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Sunshine Can Make You Cry
By Ken Piper
With turkey season just around the corner or already started in some states, deer hunters can look to their spring brethren for some tips. It's not a coincidence that most turkey guns today come already coated in camouflage. And turkey chasers who use blued shotguns almost always cover their guns with camo tape or the special gun socks ... READ MORE
A Clean Rifle is a Good Rifle
By Ken Piper
Most deer hunters know how important it is to thoroughly clean their guns following rough weather, multiple shots, or just at the end of a long season. Copper fouling and powder residue will cause even the best guns to shoot poorly, and rust can ruin it for good.
What many hunters don't know, however, is that it is critical to clean a bran... READ MORE
Have Twice the Fun and Success
By Ken Piper
Hunting is always more enjoyable with a friend, but it can also be more productive. Let's face it, unless there is some heavy rut activity, there are times during the hunting season when everyone struggles to even see a deer.
It's always a good idea to occupy a stand during the first few hours of the morning and the last few of the evening... READ MORE
Timing is Everything
By Ken Piper
Most hunters try to have multiple stand locations ready for deer season, but we all have our favorite -- that one stand that looks the most promising and the one we're sure will produce a monster buck. We take special care with that stand and have everything just right for opening day.
Once everything is ready and it's time to hunt comes the mos... READ MORE
Don't Miss High
By Ken Piper
Ninety percent of the shots missed at deer are high. If you shoot at a deer and he just stands there looking at you, chances are good that the shot went high. When you get excited about taking the shot, you're more likely to jerk the trigger, and that makes the shot go high.
When I aim at a deer with a bow, I aim at the lower one-third of my tar... READ MORE
Look for the Eyes
By Ken Piper
If you can see a deer's eye, the deer can see you, and that's an important tip to remember. When a deer is close, you cannot afford to move if he can see you. It's the movement that attracts a deer's attention. Unfortunately, you have to move in order to draw a bow or swing a gun.
I wait until the deer turns his head so I can't see his eye, or I... READ MORE
Treestand Strategy
By Ken Piper
When you set up a treestand, play the prevailing winds, but also pay attention to the sun. If it's a morning stand, you don't want the stand to face the rising sun. It might be possible to set up on a trail or food source so you're never looking into the sun -- morning or afternoon. Some stand locations work best in the morning and others are bette... READ MORE
Know Your Property
By Ken Piper
Once you learn the food sources and have an aerial photo of your hunting spot, then it's time to walk the property. Treat your hunting property like it's your house. You want to know every inch of it. While walking, look for the various food sources that you've studied and learned to identify.
If food is available, look for dee... READ MORE
Buck Hideouts Come in Small Packages
By Ken Piper
Most hunters expect to find deer in the more remote places where they hunt, but bucks -- and pressured deer in general -- have a knack for finding small hidey-holes where hunters don't look.
Small patches of woods, windbreaks and fence rows make great deer hideouts. The deer can see and hear danger coming from far away, and often these loc... READ MORE
Don't Quit for Lunch
By Ken Piper
By now most deer hunters have heard or read that noon can be a good time to hunt, especially during the rut, but not many realize just how good the lunch hour can be. Bowhunters, especially, are famous for hunting only the first and last few hours of daylight.
According to research from the late Charles Alsheimer and Wayne Laroche, however, deer... READ MORE
Put A Little Christmas Spirit In Your Hunting
By Ken Piper
Whether hunting from a treestand or the ground, it seems you can always use at least a little more cover. Real cuttings work, but it's hard to keep them in place and even harder to make them fit right where you need them. And if you've priced fake greenery at the local craft store, you know that's not an affordable option, either.
Here's somethi... READ MORE
Tuning Broadheads Is Key To Good Arrow Flight
By Ken Piper
Most bowhunters today realize the importance of tuning their bows and testing their broadhead flight before hunting. Just because one broadhead flies well doesn't mean that you are done tuning, however. Three different broadheads from the same package often will fly differently on your arrows. Install your broadheads and give each one the spin test... READ MORE
Go With Layers, But Don't Overdo It
By Ken Piper
This is the time of year when weather starts to really get nasty on deer hunters. Most know to dress in layers, but there are some important considerations to keep in mind when trying to keep out the cold. Your feet are one of the hardest body parts to keep warm, and if you put on too many socks (layers) you'll really suffer. Your feet need at leas... READ MORE
Concealment As Needed
By Patrick Dunning
I recently relocated my cell camera and established a fresh feed site on a property I have permission to hunt and received photos that night of some decent bucks and one three-year-old in particular that has my attention right now.
I need a north or north, northwest wind to hunt this buck, maybe getting away with wind out of the south, and... READ MORE
The Rut Is Here -- Get Back To The Main Trails
By Ken Piper
The peak of the rut is here, or will come soon just about everywhere hunters pursue whitetails. It's an exciting time to be in the woods, but we sometimes tend to complicate it more than necessary. Scents and lures can work during this vulnerable time for the bucks, but you still need to be in the right place. Now is a great time to head back to th... READ MORE
If You Have To Ask, The Answer is "NO!"
By Ken Piper
We've all heard horror stories of wounded deer, and bowhunters in particular are prone to be the subject of these sad tales. The real statistics show that wounded deer are far less common than stories indicate, but a common theme of many of these stories is that the shooter took an "iffy" shot -- maybe the distance was a little too far or maybe the... READ MORE
Close Your Eyes To See The Light
By Ken Piper
Here's a tip to use when setting up a bow or gun for hunting. When drawing a bow to set a kisser button and/or peep sight, close your eyes before you draw. The same holds when setting up a scope on a gun or when testing stock length -- close your eyes and pull up the gun. It's amazing how many compensations you make when your eyes are open -- and y... READ MORE
Big Bucks Can Hide in Small Places
By Ken Piper
Most hunters tend to look for big bucks in the most remote, nasty and impenetrable places -- and it's certainly true that your odds of taking a bigger buck are better in places other hunters refuse to enter. There are some very successful deer hunters, however, who take record-book bucks using a different tactic with the same principle. Look for sm... READ MORE
Rangefinders: A Hunter's Best Friend
By Ken Piper
In recent years, the proliferation of the laser rangefinder has given hunters a tremendous tool to hunt more responsibly and increase their success. Laser rangefinders give hunters previously unheard-of ability to accurately measure distance to ranges of a half mile or more.
This allows all hunters, whether they shoot rifle, bow or muzzlel... READ MORE
How Much Is Enough?
By Ken Piper
With so many great scent, grunt and rattle products out there, it's tough to figure out the right mix. I mean, how much scent is too much, and how much rattling or grunting, or rattling AND grunting is enough?
The problem is that the answer could be different on any given day -- it's up to the deer. With that in mind, though, it's safe to ... READ MORE