In the south, winter takes different forms. Sometimes its bitterly cold and wet. Other times its pretty mild and wet. Wet seems to be the norm though and by January, it’s supposed to be cold.
This weekend started out in the upper 50s – low 60s. Quiet warm for January. That was before the front moved through. With in a few hours, an over night storm system would bring High winds and a deep chill. The temps dropped in to the 20s and deer season is almost over. Bill Petrus with T.P. Outdoors called and we setup another hunt. Surely this would get the deer up on their feet.
Bill Petrus hauling a deer blind we primarily use for special needs hunters.
Bill is a good friend and client. We work on a lot of stuff together but our favorite is the T.P. Outdoors Adventures show. We both love getting to take military veterans and special needs kids outdoors. Bill does a lot to help other people and has a lot of fun doing it along the way. He had a couple of kids lined up and one more hunt this year.
Bryce Buchanan has hunted with us many times. He’s taken a few deer on our show and even gone catfish noodling with us in the past. He’s a really cool kid and always fun to hunt with.
We also had Tylar and his dad Kevin Kelly with us. Now Kevin was on our show earlier this year but this time it was Tylar’s turn.
I hunted with Tylar and Kevin. Tylar got to harvest a doe earlier this year with bill but this time we were after his first buck.
Right at daylight, we had a nice mainframe 8pt and it was tough getting Tylar to wait till there was enough camera light available to shoot his deer but as soon as I gave him the go ahead, he let it rip. Made a great, ethical shot with his dad’s Ruger 270. His deer didn’t run far. As we soon discovered, it actually had a split brow tine and another kicker making it 10 scoreable points.
Although I didn’t get to watch Bryce harvest his deer, he was also successful. It came down to the last few minutes of available shooting light but they made it happen so both kids were able to harvest deer.
This was a great hunt to end deer season with. I’m sure we’ll be filming lots of other turkey hunts, frogging alligators and all kinds of other crazy antics for the next season of T.P. Outdoors Adventures. You can watch for the full story behind this hunt around July when our new season of the show kicks off.
A few things caught my attention last week as I attened the annual Archery Trade Association show where companies in the outdoor industry come together to show off their latest and greatest products and to network with other industry partners.
There were a lot of great new products there as well as some tried and true gear that those in the outdoors know and love. Everyone from the smallest of mom and pop sporting goods store or bow shop to the biggest stars from all of the outdoor networks. It’s a great gathering opportunity for professionals in the outdoor industry.
Products
Convergent Hunting Solutions
I’ve worked with several outdoor companies and non profit organizations over the years on a variety of projects. This time, I attended the ATA Show with Convergent Hunting. They are the manufacturers of a line of electronic game calls that are deadly in all types of predator hunting as well as feral hog management.
Most hunters are not familiar with the effectiveness of calling hogs other than the Arkansas Razorbacks. (woo pig sooie) However with the help of Prostaffer Glenn Guess, Convergent has really locked on to a new technique for using their game calls to help thin out the nations hog problems.
The Bullet HP game call has been the go to product for electronic game calls for the last few years. Its Bluetooth receiver connects to your Apple or Android phone which allows you to control the speaker as well as the decoy via a downloadable app. The Predator Pro app is available for free and other apps are available depending on what sounds you want to use.
A new product offering from Convergent is the sidewinder. This weapon mounted game call is small, but packs a punch in the sound department. When mounted to your weapons picatiny rail, the sidewinder connects directly to your phone. A final prototype was on display at the show, but you can Look for the final version later this spring.
SpyHigh Mounting System
One of the cool new products that I particularly liked was the SpyHigh Mounting system. To me, this is one of those why didn’t I think of that things.
The SpyHigh Mounting System is an ingenious trail camera mount that uses a painters pole to install your trail camera in a tree without needing to carry a ladder into the woods with you. It installs in minutes using a unique screw in or a clamp mount and allows you to position your camera high in a tree for the best angle.
To me, the SpyHigh Mounting systems does two things.
By elevating the camera, you get a larger coverage area in each photo. That means more deer can fit in each photo. Even though trail cameras aren’t really artistic in nature, the photographer in me says it means you’ll get a different perspective then the standard tree mounted camera photos that we’ve all gotten use to.
Have you ever lost a camera to theft? Its a terrible feeling knowing your good camera is gone. When you walk through the woods, you are looking down or at eye level. Raise your camera up into a tree and get it out of sight and out of mind of thieves. Plus, with the ability to reach up to 20′ into the air, unless a would be thief has a ladder or the SpyHigh Pole adapter, your camera will be safe from theft even if spotted.
E-bikes
E-bikes seem to be increasing in popularity. There were couple of e-bike manufacturers present at the show. A few months ago, I had a chance to try out the Rambo Bikes at T.P. Outdoors in Monroe, LA. They were also at the show along with QuietKat.
Rambo Bike Setup for fishing
Now E-bikes may not be for everyone but I think they are pretty cool. Personally, I’m not a big fan of riding an ATV right up to your deer stand. I’ve always walked in to my deer stand from a little ways away. Having a quite e-bike might shorten my walk some. Innovation and competition are bringing the price of e-bikes down. E-bikes have also gotten more and more powerful and batteries have gotten lighter. You can even pull a small trailer behind some bikes to haul your deer stand or deer out of the woods. Where I really think these would shine though is in turkey hunting. Nothing like slipping in to your favorite turkey roost with the silence of an electric bike.
Accessories abound for E-bikes
Whether checking trail cameras, scouting, or hunting. I think E-bikes could become a more and more common tool for hunters and outdoorsmen. Especially when it comes to public land hunting.
Obviously, there were lots and lots of other cool products at the ATA show but these are just a few that caught my attention.
In my next blog, we’ll talk about a few of the seminars that I attended while at the ATA show and some thoughts on how we can help improve your companies online presence.
If I can help you in anyway, Contact Us. We’d love to help you.
Louisiana’s alligator season is in full swing and it’s an annual tradition for many residents. Â This past weekend, I filmed a hunt with T.P. Outdoors Adventures that has been in the works since the spring.
At the beginning of Tennessee’s turkey season, Bill Petrus and I took the opportunity to chase some spring turkeys with Brian Robinson of GSM Outdoors. Â That’s where we met country music singer Lucas Hoge. Â The early spring weather didn’t make for great turkey hunting so there was a lot of time spent talking around the fire. Â Both Brian and Lucas were intrigued by the crazy antics seen on T.P. Outdoors Adventures and they both said Alligator hunting was a bucket list item for them. Â You have to be careful what you ask for because this week, Bill and David “swamp donkey” Hanson made it happen. Â
As with any of T.P. Outdoors Adventures there seems to always be some chaos involved. Â This week we had engine problems with not one but two vehicles, Â A vehicle broken into, Â Multiple flat tires, Â Brian got Snake bit, Bill got shot, Â and Hanson almost got eaten alive by a gator. You won’t want to miss this episode of T.P. Outdoors Adventures. Until then, here are a few photos of the adventure and make sure you check out Lucas’ newest hit single. Â “The Power of Garth” on iTunesÂ
A few days ago, I started a couple of projects for Hogg Boss Gates. Essentially these guys have come up with a cellular controlled hog trap. When coupled with a cellular camera system like those from Covert or Spypoint just wait for the hogs to show up and enter the trap and only catch them once they are all rounded up. Triggering the system is pretty easy too. You just call the trap from your phone. Pretty cool conTRAPtion if I do say so myself.
At the moment, I’m working on some photos and videos for them as well as setting up their new website. Its still an ongoing project but check them out at www.hoggbossgates.com
