across the country, as more and more groups of like minded people are starting to manage their deer herds together. The results have been tangible, impressive and exciting to say the least.

That being said – I’ve joined a co-op here in South Central Michigan and I thought I’d share with the W2H Nation a few examples of what a co-op can produce. As most of you know – Michigan does not typically produce the kind of deer you’ve come to expect from states like Iowa, Illinois or Kansas. In fact, I believe the number I saw was that in 2010, over 60% of all bucks harvested in Michigan were year and half olds! That’s poor. Piss poor. But my feelings on that are for another article, another day. The point I’m trying to make here today is that the average deer killed in Michigan is a year and half old – probably a little 4 or 6 pointer. Now as you look at the bucks being taken by members of the Beebe Creek Co-Op, you’ll see that these deer are quite a bit above that average.

And thats the power of a quality deer management co-op. In a relatively “poor” state for big bucks – a group of people can work together to produce better deer, better habitat and better hunting opportunities. I’d say that’s a win-win any way you look at it!

You can learn more about the Beebe Creek Co-op here in Southern Michigan by clicking the link to their website below. And if you’re interested in starting a co-op of your own – check out the following article from the QDMA website! 7 Steps to a Successful Cooperative

Beebe Creek Co-Op

2011 ended up being a pretty great year for our friends over at Reality Driven Pursuits – as they knocked down a handful of dandy midwest bucks this season. As some of you may remember, I hunted down in Nebraska with Chad Searcey of the RDP team several years ag0 and since then I’ve always been excited to hear about each of their successes. This past November, I definitely was thrilled to hear that Brett Lesniak had put the hammer down on a beautiful Missouri buck. And I’m equally thrilled to be able to share his story today! – MK

“The second weekend of the Missouri gun season started out with high hopes as temperatures during the week dropped and buck movement really began to pick up.  But the motivation level of the hunters in our deer camp quickly plummeted as temperatures rose to 70 degrees on Saturday, November  19^th. To make matters worse, the winds were gusting up to 40 mph! The forecast did call for a cold front to move through late in the evening so Chad Searcey and I packed our gear and headed to a piece of property well known for harboring big bucks. Chad and I were hopeful the front would make its way through our area prior to sunset. The property we were going to hunt was the same stand location that RDP teammate Jordan Mathes shot his buck one week earlier. Chad also filmed that hunt, so I was hopeful that his luck behind the camera would continue!

As we slipped into our stand, the winds were howling out of the South…perfect wind for this set up. As Chad slowly climbed up the tree first he looked down and said “buck, buck”. There was a buck and a doe already out in front of the tree stand. Chad determined it wasn’t a shooter and the buck and doe eventually walked out of our sight. We settled into our tree stands and held on tight as the winds rocked the tree making it feel like we were on a carnival ride.

Over the course of the next two hours the winds shifted out of the northwest. The cold front was directly over us and now we were holding on tight to the tree we were in and shivering as neither of us were dressed for the 20 degree temperature drop that had occurred during our sit.  Temperatures were now in the low 50s and the wind chill was even colder.  To make matters worse, the wind was now at our backs. Normally we wouldn’t hunt this stand with a North wind.

Even though we were both cold, we knew this temperature drop was a good thing. As the sun began to set, our anticipation of seeing a buck moving began to rise.  We were both hopeful the Dead Down Wind Evolve 3 would do its job if a buck traveled downwind of us.  At about 5:00 p.m. I looked up and saw a shooter buck appear just from the edges of a dried up pond about 75 yards away.  He was traveling on a trail that passed 12 yards in front of our stand. I looked up at Chad and he had his jacket pulled up over his head because he was so cold! With excitement I told Chad, “BIG BUCK, BIG BUCK COMING!” Chad got the camera ready and the Missouri Monarch, with his nose to the ground, walked to within 12 yards of us. Chad gave me the green light and I squeezed off a round from my .270. It was a perfect double lung shot, and we watched the buck crash a mere 50 yards away.

Because we were so cold, it didn’t take us long to get down out of the tree and make our way towards the buck. As we walked up on the big boy, we noticed he had his head up and was looking at us! Turns out he crashed in a perfect position that made it look like he was still alive! After some intense moments, we concluded that the buck was in fact dead.  After getting back to the lodge we found out Jordan Mathes and Blake Kramer had an encounter with this same buck at 50 yards two weeks earlier from the same stand while archery hunting. Jordan didn’t take the shot because it was so windy during that hunt.

The end of the Missouri gun season was an exciting one for us at Reality Driven Pursuits. You can check out this hunt and Jordan’s on our website at www.realitydrivenpursuits.com  ” – Brett Lesniak