Anybody else watched these?

[phil@thesidehill]

The link below is for the second video in a series by The Management Advantage. So far it's been two short videos that are basically interviews with Lee Lakosky. My disclaimer....I'm not a fan of L&T's media production/product pimping empire...but I also don't hate on anyone turning their passion into a financially rewarding endeavor. It's just that style of hyper commercialized media production that just doesn't do it for me. in the past a lot of what I have heard Lee talk about in terms of his hunting and habitat strategies...I've personally thought they weren't all that impressive. It just seemed like it came down to his extreme level of opportunity. He even says it, he's got 12 farms spread out in 3 counties....I always kind of chalked up his success to having the time, the money and the opportunity...I'd like to think if I had equal amounts of the three of those I could have similar results in terms of hunting success (not commercial media darling success) just the hunting success. But then I saw these two videos and I actually identified with a lot of what he is saying, and felt like he puts more into than I thought. I can also identify with him as he tells the story of "Gnarles Barkley"...you can genuinely see the excitement and joy that whole experience that brings him.


http://themanagementadvantage.com/home/food-plot-hunting-pressure-with-chuck-sykes-and-lee-lakosky/


Sent from 25 ft up a tree

 

[bat man]

Only a fool would ignore somebody who gets to be around as many deer as Lee.

He looks kind of sick in the video. Hope he is ok.

 

[phil@thesidehill]

It's funny you mention it...while watching both videos I felt that he seemed different...couldn't put my finger on it at the time...but yeah...he does seem like he could be sick. Hopefully not.

I wasn't trying to discount his ability to target, hunt, and ultimately kill mature deer...more a commentary on how the heavily commercialized media production seems to have watered down the perception of his skill set.


Sent from 25 ft up a tree

 

[John-W-WI]

I agree - he doesn't look well.

I buy into his "interrupt them often, they can get used to it".

What I struggle with (not necessarily directed at Lee) is how the heck do you have knarles barkley in sight, and other high quality bucks on the same food plot in broad daylight?

In Wisconsin, it's tough to catch 1 buck, much less multiple bucks, in a foodplot during daylight hours like that. Maybe you can, but I sure can't.

Might be a reflection of me and my farm not other peoples.

I am jealous for sure.

Thanks for sharing.

-John

 

[phil@thesidehill]

I agree - he doesn't look well.

I buy into his "interrupt them often, they can get used to it".

What I struggle with (not necessarily directed at Lee) is how the heck do you have knarles barkley in sight, and other high quality bucks on the same food plot in broad daylight?

In Wisconsin, it's tough to catch 1 buck, much less multiple bucks, in a foodplot during daylight hours like that. Maybe you can, but I sure can't.

Might be a reflection of me and my farm not other peoples.

I am jealous for sure.

Thanks for sharing.

-John

i bank on the interrupt them often approach...they do get used to it....especially the doe groups they are so adept at recognizing predatory behavior...and non predatory behavior. that is a big reason why they are so capable of thriving. My property is small...a micro...as it turns out setting it up for a rut hunting approach has been the most successful. the key to setting it up as a rut spot is making it a spot where does are comfortable during daylight. The doe groups that make my property a part of their core area have encountered me or my scent often all year round, while not being a threat to them.

 

[John-W-WI]

i bank on the interrupt them often approach...they do get used to it....especially the doe groups they are so adept at recognizing predatory behavior...and non predatory behavior. that is a big reason why they are so capable of thriving. My property is small...a micro...as it turns out setting it up for a rut hunting approach has been the most successful. the key to setting it up as a rut spot is making it a spot where does are comfortable during daylight. The doe groups that make my property a part of their core area have encountered me or my scent often all year round, while not being a threat to them.

I certainly think you are on to something with Does recognizing your scent. If the girls don't react to "something fishy" and stay calm, your odds of getting a rutting buck to walk by are much higher.

Because our bucks are so difficult to see during daylight, it's either true or I have convinced myself that a good buck will be "just passing through" and not know the lay of the land. If the mature does are calm, hopefully he will get close to them and close to me.

An old doe is worse than an old buck in my book. She has multiple sets of eyes helping her and she has been around all season watching what is going on.

Not an expert, just my $0.02

-John

 

[phil@thesidehill]

I certainly think you are on to something with Does recognizing your scent. If the girls don't react to "something fishy" and stay calm, your odds of getting a rutting buck to walk by are much higher.

Because our bucks are so difficult to see during daylight, it's either true or I have convinced myself that a good buck will be "just passing through" and not know the lay of the land. If the mature does are calm, hopefully he will get close to them and close to me.

An old doe is worse than an old buck in my book. She has multiple sets of eyes helping her and she has been around all season watching what is going on.

Not an expert, just my $0.02

-John

I look at it this way....if the deer that are most likely to be around me the most while i'm hunting...the doe groups...will tolerate a little whiff of me on the wind or thermal or ground scent (and i get pretty neurotic with scent control and wind direction/thermals when hunting) with out reacting with sheer terror and immediate retreat....i'm in a much better position when it comes to the bucks. a buck seeing a group of calm unalarmed does (within bow range of my stand) during the rut...he is going to go ahead and commit to the approach. during hunting season but during the pre rut (i really dont hunt my property until the rut starts picking up) when i go to check cams I usually just spray myself down with some scent killer spray, but i dont go through my full de-scenting process like when i hunt. i wear whatever i'm wearing...i just spray down. my reasoning is that i'm not keeping my scent SUPER contianed...but i'm keeping it minimal to the point that i think deer interpret it as being older.

 

[John-W-WI]

We couldn't agree more.

A little scent when you aren't a threat is just conditioning the local girls.

They know where we have been and what we are up to anyway.

I compare it to walking along the edge of a field with a deer watching you. Keep your stride and go where you are going and they are fine. Act like a predator (sneaking, hiding, etc.) and they explode like you have a rocket launcher ready to fire.

Just for the record, during the rut we are as freakish with scent as anyone can be, and we NEVER violate the wind direction.

Some day it will pay off :)

-John

 

[bueller]

Great points Phil and John. I experience much of the same on my small acres with the "resident does" as I call them. I've even had them bust me while I'm in a stand yet remain in the immediate area or leave for a few minutes only to return anyways.

 

[John-W-WI]

I've watched smart old does check tree stands on a food plot before entering.

That is about the time I quit hunting ON food plots.

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[phil@thesidehill]

I had a doe fawn that was orphaned early on in the summer last year. She pretty much set up shop on my 8.6 acre lot for the summer. Damn near Every time I was there to do work or check cams I encountered her. She rarely spooked from me, but kept a cautious eye on me. She usually just moved off to a distance she felt comfortable with and carried on. I have so many trail camera pics of her within minutes of me leaving the camera.
She was considerably smaller than other fawns because she didn't have the benefit of continued nursing...after weening. I noticed thru trail cam pics the alpha doe of the secondary doe group that used my property would not accept this fawn...she beat her down anytime the fawn approached her and her own fawns.
As the summer moved into fall she continued to use my property daily. Not only was she considerably smaller than other fawns but she also has a lighter tan winter coat. She was easy to ID. Sometime early in October she teamed up with a yearling doe that was also seeming orphaned (they may have been sisters born in different years to the same doe). Those two became inseparable. The yearling was more sensitive to my presence but I think she learned to calm down from the fawn that never cared at all about my presence or scent. Once I started to hunt the property in late October I didn't have a sit where those two didn't show up.
Fast forward to this year...and it appears they are both still together and hanging out on my property daily...and the doe that was a yearling last year has twin doe fawns! I'm hoping this is the beginning of a core group of resident does that are "tolerant" of me. Could make for some very interesting hunting in the future!


Sent from 25 ft up a tree

 

[Btaylor]

Nothing beats a live decoy ESP one that will come into estrous.

 

[Steve Bartylla]

For what it's worth, I have 0 doubt that you can "condition" (train is the term I use) deer. None, nearly as effectively as one can train their dog at home.

 

[Bill]

ok someone has to rain on this party :D

Not that I can read a mature bucks mind but I can offer some "I thinks"
I'm with you on getting does use to you, thus rutting bucks will be more at ease for a faint whiff because the babes around don't seem to mind. Here's the but.

But what about a mature buck that has your place in his range but not his core area? You can't train a dog with a session once a month. I would think that if every time he ranged through your place he got a sniff of human it would be a pins and needles experience. I would also think that if something made him want to change his core area your stinky place wouldn't be his first choice.

Yea there are some I thinks in there. I get the theory though. And I didn't watch the vid so no disrespect to whatever Lee says.

 

[Btaylor]

Bill I agree with your thoughts on bucks just passing through during the rut that lack any "conditioning". They probably will bless tolerant than bucks and does who all your farm home. That's why access and wind will always be more important IMO. Lee talked about visiting fields but staying out of the woods, actually it was a very brief mention but to me that is the most important key. Last year we finally committed to not hunting "in" the woods. Virtually every stand that was hunted was less than 30 yards from a hard field edge and most were within 10 yards. We had for the first time ever consistently good daylight buck movement for the entirety of hunting season. We are trying to do any work in the woods in February and March and then stay out of the woods the rest of the year. It paid off big time last year with edges only hunting.

 

[Bill]

Bill I agree with your thoughts on bucks just passing through during the rut that lack any "conditioning". They probably will bless tolerant than bucks and does who all your farm home. That's why access and wind will always be more important IMO. Lee talked about visiting fields but staying out of the woods, actually it was a very brief mention but to me that is the most important key. Last year we finally committed to not hunting "in" the woods. Virtually every stand that was hunted was less than 30 yards from a hard field edge and most were within 10 yards. We had for the first time ever consistently good daylight buck movement for the entirety of hunting season. We are trying to do any work in the woods in February and March and then stay out of the woods the rest of the year. It paid off big time last year with edges only hunting.

We treat our farm just like this but we may go in 50 to 60 yards. With a midge of exception. And Steves will agree. There are certain spots deep in the woods that can and should be hunted on an extremely short leash. Like once every few years. In our case once or twice a year during the rut. All this depends on why you own your land. I find no fault with guys walking all over the place. At the end of the day you pay the taxes and mortgage. If it's not fun you're wasting your money.

 

[Btaylor]

100% agree

 

[phil@thesidehill]

ok someone has to rain on this party :D

Not that I can read a mature bucks mind but I can offer some "I thinks"
I'm with you on getting does use to you, thus rutting bucks will be more at ease for a faint whiff because the babes around don't seem to mind. Here's the but.

But what about a mature buck that has your place in his range but not his core area? You can't train a dog with a session once a month. I would think that if every time he ranged through your place he got a sniff of human it would be a pins and needles experience. I would also think that if something made him want to change his core area your stinky place wouldn't be his first choice.

Yea there are some I thinks in there. I get the theory though. And I didn't watch the vid so no disrespect to whatever Lee says.

In my case....on 8.6 acres....that is surrounded by habitat that is dominated by doe groups I really don't have to worry about the impact on bucks because they really aren't there. I still take extreme scent control measures, hunt only favorable winds/thermals, and have pretty bullet proof access. I do all of that to try to defeat the "unconditioned" bucks of the rut.


Sent from 25 ft up a tree

 

[phil@thesidehill]

In my case....on 8.6 acres....that is surrounded by habitat that is dominated by doe groups I really don't have to worry about the impact on bucks because they really aren't there. I still take extreme scent control measures, hunt only favorable winds/thermals, and have pretty bullet proof access. I do all of that to try to defeat the "unconditioned" bucks of the rut.


Sent from 25 ft up a tree

Also during the rut, the less "pressure" you put on the does...means the more opportunity you are going to have at the bucks because you are going to have the does around.


Sent from 25 ft up a tree

 

[Bill]

On small acreage like that just the scent control you use will be a game changer. You're probably right that your're not going to be able to house a bunch of bucks.