Winning the Lottery Vs. Effort

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

 

 

For most hunters, hunting big bucks is like buying lottery tickets. If I just buy enough tickets, sooner or later, I’ll win.

However, for most hunters success is directly related to effort. Not all the time, but much more than most people realize. Harder working, better informed, and smarter hunters do better than other people, most of the time.

It’s possible your efforts won’t be sufficient and you continue to need better luck. But it’s a lot more likely that you’ll get lucky if you put in the effort.

 -Jim

http://jimcollyer.com/

Receiving Vs. Taking

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

 

 

Most hunters wait for someone to give them the knowledge of where and how to hunt whitetail deer.

A few hunters – not very many – take.

They take advantage of the off-season. They take the opportunity to explore new niches. They take the time to learn more about the deer in their area. They find things to do which can improve their hunting.

What have you taken today?

-Jim

http://jimcollyer.com/

Sweet-Spot Hunting

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

 

 

There are reasons why big bucks inhabit certain areas.

If you harvest a big buck, there’s reason to believe another big buck will fill that void next season.

The same factors that attracted the first buck will more than likely attract another.

-Jim

http://jimcollyer.com/

Secrets To Cooking Killer Venison

As a free gift to all of our email subscribers, Havalon is offering a free e-book featuring the complete Step by Step process to preparing the best venison you have ever eaten.

Learn from the experts on how to do all of the following:

• Field Care
• Processing
• Butchering
• Cooking

Click here for your FREE copy

-Jim
http://jimcollyer.com/

Watch the Ears

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

 

 

By watching a deer’s ears, a hunter can often be alerted to things happening in the woods that he might have otherwise missed. Deer often keep track of each other by listening. So, if you see a lone deer cupping his ears to the rear, you can bet there is another deer following it.

-Jim

http://jimcollyer.com/

The Moment of Action

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

You’ve been sitting in a treestand for days. Suddenly, a big buck appears out of nowhere.

This is the moment of truth.

The moment is between you and the buck. Most hunters hesitate. Most hunters panic. Once the panic subsides, it’s already too late.

All the preparation and luck are nothing compared with the ability to not panic.

-Jim

http://jimcollyer.com/

Keep It Clean

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

 

Our hunting clothes must be kept as odorless as possible. They absorb a tremendous amount of human odor. Clothes should be washed after every use in unscented detergents. Be sure to use a detergent that doesn’t have UV brighteners. The deer will see UV brighteners; I can guarantee it.

-Jim

http://jimcollyer.com/

Becoming a Master

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

 

The mastery of trophy hunting is not about controlling the situation. It is in alignment with nature and yielding to the buck's movement and behavior.

Success is not a goal, it’s a byproduct of doing things right.

-Jim

http://jimcollyer.com/

R.G. Bernier

R.G. Bernier

 

Here's what R.G. Bernier has to say about my book Buck Naked; "Having just finished reading your book, Buck Naked I felt compelled to write you. No stranger to the hunting literary world, and having authored four titles on tracking trophy whitetails primarily in the Northeast I found your book absolutely refreshing. In fact, it may well be one of the best I've had the good pleasure of absorbing in a very long time."

 

R.G. Bernier is the worlds foremost authority on tracking whitetail deer. I have read everything he has written and you should too. The first book I read was; The Deer Trackers and I highly recommend it to anyone serious about whitetail deer hunting.

I  want to encourage all of you to visit his website bigwhitetail.com

and his blog  bigwhitetail.wordpress.com

 

You find information on these sites which will elevate your hunting success.

Good Luck and Good Hunting,

Jim

Grab a copy of Buck Naked here

http://jimcollyer.com/

 

Uncertainty

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

 

Comfort is boring. It is an attachment to the known, and the known is nothing more than our past.

Uncertainty, on the other hand, is exciting. Uncertainty is tapping into unknown possibilities. It can be a little scary, but fear can be a great motivator.

The fear of change lies somewhere between the known and the unknown—that place between same old, same old and a new pattern. A pattern of what can be, not of what is.

-Jim

http://jimcollyer.com/

Saying No to Average Bucks

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

It can be scary to turn down an average buck that comes your way and to hold out for the remarkable trophy. It’s scary to hang out on a limb and wait for something bigger and better.

Scary to separate yourself from the company of average hunters.

However, if you don’t, you will end up just like them. An average hunter.

-Jim

http://jimcollyer.com/

BUCK NAKED

The Thick Stuff

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

Don’t overlook the thick brush once the ruts starts or you’ll be missing a lot of action. The does will lead the buck into the thick brush. This is not for security, but an attempt to avoid an amorous buck before the time is right. The doe, with her smaller frame, can outmaneuver the heavier buck in the thick brush.

 

The Three Most Important Qualities

1. An understanding of one's self (self-mastery)
2. An understanding of the nature of deer
3. An understanding of how to carry out a real investigation

The more experienced hunter may actually have more difficulty practicing proper scouting techniques than a relative novice. He may think he’s seen it all and thus will miss subtle but essential changes in a deer’s behavior. Thinking we "know it all" is the kiss of death in hunting. We must lose our ego and look at everything with fresh eyes. That’s where the novice has it over the seasoned veteran.

-Jim

http://jimcollyer.com/

BUCK NAKED

The Season’s Over

 

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

 

 

Congratulations, you’ve harvested your buck.

What happens when your seasons over?

It’s time to go home.

This is the mindset that has been drilled into us since the first grade. Get your work done and go home.

This is where we draw the line between average hunters and great hunters.

Great hunters now ask the two-part question:

What now? What next?

-Jim

http://jimcollyer.com/

 

Buck-Naked

Flight Distance in Deer

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

 

How close a deer will allow you approach before fleeing is called flight distance. What is the flight distance of whitetail deer?

A deer’s flight distance has a lot to do with the terrain. An undetected deer will often let a hunter pass within a few yards if it. If a deer feels he has been seen he’ll never let you get close. For this reason, a hunter should avoid making eye contact with deer whenever possible.

A whitetail’s flight response to a man on foot in open terrain is about 150 yards. The flight response to a motorized vehicle is about 70 yards. This is because the car or pickup moves at a steady pace without arms swinging. Flight reactions are both learned and a genetic response developed over millions of years in the deer. Motorized vehicles have only been around a little over a hundred years, not nearly enough time for the deer to develop an instinctive response to.

Some hunters prefer comfort and laziness over common sense. The use of ATVs in hunting is a classic example. ATVs have probably saved more big bucks life’s than any other technological improvement to date. They are noisy, smelly, and jerk around a lot. All of which are flight triggers to the deer.

I see way too many people road hunting from ATVs. They’re hoping to get a shot at the buck from the ATV and thus avoid the necessity of either walking around are getting into a stand. While ATVs are a great way to get into a hunting area, they should never be used within a half a mile of were we hope catch a deer.

Good Luck and Good Hunting,
Jim
http://jimcollyer.com/

Deer are Conservatives

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

 

Deer are extreme conservatives. This is what has allowed them to survive the last 4-1/2 million years. They find even the slightest change to their environment upsetting. If you are watching deer enter a field by the same trail at the same time every day and all of a sudden one day they don’t show up it’s because something has changed in their environment.

It could be something we did wrong or it could be a slight change in their natural environment.

Maybe a coyote cross their path. Or the farmer has moved the tractor. Maybe they saw a two legged human standing on the edge of the field. Perhaps a food source has dried up or a better food source has come available. Something has changed, you can bet on it.

Even the slightest mistake in setting up our stand can prevent us from being successful. Leaving traces of human order is the most common mistake. Other mistakes of commonly make that upset deer include; sky lighting ourselves, cutting too much brush for shooting lanes, not allowing for our approach to the stand to be undetected, and too much movement in the stand.

We need to investigate and try to determine what is the cause of their behavior change. If it is a mistake we have made, we’ll either need to let the stand set for a few days or find another location.

Just remember deer conservatives and avoid making any unnecessary changes to their environment.

Good Luck and Good Hunting,
Jim
http://jimcollyer.com/

Responding to Motion

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

 

The deer see’s motion in order to detect danger.

The deer’s subconscious mind recognizes motion as either malignant or benign before it’s conscious mind can even register what made the movement. It’s an instinctive response.

Some movement sends the deer fleeing instantly while other movements are hardly noticed at all.

Over time the deer become conditioned to certain movements such as: leaves rustling in the wind and doesn’t notice them at all. Likewise, a slight movement in a treestand often doesn’t trigger a flight response in the deer. His mind has become conditioned to not expect danger from above.

A hunter moving through the woods with his un-rhythmatic movements automatically triggers a flight response in the deer.

Good Luck and Good Hunting,
Jim
http://jimcollyer.com/