Bill,
What do you think the range of a mature buck is?View post →
recently had 5 acres clear cut on high ground. There is a hard-edge of northern white cedar swamp now on the north side of the cut. 30 feet of slope top to bottom. Was wondering if you have any advice on managing a clear cuts? & what elevation to hunt at???. 90% was soft maple and poplar. The logger left some pockets of pine and about 25 oak and beech. Most of what was cut was veneer and grade timber. Little worried the regen is going to be to thick. But it is Michigan with a brown and down hunter everywhere.
Thanks BillView post →
Bill: It's so cool to see you writing again online and posting content to YouTube. I have followed you and MW since 2011 (I was a senior in high school then) and I believe one of the first episodes I saw was the G5 buck hunt. Man, talk about being hooked from the start.
I've always been curious if you keep in touch with Zach, Aaron and Greg ever since they started The Hunting Public. A lot of people I know that follow MW also now subscribe to THP, myself included, because of the connection they had on your show a few years back. On their podcast, they have mentioned quite a few times about the great experiences they had working for MW. I bet it's cool to see your former employees take off and excel in the industry as well. They were very talented back then, but it seems they have taken their craft to another level. Thanks again for all you do - and have done - to help educate us to be better hunters and outdoorsmen. Looking forward to your new adventure here!!View post →
Hi Bill. Good to see you back and interacting on your new website. I definitely missed following your hunts on the Farm last year. My question is about liquid products such as DeerGro and the likes. What do you think about these products? Are these a waste of $$ or useful? I have some virgin plots I am planning for my farm in OH this year and the PH could definitely use a boost. I have spread tons of pelletized lime but I know it takes time to be effective. Thanks and have a great day!View post →
I live in heavily ag area, roughly 95% row crops. I'm looking into buying a piece of property that is basically all grass and is permanent easement (it's what I can afford). The parcel is around 90 acres, in the middle of the section surrounded by gentle sloping ag fields. There is not much other cover around with the nearest river corridor about 1.5mi away with any significant tree cover.
The parcel does offer flexibility to plant shrubs, trees and food plots. I could leave a few acres of standing crops, which does not happen around here. I know it won't hold more than a dozen deer, but I'm wondering your thoughts on if it sounds worth it.
I'm considering asking the landowner if he will lease it to me for one year and see what it's like and make an offer if it seems it is worth it.View post →
Hi Bill,
I have a question about small food plots. My dad and I do not own any land, but have a handful of properties we have permission to hunt on and have hunted on them for years now. We have never planted any food plots before, but we have been talking this off-season about planting some food plots on one or more properties we hunt. The main property we hunt is 60 acres, is mostly timber (probably 90%) and is in-between a number of larger agriculture fields, one directly north and one directly south of the property. Additionally, the surrounding properties are all much larger and hold many more deer as they have more food and cover to bed in.
The property we hunt I see as more of a property that deer move through on their way to and from feeding, we have a decent number of doe's that bed on the property as well. It sets up pretty well for rut hunting, as bucks often move through it on their way to and from the surrounding properties while looking for doe's. We have even seen nice bucks bedding with their doe's in what is traditionally doe bedding. As I said above, the property we hunt is mainly timber, so if we do plant food plots it is going to have to be in the middle of timber and they would likely need to be very small. I was wondering if you have any knowledge on how to pull deer to the property through the use of food plots? What plant type or types would be best for "staging" plots, to get deer to stop on their way to bigger ag fields? When is the best time of year to plant - should we plant in April, or wait until later, or plant to plant the plots multiple times each year? Are there crops that do well in more shaded areas as well?
Any insight you would have would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you!
Caleb DrakeView post →
Bill,
You've been a big mentor to me since I started watching and not just in the hunting realm! I really enjoyed your blog about building your dream farm and will use your wisdom in my own quest. As I get older (24), I'm realizing there's a lot more factors and sacrifices to be made in order to live the lifestyle of a bowhunter and landowner. I'm curious as to if you have any advice on this topic: was your partner always on board with what you were trying to accomplish? We're there times when you questioned if the sacrifices you were making were worth it? How did/do you go about balancing family life with your passion?
Thank you and God blessView post →
Hi Bill, In one of your recent blogs you mentioned using the trail camera strategy that you’ve developed over the past several years to help locate new bucks to hunt this past fall. Can you elaborate on that a little more or maybe even write a blog about it? Is there specific areas you like to locate the corn piles? I’ve noticed in the past that you seem to place a lot of them on field edges. Do you think the mature bucks smell it from a distance which draws them in compared to simply placing the camera along a trail or field edge and hoping they pass by?View post →
Will there be a way we can get notified when you update a blog or add a new blog?View post →
Congrats on the great deer this year and hope your folks and family are doing well!!!
Two quick questions. I will be buying my second point this year for Iowa and plan on hunting your great state next year - all public unless I can knock on a few doors next spring scouting and shed hunting. What are your thoughts about the public in your state? Second is there any chance you will be writing any new books in the near future? Thanks Bill!!View post →