anything new?

[billy336]

Haven't been to the camp in about two months. any fellow Berrien hunters been in the woods lately? Has anyone found any sheds. Had two members at camp a few weeks back, but they were there to relax and didn't get in the woods much. Just wanted an update, will be in camp this weekend. Are the mosquitos back yet? Boy I sure hope so. Got some new toys to fire off, so if you hear a bunch of commotiojn coming from Teeterville, you know who it is. Thanks ya'll!

[billy336]

Well, since no one replied, this is what I saw. Found the first sign of a large cat on the lease Sunday morning. Very large cat. Obviously stalking deer, there were tracks all over the place. The food plots have a virtual carpet of clover on them and the deer aren't touching it at all. :confused: :confused: :confused: Does this happen to anyone else around here? At this point I may be writing to myself, but if any of yall read this and have some info, please let me know. Thanks.

[Son]

Seems like most abandon this site if hunting season isn't in. Hello world, anybody listening....?

[Rabbit Runner]

Billy 336, I hope that you had eveything tied down at your deer camp over in Berrien county. We had some very strong storms come in here yesterday, some places had 50 mph winds with lots and lots of rain and some hail. :ha

SON. were yall hit hard down in miller county. I think that the storm that hit us came up from that way.

[billy336]

Rabbitt Runner, thanks for the reply and the storm info. Luckily my old man was up there with my nephew yesterday so if anything was fixin' to leave hopefully they caught it. Had the same thing happen to me up there last July. Was sittin on the front porch, enjoying my Bud, and out of no where the wind rises up something fierce. Kinda scared me,. I was staring out into the pines when one tree went over taking at least a half dozen others with it. Poor ole Langdale , lost seven trees. Where are you from Runner? My place is just south of Nashville.

[billy336]

Son, thanks for the reply. I guess I am the only guy who visits Berrien Co. when the season is over. I guess it depends on the season. At our place, as soon as Deer Season ends, Beer Season begins. Are you hearing any gobblin' in your neck of the woods?

[Rabbit Runner]

I live over in Irwin County. in a little place called Waterloo.
Nashville is about 30 miles from my house.

[Son]

Yep, those tornados tore up Seminole and Miller counties last Tuesday. We've had more bad weather since with large hail. Many folks around hurting and without a place to live. One life was lost in Donalsonville.
The woods are flooded but I lucked up and called in two nice gobblers opening morning. The fog was so bad I couldn't see 'em until they were at about 20 yards running straight at me. I had to make a motion to make them stop and seperate so I could shoot one. Don't like to take more than one per hunt. He was a nice two year old bird with a ten inch beard and weighed 23 pounds. Picture posted on the turkey hunting thread. The kill site was the same place as my first gobbler last year. Last year I had nine gobblers standing in a group and had to wait for one to walk off so I could shoot. Not bad for a place that's not over run with turkeys. Thinking about going again in the morning as they say it's suppose to be a nice day. Ya'll would laugh if you saw my box call. It's an old Lynch that's been stepped on, sat on, dropped and epoxied, but still gets 'em. It's all the call I need to call a gobbler in.

[billy336]

Heard the weather has really been horrible. My dad got to our camp Friday AM and we had 4 inches of standing water in the front yard. He couldn't access half of our place ( he drives a 2WD, why, I don't know either). Anyway, he took some soil samples to help us plant here at the end of April. Do you have plots on your place? What seems to be the favored crop for your deer. We have some beautiful clovewr covering all of our plots and our deer won't touch it. They pick at the rye grass but that is it. What is your recipe for your plots? We have tried lots of things, ICP, rye, wheat, clover, oats, rape, chufus, sunflowers, corn, soybeans, and austrian winter peas. Never had a consistent "bite" on any of these offereings. They will mow down the ICP then, when they recover and come back, the deer won't touch them. I am tired of putting all this money into the ground with very few fat deer. I figure our pH sucks, do you have any suggestions?

[billy336]

Congrats on your bird! We have been nursing our turkey population along here the past few years. The state released a couple of breeding pairs on our land because the weren't any around. We see a few, hear alot more, but we don't allow any hunting of them , yet. Wuld love to see more birds, but we have a huge predator population. Coyotes, bobcats, foxes, and I saw a panther track there two weeks ago. That's alot of turkey hunters who aint got a liscence. big toebig toebig toebig toe, the quail have seem to have disappeared here recently as well. I think that may have something to do it also. So happy gobbling for the rest of the month. Hope you get another and from the sound of it you will. I love to eat the wild turkey but man are they the smelliest thing to clean or what? I have only taken Osceolas, maybe the Easterns are a little nicer on the inside. But the Osceola sure is good in the fryin' pan!

[Son]

Food plots can be difficult. Ph does play an important part of growing something deer will eat. Then you have to consider what may be around your area they like better, farm fields, honeysuckle, acorns etc. I've tried some of the more expensive advertised fool plot blends with little success. Last season our deer showed little interest in our food plots (oats), but we had little time to correct an acidic ph after sites were cleared. It was the first time we've been granted permission to plant plots on this particular lease. It was a warm season with ample food sources including acorns. Farms were late in harvesting causing many deer to feed there and lay up in small wood lots around the fields. To answer your question about what I feel is best for food plots. In the last thirty years I've had best success with Iron/clay peas, oily sunflower, wheat or abruzzi rye. Also fertilize the briars/dewberries and permissions around your plot sites. Take notice of which oaks provide acorns your deer seem to prefer over others, fertilize 'em. In dry seasons, provide water, we have plastic barrels cut in half and placed around. Put a green stick in each water container so small animals that might fall in can climb out.
We protected our turkeys for several years before starting to hunt 'em. But that didn't stop our neighbors from shooting their share, so it took awhile to realize enough birds to hear a gobble.

[billy336]

Son

Thanks for all your input. I'm afraid our neighbors hit any bird they see. Lord knows they will shoot any deer they see no matter where it is standing. Or what time of day it may be. Our soil tests can back and said we have a neutral soil base which is virtually void of any sort of phosphate, nitrogen, or anything really good for planting. Looks like we are on the hunt for a pile of fertilizer. Looks like more wet weather up there. Man we don't need it at our place. Really flooded out. We had the propane man out last week and he stuck his dually on the side of the house. Hope it dries out soon, I am going to try a grid system with six different crops. I will treat them all the same and see which one the deer prefer and which one is the hardiest. Iron clays prices are thru the roof. I always use them so that wont end, might try the sunflowers, black eyed peas as well. We are also putting in a millet/sunflower ring around soybeans in one of our larger fields. Trying to keep the turkey around. Looks like the weather might clear up there tomorrow. Hope you get out in the woods. Been to the Cadillac Ranch lately?