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Monday Jun 14, 2021
Monday Jun 14, 2021
Big Mule Buck Behavior with Dustin Wittwer
Show Notes:
It’s one thing to read about stuff in a book or hear about it in a podcast. It’s a real “ah hah” moment when you see it happen in real life. Little details like that, the ones that you only learn from experience, can really make a difference on a hunt.
Mule deer bucks are smart. Dustin had always read about big bucks circling back on their own tracks, but in 2019, he saw it firsthand. He was watching a group of bucks when another hunter arrived to go after the same group, and when the wind gave the other hunter away. As the bucks moved around the side of the peak, the largest buck stopped. The buck did a 180 turn, went back along his own tracks, and bedded down in such a way so that he could watch his back trail. If the hunter had decided to try and follow, that buck would have seen him instantly and bolted.
The trick is not to follow a spooked buck, but to circle around the other way. Dustin’s brother was able to turn this knowledge into success on a past hunt by circling around the peak the other way. He came up behind the buck, who had already bedded down and was focused the opposite way, and took him with a bow.
“Watching those big bucks, and trying to play chess instead of checkers, that’s what I really learned. Thinking about the mountainside, thinking about which way the buck is going to go.”
Firsthand lessons are always the best, and that means getting out there and hunting. And it means sticking with it if you don’t succeed right away. Dustin and his brother learned that on a 7 day hunt. Sometimes, all you need is one more good stalk to walk away with a beautiful buck. Most of my success happens in the last day or two that I have scheduled, so don’t give up early.
Hunting over and over within the same unit is a great way to learn the area. You’ll learn the terrain and the habits of the animals. You can find out the best feeding spots and bedding areas. Even if you kill the animals that use those spots, nature will fill that void back in, and you can return and use that knowledge again and again.
“There’s always something to chase. There’s no way someone can tell you exactly how to do it.” You can study and discuss hunting and deer all day, but there’s always a new experience out there to learn from.
What’s Inside:
Dustin shares stories and lessons learned from years of hunting.
How to circle around a big buck and catch him unaware.
Stick with it to succeed. Don’t give up early.
Hunt the same area repeatedly to learn the terrain and behavior of the animals.
Beware of big cats!
Mentioned in this Episode:
Phoenix Shooting Bags Save 20% with code: johnstallone
Days in the Wild
Primos Save 15% with code: STL02
Finding Backcountry Podcast
Short Description:
Learning about bucks is one thing, but experiencing their habits in the wild is another. Dustin talks about tactics for stalking mule deer and shares stories from his years of experience.
Tags:
Buck hunting, mule deer hunting, stalking bucks, big buck hunting, how to hunt big bucks
Monday Jun 07, 2021
Monday Jun 07, 2021
Jumping The String With Randy Ulmer
Show Notes:
Randy Ulmer joins me today to talk about the dreaded “jumping the string.” What does it mean if a deer jumps the string? Something triggers the deer to jump when an arrow is shot; and moves before the arrow can get to it. Today we discover a few theories about just what causes deer to jump the string.
When an arrow is shot, deer can collapse their front legs and drop their chests in preparation to spring, and the arrow ends up missing them. This is a lot easier if their heads are down to start with. An alert deer is much more likely to jump than a non-alert deer, and older age class bucks are much more likely to jump than younger bucks. Older bucks have been pursued more, by other hunters and predators, so they are more sensitive. Young bucks jump as well, just not as often. Interestingly, when targeting a deer in a group, the other, non-targeted deer aren’t as likely to jump as the targeted one.
What causes a buck to jump? There are a couple theories. Some people think it’s the sound of the bow shooting the arrow, and another camp of people think it’s the sound of the actual arrow. Distance might also play a role. The closer you are to the deer, the more likely they are to detect you. The closer the deer, the louder the bow and arrow are, and the more likely the target deer is to jump. The kind of arrows you use makes a big difference as well. Thinner, slower, stiffer arrows make less noise, so deer are less likely to jump.
While frustrating, there are things you can do to cut back on the number of bucks that jump the string. Randy likes to use the same bow for every animal because he has a great feel for it. Put shock absorbing devices on the bow to mute the sound. Use a very small diameter arrow. You can’t avoid the problem completely but you can implement some of these to avoid losing that prize buck.
What’s Inside:
What is the distance sweet spot when it comes to bow hunting?
Which deer are mostly likely to jump?
The importance of researching deer in the area you want to hunt.
Mentioned In This Episode:Phoenix Shooting Bags Save 20% with code: johnstallone
Days in the Wild
Primos.com Save 15% on everything at Primos with code: STL02
Short Description:
There is nothing more frustrating than finding a prize buck, loading your bow, taking a shot, and then seeing the deer “jump the string.” Many, many bucks have been lost this way. Today Randy Ulmer and I discuss what causes a deer to jump the string and what can be done to curb it.
Tags:
String jumping, jumping the string, bow hunting, older age-class bucks, blind, ground blind, Whitetail deer, Mule deer, Coues deer
Monday May 31, 2021
Monday May 31, 2021
Calling Unresponsive Elk with Paul Medel
Show Notes:
Last year, Paul kept hearing from hunters that they could not get the elk to respond. Even for me, it was tough to get a bugle out of them. Personally, I’ve found here in the desert that drought conditions affect the estrus cycle, so it’s possible we’ll continue to see elk that don’t respond if we have another dry summer. So if you’ve got no action and the bulls aren’t fired up, what do you do? ElkNut Paul Medel demonstrates elk calling techniques that he employs when faced with a reluctant elk herd.
“If you can see the elk and what you’re doing is not working, they’re still callable. You just have to get your mindset right”, insists Paul. That’s why he tailors his calls to attract a bull.
When you’re chasing down a bull and then you lose sight of them, a hunter might get impatient and make a lot of sounds to get the bull to respond. That’s the worst thing you can do because it gives away that you’re a hunter. Be patient and wait longer, recommends Paul. And by longer, he doesn’t mean 15 minutes. You’ve got to be prepared to outlast the bull.
The first time you have a shot to kill a bull, you need to take your shot. Because after the first shot, the bull’s going to know that you’re an imposter. After you miss that first shot, there’s a diminishing rate of return on every time after that that you lay eyes on that bull.
Paul loves what he does, and you can hear his passion for his work. Check out my other podcasts with him, or head to his website for more education on elk calling.
What’s Inside:
Paul demonstrates different bugle calls so that you can actually hear the trills, buzzes, and squeaks that give you better insight into how an elk feels.
How to read the temperature of an elk through different circumstances.
Anytime you can, you should hunt over the counter, then you can hunt in other spots.
There’s a reason the draw units are draw units. Everyone wants them because they’re better.
Mentioned in this Episode:
Phoenix Shooting Bags Save 20% with code: johnstallone
Days in the Wild
Bushnell.com Save 15% on everything at Bushnell with code: STL02
ElkNut.com
Short Description:
There’s never a bad time of year to practice elk calling. ElkNut Paul Medel demonstrates elk calling so that you can start tuning your ear into the subtle differences that will help you become a more effective elk caller.
Tags:
Elk hunting, elk bugling, stalking elk, calling elk, desert elk hunting, AZ elk hunt, better elk calls, what does an elk sound like, how do you call elk
Monday May 24, 2021
Monday May 24, 2021
Solo Elk Hunting with Rockie Jacobsen
Show Notes:
The founder of Rocky Mountain Hunting Calls, Rocky Jacobsen sold his business about a year and half ago. He stayed on the board and the research part of the business, but he stepped out of the day-to-day running of the business so that he could spend more time hunting elk and being with his family. Rockie loves to solo elk hunt, and most of the elk that he’s killed was done on his solo hunts. It’s a tough game to play, but he’s got some strategies that he’s figured out over the years that have helped him.
Learning elk behavior is more important than anything because you can get by with being a mediocre caller. But you’re best served by learning their behavior because you can play on that more than their calls. You should think of the calling as just another tool to aid you in your hunting. Don’t think of the elk calling as the beginning of your elk hunting; it’s what you turn to when you’ve got the rest figured out.
It’s a challenge to get the elk to come the last 50-70 yards and present a good shot to you. Rockie talks about some of his favorite bow hunts, and he shares some of his preferred calls, including the differences between grunt tubes and diaphragms. He’s been talking about making latex-free callers for people with a latex allergy, and now that he’s retired, he finally had time to work on that project. He’s really excited about some of the sounds he can call from this new material. Check out his website for his newest elk callers.
What’s Inside:
Every 3-5 years, Rockie comes up with a different sound so the elk don’t get used to a call.
How to pack a big elk out by yourself.
Rocky demonstrates the sounds of his new latex-free diaphragms.
How the strategy of Smell first, See second, and Hear third plays out in the field.
Mentioned in this Episode:
Rocky Mountain Hunting Calls
Phoenix Shooting Bags Save 20% with code: johnstallone
Days in the Wild
Bushnell.com Save 15% on everything at Bushnell with code: STL02
Short Description:
Hunting alone requires a different approach than hunting with a partner, and Rockie Jacobsen, who’s been doing it for years, shares some of his favorite tips for calling an elk, putting it down, and hauling it out of the field. For over 30 years, Rockie’s been designing and manufacturing elk calls, and he has a wealth of information to share about elk calls.
Tags:
Solo elk hunting, elk hunting in AZ, elk calling, calling a bull, calling a cow, latex-free elk callers, non-latex elk callers, hunting alone
Monday May 17, 2021
Monday May 17, 2021
Best Arrow set up: It is very easy to go down a rabbit hole when it comes to building an arrow for your bow, I know I’ve been down a few of them myself… So Before you get to crazy there is no perfect.. in physics/mechanics you always have to give up something to gain something else so there is only best for what I need.
What I’ve learned in my 30 + years of archery is the most important thing next to consistency is your starting point. What do I mean by starting point ? Keep in mind. Your bow, your arrow and its components is a system in which everything is connected and not independent of each other. Meaning when you adjust one parameter or change one component it has an effect on a different part of the system. Example you want high FOC so you load up the front of an arrow now your spine gets weakened.. So it is important to enter the system at a level that will yield the best results and since you can enter it at any point like buying a broadhead first and building around that. You need to pick a starting point. For most of us we are not going to have multiple bows for different situations nor do we all have the means to retune our bow for different set ups.
Continue Reading article here https://johnstallone.me/best-arrow-set-up/
Keywords: Arrow building, best arrow set up, High FOC, What the FOC? , Heavy arrows, fixed blade broadheads, best arrow
Monday May 10, 2021
Monday May 10, 2021
E-Scouting for Elk with Mark Livesay, Part 3
Show Notes:
In this third podcast with e-scouting expert Mark Livesay, Mark shares strategies for when and where you should plan a hunt. For ten years, Mark gave little to no thought about pre-planning his hunts. Then he realized that there are simply too many details to just remember, and that he was wasting valuable time out in the wild. Some hunters get overly ambitious about a hunt and forget about their physical and mental capabilities. Tying everything together to plan a hunt that’s prepared for any eventuality is Mark’s specialty, so pull up a chair and listen close.
Mark loves to hunt timberline elk in Colorado, but there’s a couple of factors that you might not think about. During the hunting season and at that elevation, the grasses are incredibly dry, which underscores the point that you can’t only think about the weather, but also the food source for the herd. So as you plan a hunt in this area, like many places in the west, you’ll need to think about the bands of elevation on a map.
Even though you might love the idea of packing everything in and hunting in some remote spot, Mark always tries to guarantee that he has a basecamp. He looks for ways to prevent a hunt from getting ruined, and he’s found that establishing a basecamp is a good place to send a hunter struggling with altitude sickness or down with an injury.
Mark likes stacking as many positive features as possible, and for him this means taking into account:
Elk finding features
The breeding cycle
The callability of the herd
The schedule of a hunt
Mark’s course is a great investment, but even if you’re not ready for that kind of commitment, you can check out his Treeline Pursuits podcast for more e-scouting tips. Use Promo code johnstallone to save 20%
What’s Inside:
If you only had ten days to hunt in the entire year, when would you do that? Mark weighs in.
Why understanding where the bands of elevation are plays a part in your hunt planning, and how that can differ from state to state.
Choosing optimal hunting dates using the moon phases, the weather and temperature.
How elk estrus is affected by the equinox, and how you can take that into account when you’re planning a hunt.
Mentioned in this Episode:
Phoenix Shooting Bags Save 20% with code: johnstallone
Days in the Wild
Bushnell.com Save 15% on everything at Bushnell with code: STL02
OnXMaps.com
GoHunt.com
HuntinFool.com
TreelinePursuits.com
@treeline_pursuits
Elk 101 with Corey Jacobsen
TreelineAcademy.net
Short Description:
Rolling into a new state to hunt for 10 days might be the highlight of your year. But if you’re laid low with altitude sickness because you didn’t think about how the mountains might affect you, then you may end up wasting precious hunting time. Plan for every possibility with master e-scouting guide Mark Livesay.
Tags:
Cyber scouting, digital scouting, e-scouting, best hunting tools, elk hunting, planning a hunt, digital hunting tools, best states to elk hunt, preseason hunting
Monday May 03, 2021
Monday May 03, 2021
E-Scouting for Elk with Mark Livesay, Part 2
Show Notes:
The ultimate goal of e-scouting is creating a master plan with multiple hunt areas. Mark Livesay from Treeline Pursuits returns for an incredibly in depth look on how to plan a hunt using all of the modern tools available. He outlines different parts of his course, including what tools to use, how to understand the data you see, and why you should stack different features to guarantee that you’ll find the elk you’re looking for.
When you only have 10-14 days to hunt elk out of a year, why would you want to leave any stone unturned or walk into a hunt unprepared? Pouring over data and maps beforehand leaves Mark with few surprises when he’s out in the field, and planning for contingencies like too much snow, too many hunters or not enough elk will relieve stress and pressure when you finally get the chance to get out into the field.
Mark covers the 9 elk finding features that he looks for as he plans his hunts. He’s created a system that includes carefully designing a custom map that tells you a story. For example, on OnX, if everything is red, it’s not going to put a picture in your head of the area that you’re looking at. Mark adopts different colors and symbols to tell a better story of the terrain. And he warns that anytime you export data, a program will use default icons. So you’ll need to be careful where you create your custom maps.
In great detail, Mark covers what you can expect to find in different areas, including how to match up what’s on the map and what the local data tells you. You’ll want to look for:
Meadows and feeding zones,
Canyons, creeks and drainages
Fire zone
Beetle kills in the trees
Benches and slopes
Mark’s knowledge of e-scouting is huge. If you’re ready to do a better job planning your next hunt, check out Mark’s e-scouting course to help walk you step-by-step through the process. Use Promo code johnstallone to save 20%
What’s Inside:
Mark stresses just how valuable Google Earth is as a planning tool, especially when paired with other planning tools.
How to figure out if a trail is mostly used for recreation, and how that impacts elk behavior.
Mark explains why stacking features makes it more likely that you’ll find a herd of elk, rather than just relying on a single feature like looking on the north slopes of an area.
I’m a huge fan of edge habitats; we talk about the identifying characteristics of an edge habitat, and why they help you find more animals.
How to judge a fire zone correctly so that you’ve accurately anticipated the benefits and challenges of hunting in that area.
Mentioned in this Episode:
Phoenix Shooting Bags Save 20% with code: johnstallone
Days in the Wild
Bushnell.com Save 15% on everything at Bushnell with code: STL02
CalTopo.com
GaiaGPS.com
OnXMaps.com
GoHunt.com
HuntinFool.com
TreelinePursuits.com
@treeline_pursuits
Short Description:
Back for round 2, Mark Livesay moves beyond the tools he uses to talk about how to understand the maps that he uses to help plan his yearly elk hunts. The wealth of data out there for hunters to sift through can be overwhelming, which is why an e-scouting guide like Mark can help you make sense of what you’re looking at when you pull up Google Earth.
Tags:
Cyber scouting, digital scouting, e-scouting, best hunting tools, elk hunting, planning a hunt, digital hunting tools, best states to elk hunt, preseason hunting
Monday Apr 26, 2021
Monday Apr 26, 2021
E-Scouting for Elk with Mark Livesay
Show Notes:
When Mark Livesay started hunting elk, Google Earth wasn’t even a thing. But when it showed up on the scene,Google Earth totally changed the game for him. If you’re going to spend all kinds of money on a tag, your gear, and your hunting trip, you’d better include some preseason e-scouting as a further investment in your hunting strategy. More and more people are applying for tags, and the competition is fierce. People want to try new areas and new states, and e-scouting or cyber-scouting has gotten really intense.
Mark’s hunting isn’t based around killing the biggest elk. He aims for three elk tags a year in three different states because his passion is hunting new areas all of the time. In the last 30 years, he’s only gone back to the same area three times. And even though you’re going to have more success if you hunt through an area more than once, that’s just not Mark’s way.
In this episode, Mark’s going to give you a rundown on his favorite e-scouting tools, including which ones he prefers to use together because layering them gives a hunter even more data:
Basemap
OnX
Gaia GPS
Google Earth Pro
CalTopo
Additionally, Mark uses data that the states themselves put out, which you might see listed as elk management reports, hunt planners, hunt atlases, or motor vehicle use. We talk about how to analyze this sometimes incomplete data to get a better idea of the herd health in an area.
Check out Mark’s course Treeline Academy for even more details on how e-scout an area before you even pull your tag. Mark is like the Tony Robbins of hunting, and his course is well worth the investment. Use Promo code johnstallone to save 20%
What’s Inside:
Why he pays attention to the comments section on hunting websites.
What are you looking for when you look at the statistics on animals, especially since states may collect incomplete or mediocre data?
How we analyze the hunting data to figure out the best place to go hunting, and why some states are harder to analyze than others.
With all of the maps you can layer in Google Earth Pro, Mark says that there is nothing like it for the amount of information and detail you can get.
Does your state have a hunt planner? Is it even worth it?
Mentioned in this Episode:
Phoenix Shooting Bags Save 20% with code: johnstallone
Days in the Wild
Bushnell.com Save 15% on everything at Bushnell with code: STL02
CalTopo.com
GaiaGPS.com
OnXMaps.com
GoHunt.com
HuntinFool.com
TreelinePursuits.com
@treeline_pursuits
Short Description:
Careful planning is going to improve your chances of bagging the elk you’re after, and Mark Livesay is an absolute powerhouse of planning information. You are not going to believe the value he brings to the hunting world, including all of the tools, websites and resources that he recommends, that will help you show up on the first day of a hunt absolutely prepared to use that tag that you put in for.
Tags:
Cyber scouting, digital scouting, e-scouting, best hunting tools, elk hunting, planning a hunt, digital hunting tools, best states to elk hunt, preseason hunting
Monday Apr 19, 2021
Monday Apr 19, 2021
Title: Hunting in Arizona
Show Notes:
Flipping around my normal podcast format, David Hartlin from The Guide Shack interviews me for his fishing audience about some of the best hunting in Arizona. As a Canadian, David was most interested in some of the unique desert hunts my guiding service provides, including the increasingly popular javelina hunts.
Sometimes when I get folks from the Midwest booking a hunt with me, they don’t want to hunt what they think is just a smaller white-tailed deer. But Coues deer are some of my most popular hunts, and for good reason. It’s not until people experience it that they see how amazing it is to see a 110-inch rack on a 90-pound animal. It looks like a 160-inch rack, and it’ll blow your mind.
I’ve had a lot more clients want to go javelina hunting, and that side of my business has really grown in the last 2-3 years. It’s a high success rate hunt, meaning you can almost guarantee that you’ll go home with some good meat. Plus, there are three seasons: Archery season in January, ham season in the first two weeks of February, and rifle season is one week near the end of February.
Predator hunts in Arizona are open almost year-round. There is a season for the fur-bearers, but coyote hunts are open year-round. We talk about the tag situation here and how that affects planning a hunt. There’s no getting around that it’s just harder to get a rifle mule deer tag than it used to be. So naturally, that’s going to shift people onto another species or another kind of hunt.
If you’ve been dreaming about salmon fishing up in Canada, David offers guided tours all over Newfoundland, so check out his website.
What’s Inside:
A cool part about Arizona, unlike other states that run a point system, is that you always have a mathematical chance of getting a tag.
We compare the public perception of hunters, fishermen and outdoorsmen in Canada and the U.S.
David advises “Don’t pass on Monday morning that which you’d shoot on Friday evening”.
Mentioned in this Episode:
Phoenix Shooting Bags Save 20% with code: johnstallone
Days in the Wild
Bushnell.com Save 15% on everything at Bushnell with code: STL02
David Hartlin Guiding
@davidhartlinguiding
Short Description:
Canadian fly fishing guide David Hartlin interviews me about some of my favorite and most popular hunts in Arizona. I get a chance to open up about how my guide business is going, and we compare notes on how politics sometimes gets tied up into hunting.
Tags:
AZ guided hunt, hunting javelina, elk hunt, Coues deer hunt, guided salmon trip, Canadian hunting, drawing hunting tags in AZ, best javelina hunt
Monday Apr 12, 2021
Monday Apr 12, 2021
Smart Conservation-Based Hunting Laws
Show Notes:
Congressman David Schweikert represents the northern suburbs of Phoenix, in the 6th District, and he is a lifelong Arizonan and outdoorsman. He takes a science-based approach to conservation laws, and he joins me today to talk about how hunters can work with their representatives to create common sense laws that support our way of life. Hunters are an important part of keeping things in balance in the outdoors, and we need to make sure that our perspective is considered when laws about hunting, guns, or wildlife management are made.
As a whole, the North American conservation model works. I have a degree in this field, so it’s something that I think about a lot. So while there are definitely things we can tinker with to improve our outdoors, across the world our conservation laws are considered the gold standard.
You’ve got to look at everything in the outdoors with a holistic eye. If you ban bear hunting in California, then you’re going to see the black-tailed deer population explode. There’s a balance that you have to strike as you make laws regarding the land and the animals on it. Plus, as Congressman Schweikert points out, there are problems with invasive species that we have to keep an eye on. If you have lawmakers that are hellbent on banning a certain kind of hunting, if they don’t understand that that kind of hunting is keeping another animal population in check, then you might end up with the Staten Island deer problem.
Don’t wait until a bill is passed to contact your representative. Congressman Schweitzer gives his advice on:
Why you should get to know your rep now
How you can open up a conversation with them
The power of hunters lobbying together
Tell your story to your congressperson before a crappy piece of legislation is introduced. If this episode has you fired up about how hunters can work together for smart and sensible legislation that approach problems holistically, I’d love to talk to you.
What’s Inside:
How can we increase the education component of conservation?
Congressman Schweikert talks about what he calls the “Bambi Effect” that’s distorting for millions of Americans what responsible conservation should look like.
Getting laws made based on science and facts, and not emotion, means that hunters are going to need to educate the public.
According to Congressman Schweikert, this is the absolute best way to talk to a congressman about hunting, even if you’re in a suburban district.
Mentioned in this Episode:
Phoenix Shooting Bags Save 20% with code: johnstallone
Days in the Wild
Bushnell.com Save 15% on everything at Bushnell with code: STL02
Rep. David Schweikert
Short Description:
The best time to object to a law that’s going to curb when, where, and how you can hunt is not when legislators are voting on it. Congressman David Schweikert from Arizona’s 6th District is an avid outdoorsman, and we talk about strategies that hunters can engage in to guarantee that laws are made with conservation in mind.
Tags:
Hunting legislation, hunter friendly legislation, hunting and conservation, AZ hunting, gun legislation, conservation laws