haleBack in 1972 Kentucky farmer David Hale sold his tractors and cows. He teamed up with local barber Harold Knight, and they started building and peddling turkey, deer and duck calls. It worked out. Knight and Hale has become one of the most successful game-call companies in America. My good friend David, with whom I have hunted many times and have always thoroughly enjoyed it, has become a legendary outdoorsman. He enjoys all types hunting, but his passion is bowhunting whitetails. David  offers 5 tips for bowhunting the early season:

  1. Most bucks don’t travel far in September or October. If you spot a big 8 or 10-pointer, he’ll almost certainly live close by for the next few weeks. Heck, he might stay within 500 acres or so all month, or even all season.
  2. A big buck loves to walk along or through cover for as far as he can. Look for a weed ditch, brushy fencerow or head of timber that juts out into a field. Any little bit of cover that sticks out into the crops is a good spot for a tree stand.
  3. Hunting back off a field or food plot can be an effective way to ambush a buck before dusk, but don’t penetrate more than 100 yards back into the surrounding woods. If you push any deeper than that you’ll probably bust deer. Does and bucks bed tight to the feed in early fall.
  4. The falling barometer associated with a cold front makes bucks get up and move. Watch your barometric pressure; hunt the afternoons when it starts going down.
  5. Scout for clusters of big, shiny rubs. Then look out from those for smaller rubs that show a buck’s travel route between his bedding area and a food source. Hang a tree stand in between for an ambush.