6 Ways to Get a Woman into Hunting, Part 1

By Tracy L. Schmidt

That favorite woman of yours —
is there a chance she can become a hunter?

Tracy Schmidt in blaze orange holding a shotgun

Some people may not think a woman with a shotgun is politically correct, but it’s real life. Women are the fastest growing segment in the world of hunting. (Photo: Daniel E. Schmidt)

Part 1: Stereotypes, skills and stuffed animals

I am a hunter — but I did not grow up a hunter. As a kid I didn’t know a single person who hunted, much less approved of hunting. You see, I grew up just 15 miles from Boston, Massachusetts, New England’s largest city. We had many malls, restaurants, arcades and far more fast food and asphalt than 100-acre woodlots. Natural areas were for hiking and bird watching, definitely not hunting.

My perception of hunting was that it was completely unnecessary in these modern times, and what I knew about guns was what I saw on the news — gangs and crime.

That all changed when I moved to rural northcentral Wisconsin where hunting is thoroughly ingrained in the culture. Compounding matters, I enrolled at a university famous for its natural resources curriculum, which produced many hunting-related professionals. I soon discovered I had a lot to learn!

When I moved to Wisconsin, I vowed I would never date anyone who hunted. So much for the best laid plans. A few decades later I’m not only enthusiastic about hunting, I’m married to a key person in the hunting industry.

So what happened? Actually, quite a few things. Six concepts changed my thinking. I hope they will make sense to you as well, help you embrace this holistic lifestyle and give you the tools to get someone you know interested in hunting.

Father and daughter pose next to a doe used for family food

Young children are not so tender they can’t understand the circle of life. In fact, that’s the time to teach them. (Photo: Tracy Schmidt)

1. Break down the stereotypes

First, I discovered a huge misunderstanding — I equated hunting with wasteful killing. I failed to perceive wild animals as a renewable resource, as populations with the capacity to replace themselves. I also became acquainted with people who need to hunt to provide their families with food. I had never known anybody who ate wild game, so I never really thought of it as a food source. To me, going out to take a nature walk was hiking through some man-shaped “natural” area that wasn’t natural at all. Hiking meant staying on the trail and being subject to a controlled experience passing through nature, and see a few birds, squirrels, chipmunks, turtles and an occasional snake. Hunting, by contrast, takes you off the trail and provides you with a completely interactive experience.

I also learned that many hunters donate deer to food pantry programs. With that kind of societal need for meat I learned hunting is not as simple as killing an animal for sport. I don’t consider “thrill kills” justifiable. Yes, it happens, because every pursuit has both ethical and unethical people, so you can’t judge those who do good by the actions of a few who do wrong.

A great way to begin changing attitudes toward hunting is by challenging stereotypes calmly, and by helping one other person understand why hunting is important. My husband, Dan, was very good at letting me talk about some of these issues and he let me know about venison-receptive food pantry programs and how important hunting is to feeding families.

2. Reinforce the required skill set

Another thing that helped motivate me to get into hunting was the technical challenge. Archery was a great way to start, and I began with a compound bow. Each night after getting home we would run out into the backyard and shoot targets. Dan challenged me to group all my arrows in a pie plate before I could hunt with him. He worked hard with me and as we practiced we developed as a hunting team. When I shot up my pie plate he was just as happy as I was.

I had never understood how much practice and preparation go into hunting. The skill required was impossible to dismiss after experiencing the process in person. The act of inviting someone to join you in practice where they can see how much fun you are having is a great way to break the ice. They will want to have fun, too.

A child wearing blaze orange hunting gear

Taking a child hunting gives them a sense of responsibility and makes them a part of something important. (Photo: Tracy Schmidt)

3. Debunk the culture of animal personification

I was raised to think of animals as the warm, fuzzy, baby things desperate for our protection. Throughout our culture, many different forms of media have perpetuated this idea. Like many, I failed to grasp the huge difference between wild animals and pets until I moved to the country.

I had to stop thinking of the stuffed toy on my childhood bed as an animal and begin thinking about what predation in the natural world is all about. One thing that helped was going out scouting with Dan. He took me with him long before I headed out in to the field carrying my bow.

I remember scouting turkeys by sitting out under the pines at night. Dan hooted like an owl and the turkeys gobbled in response — very cool to observe and experience. If you want to get someone to go hunting, expose them to the natural world in ways non-hunters don’t see. It’s an amazing education to learn how to blend into the natural world around you. Without a doubt, good hunters have the best observation skills.

Don’t miss Part 2 of “6 Ways to Get a Woman into Hunting.”


About Tracy L. Schmidt:

Tracy Schmidt headhsotTracy L. Schmidt is a certified master food preservation specialist and the author of the book “Venison Wisdom.” Each of her recipes is tested and perfected. She is married to Daniel Schmidt, editor in chief of Deer & Deer Hunting magazine and host of “Deer & Deer Hunting TV” on NBC Sports. Tracy enjoys the versatility of Havalon Knives in both the kitchen and the field.


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10 Surefire Elk Hunting Tips from Paul Carlson’s “A Guide to Bugling Bulls”

By Steve Sorensen

Fuel your passion for elk hunting!

Author Paul Carlson with bull

Author Paul Carlson with a nice bull taken in 2013. (Photo: Paul Carlson)

I met Paul Carlson a couple of years ago when I spoke at a sportsman’s dinner at the church he serves as pastor, and boy, was he enthused about do-it-yourself elk hunting! I learned a lot from him, and discovered he was writing a book on the subject. I had the privilege of reading it before it was published, and late last year it hit the bookshelves.

Paul is a committed man. A faithful husband, a devoted father, a loving pastor, a loyal friend, a serious elk hunter and a lot more. He wrote the book on elk hunting because he wants to share what he knows about elk, and about life. Each year he takes a group into the Colorado Mountains for a wilderness experience, some lessons about life and an elk. Or two. But they come home with more. The men return home with lessons and experiences about perseverance, adversity, teamwork and relentless faith — stuff they can use in their everyday lives.

Paul Carlson with a group of elk hunters and a bull

Success will come a little easier if you have a team of hunting buddies with you. (Photo: Paul Carlson)

I’m not going to review his book here, but I’m presenting 10 of his 44 elk hunting tips found at the back of his book in hopes of two things: (1.) they’ll sharpen your elk hunting skills, and (2.) they’ll whet your appetite for more. If you want his life lessons, all the better. If you want to buy the book, well, that’s up to you. You’ll find more about it here:

Here are 10 of Carlson’s “44 Elk Hunting Tips” found in his book:

  1. An increase in bugling tempo means he has a cow in heat. Other bulls will come to see.
  2. Find a bedding area, get above it and call. Bedded elk spread out, but bulls are often not alone.
  3. Bulls often grunt without bugling and they’ll respond to a grunt or tree thrashing when they won’t respond to a bugle.
  4. A herd bull won’t go far from his cows for long, about 300 yards.
  5. If bulls move away, pursue them with a bugle. Increase the intensity as you get closer. Thrash brush & break branches; be aggressive.
  6. Find fresh rubs, set up and bugle.
  7. Don’t call from roads. You are only educating the elk to your presence.
  8. If he’s raking antlers, move in quickly or rake your own tree.
  9. Older bulls rut earlier (August to early September) and respond earlier to bugling. Bulls most likely to respond to cow calls in peak are satellites. Satellites are most aggressive in middle to late September, which is also the best success time at getting all ages to respond to bull & cow calls.
  10. If he circles downwind, you circle downwind fast. Spray elk urine on the cover all around you.

About Paul Carlson:

Author and elk hunter Paul CarlsonPaul Carlson has a passion for elk hunting and for the mountains elk live in, which fueled his success in harvesting bulls the do-it-yourself way. His unplanned 30-year journey consists of learning and passing on what he learned. His love for God and the fact that he’s a pastor in northeast Wisconsin turns his elk camps into spiritual retreats, and that’s what led him to write his book. Check out his website at GuideToBuglingBulls.com.

About Steve Sorensen:

hunter outdoor writer steve sorensenSteve Sorensen is the author of “Growing Up With Guns” and “The Everyday Hunter Handbook Series.” He writes an award-winning newspaper column called “The Everyday Hunter®” and edits content in the Havalon Post. He has published articles in top magazines across the USA, and won the 2015 “Pinnacle” Award for magazine writing. Invite Steve to speak at your next sportsman’s event, and follow him at www.EverydayHunter.com.


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Lucky 7 Lures for Summer Bass Fun

By Darl Black

The simple secrets of catching bass
in water 10 feet deep or less!

Fishing lures for summer bass

Seven lucky lures for summer largemouth and smallmouth bass. (Photo: Darl Black)

Summertime and bass fishing is easy — or so we like to imagine!

In part, it may seem that fishing is easy because once the spawn is over and water temps climb into the 70s, bass spread out to various cover and various depths. On any given day, you may find some bass shallow, some deep and some suspended in between.

Bass that are relatively shallow will always be easier to catch than bass which are holding tight to deep structure or suspended in the water column. So if you’re an angler who just wants to have fun, concentrate your efforts in water 10 feet or less.

A summer smallmouth bass

Summer smallmouth bass taken on prop bait. (Photo: Darl Black)

Shallow water is comprised of a cornucopia of different cover elements, including weeds, wood, rocky gravel bars, riprap and docks. So, I’ve carefully selected seven lucky lures for summer bass that will help you navigate the shallow water maze.

These baits aren’t lucky in any mystical sense, but they are:

1. Extremely effective. They work for all summer bass, both largemouth and smallmouth.

2. Almost foolproof. Presentation is straightforward — no complicated rod gyrations or difficult-to-master retrieves.

Anglers using lures for summertime bass fishing

Summertime and the bass fishing is easy! Especially if you are using the correct lure! (Photo: Darl Black)

All seven baits can be fished on spinning tackle by anglers who have not mastered the free-spool casting reel. In order to be successful with all seven, you should have a spinning outfit to match up properly with each lure. You’ll need at least two different ones: first, a medium power, moderately fast tip rod with two line spools — one spool of 10 pound test copolymer (monofilament) and one spool of 8-pound fluorocarbon. The second rod should be medium-heavy power fast tip and 15-pound braid. With that, you’re ready for my “lucky seven summer baits” for shallow water situations.

1. Topwater Prop Bait: Fishermen are enthralled when bass bust surface baits. But topwater baits such as dog-walking baits and chuggers require special rod manipulations to ensure the lure works properly. On the other hand, the prop (short for propeller) bait is simple to work, yet very effective for bass cruising the shallows or chasing baitfish schools near the surface in open water. With a prop bait you can employ a steady retrieve or a sweep-pause. My favorite is the Cordell Crazy Shad. It fishes well on spinning gear with 10-pound test copolymer line (monofilament). Do not use sinking fluorocarbon.

2. Frog: When faced with floating pad-style vegetation or matted surface weeds, call on a hollow belly frog! A slow steady retrieve glides the frog lure across the surface of the thick stuff, creating a slight disturbance ripple — a dinner bell for bass living below the mat. Several lure manufacturers offer frogs; most feature heavy duty hooks which require super-stiff casting tackle. However, Booyah offers the Pad Crasher Jr., which is the perfect size for spinning tackle. But even this junior frog should be fished on braided line on a medium-heavy power spinning rod.

A fishing lure on a lily pad

Hollow Body Frog on a pad. (Photo: Darl Black)

3. Square Bill Crankbait: A square-bill crankbait is a bit like a bulldozer — bumping, banging, grinding and weaving its way through shallow water areas where weed growth is minimal. Whether the predator believes this bait is a bluegill, shad or crayfish, it doesn’t matter. The square bill gets the job done by triggering strikes from active and inactive bass. For spinning gear, use one of the smaller model square bills on 10-pound test copolymer line.

Largemouth bass caught during summer

Largemouth taken on Square Bill Crankbait. (Photo: Darl Black)

4. Hinged Jig: Some anglers may wonder about this term. A “hinged jig” (or pivoting swing head) is a foot-shaped leadhead with an attached free-swinging worm hook. Since the hook is not molded into the head, the soft plastic bait on the worm hook has a wide range of motion. What a square bill crank does free-swimming in skinny water, dragging a hinged jig with soft plastic creature attached will do in slightly deeper water on gravel points and along hard bottom edges outside a deep weedline. Gene Larew’s Biffle Hardhead was the first successful hinged jig. While the Hardhead is great on casting tackle, the extra stout hook does not perform well with spinning tackle. For a hinged-jig with a lighter wire hook, check out the Bombshell “Jiggy” Hook. Use a medium-heavy spinning rod with braided line, add a soft plastic creature of your choice to the hook and then retrieve steadily while maintaining bottom contact.

5. Soft Jerkbait: This is one of the most versatile baits of all times. Nose-hook a soft jerkbait on a #2 drop-shot hook or rig it Tex-posed on a 3/0 wide gap worm hook. You won’t find a wrong way to fish one — dart it with erratic rod snaps followed by a pause, sashay it across the surface or drift it with only an occasional twitch. The Lunker City Slug Go was the original, but today every soft plastic manufacturer has one of these in its line. Works best with braided line on the medium-heavy spinning rod.

6. Wacky Stick Worm: Wacky rigging simply means positioning the hook (small wide gap worm hook, drop shot hook or specialty wacky hook) in the center of a four- or five-inch soft plastic worm so both ends wiggle enticingly as it falls through the water column. I prefer a four- or five-inch Yum Dinger stick worm. For summer fishing, a wacky worm is primarily a drop-bait for targets such as dock posts, boat mooring buoys, submerged stumps, deep edge of weedlines, bridge pillars, etc. Works great when bass are in neutral feeding mood. A small bit of weight (1/32 to 3/32) in the form of split shot, pegged worm sinker, insert weight or specialty jighead should be used to actuate the butterfly action of the bait — especially when fishing in water deeper than three or four feet. Fished best on medium power rod with fluorocarbon line. Simply cast, let drop and wait for a hit.

An angler bass fishing in summer

Summer bassin’ fun! (Photo: Darl Black)

7. Drop-Shot Rig: When bass have lockjaw, it’s time to turn to the drop-shot technique. More so than any other lure presentation, drop-shotting teases reluctant bass into striking by repeatedly dancing the bait in front of the fish. Tie a #2 drop shot hook to the line with a Palomar knot, leaving a 15- to 20-inch tag dangling below the knot. To the tag line, clip on a drop-shot 1/4-ounce weight for up to 10 feet of water. Next, nose-hook a four-inch drop-shot bait such as Jackall Cross-Tail Shad or Lunker City Ribster. Make a relatively short cast, let the sinker find bottom and take up slack line. Make sure the sinker continually makes bottom contact, slowly drag the rig along until the sinker encounters resistance from an object on the bottom. Stop the forward retrieve and start shaking the rod tip lightly. Next lower the rod tip slightly so the soft plastic bait drifts toward the bottom. Then shake the tip again as you take up slack and continue dragging until another bottom obstacle is encountered. Then repeat. It’s a slow, methodical process, but if bass are turned off, drop-shotting may be the best approach to draw a bite.

Go fish!


About Darl Black:

Outdoor writer Darl BlackDarl Black is a lifelong freshwater angler and veteran writer/photographer. Darl tackles a wide variety of fishing related stories for print publications and websites. Of all fishing, angling for smallmouth bass is his favorite pastime.  He may be reached for assignment at darlblack@windstream.net.


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7 Tips for Taking Summer Coyotes

By Steve Sorensen

Know when coyotes are vulnerable and
take out the competition for deer!

A dead summer coyote killed using turkeys decoys

Turkey decoys don’t only fool turkeys. Hungry coyotes are often fooled by them too. (Photo: Steve Sorensen)

I saw my first eastern coyote in Washington County, Maine back in 1982. I was deer hunting not far from the Canada border. Coyotes yipped and howled like party animals every night.

At home in Pennsylvania, that same month, a friend got a picture of one as he was photographing deer. That answered the question neighbors down along the paved road were asking, “What was all that noise on Deer Ridge every night?” More party animals.

Back then not much was known about eastern coyotes, even though they weren’t completely new. They had been in the East since the 1930s (see my article “Eastern Coyotes: Photographic Evidence of Their Origins”), but few of us had much exposure to them. Now we’re learning these party animals are deer predators.

Looking for coyote tracks on a tractor lane

Coyotes often take the path of least resistance, so check tractor lanes for tracks, especially after a rainfall. (Photo: Steve Sorensen)

How? When? Where?

Deer hunters are asking: where will we find coyotes? How do we eliminate them? But the big question is this: when are they most vulnerable?

To kill coyotes, it helps to know when they’re vulnerable. I told you about the racket coyotes made on Deer Ridge in the early 1980s. A year or two later in August, my Uncle Gary was hunting woodchucks in a large field in the area, saw some coyotes and even got some video footage. A couple of evenings later we headed back to that field hoping to knock off one or two.

We had just arrived and were standing in the middle of the field about 100 yards from one edge when Uncle Gary whispered, “A coyote, behind you at the edge of the woods.” Instead of turning around to look, I placed Gary’s homemade rifle rest in front of him. I stepped aside and he sat down to fire a shot through the critter’s pump station.

We figured it was over, and we sat behind a strip of grass the hay mower had missed. Soon I noticed a deer acting nervous at the far edge of the field and saw a coyote trotting toward it. I launched a bullet on a 160-yard jaunt at my first coyote.

Those were young coyotes, a female weighing 20 pounds and a male weighing 22. Another buddy took one a day or two later. We didn’t think it would be so easy, but we probably cut the litter in half. The lessons: when they’re young, they’re vulnerable, and it pays to know spring and summer coyote habits.

Spring: Spring turkey hunters sometimes call coyotes in. One grabbed my decoy — the mistake of a lifetime. You’ve probably seen YouTube videos of the same thing. Why does it seem to happen then? And why are these mostly adult coyotes?

By late spring and early summer, adult coyotes are transitioning their young to meat. That’s when prey populations are at their annual high, so adult coyotes leave the dens to go on killing sprees and bring meals back to their pups.

Summer: Coyote pups begin to explore the world for themselves in mid- to late-summer. They’re essentially teenagers, and don’t know much about danger yet. Like many teenagers they have some traits you can take advantage of. They’re risk-takers. They’re eating machines. They’ll often be together, or not far from each other, and they won’t be far from their dens. They’re on a fast learning curve, so use scent strategies.

Coyote droppings

Coyotes love to place droppings on rocks, stumps and other slightly elevated spots, making them easy for you to see. (Photo: Steve Sorensen)

If you want to prune the predator population, take advantage of these habits in seven ways:

  1. Talk to farmers. I’ve seen farmers watch coyotes from the seat of a tractor pulling a hay baler. Check your favorite farms every couple of weeks. Leave your phone number with the farmers. That should give you some likely hot spots.
  2. Talk to people. Stop at the local diners or other hangouts. Bring up the topic of coyotes. Ask neighbors if they’ve heard them yipping at night. People keep secrets about deer, but they’ll usually talk about coyotes.
  3. Watch harvested hayfields. These are like hunting preserves for young coyotes. They’ll hone their skills on grasshoppers and mice, which had plenty of cover in long grass a few days earlier. When young coyotes are hunting, they pay little attention to anything else.
  4. Use binoculars. When the grass grows back to four to eight inches, spend some evenings driving country roads. Stop to check fields with binoculars. Watch the behavior of deer. If they look nervous, keep watching.
  5. Look for sign. Check for tracks or droppings where tractor lanes enter fields. Look on trails that connect fields. Don’t overlook rocks, stumps and ant hills — for some reason coyotes love making deposits on elevated spots.
  6. Use trail cameras. Place them near fields where coyotes might pass by. If you have a particular field corner worth watching, aim a camera toward the field and another into the woods. Check them every few days. If you get a photo, hunt the area immediately.
  7. Try calling. Howl a little, yip a lot and squeal like a prey animal in case a coyote is in the vicinity. The young ones especially might come running.
Two mangy summer coyotes

This coyote double taken on a late July evening is not a pretty picture, mostly because both animals had mange. That’s one more reason to thin the population. (Photo: Steve Sorensen)

Here’s one more example of how summer strategies work. Several years ago a friend of mine had a horse get loose in late July. On the way home from fetching it he spotted several coyotes in a cut hayfield. That night he called me.

The next evening I was barely 100 yards from my truck when I saw coyotes pouncing up and down in the fresh-cut grass, brutalizing mice and grasshoppers. I slipped a diaphragm turkey call into my mouth and squealed like a wounded rabbit. I’ve never seen such cautionless coyotes. They came on a dead run. I shot two, and I would have shot more if I hadn’t been using a single shot rifle. It was that easy.

Summer coyotes are not wearing prime fur, but fur isn’t the only reason to go after them. Remember, every coyote you kill saves other animals. You’re not going to crash the population, but dead coyotes stop eating. It’s as simple as that.


About Steve Sorensen:

hunter outdoor writer steve sorensenSteve Sorensen is the author of “Growing Up With Guns” and “The Everyday Hunter Handbook Series.” He writes an award-winning newspaper column called “The Everyday Hunter®” and edits content in the Havalon Post. He has published articles in top magazines across the USA, and won the 2015 “Pinnacle” Award for magazine writing. Invite Steve to speak at your next sportsman’s event, and follow him at www.EverydayHunter.com.


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How to Gain Access to Hunt That Hot Property

By Nicole McClain

No place to hunt? Don’t panic — here are
3 easy (but not simple) ways to tip the odds
in your favor!

A gate leading to a prime hunting spot

Don’t open that gate — not until you’ve become acquainted with the landowner. And every gate you open, you close. Treat the land as if it’s your own. (Photo: Nicole McClain)

You’re in a panic. You don’t have a place to hunt, and you’ll do just about anything to get permission — beg, plead, offer money — just to hear a landowner say those 5 magical words, “Yes, you can hunt here.”

Maybe you recently lost permission to your current hunting grounds due to change of ownership. Maybe you’re trying to figure out how to approach your neighbor about hunting his property. Maybe you’re a new hunter who is doesn’t have a place to hunt.

Whatever the case, the end goal is to lock down a solid place to hunt. Here’s how you can score that deer-rich acreage down the road. It’s actually pretty simple, but it’s not necessarily easy. The key is this: don’t let it get to the panic point.

1. Be a true neighbor

This isn’t 1970 anymore. Back then hunters could knock on doors and gain permission not only to hunt deer but just about everything else. Permission meant you could play to your heart’s content. Things have changed, for lots of reasons. Land was cheap back then. So were property taxes. There weren’t many deer around, either.

Also, our society was different. Neighbors actually knew each other. They celebrated kids’ birthdays together, got together for summer picnics and saw each other at church every Sunday. Today we live in a society of isolationists. People keep to themselves, and some folks don’t even know their neighbors.

If you want to gain access to that prime land you have your eye on, you need to become a good neighbor. It’s not as easy as showing up with a case of beer or a spiral-cut ham two weeks before bow season. That approach is lame and contrived, and most landowners see through it.

An old barn on a hunting property

Farms that are no longer cultivated are prime spots for deer hunting. When you see old buildings and farm implements, they may be a tip-off to a hunting hot spot. (Photo: Nicole McClain)

Don’t approach landowners with a payoff in mind. Instead, make some goodwill gestures that show you’re part of the community. Maybe the end result will only be a new friend. Maybe you’ll eventually get to hunt his or her land. Maybe not. On the other hand, maybe you make one friend, which leads to making another friend, which leads to becoming a neighbor people trust.

To be a good neighbor you don’t have to suddenly adopt an outgoing personality. You can go about this a million ways. Offer a lending hand when there are chores to be done. Remember landowners with small, thoughtful gifts at holiday time. Show genuine interest in their lives, and in their kids’ lives. When you become that type of neighbor, you’re thinking long term, and opportunities will eventually come your way. If you’re looking for a shortcut, forget it. That’s not how life works.

2. Get creative

Many landowners won’t want to give you free reign to their property right away, especially if they intend to do some hunting themselves. That means you need to be a giver, not just a taker.

Be creative. Land is not cheap. Property taxes alone are a big financial burden to landowners. You might need to pay something to offset taxes in exchange for hunting privileges. Or, offer some physical labor in exchange for permission to hunt. Make sure the landowner has your phone number, and encourage him to call if he needs some help. You may need to spell out your goals — that you’d like to fill a couple of doe tags during the muzzleloader season, or hunt a certain number of weekends during the early archery season. No matter what, respect the land and report anything you see that he should know about.

Many landowners won’t accept payment because they know when money changes hands, the person paying will probably expect more in return than the landowner is willing to give up. Remember — even if you share his costs, the landowner is still being gracious. Accept whatever arrangement is offered.

Hunter walking through cornfield on private property

If you have permission to enter where crops have not yet been harvested, don’t walk through and knock them down. They are money to the landowner. (Photo: Nicole McClain)

3. Take nothing for granted

Some of the best advice I’ve ever gotten on hunting land access came from a dear friend who has seen his share of promising deals go sour over the years. “If you don’t own it, you will lose access at some point,” he once told me. True words.

I’ve seen numerous opportunities go away over the years, many of which were beyond my control. Land gets sold. A landowner’s kids or a relative takes a sudden new interest in the property. Someone else comes along and offers him more money. The scenarios are endless. I stay a step ahead of such possibilities by continually looking for new places to hunt. That being said, I never, ever look a gift horse in the mouth.

If a landowner grants me even just partial access, I work tirelessly to keep that relationship strong. It might be very limited — like hunting only a few weekends, or just two days during firearms season. Even if I have limited access, it’s a bird in the hand. I won’t let that opportunity slip away if I can help it. You never know when that marginal piece of property could turn around, or offer the only place to hunt when other situations fall through.


About Nicole McClain:

Nicole McClain outdoor hunting writerNicole McClain is involved with brands and foundations including GearForWarriors.com, Mathews, Deer & Deer Hunting Magazine, Havalon Knives, CAMX Crossbows, Nikon, Hawke Optics, Field Logic, 20th Century Fox, Fight Like a Girl!, Kellogg’s, Susan G. Komen and Pickle Press Comics. She says, “I’m a warrior, hunter, fighter and survivor regardless of what mud you sling my way. I’m good with mud.”


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