1 00:00:01,240 --> 00:00:05,120 Speaker 1: Welcome to the Wired to Hunt Foundations podcast, your guide 2 00:00:05,120 --> 00:00:08,879 Speaker 1: to the fundamentals of better deer hunting, presented by first Light, 3 00:00:09,240 --> 00:00:13,560 Speaker 1: creating proven versatile hunting apparel for the stand, saddle or blind. 4 00:00:14,080 --> 00:00:18,600 Speaker 1: First Light Go Farther, Stay Longer, and now your host 5 00:00:19,000 --> 00:00:19,880 Speaker 1: Tony Peterson. 6 00:00:20,239 --> 00:00:22,919 Speaker 2: Hey, everyone, welcome to the Wire to Hunt Foundations podcast, 7 00:00:22,960 --> 00:00:25,040 Speaker 2: which is brought to you by first Light. I'm your host, 8 00:00:25,040 --> 00:00:27,920 Speaker 2: Tony Peterson. In today's episode is all about the rules 9 00:00:27,960 --> 00:00:30,280 Speaker 2: we think exists for white tails and why we should 10 00:00:30,320 --> 00:00:35,400 Speaker 2: be careful about sticking too tightly to them. This one's 11 00:00:35,520 --> 00:00:38,280 Speaker 2: kind of a fun one for me because I'm largely 12 00:00:38,280 --> 00:00:41,400 Speaker 2: a contrarian at heart. I also have a deer hunting 13 00:00:41,479 --> 00:00:45,480 Speaker 2: background that started with a question everything type of attitude. 14 00:00:45,600 --> 00:00:47,879 Speaker 2: You know what, Actually, that's not entirely true. It was 15 00:00:47,920 --> 00:00:49,559 Speaker 2: just that my dad and I weren't very good at it, 16 00:00:49,600 --> 00:00:51,479 Speaker 2: so we kind of just did things the way we wanted. 17 00:00:51,800 --> 00:00:53,480 Speaker 2: And he's the kind of guy who would just try 18 00:00:53,520 --> 00:00:56,400 Speaker 2: something crazy hunting wise, just to see and while it 19 00:00:56,440 --> 00:00:59,680 Speaker 2: really worked out, sometimes it did. And I'm the same 20 00:00:59,680 --> 00:01:03,360 Speaker 2: way and this has shaped almost everything I've thought about 21 00:01:03,640 --> 00:01:05,839 Speaker 2: when it comes to deer hunting. So Buckle up because 22 00:01:05,840 --> 00:01:07,560 Speaker 2: it's time to break some of the hard and fast 23 00:01:07,600 --> 00:01:11,360 Speaker 2: deer behavior and hunting strategy rules and kill some bucks. Anyway, 24 00:01:16,600 --> 00:01:18,440 Speaker 2: as I said, this is a fun one for me. 25 00:01:18,520 --> 00:01:21,480 Speaker 2: But let me make this clear right from the start, 26 00:01:21,760 --> 00:01:24,839 Speaker 2: what I mean by white tail rules throughout this podcast 27 00:01:25,319 --> 00:01:29,520 Speaker 2: are not the laws and regulations you should obey those. 28 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:31,640 Speaker 2: I'm not giving you the green light to go shoot 29 00:01:31,640 --> 00:01:33,880 Speaker 2: a bunch of velvet bucks over a bait pile in August, 30 00:01:34,040 --> 00:01:37,560 Speaker 2: well before the actual season opens up. But instead, I 31 00:01:37,600 --> 00:01:39,160 Speaker 2: just want to talk about how we make up our 32 00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:42,320 Speaker 2: minds that things are a certain way when they often aren't. 33 00:01:43,400 --> 00:01:46,480 Speaker 2: Let's start with a non deer hunting situation here that 34 00:01:46,520 --> 00:01:48,360 Speaker 2: I've talked about a few times but I think really 35 00:01:48,480 --> 00:01:53,000 Speaker 2: encapsulates this whole idea. Last year, when I was baiting 36 00:01:53,040 --> 00:01:56,640 Speaker 2: bears for my daughter in Wisconsin, we had exactly two 37 00:01:56,720 --> 00:02:00,600 Speaker 2: bears to work with. One was a monster boy with 38 00:02:00,640 --> 00:02:03,400 Speaker 2: a belly hanging on the ground. And while everyone says this, 39 00:02:03,520 --> 00:02:06,080 Speaker 2: I promise you in this case it's true. He was 40 00:02:06,320 --> 00:02:09,200 Speaker 2: well over three hundred pounds. The other was much more 41 00:02:09,200 --> 00:02:11,640 Speaker 2: of your typical yogi, you know, like the one hundred 42 00:02:11,639 --> 00:02:15,680 Speaker 2: and fifty pound type bear. Now that big bruin. He 43 00:02:15,800 --> 00:02:18,520 Speaker 2: was a nighttime visitor. He knew the game and he 44 00:02:18,600 --> 00:02:21,800 Speaker 2: was good at it. The younger one wasn't, so that 45 00:02:21,840 --> 00:02:25,200 Speaker 2: became our target bear. Now, if you know anything about bears, 46 00:02:25,200 --> 00:02:27,640 Speaker 2: they get hunted a lot. They do a pretty good 47 00:02:27,720 --> 00:02:30,440 Speaker 2: job of leaning into the nocturnal game. Now, if you 48 00:02:30,480 --> 00:02:33,600 Speaker 2: don't know anything about the general rules for bear hunting, 49 00:02:34,240 --> 00:02:37,440 Speaker 2: you also know that afternoons are when ninety nine point 50 00:02:37,480 --> 00:02:40,360 Speaker 2: seven percent of all bear hunters sit. Of course, i'm 51 00:02:40,400 --> 00:02:43,880 Speaker 2: talking about baited bear hunts here. Those hunters, they'll tell 52 00:02:43,960 --> 00:02:47,480 Speaker 2: you with very much confidence that there is no reason 53 00:02:47,520 --> 00:02:50,400 Speaker 2: to hunt mornings or in most cases even the lunch shift. 54 00:02:50,720 --> 00:02:54,320 Speaker 2: It's afternoons and evenings. Now, while you would never confuse 55 00:02:54,360 --> 00:02:57,160 Speaker 2: me for an expert bear hunter, I've always just followed 56 00:02:57,160 --> 00:03:00,880 Speaker 2: that line of thinking. After all, how the whole culture 57 00:03:00,960 --> 00:03:04,120 Speaker 2: around that type of bear hunting have it wrong. The 58 00:03:04,200 --> 00:03:07,280 Speaker 2: trouble is, if you have a limited amount of licorice 59 00:03:07,400 --> 00:03:10,840 Speaker 2: trail mix out and you have two bears competing for 60 00:03:10,880 --> 00:03:14,520 Speaker 2: those calories, they'll just generally sort themselves out into some 61 00:03:14,680 --> 00:03:19,600 Speaker 2: level of avoidance through their visits. Or, more specifically, if 62 00:03:19,639 --> 00:03:22,440 Speaker 2: a bear is double the size of another, bear, the 63 00:03:22,520 --> 00:03:24,520 Speaker 2: smaller one will do a hell of a good job 64 00:03:24,520 --> 00:03:27,160 Speaker 2: of avoiding the big one. And if that big one 65 00:03:27,200 --> 00:03:29,480 Speaker 2: is nocturnal, the smaller one is going to be a 66 00:03:29,560 --> 00:03:33,480 Speaker 2: daylight visitor. That's it. And because the fall is the 67 00:03:33,480 --> 00:03:36,840 Speaker 2: time when bears like to eat just like pigs, you know, 68 00:03:36,880 --> 00:03:40,520 Speaker 2: and to bulk up for hibernation, those daylight visits might 69 00:03:40,560 --> 00:03:45,440 Speaker 2: happen multiple times during those daylight hours. That's what my 70 00:03:45,560 --> 00:03:47,640 Speaker 2: daughter's bear was doing. So, in a weird move to 71 00:03:47,640 --> 00:03:49,600 Speaker 2: maximize one of the three days we had to hunt, 72 00:03:49,880 --> 00:03:52,040 Speaker 2: we went in at sunrise and she shot that bear 73 00:03:52,080 --> 00:03:54,720 Speaker 2: at noon. It was one of my top ten coolest 74 00:03:54,800 --> 00:03:58,480 Speaker 2: hunting experiences ever, and it was made possible simply by 75 00:03:58,520 --> 00:04:03,080 Speaker 2: breaking the general rule of when we should hunt. You're 76 00:04:03,080 --> 00:04:06,680 Speaker 2: probably listening to this going, well, dumb man, you have 77 00:04:06,720 --> 00:04:09,080 Speaker 2: pictures of a yogi come in in at all hours 78 00:04:09,120 --> 00:04:11,440 Speaker 2: of the day to feed, You go in, you cover 79 00:04:11,520 --> 00:04:13,720 Speaker 2: those hours of the day. But this is where I'll 80 00:04:13,800 --> 00:04:16,680 Speaker 2: kindly steer you to the deer world and ask if 81 00:04:16,720 --> 00:04:19,520 Speaker 2: it's so easy for you to go against the grain 82 00:04:19,640 --> 00:04:21,680 Speaker 2: and try something that is genuinely thought of as a 83 00:04:21,800 --> 00:04:24,880 Speaker 2: no go proposition. Now, what do I mean by that? 84 00:04:25,839 --> 00:04:29,119 Speaker 2: Let me count the waves. How About here's a simple one, 85 00:04:29,440 --> 00:04:33,039 Speaker 2: hunting mornings in the early season. How About snort wheezing 86 00:04:33,080 --> 00:04:34,560 Speaker 2: two one hundred and three inch two and a half 87 00:04:34,600 --> 00:04:37,680 Speaker 2: year old on Halloween. He's probably not the dominant buck, 88 00:04:37,800 --> 00:04:40,760 Speaker 2: is he. How About snort wheezing to that deer in September? 89 00:04:41,040 --> 00:04:44,200 Speaker 2: Pretty dumb right. How About taking a swing at your 90 00:04:44,279 --> 00:04:46,920 Speaker 2: number one hit lister in your number one stand site 91 00:04:46,960 --> 00:04:50,920 Speaker 2: well before he starts daylighting on your cameras. How About 92 00:04:51,000 --> 00:04:53,279 Speaker 2: hunting hard during the middle of October when you know 93 00:04:53,720 --> 00:04:56,440 Speaker 2: damn well that none of the bucks are moving because 94 00:04:56,440 --> 00:04:59,360 Speaker 2: they are all mandated by deer latigo nocturnal during the lull. 95 00:05:00,279 --> 00:05:03,479 Speaker 2: Do you know why all of those rules have kind 96 00:05:03,480 --> 00:05:06,120 Speaker 2: of entered to zeitgeist and stuck right on our slightly 97 00:05:06,120 --> 00:05:10,600 Speaker 2: smooth brains, Because we have to vicariously learn some of 98 00:05:10,640 --> 00:05:13,120 Speaker 2: this stuff, and to do that we follow people who 99 00:05:13,120 --> 00:05:14,680 Speaker 2: seem to be a hell of a lot better than 100 00:05:14,760 --> 00:05:17,480 Speaker 2: us at killing deer. But their rules are not good 101 00:05:17,520 --> 00:05:20,520 Speaker 2: for you. And I promise you that even though they 102 00:05:20,560 --> 00:05:24,039 Speaker 2: kill two hundred inch deer frequently and you don't. The 103 00:05:24,080 --> 00:05:27,200 Speaker 2: reason for this is because the deer behavior varies so 104 00:05:27,279 --> 00:05:30,039 Speaker 2: much by state and county and property in region and whatever. 105 00:05:31,000 --> 00:05:36,200 Speaker 2: Are there general behaviors that transcend locality. Absolutely, there's also 106 00:05:36,320 --> 00:05:39,400 Speaker 2: the depths of nuance to any situation that creates scenarios 107 00:05:39,480 --> 00:05:43,640 Speaker 2: here but not there, and there but not here. Let 108 00:05:43,640 --> 00:05:46,200 Speaker 2: me give you an example. I have permission to hunt 109 00:05:46,200 --> 00:05:48,440 Speaker 2: a large dairy farm in southeastern Minnesota that I talk 110 00:05:48,480 --> 00:05:53,240 Speaker 2: about sometimes. That property borders another property that one of 111 00:05:53,279 --> 00:05:56,920 Speaker 2: my buddies' leases, and it also borders a small property 112 00:05:56,920 --> 00:06:00,400 Speaker 2: that is generally treated as a deer sanctuary. Now, my 113 00:06:00,600 --> 00:06:03,919 Speaker 2: property is the opposite of what you'd call a deer sanctuary. 114 00:06:04,600 --> 00:06:07,000 Speaker 2: A lot of people hunt it, and the landowner would 115 00:06:07,040 --> 00:06:09,320 Speaker 2: like it if lots of deer were shot out of there, 116 00:06:09,320 --> 00:06:11,320 Speaker 2: and he does his best to facilitate that every year, 117 00:06:11,800 --> 00:06:14,960 Speaker 2: and the deer know it. So a lot of the 118 00:06:15,000 --> 00:06:19,839 Speaker 2: deer that I end up with on my property at 119 00:06:19,839 --> 00:06:22,360 Speaker 2: some point of the season often move to those other 120 00:06:22,360 --> 00:06:26,240 Speaker 2: two properties, and as the season progresses, the differential in 121 00:06:26,360 --> 00:06:29,240 Speaker 2: pressure has a major effect on a lot of things, 122 00:06:29,560 --> 00:06:32,760 Speaker 2: including the dispersal of big bucks. Now, when the pre 123 00:06:32,920 --> 00:06:35,680 Speaker 2: rut kicks in, my buddy hunts his lease and is 124 00:06:35,760 --> 00:06:39,080 Speaker 2: generally covered in good deer chasing and doing their thing, 125 00:06:39,600 --> 00:06:44,080 Speaker 2: and it's literally right across the fence, literally in a 126 00:06:44,120 --> 00:06:47,159 Speaker 2: place where I can see from some of my stands, 127 00:06:47,400 --> 00:06:49,960 Speaker 2: and yet on my property I struggle to see good 128 00:06:50,000 --> 00:06:53,880 Speaker 2: bucks and sometimes any bucks. It's not even close to 129 00:06:53,920 --> 00:06:56,240 Speaker 2: the same experience, even though the properties are very close. 130 00:06:57,400 --> 00:07:00,719 Speaker 2: So what does that mean? Well, for starters, the rules 131 00:07:00,720 --> 00:07:03,840 Speaker 2: he should follow wouldn't make much sense for me, would they. 132 00:07:03,960 --> 00:07:07,320 Speaker 2: I'm dealing with just a vastly different scenario. And what's worse, 133 00:07:07,680 --> 00:07:09,360 Speaker 2: if I didn't know any better and he were to 134 00:07:09,400 --> 00:07:11,640 Speaker 2: tell me what he was doing to get on deer, 135 00:07:12,200 --> 00:07:14,760 Speaker 2: and then I were to try those things, they probably 136 00:07:14,760 --> 00:07:18,400 Speaker 2: wouldn't work for me. Now, imagine someone who owns a 137 00:07:18,480 --> 00:07:21,160 Speaker 2: thousand acres in southern Iowa telling the masses that the 138 00:07:21,200 --> 00:07:24,800 Speaker 2: deer rules are this and not that according to his experience. 139 00:07:25,560 --> 00:07:27,400 Speaker 2: Do you think that makes a whole lot of sense 140 00:07:27,440 --> 00:07:29,200 Speaker 2: for the hunter in Georgia who has to fight the 141 00:07:29,240 --> 00:07:33,560 Speaker 2: crowds on public land. Academically, it just doesn't work. Yet 142 00:07:33,760 --> 00:07:36,800 Speaker 2: we all kind of fall into this trap often. And 143 00:07:36,840 --> 00:07:40,000 Speaker 2: do you know why? At least this is my thought anyway, 144 00:07:40,480 --> 00:07:44,240 Speaker 2: I think the rules we think deer follow scare us, 145 00:07:44,920 --> 00:07:48,560 Speaker 2: And really, why wouldn't they rules are meant to encourage 146 00:07:48,600 --> 00:07:52,280 Speaker 2: specific behavior, and without consequences for not doing those behaviors, 147 00:07:52,480 --> 00:07:55,400 Speaker 2: then they don't matter. So we believe if we don't 148 00:07:55,440 --> 00:07:58,560 Speaker 2: follow the rules, we will not kill deer, and worse, 149 00:07:58,880 --> 00:08:01,920 Speaker 2: we will actually make it harder on ourselves in the future. 150 00:08:03,200 --> 00:08:05,239 Speaker 2: Most of these rules come from the line of thinking 151 00:08:05,280 --> 00:08:08,160 Speaker 2: that you'll do more harm than good. So don't hunt, 152 00:08:08,680 --> 00:08:11,280 Speaker 2: don't scout, don't go in and blow those bucks up 153 00:08:11,280 --> 00:08:13,120 Speaker 2: before they get carryless and start to move a lot 154 00:08:13,200 --> 00:08:16,880 Speaker 2: during daylight. It's a calculation, you know, that makes sense 155 00:08:16,920 --> 00:08:19,400 Speaker 2: for maybe five percent of the deer hunters out there. 156 00:08:20,640 --> 00:08:22,800 Speaker 2: The further you are from a really good property that 157 00:08:22,920 --> 00:08:26,240 Speaker 2: is well managed, the less likely those general deer rules 158 00:08:26,280 --> 00:08:29,480 Speaker 2: are worth following. Part of this is simply because you 159 00:08:29,520 --> 00:08:33,200 Speaker 2: can predict the behavior of your fellow hunters, because they 160 00:08:33,240 --> 00:08:36,559 Speaker 2: are going to more or less follow the general rules. 161 00:08:37,200 --> 00:08:39,760 Speaker 2: The big one, of course, is you know when to hunt. 162 00:08:40,280 --> 00:08:43,000 Speaker 2: Most hunters won't hunt the lull. Most hunters will hunt 163 00:08:43,040 --> 00:08:46,360 Speaker 2: the rut. Simple right now, Imagine what the deer do 164 00:08:46,400 --> 00:08:49,360 Speaker 2: in response to that. Most hunters won't hunt when it's 165 00:08:49,400 --> 00:08:51,920 Speaker 2: super hot, but they will when a cold front hits. 166 00:08:52,559 --> 00:08:54,640 Speaker 2: What do you think deer do in response to that? 167 00:08:55,280 --> 00:08:57,720 Speaker 2: And how many hunters are we talking about in your 168 00:08:57,720 --> 00:09:11,760 Speaker 2: neck of the woods, because that's what really matters. Now, 169 00:09:11,800 --> 00:09:14,240 Speaker 2: think about this another way. Some of the general deer 170 00:09:14,320 --> 00:09:17,600 Speaker 2: rules are probably pretty good ones to follow, but we 171 00:09:17,720 --> 00:09:21,000 Speaker 2: often don't take the all day sits during the rut. 172 00:09:21,040 --> 00:09:24,120 Speaker 2: For example, here, you want to kill more big bucks, 173 00:09:24,760 --> 00:09:27,480 Speaker 2: that's one of your answers. You won't shoot one at 174 00:09:27,520 --> 00:09:29,319 Speaker 2: noon every year, But if you're in the habit of 175 00:09:29,360 --> 00:09:32,480 Speaker 2: all day sits, you'll get a few really good midday 176 00:09:32,520 --> 00:09:35,720 Speaker 2: opportunities every decade of your deer hunting life. Now, maybe 177 00:09:35,720 --> 00:09:38,600 Speaker 2: that means only one or two more mounts on your wall, 178 00:09:39,160 --> 00:09:40,719 Speaker 2: but that's enough to get a guy like minis it 179 00:09:40,760 --> 00:09:43,640 Speaker 2: all day. The best way to look at this might 180 00:09:43,640 --> 00:09:47,160 Speaker 2: simply be to ask yourself, how do I know this 181 00:09:47,320 --> 00:09:50,760 Speaker 2: rule is a good one? Did I hear it over 182 00:09:50,800 --> 00:09:52,600 Speaker 2: and over from people who seem to have a real 183 00:09:52,640 --> 00:09:58,040 Speaker 2: handle on deer hunting? Okay? But have I witnessed it firsthand? 184 00:09:58,600 --> 00:10:02,680 Speaker 2: Have I tried this thing or not? Take the snort 185 00:10:02,679 --> 00:10:05,480 Speaker 2: wheeze deal that I talk about all the time. Last 186 00:10:05,559 --> 00:10:07,880 Speaker 2: year I snort weezed in a really good North Dakota 187 00:10:07,880 --> 00:10:09,959 Speaker 2: buck on public land and missed him, which you can 188 00:10:10,040 --> 00:10:13,640 Speaker 2: watch over at the mediater dot com. My cameraman for 189 00:10:13,679 --> 00:10:16,880 Speaker 2: that hunt is a really good deer hunter, but since 190 00:10:16,920 --> 00:10:19,040 Speaker 2: our timing was outside the rut, he thought it was 191 00:10:19,200 --> 00:10:22,559 Speaker 2: nuts that I was snort wheezing at that buck. After 192 00:10:22,600 --> 00:10:24,559 Speaker 2: the whole encounter, he told me that flat out, he 193 00:10:24,600 --> 00:10:26,240 Speaker 2: thought there was no way that was going to work. 194 00:10:26,960 --> 00:10:29,320 Speaker 2: But it took like four storm wheezes and that buck 195 00:10:29,400 --> 00:10:33,040 Speaker 2: came right in. Now, my camera guy, he's a really 196 00:10:33,040 --> 00:10:36,280 Speaker 2: good deer hunter, really good. But in his head, he 197 00:10:36,360 --> 00:10:38,840 Speaker 2: had a rule about snort wheezing, and you only do 198 00:10:38,880 --> 00:10:40,760 Speaker 2: it during the rut and only on really big deer. 199 00:10:41,360 --> 00:10:43,880 Speaker 2: When you believe that, Will you ever snort wheeze at 200 00:10:43,880 --> 00:10:47,160 Speaker 2: a deer outside of the rut? Probably not. Well, you 201 00:10:47,200 --> 00:10:50,679 Speaker 2: ever snort weeze at a small buck? Probably not? So 202 00:10:50,679 --> 00:10:53,920 Speaker 2: what does that mean? It means that you'll follow that 203 00:10:54,120 --> 00:10:57,520 Speaker 2: rule even if you don't actually know it's a good one. 204 00:10:58,440 --> 00:11:01,280 Speaker 2: Let's think about something else. On that dairy farm I 205 00:11:01,320 --> 00:11:04,240 Speaker 2: mentioned earlier, there is one hundred acre field on one 206 00:11:04,280 --> 00:11:06,640 Speaker 2: part of it. Now that field is split by a 207 00:11:06,679 --> 00:11:09,319 Speaker 2: waterway and it's a crapshoot on any of given year. 208 00:11:09,360 --> 00:11:12,440 Speaker 2: What'll be planted in there? Sometimes, like this year, the 209 00:11:12,480 --> 00:11:15,320 Speaker 2: whole thing is corn, sometimes half of its corn and 210 00:11:15,320 --> 00:11:18,520 Speaker 2: half of its alfalfa, sometimes half as beans. You get 211 00:11:18,520 --> 00:11:22,640 Speaker 2: my drift. Now, On some years, I can access the 212 00:11:22,679 --> 00:11:26,520 Speaker 2: woods that that field borders via standing corn, and I 213 00:11:26,559 --> 00:11:29,319 Speaker 2: can kill decent bucks in the morning in September as 214 00:11:29,320 --> 00:11:32,480 Speaker 2: they work their way back to bed. Sometimes I can't 215 00:11:32,480 --> 00:11:34,400 Speaker 2: get anywhere near that field in the mornings, or I'll 216 00:11:34,440 --> 00:11:36,800 Speaker 2: blow the whole thing out because of what's planted in there. 217 00:11:37,840 --> 00:11:42,200 Speaker 2: So on some years on that farm, the rule about 218 00:11:42,200 --> 00:11:47,160 Speaker 2: not hunting early season mornings is pretty solid. On other years, 219 00:11:47,480 --> 00:11:51,559 Speaker 2: following that rule would cost me real opportunities at good bucks. 220 00:11:52,080 --> 00:11:55,200 Speaker 2: The only thing that changes those rules is the crop 221 00:11:55,320 --> 00:11:58,720 Speaker 2: rotation and my willingness to hunt when the rules seem wrong. 222 00:11:58,760 --> 00:12:02,480 Speaker 2: For the scenario where I'm going with all of this 223 00:12:02,679 --> 00:12:06,560 Speaker 2: is that we find comfort in guardrails. If you believe 224 00:12:06,600 --> 00:12:10,600 Speaker 2: you shouldn't hunt early season mornings and you don't hunt them, 225 00:12:11,080 --> 00:12:13,840 Speaker 2: you're going to feel like you are being a good hunter. 226 00:12:14,600 --> 00:12:17,680 Speaker 2: But what might have been a good decision last year 227 00:12:18,120 --> 00:12:21,000 Speaker 2: could be a dumb one this year. Or what might 228 00:12:21,040 --> 00:12:23,320 Speaker 2: be a good one on that property that you used 229 00:12:23,320 --> 00:12:25,480 Speaker 2: to hunt might not be a good one on the 230 00:12:25,559 --> 00:12:28,880 Speaker 2: least that you have this year. Another example, if you 231 00:12:28,920 --> 00:12:31,280 Speaker 2: believe you can't hunt bottoms of valleys because the wind 232 00:12:31,320 --> 00:12:33,760 Speaker 2: will swirl and you'll get busted, for sure, you're not 233 00:12:33,800 --> 00:12:36,280 Speaker 2: going to try to hunt bottoms of valleys, and I 234 00:12:36,360 --> 00:12:39,520 Speaker 2: promise you there are conditions where you can get away 235 00:12:39,520 --> 00:12:41,760 Speaker 2: with it, and if you do, you're probably going to 236 00:12:41,800 --> 00:12:45,280 Speaker 2: be on deer. The danger to all of this is 237 00:12:45,320 --> 00:12:47,600 Speaker 2: that you have to try things that you've been conditioned 238 00:12:47,640 --> 00:12:51,760 Speaker 2: to believe just won't work. That sucks, but it's also 239 00:12:51,880 --> 00:12:53,559 Speaker 2: why I love heading out on the road to hunt 240 00:12:53,559 --> 00:12:56,920 Speaker 2: public land in random states. My willingness to be cavalier 241 00:12:57,000 --> 00:12:59,839 Speaker 2: and try riskier strategies goes way up when I'm a 242 00:13:00,160 --> 00:13:03,320 Speaker 2: strict timeline and have little to know history with a property. 243 00:13:04,040 --> 00:13:07,199 Speaker 2: When you do that, it sort of crumbles the foundation 244 00:13:07,400 --> 00:13:10,760 Speaker 2: ever so slightly that we've built on our home ground 245 00:13:11,040 --> 00:13:13,640 Speaker 2: where we just know we can do this, but not that. 246 00:13:14,679 --> 00:13:17,000 Speaker 2: I also believe that the rules we like to follow 247 00:13:17,440 --> 00:13:20,160 Speaker 2: keep us from figuring out how to hunt as if 248 00:13:20,200 --> 00:13:23,800 Speaker 2: they don't exist. Let me give you an example about 249 00:13:23,840 --> 00:13:25,760 Speaker 2: seven or eight years ago, I killed one hundred and 250 00:13:25,760 --> 00:13:28,679 Speaker 2: forty six inch ten pointer on public land in South Dakota. 251 00:13:29,400 --> 00:13:31,800 Speaker 2: The buck, along with his little buddy, came through in 252 00:13:31,840 --> 00:13:34,760 Speaker 2: the morning in late September, when you're not supposed to 253 00:13:34,800 --> 00:13:37,640 Speaker 2: hunt mornings. But I'd watched some deer use that spot, 254 00:13:37,840 --> 00:13:39,880 Speaker 2: and I knew they were passing through there in the mornings. 255 00:13:40,040 --> 00:13:41,840 Speaker 2: I just didn't have a great idea how to approach 256 00:13:41,880 --> 00:13:44,280 Speaker 2: the whole thing. So I stuck a blind into a 257 00:13:44,320 --> 00:13:47,120 Speaker 2: bunch of dead cedars, and I went in way early 258 00:13:47,160 --> 00:13:49,079 Speaker 2: and parked down the road in a place that meant 259 00:13:49,160 --> 00:13:51,280 Speaker 2: I had to walk in from the opposite direction the 260 00:13:51,280 --> 00:13:55,480 Speaker 2: deer were likely to approach from, and it worked. If 261 00:13:55,520 --> 00:13:58,240 Speaker 2: that had been a home ground situation, I doubt I 262 00:13:58,240 --> 00:14:01,560 Speaker 2: would have tried. That would have been too risky. It's 263 00:14:01,640 --> 00:14:04,319 Speaker 2: honestly as simple as that. Though now I have to 264 00:14:04,360 --> 00:14:06,360 Speaker 2: say this because if I didn't, I wouldn't feel great 265 00:14:06,360 --> 00:14:09,240 Speaker 2: about myself. A lot of the things that I try 266 00:14:09,280 --> 00:14:13,040 Speaker 2: to make work, which might be outside of general deer 267 00:14:13,160 --> 00:14:16,400 Speaker 2: hunting rules that people like to follow, they just don't work. 268 00:14:17,080 --> 00:14:19,080 Speaker 2: I don't know how many times I've tried to access 269 00:14:19,120 --> 00:14:21,000 Speaker 2: the spot that I thought i'd get away with sneaking 270 00:14:21,040 --> 00:14:23,160 Speaker 2: in and not letting the bucks know I was there, 271 00:14:23,200 --> 00:14:26,880 Speaker 2: and it just didn't happen. This happens a lot. What 272 00:14:26,920 --> 00:14:28,960 Speaker 2: it does for me is helped me set up my 273 00:14:29,120 --> 00:14:32,840 Speaker 2: own rules for certain properties in certain times of the year. 274 00:14:34,120 --> 00:14:36,080 Speaker 2: Take this little chunk of land I own in Wisconsin. 275 00:14:36,800 --> 00:14:39,880 Speaker 2: It's three hundred yards from my east to west boundary, 276 00:14:40,400 --> 00:14:43,520 Speaker 2: and if I park anywhere but the farthest southwest corner, 277 00:14:43,600 --> 00:14:46,080 Speaker 2: my daughters and I generally won't see deer when we sit, 278 00:14:46,400 --> 00:14:49,240 Speaker 2: at least if we hunt in the evenings. Anyway. Now, 279 00:14:49,280 --> 00:14:51,280 Speaker 2: I learned this because I thought I needed to park 280 00:14:51,320 --> 00:14:53,520 Speaker 2: on the other side due to where I figured the 281 00:14:53,560 --> 00:14:56,680 Speaker 2: deer would be betted. But they knew when we went in, 282 00:14:56,920 --> 00:14:59,680 Speaker 2: no matter how careful I was. Now we park as 283 00:14:59,720 --> 00:15:02,360 Speaker 2: close so as you could to where they bed, just 284 00:15:02,400 --> 00:15:04,560 Speaker 2: because it also puts us close to two neighbors we 285 00:15:04,680 --> 00:15:07,760 Speaker 2: have on that property, and our noise sort of blends 286 00:15:07,800 --> 00:15:10,480 Speaker 2: into the general noise of those other two people, or 287 00:15:10,480 --> 00:15:14,000 Speaker 2: the other two households, I should say, they hear human 288 00:15:14,080 --> 00:15:17,760 Speaker 2: noise there in that corner all the time. On the 289 00:15:17,760 --> 00:15:20,800 Speaker 2: other side of the property, there's no houses or driveways, 290 00:15:21,040 --> 00:15:23,840 Speaker 2: and a truck crunching along the gravel and stopping there 291 00:15:23,880 --> 00:15:26,360 Speaker 2: seems to be just enough to keep them from doing 292 00:15:26,360 --> 00:15:29,480 Speaker 2: what they need to do. The lesson there is that 293 00:15:29,560 --> 00:15:31,520 Speaker 2: I had a rule in my head when I started 294 00:15:31,600 --> 00:15:34,320 Speaker 2: hunting that property, but the deer showed me it was 295 00:15:34,360 --> 00:15:37,200 Speaker 2: a bad one. Then I had to go through some 296 00:15:37,240 --> 00:15:39,560 Speaker 2: trial and error to figure out that specific property and 297 00:15:39,560 --> 00:15:42,160 Speaker 2: how to make it work. That rule about where to 298 00:15:42,200 --> 00:15:45,880 Speaker 2: park and how to access it is literally property specific. 299 00:15:47,240 --> 00:15:49,480 Speaker 2: I wouldn't park as close as I could to a 300 00:15:49,520 --> 00:15:53,480 Speaker 2: known bedding area anywhere else. In almost any situation, I 301 00:15:53,600 --> 00:15:56,400 Speaker 2: go the opposite way, and you know what, I might 302 00:15:56,440 --> 00:15:59,280 Speaker 2: be totally right in doing that, even if on my 303 00:15:59,480 --> 00:16:02,840 Speaker 2: land that's the wrong move. Here's the thing that makes 304 00:16:02,920 --> 00:16:06,320 Speaker 2: all of this even tougher. That might not be the 305 00:16:06,360 --> 00:16:10,120 Speaker 2: case this season or in five seasons from now. Maybe 306 00:16:10,160 --> 00:16:12,400 Speaker 2: they won't bed there as much in the future, and 307 00:16:12,480 --> 00:16:15,640 Speaker 2: my access will have to change. I don't know. What 308 00:16:15,760 --> 00:16:17,640 Speaker 2: I do know is that I have a rule for 309 00:16:17,720 --> 00:16:20,600 Speaker 2: where I park now and how I get into that piece, 310 00:16:20,840 --> 00:16:23,400 Speaker 2: and it's a good one. If we stop seeing deer, 311 00:16:23,480 --> 00:16:25,440 Speaker 2: it'll be time to rewrite the rules and figure out 312 00:16:25,480 --> 00:16:27,640 Speaker 2: what to do to get things working in my direction again. 313 00:16:28,880 --> 00:16:32,000 Speaker 2: So what does all of this mean for you? For starters, 314 00:16:32,240 --> 00:16:34,880 Speaker 2: I'll give you a simple one which plays off that 315 00:16:34,920 --> 00:16:37,960 Speaker 2: summer scouting episode I did last week. One of the 316 00:16:38,000 --> 00:16:40,200 Speaker 2: summertime rules a lot of us follow is to run 317 00:16:40,240 --> 00:16:42,840 Speaker 2: cameras and mostly stay out of the woods. How about 318 00:16:43,280 --> 00:16:46,720 Speaker 2: don't do that. Run cameras and go into the woods. 319 00:16:47,160 --> 00:16:49,960 Speaker 2: Take a good look around. Try to envision what you 320 00:16:50,000 --> 00:16:51,960 Speaker 2: should do now to kill one the first week of 321 00:16:51,960 --> 00:16:55,000 Speaker 2: the season. Go check some of your rut funnels for 322 00:16:55,080 --> 00:16:59,160 Speaker 2: tracks now, walk field edges and fence rows. Go into 323 00:16:59,160 --> 00:17:02,680 Speaker 2: the woods. Pay attention to the heat and the bugs 324 00:17:02,680 --> 00:17:04,959 Speaker 2: and how bad they are while you're standing up on 325 00:17:05,000 --> 00:17:07,119 Speaker 2: top of the hill looking at your on X and 326 00:17:07,200 --> 00:17:09,200 Speaker 2: how bad they are when you drop into the bottom 327 00:17:09,200 --> 00:17:12,000 Speaker 2: of the valley to look around. Pay attention to the 328 00:17:12,040 --> 00:17:15,040 Speaker 2: water sources and the browsing evidence. The more we learn 329 00:17:15,040 --> 00:17:17,000 Speaker 2: about the deer we are hunting, the more we realize 330 00:17:17,040 --> 00:17:20,400 Speaker 2: that the general rules don't matter much. It's far more 331 00:17:20,400 --> 00:17:23,840 Speaker 2: important to figure out exactly what's going on in your spot, 332 00:17:24,640 --> 00:17:27,320 Speaker 2: not what someone else is doing seven states away on 333 00:17:27,400 --> 00:17:31,720 Speaker 2: a property that is nothing like yours. So don't break 334 00:17:31,800 --> 00:17:35,800 Speaker 2: the laws and the regulations, but think about the general 335 00:17:35,920 --> 00:17:39,399 Speaker 2: deer hunting rules that you follow. Do they seem to 336 00:17:39,440 --> 00:17:41,920 Speaker 2: be working out for you? Or do you still struggle 337 00:17:41,960 --> 00:17:44,760 Speaker 2: to fill tags even though you're diligent about them. If 338 00:17:44,800 --> 00:17:47,080 Speaker 2: the latter is true, go figure out how to do 339 00:17:47,119 --> 00:17:50,040 Speaker 2: things differently, break some of those rules and forget about 340 00:17:50,040 --> 00:17:52,400 Speaker 2: what you're supposed to do and try to learn what 341 00:17:52,440 --> 00:17:55,840 Speaker 2: you should do. I want you to do that. I 342 00:17:55,840 --> 00:17:58,080 Speaker 2: want you to come back next week because I'm going 343 00:17:58,119 --> 00:18:01,720 Speaker 2: to talk about some more summertime, your concerns and get 344 00:18:01,720 --> 00:18:04,000 Speaker 2: into some strategies that I have right now to set 345 00:18:04,040 --> 00:18:08,480 Speaker 2: myself up for hunts all fall, including rut hunts, even 346 00:18:08,520 --> 00:18:11,479 Speaker 2: though it's hot, miserable out and I'm not really that 347 00:18:11,600 --> 00:18:15,560 Speaker 2: excited to do it. That's it for this week. I'm 348 00:18:15,600 --> 00:18:18,800 Speaker 2: Tony Peterson. This has been the Wire to Hunt Foundation's podcast, 349 00:18:18,840 --> 00:18:22,440 Speaker 2: which is brought to you by First Light. As always, 350 00:18:22,520 --> 00:18:25,520 Speaker 2: thank you so much for listening. We really appreciate it. 351 00:18:25,560 --> 00:18:28,639 Speaker 2: Here at Meat Eater, I firmly believe we have the 352 00:18:28,640 --> 00:18:31,679 Speaker 2: best audience out there. You guys are so loyal, you 353 00:18:31,840 --> 00:18:35,159 Speaker 2: check in all the time. It's just great. Your support 354 00:18:35,240 --> 00:18:37,840 Speaker 2: means the world to us. If you need more, Dear 355 00:18:37,920 --> 00:18:41,920 Speaker 2: Hunting content, Maybe you need some good storytelling on a podcast. 356 00:18:42,080 --> 00:18:44,520 Speaker 2: Maybe you want to watch a film or three. The 357 00:18:44,600 --> 00:18:47,840 Speaker 2: medeater dot com has you covered. We literally drop hunting 358 00:18:47,840 --> 00:18:51,040 Speaker 2: and fishing content every single day at that site. Go 359 00:18:51,160 --> 00:18:51,680 Speaker 2: check it out.