Episode #84 Don Choice - Iowa or Illinois for Opening Day?

Published: 2021-09-27
Episode page
Duration: 62 min

In this episode

antler-genetics

• Jonathan Joyce asks whether an antler injury causing a lopsided, nontypical rack can be passed down genetically. 46:22

asio

• Terry says Joe Miles, who designed the ASIO backpack, is a big buck killer who has taken many big deer. 7:53

bowhunting

• Terry had his target buck at 18 yards Thursday night in Kentucky but it was too dark to shoot, seeing him only through binoculars. 5:07

broadheads

• Don argues fixed-blade broadheads give hunters a much better chance of recovering a deer than mechanical heads when the shot isn’t perfectly placed. 35:13
• Don states his opinion that mechanical broadheads ought to be outlawed. 35:18
• A listener sent Don a video showing his mechanical broadhead deploying prematurely upon release, causing him to miss a mule deer buck twice. 33:09

buck-management

• Kyle Bliss asks why Don wouldn’t consider shooting a buck that’s regressed from one-seventies to one-sixties inches this year. 41:33
• Jonathan Joyce also asks what Don’s management approach is toward deer with odd, offset-looking racks. 46:22

charity

• Terry says they connected the family with a listener and helped cover short-term financial obligations. 56:20
• A listener from New York offered to pay the foundation’s lawyer fees to help set up its nonprofit status. 59:34

crop-harvest

• Don says he’d rather see all the crops come out early or have a very late harvest after gun season to protect deer in standing crops, though that rarely happens. 2:54

cwd

• Terry reports the Kentucky DNR shut down supplemental feeding and imposed mandatory deer check-ins in reaction to CWD found in a couple of counties. 54:08
• Don doubts that banning supplemental feeding will actually slow the spread of CWD among deer. 54:58

family-priorities

• Terry says he’s skipping hunting the next two Saturdays to prioritize spending time with his kids. 28:31

gear-recommendation

• Terry recommends the new ASIO backpack, saying it’s finally a pack designed specifically for tree stand hunters. 6:31

gear-review

• Don says the ASIO backpack is the best pack he’s ever owned. 7:07

hunting-plan

• Terry plans to keep hunting his Kentucky target buck rather than travel to Illinois for the opener, riding out his chances there. 5:36

iowa-hunt

• Don plans to travel to Iowa for the season opener. 4:14

lesters-feet-foundation

• Terry says the Lester’s Feet Foundation is currently helping six different families. 57:24

master-class

• Don says master class demand has been strong, citing back-to-back mail deposits covering ten students in one day. 17:38
• Don announces the two master classes with Dr. Strickland are March 10 and 12, priced at $2,000 per student. 19:08
• Don gives the Higgins Outdoors mailing address for sending master class deposit checks. 19:29

nonprofit-status

• Terry says the foundation must become incorporated before it can move into nonprofit status. 59:06

podcast-growth

• Terry says the podcast has been downloaded by more than 380,000 people. 60:51

raffle

• Don teases that next year’s raffle grand prize could be something even bigger than hunting on his farm. 60:22

season-goals

• Don says shooting one buck over 170 inches, whether in Iowa or Illinois, would make this season a success in his eyes. 24:27

season-opener

• Don wishes listeners a safe and successful season as many seasons, including Illinois and Iowa, open October 1. 61:31

target-buck

• Don says his primary target buck is definitely over 170 inches, though he’s unsure if it will reach 180. 23:15

ted-nugent

• Don recounts watching a September 20 speech Ted Nugent gave to a crowd in Michigan. 30:10

trail-camera-intel

• Colton Bailey asks whether a single trail-camera photo of a buck is enough reason to sit a location for several days. 44:33

trail-cameras

• Don reports running 13 cell cameras and getting almost no buck photos two weeks ago, a sign of the pre-season lull before bucks moved back into range. 3:37

Deer activity

• unnamed buck (sighting) 5:07
• unnamed buck (harvest) 8:35
• unnamed buck (harvest) 10:25
• unnamed buck (hunt) 12:22
• unnamed buck (harvest) 12:35
• unnamed buck (harvest) 12:58
• Smokey (history) 24:49
• Trump (history) 24:49
• unnamed buck (harvest) 36:09
• unnamed buck (history) 42:25
• unnamed buck (harvest) 46:42
• unnamed buck (harvest) 49:09

Listener questions

Question: Kyle Bliss asks why Don wouldn’t consider shooting a buck that’s regressed from one-seventies to one-sixties inches this year. 41:33 — asked by Kyle Bliss

• Answer: Don says he’s giving the eight-and-a-half-year-old buck one more year, citing a Clark County buck that grew its biggest rack at nine and a half. 42:08

Question: Colton Bailey asks whether a single trail-camera photo of a buck is enough reason to sit a location for several days. 44:33 — asked by Colton Bailey

• Answer: Don says it depends on his other hunting options; with nothing better he might spend time on it, but with better odds elsewhere he goes there instead. 44:53

Question: Jonathan Joyce asks whether an antler injury causing a lopsided, nontypical rack can be passed down genetically. 46:22 — asked by Jonathan Joyce

• Answer: Don says an antler injury does not transfer genetically, comparing it to a man losing an arm in an accident not affecting his kids’ arms. 47:58

Question: Jonathan Joyce also asks what Don’s management approach is toward deer with odd, offset-looking racks. 46:22 — asked by Jonathan Joyce

• Answer: Don says if the odd rack is genetic, like one-sided spike bucks, he tries to eliminate them from the herd, but he doesn’t worry about injury-caused racks. 50:03

Terry described having his Kentucky target buck at 18 yards Thursday night but too dark to shoot, and said he’d keep hunting that deer rather than travel to Illinois for the opener. Don noted his own target buck was over 170 inches, calling a buck that size a season-defining success, and said he was giving an eight-and-a-half-year-old buck another year to grow, citing a Clark County deer that peaked at nine and a half. Terry and Don both praised the new ASIO backpack, designed by Joe Miles. Don argued fixed-blade broadheads recover deer better than mechanical heads and said mechanical broadheads should be outlawed, citing a listener’s video of a premature deployment. Terry reported Kentucky’s DNR halting supplemental feeding and requiring deer check-ins after CWD was found, which Don doubted would slow its spread. Terry also discussed the Lester’s Feet Foundation’s work helping families and its move toward nonprofit status.

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