WEBVTT - Ep. 427: Foundations - Taking E-Scouting for Whitetails to a Granular Level

0:00:01.000 --> 0:00:05.720
<v Speaker 1>Welcome to the Wired to Hunt Foundations podcast, your guide

0:00:05.760 --> 0:00:10.799
<v Speaker 1>to the fundamentals of better deer hunting, and now your host,

0:00:11.119 --> 0:00:15.280
<v Speaker 1>Tony Peterson. Welcome to the Wire to Hunt Foundations podcast,

0:00:15.400 --> 0:00:18.600
<v Speaker 1>brought to you by First Light. Today's episode is all

0:00:18.640 --> 0:00:21.400
<v Speaker 1>about taking what we learned last week about eat scouting

0:00:21.680 --> 0:00:24.439
<v Speaker 1>and really getting down into the nitty gritty details to

0:00:24.480 --> 0:00:27.440
<v Speaker 1>figure out where bucks should be on your chosen deer grown.

0:00:35.520 --> 0:00:38.360
<v Speaker 1>The fun part of east scouting is just the promise

0:00:38.400 --> 0:00:41.239
<v Speaker 1>of new spots. It's like a little treasure hunt that

0:00:41.400 --> 0:00:44.040
<v Speaker 1>might show you something you've been missing, or show you

0:00:44.080 --> 0:00:46.840
<v Speaker 1>spots on a distant parcel of public land that should

0:00:46.840 --> 0:00:49.599
<v Speaker 1>be killer ambush locations for a run hunt. But you've

0:00:49.600 --> 0:00:52.120
<v Speaker 1>got to know how to read the land and really

0:00:52.240 --> 0:00:54.840
<v Speaker 1>understand what you're seeing to use the scouting in a

0:00:54.920 --> 0:01:09.280
<v Speaker 1>really effective way. That's what this show is all about. Hey, everybody,

0:01:09.480 --> 0:01:12.600
<v Speaker 1>welcome to the wire to Hunt Foundations podcast. I'm your host,

0:01:12.720 --> 0:01:15.760
<v Speaker 1>Tony Peterson. If you listen to the last two weeks

0:01:15.760 --> 0:01:18.960
<v Speaker 1>of episodes, you heard me just beg and plead for

0:01:19.000 --> 0:01:21.440
<v Speaker 1>you to develop not only a love of all scouting,

0:01:21.840 --> 0:01:24.720
<v Speaker 1>but to consider how big picture EAT scouting can really

0:01:24.720 --> 0:01:28.200
<v Speaker 1>set you up for better hunts. On this episode, we're

0:01:28.200 --> 0:01:31.600
<v Speaker 1>gonna take East scouting to a more enjoyable level, because

0:01:31.600 --> 0:01:34.800
<v Speaker 1>once you've developed an overall understanding of how the features

0:01:34.800 --> 0:01:38.160
<v Speaker 1>of your dear ground tie together via satellite imagery, you're

0:01:38.160 --> 0:01:40.760
<v Speaker 1>gonna want to fire up your scouting app and get real,

0:01:41.120 --> 0:01:45.399
<v Speaker 1>real comfortable with the waypoints feature. Or more specifically, I'm

0:01:45.400 --> 0:01:47.840
<v Speaker 1>going to cover where you really want to plant your

0:01:47.880 --> 0:01:51.280
<v Speaker 1>digital flag versus the stuff you're better off ignoring, and

0:01:51.320 --> 0:01:53.080
<v Speaker 1>how to do this in a way that will eventually

0:01:53.160 --> 0:01:56.160
<v Speaker 1>let you pare down your research to spots worth scouting

0:01:56.200 --> 0:01:59.440
<v Speaker 1>in person or if necessary, just showing up blind to hunt.

0:02:00.040 --> 0:02:02.080
<v Speaker 1>And way points, which started out in the world of

0:02:02.120 --> 0:02:04.680
<v Speaker 1>GPS so that when you left your truck or your

0:02:04.720 --> 0:02:08.840
<v Speaker 1>camp you wouldn't die, are not commonplace on all mapping apps.

0:02:08.880 --> 0:02:11.359
<v Speaker 1>On some like on X, you can choose all kinds

0:02:11.360 --> 0:02:14.600
<v Speaker 1>of symbols that represent just about everything you're likely to

0:02:14.680 --> 0:02:17.239
<v Speaker 1>encounter in the act of deer scouting and deer hunting

0:02:17.520 --> 0:02:21.560
<v Speaker 1>because it was developed four hunters. Other broader use mapping

0:02:21.600 --> 0:02:24.920
<v Speaker 1>apps aren't his user friendly for hunting specific scouting, So

0:02:25.000 --> 0:02:28.639
<v Speaker 1>pay attention to what platform you choose, and at this stage,

0:02:28.960 --> 0:02:30.880
<v Speaker 1>what I like to do when I've narrowed down a

0:02:30.919 --> 0:02:33.680
<v Speaker 1>property I know I'm going to hunt is to scroll

0:02:33.760 --> 0:02:37.840
<v Speaker 1>over it and mark every interesting location. In fishing, there's

0:02:37.840 --> 0:02:40.720
<v Speaker 1>a saying that goes hook sets are free, which is

0:02:40.760 --> 0:02:43.280
<v Speaker 1>a subtle way to insult someone who thought they might

0:02:43.320 --> 0:02:45.480
<v Speaker 1>have had a bite but didn't swing on it because

0:02:45.520 --> 0:02:48.880
<v Speaker 1>of indecision. In the same vein, waypoints are free to

0:02:48.919 --> 0:02:51.560
<v Speaker 1>the digital scouter. You aren't going to run out of them,

0:02:51.760 --> 0:02:53.160
<v Speaker 1>and no one is going to cap you at a

0:02:53.160 --> 0:02:56.839
<v Speaker 1>certain amount. This is gonuts for donuts time. With all

0:02:56.880 --> 0:02:59.680
<v Speaker 1>of those waypoints locked, loaded and ready to be dropped,

0:03:00.120 --> 0:03:02.560
<v Speaker 1>it's time to just start with the easy stuff. Get

0:03:02.639 --> 0:03:05.359
<v Speaker 1>on your app and zoom across the land you plan

0:03:05.480 --> 0:03:08.480
<v Speaker 1>to hunt. Zoom into the back corners of fields. Look

0:03:08.520 --> 0:03:11.520
<v Speaker 1>at the water hole tucked into a ridgeline, Look at

0:03:11.520 --> 0:03:14.600
<v Speaker 1>the no question dear funnel that connects two wood lots,

0:03:15.120 --> 0:03:18.239
<v Speaker 1>drop away point, make a few notes if necessary, and

0:03:18.280 --> 0:03:21.680
<v Speaker 1>move on. The goal is to mark everything that might

0:03:21.800 --> 0:03:25.440
<v Speaker 1>signify a potential hunting spot. Forget about the details like

0:03:25.480 --> 0:03:29.200
<v Speaker 1>prevailing wind direction, access and all that other stuff that's

0:03:29.200 --> 0:03:31.720
<v Speaker 1>white noise. Right now, treat it like you're an eight

0:03:31.800 --> 0:03:33.840
<v Speaker 1>year old and you've got a toy store catalog in

0:03:33.880 --> 0:03:36.560
<v Speaker 1>your lap and are tasked with making your Christmas wish

0:03:36.600 --> 0:03:39.920
<v Speaker 1>list for your very very very wealthy parents. Shoot for

0:03:39.960 --> 0:03:42.160
<v Speaker 1>the moon here, even if you might settle for hitting

0:03:42.200 --> 0:03:45.400
<v Speaker 1>the barn. Do this. Whether you hunt on private ground

0:03:45.520 --> 0:03:48.040
<v Speaker 1>or public land. Do this, whether you plan to hunt

0:03:48.040 --> 0:03:51.400
<v Speaker 1>a specific property on opening week in September or during

0:03:51.440 --> 0:03:54.440
<v Speaker 1>the rout in November. Just go big here, because what

0:03:54.480 --> 0:03:57.640
<v Speaker 1>you want to do is create a visual representation of

0:03:57.720 --> 0:04:01.480
<v Speaker 1>your white tail ambush site wish list. You want to

0:04:01.520 --> 0:04:03.960
<v Speaker 1>look at your scouting app and laugh because it's nearly

0:04:04.000 --> 0:04:06.320
<v Speaker 1>filled up with way points. I did this when I

0:04:06.400 --> 0:04:08.960
<v Speaker 1>knew I was going to draw my nonresident Iowa tag

0:04:09.080 --> 0:04:12.360
<v Speaker 1>last fall. For six months, I scrolled over thousands of

0:04:12.400 --> 0:04:14.800
<v Speaker 1>acres of public land in my zone and I just

0:04:14.880 --> 0:04:19.800
<v Speaker 1>dropped waypoint after waypoint on any terrain feature, on food sources,

0:04:19.800 --> 0:04:23.159
<v Speaker 1>on water sources, anything that picked my interests got a

0:04:23.200 --> 0:04:26.240
<v Speaker 1>pin on it. And just for ships and giggles. I

0:04:26.320 --> 0:04:28.360
<v Speaker 1>counted my way points to see how many I ended

0:04:28.440 --> 0:04:31.040
<v Speaker 1>up with, and in total it was just over sixty,

0:04:31.080 --> 0:04:34.280
<v Speaker 1>spread out across about eight different parcels. Now, even if

0:04:34.279 --> 0:04:36.279
<v Speaker 1>I lived in Iowa, I had loads of free time,

0:04:36.600 --> 0:04:39.320
<v Speaker 1>both of which aren't true. I couldn't have hunted all

0:04:39.360 --> 0:04:42.520
<v Speaker 1>of those spots in one season. What's worse is that

0:04:42.600 --> 0:04:44.560
<v Speaker 1>I knew that I would go through a pretty harsh

0:04:44.640 --> 0:04:48.880
<v Speaker 1>culling phase as the October one opener drew near. Most

0:04:48.880 --> 0:04:52.000
<v Speaker 1>of those waypoints would eventually get deemed not good enough,

0:04:52.320 --> 0:04:54.479
<v Speaker 1>and I knew I would delete them. And as sad

0:04:54.520 --> 0:04:58.080
<v Speaker 1>as that is, it's necessary and it doesn't negate the

0:04:58.160 --> 0:05:01.480
<v Speaker 1>crazy phase of dropping your wish list way points. That

0:05:01.560 --> 0:05:04.360
<v Speaker 1>step is important because you're just looking for a little

0:05:04.400 --> 0:05:07.960
<v Speaker 1>bit of everything that might be worth hunting. You've developed

0:05:07.960 --> 0:05:10.080
<v Speaker 1>a picture of all the spots that might be worthwhile

0:05:10.240 --> 0:05:13.360
<v Speaker 1>without going through them individually, to parce out the good

0:05:13.400 --> 0:05:15.880
<v Speaker 1>stuff from the spots that just don't have the right

0:05:15.920 --> 0:05:18.680
<v Speaker 1>access or won't play into the timing of your hunt.

0:05:19.200 --> 0:05:21.599
<v Speaker 1>If this seems clear as mud, let me grab a

0:05:21.600 --> 0:05:23.960
<v Speaker 1>big old stick and stir the whole thing up a

0:05:23.960 --> 0:05:27.000
<v Speaker 1>little bit more. What you're really looking to do now

0:05:27.360 --> 0:05:30.880
<v Speaker 1>is think about what's really going on under those way points.

0:05:31.320 --> 0:05:34.159
<v Speaker 1>Think of them not just as a remotely interesting feature

0:05:34.160 --> 0:05:37.560
<v Speaker 1>on the landscape, but as an actual physical place you

0:05:37.560 --> 0:05:40.479
<v Speaker 1>will walk into with a stand on your back or

0:05:40.520 --> 0:05:42.960
<v Speaker 1>a saddle on your butt, or maybe you'll just set

0:05:43.040 --> 0:05:45.960
<v Speaker 1>up in the preseason if it's a private piece of ground,

0:05:46.480 --> 0:05:48.760
<v Speaker 1>Is that waypoint a hunter yards from the parking area

0:05:48.760 --> 0:05:50.919
<v Speaker 1>on the main trail a really good idea. Are you

0:05:50.960 --> 0:05:52.760
<v Speaker 1>the kind of person who has the discipline to hike

0:05:52.800 --> 0:05:54.840
<v Speaker 1>in two or three miles to a remote island in

0:05:54.880 --> 0:05:57.159
<v Speaker 1>a swamp to hunt, or do you just kind of

0:05:57.200 --> 0:05:59.520
<v Speaker 1>like the idea of finding a big buck better than

0:05:59.560 --> 0:06:02.919
<v Speaker 1>nomad land? Do you really think a stand at the

0:06:02.920 --> 0:06:05.080
<v Speaker 1>back corner of a public land hayfield is going to

0:06:05.080 --> 0:06:08.080
<v Speaker 1>be your ticket to a decent buck? Maybe maybe on

0:06:08.200 --> 0:06:11.080
<v Speaker 1>opening night, of course, But what about six weeks into

0:06:11.080 --> 0:06:13.800
<v Speaker 1>the season, after seventy us have posted up there while

0:06:13.800 --> 0:06:17.159
<v Speaker 1>thinking the same exact thing, What if you won't be

0:06:17.200 --> 0:06:19.599
<v Speaker 1>hunting in their opening night? Do you really need to

0:06:19.640 --> 0:06:22.240
<v Speaker 1>devote an ounce of brain activity to a spot like that?

0:06:22.480 --> 0:06:26.159
<v Speaker 1>Probably not delete it. What if you've marked several water

0:06:26.200 --> 0:06:29.000
<v Speaker 1>holes thinking that you'll be early season hunting and hydration

0:06:29.120 --> 0:06:33.599
<v Speaker 1>is mouy importante to September bucks? Maybe, but how many

0:06:33.600 --> 0:06:35.640
<v Speaker 1>water holes are there if you're in the swamps of

0:06:35.680 --> 0:06:38.400
<v Speaker 1>Louisiana or Florida, where a buck could probably trip with

0:06:38.440 --> 0:06:41.159
<v Speaker 1>his mouth open get a drink. Does it make sense

0:06:41.200 --> 0:06:43.720
<v Speaker 1>to focus on water sources, or should you be looking

0:06:43.760 --> 0:06:46.039
<v Speaker 1>for higher ground that might be loaded with brows or

0:06:46.080 --> 0:06:48.960
<v Speaker 1>some other food source, or maybe just trying to find

0:06:49.000 --> 0:06:52.360
<v Speaker 1>like a sweet little landing strip of ground between all

0:06:52.560 --> 0:06:56.039
<v Speaker 1>that water that could feature a season long travel route

0:06:56.440 --> 0:06:58.880
<v Speaker 1>because it's the only place where a deer can cross

0:06:58.920 --> 0:07:00.840
<v Speaker 1>from one side of a pretty to the other without

0:07:00.839 --> 0:07:04.200
<v Speaker 1>requiring a snorkele. What about if you're going to take

0:07:04.200 --> 0:07:06.559
<v Speaker 1>a trip in search of a western white tail, should

0:07:06.600 --> 0:07:08.720
<v Speaker 1>you really focus on way points that are out in

0:07:08.760 --> 0:07:11.280
<v Speaker 1>the middle of nowhere where antelope might even feel like

0:07:11.320 --> 0:07:15.280
<v Speaker 1>it's a little too open. The waypoint revisiting stage is

0:07:15.320 --> 0:07:18.080
<v Speaker 1>a great time to shed the excess spots that just

0:07:18.120 --> 0:07:21.680
<v Speaker 1>don't give you the warm and fuzzies. But remember you

0:07:21.720 --> 0:07:23.920
<v Speaker 1>don't have to get rid of anything at any point.

0:07:24.440 --> 0:07:28.680
<v Speaker 1>Cutting just to cut is silly. Spend time with this phase,

0:07:29.040 --> 0:07:31.040
<v Speaker 1>and if most of your waypoints nag you in a

0:07:31.040 --> 0:07:33.720
<v Speaker 1>good way, keep them. This is not a point A

0:07:33.880 --> 0:07:36.640
<v Speaker 1>to B strategy. It's up to the individual. That's why

0:07:36.640 --> 0:07:39.400
<v Speaker 1>you have the initial cut loose stage so that your

0:07:39.440 --> 0:07:43.160
<v Speaker 1>full waypoint whish list is entirely visible, and the odds

0:07:43.200 --> 0:07:45.560
<v Speaker 1>are you just you won't get them all right, especially

0:07:45.560 --> 0:07:48.040
<v Speaker 1>if you really get after it early on. But the

0:07:48.080 --> 0:07:50.160
<v Speaker 1>worst thing you can do is to lead a waypoint

0:07:50.160 --> 0:07:52.640
<v Speaker 1>just because you think you have to. There's there's an

0:07:52.760 --> 0:07:55.240
<v Speaker 1>art to this stuff, and just like art, it's up

0:07:55.320 --> 0:07:57.400
<v Speaker 1>to us to decide what we want to create and

0:07:57.400 --> 0:08:00.560
<v Speaker 1>where we want to take the end product. You. Eventually,

0:08:00.760 --> 0:08:03.640
<v Speaker 1>if you're honest with yourself and give the initial calling phase,

0:08:03.680 --> 0:08:08.480
<v Speaker 1>sometime you'll be left with a more just actionable roster

0:08:08.680 --> 0:08:12.080
<v Speaker 1>of potential stand sites. This is when you filter in

0:08:12.120 --> 0:08:15.760
<v Speaker 1>your likely hunting dates as far as seasonal timing, and

0:08:15.800 --> 0:08:17.880
<v Speaker 1>you start to look at how you'd get into and

0:08:17.880 --> 0:08:20.960
<v Speaker 1>how of these spots. At this point, I like to

0:08:21.000 --> 0:08:23.040
<v Speaker 1>try to focus on the way points that just scream

0:08:23.160 --> 0:08:25.240
<v Speaker 1>to me, and instead of falling in love with them,

0:08:25.320 --> 0:08:27.720
<v Speaker 1>I try to figure out what am I missing? What

0:08:27.800 --> 0:08:30.040
<v Speaker 1>could happen in those spots that would make it so

0:08:30.080 --> 0:08:32.640
<v Speaker 1>it was just a dud and not a producer. Try

0:08:32.679 --> 0:08:35.280
<v Speaker 1>to pin down the details of your hunt and apply

0:08:35.360 --> 0:08:38.480
<v Speaker 1>the most likely factors as far as weather and hunting pressure,

0:08:38.760 --> 0:08:40.880
<v Speaker 1>and then to decide if it's still as promising as

0:08:40.880 --> 0:08:43.280
<v Speaker 1>it feels, and while I don't have a formal style

0:08:43.320 --> 0:08:45.640
<v Speaker 1>of ranking way points, I do end up through a

0:08:45.640 --> 0:08:48.480
<v Speaker 1>little bit too much mind grinding knowing which spots are

0:08:48.480 --> 0:08:51.280
<v Speaker 1>the most interesting to me. This happens to me when

0:08:51.280 --> 0:08:53.599
<v Speaker 1>I travel out of state for public land hunt for

0:08:53.640 --> 0:08:55.719
<v Speaker 1>a few days, or on some of the places I

0:08:55.760 --> 0:08:57.760
<v Speaker 1>have permission to hunt in Minnesota that I've been on

0:08:57.840 --> 0:09:04.520
<v Speaker 1>for years, and there's no time line for this. If

0:09:04.520 --> 0:09:07.000
<v Speaker 1>you're a slow learner like I am, you might devote

0:09:07.040 --> 0:09:09.520
<v Speaker 1>so much time to east scouting that your wife actually

0:09:09.520 --> 0:09:11.480
<v Speaker 1>gets kind of pissed at you. You might if you

0:09:11.520 --> 0:09:13.800
<v Speaker 1>forget to take your meds for the day, just start

0:09:13.880 --> 0:09:17.079
<v Speaker 1>spontaneously east scouting at events where you should be focused

0:09:17.080 --> 0:09:20.160
<v Speaker 1>on other things, like maybe your kids baptism, or yesterday

0:09:20.160 --> 0:09:21.599
<v Speaker 1>when my wife was trying to explain to me that

0:09:21.640 --> 0:09:23.400
<v Speaker 1>we need to fix the drain in our bathroom tub.

0:09:24.840 --> 0:09:27.360
<v Speaker 1>Do everything you can to pare down your east scouting

0:09:27.640 --> 0:09:30.480
<v Speaker 1>to the most likeliest of spots and then have some

0:09:30.559 --> 0:09:34.400
<v Speaker 1>faith in them. Sometimes this process proves to be almost futile.

0:09:35.120 --> 0:09:37.000
<v Speaker 1>Other times it can put you right on top of

0:09:37.000 --> 0:09:41.120
<v Speaker 1>incredible dear action, even in pressured places, even on public ground.

0:09:42.000 --> 0:09:43.800
<v Speaker 1>The latter happened to me a few years ago in

0:09:43.800 --> 0:09:46.640
<v Speaker 1>North Dakota, after my truck decided it didn't want to

0:09:46.760 --> 0:09:49.160
<v Speaker 1>run on my first trip out there to two more

0:09:49.200 --> 0:09:52.839
<v Speaker 1>familiar stomping grounds. Had a long weekend in the beginning

0:09:52.840 --> 0:09:55.199
<v Speaker 1>of November to spare because I just filled a tag

0:09:55.679 --> 0:09:57.440
<v Speaker 1>and I thought, I'm gonna drive up there and see

0:09:57.480 --> 0:09:59.920
<v Speaker 1>what I can do. So I fast tracked this east

0:10:00.000 --> 0:10:02.600
<v Speaker 1>scouting approach to a massive chunk of federal land in

0:10:02.600 --> 0:10:05.120
<v Speaker 1>the southeastern corner of the state that I'd never laid

0:10:05.120 --> 0:10:07.400
<v Speaker 1>eyes on. By the time I was headed north and

0:10:07.440 --> 0:10:10.880
<v Speaker 1>west to get there, I had only four way points left.

0:10:11.280 --> 0:10:14.160
<v Speaker 1>Knowing that it was prime cruising time, I had marked

0:10:14.240 --> 0:10:17.800
<v Speaker 1>only spots that I felt offered killer travel corridors and

0:10:17.920 --> 0:10:20.160
<v Speaker 1>positioning that would allow me to hunt them with either

0:10:20.240 --> 0:10:23.800
<v Speaker 1>north or west winds. When I showed up, I hiked

0:10:23.840 --> 0:10:26.680
<v Speaker 1>a mile into my number one spot and within seconds

0:10:26.679 --> 0:10:28.680
<v Speaker 1>realized that I probably wouldn't need to go anywhere else

0:10:28.960 --> 0:10:30.880
<v Speaker 1>as long as I didn't have any other hunters creep

0:10:30.880 --> 0:10:33.240
<v Speaker 1>in on me. The ridge I set up on over

0:10:33.280 --> 0:10:36.480
<v Speaker 1>a tight river bottom was basically the only cover connecting

0:10:36.520 --> 0:10:38.680
<v Speaker 1>two good sized wood lots. It was one of the

0:10:38.679 --> 0:10:41.640
<v Speaker 1>most natural funnels I found in a lifetime of looking,

0:10:42.080 --> 0:10:44.480
<v Speaker 1>and the only surprise what is it? And the only

0:10:44.480 --> 0:10:46.960
<v Speaker 1>surprise was that it took me three days there and

0:10:47.120 --> 0:10:49.800
<v Speaker 1>one slight hundred yard move to arrow a pope and

0:10:49.840 --> 0:10:52.120
<v Speaker 1>young eight pointer that just wouldn't leave his girlfriend alone.

0:10:52.960 --> 0:10:57.080
<v Speaker 1>Of course, hunting is kind of like investing. We all

0:10:57.120 --> 0:10:59.800
<v Speaker 1>love to brag about our winners. No one talks a

0:10:59.800 --> 0:11:02.240
<v Speaker 1>big game about how they went all in with their

0:11:02.240 --> 0:11:05.440
<v Speaker 1>life savings in Kodak or Blockbuster. When it comes to

0:11:05.520 --> 0:11:08.960
<v Speaker 1>East scouting, I've dropped an embarrassing amount of waypoints on

0:11:09.000 --> 0:11:11.000
<v Speaker 1>spots that when I walked in to look at them,

0:11:11.200 --> 0:11:15.280
<v Speaker 1>were absolute duds. In fact, I've hinged entire weeks and

0:11:15.360 --> 0:11:17.560
<v Speaker 1>ten or twelve hours of drive time to get two

0:11:17.600 --> 0:11:21.559
<v Speaker 1>spots where not only were my way points worthless, the

0:11:21.679 --> 0:11:24.720
<v Speaker 1>entire property that I had chosen was a metaphorical kick

0:11:25.080 --> 0:11:28.280
<v Speaker 1>square to the delegates. This happened to a hunting partner

0:11:28.280 --> 0:11:29.760
<v Speaker 1>and I one time when we made the trek to

0:11:29.840 --> 0:11:32.960
<v Speaker 1>southern Oklahoma. Aside from camping right on top of what

0:11:33.000 --> 0:11:35.160
<v Speaker 1>I can only assume is the largest colony of fire

0:11:35.160 --> 0:11:38.080
<v Speaker 1>ants in the Sooner State, our pre hunt research was

0:11:38.200 --> 0:11:41.040
<v Speaker 1>mostly written in cryans, and we colored so far outside

0:11:41.040 --> 0:11:43.400
<v Speaker 1>the lines that our moms wouldn't post them on the fridge.

0:11:43.520 --> 0:11:46.560
<v Speaker 1>It was terrible. I saw more hunters on that parcel

0:11:46.600 --> 0:11:50.280
<v Speaker 1>than I saw a deer by orders of magnitude. Sometimes

0:11:50.280 --> 0:11:53.400
<v Speaker 1>we just get things wrong, but it's still better to

0:11:53.440 --> 0:11:55.719
<v Speaker 1>start with a plan than to assume you're going to

0:11:55.800 --> 0:11:57.800
<v Speaker 1>screw up the whole thing and not put in the

0:11:57.840 --> 0:12:01.000
<v Speaker 1>East scouting effort. It's also important to know when to

0:12:01.040 --> 0:12:04.240
<v Speaker 1>throw in the towel over confidence in EA scouting despite

0:12:04.240 --> 0:12:06.120
<v Speaker 1>what you actually see in those spots when you're there

0:12:06.280 --> 0:12:11.319
<v Speaker 1>is dangerous. Learn to love and let go and recognize

0:12:11.520 --> 0:12:14.240
<v Speaker 1>there is value to getting things wrong even though it sucks.

0:12:14.679 --> 0:12:17.040
<v Speaker 1>We left that Oklahoma spot and went rogue to a

0:12:17.080 --> 0:12:20.040
<v Speaker 1>totally new area, found some public land, and managed to

0:12:20.120 --> 0:12:22.960
<v Speaker 1>arrow three deer in three days. In this phase, if

0:12:22.960 --> 0:12:26.280
<v Speaker 1>you eliminate the dead spots, you'll theoretically get closer to

0:12:26.360 --> 0:12:29.080
<v Speaker 1>the good stuff. You'll also start your boots on the

0:12:29.120 --> 0:12:32.959
<v Speaker 1>ground efforts around areas where you've established a base level

0:12:33.000 --> 0:12:37.320
<v Speaker 1>of faith, which is real important. Maybe your waypoint on

0:12:37.360 --> 0:12:39.120
<v Speaker 1>the loaner tree in the corner of the meadow isn't

0:12:39.120 --> 0:12:41.959
<v Speaker 1>spot on, but just beyond the meadow is a real

0:12:42.040 --> 0:12:45.000
<v Speaker 1>pinch point that funnels deer movement in a way that matters.

0:12:45.240 --> 0:12:48.040
<v Speaker 1>If you believe in a spot, you'll find those things.

0:12:48.160 --> 0:12:50.560
<v Speaker 1>Or maybe in the process of checking out your pre

0:12:50.640 --> 0:12:53.200
<v Speaker 1>scouted options, you see that you should have paid more

0:12:53.240 --> 0:12:55.920
<v Speaker 1>attention to the hybrid layers that show not only the

0:12:55.960 --> 0:12:59.920
<v Speaker 1>satellite imagery, but a topographical line overlay signifying all the

0:13:00.040 --> 0:13:03.480
<v Speaker 1>elevation changes. Perhaps the spot you thought was flat isn't,

0:13:03.920 --> 0:13:06.080
<v Speaker 1>and that mistake is when you won't make again. This

0:13:06.160 --> 0:13:07.880
<v Speaker 1>happened to me the first time I bow hunted South

0:13:07.960 --> 0:13:10.120
<v Speaker 1>Dakota for white tails, where my plan was to hike

0:13:10.160 --> 0:13:13.200
<v Speaker 1>into a water hole and set up my number one

0:13:13.240 --> 0:13:16.880
<v Speaker 1>way point. Was loaded with promise, but as I pulled

0:13:16.960 --> 0:13:19.160
<v Speaker 1>up to the access point, I realized how much I'd

0:13:19.200 --> 0:13:22.840
<v Speaker 1>underestimated the rolling terrain along the Missouri River. I'd have

0:13:22.920 --> 0:13:24.440
<v Speaker 1>needed a half a day to hike and do what

0:13:24.480 --> 0:13:26.920
<v Speaker 1>I thought was most promising. It was out of the question.

0:13:27.880 --> 0:13:30.880
<v Speaker 1>This is like falling in love with someone because they're attractive,

0:13:31.440 --> 0:13:33.400
<v Speaker 1>even though they frequently hit you in the face with

0:13:33.480 --> 0:13:38.079
<v Speaker 1>golf clubs. It's stupid. Just don't do it. Or maybe

0:13:38.320 --> 0:13:40.840
<v Speaker 1>the pond you thought was an ideal set up is

0:13:40.880 --> 0:13:42.960
<v Speaker 1>try as a popcorn fart. By the time you're there

0:13:43.280 --> 0:13:45.480
<v Speaker 1>and you realize that the imagery you built your research

0:13:45.520 --> 0:13:47.800
<v Speaker 1>on was taken in May when the spring rains had

0:13:47.800 --> 0:13:50.960
<v Speaker 1>the whole thing flushed with frog habitat The key to

0:13:51.000 --> 0:13:53.520
<v Speaker 1>East scouting is to use it to give yourself the

0:13:53.559 --> 0:13:58.320
<v Speaker 1>best possible start and to keep learning. Pay attention to

0:13:58.360 --> 0:14:01.200
<v Speaker 1>what your favorite spots look like on satellite imagery, and

0:14:01.240 --> 0:14:04.439
<v Speaker 1>then in person, pay attention to the things you get wrong,

0:14:04.720 --> 0:14:06.400
<v Speaker 1>because that's how you really learn to be a better

0:14:06.400 --> 0:14:10.480
<v Speaker 1>white tail hunter. And I know making mistakes sucks, but

0:14:10.600 --> 0:14:13.720
<v Speaker 1>that's the clay with which the best hunters are molded.

0:14:14.160 --> 0:14:18.040
<v Speaker 1>It's not just the successes that create the consistent killers,

0:14:18.559 --> 0:14:21.680
<v Speaker 1>it's the way they handled getting everything wrong by putting

0:14:21.760 --> 0:14:25.040
<v Speaker 1>themselves in challenging environments and then striking out over and

0:14:25.120 --> 0:14:27.960
<v Speaker 1>over again. In fact, I bet that most of the

0:14:28.000 --> 0:14:31.160
<v Speaker 1>best hunters have become that way through years of stacking

0:14:31.240 --> 0:14:34.359
<v Speaker 1>up failures at a rate that far exceeded their successes.

0:14:34.680 --> 0:14:37.880
<v Speaker 1>Tossing a touchdown pass is great, but what sticks with

0:14:37.920 --> 0:14:40.240
<v Speaker 1>you is the bone headed interception that cost the game.

0:14:40.600 --> 0:14:43.160
<v Speaker 1>No one wants that feeling again, including all of us

0:14:43.160 --> 0:14:46.160
<v Speaker 1>white tail junkies, and in the hunting industry, we've often

0:14:46.200 --> 0:14:49.920
<v Speaker 1>idolized people solely on their track record of killing huge bucks,

0:14:50.360 --> 0:14:53.480
<v Speaker 1>without much concern for how those bucks were killed or

0:14:53.520 --> 0:14:55.960
<v Speaker 1>whether the hunter actually put in any effort to kill them.

0:14:56.440 --> 0:14:59.160
<v Speaker 1>The truly talented hunters out there aren't the ones who

0:14:59.160 --> 0:15:01.360
<v Speaker 1>are dead set on ling up their trophy room through

0:15:01.400 --> 0:15:04.520
<v Speaker 1>the easiest means possible. They're the ones who accept that

0:15:04.560 --> 0:15:07.400
<v Speaker 1>they're chosen path is a challenging one, and while it

0:15:07.520 --> 0:15:10.120
<v Speaker 1>might dole out some sweet successes if you walk it

0:15:10.200 --> 0:15:14.160
<v Speaker 1>long enough, most of the time it's just fraught with mistakes.

0:15:14.160 --> 0:15:16.760
<v Speaker 1>So don't be afraid to screw up your scouting. Don't

0:15:16.800 --> 0:15:19.040
<v Speaker 1>be afraid to drop a million way points until you've

0:15:19.080 --> 0:15:21.760
<v Speaker 1>blotted out your phone screen, and then pare them down

0:15:21.800 --> 0:15:25.520
<v Speaker 1>to an actionable amount. This will be variable on whether

0:15:25.560 --> 0:15:27.960
<v Speaker 1>you have the time to individually scout each way point

0:15:27.960 --> 0:15:30.480
<v Speaker 1>before the season, or you plan to show up for

0:15:30.520 --> 0:15:32.400
<v Speaker 1>a four day hunt and give it your all. Then

0:15:32.840 --> 0:15:34.880
<v Speaker 1>for the home game hunt, you might be able to

0:15:34.920 --> 0:15:38.000
<v Speaker 1>file through fifteen or twenty spots. On any away game

0:15:38.080 --> 0:15:41.480
<v Speaker 1>hunt through or four might be plenty. Either way, understand

0:15:41.480 --> 0:15:44.920
<v Speaker 1>that you're probably mostly wrong in your waypoint placement, but

0:15:45.000 --> 0:15:47.120
<v Speaker 1>that's okay. You only have to get this part right

0:15:47.280 --> 0:15:49.360
<v Speaker 1>once in a while to have a hell of a season,

0:15:49.720 --> 0:15:52.400
<v Speaker 1>and even the parts that you get wrong will shape

0:15:52.400 --> 0:15:54.800
<v Speaker 1>you into someone who makes fewer slip ups in the future,

0:15:55.080 --> 0:15:57.960
<v Speaker 1>which is a good thing. So to wrap this up

0:15:58.000 --> 0:16:01.360
<v Speaker 1>and tie a nice bow on it, after you've taken

0:16:01.400 --> 0:16:04.320
<v Speaker 1>a big picture look at the ground you plan to hunt,

0:16:05.280 --> 0:16:08.800
<v Speaker 1>dive into this phase with away points or free mentality,

0:16:09.400 --> 0:16:12.120
<v Speaker 1>go nuts and mark anything you want on the ground

0:16:12.120 --> 0:16:16.120
<v Speaker 1>you plan to hunt. Then ease into this calling phase.

0:16:16.560 --> 0:16:19.560
<v Speaker 1>Be honest about where you really want to hunt, when

0:16:19.600 --> 0:16:23.160
<v Speaker 1>you'll hunt, and what the spots really look like, access

0:16:23.160 --> 0:16:28.640
<v Speaker 1>wise and potential dear movement wise. Lastly, get serious when

0:16:28.640 --> 0:16:31.160
<v Speaker 1>the calling phase gets rolling. What you're doing is committing

0:16:31.160 --> 0:16:34.560
<v Speaker 1>yourself to time either spent scouting or actually hunting at

0:16:34.560 --> 0:16:38.160
<v Speaker 1>these specific sites. You want to be careful here because

0:16:38.200 --> 0:16:40.320
<v Speaker 1>this is the foundation of your hunt and it's a

0:16:40.360 --> 0:16:43.880
<v Speaker 1>process that just takes time. And of course, all of

0:16:43.880 --> 0:16:45.760
<v Speaker 1>the east scouting in the world doesn't save you from

0:16:45.760 --> 0:16:47.560
<v Speaker 1>actually having to get out there in the woods and

0:16:47.600 --> 0:16:51.000
<v Speaker 1>look around, which is next week's topic. So get ready

0:16:51.200 --> 0:16:54.040
<v Speaker 1>because in the next episode, we'll be braving the mosquito

0:16:54.080 --> 0:17:00.680
<v Speaker 1>infested woods to ground truth or digital efforts. That's it,

0:17:00.800 --> 0:17:03.440
<v Speaker 1>my fellow dear junkies. Be sure to tune in next

0:17:03.480 --> 0:17:05.440
<v Speaker 1>week to keep your white tail game moving in the

0:17:05.560 --> 0:17:08.520
<v Speaker 1>right direction. I'm Tony Peterson and this has been the

0:17:08.560 --> 0:17:12.320
<v Speaker 1>wire to Hunt Foundation's podcast. As always, thank you so

0:17:12.400 --> 0:17:14.440
<v Speaker 1>much for your support and we will see you right

0:17:14.440 --> 0:17:15.440
<v Speaker 1>here next week