Deer & Deer Hunting is written and edited for serious, year-round hunting enthusiasts, focusing on hunting techniques, deer biology and behavior, deer management, habitat requirements, the natural history of deer and hunting ethics
Everything — big bucks or merely filled tags — seems more attainable when you’re in your early 20s. If you work hard enough, you can succeed. Even when you’re about as green as a June tomato. And let me tell you, man, we were green when we were younger. This is the story about the Coffee Lake Hunting Club, a self-appointed name we gave our small Big Woods deer camp in the early 1990s as we were feebly trying to waylay whitetails on the Dead Sea of all hunting properties — national forest land. The gun season was half over, and our six-man group had put just one deer – a 70-pound doe fawn – up on the meat pole. Deer sightings were few, and we were depressed beyond belief.…
THIS IS IN response to Dan Schmidt’s “Have We Lost Our Way?” column in the Summer issue of Deer & Deer Hunting. We have. It’s a way to make money now. That’s wrong. Hunting whitetails, in general, is a sales pitch. When it comes to hunting shows, it’s all about deer farms, food plots, clothing, etc. It’s pitiful. Facebook is hunting’s worst enemy. It used to be food for the family until the following season. Nowadays, it’s a business. — Steve Graves, via email THESE ARE JUST my thoughts; the blame is on what we called QDM. I believe that ever since this came around things have changed a lot. I hunt deer at my camp, and I shoot any legal deer. I’ve hunted there for almost 40 seasons, and…
CONGRATS TO MEDIA 360/DDH’S PRESIDENT AND PUBLISHER BRAD RUCKS ON HIS FIRST SPRING BEAR! Brad was bowhunting with Saskatchewan Big Buck Adventures LTD when this 350-pound bruin showed up at the last moment of Brad’s week-long hunt. With so much meat to go around, let’s see some of your favorite bear recipes! Social Snapshot *MONTHLY AVERAGES FOR JAN./FEB. 2021 DEER & DEER HUNTING FACEBOOK • PINTEREST • INSTAGRAM • TWITTER • YOUTUBE FOLLOWERS: 1.01 MILLION REACH: 7.6 MILLION VIDEO VIEWS: 1.93 MILLION Find us on Facebook FACEBOOK/DEERHUNTINGMAG CONNECT WITH D&DH ON SOCIAL MEDIA AT: FACEBOOK: WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/DEERHUNTINGMAG YOUTUBE: WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/DDHONLINE INSTAGRAM: WWW.INSTAGRAM.COM/DEERANDDEERHUNTING TWITTER: @DEERHUNTINGMAG PINTEREST: WWW.PINTEREST.COM/DEERHUNTINGMAG/ DSDH TV IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY: hornady.com sevrbroadheads.com huntstand.com outdooredge.com tenpointcrossbows.com cuddeback.com wildlife.com sigsauer.com mathewsinc.com banksoutdoors.com eastonarchery.com…
When I was a kid and a fledgling deer hunter, fur buyers would put out homemade signs that said “Buying Deer Hides.” Every November they popped up in every rural town. For a kid it was a big deal to cash in a deer hide after a successful hunt, and I got enough to break even on the cost of my hunting license. Then, fur buyers began trading a pair of deerskin gloves for your hide. It was a good deal for the hunter who can always use a nice, soft pair of gloves. And it was a good deal for the fur buyer because he bought the gloves wholesale and an average deer hide could make three, maybe four pairs of gloves. Across North America today, hunters kill about…
I was amped. I’d already “wasted” most of my hunt, trying desperately to find a buck that I was interested in hunting. Then, merely 50 yards off the road, a truly gagger of a mainframe 8-point with over a foot-long droptine, stepped out. Then a 152-inch 10-pointer followed him out, and it looked like a baby in comparison, despite also being a mature buck. Sure, I absolutely wanted to meet the 8-point again, but I instantly decided that I’d arrow either one. After setting a stand to cover where the bucks entered the field the day before, the first two sits were actually pretty slow. With just one day left to hunt, it was an instant adrenaline rush to see the 10 making its way to my stand. Mere moments…
There is an ongoing debate in recent years over which offers the best deer hunting: public or private land. Like everything else in life, there are pros and cons, advantages and disadvantages to both, but when push comes to shove it really boils down to the property in question. In general terms, public land is often construed as offering less desirable deer habitat, fewer deer, lower quality deer and higher hunting pressure. Private land is perceived to deliver just the opposite, but that isn’t necessarily true. Some private properties have excellent deer habitat, plenty of deer, and offer equally plentiful opportunity, while others are not so blessed. The same is true of some public lands. It goes both ways. Whatever the philosophy or preference, one thing is certain. Access to…
