Days In The Wild - Big game Hunting podcast

Bow Mechanics and VXR Sneak Peak With Mark Hayes 10.52

Bow Mechanics and VXR Sneak Peak With Mark Hayes 10.52
In this episode we talk about:
*Tuning your bow
*Super Tune
*Bow mechanics
*New Bow Technology 
*The Future of archery 
*And we get the run down on the New Mathews VRX 

Nathan Brooks Part 2 10.51

Nathan Brooks Part 2 10.51
NameNathan Brooks
Home TownOklahoma
Archery StyleCompound Target, 3D Archery
Pro SummaryNathan’s professional performance has ranked him among the few who have made archery a full-time job and source of income. He has lined up corporate sponsorship and taken home wins from ASA, NFAA and IBO events.
Professional Achievements
2009 ASA Classic Championship, 2nd
2008 NFAA Indoor National Championship, 3rd
2007 ASA TX Pro-Am Champion
2007 IBO National Triple Crown Team Champion
2005 NFAA Indoor National Champion
2004 NFAA Shooter of the Year
2004 NFAA Indoor National Champion
2004 IBO World Champion

Nathan Brooks Part 1 shooting and hunting plus sneak peek at new Elite bows 10.50

Nathan Brooks Setting up your bow and keeping it tuned during season 10.50
 
Nathan Brooks: Target Panic Drills
Jun 21, 2019 9:14:22 AM / by Nathan Brooks
 
Being consistently accurate is what all bowhunters, target archers and recreational shooters desire. Unfortunately, most believe it is related to their equipment when they are struggling. And it’s just a guess but I’d venture to say that 95% of all upgrades in purchases of equipment are driven by the mentality of “it will make me better.”  
Buying accuracy is something that is legitimate; you can purchase better equipment and shoot better scores by becoming more accurate. But I think the question that really needs to be asked first is: “am I as accurate with my current equipment as possible?” 
Most of the time that answer is NO!
But, would you use another piece of equipment more consistently which will bring more accuracy?
Soul searching is always a good thing, and being completely honest with ourselves is sometimes really hard to do. Or it could be that we aren’t even sure what being completely honest with ourselves is even about when it comes to archery. From this point I could go in a number of directions with this article but I want to focus in on one area: Target Panic!
Target panic is so broad, so deep and so long that it is hard to measure or quantify.
Just a couple examples of questions you might ask yourself: 
If I struggle to hold to my pin in the middle of the dot without systematically punching the trigger is that common? 
Should I be able to aim without any urges to fire the release? 
How come I struggle hanging up low under the target with my pin when I am aiming? 
Why does my body involuntarily convulse at times when I am trying to shoot? 
Over the years I have heard so many different problems relating to target panic that nothing surprises me when I hear of a new issue. The mind is so powerful that it will automatically take control of situations even when you are trying to control it. To me, that is the exact definition of target panic. Your subconscious mind has been trained to do something a certain way and it only knows how to do it that way unless you reprogram it.  
The good news is that it can most certainly be retrained. The bad news is that it takes a serious amount of time and training to overcome. I might add that most people get worse (in terms of accuracy) before they get better. And because it is so different for every person there is no prescription that cures all symptoms. However, there are exercises and training tools that can help any archer. 
Without changing any current equipment, simply draw the bow, with no intention of shooting the arrow, and just aim.
By doing this exercise you will imprint in your subconscious mind that your pin can go to the middle of the target with ease. After about 3-5 seconds of aiming the pin in the middle let the bow down and rest for about 15-20 seconds. Repeat the process as many times as you can without tiring out. This is an exercise that can be done at any point, whether you do or do not have target panic. 
Another great exercise to reprogram the subconscious mind is to use visualization.
This will cost nothing except time. And I have found that it will it is a good way to become a great archer. I’ll walk you through how I visualize shooting an indoor round and you can apply your own methods based around the same ideas. 
First, I go to a quiet room in my house, close the door and turn off the lights. By making the room dark I find it easier to let my mind see what I want it to see. Your subconscious mind doesn’t know if this is really happening or if you are using visualization so the imprint that it leaves is whatever you see happening.
I begin to visualize myself shooting my bow in a tournament setting. Being very specific with all the details. I first see and feel my bow in my left hand and envision myself loading an arrow in my own detailed way. I can feel the nock of the arrow and how it snaps on the string.
I then go through the process of drawing the bow into my pre-aim. 
I then feel the release in my hand as it makes its way into the anchor position and I see the target through my peep sight with the pin holding dead center with just a slight amount of movement.  If feel the perfect execution as the shot fires and the follow through finishes the shot. 
I repeat the shooting process in my head until the round is finished. Remember to make it very detailed. I visualize the other people shooting, the sounds going on in the room and I can feel the breeze of the air turning on. Make it real. And if you are a hunter you can visualize the perfect shot happening on a big bull elk or trophy whitetail. Remember to feel and see it all in your mind just like you want it to happen and stay focused. Don’t wander off. If you are wondering and your thoughts are drifting then you have concentration issues. 
I struggle with concentration usually the first few days of trying to visualize a complete indoor round in my mind but after a few days of trying to stay focused I can complete the full round uninterrupted.  A great book on this subject is called “With Winning in Mind” by Lanny Bassham. I highly recommend it.
If you are accustomed to using an index trigger finger release then I can easily suggest trying a Scott HEX (this is an instance where purchasing a new product can actually make you better). It is a hinge style release that uses a wrist strap and can be shot with one or two fingers. 
I recommend using the release without a click in the travel to help reduce the anticipation of firing the shot. It is extremely adjustable in length and travel to accommodate your specific style. Most shooters using a hinge style release for their first time will need some instruction on how to set it up and shoot it correctly. Instruction is key to success. And when used over a course of several weeks you will see improvements in your ability to aim the bow and execute at the same time.  
Remember: retraining the mind is not something that happens quickly. Be all in for the long haul!  Good luck.

Hank Shaw what to do with your game meat 10.49

Hank Shaw what to do with your game meat 10.49
Hank Shaw.
I write. I fish. I dig earth, forage, raise plants, live for food and hunt anything that tastes good. I’ll drink fancy Scotch, craft beer, Pabst Blue Ribbon, a fine Barolo or hell, even kombucha, depending on my mood or who’s offering. I spend my days thinking about new ways to cook and eat anything that walks, flies, swims, crawls, skitters, jumps – or grows.
I am the omnivore who has solved his dilemma. This is my story.

Brad Luttrell of Go wild 10.48

Brad Luttrell of Go wild 10.48
Brad and I discuss social media and how it affects hunting, we touch on some of the issue surrounding the sport today and some things we can do about it. Brand runs a Pro-hunting social media platform call Go Wild which is awesome and I think you should check it out 
 
Download and Subscribe to Interviews With The Hunting Masters Big Game Hunting Podcast brought to you by Phoenix Shooting bags  on iTunes,  Podbean,   Player FM  or Sticher.  It's FREE!  
 
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www. Johnstallone.me
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Ben Sandall Lions Bulls and Bucks - Hunting In AZ 10.47

Ben Sandall Lions Bulls and Bucks - Hunting In AZ 10.47
 
Ben shares with us his awesome start to 2019 season having taken a nice velvet mule deer in AZ followed by a Mt Lion and Big Bull Elk on the same day.
check out Ben Sandall's youtube videos here 
 
 

Jason Seegmiller Mule deer and Elk Stories 10.46

Jason Seegmiller Mule deer and Elk Stories 10.46
Jason is a big muley buck aficionado spending many days afield photographing and hunting giant bucks. Check out some of his photos on IG @outdoorseeg
Jason Shares with us some memorable hunts and the experiences he took away from them.
 
 

David Barnett Late Season Elk Tactics 10.45

David Barnett Late Season Elk Tactics 10.45
David Barnett Instagram 
I’ll be the first to admit that elk hunting is tough. It’s not always the glam show that is portrayed on social media and there are many hours during a hunt spent wondering just what in the hell you have gotten yourself into. Still, the possibility of success at the end of a very rough road is enough to keep bringing those that are elk obsessed back into the woods every year. Out of all of the different elk hunting endeavors available, one of the hardest has to be hunting late-season migratory elk.
During the late season, elk are on a full-on food chompin’ mission. After a long and exhausting rut, the bulls are looking to pack on precious fat as they prepare for the approaching winter. Along with this, bulls will actively seek out the most rugged and reclusive country they can find and dig in for the winter. I’ve spoken to biologists in western Montana who have observed mature bulls via satellite collars that stay within a 300 yard radius for an entire winter. With thousands of public land acres, this is the equivalent of finding a needle in a stack of needles.
Locating late season bulls can definitely test the mettle of any hunter, but success is attainable to those willing to work. Those simply looking for a legal bull will find easier success than those looking for a mature bull, as with most other seasons, but experiencing the hunt for a mature animal is an incredible experience in these harsh conditions. Whether you still have a late season tag in your pocket or are planning for 2019, these strategies will help you find success in hidden pockets when the temperatures drop. Note: A lot of these strategies can be modified for late season cow elk hunts too.
Staying committed
Above all else, the biggest piece of advice to be given for late season bulls would be to stay committed to your success. These hunts are not easy and having a strong mental game will be key. We all know the local guys who have bumped into their bull of a lifetime, but the simple fact is that the key to consistently punching tags on mature bulls requires a good familiarity with being cold, miserable, and lonely. On a recent hunt, we averaged ten miles per day of hiking with an additional three to five hours of glassing on top of that and it still took five days to find success. The simple fact here is to stay steadfast to your goals and embrace the process. The hours of hard work and sweat only make the story that much sweeter.
Colder weather, heavy gear
Typical late season elk hunting scene. Photo credit: Dave Barnett
Along with mental and physical struggles, hunters will also be faced with cold, wet and, at times, straight up brutal weather conditions and having the correct gear with you can drastically reduce the time you spend wishing you were home. First and foremost, clothing selection will be number one. The biggest struggle I’ve faced in this category was finding the happy medium between staying warm and not packing ten extra pounds of clothing. Late season clothing selection can be a daunting task but really is pretty straightforward.
A Seek Outside titanium stove is a gamechanger on late season hunts. Photo credit: Brady Miller
When backpack hunting, you will also be forced to fend off the frigid temps with the added weight of heavier sleeping bags or even ultralight backpacking stoves. Warm food or drinks aren’t a necessity, but a small pack stove provides a serious morale boost that easily negates the weight penalty. Be flexible in your approach to your pack and don't be afraid to try new things. Everybody's needs are slightly different and we all want or need something different.
The location
All other photo credits: Dave Barnett
This whole thing is going to boil down to location and finding the right area for late season bulls is usually characterized by long hikes and sore legs. Every elk is different and will “winter” different, meaning that while you might find pockets of bachelor bulls in areas, there are also bulls out there who would just assume go it alone and live like a hermit. Really, elk can winter in a number of areas throughout a unit and hunters need to be willing to stay flexible and mobile. After being pressured for the past few months, many of the mature bulls are going to retreat into some dark hole in a place that is no fun to hike into. Bulls at that time of the year are interested in three primary things: cover, water, and food—all of which must be in very close reciprocity.
I will generally look for north facing slopes with rough access in the form of steep ridgelines, rock fields, blowdown, and so on. These are the types of areas that will make a bull feel secure while consequently keeping most other hunters out. These areas can be close to roads or deep in the backcountry; the primary factors are finding the right ingredients for a good hidey hole more so than distance from the road.
Snow levels in the high country will really dictate where most bulls are found. Usually, the areas plus or minus 500’ vertical from snow line can be safe bets to start with, but don't be surprised to see bulls in snow deep enough that their chest is dragging or down in the low country living it up with the cows. Sometimes, if the country is open enough, it's possible to glass into drainages from a distance, but, generally, the best way to establish a good starting point is to hike into the high country while making notes of elevation bands where sign is found.
Escaping crowds can be difficult at this time of the year, but savvy hunters should be able to find mostly unpressured elk with a little bit of effort. I like to look into weird or out of the way areas that may often get overlooked due to closeness to roads, the difficulty of access, or simply that the country is ugly. Steep climbs, river crossings or unpleasant conditions can all make for hidden gem areas. In some areas, livestock use may be much higher and simply avoiding areas accessible by horse trails can make all the difference in the world. I always go back to the old adage of “elk are where ya find ‘em.” We all want to kill the bull on the gorgeous high mountain face, but, sometimes, it has to be in the downfall invested creek bottom full of devil’s clubs and grizzly tracks. We are the unfortunate servants to the elk in this game and adapting to the knowledge gained each day can put you into elk faster.
At the end of the day, the main things I'm looking for are:
Tough access points.
No roads, trails, etc.
Dark timber on north facing slopes.
Small pocket meadows or open ridgelines.
Nearby water source; running water generally stays open longer.
Generally thicker and nastier terrain (blowdowns, steep, rocky, etc.).
Glassing
Among all things, your optics will likely be one of the most important gear choices for the hunt. Finding key glassing points can turn six hours of physical hell into thirty minutes of a relaxing glassing session. Even in the late season, mature bulls will tend to bed early in the morning and not move very much until the last hour or so of daylight. Reaching glassing points before daylight as well as staying at them until last light can make a huge difference.
As grazers, elk cling to a mostly grass diet for as long as possible before moving to browse foods. Pocket meadows and windswept ridgelines and faces can be excellent places to begin glassing during the first and last hour of daylight. Pay close attention to treelines as mature bulls tend to hang close to cover. Sometimes bulls can be found in meadows the size of your garage so being meticulous, even in the timber, will be important. Binoculars mounted on a tripod can make a world of difference over glassing off your knees when picking apart timber. Watching over large and prominent saddles can also be good places to catch elk as they transition between bedding and feeding areas. Sometimes bulls may not present themselves during daylight for a number of reasons and hunters will need to shift tactics accordingly. Often this is going to mean gaining a bunch of elevation and glassing down into north-facing slopes.
 
Depending on the vegetation cover in your area you will more than likely be spending a large portion of your day living behind your spotting scope or binoculars. Having good glass will not only help you spot more game in deep shadows and behind cover, but also save you from some nasty headaches due to eye strain. Some types of country may even require higher power binoculars. The main thing to keep in mind is that being patient and glassing over an area will usually yield far more animal sightings than wandering blindly through the same area.
In areas where elk herds migrate heavily, there’s a lot of merits to simply sitting on glassing knobs and watching prominent ridgelines and saddles all day. The days following a good snow storm can be excellent for this.
Staying mobile
With conditions constantly changing during the late season, a big factor to keep in mind is that the elk could be continually moving and it will be important to follow suit. If I have good snow and put in a solid day of covering and or glassing a bunch of country and come up with little or no sign I will move on. If these areas looked promising even with the lack of sign I may return in the following days so I still like to keep these marked in my GPS. Before leaving on your hunt try to have three to four solid hunting spots laid out in case Plan A doesn’t work out.
Getting sneaky
When conditions are just not conducive to glassing or bulls are staying treed up, a very effective, but more intense option, is still hunting through dark timber patches. This usually entails locating tracks or seeing elk from a distance in a given area and then slowly trailing the animals. Hunters will need to continually monitor the wind and move very slowly, glassing every few steps or so. This can be an awesome way to hunt with fresh snow and is actually very fun. When conditions are just right, it is surprisingly easy to sneak up on elk, even when bedded.
Enjoying the hunt
This will be one of the hardest hunts out there to stay motivated. Some days, you might find ten bulls and other times you may not see an elk in ten days. Keeping your head in the game can be very difficult. A good hunting partner is invaluable for these types of hunts, but even small creature comforts can really help. Pack foods you like, take warm clothes and build fires during the slow times of the day. I've recently begun investing more of my time in photography and have found this as a fun way to take a 20 minute break from staring at the world at 10X.
It’s always easier said than done, but, really, this hunt is all about slowing down and embracing the suck. This hunt will test you to the core, but the reward will be something like no other.

Question and Answer Deer Hunting Arizona 10.44

Question and Answer Deer Hunting Arizona 10.44
Shane Edgar and I take the time to answer all the common questions we have about hunting in Arizona. We touch on spot and stalk tactics, how to choose a unit, how to find deer, what gear to use, wind / thermals and how to improve your overall success.
How to find deer in your scope
Preseaon Hunt prep
Understanding Wind and Weather
 
Download and Subscribe to Interviews With The Hunting Masters Big Game Hunting Podcast brought to you by Phoenix Shooting bags  on iTunes,  Podbean,   Player FM  or Sticher.  It's FREE!  
 
Help keep this podcast free and give us review on Itunes and leave us a comment to let us know how we are doing !
 
www. Johnstallone.me
https://www.instagram.com/johnstallone/
 
#daysinthewild
#johnstallone
#interviewswiththemasters
#hunting
#elkhunting
#deerhunting
#biggamehunting
#archerypractice
#spotandstalk
#muledeerhunting
#couesdeer
#couesdeerhunting
#ibexhunting
#antelopehunting
#whitetailhunting
#bowhunter
 
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Ron Nixon Strip Buck and Nevada Recap 10.43

Ron Nixon Strip Buck and Nevada Recap 10.43
Ron and I talk about his AZ strip mule deer hunt and the 197" buck he was able to take on this hunt. We also talk about my hunt in NV. and the roller-coaster of a hunt I had.
If You are looking for a good hunt check out Days in The Wild Outfitters and join me and my crew on a guided hunt this season.