Fletch thanks for hunting hard for the team! Hard to tag big bucks when your sick during the rut. Our late season was terrible, weather was to nice, hardly any snow and really warm weather. Had nice bucks coming to stands for my brother, buck movement was mostly at night. Hope we win this contest, I'm really excited for next year, have a couple of 3 1/2+, numerous 2 1/2 bucks for next year still around. Just started some logging on some woods, always heard deer will come to chainsaws in winter. Probably just a coincidence but this buck showed up night after 1st day of cutting. Never seen him before. Johnny congrats on another deer, your a deer slayer lol.
Looks like a good chance that we will be together again next year. Do any of you guys have points built up for Iowa? I just got access to an additional 7000 acres of private ground that only has one family member and one hired hand hunting. I was given free run and offered to be shown where existing stands are and hang my own anywhere. I saw several very good bucks on a 640 that the other guys said they never even hunt. This spring I will be doing some serious scouting and stand prepping. I can't take anyone there, but it certainly opens up my three farms for hosting a team member or two for a chance at a slammer. I have a great cabin on the one property so lodging would be included. I will have over 20 acres of food plots in with one being about 8 acres of beans that is right next to a private 1300 acres owned by a "hunting celebrity" not to be named. Please take it to PM if you have points or just want to take a chance and apply. The Iowa DNR site has a lot of great information for nonresidents and the process. I figure we might as well stack the deck! A local outfitter gets $5,500 for this type of hunt for a week. I would let you come for longer if needed. I would probably limit this offer to no more than two or three guys.
I didn't know what your situation was for hunting in Iowa this year. Dang, 5 points is a lot. Maybe it still takes that much? I was hoping not, as I thought some other states had come on strong lately. I am in hopes that one or two guys might have been putting in for a rainy day. I am in zone 5 for anyone wanting to look up draw odds and points.
Odds sadly ain't the best for those of us that love slinging arrows. https://www.iowadnr.gov/Portals/idnr/uploads/Hunting/nrd_draw.pdf
Now granted that was with a slightly up year across most states, and if Iowa shares in that stat - more applications probably got sent in for sure.
Damn. Still in hopes that someone here has been putting in for a while! I guess if we can hold the title for enough years we could have a heck of a hunt. lol
Fletch thanks for the great and generous offer! Sure wish I had points. Sounds like it would be a great hunt!
Very generous offer Fletch. I've never even considered trying to accumulate points for Iowa. I guess I never saw the point since I didn't know anyone there personally, and like I've said before, it's not in my nature to travel out of state to wander in blind on public land. Besides, you probably don't want me to start hunting in Iowa....
The State of Nebraska has extended our "doe only" season through the month of January. According G&P, not enough does were taken in the late season which was scheduled to end on 1-15-21....happy days ahead.
The last couple duck hunts have been slow. We froze up then thawed out. I’m going to go this week to see if any birds of pushed down. I took a couple of the grandkids and the son-in-law icefishing on Saturday. I think we iced 62 fish. We only kept six fish. Some were too small and some were in the slot. We have a couple reservoirs here you have to let the fish go If they are in between 15 to 22 inches. It was a lot of fun the fishing was very quick.
The last three months have been incredible for me. I'm not talking about the deer hunting aspect, although that has been pretty incredible also. I have six kids. One is in Tennessee, one is in Idaho (Air Force), one is in Virginia (Air Force), one is in Oregon, and two are in Missouri (one of those is Air Force). I got to see my son in Virginia for deer season. He came and hunted with me and got his first two bow kills. My son and daughter in Missouri came for a visit for Christmas. The day after he left my daughter in Oregon came for a visit along with my daughter in Tennessee and her three daughters for a week long visit. Now my son in Idaho is here for a visit along with his two daughters and his wife. The last time I saw them was November 2017. My granddaughter Riley was an infant then. Now she's three. It is astounding how quickly the years roll by as you get older. So in the last three months I've gotten to see all six of my kids even though they are scattered all over the lower 48. As soon as my son and his family leave I'll be towing my travel trailer to Arkansas and I'll be trying hard to kill one of those elusive Wattensaw WMA bucks. I'd have taken my travel trailer over before now but since our "cabin in the pines" we live in now is a 1 bedroom/1 bath house our travel trailer is our guest house so it needed to stay here. Believe it or not I'm actually excited about getting back in a tree. Two members on the forums may be joining me to give it a try for a day or two. I'll have to be careful about where I put @cantexian if he shows up. He's on team 11 who is currently in second place.
I wouldn’t be too worried about me. Unless my teammate who killed a doe over New Year’s posts it to the scorecard and I join the 200 point club before the contest ends, I think Team 12 has this locked up. If that happens and you put me on the buck that does it, it will cement you as the most generous guy on the forum. However, your current teammates with probably forever refer to it as “pulling a @LittleChief ”
Well fellas, it's gonna be a long shot, but I've decided i'll grab my bow and hit the tree one final time this week (reduction zones close the 31st). If for no other reason than an attempt to close out the year breathing in the fresh air and watch the sun set on the season which has just had a ton of downturn moments - and look forward to the 2021 season!
