Seasons Resolution

Here we are, the end of Whitetail deer season across the Midwest. It’s a bittersweet time of year, one that we both dread, and look forward to. Hopefully you have found success in your season, whether it be harvesting your #1 buck, providing quality meat for your family, or overall just enjoying watching the deer in their natural habitat and hopefully revealing a few of their secrets along the way. Although the season has come to a close, is it really over? I can’t answer for everyone, but I would like to believe that answer to be “no”. For me it marks the time when I can dive deep into the places I hunt and use the knowledge I gained during the season to better dial in the deer for next year. It is the perfect time to go in and start planning your improvements. From stand locations, food plot installation and grooming, cutting trails, etc. I personally like to clear out deer trails and widen them where they cross good stand locations, and block off the smaller trails that won’t offer any opportunity.  Come next summer when the foliage starts to grow the deer will favor the trails you manicured and will become accustomed to using them. As far as food plots I evaluate what was witnessed during the season, both in person and on trail camera and ask myself, did the food plot do what I intended it to, and how can I make it better? Some plots won’t require any maintenance to speak of, while others could be getting completely redesigned or abandoned altogether. There is a lot of trial and error when it comes to food plotting and the reality of it is, in some area’s they just don’t pan out as we had hoped. But now is the time to fix those mistakes and move them if we have too. If you do install a food plot this time of year or enhance one by making it larger there is a great opportunity to improve the land for small game hunting as well that you can take advantage of. Pile the brush along the edges of the food plot and you can enjoy some rabbit hunting all winter long as well as provide good cover for ground nesting birds in the spring like pheasants, turkeys, and grouse. Another hobby that can be enjoyed in the post season is looking for antler sheds of the deer that you passed or for the “one that got away”. So while we take our stands down, reminisce of the season past, and get ready to do our food plots in the spring, just remember, the season isn’t over it’s just getting started!

-Matt Horn

Crooked Bend ProTeam