EP218.5 My 3 Tips For Early Season Deer Hunting Success – Buck Down!

The early season has several distinct advantages that can help you find quick success in the deer woods. Too many people look to luck when they should be looking to preparation. On this episode I talk about three tips that helped me shoot my buck during this deer hunting season. 

All of these tips can be summarized in one word, preparation. Once you get into your tree stand or hunting blind, the vast majority of factors that can contribute to your success are behind you.  Yes, you still need to do many things well to be quiet, still, smart, judge distance, take good shots, etc. But those things can only happen if deer have a reason to get within range of you.

Preparation is the unfair advantage that often makes the difference between seeing nothing and consistent success.

Listen to this episode for the three tips that helped me land my early season buck this year. Photo below.

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EP218 Deer Hunting More vs. Deer Hunting Smarter

Everyone would rather hunt deer smarter vs. harder, but the big question is not that, it is to hunt smarter vs. hunting more. And that choice is not as easy of a choice for everyone to make. Some want to be successful as soon as possible, tag out, and be done for the season. Others want to hunt all season long. Either is fine, and both could be done smartly, but often that is not the case.

  • Hunting smarter involves putting yourself in a position to take deer regularly, it involves strategy, scouting, timing, and terrain.
  • Hunting more or longer is often a result of one of 3 things, looking for the biggest deer possible, not hunting smart, or bad luck.
  • Hunting smarter not only results in more chances to take game, but being more ready when the opportunity comes.
  • You can have the best of both, because there is more than deer in the woods to hunt. You can tag out early and then go after other game. 
  • No one should ever feel like being successful early takes you out of the woods, it should just shift what you are hunting for.
  • Listen to the episode to hear it all!

EP217 What Makes A Call Sound Good To Ducks

So much goes into a duck call, but what makes it sound good to ducks? On this episode I interview a duck call maker, hunter, musician and fellow podcaster to better understand what goes into a duck call, what really matters in the field, and how you can navigate the marketing clutter to find a duck call that is right for you.

The main goal of a duck call is to sound like a duck. It’s that simple. But most duck calls are judged by how well hunters can play them as musicians. Duck calling competitions are marvels of skill and experience, but they often sound far from what a real duck is like.

Sometimes real ducks make calls that hunters would consider quite lousy but that is because our perception can be skewed. There is another truth though that sometimes ducks do respond well to sounds that real ducks just do not make. Be it instinct or curiosity, you can have some success hunting ducks with calling sounds or sequences that do not exist in nature.

But for the new hunter, duck calling can be a rather simple affair. The goal of this episode is to talk through some of the feature and marketing of duck calls to help you discern what kinds of calls are right for you and what is worth spending your money on.

Riley is not a sponsor and I get no kickbacks, but at my request he agreed to give a 10% discount to all New Hunters Guide listeners. Just go to his website https://rylohgamecalls.com and use the code nhgcast at checkout for the 10% discount.

EP216 How To Pick A Choke Tube For Duck Hunting

Every duck hunter needs a choke tube, and it is only a matter of time before you become obsessed with finding the best one. But it doesn’t need to be that complicated or intense. On this episode I talk about the basics of finding the right choke tube and I share some high-level research-based insights.

Almost all shotguns have changeable choke tubes these days. What not many people are willing to admit is that most of them will do the job just fine for hunting ducks at regular distances of 30 yards. But there are some gains to be made with finding higher quality chokes and matching them to the distance you take shots at.

Some chokes are made for certain types of shells, and some are made for specific shells themselves. My research hasn’t proven either way if they really can engineer chokes better for a specific shell, but you can count on choke manufactures having tested those shells heavily so the risk of the choke not performing with them is minimal.

Do aftermarket choke tubes improve performance? According to my firsthand field testing, they absolutely do, with some guns and some stock chokes. Stock recessed or flush chokes can often be replaced with extended aftermarket chokes for improved performance. But many of the high-end shotguns come with stock chokes just as good as aftermarket ones. 

People are obsessed with tighter and tighter patterns these days, and that sounds good, and it’s easy to get caught up in the hype. But we want to eat our ducks, and blasting them to shreds is not better. Ultimately you want a pattern that helps you consistently and reliably get clean kills so the birds do not suffer and are not lost, but not so tight that it destroys all edible portions of the bird. 

Listen to the podcast episode for all the details!

EP215 How & Why To Hunt Deer In September

September can be the best month to hunt deer, depending on your land and preferences. On this episode I talk about why you would want to hunt the early archery season and how to do it effectively.

Reasons to hunt the earliest part of the season:

  • The deer have not yet been pressured; they are in their most natural habits.
  • It is warmer, so you need less gear and less budget.
  • Ground hunting is more feasible due to more available cover, which can be a cheaper way to hunt.
  • Deer are more active during the day because there is more daylight and fewer dark hours.
  • You can get into the woods after work and still have daylight to hunt.
  • Deer are likely to have not shifted to their fall and winter patterns yet, so summer scouting can pay off immediately.
  • Bucks are often still traveling in bachelor groups, multiplying potential opportunities.
  • No deer have been shot yet, giving you a chance at every buck alive that season.
  • You can tag out early to make time for hunting other things later in the season.

Listen to the episode to hear about HOW you can hunt effectively in September.

 

EP214 How Much Does Shot Placement Matter For Deer Hunting?

Shot placement is part of a deer hunter’s choice and preference to a large degree, but there are shots that are definitely more effective than others, and more ethical. On this episode I talk about not just where you can shoot a deer, but where you should in order to minimize suffering and have a quick, clean, easily recoverable kill.

Here are 6 of the different shot placement philosophies:

  1. Meat Hunter: Attempts to save as much meat as possible by shooting the deer in the head or neck.
  2. Opportunist: Will shoot at any vital area presented to take the deer home at any cost.
  3. Sketchy Hunter: Will shoot at any brown fur they see, and likely to take few deer home. This is also largely unsafe on often illegal.
  4. Heart Shooter: Aims for the heart to the kill the deer as quickly and painlessly as possible while preservice the head and neck.
  5. Traditionalist: Attempts to shoot through the largest vital area, both lungs, to produce the most consistent kills.
  6. Disabler: Tries to shoot through both shoulders so the deer is unable to run to escape.

Listen to the episode to hear the pros and cons for each shot style and which are the most effective and most ethical.

EP213 How To Get All Your Duck Hunting Gear To Your Spot

Duck hunting is a gear intensive sport and getting that gear to the field is a hurdle that every hunter needs to navigate. On this episode I talk about 5 different levels of gear and the main options for getting your equipment into the field for each. I also highlight different ways of hunting and moving gear which should help inform new and experienced hunters alike. 

  1. Extra Heavy Gear Hunting – Gear at this level either needs left in the field or brought in by vehicle, it is beyond what the hunters can bring into the woods under their own power. When you see hundreds of duck decoys, or large goose spreads, this is the only option.
  2. Heavy Gear Hunting – This is the upper range of what individuals can somehow lug to their hunting spot. Often they are using multiple jet sleds, farm carts, or boats to get it in.
  3. Medium Gear Hunting – What the average hunter is able to bring into the wood solo, or what a group can bring in without great effort. The is what most hunters are doing. This often involves what can practically be taken in on a single sled or cart. 
  4. Light Gear Hunting – What the average hunter can carry on their back without any mechanical aid. This usually consists 6-12 decoys and only the bare essentials. You would most often hunt this way if you have to cover a lot of ground, 
  5. Little to No Gear Hunting – This is for hunting on foot, moving throughout the day, usually with 0-2 decoys. This will enable you to go deep into the woods and access locations you could not get to laden down with gear. 

Most Common Tools Used

  • Jet Sled – These are heavy duty, super durable sleds designed for farm work and other rigorous activities. They can be used to drag or float hundreds of pounds of gear across just about anything at any time of year. 
  • Farm Cart – These wide wheelbase carts can make it possible to transport excessive weight with ease, as long as it is across relatively even surfaces. 
  • Open Top Kayak – Almost nothing is going to be easier than paddling into a location and floating your heavy gear in, provided of course you have the water, locations, vehicles, and equipment needed to make this option work. 

Listen to the episode to hear the options for bringing the gear for each level into the woods.

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