With sunlight fading on the last evening sit of my Oklahoma hunt at Chain Ranch, I still held hope for a buck to come into the massive wheat field. Buck sightings had been few and far between all week for our crew as we were giving the new Thompson-Center Arms Strike muzzleloader a tryout for deer and hogs.

This was Thompson-Center’s debut of the new muzzleloader, which has some pretty cool engineering designs. The breech plug is protected by a cap that screws to the outside of the barrel, which ensures a stronger connection. The breech plug comes in two styles; one has a concave face for loose powder and the other has a flat face for pellet powder. The designs help create better igntion from the 209 primer.

The Strike comes in a gorgeous walnut model, which I was using, as well as black or camo synthetic models. It’s well designed and has a great feel on the shoulder. Look for more details soon about the Strike.

I’d been in the stand about 90 minutes Thursday evening. The wind finally had died down and the sun was sinking. Several does and fawns were in the field when a buck sprinted into view toward them and stopped. “Nice buck,” I thought, and then it turned its head. Antlers outside the ears, a buck the Chain Ranch guides said was what we were looking for this week.

From my blind about 130 yards away, I quickly shouldered the Strike, put the crosshairs of the Vortex scope on the front shoulder and squeezed the trigger. With a 3.5-pound pull, which feels like much less in all honesty, the trigger broke and smoke from the Blackhorn 209 powder momentarily clouded my view. I could see the buck kick and start hauling butt toward the nearest woods, tail down. It leaped a fence and disappeared.

Was it a good hit? A miss? As DDH Editor-in-Chief Dan Schmidt said on an episode of DDH TV, it happens just that fast sometimes. Empty field. Wham! There’s a deer! Bang! Smoke! Then, optimism mixed with doubt.

Chain Ranch guide and Oklahoma native Shawn Schweigert arrived shortly and we began tracking. “Blood here,” he said, pointing to bright red blotches on the green wheat with his flashlight. “Here,” he said, a few steps away. We leapfrogged from blood spot to spot before the lights shined on the buck’s white belly. He’d run less than 100 yards.

This was the second buck taken with the Strike. Outdoor Life assistant editor Natalie Krebs scored Monday evening with a monster 168 (gross, green) buck that just wowed everyone. That was the first one killed with the Strike. A couple of does and hogs also died this week before I put down my 8-point, heavy-bodied buck.

“I hunted many, many years here in Oklahoma before getting a buck like that,” he said. “That a good one. Congrats. Feels pretty good to tag out, doesn’t it?”

Yep, it does. Most definitely.

The post Last Evening Magic With Oklahoma Buck, New Muzzleloader appeared first on Deer & Deer Hunting | Whitetail Deer Hunting Tips.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/DeerDeerHunting/~3/MxP6oRY_cug/last-evening-magic-with-oklahoma-buck-new-muzzleloader

The Up ROAR truly is a “Triple Threat”. It combines 3 of the most effective calls to bring deer in close. It has 2 chambers, an Aggressive Grunt and an Estrus Bleat, topped off with a Wheeze tube to challenge bucks to a fight. The Grunt chamber reproduces a deep, resonating aggressive grunt that is made by bucks during the rut. The Bleat chamber reproduces a loud Estrus Bleat made by receptive does. When using these calls in combination you can sound like a buck chasing a hot doe. This will make other bucks jealous and come running to see what’s causing the Up ROAR.

List price: $24.95

Primos has been trusted by individuals for decades. Products that are made of quality material and designed to withstand the toughest environments. Trust the Brand that others in the field use and don’t settle for less.

List price: $21.95

Mmmm, can you think of many things to eat during hunting season that are better than a steamin’ hot bowl of deer chili?

It’s tough to do, I know. As much as we love burgers, roasts, slow-cooked anything and smoked sausages, the greatness of deer chili is hard to argue against. There are so many ways to make and enjoy it. Even the add-ons are worth a debate, aren’t they?

Cornbread or buttery garlic toast?

Sliced onions? Jalapenos or hotter peppers? Cilantro? Cheddar cheese or another kind? How about beans or no beans? Whew! That’s a huge debate all by itself.

However you prepare your venison chili, the good thing is we can all enjoy the success in the field and time spent with family and friends. Good luck this season and enjoy these great deer chili recipes!

Venison Chili
1 pound dry kidney beans
1 pound ground venison
1 pound venison stew meat, in 1/2-inch chunks
2 Tbsp. oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 teaspoons chili powder
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
28-ounce can tomatoes, diced
1 large onion,diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 large green chili pepper, diced
¼ tsp. cumin
2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
¼ cup masa flour or all purpose flour

Rinse beans and place in a large soup kettle. Add 2 quarts water and 2 teaspoons salt; cover the pot and bring to a boil. Boil gently for about 2 hours, until beans are tender. Brown meat in a large skillet containing oil and garlic. Add chili powder, salt and pepper. Cover and saute for an hour. Drain the beans and add 1½ quarts water, tomatoes, onion, peppers, cumin and parsley. Simmer for an hour, then add meat mixture. Stir masa flour into ½ cup water to form a paste and blend into chili to thicken. Simmer for about half an hour, adjust the seasonings and serve.

Sounds great! Add some buttered garlic bread, cheese toast or some great homemade cornbread, and you’re set for a super meal!

Get More Great Recipes For Your Venison!
If you’re looking for more great venison recipes, be sure to check out Wild Game: Food for Your Family by Stacy Harris. She’s compiled some super tips, insights and recipes in this great cookbook that you’ll greatly enjoy. Harris has a large family and they’re reliant on wild game, fish and fresh vegetables and fruit they grow at their home. You can’t miss with these mouth-watering recipes. 

Get your copy today and order some for Christmas gifts, too!

——————————

Brad Fresch’s Venison Chili
2 lb Venison breakfast sausage (pork added, along with spices to make the sausage; I add a little extra sage)
3 lb ground venison (or small cubes if you’d prefer).  (FYI only, I have 10% beef fat added to my ground venison)
4 tbsp. olive oil
1 large white onion, diced  (or more if you like onion)
3 heads of garlic, coarsely minced (I adjust up from there, and even add some roasted garlic depending on my mood)
1 large can diced green chiles
6 – 8 tbsp. home made chili powder (I make my own using a combination of dried peppers such as Ancho, Cascabel and arbols)
8 – 10 Jalapeno peppers with the seeds and white ribs removed, diced
3 cans diced tomatoes
2 cans black beans, drained
1 large can sweet corn (or more if you’d like), drained
2 bottles beer (I use Negra Modelo, but it’s your choice)
5 Bay leaves
Several dashes of Frank’s Red Hot sauce, to taste
Salt and Pepper to taste
handful of corn tortilla chips (minimum, more depending on desired thickness); crushed

Heat a large, porcelain-coated cast-iron Dutch oven over medium high heat.  Add oil.  Add the venison breakfast sausage to brown and release fat; break into small chunks.  Add the remaining ground venison and the chili powder; cooking the chili powder releases the essential oils.  You can add a quarter cup of water to the meat; it helps to break down the meat into smaller chunks and is evaporated during the cooking process.

Once the meat is all browned, add the onions and jalapenos.  Cook until the onions are translucent, add garlic and stir into mixture.  Add the beer; use a wooden spoon to scrape up the bits off the bottom of the pan.  Add tomatoes, green chiles, black beans, corn, and bay leaves to the mixture.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer.  I try to let the mixture simmer for at least 1 hour before I taste it.  At this point you can add additional seasonings if desired.  I’ll occasionally add a bit of sugar or honey if the tomatoes are to acidy; it depends on your taste and what you like.  Don’t add too much salt; the tortilla chips have salt also.

Once you have the basic taste the way you want it, add the crushed tortilla chips.  Masa was used to thicken the chili in the Southwest many years ago; I use tortilla chips since they’ve been roasted and add a nice flavor, as well as thicken the chili.  You can add or subtract the amount of chips based on the thickness and texture you like.  Cook for at least 1 additional hour.  I personally like to transfer the mixture to a large crock pot, and refrigerate the chili overnight.  I’ll then set up the crock pot to cook on low heat the next day.

My family likes to serve the chili over spaghetti (my wife was born in the Cincinnati area where this is common).  We’ll add grated cheddar cheese, some additional hot sauce if desired, diced onion and sour cream.

How about that? Sounds pretty good!

Do You Love Slow-Cooked Venison? If so, you don’t want to miss out on fantastic meals by using all of your deer meat. Don’t toss the shoulders and necks! Check out how you can convert those into super meals your family will love with Scott Leysath’s Better Venison Cookbook. Click for more information.

——————————

Stephen Burchett’s World’s Absolute Best Venison Chili
2-4 lbs ground venison
2-4 tablespoons olive oil
2 bunches green onions diced
1 Teaspoon of each: Crushed red pepper, black pepper, ancho pepper, chipolte pepper and cayenne pepper
1-2 tablespoons cumin
4 Cans diced tomatoes
2 Cans chicken broth
1 tablespoon of each: Cocoa, Cinnamon
1 can chopped green chiles
¼ Cup of each: vinegar, brown sugar
2 Cans of Great Northern Beans or Black-Eyed Peas
Juice two limes
One bunch fresh cilantro chopped
White rice
Condiments: Sour cream, grated cheese, hot sauce.

Heat oil in very large pot at medium-low.  Saute onion 10 minutes. Add venison, increase heat and cook through.  (It helps to cover pot to cook venison). Add peppers, cumin, chocolate, cinnamon, tomatoes and chicken broth. Simmer on low 60-90 minutes. Add beans, lime juice, chopped green chilies, cilantro, vinegar and brown sugar and heat through. Serve over white rice with choice of toppings. Keeps very well in refrigerator.  Neighbors will ask all week if we are serving venison chili for Sunday football games.

——————————

SEE ALSO: Super Videos, Recipes and Tips from Stacy Harris!

Stacy Harris’ Venison Chili
1 16-ounce can of tomatoes, diced
1 tablespoon minced canned chipotle chili in adobe sauce
5 slices bacon, finely chopped
4 pounds venison stew meat, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
Pepper and Kosher salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 jalapeno chili, seeded and chopped
1 can kidney beans
3 tablespoons chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoon oregano
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 cups beef broth
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons yellow corn muffin mix

Harris’ chili is a family favorite. To see how to make it visit gameandgarden.com

SEE ALSO: To Make Great Venison Meals, You Need to Know These Big Buck Secrets!

——————————

Chuck Wagon Chili
A staple in the diets of early cowboys and pioneers, chili played a considerable role in the founding of our great American West. It’s hot, spicy, and filling, making it the perfect grub for days of killer saddle sores and unrelenting cattle drives. This recipe makes a lot of chili, so make sure you have good company to share it with. Visit foodforhunters.blogspot.com for more great recipes, too!

Servings: 12

Ingredients:
– 1 lb ground venison
– 1 lb diced venison
– 1 tsp. olive oil
– 1 cup chopped onion
– 1 tsp. dried crushed red pepper
– 1 tsp. garlic salt; salt, to taste
– 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
– 3/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
– 5 tbs. chili powder
– 2 cans of red beans (15 oz each)
– 2 cans of refried beans (15 oz each)
– 1 cup of water
– 1 can diced tomato (14.5 oz)
– 1 can of tomato sauce (8 oz)
– 2 tbs. molasses
– Shredded mozzarella, for sprinkling

– Cornbread, a must!

1. Trim and remove silver skin from 1 lb of venison stew meat and cut into small bite-sized pieces.

2. In a large pot, heat up 1 tsp. olive oil and add in the chopped onions.

3. Once the onions soften, add the stew meat and the ground venison and brown. While the meat browns, break up the ground venison with your spoon to prevent large chunks.

4. Once meat browns, stir in the re-fried beans and red beans, liquid and all. You don’t have to cook the venison all the way through before adding the beans. It will continue to cook later.

5. Stir in the crushed red pepper, garlic salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and chili powder.

6. Stir in the cans of chopped tomato and tomato sauce. Add salt to taste.

7. Then the molasses. Cover and simmer on low for one hour. If after the hour you still think the chili is too thin, take off the lid and continue to cook until thickened. Or you can do this before the hour is up.

8. Ladle chili in serving bowls and sprinkle shredded mozzarella on top. Enjoy with some cornbread and coffee.

SEE ALSO: Become a Better Deer Hunter by Learning About Whitetail Behavior

——————————

Scott Leysath’s Fast Venison Chili
2 – 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2- 3 pounds ground venison
1 medium onion, diced
8 garlic cloves, minced
2 bell peppers, roasted
2 Anaheim peppers, roasted
2 cups prepared salsa
2 tablespoons chile powder
2 teaspoons cumin
2 tablespoons dried oregano flakes
1 quart cooked pinto beans, drained
3 – 4 tablespoons tomato paste
1/4 cups fresh cilantro, chopped
1 fresh lime, juice only
*** salt, pepper and Tabasco to taste

In a large stockpot over medium heat, heat oil and cook venison until lightly browned. Add next four ingredients and cook for 5 minutes. Add salsa and next three ingredients and simmer for 15 minutes. Add beans, 2 tablespoons of the tomato paste and cilantro. Heat to warm beans. If you want to thicken the chili, add additional tomato paste. Season with lime juice, salt, pepper and Tabasco. Makes 8-10 servings.

SEE ALSO: Digital Downloads of Great Venison Recipes and Tips

The post Six Venison Chili Recipes You Should Try This Season appeared first on Deer & Deer Hunting | Whitetail Deer Hunting Tips.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/DeerDeerHunting/~3/ptvnckNsiCs/six-venison-chili-recipes-you-should-try-this-season

Just an incredible buck!  I talked with Dan Coffman last night, and we are working on getting his story in Deer & Deer Hunting. The guy in this photo is a buddy of his who wanted to pose with the deer. To dispel all of the rumors, Dan told me this buck is legit, wild, free range deer that he hunted for the past two seasons.

He got his sheds from last year, too. Not to give away his entire story, but he did share that it took them a long time to unravel the blood trail and that the deer was found on a neighbor’s property after they received permission to trail it. Preliminary measurements are 300-1/8 inches gross; 286 inches net nontypical!

We will be following this story as more details unfold. Congratulations to Dan and The Break TV team!

The post Ohio Buck Grosses 300 Inches?! appeared first on Deer & Deer Hunting | Whitetail Deer Hunting Tips.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/DeerDeerHunting/~3/QuVn4k_gIFg/ohio-buck-grosses-300-inches

Primos has been trusted by individuals for decades. Products that are made of quality material and designed to withstand the toughest environments. Trust the Brand that others in the field use and don’t settle for less.

List price: $59.99

Today on the show we’re joined by certified wildlife biologist Matt Ross and we’re discussing the science of the whitetail rut! To listen to the podcast, click the Play button in the orange bar above or click the links below…

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/wiredtohuntfeed/~3/UgbU_pQ7gWQ/

When you’re out in the deerwoods everyday like I am, you become extremely tuned in to the pulsations of nature and her critters. There really is a wonderful, stimulating Call of the wild, but I prefer to call it the Spirit of the wild, for there is a tangible yet beyond the physical heartbeat to the ways of wildthings, and a hardcore predator dedicated to be one with the beasts will eventually zero in and become a distinct part of that heartbeat.

By Ted Nugent

For this old bowhunting fool, I am convinced that it represents the highest of highs, and like that old curse buck fever, it can and often does take some serious self-control and psyche management to keep contained.

Tonight, like most sets, I had deer within sight off and on most of the time, but was delighted to be surrounded by 15 different whitetails a good hour before dark.

Under the glowing canopy of slightly moving bright fall leaves at their most colorful effervescence, the streams of intermittent setting sunlight provided one of God’s most soul stirring firestorms of dynamic imagery. Again, self-control is the name of the game to keep from becoming entranced by the beauty of it all.

To complete the creation artwork, enter a huge old doe and her brace of large fawns of the year, both healthy, fat young’uns nearing 100 pounds each.

They were joined by a huge old lone matriarch SwampDonkey gal that had to weigh more than 150 pounds with a horse like head and an enormous brisket that protruded forth.

These cagey, ultra-alert old Michigan she-deer will test the stealth of the most experienced bowhunter, for they never let their guard down, as they constantly scan every which way. They live to discover intruders, especially uppity old backstrap addicted guitar players toting sharp sticks and antlerless tags.

SpiritWild VidCamDude Big Jim has learned over the years that zero movement is essential, and he did a great job of remaining undetected with me high up in the towering, leafy oak tree.

Soon a trio of yearling bucks sauntered in; a slick spike, a small forky and a larger, well-defined forky.

More does and fawns snuck in from the surrounding sawgrass marsh, ultra-cautiously, refusing to give us a break, forcing us to remain motionless, peering only with our peripheral vision, not even daring to turn our heads.

The small bucks took turns sniffing and stiff legging the does and fawns, acting like the juveniles they were, inspired to harass the does, but looking rather comical in their feeble attempt to be the big bad breeding buckaroos they would eventually become.

I was so tempted to arrow the biggest fawn-less, lone doe, but the pitter-patter of dry leaves behind us made me wait, anticipating the arrival of a mature buck to take over the party of forest dwellers.

Darkness soon enveloped my sacred hunting grounds, and we wrapped up another phenomenal day in the deerwoods, relishing every spine tingling moment of the greatest period of the year.

Typically I hunt the 1^st and last three hours of daylight, but starting in late October, knowing that buck movement increases as that magical rut builds steam, I increase my hunting hours till I often hunt all day long come that amazing first half of November.

With some early season backstrappers in the freezer, and with the decision for so many years to pass up young bucks, the always exciting rut has become that much more intense for us on the Nugent hunting grounds, just knowing that all those three and four year old bucks we have passed on all those years are now worldclass, huge, trophy monarchs, the kind of majestic stags that legends are made of.

The time is now. Get out there and sponge up all this madness and outrageous deerhunting FUN!

Happy Happy rut to all my fellow deerhunting BloodBrothers across the hinterland. May the beasts of your dreams make that one mistake that gives us that rare and much appreciated, hard earned advantage to get the job done.

+++++

Stay Safe and Hunt Longer This Season!
Are you familiar with the safety precautions that need to be put in place in order to ensure proper tree stand placement and usage? If the answer is “no,” or you feel like you need to brush up on your tree stand safety skills, then the Tree Stand Safety Resource Kit is for you. Containing three prime resources regarding tree stand safety, this collection will ensure you’re well on your way to avoiding as much danger as possible while installing, climbing or descending from, or using a tree stand. Begin with Treestand Safety and Placement, and learn the proper method for hanging a stand. You’ll also get placement advice for the best hunting.

See this great kit here …

The post Celebrate the Glorious, Glorious Rut! appeared first on Deer & Deer Hunting | Whitetail Deer Hunting Tips.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/DeerDeerHunting/~3/w8MLVyIAZjc/celebrate-the-glorious-glorious-rut

New larger size with Butt stop. Quickly and easily disconnect the anal alimentary canal from deer and other similar sized big game.

List price: $14.53

Primos has been trusted by individuals for decades. Products that are made of quality material and designed to withstand the toughest environments. Trust the brand that others in the field use and don’t settle for less.

List price: $19.99