Girls Can Hunt Too !!!!!

Two special girls !!!!
Michelle with a doe and Katies first deer!!! Way to go girls !!!

He Is In The Wind

He Is In The Wind
Last week I had the opportunity to spend time with my family in Kentucky doing what we enjoy doing together, hunting the whitetail deer. I began the week a little frustrated. The farm was set up for a north wind and we were dealing with a warm south wind. As a seasoned deer hunter I knew that we were in for a hard hunt. This year I would be hunting not only with my wife Donna and youngest daughter Michelle but one of my nieces Katie. It is very important to me to pass along what I consider the family heritage of hunting , not only to my daughters and son-in-law but also to my niece Katie. She and I spent many unsuccessful hours in the stand during the 2008 -2009 season. This year was going to be different !!!!! We began our morning with a group prayer first for safety for us, and then for those family members not with us, and then we would ask the Lord to bless us with harvest . After our family prayer, I would walk Michelle to her stand, then Katie and I would make a long walk to a double stand I had moved for her just several day’s before. I checked the wind at daybreak with my powder and, to no surprise, we had another south wind. Around 7:00 I checked again just not really expecting a wind change, but more out of habit. To my surprise, we had a north wind !!! It would turn out to be the only one we would have over the next four days. I told Katie “We have a north wind! She did not really understand what that meant, but to me it was everything. Our scent was now blowing behind us !!!!!!! Literally, within minutes we spotted a buck coming our way. Katie’s heart beat begin to raise as she was listening to the instructions I began to give her. You see this was not only her first encounter with a buck, but also her first time to shoot a gun. I must stop and say the thought did cross my mind about shooting this buck, but only for a few seconds. She made a fine shot and after rejoicing together for moment, we thanked the Lord for the harvest. Have I mentioned yet it was an 11- point buck with a body weight of about 180 pounds. When He works, He works !!!!!

Scripture Of The Day:
“That Even The Winds And The Sea Obey Him!”
Matthew 8:27

Thought Of The Day:
“Have You Spent Time With A Child Lately Teaching Them About God’s Creation?”

Hunting Tip Of The Month:
Always have in your backpack some “ Wind Checker”. It will let you know which way your scent is going, even if you don’t feel any wind blowing.

Kentucky Bow Kill

Bow kill in Kentucky !!!! She was at 33 yards and didn't take a step forward. It was a good clean kill. Now to take a few in Alabama.

Want To See More Deer Part 3

Want To See More Deer
Part 3
" Cleanliness"

We should know by now that a deer’s nose is his best defense against locating a hunter. Even after all the articles and talk about it on the "Outdoor Chanel", hunters still show up at 5:00 a.m. with the remnant smell of cologne from the night before "AMAZING". The Denning household is right now going through a major transformation for the upcoming deer season. I have been though all the stages of deer hunting for the past 30 years and scent control has come a long way. In the early 80's I would place my camo in a garbage bag and bury it in the back yard and would only uncover it the day of the hunt. Then for years I would leave my camo on the clothesline all hunting season .I found out how quick clothes can rot. We would also dust ourselves down with baking soda to help absorb the scent off our clothes . I have even taken baths and brushed my teeth with baking soda. Yes, all of these are " Old School" hunting tricks to help keep down human sent.
Now there are products on the market to help with keeping us as scent free as possible. Now back to the Denning Household Transformation. Last night Donna and I went to our local Bass-Pro Shop to purchasing Sent-Away Soap, Shampoo, Hair Conditioner, Deodorant,. Hair Spray and Scent -Away Spray. Our transformation begins in our bathroom "All"the nice smell body soaps from Victoria Secrets must go. Your shower needs to become a protected area from smelly jells and stuff. I am sure glad my wife is a hunter!!!!! Ya’ll may have a hard time convincing your wives the importance of this transformation,. Ha-Ha. We also began washing our clothes - "All Our Clothes", Towels, Bed Sheets, any thing that may have a scent on it ,including the dog, not just our camo in sent free detergent. Then I hung our camo outside this morning and tonight we will place them in an airtight plastic bag. They will stay there till we begin bow hunting next week in Kentucy.You may ask what about a cover scent. I know there are many products out there that help to mask or even keep down your human scent. Some work and I use them ,but I would rather use the scent’s from the natural surrounding. If I am hunting around pine trees, then I will break off a pine branch and rub it on my camo. When hunting around cows, I purposely step into a cow pile to help mask my scent. I have even placed my clothes in an old corn sack if I know I will be hunting around a corn field. I hunted a burned area once in Richloam Management Area in Florida and wiped down my camo with smut from the burn and had does around me all afternoon. You may say this is extreme and I would agree with you, but to see more deer you need to be extreme !!! Want to see more deer? Begin today with how you clean up for your next deer hunt.

The Painting

The Painting

A wealthy man and his son lovedto collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection,from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the greatworks of art.When the Vietnam conflict brokeout, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle whilerescuing another soldier. The father was notified and grieved deeply forhis only son.About a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the doorwith a large package in his hands. He said, "Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly. He often talked about you, and your love for art." The young man held out this package. "I know this isn't much. I'm not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this."The father opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears. He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture. "Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me. It's a gift."The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected. The man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction of his paintings Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection.On the platform sat the painting of the son. The auctioneer pounded his gavel. "We will start the bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for this picture?" There was silence.Then a voice in the back of the room shouted, "We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one." But the auctioneer persisted. "Will somebody bid for this pain ting. Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?"Another voice angrily. "We didn't come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Goghs, the Rembrandts. Get on with the real bids!"But still the auctioneer continued. "The son! The son! Who'll take the son?"Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son. "I'll give $10 for the painting." Being a poor man, it was all he could afford."We have $10, who will bid $20?""Give it to him for $10. Let's see the masters.""$10 is the bid, won't someone bid $20?"The crowd was becoming angry. They didn't want the picture of the son.They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections.The auctioneer pounded the gavel. "Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!"A man sitting on the second row shouted, "Now let's get on with the collection!"The auctioneer laid down his gavel. "I'm sorry, the auction is over.""What about the paintings?""I am sorry. When I was calledto conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will. I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings.The man who took the son gets everything!"God gave His son 2,000 years ago to die on the cross. Much like the auctioneer, His message today is: "The son, the son, who'll take the son?" Because, you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything.

Forwarded To Me By Brian

Surprised Doe

She looks healthy !!!! I would like to see some fawns with these does... Send your pictures to me as you recieve them.

I had over a 190 pictures of deer this past week. Many of them were of the same deer. I will send you some more next week. I had several smaller bucks. Please keep your cameras out in the field they don't do any good setting at your house...Happy Hunting.....

Part 2 " The Lost Art Of Scouting"

"Want To See More Deer?"
Part 2
The Lost Art Of Scouting

The 21st Century hunter has changed a lot since the days of Fred Bear and Chuck Adams. The hunter today has technology those past hunters never had. We can "Google Earth" and pull up the property we are hunting. We can spend time looking for those pinch points or funnels where deer will travel. We have handheld GPS systems to help mark our favorite spots. There are even satellite image cameras so we can watch our deer from our home computer. This is all fine and good, but nothing, no nothing, takes the place of old fashion "dirt to boot" contact and I don’t mean a walk through the woods. Scouting for deer I believe has become a lost art, an art that is as old as man itself. Just as our kids no longer play outside ,but choose to spend their time on a computer. We as hunters don’t spend enough time Scouting.

When living in Florida in the 80's, we would begin scouting as early as July. We would actually make a weekend out of it. Doing nothing but scouting the woods for deer signs. Today, deer hunters show up the morning of deer season, look at a map with numbers on it, and pick a stand for the day. This year I have already spent many hours in the woods preparing for hunting season 2009, but then the question must be asked... What are you looking for?
A food source would be the first thing on my list for early season hunting. This will change as rut draws closer. Once I have found a food source that will still be around during bow season, I take a look at the trails and tracks in the trails leading to the food source. But, the most important indicator of whether that trail is worthy to hunt or not is the deer droppings found. Old droppings, new droppings, small droppings, large droppings and even the color of the droppings tell you something. In the early 80's my friend called me the "poop-ologist" after I did an test in my back yard with some "poop" I had collected. You may find this hard to believe, but a hunter can tell a lot about a deer from it’s "poop" (Ha-Ha). Next, these trails will also help you find the bedding area an once found , STAY OUT OF THEM! Set up your stand between the food source and the bedding area. Make sure it is with the right wind. One last thing, do your scouting well in advance of deer season opening. Don’t think they won’t know you’ve been in their living room. They will know it, just as you would know if someone had been in your living room. So put those new boots on and get some dirt on them. I guarantee you will see more deer!

By Mike Denning

Young Deer

Just Remember That All Corn Must Be Up By September 30th !!!!! 15 day's before bow season !!!!

Nice 8 Point

Yes he is a wall hanger for me. If we were on a really Q.D.M.A program I would let him walk. He looks to be 2years old. What do ya'll think???