BigDeer Archives - Page 117 of 342

24 06, 2019

5 Tips For Summer Camping

bluemillion2020-06-10T09:15:18-04:00June 24th, 2019|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer|Comments Off on 5 Tips For Summer Camping

The 4th of July is right around the corner, and many families will head to the woods. Some things to keep in mind: Get the Kids Involved Keep your kids busy and off their phones and gaming devices. Start out with a little required work—setting up the tent, collecting firewood, etc. Then move on to a whole lot of fun. Go hiking with your son or daughter, show him or her deer tracks, fish for trout or bream, etc. If you’re in a safe, remote area, show him or her how to plink with a pellet gun or 22 (make sure shooting is legal if you’re on public ground). The more active your kids are the more fun they’ll have, [...]

21 06, 2019

Summer Land Management: 3 Tips For Better Deer Hunting

admin2020-06-10T09:15:18-04:00June 21st, 2019|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Deer Management|Comments Off on Summer Land Management: 3 Tips For Better Deer Hunting

While you’re out working your land with a tractor this summer, try this. Bush-hog a strip of grass or mow a lane through a thicket right up to one or two of your favorite tree stand locations. Keep those lanes trimmed one more time this summer. Deer will find them and use them. One day later this fall, an 8-pointer might walk smack down the strip to your bow stand. The trimmed lanes are also great places to plant mini-plots of clover. Scour an old grown-up farm field for hidden fruit trees, like apple or persimmon. Open up the trees by clearing away brush; prune a few limbs and pour some fertilizer over the roots. A tree should make some [...]

19 06, 2019

3 Reasons Whitetail Bucks Grow Giant Non-Typical Racks

admin2020-06-10T09:15:18-04:00June 19th, 2019|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Hunting|Comments Off on 3 Reasons Whitetail Bucks Grow Giant Non-Typical Racks

One day last fall in Perry County, Ohio, Ethan Featheroff arrowed a 20-point giant that scored 220 7/8”. Over in Logan County, West Virginia, Donny Baisden scouted, hunted and shot the awesome unicorn buck (pictured) that taped out at 182 5/8. The 10-year trend of hunters shooting monster non-typical whitetails continues, and many more giants will fall in 2019. There are 3 reasons bucks grow such huge, gaudy racks. Injury: Biologists have long known that trauma to a buck’s skull plate or velvet antlers or a major bodily injury (i.e., a broken leg) can cause a rack to grow crazily during the current antler cycle or even for several years thereafter. Injury probably accounts for the most freakish racks, like [...]

17 06, 2019

How Do Deer Handle Summer Heat?

admin2020-06-10T09:15:19-04:00June 17th, 2019|Big Deer Stories, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Deer Science|Comments Off on How Do Deer Handle Summer Heat?

It's about to get really hot and humid--how will does with fawns, and bucks growing racks handle the heat? Temperatures above normal during summer causes some stress in deer. The amount of stress is dependent on the quality of the habitat. For example, deer consume more water than any other mineral (yes, water is a mineral, a naturally occurring substance) and the amount of water deer need increases during periods of above normal temperatures. If water is limited by either quantity or quality, many of a deer's bodily functions are limited, such as a buck transferring calcium to growing antlers, or a doe producing milk for fawns. Deer can usually travel to find water. But if they are forced out of [...]

10 06, 2019

West Virginia’s 4 Archery-Only Deer Counties

admin2020-06-10T09:15:19-04:00June 10th, 2019|Big Deer Stories, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Hunting|Comments Off on West Virginia’s 4 Archery-Only Deer Counties

Last fall Donny Baisden scouted and hunted and shot this awesome unicorn buck in Logan West Virginia. The giant scored 182 5/8. Bucks of this caliber have been coming out of not only Logan but also Wingo, McDowell and Wyoming counties for the last 40 years. It’s been one of bowhunting’s best-kept secrets! In the early 1970s whitetails were scarce, almost nonexistent, in southern West Virginia. “I spent a lot of time in the woods as a youngster, yet I can recall seeing only five deer,” said local hunter and writer John McCoy. “Three were on the property of a coal company that maintained a game preserve, and two moseyed out of the woods across from the school I attended. [...]