Ever since I can remember all I wanted to do was hunt and fish. All the men on the Anderson side are outdoorsmen. The roots run deep, and as they say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. I can remember Dad making me hold or stand by whatever he happened to bring home. Ducks. Deer. Pheasants. Fish.
I got my first bow when I was 5 or 6. Dad and I would shoot in the back yard quite often. Back then we lived in town but Dad had his horses at my uncle's. On the weekends we'd go out there and I'd wreak havoc with my BB gun in the grove and tree lines. I still remember shooting my first blackbird out of a cottonwood with it. Soon enough I graduated to a .22 with a scope. It felt more like a bazooka and many innocent creatures lost their lives
NOTHING was safe. I was 7 when I shot my first duck.
We spotted a few teal on a slew and put the sneak on 'em. All I had were knee boots so Dad had to carry me the last 10-20 yards. When we got to the edge he propped me on his shoulder and slowly stood up so I could see over the cattails. A good old ground swat with the 20 gauge single shot did that poor teal in. He rode home at my feet in the cab. I couldn't have been more proud.
We did a LOT of waterfowl hunting back in the 90's. We had some phenomenal hunts. 5,000 mallards jumping out of a pothole sounds like thunder. He had me keep track of my kills and a typical year would yield 30 some ducks and a dozen or so geese. I think my total for ducks is around 225-250. Record for geese in one year was 25. Lots of memories that I'll cherish for the rest of my life.
I think my first goose was killed when I was 9. We used to hide under some super mag shell decoys when field hunting. Lay on your back, throw the shell off and hammer on 'em
I'm sure I missed some birds before knocking one down, but we finally had two birds come in with their wings set. "TAKE EM!!" Pretty sure Dad's bird was on the way to the ground before I had my gun shouldered. I took a super fine bead, dropped the hammer on the single shot and folded him. "YOU GOT HIM!!" Dad yelled. I stood there staring and Dad had to say "Well go pick him up!!". It was a huge goose too... 12 or 13 pounds if I remember right.
Years later I shot a monster greenhead that was banded by a private citizen in Alabama. When we called the phone number he said "You're kidding... I haven't banded ducks in about 10 years." the ducks leg had the inside of the band worn down. We've got tons of pics from successful hunts during that time frame. The first pic in the next set is Tyler (tcjohnsonjacks) and I. We've been friends since we were in diapers at my mom's daycare. His family moved an hour away when we were young but hunting was the glue that kept our friendship alive all these years. We used to walk his driveway and shoot those big camoflauge colored grasshoppers with our BB guns. We always got together and hunted over MEA weekend. He's my lone friend that I can't outwork in the deer woods.
When I was around 10 Dad took me with on a bowhunt. He sat me on a limb a few feet below him, and all I had was a rope tied around my waist
Wouldn't you know a 1.5 yr old buck made his way out of a CRP field then all the way across some bean stubble right to us. I watched the buck right below me probably 8 yards out and heard the aluminum arrow slide on Dad's metal rest. WHACK! That was the first deer I watched get shot and I was all about it. The fire burned big time.Back then legal hunting age was 12. I was only 11 but was going to be tagging along with Dad, Grandpa, and a few other family members during shotgun season. Times were a little differen't in '93,
and Grandpa wanted me to hunt. He said "Well if he's gonna be with us anyway just give him a damn gun!!". I sat with Dad morning and evening and was going to be shooter (using Dads tag) if something came out. No luck. Then we set up a drive and I was on my own as a poster. I had a youth model 20 gauge 870. Sure enough a group of 5 does and fawns came busting out and ran RIGHT TO ME. They made a half circle around me and I unloaded all 5 shots and never touched a one The guys got a good laugh over that.My first hunting bow was a hand me down from my cousin. Metal attached the "cams" to the limbs. I wasn't strong enough to pull the legal 40 pound requirement and hunted pulling high 30's. Dad couldn't stomach me being legal to hunt but not strong enough... neither could I. I sat natural ground sets a lot and finally had an encounter with a doe. She picked me out and I got crazy nervous. So nervous I couldn't get my bow back when she finally decided I wasn't danger!
I owe a lot to my Dad as far as instincts and set ups go. We used to scout and Dad would ask me pick a set up. Then he'd tell me why he thought it was a good/bad spot, then show the set he liked and explain why. That did wonders for my learning curve. Soon I got a Hoyt Rebel XT... my first "good" bow. We had an archery shop in town then and I shot quite a bit. With a pretty unfamiliar bow, the 2nd time I ever scored myself I shot a 292 out of 300 with 32x's. The shop owner encouraged me to shoot tournaments with him but I never did. Punching holes in paper at the same distance was a little too monotonous for me I guess.
My first gun deer was when I was 12, a doe fawn. It was a Tuesday, the last day of the season and we headed out after school. We did a drive with a friend and had given up and were walking back to the truck in gray light when we spotted a deer in the CRP. We snuck up on it and Dad said it was too far for my bird barrel so he handed me his 12 gauge with a scope. He leaned over and I rested the gun on his back. 100 yard shot and I spined her. It was then I saw the cruel side of hunting. After finishing her off I was ecstatic and so remorseful at the same time.
In this last pic some of you might recognize the hat. "THE" lucky hat. That thing might be 40 years old...
My first 3 deer were all gun deer. All doe fawns. Had a couple misses with my bow early on too. My first archery kill, and adult deer for that matter, was a doe. I was sitting in a cottonwood on a slew edge with standing corn abutting it with alfalfa adjacent. Nice little travel corridor. A doe and two fawns came out of the corn and the doe actually came in behind me. It was a BEAUTIFUL night. I can still picture the sun shining off the still, open water and her leaning down to drink. The water was knee deep on her. The calm silence erupted into splashing water and crashing cattails. She went about 100 yards and piled up. The hunting addiction grew...
When I was 15 I killed a fork buck with my bow and all those years of hunting finally paid off. Finally a BUCK. I was jacked. Then as luck would have it I tagged a basket 8 with my shotgun later that fall. When it rains it pours!
After that I started killing bucks regularly with gun and bow (party hunting). Dad always put me in the best stands. I would feel bad and offer him the good spots once in a while, but he ALWAYS declined. Now that I'm a Dad I totally get it. Now he's in his 60's and I can feel the roles reversing. He's healthy and active but I will likely fight him on who will reluctantly take the best spot from now on.
Hunting was always pretty tough in those early days. Any buck was fair game. It wasn't until 2001 when I FINALLY tagged my first "nice" buck. A 2.5 year old 11 point I killed gun hunting. Dad tagged a nice buck that year, and my sister also got a doe. Banner year!
I graduated high school in 2001. Took some generals in the health field up in Moorhead, then thought I wanted to be a medical lab technician
and went to Alexandria the next year. I didn't hunt a lot but what little I did I went in blind on public. All I had was a crotch stand or the ground game. So with the foundation Dad laid out for me, and often not being able to make the crotch stand work, I sat natural sets a lot because I didn't have a choice. Here's the trusty crotch stand.
Year 3 of college I switched to Electrician and went to school in Canby. Small town and pretty good hunting around there. The deer I shot down there were the first deer I killed on my own and my first public kills.
After college I got a job in South Dakota. When I saw the difference in the deer herd (and buck quality) it was game on. 2006 was my first year as a resident and my first time rifle hunting. I went East River with my friend and his family. The only thing 12 years of MN hunting produced size wise was the nice 2.5 yr old 11 pt, and a few others were small two year olds at best. My 2nd day rifle hunting SD I put my first mounter on the wall.
I didn't even own shooting sticks, so I sat down and rested my elbows on my knees for the 267 yard shot. I HIGHLY doubt I could repeat that shot again but I smoked him right in the heart. FINALLY A MATURE BUCK and on public to boot. Filled my doe tag too. That buck and my SD residency opened the flood gates...
2007 I got a new bow. Mathews Switchback. I got a little trigger happy and punched the trigger on a public land 2 yr old 7 point. Also tagged a doe with my bow, and a buck and a doe on our first ever West River rifle trip. My two buddies and I killed 2 bucks and 4 does in 4 or 5 days. We decided it was a good idea to include our Dad's the following year.
I really started scouting hard in 2008. I spent some time in a public area I'd been passing up the last couple years because it got too much pressure. I realized there must be a reason they keep going back. I hung a few sets, making sure to stay away from everyone else. One set put me about 100 yards off the road next to a fence line. A ravine lined up with a corn/bean edge across a tar road and the sign was there so I gave it a shot. My 2nd hunt from that stand I FINALLY had my first good bow buck. Early October morning hunt.
My thoughts were a buck would come back to the woods to bed down in the morning and that's exactly what happened. One of the biggest confidence boosters was always being able to check for tracks in the gravel on the shoulder of the road. Nice tracks, rubs in the area, no other hunters for several hundred yards. It worked out, although it was pre-Beast and I didn't have a bedding mind set. Back then I was all about funnels and high traffic areas, and finding any way possible to hunt where I felt I needed to be. My set ups were often awkward or uncomfortable. Many times I didn't know if I was hidden well enough but I tried it anyway. Whether the result was positive or negative I kept learning and gaining confidence.
The other set I hung was way in the back of the property where a river oxbow funneled movement. Plus the hardwoods transitioned to lowland and canary grass. So I had multiple transitions meeting in the same spot. When I saw it my gut just told me it was gold. Lucky for me it was. I took a doe there my first sit. With more doe tags in my pocket I hunted there frequently. In one weekend during rut I passed 6 bucks from that stand including a 3 yr old. The guys back home shotgun hunting that same weekend had a total of 2 deer down.
Then came West River
There was a huge snow storm in 2008 and it plugged up all the field roads. Very few deer got shot opening weekend which is when 90% of the pressure happens. We went the weekend after and most of the snow had melted. We had an absolute hay day. There were a lot more deer back then too. We arrived Sunday night, and by Friday afternoon we all had a buck and a doe and were tagged out. Cocktails taste pretty good after hunts like that.
I was having some work related issues in 2009 and ended up moving back to MN while still holding my SD resident status. Man alive do I regret moving back! Anyway, I tagged a nice MN buck with my bow in October.
Then I headed back to my oxbow honey hole stand for a rut hunt in SD. I wasn't even in my stand when I really nice non typical chased a doe up on the hill side. I climbed up and tried the doe bleat can. I'm pretty sure another buck was bedded nearby and he heard it. He came RUNNING. He was mature and half racked but hung up at 20 yards facing me on the back side of my tree. No shot. At last light the non typical came by after I lowered my bow down. I watched him through my binos at 12 yards. He had 13 points and a 2-3" drop on his left side.
Guess what stand I headed to the next morning. I had a nice two year old come by in gray light, and wanting to punch my tag and go back home I decided to take him. He didn't stop when he was at 12 yards and I took a poorer shot at 20 and hit him high. Never found him. I learned a hard lesson in trusting your gut. Never talk yourself into shooting. I was so sick with myself after searching for him all day that I packed up and headed home after the evening hunt. That was the last time I have ever hunted that stand...
Of course West River was good to us again in 2009. My buddy booked our trip starting the Monday after opening weekend and things were slow. We were a few days in when I reluctantly took what I could get. It also factored in that I doe bleat canned him in from 450 yards down to 40. Too cool. So I ended up taking him.
In 2010 I moved to "Little Iowa" county in MN (my journal followers will recognize these nicknames). I knocked on tons of doors and got permission on one beautiful property (the drainage) and a small couple acre grove in a different but phenomenal area (Oscar's). I hunted hard and killed a nice buck out of Oscar's little grove that year with my bow. You don't need big property to kill big deer if the situation is right. I can elaborate on that later. 3rd Birthday buck of my life... October 29th.
I drew a mule deer tag for SD that year and made good on it. Another big SD public land buck. I also helped my buddy fill his tag on his mulie.
2011 Oscar let me hunt his home grove. Finally got a big buck from the ground! I watched this buck two nights prior, then made a move that night with my decoy.
That year West River was its usual self although we had to head to a different county. If you want to put me in a good mood put me in SD with a deer tag in my pocket. If anyone knows a good way to take pics with frozen deer, let me know!
2012 I finally made progress at the drainage property. I had shooters on cam years prior but had never laid eyes on one in season. I went in to pull my cams as I don't have gun access and didn't want the gun hunters stealing them. One showed a good buck showing up at night. New buck I'd never seen before. Things weren't panning out at Oscar's so I decided to give my rut funnel a try. Mind you this is the morning before shotgun season opens. As luck would have it the buck showed and I called him in right before he winded me for a slam dunk 8 yard shot. So I had bested my biggest MN buck 3 years in a row at this point.
Being newly married and low on funds, a 2012 SD did not take place
After the insane trips we had, part of me died inside since I couldn't go In the 2010-2012 time frame I had been doing things a little differently than years prior. More scouting, lots of trying new things, spreading my hunts out more, and realizing that "the thick" was where the action was for good bucks. I still did not have a mindset that revolved around bedding, but it had become apparent that the big boys didn't wander around in the open. I was big on funnels and areas in the thick where multiple trails naturally converged. By shear determination and time in the field I would eventually make good on a buck. Each season I would only see a couple bucks worthy of shooting, and fortunately I was making good on most of those encounters.
in 2013 Mark Kenyon picked me and Beast member Andy May (RidgeRunner 7) for a fairly popular article "Average Joes killing TV quality bucks". It featured 4 guys who aren't privileged with great land or money, but overcome the obstacles to consistently tag good deer. I almost didn't even submit my story so I was shocked when I got picked. It's funny because that was pre-Beast for me and I shook my head when I read Andy's talk about hunting buck beds
I did write an article for W2H as a guest writer shortly after the Average Joe's article posted. It was called "Finding those magic trees... and what to do when you can't". It's about doing what you need to do to hunt where the action is... not where its comfortable. (i.e. don't be a tree hunter... be a deer hunter). I have always taken pride in my set ups. When I killed my 2011 MN buck I showed my ground set to a friend and he said, "uh... yeah I never would have even thought of that.". FIND A WAY TO SET UP WHERE YOU KNOW YOU NEED TO BE. EVEN IF YOU AREN'T COMFORTABLE WITH IT. I would rather do something crazy and get busted than set up 50 yards away and not get a shot.
Its kind of fun for me to re-read the writings from 5 years ago and see how my viewpoint has changed. Just goes to show there is more than one way to kill a deer and there is no truly right or wrong way.
With my success in the woods, confidence from the Wired to Hunt articles, and my desire to push myself, I decided to try my hand at filming in 2013. After all, I typically would tag out early on our SD trips and help others get their deer. Getting 2-4 kills on video in SD alone would be very realistic. I also felt that aside from the adrenaline boys, hunting shows were unrealistic. I never intended to go real big with it but figured a small group of loyal fans might appreciate relatable footage, the way I hunt, and the unusual places I've taken deer here in MN. I soon found out how tough filming is. Mainly because filming from the ground is VERY tricky, and my kill trees were compromised due to the camera arm. Often I'm in a tangly mess of a willow tree.
With no kills on film leading into shotgun season (did film my buddy wound one) I was excited to capture my sister taking her first buck ever. She'd shotgun hunted for 16-17 years without tagging one. Then Tyler and I went West River for our first ever archery hunt on that side of the Missouri. We captured some incredible footage, highlighted by a crazy spot and stalk on an ancient public land 3x3.
If you didn't notice, the mossy oak jacket I'm wearing is the same one I wore when I killed my first buck. I still wear it, and I will as long as it fits (which is a growing concern
). The pants wore out long ago but it'll be a sad day when I have to retire that jacket. Stuff like the lucky cap and the mossy oak jacket have sentimental value to me. You could hand me a brand new sitka jacket and I'd still wear the old one.We had Tyler in the game after that but couldn't seal the deal. We did have one dead to rights but he was bedded about 30 yards on to private property.
Back in MN I filmed my buddy Zach kill his muzzleloader buck that year (nice two year old 10) but I continued to struggle. Got busted my fair share. On the last day of the season, literally last minute, I took a deer not even realizing it had horns. Not that I cared. It was -15 actual temperature and I was just happy to punch my tag. Took that little buck on public, self filming, standing 5' off the ground on a limb.
2014 was my first season as a Beast. THE ENTIRE GAME HAD CHANGED. It was also the first year of my life that I didn't tag a deer! I passed some yearlings and smaller two year olds, but couldn't make it happen. I did film 5 kills (two WR South Dakota) so camera time did factor in. With life being busy and my first child being born. It became evident that editing a hunting show wasn't going to happen. I did finish the 2013 season but haven't rendered it because I don't know how
So there it sits.2015 I sold my camera, and bought a LW and sticks. I was in heaven with that set up as I'd never had a mobile hang on. I found I enjoy hunting more when its simple and camera-less too. With the tag soup taste still in my mouth, I hit the ground running that spring. I scouted a TON. I was immersed in Beast tactics. I prepped 27 new sets that spring. GAME ON. I had an encounter with a short tined but wide mature 10 point during the lull, but ran out of shooting light. With mama's patience running thin I killed another buck from the ground in Oscar's. A nice 10 the evening before shotgun season opened.
Here's the link to the kill zone thread:
viewtopic.php?f=287&t=32983&hilit=ground+pound+ten+point
No West River trip in 2015. I scouted every chance I got. As soon as muzzleloader season ended I was out there.
2016 I had a run in with a target buck on public opening day. I had a phenomenal year. I passed more bucks and does than I ever had. I saw deer on 14 consecutive hunts which is mind blowing for me. In the past I would say roughly 1/3 of my hunts ended with a goose egg. That November I FINALLY killed my first true GIANT whitetail. I first saw him on camera in Oscar's late in 2014 and it took 2 seasons of chasing him to catch up with him.
Kill zone link:
viewtopic.php?f=287&t=38222&hilit=quest+for+a+MN+monster
Tyler and I headed back to SD and I put the stalk of a lifetime on a beatiful 4x5 mulie with velvet hanging. With tired arms after a gruelling stare down I wasn't able to make the 38 yard shot. Arrow went high and hit shoulder blade. We did go back to SD for some East River does during the January season and I was able to take a nice public doe from a natural cattail blind at 10 yards. We had one day to work with in a brand new area and we made it happen. I love the late season
This past season in 2017 I had another good year. I took a nice public doe in MN and passed quite a few little bucks, but shooters eluded me all the way until rut. I finally connected on a nice 11 pointer at Oscar's, which is my first ever muzzleloader buck.
Link to Kill zone thread:
viewtopic.php?f=287&t=43389
I'll probably add in some more tactical stuff at a later date. Especially stuff I key on for which properties I choose and where I find big bucks. Maybe some ground hunting do's and don'ts, and some West River SD details.
In conclusion, I would first like to say thank you to Dan and the mods and members of this forum. It has been a blessing and a joy to be a part of this site. I have taken many, many things from this forum and Dan's teachings and I try to chime in whenever possible. I certainly don't know it all and will forever be a student here. Thanks again to everyone for making this forum what it is. Keep grinding, and good luck this fall
great photos!
