“If you build it, they will come.” As true as this is in the movie “Field of Dreams”, it also applies to our pursuit of deer hunting. Certainly much of the challenge of chasing whitetails is in finding big bucks and chasing them down, but, there is also significant advantage in finding ways to bring bucks to you. In some cases these can be the best ways to stealthily lay ambush to a weary old whitetail. And while most of these strategies require hard work and lots of preparation – they undoubtedly can payoff big come hunting season. So with that in mind, here are 4 ways to start bringing the deer to you!

1. Limit The Options: While not easy, getting within sight of a big buck during hunting season is slightly more attainable a goal than having one actually come within bow range. Getting those bucks to actually come to you isn’t easy, but it doesn’t have to come down to luck. You can achieve this kind of outcome by limiting the options a buck has when traveling through your general area, and by forcing these options to funnel deer within range of your stand. For example, if you’re hunting a field edge – create brush piles along most of the woodline with a few strategic openings near your stand. Or try downing a tree across a popular out of range deer trail and clearing a new detour that comes towards your location. Most deer will take the option of least resistance, and if that option just so happens to be within 40 yards of you – it’s game on.

2. Set The Table: This one may be obvious, but deer love food. Their lives really revolve around eating and if you can provide a nutritious and attractive food source in the form of a food plot, you’ll have deer coming to you.  Now that being said, there are many details that go into creating and hunting a food plot successfully, but that all has been covered in other articles or will be down the road. For now keep this in mind, if you haven’t tried a food plot yet, give it a serious second thought. Even a super small, woodland food plot created by hand can help bring a deer into range. Food plots can help your deer reach their full potential AND increase your chances of harvesting one – I don’t see a lot of downside there.

3. Quench Their Thirst: In addition to eating, deer obviously need water and this is a great need to capatilize on when you want deer coming to you. Especially in areas of limited water or on extra hot days, hunting over a water source can be dynamite. Creating a man made watering hole, or even burying a kiddy pool and filling it occasionally with water can be easily done and is often enough to bring the bucks right to you on those tough hunting hot days.

4. Clear The Path: Not only can you bring deer to you by blocking their alternate routes, but you can also do this by opening up a pathway straight to you. As mentioned before, deer are naturally somewhat lazy – meaning they will take path of least resistance when possible (and safe). There are a number of ways you can create “paths of least resistance” that bring deer right to you. An example of this comes straight from my own experience a couple seasons ago. I was hunting an old pipeline overgrown with cat-tails that connected an open field to a deep swamp. Up to this point deer crossed this pipeline willy nilly or picked their way through the adjoining woods as they headed into the swamp. But I decided to clear a narrow path way through the cattails with a sickle, and within a couple months that small path through the cattails became a deer highway and a heavy rub line that led every deer within 20 yards of my stand.

Have any other good ways of bringing deer to you or do you have additional thoughts on these 4 ideas? Share what you think in the comments section!

 With antlers quickly sprouting, it’s getting to be that time of year that most people haul their trail cameras out of the closet and back into the woods. I’m certainly going to be deploying my full array of trail cams soon, and my goal this year (as is every year) is to have more big buck pictures and less empty frames, blacked out photos or broken cameras! So with that in mind I reached out to my friends at Moultrie to get a better idea of how I can avoid making the mistakes that lead to these problems. Lucky for us, I was sent some great pointers – so read on for the 7 most common trail camera mistakes that you don’t want to make!

In last night’s “Question of the Night” on the Wired To Hunt Facebook Page I asked … “Do you feel that you can accurately age a buck “on the hoof ” ?

The answers we got back ranged from a tentative yes or  clear no, to more tepid answers – such as “fairly close for my local area” or ” I can identify the difference between a shooter or not”. Or my favorite, “its super easy here in michigan, 90% chance they’re 1-1/2″. (haha, shake my head)

That all being said and given other feedback I’ve received - it still seems like a large percentage of folks out there are still completely unaware that they can age bucks on the hoof or feel somewhat skeptical about the accuracy of this aging method.

If you’re looking to try and practice some form of deer management or are just looking for a new challenge, targeting mature bucks should be a goal. And in order to do that, you must be able to determine whether or not a buck is in fact mature before killing it! Spoiler Alert – this is accomplished by aging a buck “on the hoof”.

So with that in mind – I wanted to offer up three quick ways that you can improve your ability to accurately age a buck just from viewing physical characteristics of the deer.

Read on for my 3 steps to more accurately aging bucks on the hoof!

1. Watch “Bear Archery Webisode 11: Aging Bucks on the Hoof”: This video, embedded below, features Kip Adams of the Quality Deer Management Association doing a great job of explaining some of the keys to aging bucks on the hoof. This is the most visual, and easy to understand representation I’ve seen yet of this practice. If you read no further, at least give this a watch and you’re guaranteed to learn something.

2. Buy The “Selective Buck Harvest Poster”: This poster – pictured at the top of this post – details visually and in words the physical characteristics of each different buck age class. It’s an incredibly useful poster that would make for a great addition to any hunting camp, and actually adorns the wall of my office as well! Pick up a copy of this poster, study it before heading out in the field hunting – and you’ll be applying your new found knowledge before you know it. Link to the Selective Buck Harvest Poster

3. Read The Following Expert Articles: Rather than me rattling on about how to age bucks, I’d recommend you head straight to the real experts. The following articles from Dr. David Samuel, Bob Zaiglin and Kip Adams feature some of the most in depth and helpful explanations for properly aging bucks on the hoof. Take 10 minutes and give these pieces a good read.

Aging Bucks On The Hoof Part I – Deer & Deer Hunting 

Aging Bucks On The Hoof – QDMA.com

Do you have any other good resources or tips for aging bucks on the hoof? Please let us know in the comments!

If only one single tip I share with you on food plots this spring sinks into your skull – let it be this one. If you’re going to plant a food plot – you must, I repeat – must, get a soil test done.

In the past, I’ve covered plenty of reasons why you should get a soil test – in fact in an article last year I detailed 4 Reasons Why A Soil Test Should Be On Your Bucket List. It’s definitely worth a read! But today – I want to make a slightly different point. Getting a soil test is easy. It’s simple. It’s fast! If you want a succesful food plot, there really is no good reason not to get one done.

I feel so strongly about this – that I thought I ought to highlight 3 other commonly completed projects that actually take longer and are way more of a pain to get done than a soil test! Read on my friends…

1. Washing The Dishes: I don’t like doing the dishes one bit. But despite my general dislike for it – I still have to do them. It’s about a 10 minute project, but it gets done and it’s done often. On the other hand, getting a soil test is much less “gross” than the dishes AND it can be done in less time! Take a small scoop of dirt from your plot … 1 minute max, and that’s if you operate on the slow side of things. Empty that scoop of dirt into a small bag – another few seconds. Walk back to your home, vehicle, etc and place a stamp on the outside of your package. Write the address of your test facility of choice and place in the mail. Andddd…you’re done.

2. Picking Up Dog Poop In The Yard: This was a task I used to dread as a child. Now – as an “adult”, I’ve found that it can be enjoyed with the use of the full length, single hand operated pooper scooper – accompanied with beverage of choice in other hand. BUT – it’s still not a terribly fun task and it takes 15+ minutes to accomplish when you have a 60 lb lab popping a squat all over your carefully manicured lawn. So if you think bagging up some dirt from your plot is a pain – think of the alternatives. At least it’s not crap!

3. Understanding What She Means By “It’s Fine”: This is a project that may not actually be completeable – so we’ll call this one a trick question. But let’s be honest – no matter how long or how hard you try, you’ll never really know what she means in a particular instance. For example, I ask her – “Honey, is it ok if I go to Iowa for a week and deer hunt?”. She looks at me, narrows her eyes and sharply replies…”It’s fine.” I may not know exactly what she means by that,  but the only thing I can guarantee for sure is that it’s not really “fine”. (Can anyone relate? haha) On the other hand, a soil test is simple and easy to understand. You send it away and it comes back with clear and concise answers. As an added bonus, it will never bite your head off. I promise.

So there you have it. If you thought a soil test was bad, I’ve now pointed out 3 other projects that you probably take on, that are both more time consuming and more painful. So what are you waiting for?

Go take care of the soil test, plant a killer food plot and bag the buck of a lifetime. Feel free to thank me later!

1. Minerals benefit deer health and antler growth (we think): There is no verified research with free ranging whitetails that proves that supplemental minerals improve whitetail health or antler production. BUT – there is plenty of anecdotal evidence and theory that makes most biologists and experts believe that there is some positive effect on whitetails when minerals are provided. There certainly doesn’t seem to be a downside, so in most cases it’s recommended if you have the luxury and resources available to supply additional minerals.

In addition – basic biology of whitetail antlers suggests that there should be some kind of correlation between mineral availability and antler production. According to a QDMA article by Brad Howard and QDMA CEO Brian Murphy, “A University of Georgia study (Miller et al. 1985) detected 11 different minerals in the whitetail’s antlers. In addition to calcium (19.01 percent) and phosphorous (10.13 percent), the next two most common elements reported in the Georgia study were magnesium (1.09 percent) and sodium (0.50 percent). Lesser amounts of other minerals were found including potassium, barium, iron, aluminum, zinc, strontium, and manganese….Clearly minerals are important in antler development. Because of the large quantities of minerals required for antler growth, whitetails actually deposit calcium and phosphorous in their skeletons prior to the onset of antler growth and then transfer these minerals during active growth (Stephenson and Brown 1984). However, these body sources of calcium and phosphorous provide only a portion of that needed for optimum antler growth. The remainder must come directly from their diet while their antlers are actively growing. Therefore, supplementation of these minerals prior to and during antler growth may be beneficial.”

Long story short – while it hasn’t be proven yet, given the fact that we know minerals are important to antler development – it makes sense that increasing their availability for a whitetail herd is a good thing.

2. Calcium, phosphorus and sodium are key:  Calcium and Phosphorus are the two most prevalent minerals in antlers, so it makes sense that these two minerals should be included in any supplement you provide. The next most important item is salt – mostly because salt is the major attractor for deer. When considering a supplement to use, these key minerals should be focused on. According to that same QDMA article, there are a few key points to remember when considering mineral supplement composition… “The first is the calcium to phosphorus ratio. The mix should contain as much of these minerals as possible while containing enough salt to encourage use by deer. In general, there should be at least 1.5–2.0 times as much calcium as phosphorus. This is the approximate ratio of these minerals in mature antlers.”

That being said, trace minerals (all those other minerals in small amounts above) are important too – and in some cases could be the minerals that whitetails are lacking the most in their habitat. So be sure to find a supplement that contains these as well. According to a Grant Woods article – Trophy Rock contains some 60+ trace minerals and is a great option, along with other supplements such as Whitetail Institute’s 30-06.

3. Mineral sites attract deer: This probably goes without saying, but it’s worth mentioning again. Mineral sites are tremendous attractants for whitetails, especially during the spring and summer months. Put a couple out, throw a trail camera or two up and you will be sure to get some great pictures. Regardless of the nutritional impact, mineral sites are a great way to draw deer into a location for trail cameras. Theres no debate about that.

4. Minerals are only one part of the equation: Minerals or any other supplement for that matter are only one small part of the equation for those looking to improve the health and quality of your deer herd. I believe it was put best in a chapter of the book “Quality Whitetails: The Why and How of Quality Deer Management”

“Even if it ultimately proves beneficial, mineral supplementation is only one of several important factors (including age structure, genetic quality, population density, and food quality) that must be managed to produce a quality herd. Assuming all these variables are optimized, mineral supplementation may be the final factor that boosts antler quality from good to superior”

For more information on mineral supplementation for deer – check out the following articles…

Mineral Supplementation: Necessary or Nevermind?

Which Minerals To Provide for Whitetails

Todays food plot tip of the day is focused on the food plot gem of the north – brassicas. These tasty broad leafed wonders are food plot gold come late fall, and can be in many cases an ideal hunting plot choice. But before I get too deeply into my own thoughts on Brassicas, I wanted to share some helpful words of wisdom from Neil Dougherty of North Country Whitetails. In his article “Knowledge for North Food Plots” he stated the following…

“Brassicas — a general term that describes turnips and kale — are the secret weapon for northern deer managers…In very good growing conditions brassicas can grow waist high. Many varieties are 34 to 38 percent crude protein with a very high moisture content and 80 percent digestible….Generally, brassica varieties speed up the sweetening process after the first heavy frost, which dramatically increases late season usage. This late season trigger is perfect for northern deer managers.

Ideally, deer can work clover and chicory all spring and summer. As cold weather approaches, clover and chicory slow their growth, providing less forage. The cold weather will help finalize the sugar cycle in brassicas, providing a dynamite fall attractant and winter food source. Brassica plants stay green and upright during cold weather until consumed by deer, or until they breakdown in spring.”

Neil said it well when he described brassicas as the secret weapon for northern deer managers. Why are they such a great option? Well in short – it’s for two main reasons…

1. They provide great protein and are highly attractive to deer

2. They are most attractive to deer during the fall/winter season, while not being so desired in spring/summer that they get thinned out before hunting season.

By having a prime food source that is still available during the hunting season (when many foods aren’t), you’ll almost certainly have a whitetail hot spot on your property. Making it a great asset to the health of your deer AND to the success of your hunts. As the title stated, brassicas planted in the spring can definitely pay off big come fall.

In the past I’ve tried a variety of different brassicas, including those found in Whitetail Institute’s No-Plow, Tall Tine Turnips, and Winter Greens. There are plenty of other options out there as well (Biologic Maximum, Frigid Forage Big n Beasty, rape, kale, turnips, etc) but these three have worked like a charm for me so far. In fact I’ve got two acres planned right now for Winter Greens to be planted soon!

If you’re interested in reading more on this topic from Neil Dougherty check out the North Country Whitetails website . And to try some brassicas for yourself, head to the Whitetail Institute of North America’s website for details and planting instructions!

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

Today’s food plot tip of the day comes from “Hunting Mature Whitetails the Lakosky Way”, the recent book published by Lee & Tiffany Lakosky. Within a section focused on planting and maintaing food plots, the Lakosky’s make a simple, but incredibly important point about the food plots you want to hunt come this fall. It’s a point that’s relevant both for hunting season AND for your planning this spring.

Food Plot Tip of the Day – Killing Fields

“Normally, the smaller plots that we call our killing fields are very secluded by design, and they’re the ones we really try to focus on for hunting during early bow season. They’re always tucked into the timber somewhere, never close to roads and never within sight of any road.”

Simple, right? Their “killing plots” or “killing fields” are secluded, tucked away and out of sight. But unfortunately these points are often forgotten, as hunters excitedly plant as big a food plot as possible and then hunt the hell out of it. Are you really achieving much with this? Most likely not. Most mature deer will be visiting a large food source like this after dark, and after a couple hunts, any deer  that have been visiting in daylight will change their patterns.

To avoid this mistake, plan your killing plots different than your feeding plots. As mentioned in the above quote, precisely map out areas for your killing plots that are small, secluded and strateically placed to intercept deer during daylight hours. If you start looking at your food plots as either kill plots or feed plots, and then approach them accordingly – you’ll begin to see much better results from your food plotting efforts.

If you’re interested in more details on proper planning of kill plots – check out the video below from QDMA Director of Education & Outreach, Kip Adams.

With spring food plot season pretty much upon us, I thought I’d start featuring a series of short and to the point “food plot tip” articles on the blog. I intend to pull most of these tips from various books, magazines and resources featuring expert strategies and opinions of food plotting and then add my own 2 cents!

That being said, today’s tip comes from “Quality Food Plots”, which is in my opinion the most comprehensive and helpful book devoted just to food plots for whitetail deer.

Food Plot Tip of the Day – Producing Food Plots That Maximize Body Growth and Fawn Recruitment

“Most food plot programs are designed with the intent of enhancing antler size, body growth and fawn recruitment. If this is the objective, you must have an integrated, year-round food plot program incorporating both cool-season and warm-season forages. Care should be taken to provide a variety of high-quality forages that peak in production and attractiveness during different seasons.” – Quality Food Plots

The key here is that if you want to produce healthier deer that can reach their full potential, you’ll need to provide year-round forage. With a strategic eye on this goal, you can easily set a food plot plan in place that can achieve this objective. Make sure you have different food sources that can both thrive AND be attractive and nutritious to deer throughout the various seasons. Reference a manual such as “Quality Food Plots” or various online resources to better understand when certain forages can grow and when they are most palatable to deer. Soy Beans for example can start growing in the late spring, and can almost immediately start providing great protein for your deer herd. The beans will remain a terrific food source til late summer/early fall when those beans will turn – and the deer will move to a different food source. This is one of those gaps that you’ll need to plan for, and have a second food source available such as a clover for the deer to move on to. Later in the winter, with those beans still standing, deer can return to them for a great late season snack.

Develop a calendar and map out when each of your food sources should become available, and when each should be preferred by deer. With this clearly laid out, it should help you identify weak spots that need some help and you can then plan to provide a future food plot to shore up that weakness! If you really want to grow larger and healthier deer you can’t just plant an attractive food source to hunt over in the fall. Keep the year round needs of a whitetail in mind and you’ll be well on your way to producing a food plot program that can truly make a difference!

For more great food plot information, I’d highly recommend picking up a copy of Quality Food Plots from the Quality Deer Management Association. You’ll also find some very helpful tips in the online versions of Whitetail Institute’s “Whitetail News” magazine, available here.

With April just about here, the prime time of shed season is starting to wrap up for most whitetail hunters across the country. Looking back on the last couple months, myself and the Wired To Hunt team have been pretty successful. Shed hunting across Michigan and Iowa we found a decent number of antlers and some big ones to boot!

That being said, I always like to try and learn something from each antler that I or a friend find. An easy way to do that is to just take a second to examine how the shed laid when you found it. I’ll sometimes just take a minute to check each antler out from different angles and distances. Practicing looking for sheds in this way can help you spot sheds in the future, by helping you focus on the little things. A white glimmer above the leaves, the tip of a tine poking above a log. Very rarely will you spot a huge antler just sitting there, rather you’ve got to be looking for a piece of antler or just a tine.

So with that in mind, I thought I’d share some pictures of sheds we found this spring as they lay. Take a look at how they lay, and think about how you might have spotted them. Maybe this will be able to help you just a bit next spring – and if not, at least you get to check out some nice antlers!

The shed at the very top of this post was found in the bottom of a valley, near a creek. While this shed just above was found on a south facing slope – in a perfect little bedding area.

This shed was found on a south facing slope as well, in a grassy area which surely caught a lot of sun on those cool late winter/early spring days. Again – a nice bedding area.

This great match set was found partially buried under dirt in a grassy section bordering a corn field. Here you’ve got a perfect combination of a food source, and nearby bedding. These types of areas can be shed hot spots.

I found this shed in a fresh bed, deep in a block of timber.

Here is a great example of shed that would never be found if you were looking for a full antler – in this case just the pedicle was showing!

The next two sheds were found in or near bedding areas as well – no big surprise, as these bedding areas are frequent shed dump zones!