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 --> 00:00:19,919 Speaker 1: Tony Peterson. 6 00:00:20,560 --> 00:00:23,800 Speaker 2: Hey, everyone, welcome to the Wired un Foundation's podcast, which 7 00:00:23,840 --> 00:00:25,479 Speaker 2: is brought to you by first Light. I'm her host, 8 00:00:25,560 --> 00:00:28,760 Speaker 2: Tony Peterson, and this episode is all about going where 9 00:00:28,800 --> 00:00:31,480 Speaker 2: you really don't care about deer so that you can 10 00:00:31,560 --> 00:00:40,920 Speaker 2: learn all about deer. This is a weird one and 11 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:43,479 Speaker 2: you might think it's I don't know, maybe not the 12 00:00:43,520 --> 00:00:45,839 Speaker 2: best advice for how to learn deer, but I think 13 00:00:45,840 --> 00:00:49,360 Speaker 2: it's pretty good. So what am I going to talk about, Well, 14 00:00:49,800 --> 00:00:52,320 Speaker 2: going into the woods and not looking for deer specifically. 15 00:00:52,600 --> 00:00:54,639 Speaker 2: The more I go look for other things and other 16 00:00:54,680 --> 00:00:57,080 Speaker 2: critters and find other reasons to be out there, the 17 00:00:57,080 --> 00:00:59,160 Speaker 2: more I pick up on deer hunting movements and how 18 00:00:59,160 --> 00:01:01,880 Speaker 2: they use the lance gape. That's the basis for this 19 00:01:01,960 --> 00:01:09,240 Speaker 2: whole show, so buckle up. There are a lot of 20 00:01:09,280 --> 00:01:12,800 Speaker 2: sayings about being books smart versus being street smart, and 21 00:01:12,880 --> 00:01:16,400 Speaker 2: I love all of them mostly, and I'm not proud 22 00:01:16,400 --> 00:01:18,560 Speaker 2: of this, but I'm gonna say it anyway, because my 23 00:01:18,680 --> 00:01:22,800 Speaker 2: wife is very BookSmart. I, on the other hand, am not. 24 00:01:23,440 --> 00:01:25,720 Speaker 2: I doubt you'd say I'm very street smart either, But 25 00:01:25,760 --> 00:01:29,240 Speaker 2: that's beside the point. The truth is there is a 26 00:01:29,240 --> 00:01:32,080 Speaker 2: lot you can learn from books and from consuming content. 27 00:01:32,640 --> 00:01:35,559 Speaker 2: I hope that's true anyway, because otherwise my professional career 28 00:01:35,600 --> 00:01:38,640 Speaker 2: has mostly been a sham, which, come to think of it, 29 00:01:38,720 --> 00:01:42,360 Speaker 2: might be true. The reality, though, is that there are 30 00:01:43,200 --> 00:01:48,440 Speaker 2: academic pursuits and then there's experience. Academics are great for 31 00:01:48,480 --> 00:01:52,200 Speaker 2: giving you facts and the processes upon which you might 32 00:01:52,400 --> 00:01:55,800 Speaker 2: learn some facts. It teaches your mind to work out problems, 33 00:01:56,240 --> 00:02:00,240 Speaker 2: or at least parts of problems, and that's important. Still 34 00:02:00,280 --> 00:02:02,520 Speaker 2: largely be about this, Maybe it still is. I don't know. 35 00:02:02,520 --> 00:02:05,280 Speaker 2: I haven't been there in a while. It wasn't necessarily 36 00:02:05,320 --> 00:02:08,440 Speaker 2: to directly prepare you for a career in a certain field, 37 00:02:09,040 --> 00:02:11,640 Speaker 2: although that was and is a component of higher education. 38 00:02:12,160 --> 00:02:14,000 Speaker 2: But the heart of it was to teach us, like 39 00:02:14,040 --> 00:02:17,640 Speaker 2: how to think, how to think better. Maybe, and it 40 00:02:17,680 --> 00:02:20,880 Speaker 2: works too, but using your brain can only take you 41 00:02:20,960 --> 00:02:24,200 Speaker 2: so far. You also have to engage with tasks and 42 00:02:24,320 --> 00:02:27,160 Speaker 2: problems and sort them out in real time. And in person. 43 00:02:27,919 --> 00:02:30,440 Speaker 2: Let me give you an example from a recent conversation 44 00:02:30,520 --> 00:02:32,600 Speaker 2: I had with a woman who was trying real hard 45 00:02:32,639 --> 00:02:35,799 Speaker 2: to kill a buck on public land. Her dilemma is this, 46 00:02:36,639 --> 00:02:39,000 Speaker 2: she found a concentration of sign on a chunk of 47 00:02:39,040 --> 00:02:43,239 Speaker 2: ground in Kansas, where she lives. The concentration is accessible 48 00:02:43,320 --> 00:02:46,960 Speaker 2: from two different parking areas. Both require a walk of 49 00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:49,560 Speaker 2: about a mile, and one takes her low through a 50 00:02:49,639 --> 00:02:52,400 Speaker 2: thick river bottom and the other takes her high up 51 00:02:52,400 --> 00:02:56,120 Speaker 2: on a ridgetop. She maintains that both the ridgetop and 52 00:02:56,160 --> 00:02:58,840 Speaker 2: the creek bottom have deer in them, so getting in 53 00:02:59,480 --> 00:03:03,800 Speaker 2: is almost impossible without spooking deer. That to her is 54 00:03:03,840 --> 00:03:06,919 Speaker 2: a major problem, a problem she was looking for an 55 00:03:06,960 --> 00:03:12,280 Speaker 2: academic solution to which doesn't exist. You can't really outthink 56 00:03:12,320 --> 00:03:15,480 Speaker 2: a problem like that, You just can't. You kind of 57 00:03:15,560 --> 00:03:19,160 Speaker 2: just got to go into the creek bottom hunt see 58 00:03:19,160 --> 00:03:22,760 Speaker 2: what happens. Or you have to go on the ridgetop hunt, 59 00:03:23,240 --> 00:03:25,680 Speaker 2: see what happens. Then you have to figure out what 60 00:03:25,720 --> 00:03:28,640 Speaker 2: went wrong and experiment to see if you can solve 61 00:03:28,639 --> 00:03:31,680 Speaker 2: for the problems or not. Does that sound a little 62 00:03:31,680 --> 00:03:35,680 Speaker 2: too simple, Because hunting is simple, my friends, But simple 63 00:03:35,720 --> 00:03:40,120 Speaker 2: doesn't always mean easy. In fact, it often doesn't, and 64 00:03:40,160 --> 00:03:43,360 Speaker 2: that kind of sucks. Look at this another way. Do 65 00:03:43,400 --> 00:03:46,600 Speaker 2: you want to look better naked? Of course you do. 66 00:03:47,080 --> 00:03:49,880 Speaker 2: And while I understand that was an extremely creepy way 67 00:03:49,920 --> 00:03:52,640 Speaker 2: to frame this point up, I used it. And that's 68 00:03:52,680 --> 00:03:55,880 Speaker 2: that if you want to look better naked, you need 69 00:03:55,920 --> 00:03:58,560 Speaker 2: to exercise more and eat fewer bowls of ice cream, 70 00:04:00,160 --> 00:04:02,480 Speaker 2: size a lot and eat kind of shitty, or you 71 00:04:02,520 --> 00:04:04,960 Speaker 2: can exercise a little and eat really clean, or some 72 00:04:05,120 --> 00:04:07,560 Speaker 2: version of both. But the truth is that putting on 73 00:04:07,640 --> 00:04:10,120 Speaker 2: muscle and losing weight tends to solve the problem of 74 00:04:10,160 --> 00:04:13,120 Speaker 2: looking good in your birthday suit. But that's not easy. 75 00:04:13,560 --> 00:04:17,919 Speaker 2: In fact, it's real hard. You won't suddenly find yourself 76 00:04:17,960 --> 00:04:21,480 Speaker 2: looking fine by reading a book. You'll get there by 77 00:04:21,640 --> 00:04:24,360 Speaker 2: exercising and eating a certain way and figuring out how 78 00:04:24,360 --> 00:04:26,680 Speaker 2: to keep yourself moving in the right direction even when 79 00:04:26,720 --> 00:04:30,040 Speaker 2: you don't want to. You want to kill a Kansas 80 00:04:30,080 --> 00:04:33,719 Speaker 2: book on public land, it's simple, go find some sign 81 00:04:33,800 --> 00:04:36,279 Speaker 2: and hunt it. But of course you have the question 82 00:04:36,320 --> 00:04:38,800 Speaker 2: of access, and the question of hunting pressure, and the 83 00:04:38,880 --> 00:04:41,280 Speaker 2: question of your own time and how much of it 84 00:04:41,360 --> 00:04:44,080 Speaker 2: you have, and the question of what direction the wind's 85 00:04:44,120 --> 00:04:45,720 Speaker 2: going to be blowing on the morning you can hunt, 86 00:04:45,760 --> 00:04:49,240 Speaker 2: and the temperature, and on and on and on and on. Academically, 87 00:04:49,880 --> 00:04:52,800 Speaker 2: this stuff's pretty easy. But you won't know what those 88 00:04:52,920 --> 00:04:56,880 Speaker 2: ridgetop deer are really going to do until you hunt 89 00:04:56,920 --> 00:04:59,640 Speaker 2: it and figure it out in person. Do you know 90 00:04:59,680 --> 00:05:02,920 Speaker 2: where the real problem in all this lies? We love 91 00:05:03,040 --> 00:05:06,479 Speaker 2: leaning towards the academic side of things. It's easier to 92 00:05:06,480 --> 00:05:08,800 Speaker 2: watch a YouTube video on scouting than it is to 93 00:05:08,960 --> 00:05:12,400 Speaker 2: go scout. It's easier to read an article on how 94 00:05:12,440 --> 00:05:14,760 Speaker 2: to kill a mature buck in the cattails than it 95 00:05:14,800 --> 00:05:17,039 Speaker 2: is to go find one living in the cattails and 96 00:05:17,080 --> 00:05:20,599 Speaker 2: then hunt him until you kill him. It's easier to 97 00:05:20,680 --> 00:05:23,360 Speaker 2: write off a concentration of deer on a chunk of 98 00:05:23,400 --> 00:05:27,360 Speaker 2: public land in Kansas because you just know you'll bust 99 00:05:27,360 --> 00:05:30,280 Speaker 2: them going in than it is to go in on 100 00:05:30,279 --> 00:05:33,760 Speaker 2: one of your precious hunting days for a trial and 101 00:05:33,920 --> 00:05:37,520 Speaker 2: error morning or evening sit. But what's better for you 102 00:05:37,600 --> 00:05:41,039 Speaker 2: as a hunter? We all know the answer, just like 103 00:05:41,120 --> 00:05:43,840 Speaker 2: we know what too much ice cream and couch time 104 00:05:43,880 --> 00:05:47,360 Speaker 2: does to us physically. Look, it sucks, but it's true. 105 00:05:47,960 --> 00:05:50,520 Speaker 2: So how do you engage in this simple concept that 106 00:05:50,560 --> 00:05:52,400 Speaker 2: it's hard? To implement so that you can be a 107 00:05:52,440 --> 00:05:55,479 Speaker 2: stone cold deer killer, whether you're trying to figure things 108 00:05:55,480 --> 00:05:58,520 Speaker 2: out in Kansas or South Carolina or Pennsylvania or wherever 109 00:05:59,520 --> 00:06:02,680 Speaker 2: we find the discipline to do it. Or you trick yourself. 110 00:06:03,440 --> 00:06:07,440 Speaker 2: I mean that I trick myself all the time. I 111 00:06:07,440 --> 00:06:09,800 Speaker 2: don't want to go too deep into this because I'm 112 00:06:09,839 --> 00:06:12,839 Speaker 2: a squirrel writer and not a psychologist. But one of 113 00:06:12,880 --> 00:06:15,040 Speaker 2: the things people ask me fairly often is how I 114 00:06:15,120 --> 00:06:18,560 Speaker 2: run so much without wanting to kill myself. The jokes 115 00:06:18,600 --> 00:06:21,080 Speaker 2: on them, though, because running is actually what keeps the 116 00:06:21,120 --> 00:06:24,480 Speaker 2: bad thoughts at bay, and it's amazing for that task. 117 00:06:25,040 --> 00:06:29,080 Speaker 2: But it's also not about wanting to run. I don't 118 00:06:29,080 --> 00:06:32,320 Speaker 2: want to do that. I dread it every time, just 119 00:06:32,360 --> 00:06:35,599 Speaker 2: as I like it when I'm done every time. But 120 00:06:35,680 --> 00:06:37,960 Speaker 2: I have to get myself to do it. So I 121 00:06:38,040 --> 00:06:40,440 Speaker 2: set a goal and I tell anyone and everyone I 122 00:06:40,560 --> 00:06:45,039 Speaker 2: can about that goal. That holds me a little accountable 123 00:06:45,080 --> 00:06:47,520 Speaker 2: with my circle of friends and family who really don't 124 00:06:47,560 --> 00:06:50,279 Speaker 2: want to hear about my running, just like my podcast audience. 125 00:06:50,600 --> 00:06:53,960 Speaker 2: But the main reason is that a yearly mile goal 126 00:06:54,680 --> 00:06:59,080 Speaker 2: is weirdly important to me. I hate not hitting it, 127 00:06:59,520 --> 00:07:02,440 Speaker 2: so it keeps me honest with myself, even though I'm 128 00:07:02,600 --> 00:07:05,520 Speaker 2: just playing a trick on myself. The minute that one 129 00:07:05,880 --> 00:07:08,599 Speaker 2: goal ends for the year, which this year is running 130 00:07:08,600 --> 00:07:12,000 Speaker 2: eight hundred miles, I'll set a new goal for the 131 00:07:12,080 --> 00:07:15,960 Speaker 2: new year. It gives me great pleasure to meet that goal, 132 00:07:16,040 --> 00:07:18,000 Speaker 2: even though I know the task of running isn't going 133 00:07:18,040 --> 00:07:20,480 Speaker 2: to end for me. It's not even really going to 134 00:07:20,600 --> 00:07:23,240 Speaker 2: change when I meet it. I just have to have 135 00:07:23,280 --> 00:07:25,800 Speaker 2: it otherwise I won't run as much as I should. 136 00:07:26,600 --> 00:07:29,280 Speaker 2: When it comes to deer hunting, we all know we 137 00:07:29,280 --> 00:07:32,680 Speaker 2: should scout more. We really should, but it's also very 138 00:07:32,720 --> 00:07:35,000 Speaker 2: easy to not scout as much as we should because 139 00:07:35,000 --> 00:07:37,960 Speaker 2: to most of us, scouting isn't as fun as hunting 140 00:07:38,040 --> 00:07:41,680 Speaker 2: or about ten thousand other things we could do. So 141 00:07:41,720 --> 00:07:44,040 Speaker 2: we fill in the blanks with trail cameras and we 142 00:07:44,080 --> 00:07:47,239 Speaker 2: consume content, or we hang out with our hunting buddies 143 00:07:47,280 --> 00:07:50,640 Speaker 2: just to talk about deer hunting whatever. But we need 144 00:07:50,720 --> 00:07:53,880 Speaker 2: experience out there, and that is a never ending journey. 145 00:07:54,200 --> 00:07:56,600 Speaker 2: Just like getting in shape. You can have the goal 146 00:07:56,640 --> 00:07:58,760 Speaker 2: of getting to your high school weight or benching two 147 00:07:58,840 --> 00:08:01,680 Speaker 2: hundred and fifty pounds or running a half marathon. That's 148 00:08:01,760 --> 00:08:05,000 Speaker 2: all great, but the minute you hit your goal, you 149 00:08:05,080 --> 00:08:08,480 Speaker 2: better figure out another one, or it's more likely that 150 00:08:08,520 --> 00:08:12,560 Speaker 2: you're just borrowing that accomplishment. Yeah you did it, that's great, 151 00:08:12,840 --> 00:08:14,760 Speaker 2: but if you go back to not doing anything, it's 152 00:08:14,840 --> 00:08:28,680 Speaker 2: kind of a hollow victory. With hunting, the way that 153 00:08:28,720 --> 00:08:31,160 Speaker 2: I trick myself into learning about deer is to find 154 00:08:31,200 --> 00:08:34,440 Speaker 2: as many reasons as possible to be out there. Some 155 00:08:34,520 --> 00:08:37,240 Speaker 2: of them are easy. You all know that I absolutely 156 00:08:37,280 --> 00:08:40,320 Speaker 2: love pheasant hunting, and as I record this podcast, I 157 00:08:40,360 --> 00:08:42,760 Speaker 2: have a young lab sleeping next to me who has 158 00:08:42,880 --> 00:08:45,640 Speaker 2: no skin left on her lips, or most of her nose, 159 00:08:46,080 --> 00:08:48,960 Speaker 2: or parts of her cheeks and around her eyes. The 160 00:08:49,000 --> 00:08:52,560 Speaker 2: cattails have literally worn her face off and she loves it, 161 00:08:52,640 --> 00:08:55,760 Speaker 2: and so do I. I don't need an excuse to pheasant hunt, 162 00:08:56,040 --> 00:08:59,959 Speaker 2: and many many times each season I'll drive seven hours 163 00:09:00,120 --> 00:09:02,200 Speaker 2: round trip in a single day to hunt for a 164 00:09:02,240 --> 00:09:05,520 Speaker 2: couple of roosters. I love it for many reasons, but 165 00:09:05,559 --> 00:09:08,319 Speaker 2: one side benefit to it is I learn a ton 166 00:09:08,360 --> 00:09:11,360 Speaker 2: about deer when I follow a black lab around where 167 00:09:11,400 --> 00:09:14,560 Speaker 2: the roosters like to hang out. Recently, I filmed a 168 00:09:14,559 --> 00:09:17,040 Speaker 2: pheasant show on a few different parcels of public land 169 00:09:17,040 --> 00:09:20,240 Speaker 2: in western Minnesota, and on one of those days it 170 00:09:20,280 --> 00:09:23,600 Speaker 2: was very windy, like twenty to thirty mile per hour 171 00:09:23,640 --> 00:09:27,360 Speaker 2: winds all day long. That meant that the roosters were 172 00:09:27,440 --> 00:09:29,960 Speaker 2: cagy as hell, and if they got up into that 173 00:09:30,000 --> 00:09:33,200 Speaker 2: wind and I wasn't ready, they were also pretty safe 174 00:09:33,240 --> 00:09:37,000 Speaker 2: because those are birds I will shoot behind, mostly, particularly 175 00:09:37,040 --> 00:09:39,080 Speaker 2: if they make the good decision to swing to my right. 176 00:09:40,160 --> 00:09:43,160 Speaker 2: But that wind did something else. When you're filming a 177 00:09:43,160 --> 00:09:45,520 Speaker 2: show like that, you're always looking for moments to talk 178 00:09:45,559 --> 00:09:47,920 Speaker 2: to the camera, to drop some sweet knowledge or just 179 00:09:48,000 --> 00:09:51,000 Speaker 2: explain what's going on. On a day when the wind 180 00:09:51,040 --> 00:09:54,400 Speaker 2: is just ripping across the landscape, you don't want to 181 00:09:54,480 --> 00:09:56,960 Speaker 2: just stop anywhere to talk because the sound of it 182 00:09:57,000 --> 00:09:59,560 Speaker 2: will go right into your microphone and ruin your talking points. 183 00:10:00,280 --> 00:10:03,080 Speaker 2: So as we followed Sadie through the cattails, I found 184 00:10:03,160 --> 00:10:06,520 Speaker 2: myself naturally stopping when we would hit a spot that 185 00:10:06,640 --> 00:10:09,200 Speaker 2: was out of the wind. The thing about this is 186 00:10:09,240 --> 00:10:12,280 Speaker 2: in that country, which is super flat and doesn't have 187 00:10:12,400 --> 00:10:15,040 Speaker 2: very many trees, there are a lot of spots that 188 00:10:15,080 --> 00:10:18,040 Speaker 2: are not out of the wind. It's rare to suddenly 189 00:10:18,080 --> 00:10:21,120 Speaker 2: realize you're standing in a little zone that's very calm. 190 00:10:21,920 --> 00:10:23,599 Speaker 2: I don't know how many times I stopped in a 191 00:10:23,640 --> 00:10:25,560 Speaker 2: spot like that and started to talk to the camera, 192 00:10:25,679 --> 00:10:28,520 Speaker 2: only to notice that Sadie was real birdie and that 193 00:10:28,600 --> 00:10:32,600 Speaker 2: I better get ready, or that we jump deer bedded 194 00:10:32,800 --> 00:10:38,000 Speaker 2: right next to us. It happened multiple times in one day. Now, 195 00:10:38,040 --> 00:10:40,559 Speaker 2: of course they want to lay up in a spot 196 00:10:40,600 --> 00:10:45,119 Speaker 2: that's calm, but why Well, for starters, it's more comfortable, 197 00:10:45,400 --> 00:10:49,240 Speaker 2: it's warmer, that's a no brainer. But what else, Well, 198 00:10:49,280 --> 00:10:51,320 Speaker 2: if you betted down just about anywhere in a dry 199 00:10:51,360 --> 00:10:55,160 Speaker 2: cattail slew that's getting pounded by the wind, the noise 200 00:10:55,240 --> 00:10:58,560 Speaker 2: factor is going to be very high. Sure you have 201 00:10:58,640 --> 00:11:00,840 Speaker 2: the wind to use to your advantage, but you lose 202 00:11:00,880 --> 00:11:03,719 Speaker 2: the hearing advantage. Now, why would you do that when 203 00:11:03,720 --> 00:11:05,880 Speaker 2: you could hole up somewhere that would keep you warm 204 00:11:06,200 --> 00:11:08,720 Speaker 2: and you could not only smell approaching danger, but have 205 00:11:08,760 --> 00:11:10,960 Speaker 2: a better chance to hear it. If you were a 206 00:11:10,960 --> 00:11:13,880 Speaker 2: prey animal like say, I don't know, a deer or 207 00:11:13,960 --> 00:11:16,800 Speaker 2: a pheasant, hearing that danger and keeping track of it 208 00:11:16,840 --> 00:11:20,080 Speaker 2: and the thick stuff is important, could literally save your life. 209 00:11:21,320 --> 00:11:24,240 Speaker 2: With deer, that allows them the chance to know exactly 210 00:11:24,320 --> 00:11:26,880 Speaker 2: where the danger is and whether they can sit tight 211 00:11:27,240 --> 00:11:29,200 Speaker 2: and let it pass, or they need to get the 212 00:11:29,200 --> 00:11:32,920 Speaker 2: hell out of dodge. That is a huge, huge advantage 213 00:11:32,920 --> 00:11:35,920 Speaker 2: for them. Now what good does that do anyone as 214 00:11:35,920 --> 00:11:38,559 Speaker 2: a hunter? Well, if I lived around those cat tail 215 00:11:38,640 --> 00:11:40,760 Speaker 2: sleus and was planning on deer hunting the next day, 216 00:11:41,200 --> 00:11:44,000 Speaker 2: but the forecast called for ripping winds, I could do 217 00:11:44,080 --> 00:11:47,280 Speaker 2: one of two things. I could not hunt because it's 218 00:11:47,280 --> 00:11:49,480 Speaker 2: too windy and I think my chances are low. Or 219 00:11:49,520 --> 00:11:52,040 Speaker 2: I could beat them to a spot I know they 220 00:11:52,040 --> 00:11:54,760 Speaker 2: should be out of the wind, or at least where 221 00:11:54,760 --> 00:11:59,040 Speaker 2: they should be going. Maybe this example is a bridge 222 00:11:59,040 --> 00:12:01,800 Speaker 2: too far for your per It's all hunting specifics, that's 223 00:12:01,840 --> 00:12:04,439 Speaker 2: fair enough. I've talked about this before, but I think 224 00:12:04,440 --> 00:12:07,360 Speaker 2: it's worth mentioning there are other reasons to be out there. 225 00:12:08,000 --> 00:12:10,800 Speaker 2: Rabbit hunting puts me on more deer betting and staging 226 00:12:10,800 --> 00:12:13,680 Speaker 2: areas than any kind of hunting I do, even sometimes 227 00:12:13,720 --> 00:12:16,440 Speaker 2: deer hunting. The good thing about this is that rabbit 228 00:12:16,520 --> 00:12:19,200 Speaker 2: hunting is fun to begin with. But where rabbits take 229 00:12:19,240 --> 00:12:21,360 Speaker 2: you is to the spots deer like to go when 230 00:12:21,400 --> 00:12:23,920 Speaker 2: they don't want to be found. And even more than 231 00:12:23,960 --> 00:12:26,880 Speaker 2: that is rabbit hunting takes you to the spots where 232 00:12:26,960 --> 00:12:29,200 Speaker 2: bucks tend to go where they don't want to be found. 233 00:12:29,800 --> 00:12:32,960 Speaker 2: A day spent pushing fence lines and homesteads and brush 234 00:12:32,960 --> 00:12:35,720 Speaker 2: piles and whatever else is a day that is going 235 00:12:35,760 --> 00:12:38,679 Speaker 2: to be fun but also teach you a lot about deer. 236 00:12:39,559 --> 00:12:41,600 Speaker 2: Squirrel hunting does that too, but it won't take you 237 00:12:41,640 --> 00:12:44,760 Speaker 2: to the betting areas and often the staging areas quite 238 00:12:44,800 --> 00:12:47,080 Speaker 2: like rabbit hunting will do. But it'll take you to 239 00:12:47,120 --> 00:12:49,880 Speaker 2: the ridges where deer feet in october under oak trees. 240 00:12:50,360 --> 00:12:52,440 Speaker 2: It'll take you into the valley you think you can't 241 00:12:52,520 --> 00:12:54,679 Speaker 2: hunt because the wind will be swirling too much, and 242 00:12:54,720 --> 00:12:56,760 Speaker 2: it'll show you all the rubs and deer sign in 243 00:12:56,800 --> 00:13:01,720 Speaker 2: that unhuntable spot and maybe chuck. Maybe while you're toting 244 00:13:01,720 --> 00:13:04,600 Speaker 2: a seventeen or a twenty two around there, you'll realize 245 00:13:04,640 --> 00:13:06,800 Speaker 2: you're standing right in a spot where the wind is 246 00:13:06,800 --> 00:13:10,199 Speaker 2: actually predictable and favorable, even in that valley you thought 247 00:13:10,200 --> 00:13:13,400 Speaker 2: you couldn't hunt. I know a lot of you are 248 00:13:13,400 --> 00:13:15,760 Speaker 2: listening to this and going, yeah, I'm not going to 249 00:13:15,840 --> 00:13:18,559 Speaker 2: go brush busting for bunnies on my deer leaves. I'm 250 00:13:18,559 --> 00:13:21,839 Speaker 2: not going to push the deer out fair enough, go 251 00:13:21,880 --> 00:13:25,199 Speaker 2: bunny hunting somewhere else then, or go in February if 252 00:13:25,200 --> 00:13:27,760 Speaker 2: the season's still open. You don't want to shoot some 253 00:13:27,800 --> 00:13:30,800 Speaker 2: squirrels for the crockpot right now in the place you 254 00:13:30,880 --> 00:13:34,080 Speaker 2: deer hunt, then go somewhere else. Find a spot to 255 00:13:34,120 --> 00:13:36,920 Speaker 2: go where you don't care about the deer. You'll see 256 00:13:36,960 --> 00:13:40,400 Speaker 2: how they use the landscape there too. If it's public, 257 00:13:40,800 --> 00:13:42,880 Speaker 2: you might just find something in a spot you never 258 00:13:42,920 --> 00:13:45,960 Speaker 2: intended a deer hunt, because you're out there looking around 259 00:13:45,960 --> 00:13:49,440 Speaker 2: for something that is not a deer. People often ask 260 00:13:49,520 --> 00:13:53,120 Speaker 2: me how I find so many random public land places 261 00:13:53,160 --> 00:13:55,760 Speaker 2: to hunt, and the answer is often that I just 262 00:13:55,920 --> 00:13:57,920 Speaker 2: like to do lots of stuff. I like to hunt 263 00:13:57,960 --> 00:14:00,200 Speaker 2: a lot of different critters. I also just like to 264 00:14:00,240 --> 00:14:03,040 Speaker 2: walk through the woods, and often I like to walk 265 00:14:03,080 --> 00:14:05,600 Speaker 2: through the woods and just look for deer. I grew 266 00:14:05,640 --> 00:14:07,920 Speaker 2: up doing this, and I had a conversation with Zach 267 00:14:07,960 --> 00:14:10,480 Speaker 2: Ferrenbau the hunting public about it not too long ago. 268 00:14:10,880 --> 00:14:13,080 Speaker 2: I honestly don't remember if we had this conversation on 269 00:14:13,120 --> 00:14:15,400 Speaker 2: a podcast or if it was just a personal phone call, 270 00:14:15,520 --> 00:14:18,040 Speaker 2: but it doesn't matter. We got on this topic of 271 00:14:18,080 --> 00:14:19,840 Speaker 2: finding deer and he said that he goes into the 272 00:14:19,880 --> 00:14:23,440 Speaker 2: woods just to look for them all year long. While 273 00:14:23,480 --> 00:14:25,120 Speaker 2: I was growing up, that was one of my favorite 274 00:14:25,160 --> 00:14:28,440 Speaker 2: things to do, and I still find myself going into 275 00:14:28,480 --> 00:14:30,400 Speaker 2: some of the parks around my house and doing the 276 00:14:30,440 --> 00:14:34,120 Speaker 2: exact same thing, even though I'll never hunt those deer. 277 00:14:35,240 --> 00:14:36,800 Speaker 2: It's just fun to slip up to the edge of 278 00:14:36,800 --> 00:14:39,200 Speaker 2: a CRP field half an hour before dark and try 279 00:14:39,240 --> 00:14:41,600 Speaker 2: to spot one, just as it's fun to get off 280 00:14:41,640 --> 00:14:43,960 Speaker 2: of the normal trails and see where the deer travel 281 00:14:43,960 --> 00:14:47,280 Speaker 2: and where the bucks leave their sign. This kind of 282 00:14:47,440 --> 00:14:52,040 Speaker 2: thing fills your database with useful info, you information that 283 00:14:52,120 --> 00:14:56,400 Speaker 2: stretches way beyond only the places we hunt, because, as 284 00:14:56,400 --> 00:14:59,600 Speaker 2: I've said before, you might think you have the whole 285 00:14:59,640 --> 00:15:02,560 Speaker 2: white world where you want it with your hunting ground, 286 00:15:03,040 --> 00:15:08,920 Speaker 2: but ownership changes, permission can slip away. That secret honey 287 00:15:08,920 --> 00:15:12,040 Speaker 2: hole of public land you've found might suddenly show up 288 00:15:12,040 --> 00:15:15,760 Speaker 2: on everyone's radar. Counting on a property to always be 289 00:15:15,880 --> 00:15:19,760 Speaker 2: there is a bad idea, even if you own it, 290 00:15:19,800 --> 00:15:23,640 Speaker 2: because the neighbors can turn over, or CWD can pop up, 291 00:15:23,680 --> 00:15:26,640 Speaker 2: and the sharpshooters can suddenly knock down the herd or whatever. 292 00:15:26,840 --> 00:15:31,040 Speaker 2: Things change. Going out and wandering around, whether you're looking 293 00:15:31,080 --> 00:15:33,000 Speaker 2: for a rooster or a bunny, or just a little 294 00:15:33,120 --> 00:15:35,240 Speaker 2: quiet time out of the house because you have a 295 00:15:35,320 --> 00:15:38,280 Speaker 2: wife and two thirteen year old daughters. It's good for 296 00:15:38,360 --> 00:15:42,160 Speaker 2: the soul and it's good for your hunting skills. You 297 00:15:42,200 --> 00:15:45,240 Speaker 2: get to find sign and analyze it in a low 298 00:15:45,240 --> 00:15:49,160 Speaker 2: pressure situation, or really a no pressure situation. You get 299 00:15:49,200 --> 00:15:52,200 Speaker 2: to jump deer and figure out why they were there. 300 00:15:52,800 --> 00:15:54,800 Speaker 2: Maybe you get to watch a few filter through the 301 00:15:54,800 --> 00:15:56,880 Speaker 2: woods or hop over a fence, or maybe you find 302 00:15:56,920 --> 00:15:59,560 Speaker 2: a couple of dead heads in the overgrown creek bottom 303 00:16:00,040 --> 00:16:02,160 Speaker 2: and four years down the road you shoot one in 304 00:16:02,200 --> 00:16:04,160 Speaker 2: the guts and you're having an al of a time 305 00:16:04,240 --> 00:16:06,000 Speaker 2: finding him. So you pull up on X and you 306 00:16:06,040 --> 00:16:08,680 Speaker 2: take a look around and you think, hmm, maybe he 307 00:16:08,720 --> 00:16:10,480 Speaker 2: made it all the way to the river and I 308 00:16:10,480 --> 00:16:14,440 Speaker 2: should go walk it, and you find him. The focus 309 00:16:14,480 --> 00:16:17,200 Speaker 2: on hunting content is often about how you can develop 310 00:16:17,240 --> 00:16:20,520 Speaker 2: your skills on a very specific piece of ground, But 311 00:16:20,640 --> 00:16:24,800 Speaker 2: developing your skills so they transcend specific spots is so 312 00:16:25,040 --> 00:16:28,240 Speaker 2: much better. Just as it's better to be book smart 313 00:16:28,560 --> 00:16:31,880 Speaker 2: and street smart. To have the academic side of the 314 00:16:32,000 --> 00:16:35,240 Speaker 2: hunting thing locked down is great, but you really want 315 00:16:35,240 --> 00:16:39,040 Speaker 2: to take it somewhere you need that experience. It's easy 316 00:16:39,040 --> 00:16:41,200 Speaker 2: to do on paper, but hard to do in real life. 317 00:16:41,360 --> 00:16:44,320 Speaker 2: So figure out a reason. Trick yourself into a bunny 318 00:16:44,360 --> 00:16:46,720 Speaker 2: hunt with the buddies. Take a twenty two out for 319 00:16:46,800 --> 00:16:49,760 Speaker 2: a long walk on a sunny Sunday afternoon. Try to 320 00:16:49,760 --> 00:16:52,480 Speaker 2: sneak up on a few squirrels. Go to the park 321 00:16:52,480 --> 00:16:54,240 Speaker 2: an hour before dark and see if you can lay 322 00:16:54,280 --> 00:16:57,040 Speaker 2: eyes on any deer. Do the stuff that gets you 323 00:16:57,120 --> 00:17:01,120 Speaker 2: out there and you'll gain valuable deer hunting experience. Do that, 324 00:17:01,760 --> 00:17:04,239 Speaker 2: you'll get better and come back next week because I'm 325 00:17:04,240 --> 00:17:06,760 Speaker 2: going to talk about Christmas and how it relates to 326 00:17:06,920 --> 00:17:11,280 Speaker 2: hunting gear. That's it for this week. I'm Tony Peterson. 327 00:17:11,320 --> 00:17:13,640 Speaker 2: This has been the Wired to Hunt Foundation's podcast, which 328 00:17:13,680 --> 00:17:15,639 Speaker 2: is brought to you by First Light. I want to 329 00:17:15,680 --> 00:17:17,679 Speaker 2: thank you so much for all your support. We're just 330 00:17:17,720 --> 00:17:22,919 Speaker 2: about to wrap this year up and truly, honestly, without question, 331 00:17:23,440 --> 00:17:25,240 Speaker 2: we wouldn't be able to do any of this without you, 332 00:17:25,800 --> 00:17:28,119 Speaker 2: So thank you for that. Your support means the world 333 00:17:28,119 --> 00:17:31,000 Speaker 2: to us. If you need some more hunting content, you know, 334 00:17:31,040 --> 00:17:33,480 Speaker 2: and maybe you want to read a few articles, find 335 00:17:33,480 --> 00:17:35,879 Speaker 2: a recipe to cook something up for Christmas dinner. Or 336 00:17:35,880 --> 00:17:39,360 Speaker 2: New Year's Maybe a appetizer or something on New Year's Eve. 337 00:17:39,440 --> 00:17:41,399 Speaker 2: I don't know. Maybe you just need to listen to 338 00:17:41,440 --> 00:17:43,680 Speaker 2: some new podcasts, or you want to watch a few 339 00:17:43,760 --> 00:17:47,439 Speaker 2: hunting shows like the episode we just dropped where I 340 00:17:47,560 --> 00:17:50,520 Speaker 2: hunted Bear and Dear with my daughter. You can go 341 00:17:50,600 --> 00:17:52,760 Speaker 2: to them meat eater dot com and check it out. 342 00:17:53,160 --> 00:17:56,760 Speaker 2: So much good content there. Go there, and again, thank 343 00:17:56,800 --> 00:18:03,359 Speaker 2: you for everything.