Pick the pinch point that forces a buck to make a bad choice. The best pinch point strategy for rut hunting is to hunt the downwind edge of a tight travel corridor that connects doe bedding to rut cruising cover,
Pick the Crossing Before You Pick the Stand You predict where a buck will cross a creek by finding the “easy spot” he can hit without losing cover, without climbing a steep bank, and without stepping into open daylight for
Late Season When Food Is Scarce: What Actually Works The best late season deer hunting tactic when food is scarce is to hunt the last remaining high-calorie groceries close to the best bedding, and only on the sits your access
Pick the Drill That Matches Your Ground, Not Your Ego. The best no till food plot drill for most deer hunters is a used Great Plains 706NT or 3P606NT if you can pull it, and a Land Pride 3P1006NT if
Plant Clover Without a Tractor: Yes, You Can Pull It Off. You can plant clover for deer without a tractor by picking a spot that already has decent dirt, killing the competing weeds, scratching the ground with hand tools, broadcasting
Pick One Goal or You Will Waste a Whole Winter. If you want better deer hunting in timber, you need to cut trees on purpose. I want sunlight on the ground, thick cover at deer height, and easy travel routes
Pick Native Grass For Bedding Based On Pressure, Not Pretty Photos. The best native grass for deer bedding on most whitetail ground is a mix built around switchgrass, big bluestem, and Indiangrass. If I can only plant one species because
Pick One Goal First, Or You Will Make A Mess To create bedding cover for deer on a small property, I focus on three things. I block sight, I block wind, and I give deer a safe way to enter
What You Should Budget For Right Now The average deer lease price per acre by state usually falls between $5 and $35 per acre per year, but the states that grow big antlers and have row crop edges can hit
Start With This Truth So You Do Not Waste a Season The fastest way to get permission to hunt private land is to ask in person, offer real help, and be okay with 20 “no” answers before you hear one
Updated on September 7, 2026. This is a Conservation Area and wilderness trip, not a statewide regs dump. Confirm seasons, county antlerless caps, and CWD sampling on the Missouri Department of Conservation deer page before you buy a permit. This
Updated on September 7, 2026. Statewide dates, zone bags, and CWD sampling sit on the Kentucky deer hunting page. This page is what is different on the Forest: checkerboard ownership, Pioneer Weapons, wilderness, cliffs, and the pull-offs that fill on
Updated on September 7, 2026. Confirm seasons, county antlerless caps, and CWD sampling on the Missouri Department of Conservation deer page before you buy a permit. This box is not the Wildlife Code. State Missouri — parent: Missouri deer hunting
What You Need to Decide Before You Ever Park the Truck If you treat Plum Creek timber like a big open woods stroll, you are going to get busted and go home mad. I hunt it like a bedding-and-travel puzzle,
Start With This Answer, Or You Will Waste Your Weekend You find unpressured deer on public land by going where hunters will not go, or cannot go, without paying a price. That price is usually sweat, a wet butt, a
Updated on September 7, 2026. Tags, baiting, antlerless DMUs, and carcass rules move. Confirm them on the Michigan DNR deer regulations page before you buy a license or hang a stand. This page is the Upper Peninsula forest choice —
Decide If Timber Company Land Is Worth Your Time Yes, deer hunting timber company land in the South can be flat-out worth it, because the deer use fresh cuts, edges, and creek bottoms like highways. The catch is you have
What You Are Really Paying in Pike County Pike County, Illinois lease prices are high, and the good ones get taken fast. Right now, if you want a legit whitetail lease there, expect $25 to $40 per acre for rough
Pick This Recipe If You Want Tender Deer Roast Without Babying It. The best crockpot recipe for deer roast is a simple low-and-slow Mississippi-style venison roast with butter, pepperoncini, and a ranch packet, but I cut the salt and add
Buy a basic set, not a “pro” set. The best deer processing knife set for beginners is a small, simple kit with one stiff boning knife, one flexible boning knife, a gut hook or short skinning knife, and a sharpener
Make This Call Fast: Back Out Or Go In. If a deer runs into thick cover, I almost always back out, mark last blood, and give it time. The only times I push right now are spine shots, loud shoulder
Does a UV Blood Tracking Light Work or Not? Yes, a UV blood tracking light can work, but it is not magic, and it is not my first choice. I use UV as a “check tool” on hard-to-see drops, not
What Dark Blood Usually Means on a Blood Trail, and What I Do Next. Dark blood on a blood trail usually means a liver hit or a muscle hit, and both can kill a deer if you do not rush
What I Actually Do to Mark a Blood Trail at Night I mark a blood trail at night by dropping a bright marker at every confirmed blood hit, then I “connect the dots” back to the last marker instead of