Tactics

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Early-morning rays of sunlight beamed through my bedroom door, causing my eyelids to split. I had overslept my alarm! Jolting…»

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If you are a do-it-yourself bowhunter who enjoys planning your own adventures and finding quality hunting options on a budget,…»

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Montana Decoy has built a solid reputation for offering some of the lightest, easiest-to-pack decoys on the market thanks to…»

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Bill Winke has whitetails. Randy Ulmer has giant mule deer. Cameron Hanes the whole exercise spiel, and Chuck Adams has…»

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We all want the rut to last until the end of the season, to keep the excitement going as long…»

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During the rut, you will face a wide variety of shots you might not have faced before. And you certainly…»

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When scouting on foot, it can be tough to  see the big picture because deer sign confronts you on every…»

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The rut. Mere mention of the term stirs the blood of any die-hard whitetail hunter. It’s a dynamic period when…»

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Treestand hunting is not an exact science. We all learn with experience, and there is definitely an element of “feel”…»

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The most popular way to hunt whitetails is from a treestand. It has been the preferred method of bowhunters for…»

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  I’ll be getting on a plane Friday and heading off for my first whitetail hunt of the year. Sept.…»

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All you elk hunters out there are no doubt rearing to go, spending every spare moment and weekend investing in…»

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Elk seasons will soon be upon us. After 30-some years of passionately chasing elk – 23 of those spent guiding…»

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I have received plenty of good advice over the years on how to shoot a bow. In this column, I…»

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Q: During the early season, I hunt agricultural fields and food plots. There seems to be no good way to…»

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I just bought a ladder stand and I was wondering if this kind of stand will spook the deer.  How…»

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Field Editor Bill Winke talks about the mental challenges of bowhunting trophy bucks.

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We’re already on the front steps of summer. Should trail cameras be out right now? These questions might run through…»

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A 3-D Archery Competition is great summer practice, but come fall, remember the difference between shots that score and shots that kill.

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From the very conception of my bowhunting madness, my ambitions have remained in a perpetual state of flux. All but…»

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Bill Winke shares with us the three most important bow lessons he learned from a doe culling effort that was…»

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I shot a doe on opening day of archery season on a large tract of public land. Can I keep…»

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Deer aren’t really affected by our sluggish economy. I wish we hunters could say the same. With gas prices already…»

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Bowhunting turkey isn’t the parlor trick many believe. Here are five ways you can punch a tag on a longbeard with your bow.

Mississippi bowhunter Will Rives, right, and his father Bill Rives pose with the new state-record typical archery buck, which scored 187 3/8 gross and 172 4/6 net. Will Rives killed the deer in Jefferson County on Dec. 14, 2010.

As Mississippi farmer Will Rives headed out for an afternoon bowhunt on Dec. 14, 2010, his father Bill made a…»

photo by Ron Sinfelt

QUESTION: Can deer determine how far away the origin of the scent actually is? If I have a treestand within…»

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The temperature here in Pennsylvania today is about 65 degrees, and although the calendar says spring doesn’t begin until March…»

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Field Editor Bill Winke shares what he learned from a hunt situation where the “big one” got away and how…»

If you hunt long enough, you will shoot a deer in the paunch. How you react may very well determine whether or not you recover it.

My outfitter on a recent hunt was giving us instruction on shot placement when he said something that made my…»

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Most contemporary bowhunters shoot arrows that are relatively light by traditional archery standards. And the broadheads we use are far…»

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Petersen’s Bowhunting Field Editor Bill Winke give us his top five bow shooting tips

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With a mild winter across much of North America, there is very little snow covering the ground and people in…»

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For most bowhunters, whitetails occupy our thoughts and dreams. For many others, it’s elk and mule deer. The problem is…»

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After working on a log cabin build, West Virginia native Terry Phillips had a heap of leftover pine scraps at…»

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Start by attaching the sight to the bow. Next, loosen the screw that locks the horizontal adjustment of the sight…»

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The late season is tough; most hunters get discouraged when they realize just how tough it is. It only takes…»

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My bowhunting success success definitely seems to come in bunches, and 2011 has been a very good year. As you…»

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Johnny Cash probably would have liked the pelt on this song dog. While hunting in a Pennsylvania Game Commission public-hunting…»

Aiming the bow is a complex process involving the integration of many body systems. You must experiment and practice to determine which methods work best for you. Once you've established your system, you must be consistent for the best results.

ONE EYE OR TWO? Should you shoot with the non-dominant eye open, closed or squinted? Aiming your bow with both…»

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I have shot a lot of does over the years, and that has given me the chance to watch how…»

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You definitely want to keep your activated carbon scent-absorbing hunting clothing and traditional hunting clothing separate. Activated charcoal will absorb…»

Tammi Gregory shows off her 11-point Kansas monster — a deer that was harvested just 20 minutes before her husband Jay took a 16-point non-typical. The duo combined to take down 374 combined inches of antler in half an hour!

Without a doubt, taking a giant buck from the ground is one of the toughest feats in bowhunting. That said,…»

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Whisker Biscuit rests are notorious for chewing up flimsy plastic vanes. There are a few things you can do to…»

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There are two ways to look at the rut, depending on what kind of buck you are trying to shoot.…»

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Field Editor Bill Winke offers advice on getting ready for the upcoming season, with his focus on mental preparedness and…»

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I will start out by saying, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”  Don’t mess with a winning formula one…»

Before taking your crossbow into the field, it’s important to practice until you are familiar with your bolt trajectory at various ranges. This photo shows the point of impact from Doug Koenig’s TenPoint crossbow using the 20-yard crosshair at 20, 30 and 40 yards.

What is the maximum range for a crossbow? That’s a tough question to answer. Modern crossbows typically generate speeds anywhere…»

A little time, effort and money spent creating hidey-hole food plots can pay off in the form of nice bucks such as this.

Closing the distance on a mature buck is more art than science. Throughout the off-season, hunters like us are continually…»

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MISSOULA, Mont.–A trophy bull can turn up almost anywhere in elk country but opportunities to take one are rare. When…»

Any bowhunter would be thrilled to capture bucks such as these on a scouting camera. However, all trail camera images represent valuable data that can help guide management decisions by tracking individual bucks and monitoring the overall deer population on your hunting property from year to year.

As I drove home one evening after spending the afternoon in one of my favorite stands, I got a call…»