Another scent that you might try in place of deer urine is vanilla, which some hunters swear by. Here’s a homemade recipe that a hunter named John sent me. "Mike: I’ve been using vanilla as a cover and curiosity scent for years here in Iowa, and I swear by it! Take a 32-ounce spray bottle, fill it with three-quarters imitation vanilla (I use Baker's Imitation Vanilla), add three tablespoons pancake syrup, add a little water and top off with more vanilla. Shake vigorously and you're good to go. Apply it to your boots and clothes, and spray on trees and brush around your tree stand. Don’t wash your pants and coat until the season is over. Re-apply the vanilla concoction [...]

All-new episodes of my TV show start airing tonight, Wednesday July 1, at 10 PM/9C on Sportsman Channel. Over the next 6 months watch as we travel to some amazing destinations to hunt some amazing deer: the high desert of Oregon…snow-laced Sheridan, Wyoming…a wheat farm in the shadows of towering Mount Hood and Mount St. Helens…the plains of western Kansas…the deep bush of Saskatchewan of course…and more. First stop tonight, the beautiful wine country of California’s Central Coast. A lot of people don’t realize that there is still much beautiful and remote country left to hunt in Cali, but you have to find the right place and go with the right people. I sure did. Doug Roth, one of the best hunters in [...]