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What can we do to fill the days between the last day of the season and opening day? We will provide ideas on ways to ‘shorten’ the off-season as well as honing our skills. Varmint hunting Food Plots - Mineral Supplements
- Target practice
- Fishing
Hot Shooting July 14 Well, the weather was not ideal for doing anything hunting-related, but I do not always do things logically. Even though I could not do some of the higher priority items, I still wanted to get out this weekend and do something. So, we loaded up Saturday morning and headed to the range. Surprisingly, there were already several shooters hammering it out by the time we arrived. Maybe others are experiencing the mid-summer withdrawals/anticipation, too! The goal was to try some new rounds in the muzzleloader to go ahead and have it ready. Supposedly muzzleloaders should be sighted in while in the same conditions as it will be used (I would still like to hear the WHY of this). Although it’s not usually in the mid -90’s during early muzzleloader, it can be pretty warm. So, I started with it and after 3 rounds, that gun was red-hot! Fortunately, we brought 3 other rifles. Next was my buddy’s .300 Ultra Mag and some fresh reloads. The 1st batch shot incredibly well, while the 2nd was either not as good or his shoulder was hurting! He finished off with some Power-Level I’s (This is a very interesting concept. Remington introduced this ammunition in different power levels, I II & III, and therefore, different performance as well as lower recoil. The different levels allow for a variety of applications, such as; varmint hunting, close-range hunting or making it possible for a youth to shoot a magnum gun. There are currently a few calibers available, but I suspect they will increase if it catches on.) Next was my 7 Mag and some reloads for it, too. The results were OK, but not great. Since this was our first attempt at reloading, I was impressed by the fact that nothing blew up! Safety first, accuracy second. We also got in some time with a 7mm-08 and some more factory rounds. Even though we may not have accomplished a whole lot, especially getting the muzzleloader shooting perfect, it was good to get out. It was definitely hot, but that will make fall feel that much better. It can’t be here soon enough!
A New Toy June 10, 2009 I am always looking for ways to keep me involved in hunting in between the seasons and I may have just found one of the best ways ever. There are many, many things that keep us busy during the off-season, some of them productive and some of them not. I try to get items on my to-do list done and get as ready as possible before the season comes. Sometimes it seems that the list is still full when all of a sudden, muzzleloader season is here! Anyway, after many years of seeing these things in catalogs and everyone else using them, I finally bought a game camera. The Wildgame Innovations TimberEye twin-pack was on sale at Academy over the holidays for under $100. I figured it would be hard to go wrong with this purchase. (For a complete review of the game camera, please look for an upcoming article under New Products.) I am going to tell you, I have had a blast with this camera. I must admit I have fumbled around and had a bit of a learning curve because I did not read the instructions first (more on that in the review, too!), but it has really brought a new dimension to the off-season. The camera has provided me not only with some great photos of the deer on my property, but also some valuable information about their travel patterns and locations. I absolutely can’t wait until the bucks start their antler growth so I can watch the transformation. I decided to include another great off-season activity with the game camera, too. As I mention in the Food Plot section, mineral plots in the spring serve a very important purpose to provide bucks with additional nutrition during antler development. I just recently re-located my cameras to the mineral plots I put out in March and am anxious to see what pictures I get. I recently purchased an infrared flash model and just put it out. The goal is to determine if there is any difference between the incandescent flash and the IR flash because it is some people’s opinion that the incandescent flash spooks the deer. Stay tuned for the conclusion on that! 
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