In this video Ike from Ike's outdoors is on a hunt in S.W. Missouri. Ike is able to harvest a 130" buck with his Athens Accomplice.
Deer hunters' success rates vary, but I've heard it said that the average deer hunter kills 1 deer every 3 years. I acquired this knowledge through the reliable source of hearsay, so take it for what it's worth. Most hunters I know enjoy more success than this, but they still face hard times. They still have slow periods. I myself am facing that situation right now. So how do we deal with it? I follow a few simple steps. They don't always work, but at least I go down fighting. Scout In Season I spent a majority of my year hunting new property. I hunt both public and private land, but have yet to find a piece of ground I can depend on day-to-day. To cope with my ever-changing scenery, I have to be able to scout in season. The first place I start is with a good topographical map and aerial photos. I look for water, valleys, and fields. I look over the neighboring property as well. I ask myself, why a deer would be on this property? The answer to this usually gives me a place to start. When I go in for the first time, I usually do not take a stand. Instead, I wear my Shaggie suit. I find a good starting point on my map and head for that spot. Once I am there, I start looking around for sign. I take a copy of the aerial photo and make notes about my findings. I move slowly, often stopping for 30 minutes to an hour in a good spot. I usually only cover a small area doing this, and most of the time do not harvest a deer, but I come away with a few ideas for ambush spots and have little or no impact on the property. If it is a piece of ground I have hunted before but deer sightings are few, I take a different approach. In this scenario, I rely on my portable stands and trail cameras. I stalk into an area where I do not have a stand set up, find a spot that affords me a good view of a lot of ground, and hang my stand. My goal isn't to kill a deer from this location, it's merely to spot them. This helps me get an idea of where the deer are and what they are doing. Once I spot deer from this location, I take the stand down and the next time out, I hang the stand in the location of the deer sighting. Trail cameras are pretty straight forward. I hang these in locations I'm not hunting, but may hold some deer. Trail cameras are a way for me to save time and energy on a spot with little or no deer activity. A trail camera in the right location can prove to be a vital tool in turning the season around. New Location If things are not working at the old stomping grounds, it may be time to look elsewhere. You do not have to abandon this location, but more options will up your odds of success. While new hunting grounds may not be easy to find, you can simplify this process by trying the following approaches. Public ground is one viable option. If you're lucky, you'll have public land nearby. If not, you may have to put some miles behind you to enjoy some state-owned hunting grounds. Most conservation departments' websites will have loads of information on public land in their state. These websites offer maps and general information on the land, as well as laws and regulations for the site. If you don't have access to the internet, pick up a copy of your state hunting regulations and you will find the contact information for your state's conservation department and local offices. Pick up the phone or drop by their office and you will find helpful people that will give you all the information you will need. No public land? Don't know any landowners? No problem. Private land can be obtained if you're willing to work for it. Most counties will offer platt maps. Platt maps are maps of your county that show all landowners and the size of their property. If you locate a piece of land that piques your interest, find out the landowner's address, put on your Sunday best and knock on their door. Introduce yourself, state your reason for visiting, be polite, and offer to exchange hunting rights for some manual labor. Be honest, tell them how many you will have in your party and if possible have those people with you. Be sure to get everything out in the open. If you plan to rifle hunt, get the OK. If you plan to hunt other game besides deer, for example, turkey, rabbits, squirrel, ect., get it all out so the landowner is not taken by surprise. If the landowner says no, thank them for their time, and move on to the next location. Be sure to leave your name and telephone number. You never know when a landowner might change their mind. If you're polite and leave a good impression, you may be the first person they call. Another easy approach to find hunting land is to advertise. Put up a flyer explaining your needs at feed stores, coffee shops, gas stations, grocery stores, or other high traffic locations. Make sure to pay special attention to agriculture related businesses and other locations that will be visited by farmers and ranchers. Consider placing an ad in your local paper. Once again pay special attention to the publications that target farmers and ranchers. An alternate route is the internet. Place an ad on Craigs list or other sites that allow free listings. Check out sites like Archerytalk or other sites with open forums. Some even have a classified section that will have landowners list land that they have for lease. Chance of one being in your area may be slim, but a slim chance is better than none. Moving to a new location will change things up and keep things new. It may help relieve some hunting pressure off of your current hunting location and bring the deer back in. If you're lucky, you may stumble on a location that is deer heaven, and have your walls sagging from all the trophies. Stay positive Motivation is a major weapon in a hunters arsenal. Motivation is what gets us up at 4:30 AM and keeps us in a stand all day. A positive attitude, a motivated spirit, along with these simple tips and a little work may pay huge dividends.  Firstly, I want to remind all of you that I am not a paid spokesperson for GamePlan. I am not paid to endorse any of their products. I'm just an avid hunter who wants to share with other hunters the good and not so good products I have tried. Having said that, here is my product review of the StandBack. The StandBack is designed and manufactured by GamePlan Gear. The standback is one of many versatile products GamePlan is currently producing. Like all products, it has it's pros and cons, and like other hunting products manufactured, it may not suit all hunts.  The StandBack offers comfort, whether it's strapped on your back or around your favorite tree. The chest and wrist straps are padded, and they take the pressure off of your shoulders and distribute it evenly. Once in the tree, the StandBack folds out and straps to the tree. Not only does this make all off your accessories easy to get to, it has a padded backrest offering not only comfort, but it also quiets noise from clothing contact with treebark. Possibly the best feature of the StandBack, is it allows all of your equipment to be easily reached. Once strapped to the tree, calls, binoculars, scents, and any other item needed is right at your fingertips.  This pack is also designed to carry a crossbow, rifle, or bow. This feature may be handy in the Western Region, but in large woodlots, it's not always ideal. One advantage for these hunters is if you need both hands to drag out your trophy, simply strap your weapon in and drag away. I have found that when a bow is in the pack, my quiver and stabilizer need to be removed. A minor inconvenience, but an inconvenience nonetheless. Overall I give this pack an 8 out of 10. Price is not too bad. You can get this pack for less than $80. It is very comfortable and is very versatile. I can carry all my gear, bow, and extra clothing on my back without having aching shoulders. A few minor problems are easily tolerated for the versatility of the StandBack.     When you purchase a product from Sims Vibration Labs you not only get top of the line quality, you also get the assurance that you are buying from a company that stands behind it's product. I have never had a problem with a Sims product, so I have never had to deal with their customer service. I can say this: the people at Sims that I have dealt with have all been fantastic. They answered my questions and returned my emails in a very quick and professional manner. The people at Sims have not forgotten the customer. I was surprised to learn that some of the top executives for Sims even post on Archerytalk answering questions and lending a helping hand to fellow archers. Things like that go a long way with me and that is the reason Sims has continued to have success and has grown as a company. The first product I ever bought from Sims was a stringer for my recurve. It had the name Limbsaver on the rubber block and man did it live up to that name. This simple little product saved me the work and strain of stringing my 55 pound recurve and help to keep me from bending and twisting the limbs. The Sims line-up has expanded, but their commitment to making products that give the maximum benefit for the least amount of effort remains the same. In this article I am going to quickly cover some of the products that Sims has to offer and believe me, Sims has come a long way from the day that I bought that simple little stringer. PRISM LIGHT SIGHT We all know that the big boys like to cruise right at dark. Several years ago I pursued a buck that wouldn't venture out until the light was just about gone. He continued to give me the slip and continued to haunt my dreams. That buck is now gracing my wall only because I sat all day and the lure of a rutting doe was too much. I had at least a half dozen chances on him before I took him but I never could see my pins. If I would have had a Sims Prism Sight it would have saved me a lot of time and sleepless nights. When you see the Prism Light Sight in the package you can tell it is bright. When you remove it from the package you will notice how well it is constructed. But the place you will see this sight’s worth is in lowlight situations. With this sight I was able to shoot right up to dark. With the addition of the L.E.D. bow sight light, made by Sims, and a drop light over my target, the only thing that stopped me shooting was the love for my wife and my desire to spend quality time with her. Soon deer season starts and the big boys will be stalking our dreams. With this sight I have the ability to take him down even if the light is fading.  SIMS FALL AWAY REST At first glance the Sims Fall Away Rest looks like others on the market, but a closer examination reveals the truth. The Sims Fall Away Rest works on a sealed twin ball bearing system. This makes the rest smooth and quiet on the draw. This also makes it more resistant to harsh weather. It will remain smooth and quiet even after a good soak. The rest is well constructed out of aluminum and is very nicely machined. Set up and timing are simple and the addition of two mini Limbsavers to absorb vibration ensures that the rest is vibration free. The Sims Fall Away Rest also comes with an arrow holder and drop pad that are made from Sims Navcom material. The drop pad is positioned below the rest arm when the arm drops it hits the drop pad. The drop pad not only absorbs the vibration from the fall eliminating noise it also keeps the arm from bouncing back up causing bad arrow flight. The Sims Fall Away Rest proves that the devil is in the details and Sims has them covered.  SIMS STRING DECELERATOR This product is the one that hands down made the most difference in noise and vibration. I put the String Deceleration an older bow that was not originally designed for one. It took seconds to set up and made a huge improvement to the bow. The String Decelerator is as close to being universal as they come. If you have a threaded insert on the front or back of your bow this product will work for you. It is the same thread as all stabilizers and is completely adjustable to fit your bows brace height. The recoil pad is made from Sims Navcom material and absorbs all the string shock, keeping it from transferring to your bow or to your hand. The string decelerator is available in black or in Next camo. Combine these beautiful finishes with a product this effective, and you have a fantastic product.  SIMS LIMBSAVER ONE PIECE QUIVER The Limbsaver One Piece Quiver is very attractive with it's Next Camo and innovative yet simple design. It holds 6 arrow tipped with either field points, mechanical, or fixed blade broad heads. The arrows are helped in place with a unique Hood Gripper System that is made from Navcom. This design holds them securely while absorbing vibration and reducing noise. The quiver is light weight and has a ton of adjustment up and down as well as the ability to position the quiver at different angles. This allows you to customize the quiver to best fit your bow and hunting needs.  SUMMARY The products I have mentioned in this article are all new products in the Sims line-up. Along with these great accessories and the continued improvements to products like the X-Coil stabilizer, the Limbsavers, String Leeches, and Tentacle wrap, it is not hard to see why Sims is a cut above the competition. Sims is a company full of fantastic people that are committed to making top rated products that will make your day in the field more enjoyable. You can see some of Sims fine products in the video previously posted and watch for more Sims products in our future videos.  The 360 Extreme Release is a duel caliper release with a 360 degree rotating head in front of the trigger. The rotating head allows you to find a more comfortable and repeatable anchor position. The 360 head rotation also eliminates string or string loop torque.   When I purchased my first Ripcord I was very impressed with the design and craftsmanship. After I got it home and set-up I was blown away to say the least. This is the first in a series of instructional videos we plan to make about the basics of archery. This video shows how to wrap and fletch an arrow. This is a short video of how durable FOB's are. It also shows that you do not have to change your sights to shoot FOB's. You do have to make sure you shoot a good fall away rest and that you have 100% clearance. This is achieved pretty easily and once done you can shoot FOB's along side your other vanes and reap the benefits on a windy day or on a long shot without changing your entire setup. For more information on FOB's, visit www.starrflight.com  Battledrum arrow wraps are without a doubt some of the best arrow wraps on the market today. Battledrum offers standard colors and custom wraps. The custom wraps are unbelievable. I contacted Battledrum and gave them a vague idea of what I wanted and let them run with it. They got it spot on in no time with very little feed back from me.   Speed rating these days can be deceiving. Bows are advertised with speeds of 340 + F.P.S ratings. The thing you need to consider about these ratings is that they are achieved using I.B.O standards. Most bows, at least hunting bows, are going to perform closer to A.M.O standards. | Ike's BlogThis is Ike's Blog, on here you will find product reviews, editorials, video blogs and general archery information. Check back for new posts! ArchivesMay 2010 CategoriesAll |
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