About Clay Hanback

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So far Clay Hanback has created 512 blog entries.
14 07, 2021

3 Tips For Glassing Deer In Big Country

2021-07-12T13:38:39-04:00July 14th, 2021|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Mule Deer, whitetail deer|Comments Off on 3 Tips For Glassing Deer In Big Country

From hoof to shoulder, a whitetail deer stands 3 to 3 ½ feet (a muley is only slightly taller). Aim your binocular or spotting scope low in the brush or you’ll look right over a lot of bucks. Glass for a flickering ear or tail, the glint of an antler, a patch of white, a horizontal backbone in vertical timber… Find a piece of a deer and the whole animal will suddenly materialize in your optic. Lay back into a hillside, get comfortable and steady and break big country into quadrants. Raise and anchor your binocular/scope and scan one section slowly and methodically, then move to the next quadrant and the next… Then go back and glass each quadrant again. [...]

12 07, 2021

What Makes A Big-Buck Hotspot?

2021-07-12T12:25:18-04:00July 12th, 2021|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Hunting, whitetail deer|Comments Off on What Makes A Big-Buck Hotspot?

An old-timer once told me, “Boy, you can be the best damn hunter in the world, but if you don’t hunt where big deer live, you ain’t never gonna kill one.” The longer I’ve hunted, the more I’ve realized that guy was right. Many damn good hunters make the mistake of hunting year after year on lands that don’t grow and hold mature deer. So all they ever shoot are 6- and 8-pointers. Well, let’s change that. New Ground Now is the time to get out of your rut and find a new spot to hunt this fall. With whitetail populations healthy to stable in most regions, you shouldn’t have to look far. A small woodland or maybe a 300-acre farm [...]

8 07, 2021

5 Interesting Things About Velvet Deer Antlers

2021-07-02T11:35:30-04:00July 8th, 2021|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Deer Science, whitetail deer|Comments Off on 5 Interesting Things About Velvet Deer Antlers

1. In July, velvet antlers grow via a complex system of blood vessels, which causes them to be hot to the touch. Top whitetail scientist Dr. Grant Woods notes, “There is so much blood carrying protein and minerals to a buck’s antlers this time of year that even small antlers are easily detected by thermal imaging devices. Antler tines show up like neon signs when flying over with thermal cameras in summer.” Tiny hairs on the velvet stick out and make velvet antlers look bigger than they are. The hairs act as a radar system so the buck won’t bump into trees, fence posts, etc. and damage his soft antlers. Sebum, a semi-liquid secretion, on the hairs of the velvet give [...]

6 07, 2021

Whitetail History: James Jordan Buck, 201 1/8

2021-07-02T11:17:45-04:00July 6th, 2021|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, sportsman channel, whitetail deer|Comments Off on Whitetail History: James Jordan Buck, 201 1/8

I snapped this photo of the legendary Jordan Buck in the Cabela’s store in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The picture does not do this story justice, for it is fascinating: One day in 1914 near Danbury, Wisconsin, James Jordan followed huge deer tracks in the snow. A train roared by and its grind and whistle startled a group of deer, including a monster buck. James threw up his rifle and cracked off a few shots. His last bullet felled the giant. Jim took the 400-pound buck to a local taxidermist. Little did he know he would not see his trophy again for 50 years. The taxidermist moved away and took the rack with him. In fact the guy moved several times, [...]

1 07, 2021

Summer Whitetail Scouting Plan  

2021-07-01T13:43:45-04:00July 1st, 2021|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Hunting, sportsman channel, whitetail deer|Comments Off on Summer Whitetail Scouting Plan  

To tie your tag to a big whitetail in 2021, the advance work you do right now is as important, maybe more so, as the hunt tactics you’ll employ in a few of months.  Here’s your 5-step plan. Chart a Course   With the A/C cranking in your house or truck, check topo and aerial maps, either old-school paper ones or on an app like Onx Hunt, of the lands you’ll hunt this fall. Study the contours of crop fields, pastures and woodland edges. Key on timber strips, draws, creeks and similar funnels that connect potential feeding and bedding areas of deer. Scan the maps and visualize the likely patterns of bucks. If you’ve hunted a property before think back [...]

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