DeerBlaster blasts

Cut limbs to attract deer? Kill your flinch! Get your ATV ready

Visit DeerBlaster.com for all past issues!

Never heard of this before, maybe you haven’t either – from the MS Daily Leader:

> One of the ways you can help deer on your property this time of year is through a process called ‘mineral stumps.’

> Former MS State assistant professor Marcus Lashley discovered the management practice as a hunter in the woods and he was able to determine why deer selected to eat young hardwood sprouts over forbs they prefer.

> Lashley had cut trees down near his bow stand to create a shooting lane. In the process, the trees would try to resprout with multiple green shoots. Deer selected those sprouts, and he discovered through further research it was because the leaves had more nutrients….

> It may be too late to get a food plot planted near your bow stand, but right now would be a good time to chop some trees down as you create shooting lanes. This opens up the canopy allowing for more forage, and creates the ‘mineral stumps’ Lashley determined had more nutrients….

> “Now is a really good time to think about getting them set up. Our information indicates it does stimulate high protein and nutrients in those young leaves deer love to eat. It is a way to supplement nutrition and help with the harvest of the animals. If I wanted to harvest a buck for the [new MS] velvet season, I would create them as an attractant.”

That’s Vincent Clark’s mountain deer we had in the DB when it was killed, here’s some details from NA Whitetail:

> …[In Dec] Vincent headed to a shooting house overlooking a small, planted field to hunt. It was a cold windy day, but the season would be closed soon, and he wanted to take another deer if he could.

> At about 5:00 pm he spotted a buck entering the edge of the plot about 100 yards away. The huge, light-colored rack left no doubt that it was the ghost buck. Vincent immediately knew this was his opportunity. Quickly, he aimed his 7mm Rem Mag. and made the shot. The legendary deer fell within yards….

> The incredible NC buck was estimated to be 8 years old and had very worn teeth. The rut had pulled the old mountain monarch’s weight down to just 200 lbs, far less than it should have weighed…. The deer was very likely at the peak of maturity and as large as it ever would be.

> The impressive 23-point rack has everything a trophy hunter dreams of including beautiful split brow tines, sticker points, huge mass and even a drop tine on the right beam. And all of this is on a giant 8-point main frame.

> The drying period took a couple of months, and then Vincent entered the buck at the Dixie Deer Classic in Raleigh…. It fell short of the record but scored an amazing 203 0/8″ and…winning Best Male Gun Non-Typical and also Best of Show.

That’s a probably true line (it’s hard to tell! lol) from a good American Hunter post:

> Every shooter possesses his very own flinch. Poor shooters allow their flinch to possess them. Good shooters keep theirs under lock and key.

> Here’s the thing: The human body and brain are not built to have an explosion go off right in front of them, nor to get smacked in the shoulder and cheek, without reacting.

> The first step to gaining control of your flinch is to council with your mind and body. This might sound silly, but if you consider the fact that shooting a gun will not actually hurt your body or brain, then it becomes easier to hold still and be calm during the big bang.

> Next is dry-fire practice. Learn (or re-learn) how to squeeze the trigger. Do this with your empty rifle and a super steady position such as prone or over a shooting bench.

> Take a couple deep breaths, then press that trigger slowly. So slowly that it surprises you when it breaks. Keep your body relaxed, your eyes open, and watch the crosshairs through the snap. They should not move.

More good stuff at the link. Here’s a great flinch too:

Maybe we’re the only ones a little suspicious of some in government now, but either way a couple states are doing things that to our 2c are unnecessary, including the way they’re doing it. Let’s start with MI, which is requiring that hunters “check in” their deer online before they can bring it to a processor or give it to another person – can’t link it, on michigansthumb com:

> The MI DNR announced the change recently on its website, explaining that online reporting can provide more accurate information about the types of deer being taken and provide it quickly.

> If you are reporting a deer online for someone else, you will need the hunter’s deer kill tag number, birthday and information about the hunter’s harvest and location….

Questions we have:

Why does the DNR need “types of deer” info “quickly”?
Why does it need to know location?
What about rural folks who might not have good internet?
What happened to just buying a tag, killing a deer and bringing it home? Why does a state gov’t need to interfere with that?

And now DE is requiring hunters to register anything left on state land:

> Effective Aug 1, 2022, hunters are required to register temporary deer stands, deer ground blinds and trail cameras that they place and leave overnight on state wildlife areas…. Registration, which is free through an online deer stand and trailcam registration form, will help wildlife area managers evaluate the increasing numbers and use of these hunting tools on state wildlife areas.

> A single registration number can be used for multiple deer stands, deer blinds and trail cameras, and hunters will need to register only once as this unique registration number can be used from year to year. Once the registration form is submitted, the applicant will receive an email containing their registration number. The registration number must be legible and conspicuously displayed on each item.

Some questions:

Does it sound to you like they might thinking about a trailcam ban?
Why would they be concerned about this stuff and not the deer population?
Why would a “conspicuously displayed” number matter unless they were going to monitor hunters and maybe issue fines?

If we’re missing any info or perspective on either of these, please let us know!

1. AZ: Will some late-season hunters get no opportunity?

> …a number of local archers are unhappy with the harvest limits that have been set for a number of the local game management units.

> …they feel the quotas may be filled during the first hunt, when a lot of bucks are harvested over waters, while those that want to hunt during the Dec through Jan seasons will be shut out.

2. ND: Thousands of deer tags still available.

3. AR has 600 deer tags left and is selling each one for $5.

Sounds like a great state to live in! 😁

4. WI: Disabled hunters need a sponsor before Sept 1.

> Sponsors have enrolled nearly 70,000 acres of land across 40 counties for this year’s hunt Oct 1-9. To participate in the hunt, hunters should contact sponsors directly. All sponsors are listed at: widnr.widen.net/s/ssdqsfx6xp/disdeersponsors

5. MS: Corps’ Arkabutla Lake area has a physically challenged hunt.

6. MN looking for new Deer Advisory Committee members.

7. Blaze orange has cut hunting fatalities a ton.

Few examples:

> CO…opened the door to safer hunting in the 1950s by offering voluntary hunter-education training, and then mandating blaze orange in 1968. The state averaged 10.1 hunting fatalities annually during the 1960s, but it has cut that average to 1 since 2000.

> WI…mandated blaze-orange clothing in 1980, and hunter-education certification in 1985. By the early 2000s, Wisconsin averaged 4 shootings per 100,000 deer hunters annually, a nearly 7-fold improvement from 40 years before.

> AL followed a similar path after averaging 9.5 shootings per 100,000 hunters during the 1970s. It mandated blaze orange in 1985-86 for its firearm deer season, and then hunter education in 1993-94. Those moves cut Alabama’s accidental-shooting rate nearly in half to 5 accidents per 100,000 hunters from 2000 to 2010. The rate dropped to 4.2 accidents per 100,000 the past decade.

👊

8. TX: Hunters Extravaganzas are this month.

This weekend in Houston, later in the month in Dallas and San Antonio.

9. 2A stuff

ND: 17 state AGs have signed on as plaintiffs to the Gun Owners of America’s case against the ATF and its new rule surrounding the redefinition of a firearm.

NJ gov’t creates “legal” team to harass the firearms industry.

Gun owners voting for GOP betrayers only encourage more of the same.

Here’s a good basic primer on the development of the AR platform.

Deer Disease News

1. MO wants comments on its CWD plan thru Aug 8.

Across the state:

– Increasing the maximum number of firearms antlerless deer hunting permits that a hunter could fill from 2 to 4 in select counties.

– Creating a 3-day early antlerless portion of firearms deer season in select counties that would begin on a Friday in early-to-mid Oct.

In CWD management zone counties:

– Creating a 5-day CWD portion of firearms deer season in select CWD Management Zone counties that would begin the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.

Get your ATV ready for hunting season.

Don’t see these tips much, good stuff from Howard Delo of AK’s The Frontiersman:

> …is your off-road vehicle in tip top condition for operation miles off the road system and over rough and unforgiving terrain? Have you had the vehicle serviced this year, including things like oil and filter changes, lubricating the various grease fittings, inspecting the condition of your tires, and planning to carry extra antifreeze (if your vehicle uses that fluid), oil, and fuel?

> It’s also a good idea to carry a set of wrenches and other assorted tools to work on the ATV/UTV if it breaks down, and either a small tire compressor or manual air pump along with a tire patch kit in case of problems with the tires. I don’t carry a spare tire for my 4-wheeled ATV, but I do for my 6-wheeler (along with a jack), together with the patch kit and a foot pump. A spare drive belt and extra spark plugs are other good items to bring along.

> Something else I learned about the hard way was having some sort of ground anchor in your gear in the event you get stuck when there is nothing to attach a winch cable to in order to pull yourself out. I carry a small Danforth anchor in the ATV gear, along with a shovel, and that serves well to get that machine unstuck using the mounted winch on the front. I’ve also got a small snatch block to add extra pulling power with the winch.

> I haven’t gotten the 6-wheeler stuck, yet, because I am a cautious operator, but I have ample chain, cable and straps, plus a snatch block, which should get me out of whatever I get into. That and the 4,500-lb winch should help keep me out of trouble.

> When I operate my 4-wheeler, since it is an open riding set-up, I wear a full helmet with a face shield, a pair of heavy leather gloves, and generally wear a long-sleeve shirt, a pair of heavy material pants and my 9″ hunting boots to protect my feet.

> My 6-wheeler has a full enclosed cab mounted on it, so I usually won’t wear the helmet or gloves, but my clothing stays the same.

Some Sea Foam Motor Treatment is a good idea to get ‘er tuned up. Check out from Jayce L in CO’s #SeaFoamWorks story:

> “I have a 2004 Polaris Sportsman 700 that’s finally ready to get after deer! Got to our camp, got all set up, unloaded the wheelers and mine was running like garbage. It would start, stutter and die when I hit the throttle. Drained the old gas and added fresh, along with some Sea Foam Motor Treatment. Rode around camp for a bit and it smoothed out and came to life! Sea Foam is the best.”

What’s the DB and who does it?

The DeerBlaster is a weekly roundup of the best, funniest, newest and most important stuff about deer hunting – culled from around the interwebz FOR DIEHARD DEER HUNTERS and blasted into your inbox.

The DB is put together by a couple deer nerds 😁 from around the country. We excerpt content (and credit EVERYONE!), comment on content, do some original content…because we can’t get enough deer hunting – bet you’re wired the same!

The DeerBlaster’s a work in progress, just like we are 😂. Any issues, suggestions, whatever, just hit Reply to this email and we’ll get it. Thank you for reading!