Blog

Offseason Preparation leads to Seasonal Success

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 17:07:00 -0500

The weather has been perfect the last 2 days here in Michigan! Mid 30's, sunny, and no wind; a pleasant change from the grey drearyness that envelops us for the better part of 5 months.

How did I choose to spend these beautiful days? In the woods with a chainsaw of course!!!

Now is the perfect time to hit the woods and clear those overgrown trails and shooting lanes. It's also a great time to scout and prep new stands, hinge cut, create funnels and bedding areas, as well as hunt for sheds. Deer will have long forgotten your intrusion and will have plenty of time to become accustomed to the changes you've made before hunting begins.

I personally readied 5 new stands for fall, doing everything except place treesteps into the tree.

One of the first steps to becoming a serious hunter is to realize that deer season never ends.

Get your scouting and prep done now! It's a whole lot nicer to work in a 35 degree frozen environment than it is to slave away in a 80 degree buggy jungle.

I absolutely love offseason prep and cannot wait to capitalize in the fall!!!!

G5 Outdoors - T3 Expandable Broadhead - ATA Show 2010

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 12:15:00 -0500

New for 2010 G5 Outdoors is introducing a the T3 expandable broadhead. For all those hunters who like the Tekan you sould also like the T3. The technology is very similar but it's a 3 bladed broadhead. Here are the specs on the broadhead.

100 strong stainless steal
Spider Clip Technology
1 1/2" curring diameter
Rear blade deployment
Field point profile when closed
100 grains

What I noticed was the tip had a very different design then the Tekan. Instead of a big scary tip it carried a smaller profile. The spider clip technology allows you to fine tune your blade deployment. I could see this very useful for lower lbs bows or super fast. I didn't have much time to talk to them about the spider clips but will learn more. I like the design and can't wait to try them out this year. It's a great addition for those hunters who prefer a 3 blade expandable over the 2 blade.

2010 ATA Show (Archery Trade Association)

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 12:20:00 -0500

I am excited to be attending the 2010 Archery Trade Association Show (ATA.) This show will give us a preview of the exciting new products that are going to be available in the upcoming season. With so many exciting new products I will be giving you a look inside the archery business. This will help you make decisions on what archery products will be hitting the market. I will also be working closely with Ohio Valley Times do some product spotlights. So what is going to be the next new product that will help you become a better hunter? Look for more in the upcoming weeks.

Ohio Muzzleloader Season - Sweeping Away the Winter Blues

Sat, 09 Jan 2010 21:00:00 -0500

It’s January 9th and most Michigan hunters have packed away the guns, bows, and hunting gear. The season is over and very few hunters are out scouting. But for the past week I have been anticipating another late season hunt. Just today I crossed the state line to chase after whitetails. For the past week I have been day dreaming, planning, and counting the hours to the weekends hunt.

I can’t tell you why I was so excited to hunt. I wasn’t going to great property that had big bucks roaming. I was freelancing into some very heavily hunted state land that has very low deer densities. It’s not uncommon to hunt for days without seeing a deer. Today was a different day, it wasn’t bout chasing big horns or even meat for the freezer. The hunt was about the anticipation, hunting with my brother, and taking on 10 degree weather.

A blanket of snow covered the ground making is very easy to see. The pine groves I hunted had very few tracks crossing them. But even with more human tracks crossing the woods then deer, my hopes were high. This new spot was very cool looking but I think the snow helped. And the winter blues have been swept away for another week. That is until I attempt again to chase bucks with my bow. That’s were the challenge really begins. Packing on enough cloths to stay warm yet thin enough to bow hunt.

Anyone enduring the bitterly winter cold comes to realize the great outdoors is the ultimate cure for the winter blues. If you’re still out, good luck.

December 2009 eNewsletter is avalable!

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0500

2009, A year to remember…Happy New Year. The December edition of Strictly Whitetails is available. I have brought you another packed edition to recap the deer season. You don’t want to miss out on many of the thrilling stories in this eNewsletter. Congratulations to our winner for the “2009 Deer Season Contest.”

*Todd Baker – Best Photo

*Fabian and Valerie Suarez – Best Story & Photo

*Tom Theisen – Funniest Picture

The prize packs are being mailed to these members. Congratulations on the successful season and great photo’s.

Because the file is rather large to download I have made two editions available a high resolution and low resolution. Select the low resolution version if you’ve had a slower internet speed.

Inside this edition: Field Notes December 2009

1. 2009 A Season to Remember

2. Val’s Opening Day 7 pointer (Best Story Winner)

3. Big changes for the DNR

4. Long Range for Long Beards

5. State Land Muzzleloading

6. Whitetails across state lines

7. Red neck photo of the year

If you haven’t sent in your picture email it to me. Good luck, I can't wait to start seeing ice fishing pictures.

brian.miller@strictlywhitetails.com

Late Season Hunting - Boom or Bust

Sun, 27 Dec 2009 22:27:00 -0500

Late season hunting in Michigan is often tough business. Recently a friend told me “putting down any antlers in Michigan is nearly impossible.” So why is it that I find the burning inner feeling to hunt like it was the rut? Is it the clock ticking away telling me there are only five days of the season left? Or it is a false sense of optimism? Or maybe it is just a get away from the crazy holiday schedule? Whatever, it doesn’t matter.

The late season has always been a miserable time for me to hunt. I finally realized that I don’t dislike the late season I dislike the cold. But with proper gear the cold become easier to tolerate. Two years ago I forgot my hunting jacket during an out of state hunt. And of course the mercury dropped to nearly zero with 25 mph winds blowing through me. Since then I have upgraded. No more cotton t-shirts and sweet shirts. I have been using Under Armour base layers and Arctic Shield Outer Gear. And the outer gear I had on was not the stuff rated for cold weather, it was the H4 series. This super thin gear kept me warm.

In tonight blistery 25 degree weather and snow blowing sideways I was toasty. The only part of me that was cold were my hands. And that’s my fault for not wearing proper gloves.

Tonight was a success. I spent some time reflecting on the past season. Thinking about the past rut, bucks that came and went. The weather was beautiful, snow falling while I sat over an amazing spot. But like many late season hunts nothing came out of the thicket. Not even the morsels of corn left in the field could entice the hungry bellies.

Only a few days left in the season. Get out one last time to kill the late season blues, it’s a long wait until next October.

State Land Success

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 09:54:00 -0500

Who says there aren’t any deer on State Land during the late season? This weekend’s deer drive was very successful. Actually it was only Connie and I trying to pull off a 2 person drive. I dropped her off in the perfect funnel and planned on driving the brush to push any deer right past her. But before we even got setup 3 does busted through the funnel. No shot. Then while walking back past the thicket (only 1 minute after leaving Connie) I saw several deer stand up in the thicket. I quickly pulled up my muzzleloader, off the shoulder took this nice doe at 50 yards. She was facing me and I dropped her in the tracks. Awesome.

Then the work began. Of course we had to drag this one nearly a mile through some nasty stuff to get her to the nearest road. Not bad for an afternoon hunt. None of this would have been possible if my friend Connie. She was the one who kick me in the butt to go hunting on a snowy Saturday afternoon. Usually on deer drives the poster gets the opportunity. This time the driver ended up pulling the trigger. What a blast.

Mature Bucks On Their Feet Again

Sat, 12 Dec 2009 19:12:00 -0500

As snow and ice are in the forecast we’re officially in the late portion of the hunting season. The rut is just a memory but that doesn’t mean all is lost. The late season is still a great time of year to score on a mature buck. In the past two days most of the Strictly Whitetails hunting team has spotted bucks feeding during shooting light. That is music to my ears.

Now is not the time to hunt rutty funnels. Think recovery and food. Most deer will be bedding near the best available food source. This is the time of year that evening hunts are the ticket. With the amount of standing corn left it shouldn’t be hard to locate some hearty corn to hunt. And don’t be afraid to hunt right on the cornfield.

There are two big tickets in weather during the late season. The first is a winter weather front. Getting on the front side of a front in the late season can pay off big time. Second is a warming front. Tonight was one of those. You will see a spike in activity the first few warmer days after a few bitterly cold days. Deer metabolism speeds back up driving them to fill their bellies.

Don’t think the late season is easy; it’s not. But every year about 7-10 days after the shotguns stop booming bucks get their feet back. This time around you’re dealing with a smarter buck. They have been chased, shot at and harassed for 2.5 months. Any deer still alive was smart enough to stay alive for one or more seasons. One mistake now will cause him to abandon ship.

One to go

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 08:59:00 -0500

4 does down, 1 to go.

I have to say I've had a blast this season, and a huge reason has been doe harvests. I'm fortunate enough (or unfortunate enough, depeding on your management perspective) to hunt areas with a great deal of does. The last few years I've been filling as many tags as I can and encouraging my hunting partners to follow suit, and I have actually noticed a balancing buck to doe ratio as a result. The balanced ratio has made the bucks on my properties much more responsive to calling tactics, which provides me with more opportunities and sightings.

I took this gal in Washtenaw County, on a property I hadn't stepped foot on since Nov 15th. I saw 10 different deer in less than 2 hours of hunting. No pressure equals relaxed deer. Relaxed deer equals a full freezer!

There is still 3 more weeks of season to be had, so good luck to those still in pursuit!

Cornfields Coming Down

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 21:54:00 -0500

Spending the weekend driving from family to family gave me plenty of time to see the countryside. The one common theme was that the many cornfields were being harvested. Whether it’s the long weekend or finally a break in the wet weather the farmers are picking. And in the midst on the many miles I saw one hunter who put together a plan. He was hunting just inside a woodlot while the farmer was picking the large cornfield in front of him. What a smart hunter, using the combine to be his pushers. Anytime a cornfield is being picked it’s a great idea to hunt, whether it’s gun or bow season. With only three days of Michigan gun season left it’s time to fill those open doe tags or make a last ditch effort on the buck you’ve been chasing all year.