3 06, 2014

Pope & Young to Allow Lighted Arrow Nocks

2020-06-10T09:22:49-04:00June 3rd, 2014|BigDeer, Bowhunting, Hunting News|12 Comments

For some reason that I always found odd, the Pope and Young Club never allowed animals killed with an arrow with a lighted nock to be entered into their archery record book. The thinking was that a lighted nock somehow gave the hunter an "unfair electronic advantage" over the deer. How, by maybe helping a hunter to make a better and more lethal shot in low legal shooting light? To my mind, a lighted nock can help a hunter to know more precisely where he or she hit a deer, and in many cases that helps in the recovery of that animal. All good. Well, P&Y has finally come into the 21st century of archery hunting. Beginning August 1, 2014, the club [...]

21 04, 2014

Ohio: Monster 252” Buck Found Dead

2020-06-10T09:23:02-04:00April 21st, 2014|Big Deer Stories, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Shed Hunting|7 Comments

Drew sent this picture of a tremendous buck he had been hunting for the past 3 years. “A truly remarkable animal that we called Moose,” Drew wrote. “Unfortunately, Moose died due to (another) bowhunter’s mistake (not mine) and we recovered his body and antlers this spring. My story is too long to put into an email tonight, but if you would like more I would be grateful and happy to share it with you.” Drew will be sending the full and exclusive story soon. He also sent a trail-cam video of Moose on the hoof, and it is amazing footage. I’ll wait and post that with the story. Drew says the rack was scored at 252 1/8" and that was after squirrels had [...]

16 04, 2014

Maryland Bowhunting and Broadhead Study

2020-06-10T09:23:02-04:00April 16th, 2014|BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Management|3 Comments

I had a fascinating conversation with Andy Pedersen, a retired engineer and hard-core bowhunter who for more than 20 years was deeply involved with a deer management program on the Naval facility where he worked and hunted (and still hunts today). From 1989 to 2006, 161 bowhunters participated in the tightly controlled program on 3,000 acres of great whitetail habitat near the Potomac River. Pedersen’s records show that 104 of them (65%) hit 908 deer and recovered 746 of the animals within 24 hours for a recovery rate of 82 percent (+- 2.5%). From 2007-2012, hunters stuck another 388 deer and found 337 of them. Add the numbers and you get a recovery rate of 83.6% over the 24-year span. The [...]

28 03, 2014

Should an Illuminated Arrow Nock Disqualify this 188” Buck from the Record Book?

2020-06-10T09:23:03-04:00March 28th, 2014|Big Deer Stories, BigDeer, Bowhunting|11 Comments

Got this from Sean on Facebook yesterday: “Just wanted to share a story and some photos with you about a buck I was lucky enough to harvest in the 2009 bow season in Wisconsin. This old guy scored 188 6/8" non-typical and was aged at 9 years old by the taxidermist. Because this buck was shot with a 'lighted nock' it is not eligible to be entered into the Pope and Young book. In the end I could really care less because it is the trophy of my lifetime. But what is your take on that ruling?”—Sean G. First off, that is a dream buck. Look at the incredible mass. The 3 drops that I so desire, 2 of them off [...]

19 03, 2014

Hide Your Stand With Fake Leaves

2020-06-10T09:23:03-04:00March 19th, 2014|BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Hunting, Deer Management|7 Comments

Traditional bowhunting legend Barry Wensel injured his arm a few years ago, and now he hunts often out of ladder stands that he can more easily climb with one hand. He hides those big platforms with artificial leaves and ferns that he buys at a craft store.  “You know, the brown, gold and green plastic or nylon ones with the wire stems,” he says. Barry weaves the fake foliage around the uprights of the ladder; threads the leaves and ferns down, around and through the seat and foot grill; and then ties or tapes them solidly in place. “When the real leaves fall later on in October and November, my ladders stay hidden and deer are used to seeing them,” [...]

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