Tikka T3 Battue...An excellent gun for Deer and Moose hunting in Ontario

The Tikka T3 Battue is an excellent gun for hunting in Ontario. This gun is made for quick target aquisition and is short, light and an awesome go to choice; especially if you want a gun with open sights. It sports a long rear sight with fibre optic sights on either side of the rear sight, and a fibre optic hooded front sight. The gun is available in either a wood or synthetic stock, and my personal choice would be .308 I would have no problems carrying this and confidently making shots up to 150 yards, which covers off most of the situations you will come across in Ontario. They retail for about $859.00 and can be purchased at Sail stores in Ontario.

PSE Compound Bows arrive at Sail Oshawa

Sail Oshawa is now selling PSE Compound Bows, the Vision, and the Momentum are two of the models they are carrying. They also have some smaller PSE Compound Bows suitable for youth. Make sure to visit the store and check out the PSE Bows upstairs in the hunting department.

Hoyt Carbon Element

What more could the serious bow hunter want in a bow? This is one awesome bow; lightweight advanced technology at its best. I know whats on my wishlist for the 2011 hunting season. Now to save mt pennies.......

Results of our Deer Food Plots December 31, 2010

The photos say it all; our food plots are doing exactly what we had hoped. As soon as the colder weather hit and the snow began to fall, the deer moved in and have eaten all of the corn, all the soybeans, and have pawed and eaten the Brasika, Sugar beets......Awesome!

Deer Food Plots

Deer food plots are becoming very popular for property owners who are trying to not only help the local deer herd survive the winter months but to also provide high nutrient food all year long. In some areas deer populations are increasingly competing with Moose populations that are on the rise, which decreases the amount of browse available for the deer population. It's important to provide crops that will provide food at different times of the year. The photos below are just a few examples of the crops that deer utilize through the fall and winter months, as well as spring summer and fall.

This project also involved the planting of Hemlock three year old seedlings along trails and travel corridors to not only provide feed, but to also provide shelter and to lead deer from their bedding areas into the feed plots. They also planted red oak seedlings and some white pine seedlings.

The property owner also logged portions of the property to remove some of the older trees and to provide tops for winter forage. In subsequent years the food plots will be increased in size and location to provide food throughout the property, additional lime will be added to decrease the acidic conditions of the soils, and additional seedlings will be planted.
This project involved the planting of numerous different strips, including Frigid Forage, corn, soybeans, clover, sugar beets, carrots, and other mixtures specifically designed to provide food at different times of the year.

Moose Hunting 2010

Well my 2010 moose hunting season has come and gone. It was a beautiful week, fairly mild temperatures, not too much rain, full moon, and crisp mornings. It felt good to get out and experience the bush, spend time with family friends and fellow hunters. Although we weren't successful, I did have an encounter with an eleven point buck that was priceless. I had just arrived at my stand for the morning and noticed a fresh deer bed right where I was going to stand. Within minutes I caught a nose coming around a large Hemlock to my left, I remained motionless and this huge Whitetail emerged broadside at 15 yards. he was dark, huge, and had a sticker tine about 8 inches off his left side. He very cautiously continued to get closer; all of a sudden he stopped and looked directly at me, he knew there was something there, he just couldn't figure out what it was, he dropped his head and quickly raised it again trying to catch me. We played this game for about five minutes, I never moved. At the closest point he was 10vyards away, this moment made my hunt, even though I never saw a moose. It's great to experience such a magnificent animal in his domain.

Another successful hunt........

Well after collecting wood and unloading and stacking it in the woodshed I thought it was time for me to bag my deer. I left the saw at  the house, took the quad back to my grandmothers favorite stand, put out some feed, and climbed in the blind. Situated in the blind I felt the wind hitting me in the face. I thought to myself.......perfect, they will approach me from behind the blind. I no sooner got that thought out of my head.............and there he was right beside me..........25 feet.....wait for him to look the other way.......the rest is history. Nice little six point!

Stihl Chainsaws now have a Deer call Model......called the 034"D" for deer

Well this was one of those hunts that you hear about but don't always experience. We were out cutting firewood, I was running the saw dropping a standing dead Cherry. I turned around and noticed the two guys I was with...........they were standing on the trail about fifty feet away. I noticed one of them down removing his gun from his guncase on the back of the quad. I'm thinking what the heck are they doing, this is no time to sight in your gun. I keep cutting up firewood..............bang! Ok; I shut the saw off and say "What the hell are you guys shootin at?" Their answer......."A deer.....a buck in fact" This buck came trotting right down the trail towards them and wasn't even aware of them, and not at the least scared by the saw. What a marketing slogan............"Our saws attract deer!"

Firewood

This past weekend I spent up north at my parents property cutting firewood. Saturday wasn't the nicest day , however any day spent in the bush is better than a day spent behind a desk. It was a nice get away, lots of sign; moose, deer, and even happened upon a bear den.....with lots of steam coming from its depths. The winds in the fall and over the winter provided more than enough downed wood for a weekend of cutting. We didn't stress ourselves too hard, but still managed to cut a fair amount of wood.

Deer have faired well........

Easter weekend gave me the opportunity to observe some deer up at our farm. The antics of some of the does butting their fawns, raising their legs towards one another, it was hilarious. They truly are amazing animals to observe as they interact, and respond to even the most distant noises.

Whitetail Designs

Whitetail Designs was one of the booths at the Kearney Dog Sled Races on February 6,7 & 8 , 2009. Rachell Huggins and her husband have established themselves a very unique and awesome little business. Check out some of the products they have made using deer hides and a "natural tanning" process. I was amazed at the quality of workmanship and the variety of products they had made from jackets, hats, purses, pants just to name a few. If you've been looking for a very well made and awesome looking buckskin handbag, or coat drop Rachel an e-mail at rachelsbuckskins@hotmail.com

Late Season Deer

I've been out quite a bit since we've started receiving snow and noticed large scrapes........very large tracks in those scrapes..which leads to "Really Big Bucks" My favorite time to go out deer hunting is after the gun hunt, especially if its actively snowing. The Big Boys are on the move and their senses aren't quite as quick as usual. I've observed more large bucks during weather like this and at this time of year over any other time. So I guess it's time I strike off to my favorite hunting spot......I'll let you know if I catch up to one of the "Big Boys"

Big City Oshawa Buck

The ability for White tail deer to adapt to our cities and developed areas is amazing. The valleys and green spaces left within our residential and industrial areas provides all the habitat necessary for deer like this to survive and flourish. This photo was taken outside of our office which sits south of Bloor Street, south of the 401 in south Oshawa (Oshawa Creek valley) This is nice to see, however when wildlife populations start to grow and their numbers begin to rise, vehicle/animal crashes go up, deer jumping through windows in businesses and dwellings, and people walking the trail systems encountering animals. Not all people realize that deer, coyotes, bears, moose and other animals they may encounter especially during the breeding season can pose a serious threat/safety concern. If you do encounter animals on trails or in green spaces you should never approach them and definately don't feed them. They are amazing to observe and photograph.......enjoy our greenspaces.

Another tree stand.........hopefully another buck....

We didn't have to go far to find another spot to establish a good tree stand. Hopefully the buck which has so far made us on a few occasions will miss us this time. We'll definately post our results in the up coming months. Check back often.

Its getting to be that time

Its getting to be that time when some early scouting can reveal where some bicg bucks are making their mark. We took a brief wander through our property and found that a few of the traditional scrapes were already being tended. So what better time than the present to set up your tree stand. We'll be sure to report back with our results.

Ontario Monster Whitetails Magazine

Ontario's leading source for educational, entertaining and simply amazing stories about Ontario deer hunting. The magazine is devoted to reaching out to the grassroots hunting community with detailed stories and pictures of how hunters around the province are successful in harvesting Ontario's biggest bucks.This is not a magazine for trophy hunters alone; instead this magazine celebrates and honours the trophy animals that roam this great land with riveting stories, detailed tips, jaw-dropping photographs and sound advice from the hunters themselves. Readers will be intrigued when they see that the hunters whose stories are found in the pages of Ontario Monster Whitetails magazine will be the "kid next door" or "the guys in the camp down the road".Ontario Monster Whitetails celebrates the time-honoured traditions that sportsmen and women have passed on for generations of time. We, at Ontario Monster Whitetails, are dedicated to providing a magazine appealing to both older and younger generations to learn tips and tactics from those who know.With 4 issues per year featuring stories from every corner of this province, every deer hunter who ventures into the great Ontario outdoors will eagerly await the day when their issue arrives in the mailbox so they too can read about the monster whitetails in their neck of the woods.

Big Sheds....gets sons attention

Visiting a friend, the talk soon turned to hunting. So into the house and out comes this massive set of sheds (15 point rack) Check out the photo. It definately caught my sons attention.