Episode #138 - Hunting the Full Moon

Published: 2022-10-10
Episode page
Duration: 73 min

In this episode

antler-scoring

• Don said the old buck lost about 20 inches of antler compared to his best rack at seven and a half years old but remains a trophy at nine and a half. 11:25

buck-behavior

• Nelson Rizzler asked Don to confirm whether mature bucks do or do not run in bachelor groups like younger bucks. 50:25

buck-mortality

• Don theorized buck mortality is higher than realized from late February through about April 1, in the late-winter to early-spring period. 55:21

consulting

• Josh Hurley asked what Don and Terry think of consultants claiming expertise who don’t own their own hunting property. 44:23

credibility

• Maynard Miller asked why young people often hate on successful people instead of learning from them, and requested advice for young hunters. 29:33

deer-movement

• Terry said a 22-degree temperature drop pushes deer to feed regardless of the bright full moon phase. 2:15

ehd

• Don said people wrongly assume a dead deer found away from water can’t be EHD, but many EHD deaths occur in ag fields far from water. 12:16
• A farmer from Don’s church found three deer, including an eight-point buck, dead in a bean field while cutting beans this week. 12:03
• Ben Rising posted photos of two nice bucks that died of EHD, the first time it had happened in that area. 13:07

food-plots

• Don said there is no way to know if it’s too late to plant a fall food plot because too many factors are involved, mainly the weather. 16:21
• Terry recommended gambling on late fall plantings of winter wheat or winter-hardy oats since the seed is inexpensive. 17:27
• Terry said he would not recommend planting brassicas this late in the season in the Midwest, calling it likely a bad investment. 18:51

hunting-apps

• Don said common sense about a temperature drop should override a hunting app telling hunters activity will be poor. 62:01

hunting-decision

• Terry decided he probably will not shoot the target buck if its two broken antler points are confirmed, though he will decide for certain once he gets a clearer look. 4:36

hunting-strategy

• Don advised hunters to let the weather, not the calendar, dictate when to be in the woods. 61:03

master-class

• Don announced four master classes on his property, including two with Dr. Bronson Strickland on March 9 and 11. 19:50
• Don requires a $500 deposit per student to reserve a spot in his home-farm master classes. 20:24
• Don announced the remote master class will be held at Ray and Aden Miller’s business classroom. 20:46

mature-bucks

• Terry said he still has three bucks five years or older on his small property this season, spotted separately on opposite ends of a field. 56:38
• Nelson Rizzler asked why near-shooter bucks on his public land cameras consistently disappear before reaching maturity. 50:16

onx

• Terry suggested having someone from On X on the podcast this winter to screen-share and demonstrate navigating the app. 23:51

podcast-community

• Terry met the Outdoors with the Morgans couple in person this week while traveling back from New York. 25:58

property-purchase

• Don announced he finally purchased a small 40-acre property after searching for one earlier in the year. 5:16

real-world

• Don announced new ownership at Real World, noting Wes Delks and his wife Madison are expecting a baby in spring. 62:34
• Don announced Wes Delks gave up the Real World general manager role, which Janice Lykins has taken over. 63:38
• Don announced Duane Hopkins, involved with the company since day one, has now bought in as an owner of Real World. 64:22
• Terry announced the pilot Southern Blend product will launch as a full retail product this year based on positive beta feedback. 70:51
• Don teased that Real World’s new corn project involves developments that will go beyond the food plot industry. 71:35

small-property

• Don said the right small property can be fantastic and can regularly produce big deer, as he hopes his new 40-acre farm will demonstrate. 7:45

social-media

• Terry said if someone promotes themselves by tearing down others, listeners should walk away immediately. 34:14

sponsorship

• Don announced On X is a new sponsor offering a discount to Whitetail Master Academy students. 22:19

stand-entry-exit

• Keith Evans asked whether Don and Terry always exit a stand the same way they entered, or use an alternative exit route. 40:29

terminology

• Don teased that he coined a new industry term on the upcoming property video that he expects others to adopt. 9:37

trail-cameras

• Don’s old buck made an unusually early appearance this year and he got trail-camera pictures of it on several different days this week. 10:36
• Don said that of the 17 promising bucks he tracked surviving into this season, he currently only knows the whereabouts of about four or five. 52:31

video-content

• Don plans to have Steve Shields video document his new property for the Whitetail Master Academy website. 5:29

weather

• Terry predicted most of the Midwest is about a week from a real cold snap dropping temperatures into the twenties. 13:31

whitetail-master-academy

• Terry said his Whitetail Master Academy property video will serve as a blueprint people can draw ideas from when evaluating a property to buy. 8:31

youth-hunting

• Terry noted Kentucky had youth season this week and many podcast listeners took kids hunting and tagged the hosts in their photos. 57:21

youtube

• Terry recommended the YouTube channel Outdoors with the Morgans, run by Mike and Melissa Morgan. 25:52

Deer activity

• unnamed buck (sighting) 1:40
• unnamed buck (sighting) 2:37
• unnamed buck (sighting) 2:44
• unnamed buck (hunt) 3:05
• unnamed buck (sighting) 4:21
• unnamed buck (history) 10:36
• unnamed buck (history) 11:05
• Smokey (harvest) 17:49
• Mel (harvest) 60:52

Listener questions

Question: Maynard Miller asked why young people often hate on successful people instead of learning from them, and requested advice for young hunters. 29:33 — asked by Maynard Miller

• Answer: Don advised evaluating the source of information and finding people with a proven track record of success in that specific field to learn from. 30:52

Question: Keith Evans asked whether Don and Terry always exit a stand the same way they entered, or use an alternative exit route. 40:29 — asked by Keith Evans

• Answer: Don said he uses the same exit as his entrance about 90% of the time since a good access route is usually also a good exit route for the required wind. 40:41
• Answer: Terry said the QuietKat electric bike lets him take a long alternate route around a field to avoid busting deer, instead of walking straight out. 42:14

Question: Josh Hurley asked what Don and Terry think of consultants claiming expertise who don’t own their own hunting property. 44:23 — asked by Josh Hurley

• Answer: Don said owning property helps a consultant’s credibility, but what matters most is the person’s track record rather than land ownership itself. 44:39

Question: Nelson Rizzler asked Don to confirm whether mature bucks do or do not run in bachelor groups like younger bucks. 50:25 — asked by Nelson Rizzler

• Answer: Don confirmed mature bucks do run in bachelor groups, and in his experience they return to the same bachelor group every year, though membership turns over. 50:51

Question: Nelson Rizzler asked why near-shooter bucks on his public land cameras consistently disappear before reaching maturity. 50:16 — asked by Nelson Rizzler

• Answer: Don said proficient camera users should see bucks return during the rut, and if they don’t, something is happening to those deer, though he has no certain explanation. 53:49

Don announced he bought a small 40-acre property and planned to have Steve Shields film it for the Whitetail Master Academy site, arguing a small property could still regularly produce big deer. He shared trail-cam pictures of his old nine-and-a-half-year-old buck, now down about 20 inches from his best rack, and discussed EHD, including deer a church member’s farmer found dead in a bean field and Ben Rising’s photos of two bucks lost to the disease. Terry predicted a cold snap within about a week and the hosts debated late food plot planting, with Terry favoring cheap winter wheat or oats over brassicas. Don also noted he currently knows the whereabouts of only about four or five of the 17 promising bucks he’d tracked. Listener questions covered consultant credibility, bachelor groups in mature bucks, stand exit routes, and why near-mature public-land bucks kept disappearing. Business updates included new Real World ownership and master class announcements.

Unofficial fan project. AI-synthesized from public episodes; may contain errors.