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Whitetail Realm
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Whitetail Realm
Final Month Prep
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The boys talk about their final push of prep before the season!
Welcome back everybody. It's the Whitale Realm. I'm Mason. And I'm Lane. We're uh a little busy, so we're doing uh a voice call or whatever the hell these things are called, but we're we are uh we're back and doing another episode today. We're first week of September here.
SPEAKER_01Yes, yes it is, and I want to apologize if you can hear the the people passing by in their vehicles. Someone's sitting on the front porch enjoying this nice weather right now, so yeah.
SPEAKER_00I was out uh yesterday doing a bunch of things at the farm and it's exciting time of the year.
SPEAKER_01Oh yeah. Well the we finally got some cool weather after that big heat last week, and it feels like it's uh winter time out compared to what it was like.
SPEAKER_00Exactly. Exactly. But you've got a lot of work done here in the last two weeks still.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah, we got uh I got food plots put in, um cameras are out. So I shout out the guy, he came down here and done my food plots, and it was still a little probably too wet, but uh honestly the uh ground with that Harley rake, it everything the way it it didn't it pretty much took that you know top grass and soil right off, and it being moisture that seed like took off really good, even having some moisture in. So I'm pretty impressed. So yeah, I uh used domain and that bottom I put some turnips and brassica mix and up top I done a clover chicory mix and uh I went some of it was a little spotty last week up on the top plot, so I uh took uh some radishes and stuff up there and spread them, and then uh heck them things it rained right after I done it, so I couldn't have timed it out any better.
SPEAKER_00Good. And uh you've had those what two weeks now in?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah, about two weeks. So everything's looking good. So deer's been already got some pictures of deer in them.
SPEAKER_00Try to keep them out of them before it's I know that's what I'm already worried.
SPEAKER_01I'm worried about, but they haven't been in it too much, but I'm I know them does, they'll find it quick.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, exactly. And uh well good. And these you've never had plots in these two spots before, right?
SPEAKER_01I actually I have. It's been about four years ago. Yeah. Before we got hit by EHD real bad, um, I I put plots in these spots and it changed the farm, and then EHD hit, and I kind of uh got lazy with it just because there wasn't that many deer down here, and now uh everything's recovered. It's time to time to get back after it with them. There's a lot of things I'd like to do. Just we just done a couple quick about quarter acre or about all half quarter acre plots, you know, just something to get their attention. Yeah, nothing giant, but definitely big enough to get their attention.
SPEAKER_00Oh, and definitely as the farm, especially with there's no ag directly on that farm, that definitely helps a bunch.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. Food on this farm makes a dramatic difference. Um just because there's none close. So yeah. And in the locations um that you know where the food's at, you know, don't get me wrong, there's a bunch of acorns and stuff, but you know, for them to go get a little buy something different and go back to bed, it makes a big, big difference.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, definitely. I've been uh here on Labor Day weekend went and did a bunch of shooting lane trimming on the tree stands, got uh the Milwaukee pulse all out and just tore up things this week and trying to make it easier getting around things, cleaning trails up, all that good stuff, and uh went through a lot of chains and doled a lot of chains, but we're we we got a lot of work done this weekend.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I saw this afternoon I'm going to uh a guy that lets me hunt and he has a tree that fell down, so I'm gonna go try to cut that up and clean it up for him. That way I can stay in good standings there.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Yeah. Do you have just cameras out on the main farm now or do you have out on the just the main farm?
SPEAKER_01I had cameras out for about two weeks, about fifth day having cameras out. The uh the big deer showed back up um from last year. And I can't I can't really tell on, you know, the pictures weren't great. You could tell it was him. But um, you know, I don't know if he just made a dramatic blow, but he's still big.
SPEAKER_00So he could have stayed the same size and still been a shooter.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. So we we will see. Um I uh I'm not gonna be too aggressive with him. Um I know when he was here last year, and that's when I'm gonna hunt him.
SPEAKER_00The days he was here last year. And really last year, you didn't know he was there when he was there, right? When you first found him.
SPEAKER_01No, um I did not. I did not at first. I didn't know he was here for a while.
SPEAKER_00Not until after you shot your deer, right?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it was about two weeks after I shot my deer when I uh saw that he was here.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, he was uh and I'll be honest with you, I probably would have hunted him last year just off size wise, um if I would have known he was alive. And then I had, you know, the some cousins hunt him and stuff, and uh and nobody saw him. And then I went to check cameras in December.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01And um I didn't realize Bo had pulled my SD cards, my brother, and so I didn't have any um SD cards in my camera. And then I realized that uh that day I jumped him up. Yeah, and I didn't realize how big he was till I jumped him up.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. He's a stud.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah, I'd say um just based off you know last year's pictures and this year's, he's he's probably on that 180 range. I mean, he's got you know eight scorable on one side, so last year he had sixteen scorable points, so he's a stun. Yeah, we'll we'll see. I don't know. We'll uh it'd be cool to catch up with him, but you know, well here's uh a lot can happen between now and October, so what do you have your uh cameras over right now?
SPEAKER_00Just uh the food plots or what? Yeah, right.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, right now over um just the food plots, and then I'm going to uh transition everything over into scrapes in the next probably week and a half, two weeks.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, that's tonight's project for me. I uh got my day walk uh since in this week, and we're gonna go out and make some mock scrapes and fresh it up. But there's usually two or three every year that are giant scrapes that are there year to year. Go fresh it up with that and put the cameras over them, but excited. This is the time of the year we start finding them.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Well, yeah, and I mean, like I'll I'm getting more hardhorn deer on camera, and so I don't know. I need to go back to my farms that you know I always have um good luck at and just throw cameras out there and not I mean I'm I really want to focus on this deer, but at the same time I want to have options, so yeah. If uh he wa he spent a lot of um late October on my farm last year. Yeah, then he was there a little bit that first week in November. Um so which I think he lives close, especially having him on you know camera already. I know he ain't too far. Um but he didn't like the camera either. So I haven't had him back on that camera, but I know he's there, so I'm not gonna just go jump and put a bunch of cameras out. I know I know he's here, I know he's alive, so I think that's the biggest thing is just knowing he's still there.
SPEAKER_00You and I have talked about it before, like that um the real stout deer I've had for three years. I get them every year one time on a cell camera, and then I'll never have them on a cell camera again. But then I'll have them all year on ST card cameras just throughout the farm. Like they everyone they always talk about they can there's something frequency-wise, or they get with those, and definitely I I believe that.
SPEAKER_01Yes, me too. I'm I feel like something definitely triggers them. I they then big deer or or some deer don't care, but some deer do care.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I'm not smart enough to figure out what it is. I just know there's something that uh correlates.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, definitely. Definitely is. Um and that I mean that deer uh that I killed last year, even I think I had him on a cell camera twice, and then the actually the morning I um killed him, he dodged my cameras. I mean, he went right behind him. He didn't want anything to do with them. So I think there's something to it.
SPEAKER_00For sure. We are um, yeah, like I said, uh tonight I'm putting out a lot more cameras, and I do I know Lane and I do a lot of different things, and uh one thing I I try all different kinds of scrapes. I'll do rope scrapes, the vine scrapes, like that kale grinder, and uh just branches, you know, just normal. I I try all different kinds of things every year, just you know, experiment and try and see what sticks. I know this year I'm gonna try to do um some rub and post like the raised hunting guys do. Oh yeah. I don't know. I've never done one before, but uh been less to up on their podcast and watching their videos and just something cool to do and try out.
SPEAKER_01There's an older gentleman I watched on uh YouTube a couple of times. I forget his name, but he uh he's a big fan of them rub and post, and he's a lot of big gear off them.
SPEAKER_00It's the guy that's on the hunting public, he does those uh horizontal ones. Is that the one you think there's yeah, I believe. Yep. Yeah, I can't think of his name either. But yeah, yeah, he's gonna do it. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and I I said last I heard. I said I guess I should share also that I bought a latitude saddle.
SPEAKER_00Oh yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01You're getting fancy. I know.
SPEAKER_00Uh and I bought I bought a latitude uh kind of gear hanger tree stand strap last night at Shields.
SPEAKER_01Oh yes, yeah, I've seen that. It looks slick.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it's pretty nice. I got their bow hanger and I love it. And uh then I got the whole strap set up yesterday.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I uh I sat in their saddle last year, and um, you know, nothing against my XOP, but I went the cheaper route there last year, and then uh after sitting in a latitude, I'm like, whoa, this is a different ball game on just comfortability being a especially being a little bigger guy, and so I broke down and bought one this week.
SPEAKER_00There you go. Hopefully Avery doesn't listen to this.
SPEAKER_01No, I got I just had to shut the door that way she didn't hear me. Okay, yeah, so we'll see. We'll see.
SPEAKER_00You've been out shooting your bell a bunch.
SPEAKER_01Yes, I have been. I've been uh been tacking them in, and I uh so far so good, and everything's still on. Feel comfortable with it, so I uh I'm way behind of what I normally am.
SPEAKER_00Usually I'm pretty religious shooting my bow every night throughout the summer, but uh I got it tuned last week and took it over to King's Archery and King's Strings here in West Lebanon. They looked it over for me. It was gonna get a new set of strings, but they told me I could make it through the season with the one I had, so we stuck it out, but we got it all tuned up and it's shooting well. I just need to get more reps in and finally nice enough weather we could be shooting all.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Well, it was miserable last um them days last week. I had to wait till about it was dark to fling a couple arrows, and yeah, you know, I don't I don't go out and fling a hundred, I fling thirty or forty and I'm done.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Luckily, I think I've talked about it on here. I got it set up so I can shoot at night too. So, you know, after work and after I get chores done at the farm, I can still I got plenty of chances to shoot, so yeah.
SPEAKER_01Well you have lights and everything set up.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, yeah, it's pretty it's pretty slick. I gotta just like tonight after we get cameras hung, definitely get out there and get everything dialed in. But it's it's shooting straight, but you know, all about repetition.
SPEAKER_01Oh yeah, yeah, repetition and just getting comfortable. And that's gonna I mean my uh probably my goal, you know, beginning of season, like what I've talked and done last year, I just want to get a a doe kilt and kind of get, you know, things back in rhythm.
SPEAKER_00Just yeah.
SPEAKER_01That's uh that helped me a lot last year, I felt like, was just getting I shot that doe and it it just put everything back in clockwork.
SPEAKER_00It's like I always compare it to when they talk these football coaches talk about uh like they're talking about a rookie quarterback and how he needed three more preseason games, you know. Practice is part of it, but doing the real thing is definitely helps out a bunch.
SPEAKER_01Yes, yeah. Yeah, speaking of uh college football, I saw IU won. I don't think there's a whole lot of IU fans that listen to this, so I know, I know you which you're a big Texas guy, if I remember right.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, they they they kicked the shit out of Texas State, so they got Ohio State this week. Big week.
SPEAKER_01Oh that would be a big week. Yeah, if you do watch college football, we we like our college football.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, degenerate gambler on college football. Don't be like me. Even I was at a wedding on Saturday and still was gambling. Didn't watch a single game and still gambled. Gambled on them on about 15 different games going on this Saturday. That's funny. Had a good week. We made our money back.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Yeah, there's uh um I uh yesterday I got to looking and I was trying to talk myself into going back to Ohio and doing some door knocking. I uh I actually made some texts to some kids I know in the livestock world, and their uncle owns a farm over there in Ohio, so I might go over there and uh and ask.
SPEAKER_00We definitely we've been saying that the last couple years we need a spot in Ohio. I I don't have the farm in Illinois this year, soul focuses on Indiana, but you definitely need to step up and get us something in Ohio.
SPEAKER_01Well, it's just yeah, and I mean it's so close.
SPEAKER_00I mean, I can be in Ohio in 30 minutes and yeah, it's uh you know, last year tagging out in October, I would have had another, you know, m month and oh well season there goes till February, so I don't I don't know last year if you would have been doing much hunting after that.
SPEAKER_01No, I wouldn't have, but uh in future cases if I do tag out early, you know. Usually I don't tag out that early.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01I'm a November guy.
SPEAKER_00We switched roles last year.
SPEAKER_01Yes.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Well, the way uh you know, if I do focus on this big deer, I'm I gotta kill him that last week of October, or I'm it's gonna be hard.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01I don't he did not stay very long here in November. I mean he he was definitely here back late, but um the he once November came, he was out.
SPEAKER_00So do uh you saved up plenty of vacation days, didn't you?
SPEAKER_01Oh yeah, I got uh well, I got about a week saved, so hopefully I'll have about a seven day stretch to try to try to get on one.
SPEAKER_00I still almost have two weeks saved up, so we're gonna be just fine for deer season. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that's what I like having about a seven day stretch there to try to get in the way, you know, the way my schedule works, I never work more than three days in a row anyway. So I still got the days I work, you know, I'm there all day long, but you know the days I have off, I'm off all day.
SPEAKER_00So yeah, I always say I wouldn't want your job, but uh your schedule would be awesome. You get you know, every you you can hunt four days a week most most weeks.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah, it's very uh convenient on the you know hunting side of things. Yeah, most definitely.
SPEAKER_00Well, uh anything else you you can think of that's happened since the last time we did one of these?
SPEAKER_01No, no, I think uh just besides the plots and shooting my bow and getting the big gear on camera, it's kind of just a waiting on October type of thing.
SPEAKER_00Yep, definitely. I know Thursday I'm recording one with Trey Naylor here, and um, I know next or this weekend. I'm doing one with Kane Gillette when we're up in Minnesota, so we got a lot more podcasts coming down the line for you guys, and we appreciate you guys listening and always checking in. Be sure to follow us on Instagram. I know uh fall late on TikTok. I saw you. Did you make your TikTok debut this week?
SPEAKER_01Oh my gosh. I was sitting at um work yesterday, and uh I told one of the guys, I'm gonna try to make a TikTok.
SPEAKER_00I don't think you're supposed to be doing that at work.
SPEAKER_01Oh, it was break hour. It was break hour. So I uh it was like, you know what, I'm gonna try it. And uh I heck they made fun of me, and I think I got more views than my friends making fun of me more than anything.
SPEAKER_00They'll have to make a Whitale Realm TikTok now.
SPEAKER_01Oh, we'll we'll have to get on that.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. So follow us, follow us on everything, and we appreciate everyone listening. And uh it's we're what three weeks away, Link. Is that right?
SPEAKER_01Today's the 29th, and it's well no, it's uh it's not the 29th.
SPEAKER_00Oh sorry, today's today's the ninth.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, the ninth. So yeah, it's close.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and that's awesome. I I know I've seen some Tennessee deer already down, and uh the season's opening up. I haven't seen any elk yet.
SPEAKER_01I have not either. I have not either. I have not. I'm sure I I don't know. I I forget when Nate and then went on their elk hunt last year, but I know it's about that time.
SPEAKER_00I know the second I'm pretty sure the second week of September is like the go time, but I thought some opened up late August, first week of September, maybe I'm wrong.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I know it's it's here though. I know I do know that.
SPEAKER_00It is I did see it was it dove open this weekend or yep, yep.
SPEAKER_01I know um some guys have been dove hunting, and a couple old boys I work with, they're big in a squirrel hunting. They've been squirrel hunting, so oh yeah, August 15th.
SPEAKER_00You know, I might take I might carry a 22 with me tonight when I go put cambrich in school.
SPEAKER_01You see a couple squackers on the ground.
SPEAKER_00Save me some sheds.
SPEAKER_01Yes.
SPEAKER_00We got a we got a pile of squirrels. I I know everyone says that, but mean you come to my place and it's you can live an out sitting in the trees down in an hour.
SPEAKER_01Heck, I'm sitting looking at three of them in my yard right now.
SPEAKER_00That's crazy.
SPEAKER_01But no, it is it is that time. Crops are turning, and that's another thing is these beer kind of gonna be changing places just yeah, just because of the way the crop the beans turn so quick where I'm at.
SPEAKER_00Are any crops out by you? Yep.
SPEAKER_01So not any out, no, no, just um they'll they'll be running beans soon.
SPEAKER_00There's I don't want to say a bunch, but there's quite a few guys going around here. So, like we said, a lot of things definitely changing in the next week or two here.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. Next week or two, then we'll be uh we'll be rolling right into deer season.
SPEAKER_00So good deal. Well, we appreciate everybody turning uh tuning in. Sorry. Second one year is still fumbling overwards. Uh tuning in and we are excited to get rolling here. And like we said, got a couple more coming down the podcast line of uh guests, so uh be on the lookout for them. But everybody uh appreciate you listening and see you next time. See you next time. Thank you.