It has been a very interesting hunting season for sure. The temperatures were not the best or the most helpful in the beginning of season. That made hunting a little more of a challenge but nothing that can't be worked out with the proper skills needed to pattern the animals in those temperatures. We had a successful early season elk hunt and all customers were very happy and that made my heart very happy.. Shortly after that deer season was upon us!
We had a lot of success with our do it yourself hunts over active baited locations.. some nice bucks were taken and some managed to narrowly escape our hunters (a nice way of saying they missed oops)!
I was able to help a lot of friends out this year in bettering their chances at getting on a big buck and was happy to hear the products and techniques suggested were successful! I have been working with my favorite scent products ( Buck Baits) this season exclusively and would highly recommend them to every one of my clients and friends! We have been able to prove successfully in the field that these products work great! We have had bucks walk right up on us , a doe nearly mow me down before she saw me , coyotes within ten yards and bobcats as close as twenty yards, even elk within twenty yards and most of them never even had a clue we were right there.
Something that I have discovered is that a lot of people do not understand the importance of preseason scouting and patterning of the animals in the areas they are wishing to hunt. I find myself having to explain this very frequently.. I make it a point to explain that to each of my clients as I am teaching them the skill of hunting I find it very important if one wants to be truly successful in the woods on state land. I find myself having to explain that it is not only important to have the proper cover scents and attractants but it is also important to know how and when and where to use those and with proper pre-hunt planning all those things added together will help you become a better hunter.. looking forward to the remainder of the winter spending some time thinning out the coyote population and honing those skills so that I can better help my clients be successful in that department as well.
~Jennifer Drake, Pro Staff