Deer Hunting For Beginners

If you’re looking to go deer hunting, then you should know that it is not always as easy as people think it will be. There has been quite a few times when I’ve been talking to some who doesn’t hunt, about hunting, and they will say it can’t be that hard. All you have to do is go out in the woods, wait until you see a deer, and shoot it. It can happen that way if you’re lucky, but it can also waste a lot of time if you are not. How lucky you are can also depend on where you live because some areas have a larger deer population than others. By reading the information below you should be able to significantly increase your chances of getting a deer.

About White-Tailed Deer

Deer are very cautious animals, and are almost always on alert. Most of the time a deer will see you before you see them. They have good eyesight, and hearing, but their sense of smell is probably their best sense. During the day they are normally bedded down in the woods, but they will sometimes walk around to find food or water.  They like to bed down in really thick areas so they can avoid being seen. Deer are primarily nocturnal so they move around more at night. The best time to hunt for them is just before it gets dark, and just as the sun is coming up. Their breeding season (usually called the rut) can vary slightly depending on where you live, but it is usually between October and January.

What Deer Eat

Deer eat a lot of different foods, and depending on where you are the foods may be a little different. Foods like acorns, apples, beechnuts, berries, grass, and corn are some of the most common foods that deer eat. During the winter months when a lot of food isn’t available, they will eat things like bark, twigs, and buds.

Picking A Good Hunting Spot

When looking for a good place to hunt, one of the first things I look for is a food source. Once you find one you should start looking for deer sign such as tracks, droppings, and trails to make sure deer are coming there. If you find deer sign you should try putting a trail camera on a tree facing towards the food source. You should leave it out for at least one week. Doing this will let you know how often the deer are going there, what time they go there, and it will allow you to see some of the deer in the area. If the deer are going there frequently, and showing up during legal shooting hours, then you can put a tree stand near the food source. If you are using a bow, then I would recommend putting the stand about 15-30 yards away. If you are using a gun then you can try sitting a little further away. If the deer are only showing up after dark, then you have two choices. You can try finding the trail they use to come to the food source, follow it back to see if there are other food sources they could be using at an earlier time. Or you could look for a different spot. You can also try putting a camera or tree stand near a scrape or rub line.

Scrapes & Rubs

Both scrapes and rubs are made by bucks just before the rut. A scrape is a spot on the ground that bucks dig up with their hooves. These are usually made under a low hanging branch. Bucks leave scents from their saliva and head on the branches and urinate in the scrape. A rub is usually made on smaller trees. Bucks make these by rubbing their head and antlers against the tree. They leave a scent on the tree with a scent gland located on top of their head. Bucks make scrapes and rubs to tell other bucks that this is their territory.

If you would like to know what gear will help you get a deer, then you should check out this other post-

If you would like to know how to attract deer to your property, then you should look at this post-

Great Deals On Tree Stands

Is anyone looking for a good deal on tree stands? If so I would recommend checking They have ladder stands, climbers, hang-ons, and climbing sticks at some of the best prices. I will put a few of them below. If you would like to buy one just click on an image or go to

How To Get Rid Of Poison Ivy

Poison Ivy

The internet is full of different ways to get rid of Poison Ivy plants, but not everyone wants to do it the same way. So I’ve decided to make a list of four different ways that work, and put them on the same page to make it a little more convenient.

  1. If you don’t care about other plants around the Poison Ivy, and you don’t have pets that will be eating the plants you spray, then you can try using Poison Ivy killer made by Ortho or Roundup. I used the one made by Ortho and it worked very well. I haven’t used the one made by round up, but it has good reviews so I’m assuming that one works as well. If you would like to buy either one of these products you can click on the image at the bottom of this post.
  2. If you’re worried about killing other plants around the Poison Ivy, then you will probably have to pull it out by hand. I would recommend hiring someone to do it for you. If you are going to do this yourself then you will probably want to wear clothes that you don’t care about. You will want to make sure your entire body is covered so you don’t get the oils on your skin. Bring two trash bags with you, one to put the plants in after you pull them out, and the other one to put the first bag in once you’re done. You want to pull the whole plant including the roots from the ground, and put them in the bag. Once you have pulled out all the plants, put the trash bag full of the Poison Ivy into the other trash bag just in case some of the oil got on the outside of the first bag. Then you should carefully remove your clothes, and try not to let the outside of your clothes touch your skin. You can either throw your clothes away or wash them. If you are going to wash your clothes, you should wash them by themselves. Check the area after a few weeks to make sure they haven’t started to grow back. If they have started to grow back you can pull the small plants out and pour white vinegar over the area to stop future growth.
  3. If you don’t care about other plants around the Poison Ivy, but you are still worried about pets or wild animals getting sick then you can try this method. Add 1 cup of salt to 1 gallon of vinegar. Then heat the vinegar to dissolve the salt, then let it cool. Add 8 drops of liquid detergent to the vinegar, and pour it into a large spray bottle. Spray this on the plants you want to kill.
  4. Goats like to eat Poison Ivy, so if you have goats you can use them to get rid of it, but don’t worry they will not get Poison Ivy or get sick from eating it. There are a lot of animals that eat Poison Ivy in the wild. Humans are the only thing that we know of that has a reaction to Poison Ivy.

Tips To Help You Get A Big Buck

This post was made to help any hunter who might be having trouble getting a deer, but mostly for new hunters who don’t have much experience yet. Anyone that has been deer hunting for a while has certain hunting gear that they never go in the woods without. They don’t use these items because they need them, they use them because they know it will highly increase their chances of getting that big buck they’re after. Deer are smart, they have extremely good senses, and they will use all of them to avoid you in the woods. So I’ve decided to make a list of supplies that should give you a better chance at getting the deer you’re after. If you would like to buy any of the items I’m going to talk about, just click on the images at the bottom of the list.

  1. Scent eliminator- This is the most important one I’m going to talk about. I’ve seen a lot more deer every year since I started using scent eliminators. Deer have a really good sense of smell and if they smell things such as shampoo, gasoline, body odor, deodorant, pets, or anything else that they are not use to smelling, then you probably will not see them. Even if you cannot smell anything on yourself or your clothes, a deer probably can. I would recommend using Scent Killer Gold. It is the best scent eliminator I have used so far.
  2. Tree stand- This one is more important if you are using a bow. I use to hunt from the ground all the time before I started using tree stands. You can get a deer from the ground, but you stand a lot better chance at seeing and getting a deer if you are off of the ground.
  3. Grunt call- A grunt call is something that I have used a lot in the past to get deer in close. When you’re hunting you will usually try to hunt by a deer trail or by a food source because you know the deer go there, but deer are unpredictable and rarely ever go where you expect them to. I’ve had many times when a deer walks by just out of range because they didn’t use the deer trail. When you’re in that type of situation, a grunt call can be just the thing you need to call them in close enough for a shot. I recommend using the Extinguisher by Illusion. I would also recommend getting a doe bleat call such as “The Original Can” by Primos. I’ve had good luck with both of these calls.
  4. Deer scents- Deer scents can be used as cover scents or attractants. If you use doe urine in the early season it can help make the deer feel calm and increase your chances of seeing a deer. You can use buck urine during the rut to attract dominant bucks who are looking to keep other bucks out of their territory. Or you can use doe in estrous urine to attract bucks during the rut. I usually use Tinks #69 Doe in rut buck lure. (I do not recommend putting any of these scents on your clothes or boots.)
  5. Rattling antlers- These can be used during the rut to lure in bucks that are far away. I have also used antlers to rattle in nocturnal bucks that usually never come in during legal shooting hours. I have always preferred using real antlers over rattle bags or plastic antlers, but I’ve been using the “Black Rack” by Illusion for the last 2 years and it has worked very well.
  6. Range Finder- This is another thing that is more important if you are using a bow, especially if you are new and you are not good at judging distance yet.
  7. Trail Camera- Trail cameras can be very helpful, and save you a lot of time. You can use them to see what deer are in the area, what time they are there, and how often they go there.

If you would like to attract deer to you property you can check out this post- How To Attract Deer & Keep Them On Your Property


8 Tips On How To Save Money

Saving money is something almost everyone would love to do. So I’ve made a list of some things you can try, to help you save money, and possibly even make some in the process. By using all of these tips I’ve saved a couple hundred dollars every month. I hope you get the same results.

  1. You can try using coupons. My wife started using coupons a few years ago after seeing the show Extreme Couponing. On average we usually save about $40 a week by doing this.
  2. Try buying most of your food for the week at the grocery store. Eating out all the time can get expensive.
  3. Try buying things in bulk at places like BJ’s Wholesale Club, Or Sam’s Club.
  4. You can grow your own garden. Doing this can be time consuming, so if you don’t have time for that you can try to buy fruit trees and berry bushes. You can get them from, or Home Depot.
  5. Using a debit card can even help save money over time because instead of getting change back when you buy something it just stays in your account. I know I use to lose change all the time before I started using a debit card.
  6. Try banking at a credit union. They usually have fewer fees, and they also have higher interest rates on their savings accounts so you can make more money just by banking through them.
  7. Most gas stations have free rewards cards you can get now, so depending on how much you drive, you could save quite a bit.
  8. You can also buy one of the many books that will teach you how to save money. You can get them at The books usually cost anywhere from $5 to $15, but they could save you hundreds every month. I will put some of the books I recommend below.

How To Attract Deer & Keep Them On Your Property

If you’re looking to attract more deer, and keep them on your property, then you will need a few things. Deer should have food, water, and cover available to them at all times. It will also help if you stay out of the woods as much as possible.

  1. Food- You should make sure there is a variety of food to make sure they stay healthy, and will have food all year around.  You can try planting apple trees, pear trees, Oak trees, raspberry bushes. If you have enough land you can try to plant a mixture of grass, clover, and other plants deer like. You can go to to get some of the foods I’ve listed at a good price. Or you can click on the images below to buy some of the foods I listed on here.
  2. Deer get a lot of water from the foods they eat, so as long as you have water on or near your property you should be fine.
  3. You need to make the deer feel safe if you want them to stay there. If you have a heavily wooded area on your property that is really thick, then deer will probably use that as their bedding area. If you don’t then you should try to make your own by planting a lot of small trees and bushes for them to use as cover. You should stay out of this area so they always feel like they can go there to hide.
  4. Once the deer are on your land you should only go in the woods when you need to. You should also limit the amount of hunters you allow on your property. You can do this by putting up posted signs. If you don’t do this people could over hunt the area, and all the hard work you put into your property would be for nothing. You can click on the image below to buy posted signs.       

If you would like to learn more about white-tailed deer you can click on the image of a book below.                                                                                                                                           

Facts About Lyme Disease & Prevention

(The tick in the image is an American Dog Tick.)

Lyme disease can be very dangerous if you don’t get treatment in time. Below is a list of facts about Lyme disease that everyone should know.

  1. Only Deer Ticks carry Lyme disease, but not all Deer Ticks have it. (Other ticks can still make you sick so you should watch for any symptoms if you have been bitten.)
  2. About 90% of ticks that have Lyme disease are in the Northeast, so you should be extra careful in that area.
  3. Ticks usually need to be attached for at least 24 hours before they can transmit Lyme disease, but there are some cases where it has been transmitted in less than 10 hours.
  4. Doctors will usually tell you to watch out for a red ring (often called a bulls-eye) that can appear around the area where the tick had bitten you.  It can take up to 30 days for the ring to appear. If you notice a red ring then you probably have Lyme disease, but even if you don’t see it, you could still get Lyme disease.
  5. Lyme disease is curable, but the longer you wait, the longer it will take to get rid of it. Here is a link where you can learn about Lyme disease treatment-
  6. People will tell you all kinds of different ways you can remove a tick, but a lot of those ways can cause the ticks to inject you with bacteria. If you talk to a doctor they will tell you the proper way is to use tweezers or a special tick removing tool. When using either one of these you want to get as close to the head of the tick as possible to make sure you get the whole tick, and to make sure you don’t squeeze any of the tick’s fluids into yourself. If you would like to buy a special tick removing tool, just click on the image below.
  7. There are a lot of steps you can take to help prevent a tick bite. You should always check yourself and your clothes after you’ve been in an area where there may have been ticks. Using bug sprays with a higher percentage of Deet is recommended.  You can also use products like Ortho Bug B Gon to keep ticks off of your property. I use it on my lawn, and it works very well. Each application keeps ticks away for 3 months and it is simple to apply. If you are interested in buying Ortho Bug B Gon, click on the image below.

* I am not a medical professional. If you feel you might be at risk of contracting Lyme disease, contact a medical professional right away!