2022 Nov_Dec TTH Issue

November/December 2022 Volume 47, No. 6 www.ttha.com

Rain Breaks the Drought—Sort Of “O

h, the glamor and the clamor that attend affairs of state seem to fascinate the rabble and impress some folks as great. But the truth about the matter on the scale of loss or gain, not one inaugural is worth a good, slow 2-inch rain.” —Sen. Carlos Ashley, 1949.

Well, it has finally rained, but not enough to absolve the drought that has darkened the state for months. First, we had a killing freeze in February of ’21 and then an ultra-dry summer of ’22. We don’t like such weather patterns, but they are not new to Texas.

But first, let’s talk about the August Hunters Extravaganzas held in Houston, Dal las, and San Antonio. Attendees showed up in droves to see the many attractions: big rattlesnakes at the snake show; everything that goes with alligators at the show; some of the best bucks in Texas at the Annual Deer Competition; and all of the many attractions at the exhibitor booths. Folks enjoyed all the shows, which are get ting back to normal after the long period of COVID. We enjoyed seeing old friends, and making new friendships—a big part of each year’s shows.

Getting back to dry weather, most of us remember the long drought from 2005 to 2012, when ranchers hauled hay from East Texas, water holes dried up, creeks quit flowing, and old trees lost their root systems and fell over. The year 2011 was the driest in Texas history!

Texas also endured a long drought in the 1950s, I remember a 1957 “Cowpokes” cartoon by Ace Reid of Kerrville, showing a half-grown kid running to the house, crying and scared. He had never seen a rain!

Texas hunters usually hunt, regardless of the weather. Typically, the first day of dove season in September may be so hot, you could fry eggs on the rocks—or it may be raining.

Most hunters face any weather with determination, so what does the past dry summer mean to deer hunters? Well, if history repeats itself, deer will come to feed ers regularly, unless your hunting area gets a fall rain. Any rain will result in new ground forbs that may get the attention of hungry deer for a few days, but the deer will return to the feeders.

Protein pellets are high-priced, and corn at $12-14 a bag may be the highest ever. Deer do not need supplemental protein after Aug. 15, but corn gives bucks added energy during the rut. If I were carrying the ball, I would let the protein feeders run out, and keep as many corn feeders as your pocket will bear. Deer feed by habit, and if you lose deer from dry feeders, they may be slow in coming back.

With deer season here, most folks will forget the dry summer, and concentrate on getting a buck. Take the kids hunting when you can. There is an old saying: “Kids don’t get in trouble while hunting and fishing.” I’ll see you down the road.

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The Texas Trophy Hunters Association, Ltd.

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North Texas Field Editor Brandon Ray

East Texas Field Editor Dr. James C. Kroll

Hill Country Field Editor Gary Roberson

South Texas Field Editor Jason Shipman

Coastal Plains Field Editor Will Leschper

Southwest Field Editor Jim Heffelfinger

Field Editor At Large Ted Nugent

Graphic Designers Faith Peña Dust Devil Publishing/Todd & Tracey Woodard

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TTHA protects, promotes and preserves Texas wildlife resources and hunting heritage for future generations. Founded in 1975, TTHA is a membership-based organization. Its bimonthly magazine, The Journal of the Texas Trophy Hunters®, is available via membership and newsstands. TTHA hosts the Hunters Extravaganza® outdoor expositions, renowned as the largest whitetail hunting shows in the South. For membership information, please join at www.ttha.com or contact TTHA Membership Services at (877) 261-2541.

Horace Gore

must be accompanied by a self-addressed stamped envelope or return postage, and the publisher assumes no responsibility for loss or damage to unsolicited materials. Any material accepted is subject to revision as is necessary in our sole discretion to meet the requirements of our publication. The act of mailing a manuscript and/or material shall constitute an express warranty by the contributor that the material is original and in no way an infringement upon the rights of others. Photographs can either be RAW, TIFF, or JPEG formats, and should be high resolution and at least 300 dpi. All photographs submitted for publication in “Hunt’s End” become the sole property of the Texas Trophy Hunters Association Ltd. Moving? Please send notice of address change (new and old address) 6 weeks in advance to Texas Trophy Hunters Association, P.O. Box 3000, Big Sandy, TX 75755-9918. POSTMASTER: Please send change of address to The Journal of the Texas Trophy Hunters, Texas Trophy Hunters Association, P.O. Box 3000, Big Sandy, TX 75755-9918.

Photo By: Marty Berry

By Brian Stephens

Sunday Dinner with a TTHA Twist

TTHA member Howard Eaton likes to gather the family together for Sunday dinner. After attending this year’s Hunters Extravaganza in San Antonio, he thought it would be a hoot to grab some TTHA “headgear” and make the family wear it at the dinner table. Everyone agreed and his granddaughters were ecstatic with the idea. “We all indeed had big smiles eating Grandma’s pork chops,” he said.

Youngster Celebrates Dove Season with Poem

Nicholas D.

season inspire him to write a poem for his

Whitewings are beautiful. The colors of whitewings are gray and a strip of white. When they fly it’s like watching a jet in the sky. So many good times.

When whitewing season comes about, it is time to pull your camo out. Caps, shirts, pants, and boots is the fashion of this time.

P.

it with us, and we’ll share it with you. Enjoy.

Now that whitewing season is here. Waiting patiently from dawn to dusk as they take flight.

Eating whitewings after a long day is the best part of the season. Cleaning them out in the field is just part of the fun that you feel. Next comes the jalapeño, cream cheese and bacon, wrapping and smoking them. Lastly whitewings fill my tummy with joy.

Suarez, a 10-year-old fifth grader at Kelly-Pharr Elementary in Pharr, Texas, let his love of dove

writing class, taught by Mr.

Torres. Nicholas shared

L-R: Evelyn Bond, age 5; Emileigh Bond, age 7; Natalie May Bond, age 3; Howard Eaton, Leann Eaton, Mike Bond, Allison Leigh Bond.

DAVID SINCLAIR

By Judy Jurek

Col. David Sinclair is a pioneer of our hunting heritage.

David had an interesting, storied 40-year career as a Texas game warden before retiring in August 2012.

Since then, he has been a Texas legislative consul tant, first for Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s executive office and currently with the Game Warden Peace Officers Association.

Born in Lubbock, David grew up and graduated high school in Abernathy in Hale County before attending Tarleton State University. His outdoor interests include hunting, fishing, and boating. Because of his love of the outdoors, his mother sug gested he look into becoming a game warden.

“All my personal outdoor recreation stopped once I became a warden,” David said, chuckling. He graduated from the 28th Texas Game Warden Academy at Texas A&M University in December 1972, then worked his first duty station at Crockett in Houston County. “Crockett was a great place to learn how to be a game warden,” he said. “I spent four years there.”

His next assignment, lasting 16 years, was Kerr County. “I got my wish working a whitetail hunting county with a bonus of exotic wildlife,” David said. “I loved the Hill Country.”

For 20 years, from the Pineywoods to the Hill Country, David was privileged to spend time protecting the resources he loves. “During my final 20 years, I enjoyed working in counties state wide in a position implementing positive changes for our great state,” he added.

David became a captain in 1993, and put in charge of all TPWD permitting. David realized many permits needed admin istration by entities other than TPWD law enforcement and took

Editor's note: This is the twenty-ninth in a series of pioneers to be recognized for their contributions, past and present, to Texas hunting.

D avi D S inclair photo S

Right: Retiring after 40 years as a Texas game warden, David Sinclair now spends his time representing the Game Warden Peace Officer Association.

Pass the Torch

the necessary steps to do so. He continued mov ing up the ranks until 2012 when, as a colonel, David became the interim director of law enforcement.

“I wanted to make a posi tive impact on anglers, hunt ers, and boaters in Texas with regard to statutes and regulations,” he said. “My last 20 years gave me the oppor tunity to help game wardens.”

A few of David’s efforts include enhancing game wardens’ inspection authority, increasing game and fish violation penalties, creating the whitetail deer harvest log on the back of hunting licenses—a suggestion from fellow warden Max Hartmann—and improving game warden salaries.

During his years at Austin headquar ters, David helped change countless hunt ing and fishing regulations. Constituents have seen regulations simplified while loopholes were closed for those trying to circumvent the law. “Penalties do have a positive impact in preserving Texas’ wildlife resources,” he said.

One of David’s proudest goals has been relocating the Texas Game Warden Me morial from the Texas Freshwater Fisher ies Center in Athens to Austin’s state capitol grounds. The relocation should be completed in 2023. The memorial honors 19 wardens who’ve given the ultimate sacrifice since 1919. Fallen game wardens are also recognized with designation as Texas game warden memorial highways.

When he’s not wrapped up with legislative activities, David also enjoys golfing with a bit of kayaking, in addition to hunting and fishing. “We’re working

our way around golf courses across the Hill Country,” David said. He also takes pleasure giving his time to the All Saints Presbyterian Church of America.

David’s family are outdoors oriented, too. His wife, Connie, loves to fish and kayak. His children, Darci and Duff, and stepson Chance are deer hunters. These days Darci enjoys hiking, paddle board ing, and being on the water.

For those asking how to interest young people in the outdoors, and possibly become a game warden, David said, “As a game warden, every day is differ ent, exciting, and for the most part, an adventure. There’s not a single day that I dreaded putting on my uniform and go ing to work. Not many people can claim that statement. It’s so fulfilling working as a game warden. You positively influence others, especially young people.”

David has always been, and continues to be, heavily involved with protecting Texas’ wildlife resources. “I’ve spent my adult life enforcing and writing laws to protect fishing and hunting,” he said.

For these reasons, we gladly salute David Sinclair as a pioneer of our hunting heritage.

How do you pass the torch? Share your photos with us. Send them to editor@ttha. com. Make sure they’re 1-5 MB in file size.

Do your part to preserve our hunting heritage. Share your passion with the next generation. Pass the torch.

Photos Courtesy of Texas Hunter Products

David Sinclair proudly displays his whitetail buck taken in 2021.

FENCE POSTS

NEWS ABOUT HUNTING, GUN RIGHTS, AND LEGISLATIVE ITEMS

More Buck$ for Bucks in 2022?

The 2020 deer season was unusual and stressful for a lot of hunters because of the pandemic. Hunters had to choose between going hunting and staying inside, hiding from everything. It was a different deer season, but rather success ful because many hunters felt they were safer in the woods than in town. One of my close friends packed up and went to Real County to get away from the crowds and go without a mask. Life suddenly changed for all of us.

Deer hunters may be in for another unusual season, one associated with inflation. High prices for gas, feed, food, ammo, housing, cold storage—just to name a few items—will quickly empty your pocketbook. Two or three items that deer hunters must buy are gas, food and drink, and corn. Most hunters under 40 don’t know how to deer hunt without corn. Ammo may still be scarce, so no wasteful shooting with the old .270 or even the .223. This is not a good time to waste ammo.

I’m writing this in early fall, depend ing on the experts to tell us how much inflationary prices will affect us from September on through December. Most say everything associated with oil (gas, diesel, groceries) will be higher, and there’s little chance prices will get any cheaper this year. This means hunting will be more expensive in the fall and winter months. This may be the first year for “Biden Buck.”

Across the state, corn is selling for $12-13 per 50-pound sack. Some corner stores will show a $10-12 price tag, but for only a 40-pound sack, and the corn may be old and dirty. Any way you look

at it, corn will be a high-dollar item this fall, right along with gasoline and diesel.

Some friends say it’s already strain ing their pocketbook. Corn feeders that were going off 3-4 minutes, morning and evening, are now set for morning only at 2 minutes. On some leases and owner ships, it’s wise to keep a few feeders going all year. Right now, those are the folks looking closely at how much corn they’re feeding at $11 a sack. One of my friends said, “I’m using six 300-pound corn feeders. That is costing me $60 to fill one feeder.”

If I had to make a wild guess, I’d say corn might be somewhere around $12 a sack, gas and diesel might be about $4 per gallon—diesel maybe more—when dove and deer seasons roll around. Folks who travel long distances—round trip—to the hunt may decide to go less or stay longer. Hunters may even be less picky about shooting a buck because every trip to the hunt makes a buck more expensive.

So, the projections for hunting expens es this season don’t look too bright. Of course, deer hunters might let the kids go without shoes, cut family food, or move into a smaller house to protect their deer hunting. They will gripe, threaten to quit hunting, argue with family and friends about the cost, lean heavily on the meat they bring home, and even invite the preacher on a hunt.

But whatever it takes, Texas deer hunt ers will hunt every chance they get, and make it fit the budget. That’s the way it has been since time began, and it ain’t going to change.

—Horace Gore

TPW Commission Implements Two-Year CWD Surveillance Zone in Four Counties

A surveillance zone covering almost 200,000 acres in Duval, Jim Wells, Live Oak and McMullen counties will be implemented for two years after feedback was received in the August meeting of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commis sion. This zone will take effect prior to the 2022-2023 hunting season and TPW commissioners will consider the resulting data presented by Texas Parks and Wild life Department staff to assess the need for continued surveillance in the established zone.

This zone will include land between U.S. Highway 281 to the east, Farm to Market Road 624 to the north and U.S. Highway 59 to the west. The southern border follows a series of roads including County Road 101, Highway 44, County Roads 145, 172, 170, and 120.

This zone also includes the cities of Alice and Freer, as well as highways 59, 44, and 281 between the cities and the main body of the surveillance zone. This will provide a legal means for hunters to transport whole carcasses to deer-process ing facilities and/or CWD check stations located in those cities rather than having to quarter the carcasses first.

As of late August 2022, 376 captive or free-ranging cervids — including whitetailed deer, mule deer, red deer and elk — in 15 Texas counties have tested positive for CWD. First recognized in 1967 in captive mule deer in Colorado, CWD has since been documented in captive and/ or free-ranging deer in 30 states and three Canadian provinces.

Testing for CWD allows wildlife biolo

HUNTING NEWS

gists to get a clearer picture of the pres ence of the disease statewide. Proactive monitoring improves the state’s response time to a CWD detection and can greatly reduce the risk of the disease spreading to neighboring captive and free-ranging deer populations.

Hunters outside of established surveil lance and containment zones are encour aged to voluntarily submit their harvest for testing at a check station for free before heading home from the field. A map of TPWD check stations can be found on the TPWD website, along with more informa tion on CWD. To date there is no evidence CWD poses a risk to humans or noncervids. —courtesy TPWD

Landowner Objects to CWD Surveillance Zone

Editor’s note: We received the following letter before approval of TPWD’s new CWD surveillance zone, but due to our deadlines, couldn’t publish it until now. Nevertheless, we wanted to share it with our readers.

Editor:

TPWD is proposing the adoption of a new CWD Surveillance Zone in Duval and Jim Wells counties. The zone will consist of 644 square miles and over 400,000 acres. All in response to a single captive breeder deer testing positive a year ago. No other positive tests have been discovered in the area. Thousands of landowners and hunters are going to be blindsided by TPWD’s action, as it has not been adequately publicized.

The following was my objection I submitted to TPWD:

I am the owner of a 500-acre game fenced ranch in Jim Wells County. Today, by chance in a conversation with a wild life biologist, I was shocked to learn my property was going to be included in the proposed Duval County CWD Surveil lance Zone. I object to the proposed Duval County Zone as improperly noticed contrary to department policy and as overreaching.

I, as an affected landowner of record, was not provided any notice by the department and thus denied any involve ment in the creation or adoption of the Duval County zone.

It appears, without public comment and

involvement, the new zone was proposed and filed with the Secretary of State on June 4 for a possible adoption as early as Aug. 7, 2022. There were no press releases, social media announcements, public hearings, magazine publications, news stories, or mailings announcing the proposed zone or the research behind the proposal. In fact, the only mention of the department’s proposed actions I could locate on the internet was in the Texas Register. While constituting legal notice of the zone’s adoption, a single notice in the Texas Register clearly falls short of the department’s stated policy of “robust public awareness,” affording opportunity for public, and especially, landowner involvement.

Without a postponement of the proposed adoption of the Duval County Zone, nearly all other landowners in the 644 square mile/412,000-acre Duval County Zone are also going to be blind sided with the imposition of new regula tions affecting their land. All landowners in the new surveillance area must be afforded ample opportunity to review the department’s proposal and data and provide feedback without being limited to a single 5,000-character response on the department’s website. The adoption of the new Duval County Zone must be delayed and efforts made to provide robust public awareness.

Additionally, both the existence and the size of the proposed zone are overreach ing. It is my understanding the impetus for the proposed zone is a positive test of a single deer over a year ago in a high fenced breeding facility in Duval County. There is no credible evidence of any deer escaping or being released from the infected facility. Further, no free-ranging deer in the proposed area have tested positive.

I also understand there are 13 other breeding facilities in Duval County and no deer in the 13 breeding facilities have tested positive and no other deer transferred from the infected facility have tested positive. In response to the year-old case of the single Duval County captive deer testing positive, the department has in essence roped off a crime scene of 412,000 acres across two counties to do

a five-year investiga tion to confirm the absence of CWD in this massive area. This act is unreasonable, unnecessarily burdensome on landowners and their property values, and bears no reasonable relation to the location or the scientific probability of other cases in the area. If a zone is imposed, it must be more pre cisely and reasonably tailored to address the area surrounding the positive test for direct or indirect transmission rather than randomly following a path created by the highway department encompassing 644 square miles.

Accordingly, I respectfully request the department delay the adoption of the Duval County Zone until robust public awareness of the existence of the zone and the department’s data has occurred, public comment is received, and the zone is precisely tailored to address a legitimate area of concern.

George C. Noyes, San Antonio, Texas

Positive Notes on Whitetails

I think a positive note on Texas whitetailed deer is in order. We talk so much about CWD/scrapie, that we sometimes fail to look at deer from a positive angle. My 60-year experience with Texas deer and deer hunters is as follows:

1. Texas presently has an historically high whitetail population east of the Pecos River and south of the High Plains.

2. The quality of hunter-killed bucks in Texas is at an all-time high. Half the whitetail population, and half the whitetail harvest is in the 27-county Edwards Plateau of Central Texas—the Hill Country.

3. The average age of a hunter-killed buck in Texas is 31/2 years. Hunters presently take about 16% of the standing deer herd. Natural and man-made mortality accounts for another 5%. All losses are replen ished annually by year-old recruit ment. Some 98% of whitetails are subject to natural and man-made turnover every 3 to 5 years, which protects the herds from diseases and other mortality factors.

4. During the last 25 years, landown ers and hunters have placed more emphasis on quality deer. Genetic improvements from TTT, DMP permits, and breeding programs have added much to the quality of Texas whitetails.

5. Feeders have improved the deer harvest in Texas during the last 50 years, and trail cameras have increased the harvest of quality bucks in the last 20 years, espe cially in the dense forests of North and East Texas.

6. Whitetails are presently approach ing five million on 100 million acres of habitat.

7. Deer hunters have increased by 200,000 during the last 40 years, with 800,000 overall, but are not following the trend in Texas population of 30 million. The long, five-month deer seasons are con trolled by private landowners and a small percentage of the hunter-age population.

8. Approximately 22 million acres of deer habitat have been added in marginal deer ranges by high fences and/or supplemental feed ing; predation on Texas whitetails is low.

9. Biology/harvest of Texas deer herds—reproduction, hunting, natural mortality—creates natural barriers for clinically slow diseases such as CWD/scrapie, and anthrax outbreaks kill entire deer herds in small, isolated places in west ern counties, which are usually restocked with TTT permits. Blue tongue has never been a problem in Texas. Liver flukes, external parasites, and deciduous winter habitats limit whitetail numbers in East Texas.

10. Research has shown a small loop on the human protein protects it from rogue prions. Some folks are calling venison “America’s healthy red meat.”

11. Texas mule deer suffer from poor habitat, predation, and weather. CWD/scrapie has not shown any direct reduction in mule deer, but predation is a serious problem.

12. Stringent whitetail regulations have

caused many ranch owners to turn to exotics for additional and unique hunting, especially in South and West Texas.

The two distractions I see for the future of deer hunting in Texas are long, liberal deer seasons and bag limits for less than 10% of hunter-age Texans, and contain ment zones with stringent rules and regulations being created around a single positive for CWD/scrapie in breeder pens. The latest in South Texas involves 644 square miles in parts of four counties. These zones can be created anywhere, because Texas was the No. 1 sheep state for 100 years. I see these unnecessary zones as a deterrent to land values and deer hunting in the future.

P.S.: Deer hunting/lease revenue pays a lot of taxes, buys a lot of pickups, and sends a lot of kids to college! — HG

SCI Sues California over Canceled Youth Hunts Safari Club International is suing the state of California over AB 2571, which prohibits marketing or advertising of firearms to minors in the state. Because of its overly broad language, it does more than just violate constitutional freedoms. It threatens youth firearms training and education in the state. The law went into effect on July 1 and is already hav ing devastating effects on the hunting community.

For years, the SCI Orange County Chapter in California has hosted a Youth Quail Hunt. Started by Cliff and Toni McDonald, the hunt began with 17 youths in 2010 and has grown to 70+ in 2021. The three-day event teaches camping, conservation, hunting and harvest skills from start to finish at no cost to kids ages 8-15. For many, this is their first time hunting and a significant introduction to the outdoors. The weekend is held on the Mojave National Preserve, and the Cali fornia Department of Fish and Wildlife provides education and other resources at the event and has even created a special Early Season for hunters with junior hunt ing licenses in this area just to accommo date this hunt.

Due to AB 2571, this hunt—a critical youth program—has been canceled. Do nors, volunteers, and participants pulled out this year over fears that the new law

would expose them to up to $25,000 in liability—or more.

These fears are not unfounded as the law applies to any youth program that pro motes the use of firearms by a member of the “firearm industry” and imposes fines of $25,000 per impression, occurrence, or publication of prohibited communi cations. A law which was supposedly intended to reduce gun violence is only having devastating effects on the hunting community and eliminating youth from the outdoor lifestyle.

SCI, joined by Sportsmen’s Alliance, SoCal Top Guns, and the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation, lead the legal battle against this law that violates the free speech rights of hunters and puts well-established R3 efforts, like the Mojave Youth Quail Hunt, at risk. We’ll always defend your hunting freedoms regardless of age, species, or location. We stand first for ALL hunters. — courtesy SCI

CSF Supports Use of Traditional Ammo, Tackle within National Wildlife Refuge System

On Aug. 7, the Congressional Sports men’s Foundation (CSF) submitted a comment letter, signed by 30 of the top sporting-conservation organizations, to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in support of efforts to expand hunting and fishing opportunities, but also to express concerns with the effort to phase out the use of traditional ammunition and tackle.

Earlier this summer, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced the 20222023 proposed Hunt Fish Rule. The proposed rule seeks to increase access for sportsmen and women across 54,000 acres within the National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS). Unfortunately, the Hunt Fish Rule proposes to phase out the use of lead ammunition and tackle for expanded opportunities within nine NWRS units, effective in 2026.

In response to the proposed Hunt Fish Rule, CSF led a comment letter to express the support of the sporting-conservation community to strengthen access for hunters and anglers and to express the concerns from the community regarding seemingly arbitrary efforts to limit tradi tional lead and ammunition. —courtesy Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation

What Do You Need To Know About Your Deer Population?

By Dr. James C. Kroll

Virtually every wildlife science student is required to take a course entitled, Population Dynamics; a course that covers, as the name implies, how to study the dynam ics of animal populations. Central to the various concepts is estimating the population size of the species you manage. The need to know how many individuals exist in the population is so ingrained in wildlife students, they tend to focus religiously on learning how to estimate population size. Years ago, I wrote an article for TTHA entitled, “Irrational Numbers,” which discussed how practicing biologists obsess with conducting population censuses. Later, I brought up the idea of metrics for deer management.

Yet, as I noted in these articles, estimating how many animals exist in a population is the “La Brea Tar Pits” of wildlife manage ment. This is because you will never accurately determine popu lation size for most species you try to manage, particularly true

for white-tailed deer. The fastest way I know to lose credibility as a deer biologist is to tell a landowner or hunter how many deer they have. These folks live with the deer over the years and usually know their herd quite well.

For some biologist who has not set foot on the place, to proclaim there are “173 deer” is a foolhardy venture. I learned this first hand when I was appointed as Deer Trustee (aka “Deer Czar”) of Wisconsin. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) had completely lost credibility with the hunting public and landowners over how they were managing deer. Thought of as the Land of Aldo Leopold, the “Father” of American wildlife management, the WDNR enjoyed a high reputation among other state wildlife professionals as the best example of science-based management. In reality, what we discovered during our work in Wisconsin was they did not have reliable data on which to manage the state’s deer herds.

M arty B erry P hoto

Ranch “X” is not a high-fenced prop erty, so the target buck-to-doe ratio is 1:2. Note that this trail camera survey, in fall 2017, showed disparities in sex ratio across the ranch. The average was on target, but six camera stations showed higher buck abundance than three others. The management goal then is to develop a nutrition and habitat strategy to even out the buck distribution. All of this is done without the need for census, other than camera studies. When compared on a year to year basis, true progress in the management program is measurable.

The focus of public animosity toward the WDNR was use of an Excel spread sheet model to the pre- and post-hunt deer population by region. The outcome of the model hinged on the abundance of yearling bucks in the harvest, presumed to be an indicator of the abundance of year lings in the population. Yet, the modern whitetail hunter had grown way beyond the sophistication of the agency biologists, preferring more and more not to shoot yearlings. Since it was presumed lower yearling abundance in the harvest meant a higher population estimate, leading to the agency becoming locked into a death spiral of erroneous population estimates (±123%), and demands for higher harvests placed on hunters, ultimately leading to a decline in the deer population. One of our principle recommendations was to aban don the model and replace it with more useful metrics for population management.

Before I discuss these metrics, let’s examine some of the many ways biologists have tried to estimate deer populations. When I attended college, the preferred method of census in Texas was the Hahn Cruise Line. In other parts of the country, managers used such methods as track counts and pellet counts. The Hahn Cruise Line was a modification of an old bird census technique, in which an observer walked a set transect across the property and recorded the number of birdcalls or flushes observed.

A lot of effort was expended determin ing the average distance the observer could either hear or see a bird. Application to deer census involved estimating how far the observer could see a white handker

These are the recruitment estimates from trail camera surveys for Ranch “Y.” It approached the targeted 70 percent recruitment in 2014, but the herd appears to be sustaining at 70 percent since 2016.

chief in the back pocket of another person. That average distance was used to estimate the area censused. So, if you knew the area you censused, counted the number of individuals seen, you only had to divide the number in area to come up with an estimate of population density. Once you had a density (acres per deer) estimate, you could divide that number into the acres of the property to obtain a popula tion estimate. Variations of the method were developed, using more sophisticated measurements and techniques, but the principles remained the same.

In a spotlight count, you use a pickup and one or two spotlights, requiring at least three people. The count is conducted at night, along a pre-determined and premeasured course, thought to best repre sent the habitats of the property being censused.

The Track Count method was developed for use in dense habitats, where a Hahn

Cruise Line could not be used. It was based on the assumption that a deer’s travel radius was approximately a mile. It was based on early telemetry studies and was burdened with a lot of issues. The observer used a drag to smooth a section of dirt road that may be several miles long. Then you waited 24 hours and walked the line and counted the number of deer tracks that crossed the road per mile. Again, the number was converted to a density (acres per deer) estimate, then converted to estimated deer population. The Pellet Count was even more strange in the assumptions assumed in the model. You walked a transect and counted the number of “fresh” pellet groups observed per unit of distance (mile). Using some pretty interesting calculations involving the number of times a deer defecates, the observer came up with a population estimate. Later, it was discovered there was a huge variation in the number of times a

deer defecates in 24 hours.

The Spotlight Count remains an ac cepted population estimation technique, especially for dense habitats. It is nothing more than a modified Hahn Cruise Line using spotlights and a pickup truck. It takes three people to conduct a spotlight count. You select a route across the prop erty that best samples the various habitats, then either travel the route prior to the count estimating the visibility distance you can see a deer at tenth-mile intervals, or you estimate how far you can see a deer at tenth-mile intervals while you are conducting the count. I conducted several research projects aimed at calculating a correction factor for distance observed, related to habitat, but later abandoned the method. Our calculated error was about plus-or-minus 30 percent.

Each year, hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of dollars get spent on helicopter counts, particularly in Texas. It

really is just a modification of the above techniques, and just as plagued by error. Again, I submit that these counts have average errors of about plus-or-minus 30 percent. This means if you estimate you have 200 deer, you have somewhere between 140 and 260 deer. I am one of the few biologists who has ever done a complete kill on large properties (2,000+ acres), and every time, the actual number of deer removed was up to twice as many as census predicted.

In Wisconsin, we concluded we did not need a population estimate. We needed to know how many deer hunters wanted to harvest, then develop a plan to increase, stabilize, or decrease the population. To do so requires development of metrics that tell you reliably how the deer herd and habitat is doing. After all, the deer and their habi tat are “more than happy” to “tell” you how they are doing. But, what are these metrics and how do you use them?

Analysis of trail camera data for 2018 for Ranch “X.” In this case, ranch management has set a recruitment goal of 70 percent, which was achieved in 2018; however, this is only the average across the ranch. Since the study was done on a grid pattern for nine stations, areas on the ranch where recruitment is subpar are clearly identified. The “trick” then is to develop a strategy to even out recruitment.

From a deer population standpoint, you need to know the following:

• Age structure of the buck and doe segments

• True recruitment

• Body condition

• Antler quality

We pioneered the use of trail cameras to obtain reliable information on both age structure and recruitment. Several years ago, we came up with the idea that deer could be aged live on-the-hoof with rea sonable accuracy. When we proposed this, many of our colleagues ridiculed the idea, adding, “Even if you could age them by sight, you could never teach the ‘common’ hunter/landowner how to do it accurately.” Well, after almost a 100,000 books and videos, it is now common knowledge that deer can indeed by aged. Using trail cam era studies of two weeks at the right time of the year, we can accurately construct the age distribution of bucks and does in the herd. This is one aspect of demographics; the structure of a population. We then can measure annually how the herd is doing in response to specific harvest intensities. After all, you do not manage a herd; you “fine-tune” it.

Trail camera studies also are useful in estimating the true recruitment of the herd. How many times have you heard a biologist talk about the “fawn crop,” usually expressed in fawns per 100 does, or percent fawn crop? In reality, knowing what the fawn crop is (fawns per 100 does in October) gives you incomplete informa tion. Fawn crop does not mean all that much to me; but the number of fawns that live to be one year of age and join the herd, means a whole lot.

Doe age structure for two consecutive years on Ranch “X.” The age structure of does is increasing, which tells us not enough does are being removed.

That is true recruitment, expressed as a rate. We strive for at least 70 percent recruitment. Anything less than 40 per cent guarantees you will not have mature bucks.

Body condition indices are developed by collecting data from every deer harvested from the property. Measurements such as dress weight, lactation rates (percent does in milk), age and body condition indicators such as parasite loads can provide annual metrics of body condition. In many areas, we conduct health checks in February under state permits to determine other metrics such as fetal counts, age distribu tion of fetuses, parasite loads and kidney fat indices.

Antler measurements on harvested bucks and pickup sheds can tell you a lot about how your management program is doing. Antler size and measurements can tell you, not only something about the genetics of your herd, but also the nutritional plane of your deer. Something as simple as the presence or absence of “pearls” (the small protuberances around the antler bases) can indicate the nutrition of your bucks.

The habitat also will tell you how the deer are doing. The much maligned

browse surveys can tell you much about the quality of browse and the intensity of use. Although they do not tell you any thing about the number of deer you have, browse surveys can tell you the relative abundance of your deer. We express this as “stocking level”: low, moderate or high. In managing deer at the statewide level, there are other metrics that can help in making decisions whether to increase, sta bilize or decrease the herd. These include numbers of deer/car accidents and farmer complaints about deer depredation on crops. Lyme disease in humans also has

been used as a metric for whether or not to decrease the herd.

So, you see that estimating how many deer you have, not only is not accurate, but you really do not need to know how many deer you have. The development and use of metrics for making management decisions and assessing progress of your management program are far more useful. In the process of conducting our studies in Wisconsin, we were surprised to learn Native American tribes had been using these methods for years, way ahead of their “white” neighbors.

M arty B erry P hoto

A deer offers a big target in most Texas hunting situations.

The Journal of the Texas Trophy Hunters

Is it possible that deer hunters get too concerned about accuracy in their favorite rifle? Should they be concerned if “Old Betsy” won’t put three shots in a group the size of a quarter at 100 yards? Most hunters get their advice from shooting pundits who write more than they shoot. Fact is, most deer get killed at less than 100 yards, and deer-size animals offer large target areas that are fatal and do not require target accuracy.

Back in the ’50s, my friend Edgar Woodly hunted in Gillespie County near Cherry Spring. He had a Sears Roebuck .270 made by High Standard and a 4-power Weaver scope. Before each season he would put up an 8-inch paper plate at about 75 yards, shoot three shots, and go to the target. If he hit the plate two times out of three, he was ready for the hunt, and he got his bucks every year.

Whoa! Don’t get me wrong. Bullet placement is paramount, but deer hunters have some leverage in what is hunting ac curacy. If the average aficionado of rifle shooting can put most of the shots in a 3-inch circle at 100 yards, such accuracy will result in a lot of dead deer. Under normal hunting conditions, deer hunters usually have a shooting rest of some kind, but it’s not like the shooting bench. A rest out the window of a pickup or deer blind will put bullets in a scattered group at 100 yards, but if they all fall in a circle of 3-4 inches, it’s meat on the table!

I’ve killed a lot of deer during the last 60 years, and I’ve had some fine deer rifles. A favorite is a Winchester Model 70 .270 in a custom walnut stock, with engraving by Tommy Kaye. The

Target accuracy is not needed in a good deer rif le, according to the author.

rifle has an aftermarket 22-inch light barrel that groups bullets about 2 inches at 100 yards. I tried everything to improve the group, but nada!

I liked the rifle so well, I just dismissed the fact it would not group well. During a period of 30 years, I used that rifle on many whitetails and mule deer from Mexico to the Rockies and never missed getting the buck. In fact, most were one-shot kills, and I never had a crippling loss. In that rifle, trigger pull and balance were more important than bullet groups.

Accuracy in a hunting rifle is important up to a point, but other factors are important to a good deer rifle. Trigger pull, balance (barrel length), a good scope, and proper ammo are probably more important than target accuracy. As a rule, white tails get killed at a closer distance than mule deer. But mule deer pose a big target with a good scope, and the hunter has time to pick a good gun rest. Mule deer are not hard to kill with proper bullet placement in rather large target areas—lungs, shoulder, etc.

In Texas, most deer hunters will kill their deer at less than 100 yards, and have some kind of shooting rest. The most important thing in getting the buck is not how accurate the rifle is, but the hunter’s ability to wait for a shot that will expose the base of the neck, the shoulder, or the lungs, directly behind the shoulder. A lung shot is best because it’s a 6-inch target that’s fatal and wastes very little meat. Another fatal shot is where the neck reaches the shoulder and is a 5-inch target. Shoulder shots are good if you don’t care how much meat you waste.

Most hunters can shoot a mild recoiling rifle better than one that rattles their teeth. Shots up to 250 yards can be accom plished with a .243, 7mm-08, 6.5 Creedmoor, or a .25-06, and the recoil will be tolerable. I believe a 7mm-08 with 22-inch barrel shooting 120- or 140-grain bullets at 3,000 fps may be the perfect Texas deer rifle. However, my daughter has made many one-shot kills with her .243, and I have hunted deer with a favorite .270 and .257 Roberts improved more than any other calibers. But they’re what I started with many years ago, and today I would probably select a nice 7mm-08 with a 3-9X Leupold scope and 3-pound trig ger, using 139-grain Hornady bullets. For some reason, Texas deer hunt ers think a South Texas buck is harder to kill than a Hill Country deer. More hunters in South Texas use 7mm Magnums than any other caliber. And the 7 Mag. has too much recoil for a lot of hunters. The ones I’ve shot kicked like a mule. The dog people who chase crippled deer from Del Rio to Browns ville tell me more bucks get crippled with the 7 Mag. than any other caliber in South Texas.

I suspect much of the problem is NOT accuracy, per se, but yanking the trigger and closing the eyes when they shoot. Bullet impact on a buck can be very erratic when the shooter is fighting the rifle. A mild-recoiling rifle with a good bullet of 100 to 150 grains, and a muzzle velocity of 2,900 to 3,000 fps will kill a South Texas buck faster than a dog can trot. It’s all in the mind, and bullet placement is the key to killing power.

A deer hunter should shoot the big gest caliber that they can shoot well. I’ve always liked the .270, but my friend Al Brothers likes the .264 Mag. Dean Davis likes the .25-06, and his dad Er nie likes the .270. Jerry Johnston likes the .300 Win. Mag., and James “Dr. Deer” Kroll likes the 6.5 Creedmoor. My daughter Donna likes either the .243 or 7mm-08, and she shoots both very well. Jimmy Gallagher likes his 7 Mag., and Bubba Schmidt of Gonzales likes his new 6.5 Weatherby Magnum. My friends shoot the rifles they shoot best.

The trend of rifles for Texas deer hunting is slowly, but surely, going from the larger calibers to the milder recoil ing calibers, and the top choice seems to be 6.5. The 6.5 Creedmoor, 6.5-284,

6.5 Swede, and the .264 Win. Mag. are popular these days. This doesn’t mean that the .30-06, .270, 7mm Mauser, .257 Roberts, .250 Savage, .300 Savage, .243 Winchester, 6mm Rem ington, .257 Weatherby—and other Magnums—are obsolete. It just points to the fact hunters are tired of being kicked around. Today’s hunters are looking forward to hunting with the milder calibers like the 7mm-08 that will kill a buck eating corn under a feeder at 75 yards very quickly and peacefully.

The author says anyone who can consistently hit a drink can at 75-80 yards will be successful with bullet placement on a whitetail.

The author helped his wife, Tracey, celebrate beat ing cancer by arranging a whitetail hunt. She bow shot this buck, nicknamed “Fosgate,” at 24 yards.

STORY

My wife Tracey began bowhunting with me when we were 19 years old. She didn’t grow up in a hunting family, but she quickly discovered how exciting and rewarding it can be. With attending college, starting a career, and raising our three beautiful daughters, her participation has ebbed and flowed, but her enjoyment of bowhunting has never changed. Throughout the years, she has taken some nice whitetails, mule deer, blacktails and even bowhunted in Africa a couple times.

Sometimes life is good at dealing us a dose of perspective. Two years ago, our family was rocked by the news that Tracey had colon cancer. Her surgery and chemotherapy treatments were happening at the start of the pandemic.

When you face the kind of fear and uncertainty associated with cancer, you start looking for positive distractions—things to look forward to. I decided to get her a new custom Bowtech Solution SD and get her looking for ward to some good hunts with it. She quickly fell in love with her new bow. She hadn’t had a new bow since 2013 and practiced with it nearly every day leading up to the 2021 season. Her excitement got me fired up!

After she completed her cancer battle with a win, I looked forward to celebrating. On a small piece of land I managed for 7 years, I had a buck I’d been watching that was hitting his peak. He was a free-range buck any one would be excited about, a main frame 10 with matching split G2s, matching kickers, and a bonus kicker.

He was super symmetrical, and my years of low-pressure feeding and habitat improvement had him feeling comfortable in his routine. We named him “Fosgate.” I had high hopes and Tracey was obsessed with him.

As bow season rolled around, an unusual persistent north wind plagued us for the first week of the season. We needed a south wind. Once the wind started cooperating, Tracey sat three times, patiently wait ing for him to show. She didn’t want me to sit with her because she said I make her nervous when a target buck approaches because I start getting excited. I had watched this buck on camera so much I really wanted to see him in person and share the experi ence with her, so I promised to be a good boy.

On Oct. 12, 2021, we took every precaution imaginable to get into our stand location undetected. This involved taking a carefully chosen path to the blind, a slow, long walk and feet wrapped in plastic bags for the last 200 yards to avoid any possibility the buck would know we had walked through the area. Go ahead and poke fun. I’m laughing all the way to the taxidermist.

We were in the blind well before light. The anticipation as the darkness gave way to seeing dark-gray shadows you’d swear are deer moving made my heart race. Slowly, the blue light of the early morning revealed a slight movement I knew was a deer. I could see the bottoms of deer legs.

They carefully took a couple steps and paused. I could see an antler tip through the brush in my binos. I could hear my heart in my ears. Just as his head cleared the brush, I realized it was just a young buck.

Tracey had told her husband she didn’t want him sitting with her in the blind because he gets too excited and makes her nervous.

I felt my entire body melt into my chair. I understood Tracey’s concern about me sitting with her. I’m a freak about big bucks and words can’t describe how badly I wanted her to get Fosgate. Could I follow through with my promise to stay calm if he actually walked out?

I had to have a quick and firm internal discussion with myself. “You calm down, mister,” I told myself as I wagged my finger incredulously—all in my head, of course. Just as I composed myself, I spotted movement coming from the trail where I had imagined Fosgate arriving on 1,000 times. I had pored over hundreds of trail camera pictures of Fosgate over his 6-year life, but I couldn’t have felt more amazed by how incredible he looked as he stepped out. This was the very first time I had seen him in person.

I snapped myself into immediate composure. I quickly glanced over at Tracey. In the low light inside the ground blind, I could see her eyes acknowledge my affirmation that it was Fosgate. All of her preparation, experience and nerves would be tested.

Fosgate approached with the most incredible caution I can describe. That blind had purposefully not been hunted in years, yet he remained hyper-vigilant. Every second felt like waiting for a bomb to go off. In these situations, even the

tiniest swirl of wind could trigger him or another approaching deer to blow the whole deal. Finally, he turned to the perfect position for a 24-yard opportunity. She drew, held, settled like a champion, and shot.

I used my cell phone to record video and didn’t get a good look at where the arrow hit. Tracey immediately asked, “Did I hit him good?” I wanted to jump for excitement, but for some reason we felt anxious. After watching and rewatching the video on my phone, we realized not only did she hit him, she had hit him perfectly.

As soon as we found her arrow, her pride was evident. As we followed a 50-yard blood trail that ended with Fosgate, I felt flooded with pride, emotion and thankfulness. Thankfulness that all the work over years had paid off with a giant buck for sure, but an over-riding thankfulness that I was living this very moment, with this woman I love so much and watching her win—again!

As if her fairy tale ending wasn’t enough, two weeks later she went hunting at the Charco Marrano Ranch in South Texas and shot another giant with her new bow. She shot her two biggest bucks ever, all during bow season! I thank the Lord for these experiences, for my family, and for every day He gives us together.

Tracey’s husband kept his excitement in check for her sake, which helped her hunt end in success.

Chumming for Fish

BY WILL LESCHPER

It’s the first rule in fishing: fish where the fish are. However, sometimes de spite our best efforts, the fish simply aren’t around. In those instances, we as anglers must stack the deck in our favor, and the easiest way to do that is to get our hands a little dirty.

Chumming often is thought of mainly as an offshore tactic, but in Florida and in some other Gulf coast locales, it widely is used for inshore situations. The method can take a variety of forms, but the ap proach is the same as you attempt to lure angling targets with a concoction consist ing of dead shrimp, bait fish or other small edibles that can be dispensed in a number of ways.

A July 1965 report from the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department archives offers a glimpse at bay chumming, most of which holds true to this day.

“Menhaden, anchovies, small sand trout and croakers can be cut up or run through a meat grinder to make chum. Trickled slowly but steadily overboard from an anchored boat, carried along the side of a good reef by the current, the chum line will almost certainly bring fish to the baited hook and have them excited enough to bite,” according to the report.

The description also detailed a common way to find your own live bait with a cast net.

“Menhaden, mullet, silversides, mollies, pupfish, killifish, small crabs and shrimp are common around bay edges, sometimes only a few steps from the shoulder of a road. Taken home and frozen whole or ground into meal, they make good chum and also serve to pre-chill your portable ice box on the way to the bay,” according to the report.

The report also discussed how to entice at least one species that typically lurks near bulkheads, oil wells, piers and other manmade structure.

“If the sheepshead won’t bite, try exciting them into a feeding mood by scraping the barnacles and other crusted animals off the pilings or rocks with a long-handled shovel or hoe taken along purposely for this trick.”

Black drum are great-eating fish. Some folks would say they’re better than redfish and flounder. Regardless of your stance, these fish hunt by smell, making chumming a great way to boat a limit of “puppy drum.”

There’s more than one way to skin a cat, as the old saying goes, and in the case of chumming, it’s all a matter of preference.

I had the opportunity to use chum bait bags packed with ground shrimp on an excursion out of Key West a number of years ago with great success. Patch reefs are common in Florida

and typically teem with fish, but during our outing the angling was slow, until the chum bags were flipped over the side. As the chum slowly crept from its putrid hiding spot, the bite almost instantly spiked. We went from flipping small jig heads tipped with shrimp to no avail to hooking up on every cast before the lure could even get near the underwater structure, catching yel lowtail snapper – which typically are wary of heavier line – and a variety of other reef dwellers.

The key to chumming is concentrating fish. The best way to do that is to create a scent trail that will maximize how many scaly denizens are attracted. That means however you put out chum, make sure it is allowed to work with the current and is above whatever location you’re working.

There are a number of tested approaches to chumming. The easiest on a shallow flat is to simply toss diced shrimp or bait fish into the water and wait a little while. The downside to this method is you may attract gulls and other birds that could also scoop up live or dead baits you throw out.

Other ways to brew a foul attractant are to make your own frozen mixture by plopping your bait choice into water and freez ing it to make a block that can be toted along in an ice chest. I’ve seen anglers who stuffed a milk carton halfway with diced bait fish and filled the rest with water before sticking it in the deep freeze. They then simply tied a line to the handle, popped the lid and threw it in the water when it was needed.

Another approach is to use a chum bag. There are specially made bags of mesh that are relatively inexpensive, but you also can use whatever you may have laying around such as a burlap sack or other porous container. You simply place your fro zen or fresh offering in the bag and cinch it closed before dump ing it overboard tied to a line.

Chumming will bring in anything that likes eating other critters – which can be irritating if less

White bass that school up can be easier targets for anglers. Chumming can help bring in schooling fish that are hungry and will latch onto much larger baits than you might think.

desired species such as hardheads or gafftops move in. However, many anglers dismiss the effectiveness of using chum for sought species including redfish, trout and even flounder. The two for mer species will gang up around any food source so chumming makes great sense, especially if the bite has slowed. Flatfish also will come to the smell of dead bait, especially if you’re fishing along drop-offs or small variances in terrain. Many anglers also may not consider their angling pursuits to include chumming but anytime you sling out multiple rods with cut bait of any form on the other end you technically are offering up chum.

One sure way to find speckled trout or redfish is to follow what veteran anglers term “slicks,” which are produced by feed ing fish just below the surface eating shrimp or small bait fish and essentially are moving chum balls. The game fish eat until they can’t anymore and have to spit out some of their prey, while parts of some of the bait fish and oils also will escape through the gills of trout and reds. This will leave a sheen on the surface, which sometimes can be large and is best discerned with a pair of polarized lenses. Seasoned anglers also will smell around when winds are up for what hints of watermelon, the aroma that emanates from these slicks.

The TPWD report summed things up nicely when discussing the implications of chumming.

“It may mean the difference between success and an empty stringer,” the report states.

I couldn’t agree more.

Brandon shot this eight-point buck in November 2020 on a Panhandle creek.

The first time I ever saw a mega-sized whitetail buck in rough canyon-country, it was totally by accident. It was after deer season had closed, late January if my memory is correct, and I was hiking through nasty red rock canyons and dry badlands calling winter coyotes. Up ahead, maybe 200 yards, a flash of white caught my eye. Through 10X binoculars I focused on the twitching tail of a beautiful 150-class buck. I felt like a ditch digger who’d just discovered a golden nugget in the muddy muck.

For the next half hour, I watched that buck meander through steep, rocky terrain more typical of mule deer or even aoudad sheep. That western whitetail was living in what I call fringe habitat, terrain with just enough groceries and water to sustain a low-density deer population.

Rough country hunting ain’t easy

Too often, we deer hunters hunt the easy places. We choose stand sites based on ease of approach from a nearby road, or hunt only the places where we see lots of deer. The problem is those places of convenience are often heavily trafficked and heavily hunted. Now think of the potential reward of hunting where it’s not so easy. Bucks are hunted less, so they have a bet ter chance of reaching prime antler growing years of 5, 6 and 7 years old. Because of a low human presence, those same bucks might be more inclined to move in daylight hours, too.

Since that first big buck sighting in broken canyon country many years ago, I’ve found other jumbo-sized bucks in unlikely

places. I shot my first big whitetail, a 160-plus buck with 13 scoreable points, in November 1998 after a lung-burning stalk in steep canyon country. Using my dad’s old .30-06, I dropped that buck near a small creek. The mass on his beams looked like something more common on a buck from Alberta, Canada.

According to Texas Parks and Wildlife biologist Todd Montandon in Canyon, Texas: “Whitetails’ range has been increasing westward across the Panhandle region for the last 15-20 years. I think the expansion is habitat driven. Over the years, brush has encroached throughout much of the Rolling Plains and canyon country. This encroachment has happened slowly for several reasons, the most influential one being a lack of wildlife which, historically prevented the spread of red berry juniper.

“CRP has also played a role in the increased range of white tails. Those areas where the landscape is dominated by cultiva tion makes it difficult for whitetails to fulfill all their habitat needs. As the CRP fields matured, they provided a corridor for wildlife to travel between areas of suitable habitat. Whitetails are so widespread because they are a habitat generalist, mean ing they are very adaptable and can tolerate a wider range of habitats.

“Within the canyon country, whitetails are typically more common as the habitat gets brushier. I hear from landowners and hunters that the whitetails have pushed the mule deer out of areas they were once common. What is happening is mule deer don’t have as high a tolerance for brush, so over time as

Rubs like this one on a mesquite tree indicate bucks are in the area.

Rugged canyons like this offer a scenic backdrop for a deer hunt. Deer numbers are low in such places, but bucks have a good chance of reaching maturity.

the brush gets thicker, the habitat now favors whitetails.

“The effect of the current drought on the population will be evident with the success or lack thereof in the coming fawn crop. Last year, conditions were favorable leading up to fawning, so recruitment was a little above average. This year, however, habitat conditions during gestation have been poor across much of the region, so I would expect fawning percent ages to be lower this year in both whitetails and mule deer. As for competition, whitetails and mule deer diets are virtually the same in areas where the two overlap, so food and space could become limiting if population levels get high enough.

“The advantage is with whitetails in the brushier country and with mule deer in the rougher, more open habitat. Although, when you add aoudad into the mix in the steep country, there is even more pressure on mule deer. Whitetail densities are variable from ranch to ranch, but overall averages about 65 acres/deer in the caprock country and western Rolling Plains. Higher densities tend to be along riparian areas.”

Researching data from the Texas Big Game Awards (TBGA) is a good way to see where big bucks come from each year. The top TBGA non-typical whitetail taken in the Panhandle in 2021 came from Armstrong County on the rim of Palo Duro Canyon. Wyatt Arndt shot that buck as it chased a doe in short mes

quites near the edge of rough canyon terrain. The 6½-year-old buck gross-scored 198 5⁄8 and netted 1937⁄8 . Monte George took the Panhandle’s top typical in Ochiltree County. That giant buck gross-scored 1916⁄8 and netted 179. Two world-class bucks taken from counties with low deer numbers and rough terrain.

Traveling bucks

Some of my favorite rough country hunts have taken place in the Texas Panhandle, a landscape more like western prairies and winding river bottoms than the classic thick mesquites, cactus, and flat country that most people think of when they think of Texas. You find a variety of landscapes in the Pan handle. From steep canyons and rocky mesas to CRP fields and scattered agriculture to river bottoms lined with ancient cottonwoods and cow pastures dotted with short mesquites. The top of Texas holds a bit of everything. The bucks in these low-density populations often travel great distances, especially during the rut when they search for receptive does.

A couple years ago, a friend of mine in the northern Texas Panhandle spotted a big 160-class buck with a distinctive 5-inch drop tine on his left beam. A week later, while driving a backcountry road and glassing a CRP field, he spotted the same distinctive drop tine buck chasing a doe. The distance between

sightings was eight air miles.

The good news about these wandering nomads is that while there may be nothing of interest on your hunting property one day, a transient buck might pass through the very next day. When you see one of these big-racked nomads, it’s important to make the most of that opportunity because he could easily be gone tomorrow.

Back in 2015, a friend sent me a fuzzy cell phone picture of a stud buck. The non-typical buck had matching forks on both G-2s. We guessed his rack was 170-180 inches. He was courting a doe just across the fence from a property I hunt. The terrain consisted of a small creek, tall cottonwood trees and steep, colorful canyon walls. A month later, in early December, the same buck showed up on my trail camera at a corn feeder near the creek. I hunted that area for the next month, but never saw him. He was only on the camera the one day.

I remembered the advice from a wise friend whose killed many big bucks in his life. He said, “If a new buck shows up on your place, pay special attention to that date. There’s a reason that buck is there, either chasing does, looking for food, or avoiding pressure from another property. Be there at that same place on the same date next year.”

Sure enough, the next year, and only a couple of days from the same date the year before, he returned. I spent a few days in that ground blind, ultimately taking him with one wellplaced arrow on Dec.10, 2016. A cross section of his teeth conducted by Matson’s Lab in Montana indicated he was 8-9 years old. His rack was a little smaller than the year before, 160 inches counting the extras, but he still had 15 points and the distinctive forks on both G-2s, although his left side fork was broken.

Rough country bucks will visit corn feeders like other whitetails. Location is key. I like to put a corn feeder near water, like a meandering creek. Traveling bucks will parallel that water system and discover the free corn.

Because deer numbers are low, be very conservative in what you harvest. One of my favorite hunting spots is a wind ing creek under canyon walls. I can hunt about one mile of that river bottom. Speaking from years of hunting it, there’s usually about 15-20 resident deer that live in that one mile of habitat.

Taking only one buck per year ensures good bucks for the future. If I need meat, I’ll shoot does somewhere else. The buck to doe ratio is tight, approximately one to one. On a “good” sit in a blind I would be seeing six deer, and there are days when I see zero. The trade off is when you do see a buck, it’s often a mature buck with a fine rack.

Hunting low deer density, tough-terrain areas is not for everyone. But if you like wild country, beautiful scenery, ad venture, and the chance to see an Alberta-sized buck, it might be just the change you need.

Brandon shot this Panhandle buck on Dec. 10, 2016. The same buck appeared on his trail camera the year before. Tooth wear indicated the buck was 8-9 years old at the time he shot it.

Another Year of Texas

Drought

This one will leave a mark

By Gary Roberson

in events of all sorts in high school and college. This rugged lifestyle has afforded me to witness more than my share of bad wrecks, some that required hospitalization and oth ers that didn’t. Upon witnessing one of these “wrecks,” I remember thinking or hearing someone say, “That’s going to leave a mark,” knowing dang well the event would leave much more than a mark. Chances are there were numerous stitches and one or more broken bones. 2022 is a year that’s going to leave a mark on wildlife and the landscape of Texas.

I’m no stranger to dry weather. I was born in Castroville, Texas, in March 1953, during the drought of the 1950s. Since the seven-year drought went from 1950-1957, I guess you could say I was born in the middle of it. I don’t remem ber much about it because I was too young to burn prickly pear, which was about the only “cow feed” surviving on the ranch. I do remember in 1957 when the drought broke, my parents and grandparents were excited, and I saw Black Creek swell out of its banks for the first time.

I’m not going to blame just 2022 for the drought here in the Hill Country. 2021 had a lot to do with the wreck we’re in. While 2021 started out to be a pretty good year with av erage to above average rainfall in Menard County, someone turned the spicket off in June. While we had some fair rain in September, it wasn’t enough to saturate the ground. This has been the story for 2022 as well. It has rained, but gener ally less than a half inch at a time, which merely wets the surface. The excessive heat and wind that go hand in hand with a drought dry the shallow moisture in a day or two.

While I am the eternal optimist, I must say this deer sea son is shaping up to be substantially below average. Ranches overstocked with livestock and a high deer population are already losing animals. The only ranches where I see healthy deer and good antler growth are those that have an aggressive feeding program, which means 18-20% protein, free choice. Unfortunately, most hunters cannot afford to feed the deer herd with what it costs today.

This drought is not only retarding antler growth for this season, perhaps the greatest harm is how it will adversely affect the fawns born in a drought for the remainder of their life. Unfortunately, I have been finding dead fawns on ranches for the last two months while the fawns that lay around my house are in poor body condition. These deer not only have the luxury of eating Miss Deb’s plants, they wander off the hill and into Menard every evening where they spend the night consuming most anything green.

While the wildlife struggles to find enough food to survive, the toll that the wildlife and livestock are having on plant life will have the longest effects. One of my favorite plants native to Menard County and loved by deer is ephedra. Ephedra, also known as “Indian tea” or “Mormon tea,” is purported to have several me dicinal qualities. Picking the leaves and boiling them in water

Left: An ephedra plant looks more like tinder because of the lack of rain. Right: Rocky Creek is normally a spring-fed tributary of the upper San Saba River.

produces a naturally sweet brown tea that is supposed to aid with stomach problems and even treat syphilis. While I cannot attest to its healing qualities, I must admit that I do enjoy the tea from time to time.

The deer around my home have killed all but one of the ephedra plants that I knew grew on the 5 acres surrounding the house. Greenbriers that were once thick in several live oak mottes and shinnery thickets are gone, leaving a 2-inch stub. Hackberry saplings are dead because they have not been al

lowed to leaf out and older hackberry trees have a pronounced browse line. The Hill Country doesn’t have as many desirable woody plants for deer as the brush country, so those that are favored by deer and wildlife, may not survive.

While the loss of natural browse will be affected for several years, another huge is scar is the reduced flow from springs that water much of the Hill Country. There are six spring-fed creeks that feed into the San Saba River from the north between Menard and the headsprings at Fort McKavett. Today, there are only two that are still flowing, Clear Creek and Cogden Branch and to my knowledge, they have never gone dry.

Jacob’s Well in western Hays County has stopped flowing for only the fourth time in history. This spring feeds Cypress Creek that flows through Wimberly and an entire ecosystem has grown up along it, saying nothing about all the recreation it creates. While this spring has dried up in the past, today I fear that it will have a much more difficult time recharging due to the thousands of wells that have been drilled in the area for homesites. Fragmentation of large ranches into subdivisions has put an extreme burden on the groundwater supply.

Yes, 2022 is going to leave a mark, and one that we are not getting over anytime soon.

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STORY

In 2019, the author’s niece, Mia, went home empty handed after her hunting trip. But nearly a year later, she would finally get herself a trophy buck.

Naturally competitive with maybe just a touch of sibling rivalry, my youngest niece, Mia, had been giving no shortage of reminders that she wanted to go deer hunting. Being the middle child and apparently never getting to do anything first—according to her—she didn’t have to think twice when I finally invited her to go to my deer lease for a chance to shoot a buck, especially before her big sister, Briley, did. At long last, the weekend after Christmas in 2019, Mia, her father Mike, and I packed up and made the five-hour drive to my deer lease, outside of Doss, Texas, for Mia’s first chance at a deer. Unfortunately, she would return home from her first hunt ing trip empty-handed.

Fast forward almost a year to the day, the same trio loaded up the truck to finish what we started a year prior. However, despite all of our best intentions, it turned out Mia would not be the first of her siblings to shoot a buck. Briley had claimed that title nearly two months prior, during the October 2020 youth weekend while hunting with their father. Even though she would have to go without bragging rights of being the first this time, she remained in good spirits and excited for the upcoming hunt.

We spent the drive to the lease recapping lessons learned from the year before and going over what to expect this time around, including what to look for in a mature buck, where to aim and when to squeeze the trigger. Arriving at camp after dark, Mia and Mike got to witness me exercise my not-soexpert-level breaking and entering skills because I had forgot ten the keys to the camper in the rush to get out of town. After cracking the less-than-vault-like camper security system, we settled in to rest up for the long-awaited morning hunt.

After a fairly sleepless night, or at least for myself, we arose before dawn and made our way to the blind after a light break fast, just as we did nearly a year before. This year we would be hunting out of a larger blind at a different feeder, which would more comfortably accommodate the three of us than the one we all managed to squeeze into the prior year. As the day slowly materialized out of the night, we watched silhouettes milling around the feeder in anticipation of their morning meal. Right on schedule, the unmistakable sound of the feeder through the predawn light signaled to all critters within earshot that breakfast was served.

Watching as the area around the feeder became the stage for nature’s star performers, we naturally gave extra attention to those sporting head gear, as we tried to determine if any of them would be worthy of the young huntress’ first buck. Just when it seemed no more room was at the breakfast table, in walked a noticeably older buck from stage right that ap peared on the downhill slide of his tenure. This old veteran had been spotted by other hunters earlier in the season and had an abnormally wide rack for the Hill Country, but his tine lengths fell a little short. After a brief discussion and thoroughly examining the candidate, Mia decided she wanted to take the shot at him.

As Mike and I kept our eyes on the buck through binocu lars, Mia carefully maneuvered the rifle out the window and positioned the stock to her cheek as if she had been doing it for

Mia and her father with her buck.

years. With all our eyes on target, we whispered to her to stay calm and reiterated where to aim and to slowly squeeze the trigger when she was ready. As the buck began to turn broadside, she confirmed she had a steady aim on him, and we gave her the greenlight to set the rifle to fire. Hearing the distinct click of the safety, we sat almost breath less as we anticipated her moment of truth. Suddenly, another buck appeared out of nowhere behind the wide-framed buck that seemingly dwarfed him in both body and antler size. Seeing this new brute, I may have let out a colorful word or two in my excitement. I quickly instructed her to not shoot the first buck because there was no doubt this was the buck she needed to take. Although not quite as old or as wide as the first buck, this bruiser had notice ably more antler mass and tine length and was unques tionably a mature deer.

Instructing Mia to take aim on the new buck, we reemphasized to her to stay calm and not rush the shot. As soon as he stepped clear and broadside, the morning silence broke as the shot rang out. The buck hunched up and stumbled forward, indicating Mia had hit her target. We watched as the wounded buck ran up the hill behind the feeder before disappearing into the brush. As we sat in disbelief of what had just happened and how quickly it transpired, it was hard to tell who was more excited through all the smiles and high fives.

After allowing adequate time for the buck to expire, we exited the blind and made our way towards the feeder to look for signs of blood to give Mia her first deer tracking lesson. Approaching the spot where the buck had been standing, we immediately found the crimson evidence we had hoped to find. Following in the direction we watched him run, we found the next few drops about 10 feet away. Continuing to search up the hill in the direction he ran, our hearts began to sink because we did not find another single drop of blood.

Scouring the terrain, Mike and I discussed finding someone with a deer-tracking dog. We agreed it would be best not to search too much and put too much of our scent down, just in case we could locate a tracking dog. With heavy hearts, we backed out and returned to camp to try to find someone in the area with a tracking dog. With no reception at the lease, we had to drive about 10 miles to get a call out.

After asking around, we called the only tracker close to where we were, only to find out he was on his way to track another animal hours from where we were. He wouldn’t be able to get to us for at least seven hours. Unable to make it to us in a timely manner, he instead instructed us to go back and keep looking, but to stay together as a group in order to minimize

adding any additional scent to the area.

On the drive back to camp, we barely spoke because hopes of recovering Mia’s deer began to fade with each passing minute. We returned to the hill to pick up the search where we had left off. Following the tracker’s instructions, we resumed the search for any signs of her deer. Reaching the plateau of the hill, the vegetation opened up, allowing for greater visibility.

Mia and Mike continued their search in one direction, while I decided to continue searching in the direction where I last saw the buck run. About 20 yards into my search on the plateau, my doubts and fears of not finding her buck instantly disap peared when I heard from a distance, “WE FOUND HIM!” Fol lowing the sound of their voices, I rounded a cedar bush to find the proud huntress and her even prouder father standing over a beautiful 10-point Hill Country buck that would even make the most seasoned hunter proud.

The search for her buck was finally over, and made more special by the fact that he wasn’t found by her dad or me, but by the brand-new bona fide huntress herself. And despite not having been the first between her and her sister to shoot a deer, I believe her competitive nature was satisfied because her buck’s antlers were bigger than the ones on her big sister’s buck. Although the sound of the rifle from her first deer faded in an instant, the precious memories made that weekend will echo with the three of us forever. Fanning the fire of sibling rivalry, despite not being the first to do something yet again, little sister would now have bragging rights of having shot the bigger deer, at least for now.

Mia with her uncle.

The Texas Gulf Coast is an outdoor paradise regardless of whether you’re pursuing game with hook or bullet, and in some cases involving cast-and-blast outings, both. While the Gulf coastline in the Lone Star state runs hundreds of miles, the area centering on Corpus Christi is prime real es tate for a great combination of hunting and fishing exploits that simply don’t exist anywhere else on the planet. The best part is you only need to take a short drive in almost any direction to find something totally different in the outdoor realm.

Less than an hour to the north, the Rockport area features exceptional bay waterfowl hunting in fall and winter, and redhot skinny water redfish action year-round. Head an hour west and you find superb brush country hunt ing for big whitetail bucks and the diminutive javelina that is among the most distinctive creatures around. And finally, saving possibly the best for last, an hour drive southwest puts you smack dab in the heart of the Wild Horse Desert where massive nilgai are thick and the waters of Baffin

Don’t overlook South Texas for excellent sandhill crane hunting opportunities. These birds found a field near Riviera to their liking and stayed for multiple days.

Bay harbor world-class trophy speck led trout fishing.

Another enticing hunting oppor tunity are the numerous exotic hunts on nearby game ranches that harbor dozens of sought-after species includ ing African antelope of all shapes and sizes and even feral hogs that certain ly need to be thinned out no matter where they’re found. About the only species you won’t find in this part of Texas are pronghorn antelope, mule deer and pheasants, but don’t worry. We’ve even got gators that feature a very different hunt earlier in the year!

While some Texas residents can hunt multiple weeks and maybe even months out of the year, the common hunter and angler likely goes out on shorter trips that are essentially three-day weekend type outings. With that in mind, here’s a glimpse at Gulf Coast outdoor trips that you can do on a Friday-Saturday-Sunday and maybe even be back home to catch the prime-time Cowboys or Texans game on TV!

Whitetails

It’s no secret that the South Texas brush country has the best white-tailed deer hunting in the state—and by default, the country. Whether you’re talking low fence or high fence, it really has no bearing on the quantity or the quality that’s killed every fall and winter on places like the King Ranch and other “monster buck” hot spots. While there are some public hunting opportunities on great land like the Chaparral Wildlife Management Area through the draw system, your best bet at bagging a big buck is to book a hunt with a reputable guide or outfitter.

As with any hunt you’d be shelling out thousands of dol lars for, it’s imperative that you do your research and gather as

much intel as possible before pulling the trigger on a hunt. While some outfits run hunts that may take up to a week, the majority of them offer shorter packages that may only be a few days but offer an unparalleled success rate at anything ranging from a “management” buck to a truly monster whitetail. This is ideal for the hunter from San Antonio, Austin, Houston or al most anywhere else making the trek south. The first day could be used to get acclimated, sight in your rifle or check your bow and talk to your guides about what to expect in the morning. Then you’d be prepared to possibly kill the buck of a lifetime over the course of the next couple of days!

Waterfowl

When it comes to ducks, geese and sandhill cranes, it’s obvi ous what the draw is to keep them in an area: food and water. The overall goose outlook in recent seasons along the coast has been downright bad due to a number of conditions, includ ing changing habitat and inflows that have altered some crop production. However, the duck and crane seasons continue to be really good in many locales and exceptional in others.

First and foremost, the area near the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge (including in Nueces, San Patricio and Aransas counties) is off limits to sandhill hunting because they look so similar to their endangered whooping crane cousins. You’re advised to check out the map regulation if you’re planning to hunt anywhere near this area. And for heaven’s sake, don’t do what a Dallas hunter did several seasons back—shoot a juvenile whooping crane in the San Jose Island area—which came with a hefty fine.

The best aspect about duck hunting in the Rockport area is the amount of superb habitat that can be reached mostly by airboat, which is a whole new hunting experience if you’ve

Some of the best deer hunting in Texas is a short drive away from the Gulf Coast, regardless if you’re hunting on a high-fence or low-fence tract.

never climbed aboard one before. There are numerous good hunting guides that run airboats in fall and winter for a few sought-after species, including redheads and pintails, and it’s also a plus if you communicate in advance and tell them you’d also like to target redfish, trout and flounder as part of a cast and blast trip. If you need any type of verification, simply look at their social media and see if they’ve got client photos on the boat sporting ducks tails and fish scales at the same time. That’s a pretty good indicator they know what they’re doing. And don’t forget your earmuffs for the boat ride!

Nilgai

The first nilgai in South Texas were transplants from zoos and the ancestors of those creatures that currently roam this country are as wild as can be. The hulking antelope is native to southern Asia but its characteristics made it the perfect species to introduce to the South Texas landscape. Not only did the “blue bulls” survive, they thrived on the plains of the brush country. The overall population has grown from a few dozen in the 1930s to tens of thousands today.

Nilgai don’t do well in colder climates—prolonged hard freezes have been known to thin out the South Texas herd somewhat—but they’re hearty animals that can do well across the scrub country. They’re now found from the Baffin Bay-Riv iera area all the way down to the Mexican border. In fact, there are currently free-ranging populations in Brooks, Cameron, Hidalgo, Kenedy, Kleberg and Willacy counties. I’ve even seen them in the dunes along the Padre Island National Seashore, where they stick out like a sore thumb.

As with whitetail hunting in South Texas, public lands drawn opportunities exist farther to the Mexican border on National Wildlife Refuges, but your best bet is to book a hunt with a guide or outfitter. That’s especially true because mature nilgai are a formidable hunting target and you’ve got to know what you’re doing and have plenty of gun to back it up. Nilgai offer a great exotic trophy hunt because there’s no closed season and they even can be hunted at night using thermal optics, which has become quite a new market for brush country outfitters.

Javelinas and exotics

Javelinas actually are considered a game animal by TPWD, but they certainly look like an exotic critter, and South Texas is one of the few places on the planet where you can find them. Some folks confuse javelinas with feral hogs but they’re totally different. Javelinas are part of the peccary family, with the ones residing in Texas being the collared peccary. They tend to travel in small “family groups” and typically are active in early morn ing and late afternoon during the winter when it’s cooler.

Javelinas have long held an undeserved reputation for being ornery and fero cious but that’s misplaced information. They’ve got poor eyesight in regard to other types of game and actually have started encroaching into urban areas as they get acclimated to easy food sources and crops. I’ve even seen them running through downtown Corpus Christi and Kingsville!

As with the other species mentioned previously, there are plenty of guides offering all-inclusive javelina hunts either by firearm or bow.

The nilgai antelope may have been an imported species but “blue bulls” have made their presence widespread in the Wild Horse Desert of South Texas.

South Texas also has a plethora of exotic hunting ranches that offer hunts for everything under the sun. Some of the most common include axis deer and blackbuck antelope, as well as aoudad sheep and a host of other African ante lope and other creatures native to other global locales.

While the Texas speckled trout fishery took a hit due to the winter storm in February 2021, there are still hot spots like Baffin Bay that harbor plenty of fish.

Even mature whitetail bucks like this Coues in the Desert Southwest may not have huge racks, but they are producing what they can with what they have.

The southwestern United States and northern Mexico are home to unique versions of the deer family. This is not the land of giants. It’s home to the small Coues and Carmen Mountains whitetails, the sleek desert mule deer, and historically held the mysterious Merriam’s elk. It’s the environmental conditions in this part of the continent that shaped those southwestern cousins of their northern and eastern counterparts. These southwestern versions were extremely important to the ancient and more recent indigenous people as evidenced by the rich deep traditions surrounding deer hunting and the many uses of antlers and other materials from deer. Over the last 400 years, they continued to be just as important to European settlers who did their best to survive in this harsh landscape, largely because of venison and deer hides.

Growing antlers in the Southwest

Antlers are considered secondary sexual characteristics because they require extra energy to produce each year. Nutrients consumed by bucks go first to body development and maintenance, then what is left is used for antler growth. This is one reason yearling bucks do not produce large antlers. Their nutrient intake is being used almost entirely for body development their first year. If there is a limited amount of forage available there may not be enough “extra” nutrients to optimize antler development. In years of below-average rainfall, or if they live in a less productive area, bucks will not grow antlers (or bodies) as large as deer in other places or years.

Nutrients are harder to come by in the Southwest and so we see that reflected in the body and antler size of the deer that live there. Southwestern deer habitat – and nutrition – is at the mercy of annual rainfall amounts and timing. Winter rains give females fuel to produce fawns, but they also provide the nutrition for bucks to begin antler development on a strong footing. Summer rains offer an increase in weeds deer eat (forbs) from the abundant seeds which lie dormant in the soil. During this time, deer take advantage of the flush in nutri tion which helps finish fawns to a heavy weight and complete the antler cycle depending the location in the Southwest.

Changing times

All wild animals have natural cycles that regulate their biological rhythms and an nual calendar. Breeding season, molt, estrus, fawn drop, and antler cycle are all regulated primarily by photoperiod (number of daylight hours). The timing of the antler cycle has an underlying genetic basis, but this annual cycle is influenced primarily by changes in photoperiod through the year.

The rut timing for deer in the southwest deserts is typically later in the year and longer lasting than in northern areas. The necks of male mule deer in the Southwest begin to swell in late November or early December. Some rutting activity can occur from early December

It’s hard enough for deer in the Southwest to survive some years, but they also have to find enough extra nutrition to grow antlers.

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through early February, but the peak typically occurs during the last week of December and the first week of January. The peak breeding period for desert mule deer in the most arid parts of southwest Arizona, southeast California, and western Sonora is mid-to-late January. It would not be good for bucks in these areas to start dropping their antlers in January as they do in the Midwest, so nature makes an adjustment.

In September, antlers of both whitetails and mule deer in the Southwest become mineralized, and the continually increasing testosterone levels cause the drying and loss of velvet in the latter part of the month. The antlers become fully hardened by late September and the velvet is stripped off from late Septem ber through mid-October.

Testosterone levels peak during the breeding season and then decline after rut. This post-rut decrease in testosterone trig gers a disintegration of bone cells at their bases and the antlers are shed off the pedicles. Desert mule deer shed their antlers between mid March and early April. Coues whitetails shed their antlers from late April through May, with a peak around May 7. Antler growth then begins within a few weeks of losing their last set of antlers and is underway by mid May.

Antlers as radiators?

In the 1960s, a researcher theorized that antlers in velvet served to release excess heat from the deer during the hot sum mer months. The blood-engorged velvet that covers growing antlers is hot to the touch and undoubtedly radiates heat. How ever, if this were the primary reason for developing antlers, one would expect the deer species in warmer climates to have larger antlers, and those in cold climates would have small antlers, which clearly is not the case (think moose). Why would only males have developed this method of releasing excess heat?

The fact that deer shed their velvet before the weather gets cold was used to strengthen the radiator argument. However, other researchers pointed out that deer evolved in a relatively warm climate and there would be no reason to shed velvet seasonally. Also, European roe deer and Pere David’s deer grow antlers during the winter and have hardened antlers during the warm summer months. If antlers served as heat radiators, we would have had Irish elk in the Southwest.

More than desert survivors

Deer in the Southwest are remarkable in their ability to eke out a living in a harsh and extremely variable environment. For them to grow anything extra on their head in most years is an amazing feat of physiology. Research tells us that the nutrition a buck has access to his first year will affect antler size his entire life. As a southwestern buck continues to mature, he doesn’t get the same nutritional level as his cousins in the Rocky Moun tains so we shouldn’t be expecting the same massive antlers. Remarkably, we do sometimes see big desert mule deer and South Texas whitetails if they’re allowed to grow old and if they have access to protein rich browse and forbs. They certainly have it in them, but must play the cards they’re dealt each year.

Antlers in the Southwest are on a little different annual schedule because of differences in the timing of nutrition and the rut. Although they are not as big as northern deer, they are even more special because of the harsher conditions they are forced to grow in. We should all appreciate southwestern racks for what they are and not what they aren’t.

The annual antler development cycle is adjusted through time so the antlers don’t drop off until the buck is done using them.

Some desert mule deer will grow large racks, but it’s much harder in the harsh and variable conditions in the South west.

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Texas Brigades: An Amazing Camp Experience

By Bella Avolio

My experience with the South Texas Buckskin Brigade was amazing. I learned a lot about wildlife and con servation. During the five-day period, I along with the other cadets learned how to identify plants, take care of the environment, how to safely use firearms, and a lot more.

On the first day of camp, we did a necropsy of a white-tailed deer. We learned how the deer function and how they live. We would frequently go to different stations with our herd and learn different things at each station. One of the stations talked about the different types of plants deer eat. There are three classes of plants: ice cream, steak and potatoes, and liver and onions. What this means is the first-choice plants would be the “ice cream,” also known as forbs or flowers. The secondchoice plants would be the woody plants or as we like to call them, the “steak and potatoes.” Finally, the third-choice plants would be grasses. We call the third-choice plants “liver and onions” because if we had to choose between ice cream, steak and potatoes, or liver and onions, we would obviously go from the greatest option to the good option, and then to the bad one. This works the same way with deer.

On day two, we went into the wild and collected and identi fied different plants for our own original plant books. We also had the opportunity to do some shooting and archery practice. I was honored with the title of best female shooter. It was full of fun. We played some games and learned so much.

On day three, we woke up super early and went to watch the sunrise over the horizon. During this time, we wrote in our journals about what we were seeing and what we were able to take in. After that, we made our own omelets for breakfast. The food there was amazing! In the afternoon, we went out to the field and went through various stations that taught us many important things such as the impor tance of deer population, tracking animals, and firearm safety.

All throughout camp, we had a game we played called Deer Trivia. This was a quiz game where all the different teams had to an swer questions and compete to get the most points. We played the game at least once, but usually two to three times a day. We also did a mock TV interview. Two of the leaders would ask us questions while another leader

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Bella is another in a long line of cadets graduating from Texas Brigades a well-rounded individual.

Bella alongside her Buckskin Brigade herd members.

was recording. We would then have to try and answer these difficult questions as we would if it were on TV.

The fourth day of camp was by far the busiest day. We went to stations by the cleaning barn, and we had a variety of com petitions. These competitions included shooting .22s, archery, rattling, scoring, marching, and more. We also did a thing called “deer politics” where we had to go in front of the city council of Deer Ville and present an argument over the number of deer.

Finally, on the fifth day we played more teamwork games such as the impossible knot where we had to get in a group, join hands, and try to get untangled without letting go. After the games, it was time for our parents to come and get us, but of course, we couldn’t go without showing off a bit. When our parents arrived, they were seated outside and we marched for them, then we were presented with our certificate of accom

plishment and afterward, we ate.

I learned so much at camp and look forward to learning even more now that camp is over. I’m currently working on leadership activities to help secure a spot as a leader at camp next year such as presenting conservation topics to community groups. If I had to pick one thing that really stood out to me from camp, it would probably have to be a station called “who dunit.” In this station, Texas game wardens acted as poachers and we had to act as the game wardens, figure out what all they had done, and arrest them. This activity really impacted me in a positive way because I have always wanted to be a Texas game warden, and this gave me the chance to see what it’s like firsthand. Overall, camp was great! I made some amazing friends and had an amazing time. I would totally recommend it to anyone and everyone, and I look forward to going back as an assistant leader next year.

Cadets getting a hands-on lesson in deer anatomy. Cadets also get to improve their shooting skills.

Texas Brigades is a conservation-based leadership organization which organizes wildlife and natural resource-based leadership camps for participants ranging in age from 13-17. Its mission is to educate and empower youths with lead ership skills and knowledge in wildlife, fisheries, and land stewardship to become conservation ambassadors for a sustained natural resource legacy. There are multiple camps scheduled in the summers, focusing on different animal species while incorporating leadership development. Summer camps include Rolling Plains and South Texas Bobwhite Brigade, South and North Texas Buckskin Brigade, Bass Brigade, Waterfowl Brigade, Coastal Brigade, and Ranch Brigade. Visit texasbrigades.org or call 210-556-1391 for more information.

Ghosts In The Woods

By Ted Nugent

Iwander the wild on a daily basis. It’s just what I do. I fortunately carved out my ultimate Ameri can outdoor lifestyle dream long, long ago to make sure I lived my life, liberty, and pursuit of gonzo happiness with everything I got, and everything that God gave me, and the rewards are immeasurable.

My radar picks up on the smallest of surrounding detail as I cruise my sacred wild grounds, and I see, hear, smell and feel new things each day that spark in terest, intrigue, fascination, and wonderful memories.

There’s an old scrape there, a buck rub, a blowdown, deer bed, a new trail, turkey scratchings, a bird nest, some old bones, a shed antler, some feathers from an unlucky victim of a predator, and an endless plethora of earthly goodies that never fail to stimulate and educate me.

More and more lately I’ve been taking note of old, historical treestand remnants that bring a glowing smile to my face, for those old pieces of dilapidated, busted-up 2x4s hanging precariously from forked branches bring a flood of amazing forever moments strategizing to ambush a backstrapper.

It’s important to note that some of the oldest suicidal lumber nailed way up in the towering oaks was against the law back before 1975, when some numb nut, clueless bureaucrat dared to think they could have possibly had the authority over a free American when, if, or how we climbed a tree.

That’s correct. Elevated deer stands were illegal in Michigan before we straightened out these powerabusing fools.

For the record, no man has authority over me when it comes to climbing a tree. Never has—and never

will. Case closed. I know some soulless sheep disagree, but that is their failing in the truth, logic, common sense world of freedom, and I wish them good luck.

Stop and ponder a moment if you will, those glorious lifetime moments of the past, season after season, vigil after vigil, that we have been so blessed to pursue and experience.

As I stop and gaze at these old stands, I smile and actually giggle to myself as visions of those long-ago wildlife encounters and so many deer encounters brighten my day, and re-ignite those magical moments of yore that brought me so much excitement, oftentimes frustration, but always extreme happiness.

I also chuckle at the earliest of those commer cial treestand designs and how we survived that dangerous era!

That giant, ancient oak where I arrowed my first whitetail calls my name!

I stop and pause at Uncle John’s saddle and the tangle of brush that remains where we constructed his original brush pile hideaway, way back in 1976.

There’s a single dangling 2x4 in the white oak where I missed a beautiful buck with all eight arrows from my Bear recurve bow quiver in ’76. Ouch!

The winding west ridge deer trail is still there where I lucked out on a great eight-point in 1980.

Old George Nicholls somehow survived his bow hunting escapades in the makeshift platform in the small, forked maple over the little creek.

My buddy Ward Parker arrowed his first

whitetail from the duckpond hick ory where we nailed a small wooden foothold.

It’s not just the memories that glow from these old stands, but when standing there at each one, I concen trate on my surroundings and swear to God I actually see the smiling faces of my family and friends that are associated with these special spots.

Thank God we don’t still nail such danger

ous stands to trees anymore, having learned our lessons about safety and responsibility and celebrate how the industry responded with treestand and ladder stand develop ment and upgrades for better and safer hunting.

Over these many hunting seasons, oc casionally I found myself hurrying up and hustling to my daily chosen deer stand, but nowadays I discipline myself to plan ahead, slow down, and come to grips that a slower pace brings me a more peaceful, calmer, relaxing, gratifying, and more often than not, a more successful day afield when I stop to smell the roses, as the say ing goes.

Our entire hunting gang are busy reviewing and tweaking our many deer stands this time of year, and stopping to take in the memories of the past brings a deeper sense of fulfillment, not only when on the hunting grounds, but in life overall. Certainly, our next hunt is all im portant, but one thing I’ve learned over 65-plus deer seasons, we don’t always kill a deer, but we do always bring home wonderful memories of some of the best times life has to offer.

Many deer will get away from us each season. Do not let any of the memories get away from you! Veni son is truly the ultimate rocket fuel for the body, but each and every memory is supreme rocket fuel for the soul. Fill up your spirit tank with

step beyond the pavement. You

be glad you did.

every

will

As I stop and gaze at these old stands, I smile and actually giggle to myself as visions of those long-ago wildlife encounters and so many deer encounters brighten my day, and re-ignite those magical moments of yore that brought me so much excitement, oftentimes frustration, but always extreme happiness. I also chuckle at the earliest of those commercial treestand designs and how we survived that dangerous era!

MUST-GIVES

1. TTHA Gear perfect gifts for giving

Need that last minute Christmas gift? Check out our new line of products for your family. We offer something for the little ones all the way to that seasoned hunter. With all new t-shirts, caps and other TTHA gear, you’ll find the perfect gift for your hunting loved one. Members get preferred pricing on TTHA gear. Not a member? Join now (see page 64).

Visit TTHAGEAR.com to see our full line up.

2. Waterproof jacket

Ready to take your rain protection and comfort up a notch? The Rebar Storm Fighter 2.0 has the same 10K waterproof rating and features as the Stormshell jacket—plus 120-gram insulation for greater warmth and stretch jersey fleece storm cuffs for a premium feel.

Visit ariat.com/work.

3. Head concealment

The BunkerHead System revolutionizes face and head concealment for all types of hunting. The face mask quickly and easily clips to the hunter’s baseball-style cap and eliminates all the irritations of conventional facemasks. No more itchy, sticking fabric, obstructed vision, or fogged up glasses. One size truly fits all. For full head concealment, simply add the Hoodie attachment. The Hoodie eliminates all the irrita tions of a hooded jacket, doesn’t obstruct your vision or your hearing, and it turns when you turn.

Visit bunkerhead.com.

MUST-GIVES

4. Youth shotgun

The FieldHunter Youth shotgun is a 20-gauge, with a 3-inch chamber that can handle a variety of shots, including steel (with specific chokes). The included multi-choke system includes five chokes (F, IM, M, IC, CYL). The versatility of multiple size chokes, plus the capability to shoot 2¾-inch to 3-inch shotgun shells, make it the perfect youth shotgun for every hunting adventure, including upland birds, small game, waterfowl, and turkey. A migratory plug can be installed for 2+1 capacity and removed for a complete 4+1 capacity. It has a synthetic polymer stock and fore end that features textured grips, and an aircraft-grade aluminum alloy receiver is fully anodized with a 11mm groove for optics mounts. The chromeplated, 22-inch barrel pulls everything together utilizing a 7mm checkered and ventilated antiglare rib ending with a classic brass bead.

Visit hatsanusa.com.

5. Heated blanket

Never be cold again with The Kodiak Battery Powered Heating Blanket, specially designed to meet the rugged requirements of those who love the great outdoors. Providing 3+ hours portable heat, it features a highly weather resistant exterior to keep the elements at bay, along with a soft, micro-plush velour interior lining that encases internal insulation for optimal heat retention and maximum comfort. No cords, no limits.

Visit LifeGivingWarmth.com.

6. LED flashlights

NEBO’s new Master Series line of LED-based lights are rechargeable, feature magnetic bases and mag netic mode select dials, are constructed of aircraft aluminum, and feature an ergonomic rubberized grip. They’re also waterproof up to 1 meter and impactresistant up to 2 meters.

The FL750 flashlight features up to 750-lumens of light with a 2x integrated adjustable zoom and five light modes, including a bright 750-lumen Turbo mode providing 30 seconds of light for 121 meters and a strobe mode.

The FL1500 has five light modes, including a 1,500-lumen turbo mode that gives off a brilliant 219-meter reach for 30 seconds, and a strobe mode, It also features an integrated 2x adjustable zoom.

The FL3000 has five light modes, ranging from a 3,000-lumen turbo mode for 30 seconds of light for 265 meters to a 100-lumen low mode, and a 1,500-lu men strobe mode. The FL3000 also features an integrated zoom and can recharge in about two hours.

Visit nebo.acgbrands.com.

MUST-GIVES

7. Sit on it

The AMRY Sports Seat Chest, known as the ASSChest, is a one-of-a-kind ice chest with a built-in seat on the lid. Designed and created by a husband and wife duo from Texas, this cooler is patent pending and currently comes in one size, with 80-quart internal capacity. Great for hunting, fishing, tailgating, camping and more, choose from four color options to help the people you love.

Visit amrysports.com for a full list of features and specs.

8. REVEAL X-Pro cam

Tactacam’s REVEAL X-Pro cellular camera is not only small and discreet, but powerful enough to handle the extreme outdoor weather. Its fast trigger and no glow IR technology will capture the action day or night without spooking wildlife. It takes pictures up to 16MP, has a hybrid mode for faster picture delivery, integrated GPS tracking, built-in LCD screen, lets you get HD photos and videos from the app, and works with AT&T or Verizon networks.

Visit revealcellcam.com.

9. Summit treestand

Summit’s new Viper Level Pro SD treestand has revolutionary EasyLevel dials, so you no longer have to worry about climbing down to dial in the angle of your platforms. Make your adjustments to stay perfectly level in your stand while attached to the tree.

It also comes equipped with the Quick Draw PRO cable system, FasTrack accessory system, camouflaged foam suspended seat, and one-piece wraparound arm pad. It weighs 26 pounds and can support up to 300 pounds.

Visit summitstands.com/summit-new-for-2022 to learn more.

MUST-GIVES

10. Doe scent

When you need to do a little extra to keep those deer in your hunting area, try LipCurl Premium Deer Scents. Best used as a cover scent which puts other deer at ease while in the area. It’s doe urine collected while their estrous levels start to rise, between the hours of 1-50 and 70-96, before and after peak receptiveness. Estrous levels range from 30-80 and are confirmed using a digital estrogen tester.

Visit lipcurlscents.com.

11. Custom bling

Jazzy Bling by Jess offers customized cups, tumblers and koozies in a wide range of colors and sizes. They’re the perfect gift for women, children, and even men. They’ll keep your drinks cold or hot for hours.

Visit facebook.com/JazzyBlingbyJess to see what she can customize for you.

12.

ThermoNeutral Down Vests

FORLOH’s ThermoNeutral Down Vests keep your core warm when you need it and dry from water on the outside and sweat on the inside. These vests feature Perf-Weld technology. It keeps moisture out while allowing condensed and non-condensed mois ture to escape through micro-perforations in the water-resistant sonic welds. Each individual down feather is treated with Activ-Dri Down keeping the down drier and reducing water or sweat absorption by over 60%, so it retains its loft and warmth to weight ratio.

Use code TTHAChristmas for 15% off at forloh. com.

Kids and Whitetails

If you grew up hunting in North America, then you know the whitetail deer is the No. 1 big game animal sought after by hunters in this great land. Of course, you’re reading The Journal of the Texas Trophy Hunters, which is the No. 1 hunting resource when it comes to whitetails in our great state, as well as many other states. The opportunity to hunt and kill a great looking deer is very achievable, as the opportunities and locations that grow these beautiful animals have increased dramatically in the modern era of management.

In the last 30 years, we have seen an overall jump in deer numbers as well as the overall size these crit ters can achieve. When I was on my first deer lease in South Texas 30 years ago, a 150-inch deer was a highly sought-after buck. A 150-inch deer is still a great deer, but people are consistently seeing much bigger deer all the time.

Each year, the Christian Outdoor Alliance and many other camps host summer hunting and fishing adventures for kids. During the summer we target exotics, hogs, and predators as the main animals we take at camp. It’s absolutely hilarious to hear the kids get so moody about seeing all the whitetail that frequent our camp locations. Of course, the kids are looking for anything other than a whitetail at this time of the year, so it’s comical to hear them complain about seeing so many.

Of course, that changes in the fall when the kids can target these magnificent creatures on the vari ous places they get to hunt. We sure do try and open up all the opportunities we possibly can for kids, but

author P hotos

we need your help. We need more workers and more ranches that will let us come shoot their whitetail does. We can raise the money to pay for these activi ties and would like to help pay the ranches for the chance to come out and bring some wonderful kids to your places. Keep that in mind when you’re looking for ways to get your deer relocated in a family’s ice chest. The whitetail resource is highly sought after for those who love to eat venison, not to mention spending quality time in God’s great outdoors.

It’s so important to get kids involved in the out doors and teach them about our outdoor heritage. As our planet grows in population and social media continues to expand our knowledge of people, it’s very cool to see the different clients that hunt with us for the meat. We have a lot of groups these days that come solely for the meat and will take the time to get every ounce of meat, heart, liver, and fat that these critters obtain. The recipes they share for wild game have taken our dining experiences at all of our events to an all-new level. We serve venison at just about every meal and the people really enjoy it.

The kids we take hunting absolutely live, eat and breathe the outdoors. It’s something they’re born with and something we need to feed and grow, if pos sible. Kids are like sponges and they want to learn more. Just listening to them talk and tell their hunt ing stories is worth the price of admission because they’re passionate about it. Their little hearts beat harder and faster, and their intense breathing when they do get a critter in their sights is something each and every one of you should take part of in your life.

There are so many kids and so little time. There are tons of stories and lots of stories to be written. When I was 9 years old, I took my first deer—a doe—in South Texas. I wanted to go hunting so bad and I pestered my father each and every day to go.

If I wasn’t pestering my father I was pestering my grandfather to take me to our family property, 25 acres near New Braunfels, Texas. I had a .22 rifle and had learned to shoot with it, so I spent a lot of time either shooting cans or turtles in our ranch pond. The only thing holding me back from taking my first deer was my size. My father did not think I was ready to handle the recoil of a big rifle, so he was being extremely careful with me. It was about that time that he purchased a .22-250 from a Sears store in Universal City, Texas. After he made that purchase, he took me to a family friend’s place that had a gun range. It was time to check my accuracy on a little bit bigger round to see if I was ready to take the next step in hunting. The gun was heavy, and it did not have much recoil, so I was able to hit the mark consistently and that helped make the deci sion that I was ready. After some range time we were headed to our deer lease in Dimmit County near Big

Wells, Texas. I was so excited I could hardly sit still.

In those days we hunted around fence lines and senderos and we did not feed corn which would have helped a lot. The significance of hunting interior fence lines is that it would hold a deer up for a split second or two before crossing on their path. That was the window of time we were hoping a deer might give me to make an accurate shot.

My dad was very patient with me and sat me on his lap to elevate me in the stand and help with my rest on the edge of the window if and when the time would arise for a shot. As luck would have it, a few does started feeding up and down the fence line late in the evening and after a body full of buck fever, I was able to steady my nerves and take my first shot. The doe did not go far. I was super pumped and could not wait to show off my first deer to our friends in camp. As a matter of fact, that picture graced the Texas Trophy Hunters magazine in 1977 in the gamepoll section of the magazine. After that first doe I then had a picture in the magazine with a bobcat I was able to take at

age 12. From that point forward I knew I wanted to share my passion for hunting with others and we do today. By the grace of God, we take more than a 1,000 people hunting each year and more than 100 kids to our summer camps.

I tell you these stories for one reason, and that is to get off your rump and get the kids in your life active and participating in the outdoors. There are lots of opportunities and youth hunts all over. There are a lot of Texas hunts you can sign up for through Texas Parks and Wildlife. I encourage you do so, so you can get out and live life in God’s country. As I heard Jerry Johnston say many times in my life, you should take a kid hunting, and that way, you will not be hunting for your kids. God bless and good luck!

Michael Marbach is the CEO of the Christian Outdoor Alliance, www.mycoa.org; 210-827-9802. COA’s mission is to guide youth and outdoorsmen to a relationship with Jesus Christ through experience in God’s great outdoors.

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WesT

Tarif alkhaTib

2022 HUNTERS EXTRAVAGANZA DEER COMPETITION RESULTS

The 2022 Hunters Extravaganza deer contests went off with a bang, of course, with hunters being allowed to enter typical and non-typical bucks from the 2021-2022 deer seasons. The number of entries for each show was slightly below average, but exceptional bucks were entered from all over the state.

Two bucks entered in Dallas and San Antonio made the cover of The Journal. Tarif Alkhatib, a seasoned bowhunter and highway patrolman, killed a tremendous buck in Grayson County that set a new county record and made our May/June cover. Texas Trophy Hunters’ own Owen West took a big nontypical buck on the G-2 Ranch near Pearsall that made our July/ August cover. Owen downed the buck with his cherished .300 Win. Mag. he won years ago in a TTHA membership drive.

Houston had 29 entries that created a good display of big bucks. The first-place winners of that show were: Joe Sinski, Kyrsten Rebeles, Brenton Vaughn, Kaylie Pavia, Kris Pavia, Gina Talasek, Blythe Brooks, Lloyd McCoy, Tate Christensen, Sydney Christensen, Cooper Pembelton, Tommy Wilkins, Forrest Shrader, Jane Hale, Lowell Mower, Cindy Hawk, Ella Hawk, and Daryl Gates.

Dallas had 37 outstanding entries. Winners at the Dallas

show

Robert

Paul Allread, Amy Schumacher, Michael Logan, Macey Leichliter, Kaleb Swan, Malison Fisher, Micah Fisher, Bryson Fleming, Bradley Crenshaw, Dean Gallaher, Jarrod Snider, Ethan Snider, Tarif Alkhatib, Grace Waller, Bethany McMinn, Case Summers, Robbie McQueen, Hunter Jenkins, Mike Jenkins, and Doug Provence.

San Antonio had 23 entries and a good show with some big bucks. The first-place winners at San Antonio were: Mason Judkins, Joshua Hernandez, Hudson Perales, Jason Johnson, Jessica Triplett, Brooklyn Bowling, Trip Triplett III, Zeev Nederman, Bridget Martin, McKenzie Yutzy, Cooper LaBuhn, Samantha Cobb, Rick Salinas, Thomas Grant, Spensor Phipps, Chase Bland, and Lee Newton.

Presentations of contest prizes went off without a hitch, with winners getting jackets, scopes, our new book, “Texas Trophy Hunters—Under One Cover,” and some nice prizes from Hornady, Texas Hunter Products, and others. A lot of big deer heads and good prizes were taken home by happy hunters when the shows ended. Most of the deer contest entrants were already thinking about the 2022-23 season, and how they would get a repeat buck for next year’s shows. —Horace Gore

were:

Brzozowski,

Tommy Wilkins

Joshua hernandez

Joe sinski

DEER CONTEST RESULTS

HOUSTON

MODERN ARMS OPEN RANGE

NORTH TEXAS

Joe Sinski, 1st adult male, 1493⁄8 typical, Trinity County

Nick Fincher, 2nd adult male, 1271⁄8 typical, Schleicher County

Bobby Grappe, 3rd, adult male, 1265⁄8 typical, Leon County

Kyrsten Rebeles, 1st adult female, 1004⁄8 typical, Schleicher County

Brenton Vaughan, 1st youth male, 1295⁄8 typical, Leon County

Kaylie Pavia, 1st youth female, 952⁄8 typical, Tom Green County

SOUTH TEXAS & MEXICO

Kris Pavia, 1st adult male, 1714⁄8 typical, Zavala County

Gina Talaske, 1st adult female, 1516⁄8 typical, Mexico

Blythe Brooks, 1st youth female, 1345⁄8 typical, Webb County

Fallon Clepper, 2nd youth female, 1305⁄8 typical, Uvalde County

MODERN ARMS HIGH FENCE NORTH TEXAS

Tate Christensen, 1st adult male, 3105⁄8 non-typical, Bell County

Michael Andrews, 2nd adult male, 2237⁄8 non-typical, Val Verde County

David Pembelton, 3rd adult male, 2221⁄8 non-typical, Bell County

Sydney Christensen, 1st adult female, 1914⁄8 non-typical, Bell County

Cooper Pembelton, 1st youth male, 2871⁄8 non-typical, Coryell County, High Overall Youth

kaylie PaVia

kris PaVia

gina Talasek

blyThe brooks

TaTe ChrisTensen

sydney ChrisTensen

DEER CONTEST RESULTS

HOUSTON

ARCHERY OPEN RANGE

NORTH TEXAS

Lloyd McCoy, 1st adult male, 1266⁄8 typical, Kent County

Tommy Wilkins, 1st adult male, 1987⁄8 non-typical, Bastrop County, Best of Show-Open Range

Coltin Bridges, 2nd adult male, 1561⁄8 non-typical, Trinity County, People’s Choice

OUT OF STATE

Lloyd McCoy, 1st adult male, 1263⁄8 typical, Kansas

Cindy haWk HIGH OVERALL WOMEN’S

SOUTH TEXAS & MEXICO

Forrest Shrader, 1st adult male, 1623⁄8 typical, Mexico

José Cantu, 2nd adult male, 1611⁄8 typical, Mexico

Julian Clepper, 3rd adult male, 1232⁄8 typical, Uvalde

Jane Hale, 1st adult female, 1305⁄8 typical, Duval County, Best Perfect 8

Jane Hale, 2nd adult female, 1254⁄8 typical, Duval County

ARCHERY HIGH FENCE

NORTH TEXAS

Lowell Mower, 1st adult male, 3222⁄8 non-typical, Gillespie County, Best of Show-High Fence

Daryl Gates, 2nd adult male, 2777⁄8 non-typical, Houston County

SOUTH TEXAS & MEXICO

Cindy Hawk, 1st adult female, 2007⁄8 non-typical, Duval County, High Overall Women’s

Ella Hawk, 1st youth female, 2125⁄8 non-typical, Duval County

BEST IN PREVIOUS FIVE SEASONS

NORTH TEXAS

Daryl Gates, 1st adult male, 1742⁄8 typical, Gonzales County

CooPer PembelTon HIGH OVERALL YOUTH

DEER CONTEST RESULTS

DALLAS

MODERN ARMS OPEN RANGE

NORTH TEXAS

Robert Brzozowski, 1st adult male, 1587⁄8 typical, King County Tommy Dillard, 2nd adult male, 157 typical, Stephens County

Brandon Hyles, 3rd adult male, 1417⁄8 typical, Ellis County

Paul Allread, 1st adult male, 2013⁄8 non-typical, Mills County, People’s Choice

Kyle Sargent, 2nd adult male, 1787⁄8 non-typical, Throckmorton County

Amy Schumacher, 1st adult female, 1422⁄8 typical, King County, Best Perfect 8, High Overall Women’s Julie Fletcher, 2nd adult female, 1406⁄8 typical, Anderson County

Michael Logan, 1st youth male, 1407⁄8 typical, Baylor County Tobin Kloewer, 2nd youth male, 1314⁄8 typical, Denton County Macey Leichliter, 1st youth female, 543⁄8 typical, Wise County

OUT OF STATE

Kaleb Swan, 1st adult male, 1407⁄8 typical, Oklahoma

Malison Fisher 1st adult female, 1405⁄8 typical, Kansas

Micah Fisher, 1st youth female, 1364⁄8 typical, Kansas

Maxey Lewis, 2nd youth female, 1271⁄8 typical, Oklahoma

SOUTH TEXAS & MEXICO

Bryson Fleming 1st adult male, 1451⁄8 typical, Webb County

miChael logan

maCey leiChliTer

kaleb sWan

malison fisher

miCah fisher

bryson fleming

DEER CONTEST RESULTS

DALLAS

bradley CrenshaW

dean gallaher HIGH OVERALL YOUTH eThan snider

beThany mCminn

MODERN ARMS HIGH FENCE

NORTH TEXAS

Bradley Crenshaw, 1st adult male, 1887⁄8 typical, Bandera County

Dean Gallaher, 1st youth male, 2104⁄8 typical, Shackelford County, High Overall Youth

SOUTH TEXAS & MEXICO

Ethan Snider 1st youth male, 1604⁄8 typical, Frio County

Jarrod Snider, 1st adult male, 2486⁄8 non-typical, Frio County, Best of Show-High Fence

Case summers

ARCHERY OPEN RANGE

NORTH TEXAS

Tarif Alkhatib, 1st adult male, 182 typical, Grayson County, Best of Show-Open Range

Anthony LaVigne, 2nd adult male, 1377⁄8 typical, Shackelford County

Elijah Featherston, 3rd adult male, 1323⁄8 typical, Parker County

Bo Linden, 4th adult male, 1276⁄8 typical, Tarrant County

Jason Barton, 5th adult male, 1206⁄8 typical, Kent County

Bethany McMinn, 1st adult female, 140 typical, Collin County

Codi Waller, 2nd adult female, 1203⁄8 typical, Shackelford County

graCe Waller

Case Summers, 1st youth male, 1457⁄8 typical, Sterling County

Finlee Gressett, 2nd youth male, 1406⁄8 typical, Grayson County

Tate Miles, 3rd youth male, 1333⁄8 typical, Shackelford County

Tate Miles, 4th youth male, 1253⁄8 typical, Shackelford County

Tanner Miles, 5th youth male, 1054⁄8 typical, Shackelford County

Grace Waller, 1st youth female, 1172⁄8 typical, Shackelford County

Azura Linden, 2nd youth female, 111 typical, Tarrant County

DEER CONTEST RESULTS DALLAS

robbie mCQueen hunTer Jenkins

BEST IN PREVIOUS FIVE SEASONS

NORTH TEXAS

Robbie McQueen, 1st adult male, 1785⁄8 non-typical, Milam County

OUT OF STATE

Hunter Jenkins, 1st adult male, 1184⁄8 typical, Oklahoma

Mike Jenkins, 1st adult male, 211 non-typical, Oklahoma

BEST TEXAS MULE DEER NORTH TEXAS

Doug Provence, 1534⁄8 typical, Bailey County

mike Jenkins

doug ProVenCe

SAN ANTONIO

Jason Johnson

mason Judkins hudson Perales

Joshua hernandez

OF SHOW (OPEN RANGE)

DEER CONTEST RESULTS

SAN ANTONIO

CHOICE

MODERN ARMS OPEN RANGE

NORTH TEXAS

Mason Judkins, 1st youth male, 119 typical, Kerr County

SOUTH TEXAS & MEXICO

Joshua Hernandez, 1st adult male, 1754⁄8 typical, Maverick County, Best of Show Open Range

Hudson Perales, 1st youth male, 1486⁄8 typical, Webb County

Waylon Kusenberger, 2nd youth male, 1353⁄8 typical, La Salle County Tiago R. Perez, 3rd youth male, 1276⁄8 typical, Duval County

MODERN ARMS HIGH FENCED NORTH TEXAS

Jason Johnson, 1st adult male, 227 non-typical, Blanco County, Best of Show High Fenced

Jessica Triplett, 1st adult female, 160 typical, Lee County

Brooklyn Bowling, 1st youth female, 2064⁄8 non-typical, Wilson County, High Overall Youth

Trip Triplett III, 1st youth male, 1305⁄8 typical, Lee County, Best Perfect 8

SOUTH TEXAS & MEXICO

Zeev Nederman, 1st adult male, 220 non-typical, Live Oak County

Owen West, 2nd adult male, 1985⁄8 non-typical, Frio County

Bridget Martin, 1st adult female, 1632⁄8 typical, McMullen County

Kaley O’Brien, 2nd adult female, 1487⁄8 typical, Duval County

McKenzie Yutzy, 1st youth female, 1217⁄8 typical, Cameron County

Brooke Shipman, 2nd youth fe male, 204⁄8 typical, Atascosa County, People’s Choice

brooklyn boWling HIGH OVERALL YOUTH

TriP TriPleTT iii T BEST PERFECT 8 zeeV nederman

bridgeT marTin

mCkenzie yuTzy

brooke shiPman PEOPLE’S

DEER CONTEST RESULTS SAN ANTONIO

CooPer labuhn samanTha Cobb HIGH OVERALL WOMEN’S

Thomas granT

ARCHERY OPEN RANGE

NORTH

TEXAS

Cooper LaBuhn, 1st youth male, 1526⁄8 typical, Gonzales County

ARCHERY HIGH FENCED

SOUTH TEXAS & MEXICO

Samantha Cobb, 1st adult female, 1974⁄8 non-typical, Live Oak County, High Overall Women’s

Rick Salinas, 1st adult male, 1505⁄8 typical, Zapata County

BEST IN PREVIOUS FIVE SEASONS NORTH TEXAS

Thomas Grant, 1st adult male, 1874⁄8 non-typical, Borden County

SOUTH TEXAS & MEXICO

Zeev Nederman, 1st adult male, 1776⁄8 typical, Live Oak County

sPensor PhiPPs BEST MULE DEER

Chase bland

BEST TEXAS MULE DEER

NORTH TEXAS

Spensor Phipps, 1st adult male, 1681⁄8 non-typical, Gaines County, Best Mule Deer

Lee Newton, 1st adult male, 162 typical, Brewster County

Chase Bland, 1st youth male, 1406⁄8 typical, Crosby County

New Predator Calls for 2022

By John Goodspeed

Deer season is the hot ticket right now, but preda tors are always in season and rewarding to call in because of the challenges of tricking wily coyotes and bobcats. While they may be zeroing in on what they think will be a quick and easy meal, they stay extremely wary and usually circle downwind, which is where today’s electronic predator calls can beat the traditional hand calls.

The unit making the mouth-watering critter in distress calls can be placed 100 yards or more away — with one of the latest working by remote up to 400 yards — so the predator stays focused on the caller and not the sounds coming from you. Many even feature a mo tion decoy controlled by the remote. And, unlike those elusive monster bucks, every predator is a trophy —

and you don’t have to field dress them. Unfortunately, COVID-19, supply chain disruptions and chip shortages still are rippling through the industry.

One ground-breaking unit that uses ultrasonic sounds and speakers to recreate the high ends of distress sounds that predators can hear and humans can’t failed to hit the market last year as promised because the chips were not manufactured. But it should be available by now. Some manufacturers did not introduce new models for 2022 and are relying on tried-and-true units, but that’s not bad. One features five swing-out speakers — three 10-watt and two three-watt — while another is an award winner that won’t break the budget.

Here is a look at some of the latest and some that have withstood the test of time. All prices are MSRP.

Brothers l www.burnhambrothers.com l Freq Ultrasonic Game Calls, price TBD

There are tons of quotes about the rewards of patience, but the wait for this ground-breaking predator call is wearing thin. While other electronic units produce sounds within the range of human hearing, this one creates ultrasonic sounds that people can’t hear, but predators can so they are far more realistic reproduc tions of the sounds of prey in distress.

Prototypes prove it works, with more coyotes getting up close and hanging around longer, said Burnham Broth ers’ Gary Roberson, who has been working on the caller for five years. “The demand is extremely strong,” he said, adding that about 9,000 people are on the waiting list. The call finally should be on the market this fall after the last piece is in place — an order of semiconductors, those chips that have stalled automakers and electronics manufacturers worldwide. Check the Burnham Brothers website

or get on the waiting list there. The chips are the final setback that has stymied the caller’s release since 2019. First there were delays in production of the special speakers, which can play sounds up to 50,000 hertz. Distress calls can top 40,000 hertz. Ordinary callers peak out at 17,000 to 18,000 hertz. Humans can hear up to 20,000 hertz; coyotes up to 40,000 hertz; and bobcats up to 64,000 hertz. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and some of the parts on order were delayed. Roberson has been waiting on the chips since last year. The Freq will come with more than 100 animal sounds recorded with special ultrasonic recording equipment. The MSRP is not yet set. Robison first thought the unit would sell for around $1,000. But that may go up about $500 with prices of com ponents continuing to rise. The Freq can be seen in action in some of the “Carnivore” videos linked on the Burn ham Brothers website.

Burnham

Convergent Hunting Solutions

l www.convergenthunting.com

l

Bullet HP Complete Bluetooth Game Calling System, $399.95

This system puts some bite in its Bluetooth with a range of up to 300 feet, which is about 10 times the distance of regular Bluetooth. The Predator Pro App download, which works on Android or IOS devices, includes 50 sounds of prey in distress. A built-in decoy with erratic movements is controlled by the app. A stainless-steel stake that stores in a compartment anchors the caller, which is designed to get the speakers and decoy above vegetation. Fully extended, the Bullet HP stands more than 20 inches tall. It comes with a threaded tripod mount to get the unit above taller vegetation or shrubs. The call’s 10-watt ampli fier produces sounds of more than 100 decibels. The lithium-ion battery can run for 10 hours at full volume and is rechargeable with a USB cable for use in a vehicle or with a 110-volt outlet. The Bluetooth connection allows playing predator calls or music

Flextone Game Calls

l www.flextonegamecalls.com

l FLX1000 Remote E-Call, $289.99

stored on your device. The app features controls for volume, sounds, decoy and four programmable calls. A picatinny rail mount for a cell phone onto a firearm makes it easy to access the controls or record the hunt while reducing movement when us ing the app. The system packs into a water-resistant camo bag with a zippered pocket for accessories. The call also is available with sounds for deer, turkey, feral hogs, crows and snow geese. It comes with a lifetime warranty.

Flextone is still relying on this flagship model that comes with five swing-out speakers — three 10-watt and two 3-watt — and 100 calls in categories by species. The programmable system has memory storage for up to 1,000 calls and an SD card slot to play more calls in multiple file types. Endorsed by professional hunter Steve Criner, also known as the Dog Solider, this caller is easy to use for beginners and also can serve more advanced predator hunters. The FLX1000 operates manu ally or with the included LCD remote. The main unit also features an LCD screen. The remote can activate the caller up to 200 yards. There are ports for two additional speakers. The main unit and remote use 13 AA batteries, which are not included. The unit features a built-in carry handle and a shoulder strap for transport.

FOXPRO

Inc.

l www.gofoxpro.com

l Hellcat, price not yet determined

This is the latest release in what is one the most advanced line of calls on the market. The Hellcat comes with a motion decoy inte grated into the main unit and features the new blue bird topper to help fool wary predators. The remote control features an ergonomic grip and large backlit LCD screen. It comes with 100 sounds and can hold up to 300 sounds, which are listed by species on the remote. It also can store up to 10 custom presets for quicker sound and volume changes. The call operates on four AA batteries. The TX433 remote control uses a 9-volt battery. Unlike some other FoxPro models, the remote does not have the ability to utilize such features as FOXCast, which provides a pre-set custom sequence to include favorite sounds, volume levels and pauses, or FOXBang, which automatically engages a user-defined feature when a shot is fired.

The manufacturer did not introduce any new electronic callers for 2022, but it still takes pride in this venerable model that won Outdoor Life’s Editor’s Choice award for its performance and price when it hit the market in 2017. Besides the GS2’s modest cost, the magazine’s predator call testers were impressed with the reach of its 110-decibel, water proof cone speaker at ranges of more than 300 yards. The compact unit, with a carrying handle that swivels around to double as a stand, comes with 10 sounds — Jackrabbit Buffet, Grown Cottontail, Canine Puppies, Johnny’s Ky-Ki, Chicken Distress, Yellowham mer, Distressed Kitten, Fawn Bleating, Coyote & Raccoon and Coyote Pup Distress. More calls can be downloaded from the Johnny Stewart Library of authentic calls via a USB port to the 256 megabytes of storage. The remote, with a range of 100 yards, easy-to-read LCD screen and simple controls, clicks onto pegs in the back of the caller for storage or transportation. The calls can be played individually or looped. Two calls can be played simultaneously. The remote also features a step volume control and a hyper button, which speeds up the cadence of the sounds to vary the effect. The caller, which can run up to eight hours on a set of batteries, is powered by four AA batteries. The remote uses two AAA batteries The batteries are not included.

MOJO is another com pany that chose to not introduce any new models for this year. Instead, it continues to rely on this three-part system that includes a caller designed for high-quality sound, a built-in tripod to get the broadcast of the calls above blockages that would distort it and a built-in motion Crit ter Decoy that won the Gold Award in the annual Preda tor Xtreme Readers’ Choice Awards nine years in a row. MOJO took its experience in creating motion dove decoys to bring innovations to the predator call such as a magnetically connected top with storage for the decoy in the handle and a signal meter that indicates whether the remote with a reach of 400 yards is coupled to the caller. Maximum volume is 120 decibels. Features include 80 sounds in on-board memory and on an SD card that can hold more and a standard MOJO Peg with threaded insert for optional mounting configurations. Users can build custom sounds on SD cards for different types of hunts. The caller senses if a card is inserted and plays those sounds. If no card is inserted, it plays the on-board sounds. Four hot buttons store favorite sounds at a pre-determined volume. Flush glow-in-the-dark buttons help prevent accidental operation.

Primos has had plenty of Dogg calls in its predator pack — including the Dogg Catcher, Top Dogg 360 and the Turbo Dogg. For 2022, Primos introduces an upgrade of the Dogg Catcher, which debuted in 2015. Like its predecessor, the Dogg Catcher 2 is compact and lightweight with a built-in handle for easy transport. The Dogg’s tricks include fold-down legs that elevate the end with the horn speaker to about a 45-degree angle, a flip-up antenna and a notch on the side with a magnet to hold the remote, which has a range of 100 yards. The remote also sports a handy clip on the bottom that allows it to be attached to clothing so that the user still will be able to read the buttons for power, pause, volume and the 12 sounds from predator hunter Randy Anderson. Two sounds can be played at once. They include a range of coyote vocalizations, such as adult and pup distress and distress sounds of cottontail and baby cottontail, jackrabbit, fawn, rodent and woodpecker. They also include programmed sets for jackrabbit and cottontail. The caller runs on four AA batteries while the remote uses one AAA battery, which are not included.

Ashley traveled to the Gila National Forest in New Mexico to get this excellent bull elk with a muzzleloader. Her husband stayed home to take care of the kids while she went after her trophy.

The Journal of the Texas Trophy Hunters

HUNTING®

Hunting is more than just a hobby. For many it’s a lifestyle and for some it’s a way to get themselves and others into the out doors. These hunters relish the oppor tunity to introduce someone new to the sport and share their excitement for the hunt. Ashley Nelson and her family are wonderful examples of such people.

Ashley lives in Tomball, Texas, but grew up hunting at her family’s Los Sueños Ranch, located near Big Wells, Texas. She remembers accompanying her father, Alan Griffin, at an early age to the deer blind. It would take her a little time to develop the desire to pick up a gun herself. “I enjoy hunting but did not actually want to hunt myself until I was about 15 years old,” Ashley said. “I still remember shooting my first buck, a small eight-point with my great grandfather’s Sako .222 Magnum.”

Time has quickly passed, and since that first little buck, Ashley has taken some nice deer. Through the years, the family has carefully managed their low-fenced ranch situated in the heart of fantastic deer country. Perhaps even more important, she and her fam ily have selflessly used the ranch to introduce many others to the sport of hunting.

Ashley is married with a family of her own now, and she and her hus band Mitch enjoy spending time at the ranch with the rest of the family, as well as guests from town, business, and their church group. “I don’t think the thrill would be as great if I hunted by myself and couldn’t share it with others,” she said. “I enjoy hunting with people I care about, and I can’t wait to hunt with my kids when they’re ready! After all, the purpose of the ranch is to share the word of the Lord and raise the next generation of conservationists.”

Aside from deer hunting, Ashley enjoys bass fishing with Mitch and has also hunted doves, turkeys, and hogs. She has even made a successful outing for a pronghorn antelope in New Mexico, but she is quick to add that, “Deer hunting is still my favorite!” But she admitted, “Up until last year, an elk hunt had been pretty high on my list. Dad has been several times with his friend, Bobby Daugherty, and it was something that I wanted a chance to experience with him,” she explained.

After some careful planning, Ashley scheduled an elk hunt last fall after she got a muzzleloader tag. “We hunted the Gila National Forest in New Mexico, an area known for having trophy quality elk,” Ashley said. “Mitch had previously taken a good bull, so he encouraged me to make the trip while he stayed home to take care of the kids. I was excited to go, as it

would be a different style of hunting. I would also get to spend some time in camp with dad along with friends Bobby Daugh erty, Walker Daugherty and Michael and Morgan Bryant.”

Elk hunting in general can be particularly challenging. Elk are wary game with exceptionally keen senses and often found in challenging terrain. This hunt would be no exception, as the Gila is comprised of rugged country and Ashley would be using a muzzleloader. Her “outfitter” friends did their homework and had her practicing with the muzzleloader and shooting profi ciently soon after their arrival to camp. Additionally, they had been scouting for several days and had a really nice bull located that they were hoping to find with Ashley and her muzzle loader. It’s awfully nice to have good friends.

Well before daylight the next morning, everyone woke up early in preparation for the hunt. “We enjoyed the coffee and camaraderie before getting our gear and day packs ready,” Ash ley said. After discussing strategy over a quick breakfast, they headed out to glass a ridge where the big bull was last spotted. “Our goal was to get to a good vantage point where we could glass from the ridge we were on, across to the opposite ridge,”

After a grueling hike to retrieve the elk, Ashley packed out the elk’s antlers for the long trip back to camp.

Ashley said. “It was a really steep hike to get to the top of the ridge on our side. As we neared the top, Michael stopped. The sun was just coming up and I could see the light shining on the antlers of a huge bull elk on the opposite ridge,” she said. “Is that him?” she asked while looking through her binoculars.

Luck was on their side as it was indeed the big bull they were after, and in muzzleloader range. They quickly got their gear into shooting position. It took a little extra time with the muzzleloader, but the bull was unaware of their presence and milled about while feeding. Michael calmly instructed Ashley, “Whenever you’re ready, go ahead and take the shot,” he said. Ashley squeezed the trigger. “I could tell right away that I hit him, and he began to wobble around before falling over,” she said. “I had never felt so excited about hunting anything in my life!”

It took a while to traverse the rough terrain and make it to the opposite ridge to recover Ashley’s fallen trophy. “It was a gruel ing hike to get to him, and along the way I had time to replay the events in my head. Everything had happened so fast, and it took a little time for things to sink in,” she recalled. One thing is certain, a good hunt doesn’t have to be a long hunt, and Ashley would agree with that philosophy after her elk hunting experience.

“As we walked up to him, I was relieved and felt the pressure of the hunt slip away while we took field photos. He was so majestic, with long sweeping beams and plenty of width,” Ashley said. Back at camp, the beauti ful 7x6 bull was measured and would gross score 3413⁄8 “Most people never have this kind of opportunity and I felt blessed to be able to share the experience with so many people I care about!”

Ashley with her bull along with Michael Bryant (left) and her dad, Alan Griffin (right).

STORY

Journal of the Texas Trophy Hunters

Ever since Ryan Brown was a little boy, he has always been passionate about hunting. But for him to include his wife and three children, Zach, Corrine, and Sydney, in hunting has been a dream come true. From filling feeders to gether during the year to filling the freezer in December, Ryan and his family most look forward to spending time together in the deer blind.

The entire family works together all year in preparation of the big opening rifle day. They fill feeders, trim trees, clear shooting lanes, and monitor the game cameras. Then, at the beginning of each season, the family huddles around the computer to look over the photos and select a deer for each family member. Liv ing in the Texas Hill Country, on a low fence ranch, makes this especially exciting because they usually have no idea if their deer is still out there. This season, Ryan’s daughter, Sydney, was after a monster 10-point.

Hunting with Daddy takes some serious dedication, and it usually consists of very early mornings, missing out on play dates with friends, and forgoing that movie you really wanted to watch. However, it is always worth it in the end. And for Sydney, this season did not disappoint.

On Nov. 14, Sydney told her parents about a dream she had the night before. She told them she was sitting in the deer blind at the pond with her daddy when her deer walked out, and

she shot the buck. This got everyone excited, and of course, they were eager to go out that afternoon. But, like children often do, she made the decision to go play with her friends that afternoon while her sister was at volleyball practice, so she did not get to go to the blind with her daddy. Ryan went by himself instead, and out walked Sydney’s monster 10-point. Her dream had come true, but she was not there. Sydney felt she let her daddy down and was sad she did not listen to her dream. Ryan and Sydney continued to sit together each weekend, but her deer never came back.

On the morning of Dec. 11, Ryan sat in the tent blind by the river with his other daughter, Corrine, when suddenly, in walked Sydney’s monster 10-point. But Sydney was at the pond with her mom—me. With every ounce of self-control they had, they let him walk, knowing this could very well be the last time any of them ever saw him again. That evening, family stopped by to visit, and Sydney wanted to play with her cousins, so she decided not to go hunting with her daddy. And again, just like that morning, in walked Sydney’s monster 10-point, but she was not there. Feeling very confident that he would show up again the next morning, Ryan and Sydney made plans to go out before church that next day.

At 5:30 a.m. on Sunday, Dec. 12, Sydney bundled up in the same camo coveralls her daddy wore when he was her age.

Sydney sharing a moment with her dad in their blind.

They grabbed their snacks, took the rifle, loaded up in the UTV, and made the trip down to the river blind. Early mornings are tough for Sydney, and she usually says something like, “Wake me up when my deer gets here,” or, “Wake me up when the sun rises.” This morning was no different. With her blanket tossed over her head and the propane space heater run ning, she took a little nap and waited for sunrise. The birds chirped, the fish splashed, and the spikes, the does, and the eight-points came and went. But the mon ster 10-point never showed up. Feeling very grateful for the time they had been able to spend together, they looked forward to another daddy-daughter date that evening and were still feeling very positive the buck would show up that evening.

That afternoon, Ryan and Sydney prepared to head back to the blind. With her blanket, their snacks, and the rifle in hand, they loaded up in the UTV and went back down to the river. Unfortunately, Ryan left his phone at the house and without a way to com municate with me, I waited in silence for the good news. It wasn’t until 5:50 p.m. when Sydney shared the news. “I got him!” she said.

That same evening, we loaded the buck in the truck and took him to our meat processor. Sydney had a very specific idea of how she wanted the meat processed: hams steaks and ground meat. She also has the perfect pose and spot picked out on her wall for her mount. Fortunately for us, Otten Brothers Taxidermy does an amazing job and works

perfectly with an opinionated 11-yearold girl. “This is my deer. I get to choose what happens to him,” she said, and that’s exactly what happened.

“While we were sitting there all evening, we saw a variety of deer to include axis and whitetail,” Ryan said. “It started getting dark and we were getting discouraged. Then a few of the white tail started coming to the feeder and I started to feel more and more confident that the big buck was going to show up. I kept my eyes peeled in the far back brush for any deer movement”

“I then saw the 10-point making a scrape on the neigh bor’s property. I kept my eyes on him and noticed that he had jumped the fence and worked his way down into a deep draw between us and the neighbor’s property. Then out of nowhere Sydney says, ‘Daddy, there’s another deer.’ I told her, ‘No baby, those are the same ones.’

“Then she said, ‘No really, there’s another one right there!’ I put the binoculars up and looked to the left. I noticed that the 10-point had come up out of the draw to the left of the feeder. However, there was a bunch of brush and tree limbs between us and the deer, making it a very difficult shot.

“So, we decided to wait until the deer moved to the right of the feeder and she had a clear broadside shot. We anxiously waited for about 25 minutes. Even though the sun was still up, it started to get dark, and with the tree cover, we could only see you through the scope or binoculars. She told me that he was broad side and that she felt confident, then squeezed the trigger—BANG! The deer ran to the left and I heard the crash.”

“Spending time with my dad and shooting the deer was my best memory,” Sydney said. “What’s most important is the hunt, not just killing your deer.”

Sydney and her dad were feeling discouraged until the buck appeared. Discouragement had turned into success.

Sydney believes the hunt has more importantance than just getting a deer.

Laptops, tablets, and cell phones are convenient electronic devices, but they’re really not required for every outdoor excursion.

Headed to his Hill Country deer camp from Dallas, Mark winked at his wife Deb as he told his teenage children that upon arrival, a surprise awaited them. Becca, 15, and Brock, 13, asked about it. Mark replied, “I can’t tell, or it won’t be a surprise.” Mark had joined this deer lease two months earlier. It was Deb and the kids’ initial trip there.

Since this was the first family outing in months, Mark and Deb insisted all cell phones be turned off during the drive. Amid several bellyaching complaints, entertaining conversation took place during the four-hour trip.

Stopping at a gate in a remote area, Mark an nounced they’d arrived at deer camp. Several travel trailers were parked near a weathered wood house. Smoke rose from a fire ringed with rocks. Upon turning on their phones, both teens screeched in unison, “NO SERVICE.” Smiling broadly, Mark said, “Surprise!”

Have you ever thought what it would be like to be somewhere where no one could reach you by phone?

Think back, likely 40-50 years if you’re old enough. That’s how life was back then. Land lines provided communica tion. Otherwise, you drove to the nearest pay phone to call. Expensive bulky bag phones might enable connection with an operator, if you were in the right area. It was hit or miss daily living, but we survived. People

talked face to face to one another. Cards, letters and important documents often took days or longer to arrive by mail. For a photo, film had to be developed to produce a visible image. Few people had expensive movie cameras that demand constant battery changes.

Like so much in life, time changes things. Technology has exploded in too many ways to count. Every facet of life has changed with technological advances that continue today. Most

are for the betterment of mankind, although at the same time a great deal has been lost. Hunting is one aspect that has seen much evolution.

Today’s communication abilities cover vast possibilities. It’s no longer a simple phone call from me to you. We can look at

Merely watching an online video of someone making Dutch oven berry cobbler doesn’t compare to learning how to do it yourself.

each other while talking, despite one being on the other side of the world. And we can do it on a desktop computer, not just a phone device.

I can snap a giant whitetail buck’s picture and before I can snap my fingers, broadcast it via social media to millions. I can show you action with narration while it’s happening. That’s just the tip of the iceberg. It can be done with a cell phone, tablet, or all sorts of devices in addition to a normal camera. Oh, and I can’t go without mentioning how-to videos available online for whatever you may be attempting to do, from simple repairs to field-dressing game to cooking. The sky’s the limit for watching and listening to someone explain step-by-step procedures.

Most everyone has some sort of cellular device carried every where. We seem glued or perhaps addicted to them. Next time you dine out, look around at how many people are absorbed in an electronic apparatus. In my dinosaur opinion, the extreme downside to ever-evolving technology is the loss of genuine conversation as well as learning hands-on from a live person. Mark and Deb silenced their kid’s phones, but rest assured, it was a memorable weekend at deer camp with no electronic interruptions.

OK, I can hear complaints. “What if there’s an emergency?” or “I rely on my cell phone to take photos of bucks to study before pulling the trigger.” Better yet: “I simply cannot be inac cessible for even a few hours. Certainly not a day or two!”

Remote places across Texas still have absolutely no cell recep tion, but these days they’re few and far between. If you cannot have down time for a day or two, you’re very much overworked. Shut things off and enjoy the hunt.

There was a time when sitting around the campfire entailed storytelling, discussing past experiences, good and bad, comparing notes of what you heard and saw, not showing something on your phone to create camaraderie. Hunting plans

and strategies were debated back and forth without watching a video of strangers hunting elsewhere.

Make memories without electronics. Talk to those with you but just as important, listen to what they say. Life is about learning. Every one of us continues learning our entire life whether we know it or not. Leaving electronics alone while hunting may give you a surprising burst of rejuvenation while in touch with nature, and yourself.

Walk around deer camp exploring, follow game trails to look, listen, see anything and everything. Learn how to cut firewood, build a fire, repair a deer stand, set up a game camera. Dutch oven cooking is a lost art, but a great survival tool to learn. The list is endless.

If you simply must, keep your phone nearby for photos but you don’t have to immediately send them and chat about what’s going on. I know hunters who “think” they’re hunting because they’re texting pictures and videos to fellow hunters, possibly only across a pasture. However, even short texts take your eyes off brush or wherever you should be focusing your attention. Can you spend time without electronics to watch and listen to what’s going on around you?

That trophy buck might be standing still near you, almost totally camouflaged. A huge feral hog could be peering out with one eye from behind a giant mesquite or oak. The red poppy in tall grass may be a long-bearded gobbler, but you weren’t paying attention. I’ve witnessed each of these, and more, because I was alert, attentive, intensely watching for anything and everything.

The next time you embark on an outdoor adventure—hunt ing, fishing or something else—please leave the electronics behind, or at the very least, turn them off. Truly engage in meaningful conversation with others in person, not across air waves. Relish in the new, improved way you feel when you leave electronics behind.

A fat doe may not be your target species, but if you’re busy texting or playing electronic games, there’s no telling what you miss by not paying attention.

Garrison with his trophy buck, “Judge.”

The Journal of the Texas Trophy

There’s a romantic in me that wants to believe that cer tain bucks just know every good hunting story must involve some element of suffering on the hunter’s part. So, big bucks choose to reside where most hunters find discomfort. I find humor in this relationship nearly every season, and I chuckled as I watched my dad tote a can of wasp spray up the ladder of everyone’s least-liked deer blind on the ranch: Lovegrass.

“You sure you still want to sit in this old blind?” I whis pered up to him from the base of the stand. It was nearing 4:30 in the afternoon on a hot late September evening, and I was in a rush to get to my own Big Field stand, after drop ping my dad off at Lovegrass along the way. We had made plans to split up and scout that evening, hoping to see a big buck that we had started calling “Judge.” I don’t think my dad knew it yet, but this deer was something else! “Yeah, I’ll be fine,” he replied to me as a few more wasps flew past his face and out the door.

Judge was a buck that put to shame just about every other deer that I’d seen on our ranch. In 2019, we estimated him to be 5½ or 6½ years old, when Judge was a clean, nine-point that scored right around 150. We actually had him on the hit list that fall, but thankfully, nobody ever saw him. In late summer of 2020, I got pictures of Judge with a bachelor group of three other bucks. I was shocked by the jump in antler development, and I quickly showed the photos to my dad and brother, and the debate began.

We’ve had a long-standing practice on our family ranch of letting our best bucks—what we call our “top 10%”—grow until they show significant decline, or even die of old age. We do this with hope that they’ll pass on their quality genet ics. Maybe it’s smart; maybe it’s just dumb cowboy biology; but it’s what we do. Considering Judge was now one of the biggest bucks we’ve ever seen on our place, we asked the question: Does he keep his spot on the hit list?

It was well past sundown when I showed back up at Lovegrass to pick up dad. I noticed as he crawled down from the old rickety stand that he was moving with an extra sense of caution. He slowly slipped into the passenger seat, softly shut the door, turned to me with wide eyes, and simply said, “Wow.” I knew he had seen Judge, and I knew by his sense of awe, that we were going after Judge that season.

Knowing Judge’s inconsistent and nocturnal behavior, I chose to play it slow and safe, waiting for optimal conditions before ever making a move on him. For weeks, I anxiously checked cameras and watched the weather, but I never got the conditions I was looking for until the weekend after Thanks giving. Following my dad’s initial sighting of Judge, I had built a makeshift brush blind from a large huisache tree near the Lovegrass, rather than use the old, crumbly blind, and as fate would have it, that is where the wind from this cold front would work best. The brush blind had stickers, but the pain was better than the Lovegrass blind.

Before daylight, on the morning of my first hunt for Judge, I crawled into my thorny nook, got as cozy as I could, and

settled in for what I expected to be a long, uncomfortable sit in the dark. All the conditions were right, and I was hopeful my patience would pay off. Ten minutes later, I heard the unmis takable sound of antlers clashing in the brush. A sharp chill flew down my spine, and all I could think of was Judge.

The fight was loud and intense, and it went on for quite a while. I sat silently in the dark and listened, wondering if it was Judge fighting, and if I had made a mistake in waiting so long to go after him. If it was him, it was beginning to sound like he might wind up with broken antlers, dead, or both.

As the horizon gained some color, I decided to get up and sneak my way over toward the fight. I had just begun to push myself up off the ground when I heard the rustling of brush about 30 yards to my left. I froze, and I could hear heavy breathing. As I slowly turned, I could see the dark figure of a buck moving straight toward me through the grass. Before I had time to really make him out, Judge was standing barely a truck’s length away from me, broadside. I was completely out of position.

Garrison’s brush blind had stickers in it, but he said the pain was better than using the Lovegrass blind.

The old buck wreaked of the rut and was puffing like a freight train, and to my surprise, I didn’t see a single broken point. He had stopped with his head turned away from me, but took a couple glances left and right, keeping one ear in my direction. With no other deer around, I knew this would be my best opportunity to take a shot.

Judge was practically in my lap, and I didn’t dare move. In another strange twist that I never could have scripted, a small pack of coyotes spontaneously let out their howls just as I was pondering my next move.

Judge’s neck extended toward the sky, and both of his ears shot straight forward. Seeing my chance, I shifted back to my original seating, slid my .30-30 back into my lap, and cocked the hammer—big mistake. The second my hammer clicked into place, Judge whipped around and put all his attention on me. My heart pounded, and we held a steady face-off for several seconds—he didn’t know what I was, but the wind was in my favor. Somehow, I won the standoff, and he eventually went back to staring in the direction of the coyotes. By then it was too late. I swiftly shouldered my rifle, settled a bead on his

shoulder, and dropped him where he stood. I quickly jumped from my blind to stand ready for a follow-up shot, but it was not needed.

When I could tell that the buck had expired, I thankfully did what I so often forget to do: I stopped, I sat still, and I held on to that moment. I sat back down outside my blind and watched the sun finally break the horizon. I listened to the geese flying overhead, took deep breaths from the damp morning air, and simply thanked the Lord for where I was. I’ve always found it ironic how long hunters will work for these moments, but how quick we are to leave them.

When I was done with my moment, I got up and dragged the buck to where I knew my dad would park his truck. I held off on the admiring until dad got there. The rest of the morning was spent smiling—sometimes while talking; sometimes while silent, but constantly smiling.

We finally hoisted the buck onto the game carrier, and as I stood back to get a full view of Judge’s size, my eyes shifted to the old, crumbly Lovegrass stand in his background. I realized the romantic in me had won that morning.

After startling Judge with the sound from cocking the rifle’s hammer, Garrison man aged to gather himself for the shot that took the buck down.

Few trophies are as breathtakingly beautiful as a mature caribou bull.

Hunting in Alaska is expensive. It costs time, distance, blood, sweat, sometimes tears, and hard cash. But today it’s still possible to have great hunts in the Great Land without taking a second mortgage. What is required is homework, some commitment in time and shoe leather, and a little luck. The majority of the state—hundreds of millions of acres—is public land. It’s yours to hunt. You just need to access it, which can be no small challenge.

It’s important to understand the nature of Alaska hunting regulations. There are some hunts limited to permits allot ted through the annual fall lottery, which closes each year in early December. Get your applications now for 2023. There are also registration hunts, with tags available over the counter or online to anyone. These are the best options for do-it-yourself hunters and there are registration hunts for moose, caribou, black bear and blacktail deer.

Expect competition from resident hunters, much as anywhere in the western U.S.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game website is a rich source of hunting information as well as licenses, tags and resources like guides and transporters. Start at www.adfg. alaska.gov.

For getting into hunting country, you can rent a 4x4 vehicle in Anchorage and drive one of Alaska’s few highways to a trailhead or campsite near where you want to hunt. But I would recommend hiring a transporter that will fly or boat you into a good area, leave you to hunt and pick up you and your game in a few days or week.

Transporters are licensed individuals and companies able to move hunters to more remote areas by bush plane, boat, horse, ATV, snow machine, or even highway vehicles. Many resi dent hunters use transporters as well because they tend to be much less expensive than full guide services. Transporters are

prohibited from providing guiding services, hunting advice, or accompanying hunters in the field, except as needed to provide transportation services.

Expect to spend anywhere from $1,500 to $4,000 for a dropoff hunt by bush plane or boat. This works best with at least one or two companions, because packing out a 1,500-pound moose is a job of epic proportions, especially in early season when spoilage is a concern.

So, what can we expect to hunt on our own? Quite a bit actually. Every Alaska hunter wants a big moose and there are DIY options, with a few caveats. There are still true giant moose killed in Alaska every year, with at least a few pushing 70 inches of spread. Just a few years ago, an Alaska guide killed a bull that’s now No. 4 all time in the Boone and Crockett Record Book, with a spread of more than 80 inches.

You legally do not have to hire a guide to hunt moose in Alaska, as non-residents must do to hunt brown bears or sheep. But it sure helps. A good transporter can deliver you into good country, where you hunt on your own. You have a camp, cook your own meals, scout, and hunt as you like, and also have to get your game back to the landing strip or riverbank.

That is the challenge. The good news is moose hunting is a lazy man’s sport. Getting there is hard, usually by float plane or boat. Getting home with a quarter ton of meat is tougher.

But the hunt itself is a waiting game of glassing and calling.

New moose hunters often move too far, cover too much ground, and in the process, spook the animal they want. With all those millions of acres of Alaska to hunt, it’s hard to slow down. But the penalty for impatience is busting the animal you have come so far to hunt. So, prepare to sit still.

More than anything, moose hunting is a waiting game. Get into good moose country. Get a good vantage point, get com fortable and start looking. And waiting.

A young black bear in prime fall fur. Black bears are always a possibility as a sideline to another hunt.

The good news is anybody, regardless of physical ability, has a chance to kill a moose, as long as you can get into moose country. You do not have to be able to run a marathon or climb giant mountains. It’s a perfect old man’s game.

Caribou fall into that same category. Once in good caribou country, you need to get lucky with the migration and find a good spot to intercept caribou moving through.

I liken caribou hunting to fishing a salmon run. Before and after the run or migration, the hillsides and rivers are empty. But be there as your quarry floods through, and it’s just a matter of picking the one you want.

Caribou are creatures of the wilder ness, so you’ll first need to get into wild country. Alaska caribou migrations have been unpredictable always, but espe cially so in the past decade. In 2021 I hunted some of the best caribou country in the state, and the animals just didn’t migrate through until a month later, during the October closed season.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game does maintain hotlines and online resources with updates on migrations, which can help zero in on a migration once you’re in the state. I always recommend blacktail deer hunting on Kodiak Island for a first Alaska hunt. Blacktails are midway in size between whitetails and mule deer, love Alaska’s rain forest, and are abundant, tasty, and fun to hunt on Kodiak. There are both boat-based and cabin-based hunts on Kodiak, the second larg est island in North America. It’s also possible to fly into Kodiak, rent a vehicle at the airport and drive the road system to access the public land. The road system gets more pressure, so parking and hiking up to the deer increases the odds.

Blacktails will be high in the alpine during August—the sea son opens Aug. 1—and September, moving down as snow fills the high country. Using a bleat call can be effective anytime, but especially during the November rut. The stocky little deer

stick close to cover and will let a hunter pass by, so it pays to sit and glass a lot.

Black bears are most often a secondary quarry of opportunity for Alaska hunters in the fall, taken as the chance presents itself. But fall bears can be a great hunt in their own right, and unlike grizzlies, are fair game for non-residents hunting on their own.

While it’s possible to find black bears on salmon streams, feeding on late run and dead salmon, I would avoid them, because they will stink of rotten fish and the meat will be inedible. A fall blueberry bear, on the other hand, which has been stuffing itself on mountain blueberries, is excellent eating. Fall bear hides will also be long and unrubbed, compared to spring bears. So obviously look for blueberry patches, usually at elevations of 2,000 to 4,000 feet and start glassing for bears. Glassing first from roadways, then hiking up to a bear distract ed while feeding on berries, saves climbing.

For any DIY option, remember Mother Nature always bats last in Alaska. Alaska weather is fickle, usually wet, and can be downright deadly. Plan for delays, missed days when it’s unsafe to travel or hunt, and mis ery! As I write this, a group of my Texas friends are beached for the day because foul weather cancelled their dream halibut trip of a lifetime. Weather happens.

Also plan to make the most of the side opportunities, from picking mountain blueberries and cranber ries, to fishing for grayling or rain bow trout or silver salmon, to potting a few ptarmigan or snowshoe hares for dinner. Sometimes it’s these little bonuses that are more memorable than the game animals you bring home.

All bull moose are big and look big, but most parts of Alaska have antler restrictions on what bulls can be taken, typically minimum 50-inch outside spread and three or four brow tines. These bulls wouldn’t be legal in many parts of the state.

A day in Alaska is a blessing, espe cially hunting it on your own.

Israel Payton shot this 80-inch Alaska moose a few years ago, ranking B&C No. 4 all-time. Proof that big moose still exist in Alaska.

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DROUGHT BUCK

Even in a drought, mule deer bucks can grow impressive racks

By Brandon Ray

Brandon with his 2021 Texas mule deer.

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The outlook was bleak. Spring and summer 2021 were hot with little moisture. Starting in late winter and early spring, moisture is needed to grow browse and weeds for deer to stay healthy, recover from the stress of winter, and grow big antlers. Spring rains also grow grass to hide fawns and feed to keep does healthy. In most counties in the Panhandle and West Texas where Texas’ mule deer live, conditions were less than ideal.

On land where I hunt in the Panhandle, cattle were not grazed for a fourth year in a row, due to continuing drought. One cow is too many in a drought year. Windmills were main tained for wildlife and a couple of dirt ponds were even dug out deeper with a bulldozer so when the rains came, the ponds could hold water. Supplemental feed is a good idea for deer in a drought, but cost prohibitive for most hunters, including me.

I remember a similar, even worse drought year of 2011. It was the driest, hottest year in 100 years. Despite wildfires weekly and terrible range conditions, a few bucks still grew to impressive size. The mule deer buck I shot that fall, a 28-inch wide 11-point that gross-scored 171 inches, lived close to the ranch headquarters in the summer. I saw that buck multiple times before the season. Every time I saw him, he was feed ing on mesquite beans dangling from mature mesquite trees. Those beans supplied much-needed protein in a bad year.

So even though conditions were less than ideal going into the fall 2021 season, I tried to stay positive. I monitored deer activity with late afternoon scouting trips and trail cameras set near windmills. Mostly, I saw young bucks with average antlers. Maybe something better would show up later in the season?

Big Texas bucks

How rare is a record-class archery mule deer buck on Texas soil? According to data from archery’s prestigious record book, The Pope & Young Club, Texas has 38 typicals, one velvet typical and six non-typical mule deer entered from the Lone

Star state. That’s 45 bucks total. Minimum score for a typical is 145 inches. The minimum score for a non-typical is 170 inches. The state record typical, a Cottle County buck taken by Johnathan Burpo in October 2004, net-scores 1857⁄8 . The state record non-typical, a Hartley County buck taken by Jim Finch in October 2007, net-scores an incredible 222 6⁄8 P&Y. According to Shawn Grey, Texas Parks and Wildlife biolo gist and program leader for mule deer and pronghorn, the following numbers are from the 2021 surveys. Surveys showed 71,000 mule deer in the Panhandle and 120,000 in the TransPecos: 191,000 total statewide. Texas’ statewide mule deer numbers fluctuate from lows of around 150,000 in consecutive drought years to up to 250,000 statewide in the best of times.

Gear for mule deer

Whatever bow rig you use for whitetails will likely be fine for mule deer, but keep in mind a mature mule deer buck can weigh 200-250 pounds live weight. That’s almost twice the size of the average Hill Country whitetail buck. My deer rig includes a compound drawing about 60 pounds with a single pin, moveable sight. The sight has marks for shooting from 20 to 60 yards. I prefer skinny carbon arrows with short fletch ings and compact, four-blade fixed-blade broadheads. Finished arrow weight is usually 400-450 grains.

Good optics are crucial. Start with 10X40 binoculars and a comfortable bino harness. A spotting scope will help size up bucks on the horizon. I carry two, one with a large 80mm objective and a window mount for glassing from the truck and a more compact, 60mm objective scope and light tripod for hunting far from the road.

A pocket-sized rangefinder, or binoculars with the range finder built in, will help nail down the exact shot distance. I’ve been using the Sig Sauer 10X42 Kilo 3000BDX binocular/ rangefinder for a few years with good success. Most shots at mule deer when hunting spot and stalk are 40 yards or more. Shots from blinds over windmills or near feed stations might

Brandon snapped this live photo of his 2021 Texas mule deer.

be 30 yards or less. Either way, practice for longer shot distanc es than what you might be used to when hunting for whitetails.

Sitting over water is effective, and not just when it’s hot in the early season. Any time drought is occurring, check tracks in the mud around the waterholes. During the rut, weary bucks will visit water often. Set a trail camera to monitor activity. In my experience, most mule deer water late in the afternoon or after dark, but I’ve seen deer at water mornings and midday, too.

The rut brings a good one

Big bucks were hard to find in 2021. It was early Decem ber, the rut starting to gain momentum, before I found a big one. I saw the heavy-antlered 10-point following a doe late on Dec. 3. Daylight was gone, but I vowed to return the next day.

I found that same buck, likely following the same doe, at noon on Dec. 4. He was only 300 yards from where I saw him the day before. They appeared to be headed to a nearby windmill with several other deer. I made a quick stalk, jogging more than sneaking to try to close the gap, dodging from cedar to cedar, checking the wind often. Finally, I knelt behind a bushy cedar tree near a well-traveled trail, nocked an arrow and waited. Ten minutes later, at 12:25 p.m., the doe walked down the trail with the big 10-point behind her. At 15 yards, I dropped the string. The buck trotted 55 yards and tipped over.

That buck was missing half of his right ear, leaving little doubt about who he was. He grew from an average eightpoint the previous year to a 160-class stud. For one year, I never saw that buck either in person or on trail camera. Maybe he lived off the property most of the year or maybe he was just sneaky? In late December and early January, peak of the rut, I saw two more mature, 160-class bucks, but both had broken racks. Added proof that even in drought years, a few bucks still grow impressive antlers.

Jim Finch with his non-typical mule deer taken in 2007. This Hartley County buck ranks No. 1 for Texas non-typicals in The Pope & Young Club with a net score of 2226⁄8.

Brandon glassing rugged canyon country in the Texas Panhandle. Good optics are a must for any serious mule deer hunter.

Robert Williams with his daughter, Maree Lou, are in a legal battle with Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. TPWD wants to destroy their 500 deer because of suspected CWD/scrapie deer.

The Journal of the Texas Trophy Hunters

Editor’s Note: Taylor wrote the following article as a thesis for her senior year at Regents High School in Austin. She’s done the research. We believe it’s worth sharing with our Journal readers.

More than a dozen whitetail deer walk toward Maree Lou Williams, quietly surrounding her and eyeing her hands for snacks. She knows these deer by name. She knows their personalities and even their favorite foods. She bottle raised several of them. “They’re like my babies,” Maree Lou said about her relationship to these animals. Now, all of their lives are in danger, as the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department plans to slaughter the entire deer herd.

In the spring of 2021, RW Trophy Ranch, owned by Robert Williams and managed by his daughter Maree Lou, tested three deer for chronic wasting disease (CWD) after they died dur ing a harsh winter storm. One of those deer tested positive for CWD. Based on this single positive result, TPWD immediately implemented a plan to exterminate the entire herd of 500 deer. In an effort to save his herd, Mr. Williams offered to perform live testing for CWD on every deer in his facility. However, TPWD refused this offer.

After several months of back-and-forth discussion, the only solution offered by TPWD was to slaughter the entire herd. Not only are they threating to slaughter all Mr. Williams’ deer, but TPWD has informed him he will be required to pay for all of the agency’s costs associated with killing his deer, including salaries, travel, lodging and food. In addition, Mr. Williams would be required to remove and replace several inches of topsoil throughout his deer facility.

Mr. Williams filed a lawsuit against TPWD, alleging violation

of private property rights, but a Travis county court dismissed the lawsuit. Mr. Williams filed another lawsuit in Kaufman County, where his ranch is located. Days after the Kaufman County lawsuit was filed, Mr. Williams received a depopula tion order from TPWD. When Mr. Williams refused to agree to leave his property and have no media coverage of the slaugh ter, TPWD decided to conduct their operations at night. This doubled the number of employees needed to complete their plan, therefore costing Mr. Williams even more money.

The Kaufman County court issued a 10-day restraining order preventing TPWD from entering Mr. Williams’ property to pursue their depopulation plan. However, they planned to begin the herd extermination as soon as the 10-day period ended. The plan TPWD is pursuing will cost Mr. Williams up to $3.5 million. The case went to Fifth Court of Appeals in Dallas, which refused to hear it. It’s now back in Kaufman County court, and TPWD is trying to take the case to the Texas Supreme Court.

CWD was first identified in a captive mule deer in a Colorado research facility in the late 1960s, and in wild mule deer in 1981. Dr. Elizabeth Williams, a veterinary pathologist from Wyoming was the first to report this new disease in the Colo rado research facility in a mule deer. So, the question is, what is CWD? The official website for information on CWD defines it as an always fatal, contagious, neurological disease affecting cervid species including deer, reindeer, elk, and moose.

CWD causes a characteristic spongy degeneration of the brains of infected animals, resulting in emaciation, abnormal behavior, loss of bodily functions, and death. The website says the most widely accepted theory is the CWD agent is a mis

Maree Lou Williams tends to a couple deer on the ranch. Her father Robert offered to conduct live testing for CWD on his herd, but TPWD refused his offer.

folded prion, an abnormal form of cellular protein that’s most commonly found in the central nervous system and lymphoid tissue. This prion infects the animal hosting it by promoting conversion of normal cellular prion protein to the abnormal form.

The agent, CWD, does not contain any genetic mate rial—DNA or RNA—as occurs with bacterial, viral, fungal, and parasitic disease agents. And, according to Jessy Slota from the National Microbiology Laboratory, there’s no dysregulation of microRNAs in infected cervids. This infectious agent is smaller than most viral particles and does not evoke any detectable immune response or inflammatory reaction in the host animal. Not only does the immune system emit no response, the CWD agent is highly resistant to enzymes, chemicals, heat, and other materials or procedures that typically are used to inactivate disease agents, making the disease seemingly incurable.

Based on this understanding of chronic wasting disease, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission implemented stringent rules on the deer breeding industry in Texas, be ginning June 20, 2016. The commission adopted additional rules pertaining to CWD monitoring zones and carcass movement restrictions on Aug. 25, 2016. As more cases of CWD were found in captive and free-range white-tailed deer and mule deer in 2016 and 2017, the commission modified the rules pertaining to the movement of live deer in and out of CWD containment and surveillance zones.

The rules began with the quarantine of infected deer herds as well as quarantining any deer breeder facilities that had sold or bought deer from the infected herd for five years. Now, TPWD has implemented full herd depopula tion, their reasoning being that postmortem testing is slightly more accurate than live testing. These rules have caused several Texas deer breeders to suffer severe finan cial loss, and many have even gone out of business. All of this, with not one deer dying of CWD.

CWD is not only an issue for a small population whose occupation or research revolves around cervid species. It has recently been used by several media outlets as a tactic to gain readers or viewers by instilling fear in the public, calling CWD the “zombie deer disease.” Describing CWD in this way causes individuals who do not have experience or research in any cervid species or cervid diseases to panic, instantly believing there will be a sort of “outbreak” of zombie deer. The idea of an animal zombie apocalypse causes public fear.

Public fear enables those in power, such as TPWD, to imple ment draconian policies, and TPWD has done just that. They are murdering deer. They are closing businesses. They need to be stopped. Again, not one deer has died from CWD.

One of Robert’s granddaughters tends to a fawn. The author states TPWD wants to eliminate Robert’s herd because they believe postmortem testing for CWD is more accurate than live testing.

sick in a research pen. When this deer became ill, Dr. Williams did not recognize the disease. So, she decided to perform test ing on the mule deer, believing she discovered a new disease. However, she was misinformed. She relied on unreliable testing methods to “discover” CWD, and therefore had no way of knowing the malady was actually scrapie, because the sheep disease was not known to affect cervids.

TPWD should reform the practices they have implemented in addressing CWD. CWD affects an incredibly small number of deer in Texas, it has no effect on human health, and it should not even be considered to have any effect on deer populations because the disease is slow to affect deer, and a doe can have several fawns, even with CWD.

Let’s begin with the discovery of CWD. The scientist who discovered the disease, Dr. Williams, was faced with a peculiar situation of a mule deer, mixed with sheep and elk, that became

What is scrapie? Scrapie is a degenerative TSE (transmis sible spongiform encephalopathy) affecting the central nervous system of sheep and goats. However, studies performed by Dr. Justin Greenlee, USDA, suggest a variant of scrapie can occur in cervids, and it’s what we mistakenly call CWD.

Dr. Greenlee used the Western blot test, rather than the stan dard IHC and ELISA tests in his experiments. The Western blot test shows an in-depth molecular profile of the brain, allowing us to see the similar banding patterns of CWD and scrapie, specifically in the brainstem, lymph nodes, and cerebellum, making CWD and scrapie indistinguishable on the molecular level.

Dr. Greenlee states that his study also suggests many similarities in the manifestations of CWD and scrapie in white-tailed deer, proving that CWD is just a variant of scrapie. It’s important that in-depth testing methods are used to detect CWD, as they enable the de tection of minute amounts of infectious prions in animal tissues and environ mental samples.

IHC and ELISA tests do not allow for such an extensive view of the brain, and should therefore be considered inad equate testing methods. Because of this, we can also consider the CWD Con trol Program to be a false hypothesis, because it was completely based on the IHC and ELISA testing methods. CWD and scrapie are both TSE diseases affect ing the brain. CWD and scrapie have the same molecular profile. CWD and scrapie are actually the same disease, but in two different species, sheep and cervids. Therefore, much more is known about CWD than TPWD will admit.

If you’re not convinced CWD is really just another form of scrapie, there are some inarguable data points that prove the insignificance of CWD. Currently, there are 228 total CWD positives in Texas. So, CWD is present, but Texas is home to an estimated four million white-tailed deer. Therefore, only 0.0057 percent of all Texas deer have CWD, so why in the world does TPWD advertise it as such an intense problem? Not only is there a miniscule population of positive cases right now, at far under one percent, there has actually never been more than 1% of Texas deer infected with CWD.

According to the USDA, from 1998 to 2012 there were 1,017,826 wild and captive cervids tested in the entire nation. Only 4,003 tested positive for CWD. That is only 0.39%. Over that 14-year period, over 99.6% did not have the disease. This disease is not only rare, but it also takes up to seven years to kill the host animal, meaning deer are more likely to die from predators, from hunters, from fences, and from automobiles, before they die from CWD.

Media coverage surrounding CWD portrays it as an incred ibly dangerous “zombie deer disease.” If one were to Google “zombie deer disease,” they’d find stories by every outlet from the San-Antonio Express-News to Newsweek to the Associated Press, with headlines declaring that zombie deer are spread ing across America, or that the zombie deer disease will soon be transmitted to humans. This representation of CWD is incredibly misleading, making many American citizens believe misinformation about the issue.

Describing deer infected with CWD as zombies is illogical. E. S. Williams, a professor at the University of Alabama’s college of business, states when CWD infects a host animal, the only symptoms that can be externally detected are weight loss and

behavioral changes that typically span weeks, months, or years. However, he goes on to say these behavioral changes can be subtle and fall within the normal repertoire of cervids. Similar ly, normal seasonal changes in body mass occur in free-ranging and captive cervids. This means that CWD infected cervids can look nearly identical to healthy cervids, not zombie-like at all.

Not only do media outlets falsify CWD traits in cervids, they also alter the truth about its effect on humans. A collaborative study performed by a group of professors and researchers at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) that focuses on agricul ture and infectious diseases, was done to test if CWD could be linked to any cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) in humans. CJD is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder believed to be caused by an abnormal isoform of a cellular glycoprotein known as the prion protein. And according to the CDC, it’s an extremely rare disease. Only one in every million people younger than 50 years in the United States has it, and only 3.6 people of every million ages 50 years and above have it.

Because of its similarity as a prion protein disease, some believe CJD is a form of CWD/scrapie in humans, arguing that humans infected with CJD have acquired it from infected venison. Since CWD/scrapie is also a prion protein disease, the researchers began testing to find out if CWD/scrapie in cervids could mutate into CJD in humans. They concluded that the lack of evidence of a link between CWD transmission and un

usual cases of CJD, despite several epidemiologic investigations, and the absence of an increase in CJD incidence in Colorado and Wyoming suggest that the risk, if any, of transmission of CWD/scrapie to humans is low, as no human cases of prion disease with strong evidence of a link with CWD/scrapie have been identified.

The anatomical differences in the brains of cervids and humans would not even allow for CWD/scrapie to manifest into CJD. To put it in laymen’s terms, it would be like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. It just wouldn’t work. Therefore, chronic wasting disease poses no threat to the hunting industry in Texas, as the prion disease will not infect humans.

Dr. James Kroll, a whitetail deer specialist, agrees, saying Texans annually consume about 15 million pounds of deer meat, and there have been no reports of this venison ever hav ing a negative effect on human health because of CWD/scrapie. Lindsay Thomas, Chief Communications Officer for the Nation al Deer Association, depicts the situation as the news media just trying to get more clicks from a mainstream audience that may not otherwise care about wildlife diseases. They are doing real damage both to the public’s understanding of this issue and to the hunting community’s efforts to unite against this threat.

TPWD claims that they make such harsh rules because the containment and control of chronic wasting disease is of vital importance to the deer breeding industry in Texas. They argue that it’s simply not sustainable to continue deer breeding opera tions without following their policies of rigorous monitoring and attempts to control the spread of CWD. Additionally, the unmitigated spread of CWD in deer breeding facilities would eventually result in debilitating losses of deer and thus loss of income without their rules. Again, not one deer had died from CWD, anywhere.

The handling and discussion of CWD in deer breeding pens by TPWD would lead one to believe CWD originated because of the existence of captive deer breeding facilities, since their rules violently target captive deer and don’t target free ranging deer. However, the first case of CWD was recorded in a private research facility in Colorado before deer breeding was even established in that state.

The first cases of CWD in Texas were discovered in wild mule deer in the far western part of the state. The existence of CWD has been known since 1967. If CWD were to extermi nate entire deer herds, it would have happened by now, and it would have happened before TPWD implemented their chronic wasting disease protocols. TPWD has taken the approach that CWD is a “sky is falling” disease, but it seems that they only believe the sky is falling inside of breeder pens.

Deer breeders are required to test 100 percent of all mortalities and live test any deer that are released from the pens. We know that CWD is present in the wild, yet testing for CWD in wild deer continues to be on a voluntary basis. The percentage of wild deer tested each year compared to the percentage of captive deer tested each year is miniscule. There are about 70,000 deer in breeder pens in Texas. Since 2003, deer breeders have tested 21 times more captive deer for

CWD than Texas Parks and Wildlife has tested in the wild out of the population of five million.

If CWD truly threatens the deer population of Texas, we should be conducting stringent testing on all portions of the state’s deer herd. That is not what is currently happening. In stead, Texas Parks and Wildlife has forced Texas deer breeders to endure uneducated and unnecessary rules regarding chronic wasting disease.

In order to enforce these oppressive management plans on breeders without causing major riots, TPWD uses the argument that Texas law classifies live whitetail as a public resource, re gardless of whether the deer are free-ranging or captive. Legally, a breeder can only hold the right to keep the deer in captivity. Therefore, a breeder may have very little legal say about what occurs with the deer on their property. In this case, they are violating the rights of deer breeders across Texas.

TPWD requires all costs of testing and extermination to be covered by the breeder themselves, since they are the breeder’s deer. This expectation is hypocritical, as they are only con sidered to be the breeder’s deer when TPWD needs payment. If any individual or herd of deer cannot legally belong to a breeder, then why are they being forced to pay for their veteri nary bills, disease testing, and execution fees?

When TPWD uses this policy to gain an advantage over breeders in a court of law, they neglect the fact that they them selves are in violation of the law. If all whitetail deer belong to the state, the state should be paying for all of their care, not the breeders. But this is not the current situation. The law that all deer belong to the state needs to be implemented fully, or not at all, when it comes to creating management plans for the control of CWD. Either the deer breeders own, pay, and get legal say over the deer in their facility or those deer are owned by the state and the state pays for them. When a hypocritical rule or plan is forced on Texas breeders, it only makes them more re sistant and angry towards TPWD, as they feel their agricultural livelihood isn’t being taken into consideration.

Ultimately, TPWD needs to be held responsible for their draconian rules that they have enacted on Texas deer breeders. CWD has no effect on wild deer populations. CWD has no effect on human health. CWD has only been recorded in less than one percent of all Texas deer. CWD is an insignificant disease. But TPWD refuses to consider it as such, despite all the evidence against them. Because of this, TPWD needs to be legally forced to change their management plans for CWD. We need to stop TPWD from killing so many deer when the disease has not killed a single deer.

Take The Kids Hunting

By Judy Jurek

The nearby conversation caused me to cringe.

Seven-year-old Kyle begged to go hunting with his dad but was told no. “He wants to go so badly. He’s inside about to cry because you won’t take him,” sighed Mom.

“I can’t,” Dad said. “I’m after a huge buck, the buck of my lifetime! Kyle can’t sit still or stay quiet. He’s got to tough it out. It’s time he mans up. He’s not going with me!”

Most redheads can’t keep their mouths shut. I’m no exception. Having watched Kyle’s dad grow up, I stepped over stating my opinion. Long story short, Dad apologized for his remarks, took Kyle hunting with him, and killed his dream buck that very evening.

Dad said Kyle’s young, keen eyes spotted movement in thick brush, enabling Dad to prepare for a shot. “I’ll never forget that special moment with Kyle. He was more excited than me,” Dad said with a laugh. I bit my tongue from reminding him he didn’t want Kyle with him.

Think for a moment. What’s truly most important to you? Putting trophy mounts on the wall? Filling your bag limit? Hanging with adult hunting buddies? Or taking time teaching and enjoying your kid as he or she grows and matures?

Today’s world is chock full of sports and activities to do besides school, work, and home. Our hunting numbers have slowly waned over the years for multiple reasons, but much gets attributed to youngsters not being encour aged to hunt. For a time, hunting was a custom, a rite of passage so to speak, which adult men initiated their sons. Many girls were introduced to hunting, too, joining Dad or their brothers. It was almost a ritual in many families.

Hunting long ago was a means of survival by putting food on the table. For some it still is. But for most it’s a

See the buck in thick brush? Youngsters’ sharp keen eyes see a lot of things.

pastime, a sport, or an outdoor adventure making memories while providing dining possibilities.

Many adults join hunting ranks every year, but kids need to be included, too. They’re the future of hunting! Hunting and deer camp are great ways to teach youngsters how things once were, for passing on traditions, and instilling skills to last their lifetime.

Believe me, I know it’s not always easy taking a youngster along. Much depends on their age, of course. Really young kids, say 4-8 years old, may have trouble sitting still, being quiet, or simply watching and listening. And yes, they certainly ask hun dreds of questions. Been there, done that—but oh, what fun I’ve had with every single one! I’m ready to do it again anytime.

There are always exceptions to the rules because children have their own personalities and conduct. Some kids behave much better with someone other than their parents. I’ve learned several things I’d like to pass along about taking kids hunting.

Practice patience with everything. You’re the teacher, coach, supervisor, and keeper of the weapon until it’s time to use it. A kid must learn mistakes have consequences. Much of hunting is about making the right choices.

First and foremost, if a child doesn’t want to go, don’t force them. By the same token, let using a weapon be their decision. Some kids are eager beavers from the get-go, but others may take numerous outings before choosing to shoot to kill.

Never let a kid shoot something without ever having prac ticed at targets. They need to know how to handle a weapon,

Practice makes perfect whether using a bow, shotgun or rifle. If a kid can handle it, start them early.

even if you have to help. For little kids, sitting in your lap with your chest and shoulder up against their back may be the security, stability, and confidence enabling a good shot.

Although not always possible, take a youngster where activity is usually present. Deer may be the target but simply watching rabbits, squirrels, birds, or javelina is entertaining. Some kids may not desire killing a deer, but feral hogs might be a totally different story.

Be prepared for restlessness, especially with young, hyper active kids. Take plenty of snacks and drinks. Your hunting companion should have their own binoculars. It makes them feel more important. Spend time pointing out various things to keep them interested. Tell stories about your hunting adventures.

When an animal appears, many kids blurt out, “Shoot it!” Now’s the time to discuss conservation, why one may get shot while others are not. Emphasize hunters aren’t always successful and everyone must make their own decisions. If a mistake is made, own up to it. Lessons in ethics are always good.

Want a memorable experience? Want a rewarding thank you with perhaps a giant hug? Want to make a difference in a young person’s life? Take the kids hunting.

On a remote ranch near Sanderson, Shon Riley gives his sons Jax (left) and Sawyer (with gun) target practice while teaching them gun safety.

Knives for Bighorn to Javelina

By Jim Heffelfinger

My high school shop teacher always reminded us to use “the right tool for the right job.” This oft-repeated phrase usually came as a scolding because we weren’t. Knives have been the human race’s most important tool until very recently when we transitioned from wild plants

and animals being our subsistence to merely supplements. Even when early humans made knives out of chipped or sharpened stone, they still had different shapes for different uses. Once bronze and steel came onto the scene, we saw an infinite number of shapes and styles.

p hoto courte S y of f ort h enry c u S to M k nive S . co M

Bighorn Sheep horns make attractive knife handles with a functional gripping surface.

Many knives have specific uses, but many others have a shape and features that make them work in a wide variety of uses. Hunting knives also have shapes and sizes that make them ideal for different uses. We need skinners, capers, gut hooks, and strong blades for heavy work and appropriately small knives to work around tight areas or to stay out of the guts.

Depending on the hunting style, you have to consider size and weight. If you need to process a bighorn sheep high on a rocky spire, you will have to possess the right knives to skin, quarter, de-bone, and cape the head or whole animal. On the other hand, if you just need to simply field dress a javelina before loading it into the truck bed, you have many options and not many are wrong answers. Separating heavy animal joints isn’t something you want to do with a brittle, replaceable razor knife. Sharp is the key with any animal, but taking care of javelina requires extra attention to keeping, and restoring, a good edge if you’re cutting through that hide. There’s good reason javelina were heavily exploited in the 1900s for use as glove leather.

The old saying “jack of all trades, master of none” certainly ap plies to jackknives, too. A lot of good, versatile knives will serve you well in the field and can do most tasks from skinning to cap ing. If you do process one deer this year, these knives will work. But, if you plan to do a lot of skinning or deboning, you want to get serious about having a few – more specific – knives.

There’s always a tendency to carry a larger knife than is needed. Some of us like knives so much we’re guilty of buying cool-looking knives, even if they’re not the most efficient for the job. Now, there’s nothing wrong with buying cool knifes, and there’s something to be said for pride of ownership whether in trucks, guns, or knives. By all means, buy the knives that speak to you through the knife case, but your workhorses – those you

won’t go hunting without – are very likely those that simply get the job done. If you’re like me, the knives you carry all the time while hunting are probably not your best looking, but you love them for the work they do.

In an ironic twist, the animals we butcher with knives, often become raw material to build other knives. Deer antlers and sheep or goat horns have been

used for knife handles since before anyone can remember. They were nature’s natural polymer because they could be shaped in any way and had a natural gripping surface. Even as modern materials became available, we still gravitate to natural materials for our pistol and knife handles. Bighorn sheep horns and deer antlers are very popular with custom knife makers and customers probably don’t even think about the long connection to their past.

Regardless of the species you’re pursuing this year, your knife has to be sharp. Abraham Lincoln is reported to have said, “Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.” At first, I just thought Abe was really slow in his axe sharpening, but of course he was stressing the importance of keeping your cutting imple ments sharpened. It’s better to stop and put a nice edge back on your blade than to keep struggling with a dull knife. Sharp knifes are like sharp wives, they both will cut you deeper if you slip up, but that’s no reason to spend a lot of time with a dull one.

After thousands of years, antlers are still a very popular material for custom knife handles.

FAKE BUCK FUN

By Horace Gore

Back in 1964, when Treldon Cutbirth and I were still young enough to enjoy a practical joke, we pulled a prank on our hunting buddies at the Cutbirth Ranch, south of Brownwood, that was hilarious. For about a month during the deer season, we had a lot of fun taking our friends near a “dummy buck” and watching them empty their rifles as we laughed and laughed! It was amazing how excited the hunters got when they saw the biggest whitetail in Brown County. We would tell them that it was a dummy, and they would just keep shooting.

The whitetail I’m referring to was originally a small sixpoint mounted buck that had been killed about 20 years prior in Lavaca County. Treldon and I took the head to Brownwood and got local taxidermist D.E. Lewis to replace the small six-point antlers with a huge set of mule deer antlers with exceptionally long G-2s. When D.E. got through with the transplant, the little head with the big antlers looked like a Boone and Crockett whitetail.

We found a 1x12 board and cut off about four feet. Treldon had a deer hide from a recent doe, and we found two T-posts, some wire, and hedge clippers. We took all of this, with the new fake deer head, to the middle pasture below the Cutbirth Ranch house and found the perfect spot to set the rig up behind some low brush near a pond of water.

At the end of a long curve in the road, we set the posts in the ground and wired the board to the posts. Then, we drove a long nail into the board and hung the deer head on the board. Treldon placed the deer hide on the board to give it a “real deer” look, and we trimmed the brush to show the out line of a buck with big antlers. It was a perfect setup. When we got back in the truck, we looked at the dummy. “Would you shoot it,” Treldon asked. “In a New York minute,” I replied.

Treldon had some golfing buddies always nagging him for a deer hunt on the ranch. He saw a golden opportunity to get back at them, and invited five or six—on different hunts—to come out for a deer hunt. They were excited because the Cutbirth ranch was noted for good bucks. I didn’t make all the hunts, but I was there for several “fake deer” runs, and saw a lot

of the action. The hunters who were “juked” all promised not to tell.

Every event went almost the same way. Treldon had an old Jeep pickup, and we would take a hunter out with Treldon driv ing, me in the middle, and the hunter on the outside. The idea was to drive around until we saw a good buck, and the hunter would step out and shoot. My part in the scheme was to tell the hunter about a huge buck that I’d seen in the fall deer census on the ranch. Treldon would drive down a certain road that led

The “fake buck” in question, a whitetail with mule deer antlers mounted on it by a taxidermist as an elaborate prank by the author and his friend on their fellow deer hunters.

to the fake buck, which had very visible antlers, and all hell would break loose.

We always waited until the hunter said stop, and we knew that he had seen the “buck.” He would either shoot out the

he might get a shot at a good buck. Treldon drove and I sat in the middle. Sam had the .300 Savage barrel poked out the win dow as we drove around. “Go down by the tank (waterhole),” Sam said, and Treldon looked over at me. That was the road to the fake deer. Treldon took the road to the waterhole and we slowly drove along. I knew Treldon was thinking about what to do. He didn’t want his dad to shoot at the fake buck, or we would be in trouble.

As the Jeep pickup rumbled down the road, Treldon told his dad he had seen a good buck to his left, and pointed in that direction—away from the dummy deer. It didn’t do any good. Sam had seen the dummy and whispered loudly, “Stop.” Sam jumped out of the truck with the .300 Sav age to his shoulder and the safety off, when Treldon loudly said, “Dad, don’t shoot! That’s a dummy buck.”

Everything got very quiet. Sam was a stern man who was always serious. He held the rifle on the buck for a few seconds, and then lowered it, put the safety on, and looked at his son over his wire-rimmed glasses.

pickup’s window, or would jump out and shoot. In either case, most of the hunters would shoot until their rifle was empty, and ask for more shells. It was hilarious! I remember one hunter emptying his .270 and grabbing Treldon’s .270 and emptying it, while all the time Treldon was saying, “Don’t shoot any more. It’s a dummy.”

The joke wasn’t only played on golfers. Treldon had a hired hand named Ben Orton who lived on the ranch. Ben didn’t know we had put up the dummy buck, and when he saw it, he fired all the rounds in his Winchester .218 Bee. Seeing that it was a dummy, Ben said nothing about being fooled until Trel don asked him about the small holes in the buck. Ben admitted he shot every .218 Bee shell he had before discovering the buck wasn’t real.

The fun went on through the season, and just before Christ mas, Treldon’s father, Sam, came up from Wharton for a week end hunt. I was at the ranch on Saturday, and Sam suggested we all get in the Jeep pickup and go for a ride and maybe get a good buck or turkey. About 3 p.m. we left the house and drove into the front pasture, after we had seen six big gobblers go that way. We found the turkeys and Sam made a dramatic shot on a big tom with his .300 Savage and 2½-power Lyman Alas kan scope. We went back to the house and Treldon and I picked the turkey while it was still warm, and easy to pick.

We put the turkey in the cooler, and Sam suggested we drive down into the middle pasture where

“A dummy buck?” he asked. “Yes, we have been pulling jokes on our friends with a fake buck,” Treldon said, looking at the sunset. “Well, I guess you boys don’t have enough work to do,” Sam said, and we drove back to the house without any mention of the buck.

The “fake buck” fun was over. Later on, Treldon and I count ed 27 bullet holes in the old, mounted head as he hung it up in the barn 58 years ago, where it still hangs today. I recently got Treldon’s son Kyle to send me some photos. It brought back fond memories of a couple of buckaroos who were always hunt ing something, and got their kicks out of friends emptying their rifles at the “biggest fake buck” in Brown County.`

The author (right) and his friend Treldon Cutbirth.

Whitetail Mortality in Texas

Texas has an estimated white-tailed deer population of close to five million on 100 million acres of deer habit ranging from the Pineywoods to the Coastal Prairie, from the lower Panhandle to the Rio Grande Plains, and extending west to the Pecos River. The Edwards Plateau or Hill Country, a 27-county area in West-Central Texas, maintains half the whitetails, and also boasts having half the hunters and half the total deer kill. This is true because land ownerships are large, there are no serious predators, and almost all vegetation furnishes food and cover for deer.

Of the five million Texas whitetails, about three million are female and young. The two million males are made up of three-fourths bucks less than 4 years old. The remaining 25% are fully mature up to 8 years old. Texas deer hunters account for the mortality of about 400,000 (20%) bucks annually, leaving 1.6 million bucks in the herds.

Antlerless deer number three million, and deer hunt ers take about 13% or 375,000, leaving 2.6 million in the herds. Counting bucks and does, about 4.2 million deer are left to nature each year. An estimated one million fawns are added annually, and 775,000 adults are killed by hunters. In a static deer population, this leaves some 225,000 deer (8%) lost to natural and man-made causes each year, or about 29% as many as taken by hunters.

The age structure of Texas whitetails could be estimated as follows: Yearlings (18 months) 35%; 2½ years, 25%; 3½ years, 15%; 4½ years, 10%; 5½ years, 8%; 6½ years, 4%; 7½-plus years, 3%. One of the highest natural mortalities by age class are yearling bucks roaming and looking for a home range. Statewide, hunters take a lot of 31⁄2 -year-old bucks because they are young enough to be easily killed, and this age class will satisfy the average hunter.

Deer contained by a high fence have higher age struc tures, with older ages being more like 40% or more, depending on the harvest plan. Yearling bucks are less apt to be lost to roaming, and supplemental feed often aids in deer production and longevity. The majority of high fences are in South Texas, with high-fenced ranches scattered across the state.

Texas deer hunting is known worldwide, mainly because of buck quality and quantity. If buck quality was dismissed, and hunters were increased by 15%, the annual harvest of whitetails could go to around 875,000 without hindering

the annual recruitment of a million or more fawns.

Hunters in the Hill Country in the ’40s and ’50s took over 50% fork-antlered yearling bucks because of heavy hunting pressure on bucks, with no spikes or does. With the beginning of antlerless deer permits in 1957, and legal spike bucks in 1962, some pressure was taken from forkedantler bucks. Today, half the deer taken by hunters in the Hill Country are antlerless deer. A small percent are spike bucks, and the forked-antler buck kill is made up mostly of bucks less than 4 years old. Quality is best on high fenced ranches, which are scattered over most of the Hill Country.

Future expectations would show about five million whitetails on saturated habitats. The only real expansion will come from high fences on marginal habitats, where deer are supplemented. Natural mortality is likely to remain between 225,000 to 250,000 whitetails that just disappear every year from natural and man-made causes.

Horace Gore

Editor’s Note: The farther along we crawl through the 21st century, the more we crave just a little bit of nostalgia. If you would like to share some vintage hunting photos (anything before 1960) with our readers, please send them our way, along with a brief description or story.

J ason s hipman photo

DIRECTIONS MARINATED WILD HOG SKEWERS

Preparation: Wash and dry all potatoes, skin on. Slice each potato into six wedges. Boil all wedges in a large pot of water for 30 minutes. This helps with the baking. Remove silver skin from backstraps, and cut each backstrap into ½-inch chunks.

Prepare marinade by mixing all ingredients well. Marinate all backstrap pieces at least 4 hours in a glass or plastic bowl (overnight in fridge is better). Use fingers to make sure all meat is coated.

Cut all vegetables, sausage and bacon into small chunks. You will need at least 10-12 pieces per skewer, so make sure you have enough for at least six skewers.

SKEWERS—Use 12-inch (or longer) metal or wooden skewers. Thread everything on, mixing up the chunks of meat and veggies. Fill up each skewer, end to end, pushing together all pieces.

BAKING—Grease a large baking sheet with oil (preferably olive oil) so that potatoes and skewers do not stick. Place the skewers on the sheet, and push them all to one side to make room for all of the potatoes. Season potatoes with oil, salt and pepper. Cover the baking sheet with foil and bake in a pre-heated oven at 450 degrees for 25 minutes.

After 25 minutes, remove the foil and flip the skewers so they will bake on both sides. Put back into the oven (foil off) for another 15 minutes. Remove skewers, but allow potatoes to cook until golden brown.

Serve on a flat plate, the skewer in the center, with potatoes on one side and salad on the other (with your favorite catsup and salad dressing). Serves 6-8, depending how many skewers you thread.

Note: A few drops of Worcestershire sauce sprinkled on the skewer adds a tinge of flavor to the meat and veggies. Serve with a fresh garden salad and your favorite dressing.

BRADFORD BRYANT: whitetail 16-point with 24-inch inside spread, taken 12/29/21 in Coahuila, Mexico.

GEAR: Sako .308 Win., Hornady 168-grain match ammo.

OUTFITTER: Rancho Rio Escondido

WILL BONILLA: whitetail nine-point taken 11/23/21 in Webb County.

GEAR: McWhorter 6.5 PRC

OUTFITTER: self.

CHRISTIAN BOBO: whitetail 24-point with 22½-inch inside spread taken 12/8/21 in McMullen County.

GEAR: Mathews VXR, HHA sight, Axis arrow, Sevr 2.0 broadhead.

OUTFITTER: Empire Ranch.

PAUL PEREZ: whitetail eight-point taken 1/8/22 in Atascosa County.

GEAR: 350 Legend AR Sporting rifle, 180-grain Winchester ammo.

OUTFITTER: self.

DALAINE DONALDSON: whitetail eightpoint with 17-inch inside spread taken 10/16/20 in Haskell County.

GEAR: Crossbow.

OUTFITTER: self and husband.

DECLAN GARRETT: whitetail seven-point with 13-inch inside spread taken 12/21/21 in Comanche County.

GEAR: New England Firearms .243, Winchester Super X ammo, Nikon scope.

OUTFITTER: Dad.

HANNAH BISSON: whitetail six-point with 20-inch inside spread taken 12/11/21 in Crockett County.

GEAR: Ruger 7mm-08.

OUTFITTER: Dad.

SHEYANNE LUCKMAN: grey fox taken 2/12/20 in Texas.

GEAR: custom AR, .223 ammo. OUTFITTER: self.

Texas Trophy Hunters Association Round-Up ads provide excellent exposure at a minimal cost. For more information on placing your ad in the Round-Up, please contact Debbie Keene at 210-288-9491 or deborah@ttha.com.

2022 Journal Article Index

The Journal likes bringing you high-quality articles throughout the year. So, just in case you’ve missed a few, we’ve made your life a little easier by compiling this handy index of all this year’s articles. We’ve broken it down into three convenient categories. We hope you put it to good use.—TTHA Staff

Product Roundup

A LOOK BACK AT THIS YEAR’S JOURNAL ARTICLES

2022 ATV-UTV Roundup, John Goodspeed Jan/Feb-p.74

Crossbows for 2022, John Goodspeed Mar/April-p.80

New Compound Bows for the Upcoming Season, John Goodspeed May/June-p.92 Optics Roundup, John Goodspeed July/Aug-p.82

Riflescope Roundup, John Goodspeed Sep/Oct-p.76 Predator Calls, John Goodspeed Nov/Dec-p.90

Science

The Fall and Rise of Texas Big Horns, Jim Heffelfinger Jan/Feb-p.97

Are We Beating a Dead Horse? (CWD), Horace Gore Mar/Apr-p.34

Deer Fangs: Past and Present, Jim Heffelfinger Mar/Apr-p.108

Restoring the Post Oak Savannah, Dr. James Kroll May/Jun-p.20

The Mysterious Javelina Scent Gland, Jim Heffelfinger May/Jun-p.59

Deer Orchards, Dr. James Kroll Jul/Aug-p.20

Conditions of Antler Abnormalities, Jim Heffelfinger Jul/Aug-p.110

Coyotes Have to be Managed Too, Dr. James Kroll Sep/Oct-p.20

Medicinal Use of Antlers, Jim Heffelfinger Sep/Oct-p.89

What Do You Need to Know about Your Deer Population?

Dr. James Kroll Nov/Dec-p.20

Antlers of the Southwest, Jim Heffelfinger Nov/Dec-p.56

Instructional/Informative

Fencing for Whitetails, Dr. James Kroll Jan/Feb-p.20

Bass Fishin’, Will Leschper Jan/Feb-p.34

Are We Over-reliant on Tech?, Gary Roberson Jan/Feb-p.38

Big Country Mule Deer, Brandon Ray Jan/Feb-p.46

So You Want to be A Cook?, Ralph Winingham Jan/Feb-p.52

Waterfowl Hunts, Will Leschper Jan/Feb-p.86 Knives in the Kitchen, Judy Jurek Jan/Feb-p.90

The Alaskan Wolf, Lee Leschper Jan/Feb-p.108

Whitetail Warm-Up, Brandon Ray Jan/Feb-p.117 Blue Bulls of the Wild Horse Desert, Horace Gore Jan/Feb-p.126

Polypropylene Netting for Deer Fencing, Dr. James Kroll Mar/Apr-p.20

Maintain Your Boating and Fishing Gear, Will Leschper Mar/Apr-p.44

Four Options for Taking Turkeys on a Budget, Will Leschper Mar/Apr-p.52

Big Country Gobblers, Brandon Ray Mar/Apr-p.74 War on Hogs, Brandon Ray Mar/Apr-p.119

Fishing Knives, Will Leschper Mar/Apr-p.126 Bring on the Bears, Lee Leschper Mar/Apr-p.129

So You Want to be A Turkey Hunter?, Horace Gore Mar/Apr-p.132

Huntin’ in the Oil Patch, Judy Jurek May/Jun-p.49

Early Season Rams, Brandon Ray May/Jun-p.54

Opportunity Awaits for Nilgai Hunts on Public Land, Will Leschper May/Jun-p.110

Don’t Mess with Mother Nature, Lee Leschper May/Jun-p.118

Knives for Panhandle Game, Brandon Ray May/Jun-p.122

Spring Turkey 101, Old Turkey Hunter May/Jun-p.140

High Plains Speedsters, Brandon Ray Jul/Aug-p.58 Whitewing Paradise, Will Leschper Jul/Aug-p.98

Three Knives for Cottontails to Nilgai, Judy Jurek Jul/Aug-p.122 Made for Bowhunting (javelina), Brandon Ray Jul/Aug-p.124

The 6.5 Creedmoor: Nothing Special, Jake Legg Jul/Aug-p.132

Taking Great Trophy Photos, Will Leschper Sep/Oct-p.34

North Texas Dove Day, Brandon Ray Sep/Oct-p.42

Game Laws Protect Game, Judy Jurek Sep/Oct-p.58

Best Knives for Deer and Pronghorn, Jason Shipman Sep/Oct-p.112 Works for Me (bow gear), Brandon Ray Sep/Oct-p.116 Hunting vs. Target Accuracy, Horace Gore Nov/Dec-p.26 Chumming for Fish, Will Leschper Nov/Dec-p.34 Rough Country Whitetails, Brandon Ray Nov/Dec-p.38 Ducks & Bucks, Will Leschper Nov/Dec-p.52 Do-It-Yourself Alaska Bulls, Bucks and Bears, Lee Leschper Nov/Dec-p.110

CLASSIFIED

“MEMBERS ONLY” Benefit!

Don’t forget to use your free classified ad! It’s once per year and you must have an active membership in good standing. Send to:

TTHA Classified 700 E. Sonterra Blvd., Suite 1206, San Antonio, TX 78258

You may fax your ad to (210) 523-8871, Attn: Debbie Keene or e-mail to Deborah@ttha.com. Send your ad in by November 11 to run in the next issue!

FREE CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING!

Available to current members of Texas Trophy Hunters Association only! Limit 25 words per ad. Each member may run 1 FREE ad in one issue per year. 25 word ads after FREE issue are $40 each. WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO EDIT OR REFUSE ANY AD.

C4 RANCH - WHITETAIL & Exotic Hunts. Cull, Management & Trophies up to 300”. Duval County, TX. High Fenced & MLD Managed 10+ Years. Vernon Carr (361) 774-2442.

HUGE VALUED COLLECTION of 150-plus TTHA magazines for sale dating from 1976 to 2010. Will sell all or part. Can email details and pics. Nearly all in perfect condition. Email kenarmke@gmail.com.

SM FENCING, Welding and Dozing. Net wire, Barbed wire & Game Fencing. Contact Shawn Mangham 325-451-7120.

CAPTAIN SCOTT’S ADVENTURES - 956 Glenn Dr., Canyon Lake Texas 78133. Port O’Connor or Local lakes. Call 830-456-6061 for information or to book your trip.

TECOMATE PLOTMASTER 600. Has 8-18” Disc Harrow, 5 Assorted Plow & Chisel Tips and Cultipacker Drag w/Metal Grating. Used once. $4200 830-305-4009.

MEXICO RANCH 8,500 ac. Available for group of 4 or 5 hunters. Trophy Whitetail, hogs, birds. 4-1/2 mi. of flowing river. 4 BR house w/ electricity, blinds, feeders – Hunt Ready! 210-379-7510, email jharlan29@gmail.com.

AFRICAN SAFARI $2,995 3 animals in 1 week. Lodging, meals, open bar, guide, airport transfers and trophy fees included!! Call 956-867-4964 for details. www.matorisafaris.com.

28 YR. OUTFITTER in search of more land to outfit and hunt in Central TX. Looking for high fence with deer from 150-200”. We are outgrowing ourselves! Will also consider So. TX. Call Dale 325-642-7596 SDWhitetails. com.

COMPANY HUNTING LEASE, 500 Acres high fenced (of a 3,500 acre ranch). Edwards Co. TX. Deer stands & accommodations. Loaded with Monster Bucks! Video available. $175,000.00. Rick’s Cell 713-8579694. recarrollranch@hotmail.com.

FOR SALE: 40S ERA JEEP/4x4 home built stand/2 feed barrels with wench frames/tripod stand/more stuff available. Call Britt @ 830-857-1506 for information.

RANCH MAPS - Get the highest quality, fully customizable aerial maps of your property, today! Large Maps, Field Maps, CoolerTop Maps, etc. www.MapMyRanch.com. 713-3022028.

VETERANS CREED OUTDOORS Team Texas. Outdoor Trips for Veterans and First Responders. Find us on Facebook on our page and group.

RUSTY HINGE Ranch offers whitetail, hogs, squirrels, rabbits, coon, fox, duck hunting, fishing. Blinds, treestands, feeders & water year-round. 70 mi. north of Houston. $100/day or $800/year. 713-823-7139.

HELP FEED THE HOMELESS –donate excess game animals to feed the homeless, orphans, and needy families. Go to www.trinityoaks.org “contact us” tab.

THE LONE STAR Bowhunters Association. Preserving and Promoting bow hunting in Texas since 1974. Join today at www. lonestarbowhunter.com. Take a kid hunting.

S & D WHITETAILS – Limited hunts avail. Booking 2021 now. All native S TX deer from 140-230 class. Deer & Dove hunts Central TX. Over 7500 ac. 24-yrs experience. 5 Star rating. 325-642-7596.

TEXAS HUNTER FISH FEEDERS create ‘feeding zones’ that make catching fish fun for the whole family. Project fish feed up to 45ft. into the water to feed fish on a regular basis which helps you grow bigger fish faster. Call 800-969-3337 or www. TexasHunter.com.

TEXANS ARCHERY CLUB wants to expand our state’s archery range infrastructure. Looking for local partners/land to expand our network. www.TexasArchery.info 501c3.

WILDLIFE & HABITAT Consulting. Commercial hunts available. Contact Certified Wildlife Biologist Jason Shipman 210-508-8447 or jasonashipman@gmail.com.

JOURNAL ADVERTISERS

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Christian Outdoor Alliance 70 Cuddeback 46

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Outback Feeders 74, 75

Paradise Trophy Ranch 116 Ranch King Blinds IFC Remington 51

Safe Gun Storage 141 SBC Insurance 33 SCI Convention 12 SCI Membership 89 Sig Sauer

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Speer Ag 23

Texas Direct Hunting Products 141

Tina Kahlig & Associates 93

TPWD Gear Up for Game Wardens 141 Trophy Tools 85

TTHA Bucks & BBQ Save the Date 2023 18

TTHA Bucks & BBQ 24, 25

TTHA Chapter Spotlight 120

TTHA Digital Series 108, 109

TTHA Gear 16

TTHA Hunters Extravaganza Deer Contest Sponsors 76

TTHA Jr. Trophy Hunters 73

TTHA Membership 64, 65

TTHA Platinum Life Membership 130

Grainger Ranch Recruiting 85

Jason A. Shipman 122 Jerry Johnston 81

Texas Hunter Products 47

Texas State Rifle Association 134 The-Eliminator 141 The-Remote 140 The-Timer 141

TTHA PLM Listing 131, 132, 133, 134

TTHA Podcast 55

TTHA Write a Story 138

West Texas Feeder Supply IBC, BC