As a rule, hang 3 to 5 tree stands for every 100 acres of timber you hunt.  Spread those stands to cover major food sources and travel corridors, and to have options for different winds. If you’ve got 100 acres but only 25 of those acres are conducive to getting to and from stands quietly and hidden from downwind, do your bowhunting in those 25 acres.  If you try to force your way into tough terrains or spots where the wind is hardly ever right, you’ll blow out deer and ruin your chances. Clip your release to the string, close your eyes, draw your bow and anchor. Open your eyes and you should be able to see a pin clearly [...]

For the next 6 months, between ballgames and vacations and cutting the grass, many of us will slip away to the woods on occasion to work on food plots, set out minerals, hang trail cameras, etc. Times flies and bow season will be here in about 5 months. Late spring and summer is when ticks and snakes are out and active, so heed these precautions. The first and best thing you can do is to wear knee-high boots, which protect against both snakes and ticks. From May to September, I NEVER go into the woods without wearing tall boots with long pants legs tucked snugly in them. Tick Precautions Spray your clothes with Permethrin before entering the woods. Use Deet [...]

All us humans need a sanctuary, a place where we feel safe and comfortable hanging out, sometimes alone and sometimes with friends. A refuge we can come home to and flop into bed after dinner, or a long night out on the town. Old bucks need those shelters too. They're called sanctuaries. Now, before full spring green-up, is the perfect time to roam your hunting ground and find them. A sanctuary is the major bedding and security cover for the deer that live on or travel through your property. There are smaller satellite covers dotted around the woods that bucks use frequently, but here we’re talking about the main safe zone. In a Maryland study, researchers found that GPS-collared bucks [...]

Quick, how many licensed bowhunters are there in America? How bout 3.7 million. The Archery Trade Association worked with the National Deer Association and state wildlife agencies to identify the number of licensed residents in each state that bowhunted in the 2021-22 season. “This is the most reliable single-source of bowhunting participation data generated to date,” said Jeff Poole, ATA president and CEO. “We are pleased to share this information and know the data serves as a benchmark to inspire growth nationwide.” The data is available here: 2021 State-by-State Hunting Data, 3.7 Million Bowhunters in America along with harvest statistics for each state. The ATA also created a downloadable one-sheet document so members can easily read and compare state bowhunter numbers. So what [...]