Scouting
For Deer 2005: a photo journey
Sept 8 - First
Scrape Activity
With their velvet shed,
these two bucks are obviously thinking about the rut. Enjoy...
Sept 6 - First
Buck To Loose Its Velvet
 Ever
year we look forward to the first sighting of a buck that has shed its
velvet. This year's velvet-less buck is a youngster, a 1 1/2 year old,
but he is the king of the woods today. Here he is in Picture
#1 and in a Close
Up.
Double Kicker Buck Gives
Us Pics
PART #2 - Here are the rest
of the DK Pics
Double Kicker 8-Point on August
9 - Keeping the other bucks in line
 The
Double Kicker 8-point turned and looked towards the wood line and a buck's
antlers appeared above the tall grass.
DK approached the buck and postured
to put him in his place. A 2nd buck stepped from the woods and DK went
to it and faced off. They bumped antlers, in spite of the velvet. A 3rd
buck showed up and DK took notice. And my camera got it all. To
The Pics...
2005 Online Bear
Bowhunt Starts This Week...
Thursday I fly to Chicago
and Chef Klaus and I drive to bear camp in Ontario and join Fred Lutger
and Donald Duck and get ready for this year's 30 online bear hunters.
The Trailer Buck
Aug 5 - 6:30am. My
phone rang. My bud Perry Wicker had ran out of gas and needed rescuing.
I grabbed my camera just in case and started driving. Two dozen deer were
by one of our hunting camp trailers. Bingo! A nice buck.
I let my camera talk to
him and it caught him in mid air jumping the fence. GO...
Freak Returns
Good news and Bad News
I wondered if I would see him this
year. The Freak's summer look is way different than his swelled neck, gray
coat, big boy rut profile. He's lost a lot of weight and bulk. And my binoculars
revealed something I couldn't see without them. Blood.
He's hurt ... and recently too! GO...
Conflicts In The Deer World
(Pics)
My deer chow and grain is
drawing quite an interesting crew. In today's pictures a young buck notices
something approaching. It's wild turkeys and they go right to the buck
and check him out.
Soon two fawns arrive and
the buck takes a little too much interest in them and a boss doe straightens
him out. Enjoy...
On Web Cam!
July 26 -
I've
been experimenting with a web cam to watch the food plot area. Yesterday
I got pictures of the Double Kicker buck checking out the web cam. GO...
DK's Back!
July 25 -
I
was gone this weekend but Monday afternoon the Double Kicker buck made
a brief late afternoon appearance and I got 5 more pictures.
GO...
The Double Kicker Buck
July 22 -
Lately
only bucks with small racks have been around. That just changed. GO...
Back To The Hammer Hole
July 20 -
This
afternoon it was lookin' for hogs in all the wrong places. Didn't see any
deer either.
July 19 Deer Pics
This mornings
deer pictures. GO...
A Little Bit Of Everything
Deer pics taken on the morning
of July 14. GO
3 Bucks In Velvet - July
11
July 11 - A young
buck came through the food plot area at first good picture light. Before
long the sun topped the trees and a second and third bucks showed up. Here's
The Pics...
Scouting
For Deer
The Bucks, so Far
Pictures taken this June
of bucks in the beginning stage of their antler growth. GO...
Even Better Fawn Pics
June 26 - Things could not
have gone better. I sat down in my Double Bull blind, took my camera out
of the bag, and looked up. A doe was here already. And a reddish brown
blob to her left could only be her fawn. New
Fawn Pics...
First Fawn Pics Of The Year!!!
June 25 - As a spike and doe
came within camera range I noticed motion in the high weeds and grass.
A fawn. Fawn Pics...
(June 21) Two
Bucks
The Good News - My
wife and I were enjoying a morning walk when suddenly a large buck jumped
out a few steps in front of us and raced into the brush. It is only
June and this buck had a wide, thick rack with at least 8 points. He's
got a lot of growing to do and will be a bomber.
The Bad News - When
we returned home a pack of buzzards was by our hay barn. We checked it
out and found a big 3 year old buck, also with a nicely developing rack.
It had hung his right rear leg in the top rung of the nearby cattle panel
fence. He was still intact and apparently died last night.
(June 10) First
Fawn Sighting
When I drove across the
cattle guard to my property a doe jumped out of the bar ditch (on my left)
into the colleche road and stopped some 35 yards ahead. I was going slow
and stopped too. A small spotted fawn walked up to her.
The two deer bolted at the
same time and the doe collided with the fawn, knocking it down. It skidded
and spun in a circle in the road, like a frisbee with long legs.
A long rows of round bales
is to the right of the road and the doe was already at the end, waiting
for the fawn as it regained its footing and ran to her. Then they came
out of the emergency mode and walked into the trees.
Deer
Pictures
(June 6) Three deer pass nearby as...
the low angle of the late
afternoon sun plays tricks with the shadows and light. GO...
(June 1) What do baby wild turkeys look
like?
 When
I got to the slew hole today I noticed the ground was rooted
up big time. Wild hogs are definitely around. I sat in the NorthStarr
ladder stand today so I could see more area. In minutes a
doe came down the trail the stand is a few yards from. An hour before
dark the low angle of the sun turned woods into streaks of shadows and
light. A soft turkey put got my attention and I froze as two hens dipped
under the fence and proceeded on a trail perpendicular to the one I was
on. Pouts were with them and I got busy with my camera. TO
Wild Turkey Plots & hens on June 1.
May
31, Afternoon - Minutes after I sat down 6 wild hogs came down the
trail to my right. They were a group I had seen during turkey season and
I held out for one of the larger ones. But they didn't come. Next up was
a wild turkey hen with several pouts. Later a group of black hogs came
along the fence and went under it.
(May 20) Setting Up The Slew Hole
To check for deer as well as wild
hog and possibly even wild turkey traffic in the area I set up a TrailTimer
EZ-Cam to watch a trail crossing. PICS &
MORE...
Freak - Both Antlers Gone
 (March
16) Several does gathered in the food plot this afternoon. As they
browsed around I realized the Freak had gotten in with them without me
noticing him. I got my camera busy. Here he is when I first
saw him. He sure is bigger than they are. He is closer in Pic
2. And Pic
3 shows him real well. He is eating the leafy stuff in the plot in
Pic
4. And then he
is leaving.
March Freak Pics
 
Freak
is changing; neck is slimming down, right antler is gone, and thinner overall.
Pics...
March 5 - Freak
began his day in my food plot. For a larger pic Click
Here.
Feb 4 - Freak Pics
Good News - This morning the
Freak buck finally hung out until there was enough daylight for some
decent pictures. To
Feb 4 Freak Pics...
January 21 - Woops! I messed up!
Boy do I have egg on my face! As the
pre dawn light let me see the Food Plot I saw the Freak buck. And he had
his antlers. Sheeeze, yesterday I reported I saw him with no antlers. I
was mistaken. He left before camera light but I will hang in and hope to
get pics of both these bucks.
January 20 - GOOD NEWS!
Very foggy at daylight. 3 deer figures
came in my food plot. One had a very familiar shape and I focused my binoculars
on him ... the Freak.
Last time I saw him he was limping
but he is fine now. Both his antlers are gone and big pedicules are where
they were. He looks like the biggest button buck in the world. Ahhh, it
makes me happy. Think I'll eat a desert today to celebrate.
Scouting
For Deer 2004: a photo journey
Online Food Plot - Plans & Planting
 
At the ATA Archery Trade
Show I discussed making and covering a food plot online with Mike Massey
of PlotSpike wildlife food
plot products. Mike had me send him soil samples. I did and he promptly
sent the right seeds for my area. We are going to follow it online. Plans,
Planting & Progress (w PIcs)
Water Where There Isn't Water
 
(L) Pouring water (larger
pic) (R) A young buck (larger
pic) that was drinking the water -- water is on the right side of the
pic.
Something that has worked
real well for me the last few years is to create a small watering hole
close to a deer bedding area. Deer and wild turkeys will frequently make
it their first and last stop of the day. I call this area The Point.
Originally I made a mineral
lick and before long the deer ate and pawed out a hole in the ground that
was several inches deep. I noticed that when it rained the hole filled
up with water. And while it was very rare to see a deer eating the minerals,
they regularly came to the Point to drink the water.
I started taking water to
it in 55 gallon plastic drums. They're too heavy to lift off my truck but
I can dump the water out, no problem. It's a fair amount of work lugging
the water but it brings in deer.
An example is the buck Buddy
Group that was drinking there during the 2002
deerhunt. Also, here are pics are of a buck that has been drinking
here this year (Buck
1 and Buck
2). And several bucks
from 2002 caught on film drinking the water.
Secret Spot #3 - One more buck!
I hung a TrailTimer EZ Cam
500 on a fence post where it could monitor a faint deer trail that comes
under the fence. And the TrailTimer
EZ Cam finds me another 8-pt. GO...
Checking The Hammer Hole & Secret
Spots #1 & #2
 
TrailTimer pictures in two
areas I've never hunted, but have been thinking about for some time. Secret
Spots #1 & #2. And one more look at the Hammer
Hole.
TrailTimer Pics
At The Slew Hole
During the bear hunt the
TrailTimer watched one of the trails leading to the Slew Hole area. Pics
 
Aug 11 - I picked up my
TrailTimer Pictures from the Wal-Mart 1 hour place. As you can see above,
they were worth looking at. To
Pics...
Some For Sure,
Good Deer Pictures
After daylight I saw over
a dozen deer. Some days they give you better pictures than others. Today
was one of those 10 days. To
the Pics.
It's Time To Look
For The Bucks
 
TrailTimer
game camera at the Point.
My main food plot area has
does and fawns visiting it regularly. And it is the easiest place for me
to get pictures. This year bucks are not hanging out here yet. So it's
time to locate them. Today I put out 3 TrailTimer EZ-Cam
game cameras in three different places: on the fence where it can see what
deer cross back and forth at the
Point, watching the Hammer
Hole woods road, and overlooking two deer trails at the Slew Hole (no
pic). We will check them in a few days.
Getting Bigger
All The Time
 (Aug
2)
Pics of a fawn on August
3, 2004. This fawn is much larger than the ones in previous pictures. Notice
it's spots, they have lost their bright white color and are beginning to
fade. Go...
 June
29 - Pics of a Buck In Velvet
Daybreak. Pouring rain.
I went back to bed.
When the rain stopped an
hour later it woke me up so I watched my food plot area for awhile. A buck
in velvet came into the area and walked around. It let me get 4
good pics.
Sunshine Deer
- (July 28)
 Here
are a few select pics of the deer I saw this morning. The sunlight made
for some cool lighting effects: a doe
and fawn (it's growing too). Two does making
aggressive postures at each other. A near surreal pic of
a
flagging deer. And a wallpaper of my favorite deer picture for the
year, so far. I call it Sunshine Deer. (1024x768)
(800x600) (640x480)
 
First Fawn Pictures of the Year
- I've seen fawns since June 8. But couldn't get a picture of any. But
this morning I did when a doe walked by that had 2 fawns. Fawn
Pic #1 and Fawn
Pic #2.
 
July 5, 2004: Gettn'
Close - This afternoon a doe co-operated very nicely with my photographic
intentions and got within extra close-up camera range. I made a brief
photo gallery of the doe for you. I had to have the closest, and
best, pic for my computer wallpaper. And if you enjoy this eye to eye pic
as much as everyone who has seen it so far ere it is in Wallpaper sizes:
(1024x768)
(800x600)
(640x480)
First BUCKS - In June
June 28 - I've been big time
anxious to see bucks out moving around sporting their new velvet antlers.
Today was the day. TO: 7
Pics of June 28's bucks.
First Fawn Sighting - June 8
This morning I saw a fawn with a doe.
It is the first fawn I've seen so far this year. Unfortunately it all came
down so fast I couldn't get a picture. But there will be others.
Buck With New Antlers A Growin'
 Buck
with starter antlers
An hour before dusk I moved
my Double Bull blind further down the fence line that runs to the Point.
Before long a buck with starter antlers in velvet walked down the fence
in my direction. I got 3 good close pics.
To
The Buck's Pics
 Pics
as a doe waters at the Point
From my Double Bull blind near the
Point I saw a doe
approaching along the opposite side of the fence. It checked things
out and stepped through the gaping hole in the fence.
It drank briefly from the small watering
hole and then I got the doe half way through the fence in pic
#4 and in pic
#5 with a back leg still on my side. To
All The Pics...
First Buck With Antlers - May 6, 2004
During my Rio
Grande spring hunt a thing very cool happened on May 6, I saw and got
a pic of the first buck I've seen with visible antlers this year. First
Buck With Antlers - May 6
Scouting Logs & PIctures
For: 2003 | 2002
| 2001 | 2000
|
Scouting
For Deer In 2003
Scouting Logs & PIctures
For: 2003 | 2002
| 2001 | 2000
|
Experience the deer growing throughout the year, from the first fawns
& first buck in velvet to the
 
 
 
 
 
Scouting
For Deer Season 2002: a Photo Journey
Scouting
Pics & Notes From 2002: May,
June & July |
Scouting
Pics & Notes From 2001: June &
July | Aug | Sept
|
  
  
Fathers &
Sons & The Licking Tree (Wallpaper)
 Fathers
& Sons: Notice the difference in the size of the two bucks. Here
is a wallpaper for ya. (1042x768)
(800x600) (640x480)
 
 
Scouting
Pics & Notes From 2001:
June
& July | August | September
|
 
 
 |
Find
it here.
