EP317 How To Age Deer While Hunting

Can you age deer that are walking in front of you while hunting? How do you age deer that are up on the move or down on the ground? On this episode I tackle these questions, but I also address the much larger question of SHOULD YOU try to age deer at all.

Trying to age deer has been picking up speed and gaining momentum as of late. People want to know how old their deer are and use that information to affect their decision to shoot or pass in favor of another opportunity at that deer next year. There are three things that are very wrong with this line of thinking.

First, deer biologists tend to have a less than 20% accuracy rating when it comes to aging deer. If the pros can’t do it well, hunters don’t stand much of a chance. After year two, this becomes very difficult, to the point of it not even being worth trying to get an exact number of years for a deer living or dead.

Second, the age of deer is just one more mostly irrelevant variable that causes hunters to overanalyze a situation, likely causing more missed opportunities due to analysis paralysis. Hunters need to evaluate a very short list of variables before taking a shot, such as, is the deer legal, is it large enough to be worth what it costs to butcher it, is it a deer I would like to shoot, is it close enough and at a feasible angle. Then they need to setup and take a shot before they lose their opportunity.

Third, the idea of getting another shot at the deer in the future is an utter fallacy in all but some fantasy land states and enormous ranches. You must assume the deer will be shot by someone else by the end of the day, and you must be ok with that, knowing you want and can reasonably expect to harvest a deer that is better. If you feel bad when you find out another hunter shot the deer that evening because you hoped to shoot it next year, you are out of touch with reality and are not weighing your opportunities effectively.

So, the bottom line is, there are some ways to judge whether or not a deer is mature and viable for shooting that I discuss in the podcast episode. However, generally speaking, the age of the deer does not matter and should not even be thought about. Instead focus on the more important points and make fast decisive decisions that provide you with the time and confidence to take an action you will be happy about after the fact.

EP316 Pros & Cons of Tree Saddles

Should you be using a tree saddle? Is it really better than hunting out of a deer stand? On this episode I talk about the pros and cons of tree saddles and address the specific situations where tree saddles are indeed the best option, when they are an equal option, and when they are not the best option. 

Tree saddles provide unique flexibility and functionality compared to climbing stands and sometimes hang on stands. They enable people to hunt new locations and single attempt locations easier than any other in-tree option.  This is a big benefit to public land hunters and some private land hunters with a lot of acres available. They are both comfortable and light weight, enabling you to cover a lot of distance much easier than with other options.

This has caused tree saddles to gain a lot of popularity and use among celebrity hunters. However, they are not always the best option for hunting in a tree. In fact, usually they are not. Most hunters simply do not hunt like this. Most tree born hunters spend a lot of time scouting, studying how deer use an area, improving the area for deer movement, adding attractions, and picking a very strategic tree that they hope to use for years, maybe even generations to come. Tree saddles do not shine in this situation, in fact they take more work and effort than a long-term dedicated stand.

So, deer hunters with perennial spots and stand locations do not gain anything from tree saddles, generally speaking. The hunters that do benefit are the ones going deep into public land or hard to access private land, those changing spots mid-season, or perhaps just hunting a place once. This is not an insignificant number of hunters, but looking at the big picture, the majority of hunters gain nothing from saddles. But those who do benefit greatly tend to be very vocal and hold some of the loudest microphones in the industry.

So never accept the next hunting fad without evaluating the merits, especially when all the famous people jump quickly on the bandwagon. Yes, saddles are outstanding for some hunters, but for many they are not the best tool for the job. Are they right for you?

Listen to this whole podcast episode to hear about their pros and cons and when they may be a good fit for you and your hunting situation.

EP315 How To Start Hunting Deer From Level Zero

How can you start hunting deer from scratch? In this overview episode I take you from wanting to hunt, all the way to how to cook your meat. This is a beginner’s overview of the entire process, but I do point you to all of the in-depth resources you need to be successful!

The first and biggest thing you need to start hunting is a desire to do it. You need to have some level of push to jump in and keep on going until you are successful. Someone else wanting you to hunt isn’t enough. You need to want to do it yourself, at least to some extent. Hopefully that desire will grow the further you get.

Then you need to take your hunters safety course. This will NOT teach you how to hunt whitetail deer or anything else. It will teach you how to be safe in the woods. I recommend doing this live and in person so you can meet people and potentially build relationships and do some networking. This will also help ensure you finish the class, because it can be easy to not finish the online course. After this you need to buy your first hunting license, decide what you are going to hunt first, and get your tags for does or whatever else. 

Then comes the expensive part. You need to get a gun, gear, and anything else you will need to hunt deer. I have done lots of podcast episodes on this subject, but in short, I recommend you focus on using whatever you have, can borrow, or buy cheap to get started. You need to hunt a little bit before you are able to determine what kind of gear is a good match for you and your style, and the average weather.

The cheaper you can get started the better it will be financially for you in the long run. Else you may spend a lot of money buying expensive gear that you end up not liking because you didn’t know what you were doing when you bought it.

Then you need to find a place to hunt, either on public or private land, and begin scouting to find a good spot sit and hunt. I recommend you pick out two or three good spots, so you are able to hunt different wind directions, and in case one of the spots has no deer activity come the season, or in case someone else gets there first and takes your spot.

Then you need to be ready to field dress the deer when you do get one and have a plan to butcher and mount the deer if you want to do that. For your first year or couple of years I recommend you find a good butcher to take the deer to. Learning to process your own deer while also learning all these other things can be a lot of work and it’s not something I think you need to pile on your first year.

Check out all my deer hunting podcast episodes to go deeper in all these areas. You can also find more info in this in-depth article I wrote: How To Start Hunting As An Adult.

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