2015 Buck

[Keef]

[attachment=0]<!-- ia0 -->Roy5.jpg<!-- ia0 -->[/attachment]

This buck was taken on our Missouri farm. He\'s a 6x5, field dressed 220 lbs and gross green score is 156 4/8\".

He came in with 2 smaller bucks and made the mistake of stopping 15 yards from my stand.

We\'ve worked 3 years to develop this farm for wildlife and it\'s beginning to pay off. EHD has taken a heavy toll on the deer herd in our county in NE Missouri but we have a couple of decent bucks running around.

Rifle season starts in mid November and I\'ll be able to resume bow hunting again. Until then I\'m keeping busy making scrapes and trails.

 

[iccyman001]

Keef,


Congrats on a beautiful buck! Great size both rack and body wise.
I love seeing mature deer taken!

It definitely sounds like your work is paying off and I hope to see the bucks you put down in the future.


Good luck to you during your rifle season!!!

 

[Zpd307]

:upthumb:

 

[Ol' Arky]

Great buck.... :upthumb: :upthumb: :upthumb:

 

[cnelk]

Great buck Keef~

Tell us more about how you make scrapes and trails?
Do you alter the natural trails so the deer come by your stands?

 

[Keef]

Yes my wife and I clear trails to direct the deer to where we want them to go. They\'re like people, they prefer to go where it\'s the easiest to walk. I use a weed eater and sickle and then apply Ground Clear on the weeds. It kills weeds for a season.

We do the usual on scrapes. Find a good tree with some overhanging branches. Clear an area around it with a rake and apply scent. I also tie a dropper to an overhanging limb. We usually get 60-75% of the scrapes being used.

The area we\'re in has produced some real bruisers although I haven\'t seen one on our place. Down the road a mile or so a 200\" buck was killed two years ago. Still hoping one wonders through our farm.

I have 166 acres and 10 trail cameras to see what\'s going on. The EHD has been a real bummer in our county. Sure hope it doesn\'t return next year. I thought after the wet spring we had it would not be a problem, but it hasn\'t rained in the past two months. So the midge fly has returned and killed lots of deer.

The farm has been a work in progress for us. This winter we\'ll try to kill as many coons and bobcats as we can to help the turkey population. It\'s work but I love it.

 

[iccyman001]

Keef,


It sounds like you are living the dream.
The idea of having some acreage to manage is something I look forward to when I retire.

Like you mentioned, it\'s hard work, but so rewarding to see the end result.

It also gives you something fun to do while waiting for seasons to open.


I hunt public only, but I also plan to kill as many coyotes and bobcats this year as I can.




By the way, welcome to the site.
We love having new people around and it\'s always good to have passionate whitetail hunters.

It\'s a small group around here, but a very good group of guys.
Let us know if you ever need anything. We are here to help!


I very much look forward to seeing and hearing about the rest of your year.


:upthumb:

 

[Keef]

Thanks Iccyman. Looks like a good site.

I leave for Kansas at the end of the month. Looking forward to it. Haven\'t hunt there for many years.

 

[cnelk]

Keef,
I would like to pick your brain about scrapes and trails.

Scrapes - Do you hunt over them or near them? Does the dropper add to the trail camera action mostly or offer up hunting opportunities to?

Trails - do you see good bucks on heavily used trails or mostly does?

I grew up hunting WT in N. Minnesota as a kid on our family farm, then been shooting elk for 25 yrs, and am now getting back into the WT scene hunting out in Nebraska on public land.

Any insight you can share I for one would greatly appreciate it!

 

[iccyman001]

Thanks Iccyman. Looks like a good site.

I leave for Kansas at the end of the month. Looking forward to it. Haven\'t hunt there for many years.

Good luck in Kansas.
We have a local poster who is from Kansas and swears they only have small deer there.


The ample amount of 170-180\" deer on his wall tell a different story though :think: :wave:


Have fun :upthumb:

 

[Keef]

I try to have the scrapes within shooting distance of my stands.

The dripper just helps to keep the scent fresh and strong. I killed a buck 2 years ago that came to visit one of the scrapes.

As for the trails, bucks and does use the trails. Of course, when the chase and the rut are on all bets are off. Bucks don\'t have any sense then and go where they want.

I\'ve hunted near Alma, NE for 10 of the last 12 years and killed a couple of book bucks there. Hunt the rivers and creeks, that\'s where the whitetails are. Saw the biggest whitetail of my life there. Didn\'t get a shot. Haven\'t hunted muleys there.

Iccyman, that\'s why I\'m going to Kansas for one of the little bucks. LOL

 

[Keef]

[attachment=0]<!-- ia0 -->Nebraska bucks 2.jpg<!-- ia0 -->[/attachment]

2 Nebraska bow kills. I shot the one on the left, my wife shot the one on the right.

I\'ll post a couple more later.

 

[iccyman001]

I

As for the trails, bucks and does use the trails. Of course, when the chase and the rut are on all bets are off. Bucks don\'t have any sense then and go where they want.

Thats my favorite part of the rut, it gives people like me chances :lol:





Do you hunt just your farm or public as well?
Do you set a standard for deer taken from your land every year to help rebuild your herd?

I am guessing you harvest based of maturity?

 

[iccyman001]

[attachment=0]<!-- ia0 -->Nebraska bucks 2.jpg<!-- ia0 -->[/attachment]

2 Nebraska bow kills. I shot the one on the left, my wife shot the one on the right.

I\'ll post a couple more later.

Wow..... STUDS!!!!!

Your buck has some great features. :upthumb:

 

[Keef]

[attachment=0]<!-- ia0 -->Nebraska bucks 3.jpg<!-- ia0 -->[/attachment]

My wife killed the one on the left. I shot the one on the right. Both Nebraska bow kills.

Iccyman, we really want to kill only mature bucks, 4 years old or more. We don\'t shoot does because the EHD has done so much damage and I don\'t think I have an over population of does.

As for public hunts, I\'ve done that a lot but it\'s been guided. Killed my biggest muley on public land in Utah. We bought this farm so we would always have a place to hunt. So many public places have too many hunters and it makes hunting trophies that much harder. My wife and I do hunt trophies, nothing wrong with meat hunting it\'s just not what we do. Since I\'m getting older I don\'t have time to waste on my hunts and I want the best odds I can get so private land is my preference. I\'m probably just not a good enough hunter to chase them on public land anymore.

 

[Keef]

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As you can see we like to hunt whitetails. There\'s a blacktail thrown in to confuse you. LOL

These are bow kills.

 

[iccyman001]

[attachment=0]<!-- ia0 -->Whitetail & Moose 2.jpg<!-- ia0 -->[/attachment]

As you can see we like to hunt whitetails. There\'s a blacktail thrown in to confuse you. LOL

These are bow kills.

excuse me while I pick my jaw up.....

 

[iccyman001]

[attachment=0]<!-- ia0 -->Nebraska bucks 3.jpg<!-- ia0 -->[/attachment]



Iccyman, we really want to kill only mature bucks, 4 years old or more. We don\'t shoot does because the EHD has done so much damage and I don\'t think I have an over population of does.

As for public hunts, I\'ve done that a lot but it\'s been guided. Killed my biggest muley on public land in Utah. We bought this farm so we would always have a place to hunt. So many public places have too many hunters and it makes hunting trophies that much harder. My wife and I do hunt trophies, nothing wrong with meat hunting it\'s just not what we do. Since I\'m getting older I don\'t have time to waste on my hunts and I want the best odds I can get so private land is my preference. I\'m probably just not a good enough hunter to chase them on public land anymore.

Well it seems like you guys are doing a great job so far at maintaining a good far.
How are you neighbors?


Do they share your same beliefs or do they shoot everything that they see?


I think when it comes to managing the age standard is so much better to go off verse a minimum score like some people do.

 

[Keef]

I killed the bull elk on the left, my wife\'s is on the right. Both made P&Y. I shot the Canada moose. Her elk and the moose were on the American Archer TV show. She shot her bull at 40 yards with a 42 lb bow. She says she\'s not into hunting but I think she\'s got something going for her.

Iccyman, you\'re right 150\" deer are usually 130\" on the ground. It\'s easier to look for a sway back, pot belly and thick chest to tell you a buck is mature and probably at least a 4 year old or more. They are just like humans as we get older.

My neighbors are GREAT. They aren\'t into management as much as me, but they don\'t shoot young bucks and don\'t overkill does. We have a 4 point minimum, one side, in our county and that helps. I wrote an article a few months ago and said some people tell you location, location, location is the thing when buying property. I believe that but neighbors, neighbors, neighbors is the second most important thing. I\'m trying to talk them into giving does a pass this year, one is convinced the other may shoot one, not a big deal.

 

[iccyman001]

Keef,

it sounds like you and your wife have both had very successful hunting careers.
I love that bull moose, that will be a trip for me down the road.
That is cool that your wife was on the Archer TV show.


I think the minimum hurts too many people.
You nailed the biggest one... lots of people are not good at scoring.

I think another big thing is you are not reaching full potential and you\'re also preventing better genetic bucks from breeding.

Lets say you have some monster bucks who hit mid 40s at only 3.5 and then you have some 5.5 that peak at mid 40s....
I want those studs breeding as much as possible verse those other guys.

I could be wrong with that mentality, but that is just something I will put into consideration when I own my own land.
I\'ve also seen a few bucks that were smaller at 3.5 and 4.5, but then exploded when they hit 5.5+




I know I am going to pay for it down the road, but I\'ve been saving up for my land every check.
Ideally I am looking for something that butts up to state land or land that will never be developed or can\'t be hunted.

That way I am eliminating the possibility of bad neighbors.

You can also bet that I will be knocking on neighbors doors to ask if they hunt and if they do, how do they hunt.

If you have a copy of that article I would love to read it.