Tag Archives: hunting

Clinton Miller lives in the hills south of Stanthorpe, Queensland, Australia, where it is currently deer season. This article has been re-published here with permission of Clinton Miller. “It’s the first kill for this bow. The shot went in as pictured and came out about 6” lower on the opposite side. Got one lung and the liver. He only went maybe 70 meters. The Axis arrows, grizzly heads, adapters, feathers, inserts, and some various other bow accessories used were purchased from 3Rivers Archery.”

By Clinton Miller

A long time goal was achieved last weekend. For quite a few years I have been trying to take a deer, any deer with a bow. I have been unfortunate to have lost some and until now I haven’t been able to seal the deal. It felt like there was some sort of protective force field around every deer I shot at.

Well March and April for us is what September and October is for you guys and the fallow deer that I have access to do their thing in these months. I vowed to myself to make 2015 ‘the year of the deer’ and I’ve put in a day every second weekend since February at the property hoping to put to bed this deer hoodoo I had going.

The property is relatively new to me so I started going out there in February to get to know the place and to scout for deer. On the 1st trip, I spotted some does in their beds and made a stalk to about 20 yards but was foiled by a tree that was just behind the crease of the doe I shot at. Yep, dead centered the tree. Remember that force field I told you about …

Fast forward a few trips and the end of March rolls in. This time I was hoping that by now they should be responding to the rattle of a pair of antlers. Up until then they haven’t been.

I arrived at the place by mid afternoon and planned on an afternoon hunt, stay the night, a morning hunt and be back home by lunch the next day.

I checked the wind and accordingly, made plans to circle wide and come in behind the area I wanted to hunt, which is a trail with scrapes I found the week before. The idea was to setup in sight of the scrapes and rattle hoping to deceive a buck into thinking a rival was on his turf and coax him into range.

A little way into the walk I dropped into a rocky little creek, dotted with small rock holes full of water from recent storms. It was a beautiful little locale. A small cascade, surrounded by steep sided walls of rock. I thought to myself, “This is a nice little spot.”

I was standing in the creek bed enjoying being there when I looked up stream and saw a white figure walking down into the creek. My first thoughts were that it was a Billy goat and I casually lifted the binos to check him out. I had no intention of shooting a goat this trip so I was just going to watch him do his thing.

However the binos revealed a white buck. PANIC mode! Get out of the creek before he sees me. Hurry up and find a spot to setup for a rattle. Get the pack off and get the antlers, quick, hurry.

There were two ways that he might come in to the rattle, if he did at all. Down the creek or from above on the creek bank. I wasn’t sure where he was so I was watching both areas as I started rattling. Sure enough he must have been still in the creek bed because after only a few light rattles I saw his antlers coming down the creek. Now that I knew which way he was coming I knelt down and got into a more concealed position. As I did I drove the barbed spikes of a tiger pear cactus into my shin. What a time to do that. Here I was trying to get into a comfortable position with a tiger pear hanging off me.

The buck kept coming and revealed himself broadside at around 13 meters (roughly 14 yards). His chest seemed to fill my field of view. It looked so big that I remember thinking I can’t miss this, I must have been so focused.

As soon as he stepped out I drew and released. As I was drawing he turned his head and looked at me. It was too late though, the arrow was about to hit and seal his fate.

The instant it hit him I knew it was a good shot and thought for sure I’d just killed my first deer with a bow. He crashed off in the direction he came from and not wanting to push him I turned my attention to extracting the tiger pear from my leg. These things have 1.5″ spines that must have microscopic barbs because they are a right pain in the butt to get out. They will hang on, pulling a big fold of skin with them when you attempt to pull them out. They freakin’ hurt too. A couple of them went in 3/8″.

By the time I sorted that out it was time to take up the trail. At the site of the hit there was a good splash of blood on the rocks but it soon deteriorated to just drops then further to having to follow his tracks. I found the arrow and there was blood on it, the dark red type, not as reassuring as the bright pink stuff. Though there were a few little bubbles amongst it, indicating some lung damage.

Continuing to follow his tracks I seemed to lose them after about 40 meters. Puzzled to where he might have gone I went ahead a little too where I thought he may have gone.

I remember looking at the ground wondering where he could have gone and then looking up to my left over the other side of the creek and bingo, there he was, a pale figure lying in a small gully that runs into the creek.

“How did you get over there,” I thought. I backtracked a little more and soon found the spot where he entered the creek and crossed over and joined a trail leading right to where he was. It pays to look for the trail even if you have found the animal as you will most likely learn a valuable lesson about the situation.

The first emotion that hit me was that of relief. I finally proved to myself that it is actually possible to kill a deer with a trad bow. They aren’t an immortal creature after all.

It’s hard to describe the emotions felt, but you all know what I mean. A mix of sadness, deep respect, gratitude, contentment, sorrow, relief and more I don’t understand.

I sat with him for a moment and laid my hand on his fur thankful for this moment and I silently said to him that I will carry out every bit of meat. I would feel like I didn’t fully respect his life and the fact that I ended it if I didn’t.

I took some photos then started the task of field dressing him for packing out.

It was getting on and darkness, I knew, would beat me. I got a lot of it done before I needed my torch, just as well too, because the batteries went flat after about 15 minutes, leaving me trying to dress my first archery deer in the dark. It was time to use something I’ve been carrying for years in my little first aid kit; I finally got to use the most traveled light stick in Australia.

It was a whole lot brighter than I thought it would be and made the job heaps easier. After about an hour I had it all packed up on the kifaru spike camp ready for the haul back the Ute. I reckon it would have weighed easily 50kgs, (100lbs). I left the skin and ribs there for the night and went back in the morning for a second load.

The pack out was tiring but rewarding. Under the light of a half moon, thank goodness.

I remember thinking as I was walking out, that this is how it should be and how I wanted it to be. Working hard, earning the venison. I didn’t want the first to be any other way.

For the spring season, if you want to bag a turkey, you’re going have to scout, scout, and then scout some more. Expect this to take a good bit of time and effort. You’re scouting to find where the turkeys are roosting and where they feed or strut in the morning. Usually, they’ll keep to the same patterns in good weather.

When you’re scouting, you’re looking and listening for where the birds are, where are the hens going after they pitch down, what are the Toms doing, which Toms run together and where do they feed.

Go out at dusk the evening before your hunt and listen to where they are gobbling at sunset, use a call to get e response gobble letting you pin the roost tree. When you call and finally do get a gobble in response, do not keep calling.

Turkeys do not call as much as you think. Yes, there are times when a hen will just crank away, but not all the time, in fact, she only does that in specific situations. Until you know why she’s doing that, your best tools are patience and knowing your land.

Get there about an hour before sunrise the next morning and set up your decoys in a spot about 100 yards away from the roost tree. You want to be roughly 15 yards from your decoys (or whatever distance you feel comfortable taking that shot), positioned so your back is against a tree or some brush. Remember to stay still; you don’t want all the work you’ve put in to go to waste just because you can’t sit still. That said, look at where you’re going to sit before you put your butt down on an ant hill.

Five minutes to light, make a tree yelp – resist the temptation to continue calling. Wait for about 10 minutes and see if the birds fly to your setup from the roost. When the turkeys fly down and head to your decoy, it’s time to bag your bird. If you have a bird come in, you wait until he is in full strut. As soon as he turns around and his fan is blocking all view of you, get in position and get ready to draw back on that bird as soon as he turns around again. This may take 5 minutes or an hour, be prepared to be able to hold your bow in an odd or uncomfortable position for a very long time.

However, if you don’t hear anything for another 10 minutes, make a couple more yelps.

If they fly down, but not to you, try a few more periodic calls, but it’s probably not going to work out. If they flew down, but you’re not sure where they went and you’re not getting responses to calls stay where you’re at for at least an hour. About 80% of the time this won’t work; you, however, are hoping it’s the 20% that does work.

If, after an hour, you’re still coming up short it’s time to start hiking your hunting area. Remember, if you’re on public land it’s a good idea (and in many states it’s the law) to wear some orange while hiking; just remember to put it away when you find your next spot. Periodically you’ll want to stop and call to see if you can strike a gobble. If you don’t hear anything then keep moving. If you get a response, it’s time to quickly setup again (just like at the beginning of your hunt). After you get settled in, call again and listen to see if the Tom is coming your way.

If you think that everything is going well and the birds are getting close and then they go silent, be ready for them to show up in stealth mode. If, however, you’re pretty sure they’re gone wait 20 minutes after the last time you called before you either call again or leave. There is nothing more heartbreaking than thinking you’re done for the day, standing up and hearing the familiar sound of a turkey taking flight.

Remember, turkeys have nowhere to be and all day to get there. The hunting shows on TV cut hours of waiting to fit into their 30 minute show. Be patient and most importantly, have fun.

For some great shot placement tips, check out this video on turkey anatomy and proper arrow placement from Hoyt. It’s geared toward compound shooters, but the skills are pretty easily transferable to traditional archery.

By Jason D. Mills

The days are getting longer and the air is getting warmer, which can mean only one thing – turkey season is almost here. Getting a trophy tom with a shotgun can be hard, but when you decide to do it with your bow, especially a recurve or longbow, it can be considerably more difficult. The last thing you want to do is to be caught unprepared on opening day – making an already challenging hunt nearly impossible, but don’t worry 3Rivers Archery has your back.

There are a few things to consider before venturing out into the woods this season, and the best time to start thinking about them is in the weeks prior to opening day.

Where are you hunting?

Many bowhunters will likely already have their hunting area secured. If you fall into that category, now would be a good time to start scouting – you should become intimately familiar with your territory. If you’re still not sure where you’re going to be hunting this season, the advice is the same; don’t wait for opening day to find out where the birds are roosting and feeding.

Will you be hunting from a blind or ‘running and gunning?’

Many archers find it easier to hunt from a blind because it can conceal the extra movement of drawing a bow. When hunting with a shotgun it’s easy to simply get set-up, put the gun on you knee and wait for a bird to get within range. With a bow, however, it’s never that simple. If you do decide to ‘run-and-gun’ consider using a bow sock in conjunction with some bow camo and a ghillie suit. Although this won’t hide your movements completely, it will soften them and it can be much more effective at concealing the human form than camouflage alone.

Is your blind ready to go?

A good ground blind is invaluable to the bowhunter when he is matching wits with a seasoned tom. Turkeys have some of the sharpest eyes in the woods, and your trophy tom has been hunted before, so he’s already weary of even the slightest movements. You can’t hold your bow at full draw for too long and drawing takes a lot of movement, so what do you do? You get a ground blind. There are many different kinds of blinds from single panels to large pop-up blinds and even the high-tech GhostBlind®. Which one is the right one for you? That depends on preference, hunting style, and budget, but I love the GhostBlind®. It works just about anywhere and can be moved easily and setup quickly.

Are your decoys ready to go?

Most hunters can get the old longbeards within 50 or so yards, but arguably the most difficult part of luring a tom within shooting range are those last few yards. A good decoy can be the difference between success or failure this season. That said, it’s hard to find a reason to not recommend the Miss Purr-Fect Hen. It just works. The Miss Purr-Fect weighs about as much as a bottle of water and features perfect pose technology, allowing for detailed adjustable neck/head positioning.

Do you have a good hunting seat?

Whether you will be sitting at the base of a tree or in a ground blind this season, it is important to think about comfort. If you can’t sit still then you might as well not go out at all, because a turkey will see your movement and your hunt will be over. If you’re going to be sitting on the ground, then at least make sure your back is comfortable with some lumbar support. Or, if you’re going to be hunting from a blind you might want to check out the Chama Swivel Hunting Chair.

Is your camo right for the season?

You’re going to need to get your bird within your kill zone, and for most traditional bowhunters that means 20 yards or less. This means the detail of your camouflage is critical. The wild turkey’s ability to pick up movement is truly impressive, so you need to make sure you’re camo is on point. The new Core4Element Realtree Xtra® Camo line by Easton is impressive and has been designed for early season hunting.

Do you have the appropriate broadheads?

What’s the best broadhead for hunting turkey? The one that flies the straightest and gets the job done. The vital area on a turkey is roughly the size of a fist; that said, the best broad head is the one you can shoot confidently into that small of an area time and time again. You do not want to be second guessing how an arrow will fly or your ability to hit a tom when he is at 20 yards.

However, it’s best to avoid a pass though with turkey, because if they can run or fly after the shot, they usually will, which won’t leave a blood trail or, if it does, it won’t be a good one. If you can, try and place your arrow so it penetrates at least one wing, both would be better, while also hitting the vitals. Another good way to avoid a pass through is to add a Zwickey Scorpios Broadhead Stopper to your broadhead.

Have you practiced shooting enough to be confident?

As with all things, the key to successful traditional bowhunting is practice. In the military they have a saying, train like you fight. It would be a good idea to find an area where you can practice shooting, which will closely replicate your actual hunting conditions. It’s also a good idea to get a decent target for practice. I love practicing with a good 3D target, but not every hunter can afford that. The next best option is to get a high-quality lifelike paper target.

Have you purchased your hunting license?

This one seems like such a no-brainer, but it never fails – someone will forget or put it off too long. So, do it now, well not right now, but as soon as you’re done reading this article.

Finally, how are you going to display that big longbeard once you bag him?

Because you will get him, if not this year then maybe next year, but it will happen. I suggest mounting the tail feathers and longbeard yourself. It’s a good DIY project and is much more satisfying to point at your trophy and say you did everything. Try mounting it on our Arrowhead plaque to show off your pride as a traditional bowhunter.

In closing, I hope this helped. If you think of anything that I might have forgotten, please leave a comment and let me know. Remember to stay safe in the woods this season and as always, good luck and shoot straight. Be sure to share your tom with us and we’ll add it to our Trophy Room.

By Jason D. Mills

By Jason D. Mills

Today is March 5, which also happens to be Fred Bear’s birthday.

Born in Waynesboro, Penn. on March 5, 1902, Bear was an American author, video host, bow maker, and traditional bow hunter. Bear left his home, a small farm, when he was only 21 years old to pursue opportunities in Detroit’s growing auto industry.

Although Bear grew up in a hunting family, he did not start bow hunting until 1929. In fact, Bear said that after hunting with a rifle he was not all that interested in the sport – as there was not enough challenge in it.

“I grew up a gun hunter, my dad was a hunter,” Bear explained in a 1985 interview with Mike Avery. “I shot a deer in 1933 up in the Upper Peninsula [in Michigan] that dressed 285 pounds, the biggest deer I ever saw. And it was so easy. That opening morning I walked up the draw and there he was looking at me and I was looking at him and I shot him and went down and that’s when the work began. So, I thought this [traditional bow hunting] would be a little bit better.”

Bear first had his interest in traditional archery piqued in 1927, when he visited the Adams Theatre in Detroit, where he watched “Alaskan Adventure,” a film featuring a Californian bowhunter named Arthur Young. In that same year, 1927, Bear met Young and he soon began craft his own bows, arrows, and bow strings under the tutelage of Young himself. If Bear had never watched Young’s film or if he had not met Young it could easily be said that archery, as it is known today, would have never existed.

However, Bear did not begin hunting with a bow until 1929, when he ventured into the woods with a bow carved from an $8 Osage orange stave. It took Bear six years before he finally connected with his first whitetail deer with a bow.

Bear Products Company, which made advertising materials for the automotive industry, was founded in 1933 by Fred Bear and Charles Piper after the plant where the men were working burnt down. The business was started with a $600 loan from Piper’s mother and used $600 in Bear’s personal equipment to function.

“I was running a plant for a fellow in Detroit, during the depression, terrible depress of ’29-33 and [the plant owner] wasn’t doing so well and the place caught fire, the insurance company owned it and I was out of a job,” Bear explained. “So, he had a nephew in there, been there about a year. Fresh out of Dartmouth, who came in with the selling capacity and he made friends with Chrysler. We were doing automotive work, in the beginning no one could live off the archery thing. We were making advertising materials, the same business where I was running the plant. So, I got ahold of him and I said, ‘Chuck, you can get the orders for this stuff and I know how to make it, why don’t we form a partnership and get back in business.’ And that was in ’33. Well, he didn’t have any money, and I didn’t either, really; we took inventory of the equipment I had in my basement and it came to $600, and he borrowed $600 from his mother and that was the beginning of this whole thing.”

It was only during his off hours that Bear crafted archery equipment, usually only for his circle of friends. However, the demand for Bear’s products steadily grew and in 1937 he patented his first bow glove and hired Nels Grumley, a master bowyer, to begin making bows under the name “Bear Products by Grumley” fulltime.

In 1939 the side business of archery demanded so much of Bear’s time, he decided to devote himself to it; and in 1940 Bear Products split into two companies, where Piper retained control of the automotive business and Bear retained the archery business. This is when the Bear Archery Company was officially born.

This was no accident, and Bear’s business didn’t grow organically. Bear tenaciously promoted the sport of archery.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MF6PEw5_yRI

“I had to not only make a product, but create a market for it,” he said. “So, I got into the promotional business and I soon found that the newspapers weren’t interested in the scores of the tournament, but if you could run down there with a deer or a bear you shot with a bow, you might make the front page.”

Further, Bear’s clout as a target archery champion helped him champion Michigan’s first bowhunting season in 1937, which prompted many other states to do the same. This, likely, was no small part to Bears success in the archery business.

“In 1937, four years later, we had our first archery season with 193 hunters; 193 bow hunting licenses were sold,” he said. “And it got to a point where I could some days; maybe eat three meals a day. And then I kept on promoting and as the business grew we did better and I found myself in the position where I could go hunting anyplace in the world, I could, you know, take some pictures, write a story, or make a film and I could expense it out tax wise and I could pay myself for doing it. Well, I’ve been doing that for 30-something years now and having a ball. So, I’ve shot a lot of animals and had a great time. I’m still having a great time.”

Shortly thereafter, in 1942, Bear produced his first hunting movie as a move to further promote the sport of archery. The next year Bear began experimenting with what would later become his favorite and most popular bow model – the take-down.

“On a trip I made to Alaska with a conventional longbow that I had to check as baggage along with my other gear; I took a flight nonstop, Chicago to Anchorage, and I got off the plane, but my archery equipment didn’t,” Bear said. “The stop in Anchorage was for fuel, and my hunt was a fly-in hunt and I’m being left handed, there were no other left handers in the party and I found those moose pretty hard to kill with rocks. So, I determined that I would make a bow that could be taken apart and put in a small enough case to go under my seat in the airplane.”

It took Bear years of trial and error before finally perfecting the design to his takedown bow in 1970, but his efforts were not in vain. It is not only a bow style that is still sold today, but Bear said “this is the bow that is the ultimate … this is my personal hunting bow. I’ve been hunting with this bow since 1965; I still shoot this bow.”

Four years later, in 1946, Bear patented the first bow quiver and the next year he moved the Bear Archery company from Detroit to Grayling, MI.

However, this growth did not sit well with Grumley, the bowyer Bear hired in 1937. Grumley knew that this move would mean mass producing bows by machines instead of individually crafting every bow by hand and, despite Bear’s attempt at retaining him, Grumley left Bear in 1948. After Grumley’s departure, Bear began using the famous “Running Bear” decal.

The next year, in 1949, Bear began mass producing the Polar, Grizzly, and Kodiak bows. It was also in 1949 that Bear championed the use of fiberglass in bows.

“A salesman for Corning Glass Company … dropped in – he was an archer, bowhunter – dropped into our shop in the very early ‘40s,” Bear explained. “And he had a piece of fiberglass cloth and I had never seen or heard of it and I was very surprised that glass would be flexible like it was … but I had not any great interest in it until he mentioned that it was elastic. He said that it was elastic and very strong and it would stretch or compress and unlike any other material it would always return to its original position until it was overstressed and then it would break. Well, that interested me because if it’s elastic maybe it’s a material we needed for the back of our bows.”

At the same time, Bear was doing some work with Chrysler and he knew their head chemist. Bear knew that Chrysler had developed a glue for bonding rubber to metal, which was called cycle-weld cement. So, Bear took the fiberglass cloth to the chemist at Chrysler and asked if he would put three or four layers of it on the back and belly of one of his bows with the cycle-weld cement. He found that the fiberglass, currently in a crisscross pattern, worked great on the back of the bow, but did not work well on the belly. This prompted Bear to begin manufacturing bows with fiberglass laminated backs and aluminum bellies. Interestingly, the aluminum was scrapped from B-17 bomber airplanes of WWII.

However, Bear found that the aluminum caused too much handshock when shot and there were also a large number of bows returned because of delaminating, which was caused by the large amount of shock. This warranty problem caused a substantial strain on the company’s finances; nonetheless, Bear insisted that all bows be replaced if returned broken.

This prompted Bear to begin developing a unidirectional fiberglass and, in 1951, the aluminum belly bows were discontinued entirely.

Two years later, in 1953, Bear patented the working recurve limb, which is the design that almost all modern recurves use today. The next year Bear began marketing their new fiberglass working recurve – the Kodiak II (see all Kodiak models still in production). Then, in 1965, Bear began marketing his, now famous, Bear Razorhead broadhead for the first time.

Despite his successes, Bear sold his company to Victor Comptometer in 1968 in an effort to grow the company even more. After the sale, Bear stayed on as President and remained active in the design and promotion of products, even after Kidde Corporation took over Victor Comptometer in 1977.

Shortly thereafter, in 1978, a strike at the Grayling plant forced the new owners to move operations to Gainesville, Fla., where the company remains today.

Notwithstanding the turbulence, Bear was an active part of his company until his death on April 27, 1988, at the age of 86.

By Dr. Dave Samuel

“Dr. Dave” spent 30 years as a professor of wildlife management at West Virginia University. He is now in his 43rd year as the Conservation Editor of Bowhunter Magazine, where his KnowHunting column still appears. Much of his teaching and writing has centered on white-tailed deer.

This article has been re-published here with permission of Dr. Dave.

Sometime in the 1960’s I joined the Professional Bowhunters Society.  And sometime in the 1970’s, via that organizations publications, I was exposed to Gene and Barry Wensel.  Identical twins who shot recurve bows and took monster bucks in Montana.

In 1981, Gene Wensel published “Bowhunting Rutting Whitetails,” and I learned more about hunting big bucks in two nights reading than the previous twenty years bowhunting. I just pulled my ragged, well-worn copy from the shelf and inside the front cover, it reads, “Good hunting Dave—Hope to meet you someday soon. Gene Wensel, 10/10/81.” I’m not sure when we finally did meet, but over the 33 years since that time, I’ve become friends with Gene and Barry.

In my opinion, these two fine bowhunters are the sharpest minds in bowhunting. Although they’ve hunted other species, and done quite well, the Wensels are whitetail bowhunters extraordinaire. When I read “Bowhunting Rutting Whitetails,” I realized that Gene and Barry think about whitetails at an entirely higher level than most of us. There is a level of knowledge that allows one to take younger bucks often. Then there is a level of knowledge that allows a bowhunter to take mature 2-4 year-old bucks fairly often. Then there is a level of knowledge that allows a bowhunter to take Boone and Crockett bucks once in a while. Then there is the Wensels. They are out there all the time, studying, scouting, learning about the biggest of all bucks. They commonly pass up bucks that most of us would call bucks-of-a-lifetime. Like I said, Gene and Barry think about whitetails at a level far beyond what most of us can even imagine.

In that first book Gene talked about scrapes, pointing out things that wildlife researchers didn’t learn for another twenty years.  Six years later Gene wrote another classic titled “One Man’s Whitetails,” and by then all bowhunters knew that these brothers were way ahead of their time.  Yes, it was a long time ago, but the Wensels were learning things that deer biologists would not confirm with real data for many years. As a wildlife professor who knew a little about deer, every time I walked away from a discussion with Barry or Gene, I just shook my head in amazement. We all walk through deer woods, but when these guys do, they observe a lot more than the rest of us. A lot more.

Six years later Gene wrote another classic titled “One Man’s Whitetails,” and by then all bowhunters knew that these brothers were way ahead of their time. As their website Brothers of the Bow states, when Gene wrote this book, “There were no videos, DVDs or television shows about deer hunting in those days. Specialty magazines were non-existent. One could count on one hand the number of hunting magazines on newsstands. Many books were so old they offered little more than ancient history and market hunting techniques. No one raised deer in those days. A live Boone & Crockett whitetail had never been photographed. Camo was mostly military. Things like food plot seeds, compound bows, carbon gear and trail cameras were unavailable.”

The Wensels had knowledge, shot recurves as if they were born with them in their hands, set ethical standards that many emulated (and a few fools ignored), and passed on that knowledge to thousands of us. Yes, and they did it with a great, sometimes a bit weird, sense of humor that carries on to today. An example of that humor can be seen on the inside front cover of one of Genes later books, “Come November.” My copy was loaned to a friend (and I don’t know who that was) and I never got it back, but I remember the inscription inside the front cover. “To my good friend Dr. Dave. The only guy I know who has a twin brother uglier than mine.” (Yes, I have a twin brother. There’s a scary thought for you). And while we are on books, Barry came out with a wonderful book in 2009 entitled “Once Upon A Tine.”   It too is a gem.

Over the years these brothers gathered a lot of outstanding videos of free ranging deer and other species. Around 2009 (I’m not sure of the exact date, but this is close), the Wensels got together with three other brother/friends, Mike, Mark and David Mitten from Illinoi, guys who also had tons of video, and they produced a video titled “Primal Dreams.” In my mind this is the finest hunting video ever made. Two hours long with breathtaking scenery and incredible footage of animals in their natural habitat. Interesting is the fact that there are no kill shots in the film and few dead animals as well. But this video, more than anything ever produced, lets the non-hunter know what hunting is really about. As their website states, “For those who hunt, it stirs the instinctual primal need we feel to hunt. For non-hunters, after soaking in the experiences, they say, Wow, NOW I get it! Now, I understand why you hunt, and I’m OK with it.”

These two sets of brothers wrote the script, edited the film, narrated the film, put the music together and produced an award-winning video that every hunter, every bowhunter, should watch. It earned three Telly awards for cinematography/video, editing, and use of music. And when you’ve seen it, and your wife and kids have seen it, and your neighbors too, then you need to give it to your kids teachers and then to the local library. It is that good. Actually, it is better than that.

A few years later they came out with a second video, “Essential Encounters.” If you ever wanted to show friends, family, neighbors, why you hunt, these videos do just that, and better than anything that has ever been produced. Yes, give them as Christmas gifts to your hunting and non-hunting friends.

A few years ago I took five of my friends to Barry’s Trophy Whitetail Boot Camp in Iowa.  It was the best 2-1/2 days of learning about deer hunting that I’ve ever spent. Barry walks you into his woods, to his stands, and teaches you exactly why that stand is where it is. I thought I knew how to get to my stand, but I didn’t. I thought I knew how to set a stand relative to wind, but I did not. Barry explains the terrain, the approach, the wind, and a lot of other variables, some of which I’d never thought of. You can watch all the videos and read all the books and watch all the TV shows on deer, but getting in the woods with Barry Wensel will teach you more than all those things put together.

The Wensels live whitetails and in my opinion are the best, most ethical, whitetail bowhunters in the country.  Ethical hunting, the values of hunting, why those things are so important, is in the blood of Barry and Gene Wensel.

NEW BERLIN, WI (January 22, 2015) – Sportsman Channel revealed its 2014 Sportsman Choice Awards winners at the network’s viewer choice awards event Wed., Jan. 21. The winners were announced during Sportsman Channel’s annual awards presentation at Rain Nightclub in the Palms Hotel Casino Resort during the Shooting, Hunting, and Outdoor Trade (SHOT) Show in Las Vegas.

The collective voice of American sportsmen and women from coast to coast was heard as more than 293,000 votes were cast in 11 different categories, setting an all-time record for Sportsman Choice Award viewer voting.

“2014 was a significant year for the network’s growth and its exceptional producers,” said Marc Fein, executive vice president of programming and production. “There was a good mix of first-time and returning winners and that really speaks to the depth of our talent and where the network is heading. All of the winners and finalists should be proud of their accomplishments.”

 The winners are listed with the finalist below each category in alphabetical order:

 

Best Hunting Show – Big Game:

Pigman: The Series – WINNER
Hosted by Brian “Pigman” Quaca, Produced by Track Ten Productions
Midwest Whitetail with Bill Winke, North American Whitetail, Realtree’s Monster Bucks and The Western Hunter

 

Best Hunting Show – Small Game:
Predator Nation – WINNER
Hosted by Fred Eichler, Produced by Blue Roots Productions
Avian-X, Dead Dog Walkin’, Heli-Hunter presented by Fusion and Predator Quest

 

Best Shooting Show:
Guns & Ammo – WINNER
Hosted by Craig Boddington and Kyle Lamb, Produced by IMO Productions
Guns & Gear, Hot Shots, NRANews Cam & Co. and Ruger Inside and Out

 

Best Fishing Show:
In-Fisherman – WINNER
Hosted by Doug Stange, Produced by IMO Production
Addictive Fishing, Alaska’s Fishing Paradise, Extreme Angler TV and Louisiana Outdoor Adventures

 

Best Full Draw Show – Bowhunting:
Relentless Pursuit – WINNER
Hosted by Tim Wells, Produced by World Hunting Group Productions
Bowhunter TV, Easton Bowhunting, Major League Bowhunter and Outback Outdoors

 

Best Educational – Instructional Show:
Midwest Whitetail with Bill Winke – WINNER
Hosted by Bill Winke, Produced by Midwest Whitetail Productions
Bowhunter TV, Conquest 200, Major League Bowhunter and MeatEater

 

Best Special Program Show:
Fred Bear: Father of Bowhunting – WINNER
Produced by Bear Archery and Rusted Rooster
Buck Knives – Edge of a Legend, Hog Dawgs, Iditarod and Murph the Protector

 

Best Variety Show:
MeatEater – WINNER
Hosted by Steven Rinella, Produced by Zero Point Zero Production
Brotherhood Outdoors, Gun It with Benny Spies, Meet the McMillans and The Outfitters Built by Ford F-Series

 

Best New Series:
NRA Life of Duty – WINNER
Produced by Ackerman McQueen
Amazing America with Sarah Palin, Heli-Hunter presented by Fusion, Mathews Dominant Bucks and
Winchester Deadly Passion

 

Shot of the Year:
Larysa Unleashed, Fast Reflex Doe – WINNER
Hosted and Produced by Larysa Switlyk
Brad Farris Game Plan, Long Range Pursuit, Pigman: The Series and Relentless Pursuit

 

Best Overall Host(s):
Brian “Pigman” Quaca – WINNER
Host of Pigman: The Series, Produced by Track Ten Productions
Benny Spies, Bill Winke, Jana Waller and Tim Wells

 

Best Overall Production:
MeatEater – WINNER
Hosted by Steven Rinella, Produced by Zero Point Zero Production
Dropped: Project Alaska 2.0, Into High Country, Saving Private K-9 and YoungWild

 

Best Commercial:
Yeti Coolers – WINNER
Produced by Arctos Collective/Jeff Simpson
Buck Knives, Bushnell – TrophyCam Wireless, Danner and Duluth Trading Company

 

Best Show Intro:
The Western Hunter – WINNER
Hosted by Nate Simmons, Ryan Hatfield and Chris Denham, Produced by Alpha Motion
Gun It with Benny Spies, Hallowed Ground Outdoors, Pigman: The Series and YoungWild

By: Jason D. Mills

It’s January, which, for many archers, means cold-weather hunting. Whether you’re hunting small game such as squirrel or rabbits; or you’re headed out to bag that late season buck, there are many difficulties unique to a cold weather hunt.

Here are five tips to remember before heading out:

1. Practice shooting while wearing all of your gear

All those extra layers can hinder how you aim. Bulky gloves can affect your release and limit your ability to feel your bow’s grip – try our Down Under Wool Gloves instead. A face mask could get in the way of your anchor or disturb the string upon release – our Three-in-One Spandex Facemasks are warm and flexible, so you won’t feel bogged down. An unwieldy jacket could be louder than expected when you attempt to draw and could limit your range of motion. The point is, don’t make any assumptions about your gear.

2. Remember to move

From time to time, it’s a good idea to stand up and move a little while hunting in cold weather. Sitting for long periods of time will lead to tired, cold muscles. Simply alternating from standing to sitting can keep the blood flowing, your muscles limber and your mind focused. It’s also a good idea to draw your bow at least once or twice an hour – this will keep your muscles warm and keep your bow from freezing up and making a lot of noise while drawing back. It’s not a bad idea to pack some hand and toe warmers as well.

3. Hunt the ground

When the temperature drops hunters are often better off hunting ground blinds near a good food source or a natural funnel than in a tree stand. The lack of foliage during an end of season hunt usually means many of your early and mid-season trees lack the cover they had just a few short weeks ago. A ground blind will be much warmer and you will be less exposed than in a tree that has lost all of its leaves. It’s also a good idea to look for swamps or pine thickets covered in snow – both are warmer than the surrounding area and make great bedding cover.

4. Find the food

Thick snowfall forces deer and small game into survival mode. Remember that nut-laden flat or fruit filled orchard you saw early in the season? Now would be the time to be there waiting the first afternoon after a snow storm, because deer will be looking for that food. It doesn’t have to be anything that specific, but you will want to find quality food where deer and small game will feel secure. Many deer will look to flowering plants during the latter part of the year – weeds and wild flowers on a southern facing slope are a great food source for deer in the winter and, in turn, a great place for the late season hunt.

5. Hunt the second rut

A doe that did not get bred earlier in the year will often reenter estrus in early to mid-December. If you find a doe in heat, identified by the droplets of red blood she leaves in the snow when she urinates, follow her. If an estrous doe finds and feeds in the forb you’re hunting it will likely prove to be an irresistible breeding opportunity to any nearby buck.

A successful late season hunt can be cold, but it is often worth the effort. Many archers enjoy the brisk weather and the challenge of cold weather bow hunting. However, cold weather can lead to frost bite and hypothermia if not prepared for correctly. That’s why it’s important to stay warm, stay safe and remember the fundamentals.

We’d love to hear from you; what tips and tricks have you found to be successful in your own cold weather hunt? Let us know in the comments.

Down Under Shooters Glove

By: Dale Karch and Todd Smith

Good Game Comes in Small Packages

What is THE most hunted animal in North America? The whitetail deer? The black bear? The elk?

Nope! It’s the cottontail rabbit! In fact, more hours are logged in the field each year by small game hunters than any other. Let’s face it; small game hunting is in our veins. Sure there are some die-hard big game hunters that don’t have the time to “waste” on small game. But they’re in the minority, and they don’t realize what they’re missing.

Some of the most exciting bowhunting action on the planet is found in hot pursuit of small game. Whose heart doesn’t skip a beat when he hears beagles on the hunt sounding off? Or, perhaps the thought of floating silently down a small river on the lookout for late summer, early fall squirrels is more to your liking?

Have you ever been jolted back to reality by a pheasant busting up at your feet, a flurry of feathers and a cackle that just about made you jump out of your boots? Or how about stalking the tundra and spruce in search of snowshoe hares, or ranging the arid desert for jackrabbits?

Dale and I have shared some great fun chasing the multitude of spruce hens that inhabit the Alaskan far north.

From East to West and North to South, we all have small game to hunt and we love doing it. It’s exciting, challenging, rewarding, and produces tasty rewards to boot. Small game hunting has a lot to offer the traditional bowhunter. Not the least of which is plenty of action!

Those of us who have taught Bowhunter Education are well versed in the discussion of how broadhead tipped arrows kill by hemorrhage resulting in blood loss in contrast to bullets which kill by shock and tissue damage. The small game point is, in bowhunting, the exception to the rule. These heads, like bullets, rely on converting the energy from the weapon into a package that kills by delivering a powerful blow packed with a heavy dose of shock and, at times, tissue damage.

Small game comes in many shapes and sizes, as do the points we use to hunt them. In this article we’ll cover the various small game heads available to the longbow and recurve shooter and describe their various strengths and weaknesses. You’ll also learn the subtle and not so subtle differences between heads, which should make choosing what you need much easier. Certain heads are better suited for particular situations and really, no single head can do it all. A few come close, but we feel it’s best to keep an open (and educated) mind as you consider the wide selection of options out there.

After kicking around the best way to present the different heads, we’ve decided to feature a selection of some of the most popular small game heads and discuss them individually. This way you’ll be able to get a good feel for different styles of small game blunts available.

The Hammer™ Small Game Blunt

Nail’em with the Hammer! Offered in a Screw-in Hammer and a Glue-on Hammer, they are devastating on all small game and sure to be your new favorite stump shooting blunt. The fluted design with scalped cutting edges grab into small game and keep the arrow from becoming stuck in trees or under grass. The recessed ballistic point delivers killing shock to all sized small game. Made from hardened steel to take hard hits and keep shooting. Offered in point weights of 100 up to 250 grains.

The Hammer™ Blunt features Scalped edges and recessed ballistic point for a powerful shock and hemorrhage option.

Zwickey Judo

Jack Zwickey and his dad Cliff designed the amazing Judo. It took real ‘out of the box’ thinking to envision such an amazing arrowhead. They truly are perfect for realistic bowhunting practice. You can shoot into stumps, trees, cut-banks, and even open fields without fear of losing your arrows. The small spring arms that encircle the head prevent deep penetration in the stumps and ground and they grab tall grass and flip your arrows up so you can find them in grassy fields. Judos are the ultimate stump shooting head. Zwickey even calls it, The Unloseable Point. You’d be hard pressed to find a longbow or recurve toting traditional bowhunter who doesn’t have a Judo or two in his or her quiver. For that very reason they are often called to perform as small game heads and have many small game species to their credit. Zwickey Judos are available in several sizes and in both screw-in Judo and glue-on Judo versions. Be sure to check out the Judo’s big brother, the Kondor Screw-in point. We do recommend that you have over 50 pounds of bow force if you intend to use them for small game.

The Zwickey Judo is known as “The Unloseable Point,” thanks to the small spring arms that encircle the head.

Snaro Bird Points

What an attention-getter! This is one popular head, probably because of the four loops of wire on a steel blunt. This head has advantages and disadvantages. They’re heavy (200-300 grains) and wind resistant so they slow down your arrow. This makes hitting moving game, especially at longer distances, more difficult. When you see the big loops you think, “Hey, I’ll still get my animal or bird even if I’m off a little.” But the truth of the matter is, if you miss, this head is not going to get you rabbits and squirrels. You need a lot of power behind this head to take advantage of the wire loops. If you don’t have the power, you may hit your target with the loops but you won’t have enough power to kill them. We think the best use of these is on birds, and then specifically when you’re aiming for the head. In that situation, a near miss will result in a bird in the hand more often than not. When the wires connect on the head or neck of a bird, they’re very effective. Snaro Bird Points come in three wingspans; 2″ (200 grains), 3″ (250 grains), and a 6″ (300 grains). Offered in screw-in only.

Snaro Bird Points are most effective against birds.

Bludgeon Small Game Blunt

Made of a hard hitting rubber-plastic. Great for stump shooting and small game hunting. The raised tips offer small game killing shock, yet enough to help prevent sliding under the grass. The Bludgeon blunt is 7/8″ wide at the tip and tapers back to 5/16″ at the base of the head. Offered in 125 grains screw-in only.

Hard Hitting Bludgeon Blunt

Flat-Nosed Steel Blunts

These points are still quite popular with bowhunters and they do a very good job at killing small game. The Flat nosed deals the shock and a small chamfer helps to prevent skipping. They are stamped with diameter and grain weight for easy identification. If they have any down side, it’d be that they’re small in diameter so they don’t pack as hard a hit as do the wider blunts and, when used on wood arrows, impacts on the sharp corner of the front flat will often break your arrow. The solution to that is easy though: don’t miss! But, of course, that’s easier said than done! Still, these heads are a great deal, they’ve been around forever, and they’re every bit as good today as they ever were. They’re available in both glue-on blunts and screw-in blunts, so they’ll appeal to any small game hunter.

Steel Blunts are a popular, effective, and affordable small game head.

3Rivers Bunny Buster

The Bunny Buster rubber blunt is so handy it deserves to be included in every bow hunter’s small game repertoire. The basic concept of a hard-hitting rubber blunt has been tested and battle-proven for over 50 years. This one, with its one-of-a-kind parallel-to-tapered internal slot, can be slipped over tapered or non-tapered shafts or even over other points on wood, aluminum, or carbon arrows. There’s no tapering and no glue needed. Wood arrow users can give new life to an arrow that breaks off behind the head by pulling an extra Bunny Buster out of their pocket and slipping it over the broken end of the shaft for an instant small game or stump-shooting arrow. Make sure to always keep a couple handy.

The Bunny Buster offers more that just convenience; it packs a deadly knockout punch on small game, yet bounces off trees and stumps making it an excellent roving or stump shooting arrow as well. This is a distinct advantage over solid steel blunts. Glancing blows with steel blunts often break wooden arrows, the Bunny Busters bounce and reduce the risk of breaking arrows. Rubber blunts like the Bunny Buster have been successfully used on all sorts of small game, including; snowshoe hare, jackrabbits, grouse, pheasant, squirrel, and more. These blunts deliver a tremendous amount of shock to their target with minimal tissue damage. Whether you use the Bunny Buster as your first choice for small game hunting, or as a secondary head for arrow repair, you’ll be pleased with their power and performance.
Bunny Busters are available in sizes to match most arrows on the market and weigh approximately 120 grains.

A versatile small game head, the 3Rivers Bunny Buster, is great for hunting or stump shooting.

3Rivers Tiger Claw Blunt

One of our most popular small game heads is the Tiger Claw Blunt. The Tiger Claw Blunt has a reputation for putting small game down for good. They’ve proven themselves time and time again as hard-hitting, quick-killing heads. They utilize a flat faced leading edge that transfers the shock to the animal followed by a sharp edged “Claw” that tears its way through soft tissue causing many small game animals to drop on the spot. The 3Rivers Tiger Claw is very effective on all small game. Available in a 145 grain glue-on version only.

The Tiger Claw Blunt is a quick-killing small game head.

The Head Saver

Designed for the wood arrow stump shooter. The Head Saver keeps your field point or blunt connected to the arrow after the wood shaft has broken behind the point. Works great for stump shooting and small game hunting. Great money saver!

The Head Saver is a ‘life saver’ for glue-on points

Field Points

We’ve included the field point because some folks just don’t know any better. In a word, DON’T. Don’t use field points for small game hunting. They don’t kill quickly and it’s not fair to the animal.

Broadheads

Broadheads are not intended for small game hunting, but sometimes they are used. Most of the time it’s a big game arrow used to shoot a small game animal when the bowhunter didn’t bring any small game arrows with him. We don’t really recommend broadheads for small game, but we have seen excellent results on game birds like grouse and pheasant. The risk of shooting clear through your animal is high and if using dogs, broadheads are strictly prohibited. Still, sometimes bowhunters will choose to use broadheads. Recommend you take a look at Zwickey Scorpio Broadhead Stoppers as they help limit penetration of broadheads. Good for turkey hunting too!

Like the birds and animals they were designed for, Bunts and Small Game Points are available in many shapes and sizes. From simple flat-faced steel blunt to exotic Snaro Bird Points and everything in between, there’s a head for every use and every bowhunter.

Keep Hunting
Dale Karch & Todd Smith

For more information contact:

3Rivers Archery
PO Box 517
Ashley IN 46705

260-587-9501

info@3riversarchery.com or check us out on-line at 3RiversArchery.com