Thx for reading! If you’re getting the DeerBlaster for the first time it’s probably because a deer-crazed bud signed you up!
|
|
First buck ever is a 223-inch, 23-point UNIT! 🤯
|
|
> “I took 2 does with a bow and another during OH’s gun season, but I had never taken a buck before.”
> In late July, Corey set a treestand in a group of tall oaks. …placed a trail camera on a well-used deer trail leading uphill to a 30-acre cornfield. Corey also cleared some shooting lanes on that trail in case a shot presented itself.
> …within days Corey started getting trail camera pics of the giant non-typical his wife had named “Jerky.”
> “I was waiting for a north wind, and that was the first cold front of the season to blow in. The temperature was going down into the 40s that evening, and it just seemed like the perfect setup to get into that stand and hunt.”
> By 3:30 pm…was in his stand and ready to go. An hour passed…a lone doe suddenly appeared…about 100 yards away near the bottom of the hill.
> “All of the sudden he popped out and walked over to the doe. That was the first time I laid eyes on the giant buck. He was only a few feet from the doe, and both were grazing but not paying much attention to each other.”
> The buck continued his slow but steady gait…. His huge white rack bobbed with every step…enough to give Corey a bad case of buck fever!
> “As soon as I released the arrow the buck flinched, and then he took off running straight down the hill! He took off crashing through limbs and into the brush. He ran about 50 yards and stopped.”
Corey and friends and family recovered the deer that evening, right where he stopped. It was scored in Feb by B&C measurer Bob Wood:
– 217 6/8 net non-typ
– 23-point rack grossed 223 5/8
– 17 scorable points 1″ inch or longer, 7 of which were measured as abnormal or non-typical
– 6 7/8″ of deductions
– Inside spread is 20″, outside spread is 28 5/8″
– Longest tines are 12 1/8″ and 12 5/8″
– Left side drop tine is 5 2/8″
🤯
A college bud got Corey got into hunting in 2010 – good job college bud! – and Corey didn’t start bowhunting til 2016.
|
|
Is this a top 10 all-time free-range TX buck?
|
|
> Meet “Virgil,” 207 1/8″. Measured by B&C.
> Harvested in Parker County, free range.
Parker County is on the western outskirts of the Fort Worth metro area. On the one hand it’s kind of amazing that such a nice deer was so close to a city, but on the other hand a lotta real nice deer are in the ‘burbs!
|
|
Mono-base buck = fused main beams? 🧐
|
|
> What caused that one massive base? Had he lived, could the buck possibly shed this mass? I asked Kip Adams, wildlife biologist and Chief Conservation Officer for the Natl Deer Assn.
> Kip: “I’m guessing this buck was injured early in the antler-growing process last year, and some of those antler cells were relocated between the 2 antlers, causing them to fuse together at some point early in the growing process.
> “I know of a shed that was actually 2 antlers fused together like the one in the pictures. In that case, the buck shed it/them.”
Real sweet and gnarly looking rack even if it wasn’t fused together!
|
|
AZ become 1st state to ban trailcams…only for hunters. 😡
|
|
> For now, it’s just illegal to use them for the purpose of taking game. Non-hunters can still use them. And trappers, maybe? Maybe not?
> While…largely unprecedented, other states – such as MT, NV, NM and others – have placed smaller restrictions on the use of trail cameras. Some limit when cameras can be used, or what camera features (such as wireless transmission) are allowed. But not a single agency or DNR had all-out banned them. AZ is the first.
> …it’s always been the minority that stated cameras are unethical or socially divisive, but the AZ Game and Fish Commission claims both….
> …”Trail cameras are believed to cause increased traffic in the field during hunts. Hunters and guides who have placed cameras interrupt other persons hunt by checking their trail camera during prime hunting hours. Hunters have expressed their frustration about the proliferation of cameras at Dept catchments and other water sources, as compromising their opportunities and overall quality of the hunting experience. Some have shared stories of aggressive hunters and/or guides trying to chase other hunters away from waters that have their cameras.”
> It stated that changing batteries and pulling SD cards displaced wildlife, especially near watering holes. It even went as far as to address littering, which apparently stems from abandoned trail cameras, cables, batteries, plastic, etc.
> “The proliferation of cameras, particularly by guides who place dozens or hundreds in prime hunting areas, unfairly robs opportunity from hunters who cannot or choose not to use cameras. Some of these hunters may wait a decade or more to get a prime tag. However, once afield, their odds of finding and harvesting a highly-desired animal are infinitely smaller than those who have used camera data to find and map animals prior to the hunt.”
> As a whole, I also believe that trail cameras have helped boost hunter enthusiasm, rather than damage it. It’s helped hunters to become better conservationists and land managers, and has helped populations reach milestones, such as older age classes.
> …even in the instances where cameras are used improperly, should it mean taking them away from everyone…? Absolutely not. Doing so seems…synonymous with taking firearms out of the hands of law-abiding citizens merely because a very small percentage uses them incorrectly.
> Furthermore, shouldn’t all game laws be established based on sound science? According to the Commission’s report, “The agency did not rely on any study in its evaluation of or justification for the rule.”
AZ is a hot point right now for a few reasons…. Keep an eye on your appointed Fish and Game commissioners. Don’t let it happen in your state! Maybe protest:
|
|
This “deer fly helmet” is genius! 👀
|
|
Brilliant pro tip from Steve Stanley, shared on the Wisconsin Rut Report FB group, noticed by OL:
> It’s simply a hardhat, painted blue, with a fly tape wrapped and taped around it. The concept is simple: Flies are attracted to blue so they buzz the hardhat and get stuck in the tape before they are able to target your face.
> “It literally changed me from dreading going into the summer woods doing stand work and food plots to enjoying it without swatting and fighting flies the entire time. I’d love to see everyone do it. It would at least put a small dent in their population.”
Love it!
OL pointed out that it’s probably a good idea to rock a hardhat while you’re running a chainsaw, trimming limbs or hanging stands anyhow.
Steve won the internet this week!
|
|
> On Jun 3, the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) submitted comments to the OR Secretary of State arguing the proposed ballot title language prepared by the Attorney General for Initiative Petition 13 (IP 13) failed to adequately notify voters as to the sweeping effects of the initiative. If passed, IP 13 would end all hunting, fishing and trapping throughout the state.
> In response to CSF’s comments, the Attorney General modified the ballot language on Jun 21 to now include a statement on the effect IP 13 would have on funding for conservation efforts due to hunting and fishing license sales being eliminated from the OR Dept of Fish and Wildlife’s budget.
> With the final ballot title language now certified, initiative proponents can begin gathering the 112,020 signatures required to place the initiative on the 2022 ballot.
Okay so fishing/hunting/trapping might not end/be made illegal, just the primary funding source (license sales) for the DNR would be gone?? Man really seems like the monkeys are running the zoo in that state, or maybe it’s these folks:
|
|
👀 Rise up OR brothers and sisters!
> You may not use a muzzleloading rifle that requires insertion of a cap or primer into the open breech of the barrel, is capable of being loaded from the breech or is mounted with an optical magnification device.
> Use of pre-prepared paper or metallic cartridges, sabots, gas checks or other similar power and range-enhancing manufactured loads that enclose the projectile from the rifling or bore of the firearm is also prohibited.
No special permit needed.
6. Tag time! Updates….
…after the Dept of Interior held off on restricting it.
> “Corn prices are up 50% from this time last year….”
> …global corn production is down and demand is up…. Drought conditions in the northern plains of the US, increased demand from China as the country’s hog numbers rebound, are expected to trigger further price hikes.
> …1st podcast produced and hosted by the NDA staff. …will range through every aspect of deer hunting and management, from hunting strategy and habitat improvement to deer biology and behavior.
2,239 acres for $32 mil. 🤯 Been on many hunting TV shows.
> But the sales tax is only a small part…the bill also stimulates economic growth in manufacturing industries by allowing tax credits for arms and ammo makers in the state.
Store employee wrestled a doe to the ground after she saw it roaming the aisles. Deer got in the back way, and was released back to the wild unharmed.
|
|
😂
> The yearslong effort to return wild elk to parts of eastern MN is advancing with a formal proposal from the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa to the MN DNR.
> Under the plan, Fond du Lac would start transplanting elk into northern Carlton County and southern St. Louis County in 2025, at first with animals taken from a wild herd in Kittson County in northwestern MN.
16. 2A stuff.
|
|
Deer Disease News
> “Unfortunately, by failing to act, the BAH and its leadership have continued to let down those who enjoy deer hunting.”
|
|
Budget lineup, optimized for hunting, also offered as a package deal with a rangefinder:
|
|
> ActivSync display system fluidly morphs from black to red readouts based on lighting conditions.
|
|
> Windows placed 360 degrees around the blind open and close effortlessly and quietly on the Silent-Trac window system. No more noisy buckles or fumbling with elastic straps and hooks.
|
|
Supposed to be lightweight, compact, easy to transport, and comfy:
|
|
Sale ends TOMORROW, July 8!
|
|
> At just 26″ long and 9.25″ wide at the axles when uncocked, the R26 is one of the smallest crossbows on the market, yet it’s got enough punch to qualify it as one of the best crossbows for hunting.
> …spits out 20″ bolts at an incredible 400 fps, making it one of the fastest crossbows around.
> It’s unique design allows the cams to rotate 340 degrees as they launch bolts. Though the bow only measures 26″ total, it’s got nearly 10″ of power stroke.
> Cables on each side of each cam coil away from the cams as the bow is drawn to keep them perfectly level during the shooting process. That’s critical to the precision accuracy….
> Equally important is the frictionless flight system. The only contact points for Ravin bolts are at the nock receiver and on 2 rollers on a rest at the front end of the bow. There’s no traditional crossbow rail, which basically eliminates friction.
> The Ravin scope that comes with the R26 crossbow kit is intuitive. It’s got rings for aiming points every 10 yards from 20 to 100 yards.
> The operation is so simple, and the bow is so compact, virtually anyone can cock and shoot this bow regardless of age, strength and/or stature.
> It is possible to decock the R26 without shooting it, which is always nice. However, you have to be on your toes when you decock the R26, or you could wreck some fingers. If your hand slips off the crank, watch out because it’s going to spin freely with a good bit of force behind it.
Runs $2K, which is par for the course on a premium x-bow.
|
|
Last week’s DB noted that the sound of a bow shot reaches deer 3 times faster than an arrow does. That in mind, here’s some tips for reducing or preventing the effects of string jumping:
> An animal that has recently sensed you, heard a stand squeak or smelled you will more likely react negatively to the shot.
> Adding every conceivable silencing device available is insurance against a wounding string-jump. Also consider a heavier arrow, one that absorbs more of your bow’s energy instead of transforming it into shot noise.
> The best shot opportunities are those at calm, unsuspecting animals. This starts with bringing your bow to full draw undetected.
> Twitching tails normally indicate an animal is about to lift its head or move forward. An animal’s ears will help as well, swiveling ears indicating a “nervous” deer, relaxed ears a green light to draw.
> Game with senses temporarily confused – eyesight obscured by obstacles, hearing superseded by wind, attention directed to another animal – offer the best possible shooting opportunities.
> When string-jumping is a possibility, aiming intentionally low (the heart instead of double lungs) is a safer option. If the animal holds stock still, you’ve made a deadly heart shot, but should the animal drop, the lower hold turns into a lung hit.
|
|
“If deer numbers must be reduced, the key is to leave the deer in peace and target their food sources by trimming back low-hanging tree branches, keeping grasses cut short and shrouding saplings.”
– That’s Elisa Allen, UK Peta person, talkin’ on thecourier co.uk (can’t link it). Incredible. Slowly starving a deer to death is more humane and ethical than hunting or culling??
|
|
Yuck! 🤢 Real rare pic was taken by Cody Altizer from IG’s @the_dear_hunter_project and shared by the Natl Deer Assn. Apparently it’s not “cannibalism” but an instinct that’s similar to when does eat their afterbirth, for nutrition and possibly to get rid of scent that attracts predators. Nature is wild man!
|
|
What’s the DB and who does it?
The DeerBlaster is a weekly roundup of the best, funniest, newest and most important stuff about whitetail deer hunting – culled from around the interwebz for DIEHARD whitetail hunters and blasted into your inbox.
The DB is put together by some deer nerds 😁 – Ted, Jay, others – 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!
|
|
Sign up another deer nut!
If you’re forwarding the DeerBlaster to other deer crackheads, tx much! Or you can email us the addys and we’ll take care of it! We’ll never send spam, sell the list or anything else crazy…. And follow us on Facebook and on Instagram at @deerblaster.official
|
|
Advertising Info
If you’re interested in learning more about the DeerBlaster and how we do things, just respond to this email and we’ll get in touch – thank you!
|
|
PO Box 133
Lebanon, NJ 08833
(908) 268 2258
|
|
|
|
|
|
|