This weekend marks the annual Wisconsin Deer and Turkey expo by Field and Stream at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison. If you’re looking for great insight on the newest products and gear be sure to stop in and check it out. It’s a great way to pass the time between the seasons and talk with some like minded hunting obsessed folks. Doors Open at 2:00pm on Friday and things wrap up on Sunday at 4:00.  Daily admission is $13 per person at the door.  More information on seminars, vendors, ticket prices and a $2 off coupon can be found by clicking here.

A few members of the BMG Outdoors crew; Brandon, Greg, Jason and myself will be on the floor Friday evening checking out new products for 2013.  We hope to see everyone there!

 Although we didn’t find any monsters, it was a great day to be out amongst friends.  Brandon Greg and I ended up finding 5 sheds including a small eight point match.  Brandon and Mark ended up stumbling upon two each and Greg Haak, the Great American Shed Master himself found one. The majority of the sheds (4) were found in the open wheat field the deer had been seen feeding in.

The three of us spent the majority of our time walking about 30 yards apart in a grid pattern across this 40 acre wheat field.  We had less success in the woods, mainly due to the amount of snow that was still covering the ground but Brandon did find one.   

We’d love to see pictures of some of your sheds, heck we might even through in a free shirt to the first person to post a picture of a shed over on our Facebook page!

-Mark Mitchell

Winter has come and gone, unfortunately the snow is slow to follow this spring. If you weren’t able to get out shed hunting during the small snow less window that occurred in late December and early January, chances are the majority of the sheds if your area were and still may be buried under several inches of snow. 

This Easter weekend some of the BMG Outdoors crew is planning on putting on some miles searching for sheds; one could consider it an adult version of Easter Egg Hunting!  Saturdays forecast is for overcast skies with temps in the mid 40’s, prime weather for doing some walking. 

The plan for the weekend is to focus on a few main chunks of the property, which in theory should hold most of the sheds.  Here are few places we will hit the hardest.

1)      Thick South Facing Hillsides- With as tough a winter the Upper Midwest has experienced, the warm south facing hillsides have been loaded with beds and sign on the properties I’ve walked thus far. 

2)      Transition Zones- Searching the trails that run from thick bedding areas such as the previous stated south facing hillsides to the food source in your area. 

3)      Food Sources- These should be easy to find this time of year. Deer tend to herd up around these food sources. Drive around the block in the evening and scan fields.  Sometimes you’ll be surprised as to what, where and how many deer are feeding in a specific area. 

Besides looking for sheds the slight snow cover will provide great insight for you as to how the deer are traveling.  Take a second to analyze these travel patterns; it can be easy to overlook these details as you search for that discrete G2 poking through the snow but it could be the difference in connecting with more deer come fall.   

Don’t forget to do some scouting for the upcoming turkey season.  Pay special attention to roust areas. Though it may not seem like it, the first period opens in a mere 2 weeks in Wisconsin!

Comment below on where you tend to find most of your sheds?  Post your pictures on the BMG Outdoors facebook page!

-Mark Mitchell

The 2012 deer season is officially in the books here in Wisconsin.  I had some of my best days ever this year in the woods as well as some of the worst.  Now is the time to stop and reflect on the season’s lessons and move forward with a new perspective.  I learned three major lessons this year, some through success but more through failures. 


Lesson One:  Hunt hard…but hunt smart

This season was my third full season bow hunting and I was forced for several reasons to hunt differently than in the past.  Due to the fact that I would be hunting smaller tracts of land I knew that it was not going to be the QUANTITY of time in the stand, but the QUALITY of time.  My first year using the bow I logged 174 hours in the stand.  I figured that the more time in the woods would lead to more encounters, makes sense right?  I did see a lot of deer but not very many mature bucks. According to my notes from that year I saw 5 mature bucks while in the stand and only two were in range.  I was able to connect on a really nice buck though.  Looking back I know now that a lot of luck played into it.  I hunted the wind most of the time but I also took some chances in stands I should have backed out of due to bad winds.  I also never thought about entry and exit routes at all.  This year I was very disciplined with when and if I hunted a stand.  I used extreme caution when entering and exiting my sets as well.  Whenever I was in doubt I backed out.  This year I hunted only about 86 hours and I had 12 mature bucks near me. Two of which pushed the 150 mark.  I ended up missing what would have been my largest buck ever but Ill cover that in my next lesson. Even though I did not connect on one of these deer I consider this my most successful bow hunting seasons.  I hunted the right way and put myself in position to capitalize on my decisions.  With small pieces of land bad decisions are magnified and can ruin a season in heartbeat.  When hunting mature bucks it only takes one bad move to ruin a season, so hunt smart!

Lesson Two:  Aim low

I have had a very big problem since I started bow hunting.  I have a tendency to aim a little higher on deer than I should.  I’m not sure why I do it, and I’ve tried to fix it, but it continues to be a problem.  This problem has bit me in the butt twice. The first buck I ever shot at I hit high in the shoulder and never recovered him.  He ended up being shot by a neighbor. I am now in possession of the antlers but not because I am proud of them but as a reminder to be patient and aim true.  The problem reared its ugly head again this year and cost me a giant.  Part of the issue was that my yardage was off but if I had been aiming lower I should have harvested the deer.  A lot can go wrong when you hit high, you can get nothing, muscle, bone or at best a spine shot.  I try, and I mean try, to aim for slightly above the heart. If the deer dips I get lung and if he jumps I either get the heart or nothing.  This off season I will be spending many hours retraining myself and finding a way to remedy this problem.  Something has to change because I do not want to find myself either wounding a deer or walking away empty handed again.

Lesson Three: Who am I competing against?

It is human nature to be competitive and that can be a good thing and a bad thing.  It can drive us to become better and push us to places we otherwise couldn’t go.  It can also cause us to be petty, mean and forget why we do what we do.  In today’s hunting world it seems to be all about who can shoot a bigger deer and how can we tear down someone else’s accomplishment.  I see it every day on the internet and while talking to other hunters.  I am guilty of it as much as the next guy and frankly it disturbs me.  I have really tried to change my attitude and not compare what I do with what someone else does.  This year my approach was to play my game so to speak and to compete against myself to become a better hunter and woodsman.  I found that I enjoyed my time in the woods a lot more and I also enjoyed seeing other people find success much more.  I also put a lot less emphasis on tagging out and more on the overall experience in the woods.  Enjoying the birds, Squirrels and other creatures that God put on earth for us to enjoy is just as important as seeing that big buck.  I urge everyone to sit back and reflect on why you started hunting in the first place.  Was it really to go out and shoot a bigger buck than your neighbor? 

These are just some of the things that I learned this year and I hope I can grow because of them.  I’d love to hear what lessons you have picked up this year so drop me a line on BMGoutdoors  facebook page sometime!  I hope everyone had a safe and productive season and I am looking forward to another great season in 2013!

-Mark Ripp

I woke up this past a couple weeks ago with the intentions to pick up the last trail camera that we had on the property. The camera had been out and unchecked since early December and given the cold, snowy conditions we experienced in South Central Wisconsin we figured it would be dead. When I stepped out the door my breath was taken away, not only by the 2° F temperature but the amazing frost that covered nearly everything. Lucky for me I had my camera with me and was able to take advantage of this natural beauty before the sun warmed things up enough to melt it away. After snapping nearly 200 pictures I drove home I did some research on what exactly caused this gorgeous natural phenomenon; here’s what I found.

Hoar frost (also called radiation frost) refers to the white ice crystals, loosely deposited on the ground or exposed objects that form on cold clear nights when heat losses into the open skies cause objects to become colder than the surrounding air.
Hoar frost may have different names depending on where it forms. For example, air hoar is a deposit of hoar frost on objects above the surface, such as tree branches, plant stems, wires; surface hoar is formed by fernlike ice crystals directly deposited on snow, ice or already frozen surfaces; crevasse hoar consists of crystals that form in glacial crevasses where water vapor can accumulate under calm weather conditions; depth hoar refers to cup shaped, faceted crystals formed within dry snow, beneath the surface.

The name hoar comes from an Old English adjective for showing signs of old age, and is used in this context in reference to the frost which makes trees and bushes look like white hair.

Unfortunately the camera had no shooters on it but it did have plenty of coyotes which we’ll surely be after in the upcoming months.

-Mark Mitchell

Walking in to the treestand in the am of November 6, I kicked out a couple deer. I knew I was running a little behind schedule, but I didn't think much of it as I crawled into the stand. After the hunt I checked my camera to find two bucks minutes before I walked by the camera! The bucks were using the same trail along the bottom of the ridge that I had been using to access my tree and one was a stud. 

The trail continues through the brushy funnel and in another 80 yards puts them right by the treestand. Obviously they could turn up the bluff or cross the open prairie, but there's a good chance they would meander by the treestand. Anyways, lesson learned. I needed to find a new entry way. I decided I'd walk through the tall prairie grass from the opposite road the long way instead of taking the shorter route along the bottom of the ridge that we always used to access the brushy funnel. I think this also brings up the importance of getting in the tree early. If a guy can get in quiet, why not get in early and let the woods calm down before shooting light? New Access at a New Time... we will see if it pays off.

-Nick Sydow

With many of the big-game and waterfowl seasons wrapping up across the country many hunting enthusiasts have shifted their focus to the spring turkey season.  Here are ten gifts that are essential for anyone who spends their springtime chasing big gobblers!  All of these items are available online but most of these items can be found at your local sporting goods store as well. 

1)      NWTF Membership $35
Conservation of our wildlife is always a great gift.  A membership to the Nation Wild Turkey Federation will ensure the future generations can enjoy the same opportunities as generations past.  Join now and receive a free $25 bass pro shop gift card!

Here are ten great gift ideas for those waterfowl enthusiasts in your life.  Most of these gifts can be found at your local outdoor retail store but some are available only online, for those I have provided links

  

1)      Ducks Unlimited Membership $35 per year
You can become an official member of Ducks Unlimited for a minimum annual contribution of $35 a year and help DU conserve wetlands now and forever.
Your contribution opens the door to many opportunities to learn about wetlands conservation, meet fellow waterfowl enthusiasts and entitles you to receive the following:

·        DU membership card
·        DU duck head logo decal
·        DU shield decal
·        6 bi-monthly issues of Ducks Unlimited magazine
·        Access to the Members Only section of the Ducks Unlimited Web site

2)      Goose Flag $15
The goose flag is one of the most essential tools in our arsenal when we hit the field.  It brings added motion to the spread which is great for hesitant birds as well as gaining their attention from long distance. Any flag will work and they can be found at most sportsmen stores such as Cabelas and Gander Mountain. 

3)      Shotgun Shells $10-20
You can’t kill birds without shells.  For geese we use 3” or 3 ½” BB, for ducks 3” three shot seems to get the job done. Keep in mind waterfowl shot has to be steel shot.

4)      Duck and Goose Calls $30+
Bill Saunders Honker HP goose call is a baseline call that Bill produces.  It is one of his easier calls to blow and is reasonably priced at $30.  This call also comes in some sweet colors, which is always a bonus! Click here to get your own custom built Bill Saunders Honker Call. Bill also produces a variety of high end goose calls as well as duck calls.

Looking for some last minute gift ideas for the hunter on your list?  Here are ten gift ideas mostly under $50 that every deer hunter could use. 

1)    QDMA Membership $30
One year membership for an adult will run you $30 but comes with a subscription to Quality Whitetails, access to QDMA Branch seminars and short courses a membership kit, aging and scoring buck on the hoof DVD,  a vehicle decal and most importantly an investment in the future of wildlife habitat. Click here to join the QDMA 

2)    Wicked Tough Handsaw $39
The wicked tough handsaw is one tool that any bow hunter should never leave home without.  This saw is tough, comfortable and comes with a lifetime warranty Visit the Wicked Tree Gear sight to purchase yours. 

3)    Hunting DVD’s $5-$20
When in doubt get hunting DVD’s!  What hunter doesn’t enjoy putting in a hunting DVD with some fellas to get in the mood for the next mornings hunt?  Some of our personal favorites are Heartland Bowhunter, White Knuckle Productions, and Drury Outdoors.