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Muzzleloader Miracle
By Mimi Miracle
During the spring of 2013, I fell in love with my very first bow purchase, a Mathews Passion. I spent the rest of that spring, summer and fall practicing with it. Because I’d been out of town, I had to miss the first few days of the season, but when I got home my first priority was to get in the stand. I put in hours and hours, and then more ... READ MORE
From Sinkhole to Cloud Nine
By Mat Ritchison
On a cold and frosty Sunday morning, Nov. 3, 2013, I decided to hunt one of my favorite stands about 40 yards from the edge of a half-picked, Indiana cornfield. I was aloft 20 minutes before dawn.
Shortly after daybreak, I decided to start things off with an aggressive rattling sequence – to paint the deer a picture. I grunted three times, p... READ MORE
First of Many
By Lyndsey Wesner
I’ve had a lot of firsts in the past eight months, so after I caught my first 20-pound king salmon, shot my first 8-point buck with a bow, took my first doe with a bow, and my first doe with a muzzleloader, naturally I expressed desire to shoot my first turkey.
My husband Rick said, “It's not easy. They have keen eyesight, and the slig... READ MORE
The Bow Stalk
By Taylor Maas
Never-quit attitude helps Iowa bowhunter recover his biggest-ever buck. October 11, 2017 started similar to most other fall workdays. After getting to the office that morning, I checked the weather throughout the day, trying to decide if and where I should hunt that evening. The wind that evening allowed me to hunt from a stand I had never tried be... READ MORE
All in the Family
By Jessica Jenderny
I’ve been hunting with my dad, Eric Jenderny, since I was old enough to walk.
He taught me what his dad taught him about hunting. His best friend Bruce Rogers also taught me a lot about hunting, so what I’ve learned about deer and hunting, I owe to them.
Now that I’m 16, I’ve become a mighty hunter like my mentors.
The we... READ MORE
Thanksgiving Surprise
By Sawyer Johnson
Some of the best hunts don’t end with a filled tag. One of the greatest things about hunting is going out and not knowing what you’ll see or experience. This sense of wonderment is what keeps me out in the mountains, because I might experience something incredible at any moment. On Thanksgiving morning in western Montana, having already... READ MORE
Stress Test
By Richard C. West
It’s great to finally see the buck of your dreams, but don’t get too excited. On the Saturday before Thanksgiving in 2015, an Illinois buck tested my heart. It was the second day of the firearms season, and I’d spent my first day – all 12 hours – on the stand with nothing to show for it but a couple of song birds, a re... READ MORE
Veteran’s Day Dream!
By Donna Shaver
I was hunting in North Carolina on a very cold Veteran’s Day morning in 2013 with my 73-year-old, handicapped father when the flash of antlers caught our attention. Quickly, as the buck moved through the pines, I lifted my Savage muzzleloader into position and peered through my binoculars as the rack headed toward an opening. “Wow, he h... READ MORE
The Brow Tine Buck of 2018
By Michael R. Bath
What’s a broken leg to a man on a buck mission? I first saw this 10-point brute on my trail camera, but it was always in the middle of the night. After seeing the brow tines, which turned out to be 8 and 7 inches, I knew this was my target deer, no matter what. After figuring out where he was living during the daytime, nine hunts later I star... READ MORE
One for the Kids
By Dusty Sprague
Illinois outfitter gives up time and profit to host youth hunters. Ted Sprague, owner of Eagle Lakes Outfitters, has always felt strongly about promoting youth hunting. His father and mother both took him hunting when he was a little guy, and now with two children of his own, he does his best to keep them involved in the outdoors and help teach oth... READ MORE