Chase The Unknown Podcast
Welcome to the Chase The Unknown Podcast, brought to you by the Boondocks Hunting Podcast family! This show is all about embracing the pure joy, excitement, and rush that comes from not knowing what lies just around the bend. To us, Chase The Unknown means the thrill of stepping into the wild with no guarantees—whether it’s locking eyes with a 200-inch whitetail, crossing paths with a 500-lb black bear, hearing the thunderous gobble of a turkey, or simply witnessing the beauty and unpredictability of nature. It’s about the anticipation, the adventure, and the stories that follow.
But what does Chase The Unknown mean to you? Is it the adrenaline of the hunt, the connection to nature, or the pursuit of something greater than yourself? Join us as we explore those questions, share incredible stories, and celebrate the thrill of the hunt—where the outcome is always unknown but the journey is unforgettable.
Let’s chase it together—one adventure at a time!
Chase The Unknown Podcast
Buck Down, Tailgate Down: When Everything Goes wrong, You Still Keep Going
The raw unpredictability of the hunt takes center stage in this conversation with Alex from Buck Down podcast as we navigate through a season defined by persistence through adversity.
When Alex's tailgate accidentally dropped open during a drive between hunting locations, he watched nearly all his hunting gear disappear—saddle, sticks, pack, and more. Rather than end his season, this catastrophe forced him to adapt, returning to ground hunting with older gear and a renewed appreciation for simplicity. "There's people that hunt with trad bows from the ground with no camera and shoot 170-inch deer—nothing saying I can't," he reflects, finding unexpected liberation in the challenge.
From Pennsylvania to Ohio, we track the emotional rollercoaster of his season—the connection with "Old Yeller," a mature Pennsylvania buck he'd been pursuing for years; the adrenaline of stalking through cornfields; the disappointment of a bow malfunction during a critical moment; and the mental fortitude required to keep hunting through December when motivation wanes. Through it all emerges a deeper understanding of what drives dedicated hunters back into the woods.
The conversation evolves beyond tactics into the philosophical territory of what we're truly seeking when we chase the unknown. For Alex, success isn't merely measured in inches of antler but in "finding sign, in-season scouting, putting pieces together" that culminate in memorable encounters. It's about "the desire to find what I don't know is out there" and experiencing moments most people never witness.
Whether you're a seasoned hunter or just beginning your journey, this episode offers honest reflection on both the struggles and triumphs that make every hunting season a transformative adventure. Subscribe now and join our community of hunters who understand that the most meaningful pursuits often require overcoming the greatest challenges.
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Every hunter has a moment when the woods go quiet, the air shifts and time slows down and in that stillness you realize you're not chasing the game, you're chasing something bigger. Welcome to the Chase the Unknown podcast, where we go beyond the saddle, past the trail cameras and deep into the stories that fuel the fire. The show is for the ones who sleep over the rut, who hike miles into the public land for just a chance and who live for that silence before the shot. From the back country to the back roads. We sit down with hunters and trappers, with the relentless stories, who live for the thrill, embrace the unknown and return with the stories we're telling. This is more than a podcast. This is the start of something real. Let's chase it Nice. Thank you. Thank you, brother, Welcome back. Thank you, brother, Welcome, Welcome back. I mean, it's a brand new show. I love the intro.
Speaker 1:You've known the podcast. Yes, thank you, and that's just going to be the beginning. I'm going to be working on it and everything like that, but let's dive into it. This is your first time on the new show, episode number two, coming at.
Speaker 1:You guys be working on it and everything like that but let's, uh, let's dive into it, because this, this is your first time on on the new show, episode number two coming at you guys yeah, that's different because I've talked to you a bunch of different times like this and the first time on the new podcast man, let's go.
Speaker 1:Yeah real, really excited about this one, um, but I mean, I, I guess I should. I should give the official what's face. Welcome, um know, I don't want to, just because you're, you're an OG to the Garden State, you're, you're a brand new officially, the first time on the podcast. So so let's do this Correct. Let's let's honor you, correct. Welcome back to the Chase, the Unknown, the podcast where we dive deep into the grit grind and glory of the hunt. Dive deep into the grit, grind and glory of the hunt. Today we're heading out to Western Pennsylvania and cheat and sitting down with a guy who's truly lives by the phrase hunt ugly. He's tagged some impressive bucks, put some serious work year round and is dialed in with the DH three synthetic scrape system. How are you liking that?
Speaker 2:Good. I just started using it last year actually, um, and I was using a. A last year was different for scrapes man, I tried out a different system and I tried out a few different systems and I was just trying to, you know, mix. I usually do like this dope urine and buck urine. I'll mix that together, different things, and nothing was biting. And then, um, I had kevin on and we were talking he, he sold it to me, man, and I was threw it out there and I finally started to see some results. I was like, there it is, that was the magic. So it's good though I suggest you check it out. I definitely put in your arsenal.
Speaker 1:Give it a shot at least man, I, I listen, I would, I would love to, but everyone who knows, listen, I, I got a pretty good thing right now with one of my good buddies. It's kind of of the same, you know, probably in the same same category. I mean, he's got tons of products and everything like that and that's what, like, got me to not say fully, got me to kill my, my buck. You know we talked about on on your show but I think it was a big part. Like we have the spray called hot to trot, so it's still in in heat urine. It's dough and um and heat urine. I sprayed it on my boots and I I walk and I do the whole spread whatever. Um, and he actually turned away from me and I think he caught scent and he actually walked like right kind of like, where I wanted him to perfectly walk. I was able, I was able to kill him.
Speaker 1:But you know, you know not to not to say that maybe I'll still get it, give it a try. But um, you know you're not um, you're not all about chasing deer. You know you're chasing the challenge, the raw moments and unpredictable beauty of the white toe woods. You know, this year, how did, how did it go for? How did it go for?
Speaker 2:you, dude, this was probably. I got a book down in Pennsylvania and I spent majority of my season in Ohio. But, dude, a lot of adversity this year. I'll tell you that we can get into that. And man, I didn't kill in Ohio but I had probably one of the best seasons I've had in that state, though Just from seeing deer man, I can't complain about it for sure. I mean, uh, we can, we can dive into Pennsylvania, but my season, when I look back at it and think I had to think about the buck I shot. But I think more about Ohio and just, you know the encounters and opportunities and just what I learned and being there, you know Pennsylvania native. So I like to try to get out of state and, uh, ohio was it this year and man, it was, uh, it was eventful. Rollercoaster of emotions of a year for sure, oh, man, for sure.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I mean, you know obviously I've, I've followed you know closely through and you know talk to you obviously not only on on your show and everything like that. But of course you know we DM and text and do all these things like so, like for you mentally, like, was this one of the more challenging years you would say, like you, that you've had, where your mental toughness is kind of how to like towards the end for sure.
Speaker 2:Late season definitely. Oh man, I, uh, I've never hunted strictly straight through a season like that before. Usually I'm kind of done and wrapped up around, you know, mid November and then I'll go out once in a blue moon here and there for like dough with the muzzle loader, or just late season. But uh, I was driving Ohio every every freaking weekend from mid October to the end of the season. It was, it was a grind, it was. Uh, that late season man like that last month it hurt. That's where I started finally saying like, um, I'm hurting, man, I need something, I need something. But I was having like close calls, what kept bringing me back. You know, like if I went a whole month or three weeks without seeing a deer, I probably would have just said screw this. But I was actually like in the game. Well, at least I thought I was. So I kept going back and back and then the season ended and then I was done. But I learned a lot. I mean, the october and november in ohio was really eventful.
Speaker 1:Um, you know, losing the tote this year Put a huge dent on me and so for all our listeners who don't know, or people Out there who don't personally talk to you, kind of like go over that, like crazy Shenanigans that you kind of had to go through with that.
Speaker 2:Well, before I tell a story, I just want to say I got a new Truck since and it does let you know if the tailgate's open. Alright, that's good. I'm going to have To upgrade to that because, like I said, got a new truck since and it does.
Speaker 1:let you know if the tailgate's open, it will tell you all right, that's good. I'm gonna have to upgrade to that because, like I said on your show, like ever since that happened to you, it's made me like I have to double and triple check my stuff and like not saying like I think two or three years ago I actually left my tailgate open and drove and got like halfway home before some some person was, you know, on the highway, flagged me down and told me like my, my tailgate was down, but I don't. I didn't lose, thank, thank God, you know, knock on wood, I didn't lose anything and hopefully that that never happens again.
Speaker 2:The funny part is if someone was trying to tail me down or tag me down, I had no idea, cause I was on the phone with my buddy the whole time. We were just like. We yelled at each other, like we're like yelling, just having fun. So they probably see me in this, in this car, losing everything out of my truck, and I'm just sitting there like just laughing, yelling whatnot. But uh, yeah, so that was uh, I got the pennsylvania buck down on this october 2nd and then took like a two-week break and, uh, I went to Ohio and I was there for a couple of days in one area and I wasn't seeing much at all. So I'm like, all right, I'm going to pack up.
Speaker 2:It was like a 80 degree day and I walked back to my truck. I'm like, all right, I'll drive home, hang out for a few hours, come back in afternoon, so pack my stuff up and I. The mornings are like at 30 degrees at that point, but then it heats up. So I had all my gear, from like my winter gear to my lightweight gear in this tote my pack, my sticks, my saddle, my tackle, box of archery supplies, everything you can think of and, um, just because you never know if your bow breaks, you need something or you want to change and whatnot. I drive home hanging out, my wife leaves, goes to work and I'm like, all right, I'll get ready to go. So I go to my truck. I laugh about it now. I love it, but and uh, my tailgate's down.
Speaker 2:I'm like, oh my gosh. I was like. I was like in shock, I swear to god. I was like nothing was back there, my target, nothing. And I text I called brad. I'm like dude, someone stole everything out of the back of my truck because I didn't want to accept the fact that I left it down. And uh, I'm like, oh my gosh. So I'm calling him. I instantly start driving back to ohio the same route and uh, I'm on the phone with brad. I'm like dude, I can't believe someone stole this. He's like alex, I'm gonna ask you a question did you leave your tail, your tailgate down? I'm like, I think so. So I uh, we drove back and, man, to this day I can't find it. I think I quit searching, like in january. But whoever got it?
Speaker 1:man, they made out right, yeah, I, I would imagine.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you didn't find it because someone probably was like oh shit, free free hunting gear and pulled right over and took it all.
Speaker 2:So that night, um, someone messages me on facebook and was like, hey, I think I found your, your bag. It was laying on the side of the road. I'm like, oh great, like my sticks were in that bag and my pack what and whatnot. And I go meet him the next morning and it is just torn up, sticks are gone, platform's cracked in half, bag was just ruined.
Speaker 2:But at least this guy gave me my license back, cause that's how he found out it was me, and so I was going back and forth and, dude, I'll be honest, I laugh about it now. It's funny, but it was good in a way too. I didn't even think about to be completely honest with you, and, I swear to God, I didn't even think about the amount of money that I was invested in that stuff. It was just more so of part of our was just like ripped out from underneath of you in a way. Right, because, like we love our gear, right, you love your bow. Oh, so all I had left was my bow, my binos and my boots my release that was it.
Speaker 2:You need to kill a deer it would have been a really cool story if I killed a buck. I did kill a doe, but, um, if I went back and killed a buck on the ground there and, uh, so, like first day, few hours pass. You know, obviously you're freaking, just want to jump out, whatever. You know, I never screamed so loud by myself before Hear you out of myself.
Speaker 1:Did I ever tell you the story? I can't remember if I told on your podcast or we talked about it on ours, but it was like three years ago, the same year where I left my tailgate open, I was having a lot of brain fog just because, like my, my allergies were so bad and I had like vertigo and every so like my mind was all like messed up and everything like that, and it was bear season. So it was, I think, like the second or it was the third day, I think, of bear season and I went to the range the the night before and I shot some arrows and I guess I took my, my quiver off. So usually when I go to the range, I usually don't have my quiver off. It's like a just like an automatic thing, like I usually have the quiver in the truck or something like that and I have my practice arrows and what's his face. But I had my quiver on. So I took it off and I put it on thing and a guy, a father and his son, started talking to me and I got full blown into this conversation, shot a few arrows and just completely, just I just left.
Speaker 1:I went actually out to bear hunt. Now the reason why I didn't realize, because I was doing a spot and stalk. I wasn't like climbing up in a tree, you know, getting all set, knocking it an arrow, like honestly, like sometimes when, like when I'm just out, like doing a spot and stalk and I haven't't seen anything, I won't even put a, a arrow on, just because it's a huge pain in the ass to walk in the woods with the arrow, with the arrow in, and everything like that. So didn't end up seeing a bear, obviously.
Speaker 1:But next next day, early in the morning, I go out and I'm get to my spot and I'm like, wait, something's missing, like where the hell is it? And I'm going crazy, look on the truck, go back to look all over and I was like, oh my god, like bianca, I forgot, I forgot the quiver at the range, drove over to the range, gone, no, my quiver. All I had like four arrows in there. Um, all, all them had, you know, severed broadheads and like everything like that. And I was just like, wow, so wait, someone just made off with four of my arrows.
Speaker 1:The previous, you were hunting with nothing, no arrows, yep, no yep, I don't know if I've ever told that exact part of the story, dude, yeah I've left.
Speaker 2:I've lost boots. I've changed. I've lost two pairs of boots, leaving them on the ground, just by going back to my car at night put my shoes back on, forgetting to put the boots back in the truck. I've done that twice, man, I got. I don't forget a lot unless I'm rushed right but, it happens.
Speaker 1:I tend to forget more in the early season, but it's not like when I notice, it's not like anything crazy, like it's small stuff and I'll usually leave it in the truck. Yeah, I'll get to my spot and I'll climb and I'll set up like, oh shit, like I don't have this, so I got to go, get down and run to the, to the truck or something like that. Like that will happen to me. But forgetting my quiver and arrows and not realizing until the next day, after already going on a hunt and not even like that like was the tip of the like. I was like jesus christ, like I'm, I'm in, I'm in rough shape here, like what, what's going on? And I actually had to go to the doctor because I, I go, I go listen, there's something wrong, like, and he goes oh yeah, it's because your allergies are so damn bad right now. You're just all congested in here. I had fluid in my ears, I was messed up.
Speaker 2:Hey, maybe the same thing with me in early season. Maybe that's just an early season thing. That's funny, man. Good thing you didn't see a bear Like a perfect. Can you imagine that story?
Speaker 1:I can, though I Like a perfect. Can you imagine that story? I can, though, like I can believe that, like that would 100% happen to me. Thank god it did it.
Speaker 2:Right, dude, just imagine that you're telling someone oh my gosh, I almost shot a bear. I realized I didn't have my quiver On my arrow and I had nothing to shoot it with Heck.
Speaker 1:I'd be throwing my bow at it at that point, throwing some rocks and sticks, I'll take the knife out of my pocket like all right, this is either gonna I'm either gonna be the the most successful hunter, and this is gonna be the craziest story, or I'm gonna be on channel 5 news for doing the dumbest in the world.
Speaker 2:Oh gosh, man gets attacked by a bear.
Speaker 1:I wonder why um, but so you know, let's get into a little. We'll get into the pa season first and then we'll, then we'll get into the, the ohio season, stuff like that. So yeah, break down, uh, your pa season and and how that went, and you know the those things right there okay.
Speaker 2:So, um, so pete. In pennsylvania we do this, this dough fest we call it. There's this farmer out by us, so we have a couple buddies come in town and we'll hunt their opening day. And I think opening day is like it's the third week in september typically in our area, so we go to this farmer's place. But, um, I guess the action in pennsylvania was on opening day, probably the first time I've done this. This was a good learning experience for me and just a cool experience overall was I saw this buck coming down.
Speaker 2:I was on like a field edge, probably like 15 yards in from the field, and it was, uh, hand-picked corn, so it was still standing and, uh, I see this, something come walking through and I knew I saw antlers right away and I'm looking at it and you know their antlers blend in so well with, like the corn stalks. But you can just see the frame and the wideness of it and I'm like holy cow, this is a big buck. He was walking in right towards me the opening night and, uh, like heck, yeah, I've always wanted to get a september buck down here. It is man. And then you know how it goes all of a sudden, 40 yards out. It stops, it just turns and it's going the opposite direction. At this point and I'm like you know what I freaking doing this? I'm jumping out of this tree and I'm going to shoot this, this deer. So I hop out of the tree and, like I was on the lower of elevation this was at like five, 30 in the evening, probably no later than that, probably like six, 30. I had about an hour left to light. So, uh, the shade was starting to come down Right, so I had the advantage of anything dropping. You know, he ain't going to smell me.
Speaker 2:So I'm like crawling behind him and I'm just I kept my eyes on the whole time and I was talking to myself like, all right, get ready to move, move. And I was just creeping through the corn and like this little brush pile and for probably like 20 minutes or so and I finally see this little pile he beds down Right. And I finally see this little pile, he beds down Right. And I moved to this other brush pile. I'm like, all right, he's just got to stand up. So he's like 20, 30. He's probably like 30 yards in front of me but up on elevation and, um, I'm watching him, I'm seeing the corn pile or the corn like stocks shake, cause he was rubbing his way through and he stands up and it's a different buck.
Speaker 2:So in Pennsylvania you got to have four on one side, or where I'm hunting, you got to have four on one side. So, my crap, I got to count the antlers again. But but he stood up and like I only had a few seconds to shoot, probably like five seconds. So he stood up and I'm drawn back and he wasn't moving because I had no shot. And you know, when you're drawn back and you're like, you know, like you look around your peep to see. So I'm trying to count his antlers and I'm drawn back, I'm like he's just got to move like five feet and I can shoot. And, um, I looked to my left and there's a doe right there and I had no idea she was there. I have no idea how she didn't see me, but it didn't spoil the hunt.
Speaker 2:So, uh, it's a different buck, it's a smaller buck, but still, I'm like man, I just tracked and stocked this deer down. I am shooting this thing for sure. And uh, so we finally. Finally he walks forward and there's this another brush power. If he gets in front of that, I'm gonna have to restart everything.
Speaker 2:So I hurried up and I'm like, all right, I'm trying to settle the pin at this point, like you gotta think, man, like I'm crawling, I'm sweaty, I'm hot, I'm hot, I'm out of breath, I'm drawn back.
Speaker 2:I try to settle the pin as best as I could and I let one rip and I didn't kill it. It went, looks like it went through the brisket after investigation. But, man, anyone who says they've been drawn back for five minutes, it felt like exhausting, it felt like five minutes, but realistically it was probably like a minute, maybe two minutes, I don't know. But I was sitting there for a while, it was the longest thing I've done and, uh, you know I didn't kill it. But it was such a cool experience, man, because I jumped out and I just watched this big buck go through these corn piles and I'm crawling the whole time and at one point or another, I think at the very end, when I kind of took my eyes off him and jumped to a different brush pile, I confused him with another buck that was bedded down there and then so I lost the big buck somewhere and I tried to shoot the smaller one. But, man, I'll tell you what. There ain't nothing like adrenaline, rust and doing that.
Speaker 1:That was sweet that that's pretty damn cool and I think that's, you know, being like a, a mob. That's like the definition of a mobile hunter, at least in like my experience. Like, yeah, you get to up and move, but it's also like knowing when to take the risk of getting down and being aggressive you know um, and you know the one detail.
Speaker 1:You know the important detail that that you, you know you're talking about is. You know you kept, for the most part, you up until the very last, like you kept eyes on on the buck. You know um, which I I think is a. You know, I've done that once before, during a, a storm rolled in. It was a doe. Um wasn't a buck, but what happened was I was up on the higher elevation side. Yeah, she was down lower on the bottom and she wasn't like. I knew time was running out, she wasn't going to make it up to me. So I was like, screw it, let me get down. Got down and I got into like a ditch and I lost sight of her. So when I popped back up which I got it correct, I, you know, I was like all right, like I should get up back up now and see, got it correct. I was like, alright, I should get back up now and see where she is. I should be within bow range. I completely lost her.
Speaker 1:She was still bedded down, they disappear. I made the wrong move. She saw me, she ran For you. You took your eye off of that.
Speaker 1:That deer got it, you know, probably got it confused for for another deer that's bedded down and then you know, when you, when you're drawn back, I and I, I tell you like it is one of the hardest things I think as a, as a bow hunter, obviously, and that's a pretty like it puts so much strain on you. But that's like all right, like the longer you hold, the more chances of a a mistake, without a doubt. You know what I mean and that's why, like, I've done it where I try, like I try to time it perfectly, obviously things happen in the woods and deer deer could take forever to give you a shot opportunity, you know. But like I've, I've even let down um on deer and been able to to kill a deer, and it's not always going to work out the way you you hope, like of course you're probably going to get busted more often, yeah, than not, but you know, sometimes the muscles just freak and they just start killing at the end like my brain said it was a good shot.
Speaker 2:You know, like you. Just I don't even know explain. You just think it's good, but really, really it's not. Your subconscious mind is just saying shoot, but you know, let it go, just send it, just send it.
Speaker 2:But at the time I thought it would have been a good shot, but I'd even put in the factors that you know. So he was 20 yards now I'm remembering, and I used my, my 20 yard pin, but he was also uphill about him and yeah. So I mean I was off but I ain't mad about that and it was a big foreshadow for my season, for sure, from everything that happened.
Speaker 1:But so uh, what is real quick before you get into the you know breakdown, kind of like you know what is the train that you're hunting, kind of looks like like how close to your home, like kind of like cause I know PA can have all different types of you know different terrain, so kind of break down the exact terrain that you're.
Speaker 2:you're this is, uh, this farm is just uh, it's a big, it's a bunch of different ag and there's little, uh, pockets of woods okay. So I don't even know the, the acreage, but it's probably like I don't even want to talk too much about it, just in case. But yeah, there's a ag and then some some wooded areas in this area. I was hunting, the ag was above me and I'm in this little, I guess this little hub of woods down below um, and it's it's pretty rural or, if there's a, there's houses nearby. I mean, this ain't in the, this ain't in the big woods okay, this isn't like big, big woods stuff, like no this is, um, this is I don't want to say in neighborhoods, but there's neighborhoods around the area.
Speaker 2:So okay, um, I guess you want to. What is that?
Speaker 1:I don't want to say it's seek one type stuff, but pretty close to being seek one type stuff, okay so kind of more like the jersey type of style, you know, um, because obviously we have, we have, you know, stuff like that, but not on the level that when you talk about big woods here in new jersey, you're not. You can't compare them unless you're talking about the dell gap, which is right on that border of pa and everything like that, where you're gonna get woods like that no, um, this isn't I forget what else you're just about to say about it.
Speaker 2:It's not backyard hunting, but it's close to it. So the rest of Pennsylvania. I have public land near me which I have some deer that I'm after. So I spent 99% of the remaining of the season on this public piece and I was. I was seeing deer. I just wasn't seeing something that I want to shoot, that I'm looking for. Um, you know, I'm seeing good potential bucks, for sure I hope some of them survive. It's funny, cause after I killed, I went in there with my buddy at a big one. It was right there, he kidding me twice, actually twice. But yeah, so next two weeks, whatever, I pennsylvania and I'm seeing deer and this other piece, but just again, man, nothing that I'm that I'm looking for. I'm getting frustrated. It was like where the heck are these deer at? Like what am I doing? So I'm like all right, I'm taking a break from this piece and I have another private piece. I'm gonna go over there and it's like a, I think it's like a 16 acres, and then it connects to this, this massive piece, and, uh, I'm like all right, and there's a lot of coyotes here, a lot. So I'm like I'll just go check it out, because I had a camera there. I want to go check it.
Speaker 2:So I grabbed my laptop that day with me, brought it up in the tree and I'm get set up and I'm looking through my photos like man. Where's this, where's this deer at? I knew there was one deer on the area. I was on the phone phone with Brad, actually on my way there. I'm like the only deer I'm shooting here is old yeller. I named him and I don't care, I ain't shooting nothing but him. And uh, I'm looking at my trail camera photos and he showed up like two or three times and it was in the summer. I haven't seen him since. I think he might've shown up once in september.
Speaker 2:And uh, so this is october 2nd now. And uh, I'm scamming through just a bunch of small bucks bought tons of coyote, holy cow. I got to get over there and do some coyote management. And uh, so I'm down below this scrape, probably like 80 yards, and all of a sudden I'm sitting there, whatever, five o'clock comes, nothing. Then five, I think it was like 5 30. I looked at my phone and I started to like wrap things or 6 30. Yeah, I think it was 6 30, the last hour of light. I'm like I'm starting to wrap things up a little bit like all right, you know, another day of no deer.
Speaker 2:I look behind me and I see this deer coming out. I see this big rack. I'm like holy crap, there he is, that is old yeller. And uh, so the scrape like I don't know how to explain it it's up, it's uphill from me, very slight elevation, and I'm this little knoll, like I'm set up basically in a in a creek, right in a little creek. There's this tree coming out and he was coming down the creek and he's walking down the bottom of it parallel with this scrape and I'm thinking he was scent, checking this scrape, probably the whole time. That's why I haven't had any photos of him.
Speaker 2:And uh, he comes in. And good thing I had my range finder because initially I thought he was like 50 something yards away and I had this little opening behind me and I arranged them. I've never arranged deer like on the hoof before and uh, it's like 35 yards. I'm like boom. I'm like this deer is dead, pulled back, boom, shot him, he ran 10 yards and dropped man, he was down, holy cow.
Speaker 2:That was super exciting because I was like this this deer is an older deer. In the property I saw him last year. He's got a little funky rack. I actually found his offspring, his shed on the same property just a few weeks ago and, uh, he dropped right there. Man, I'm like no freaking way, I just killed old yeller and I just jumped down from the tree. Or uh sirens when I listen to this, so these sirens go off and all these coyotes just start how? And it sounded like there's hundreds of them like this deer man, how the hell did they survive from these coyotes? And uh walked up to him and realized, you know, I confirmed it was him and called my buddies and texted my dad, texted my mom and called brown. I was like hey, I got him down, man, he's dead.
Speaker 2:And then announced the Pennsylvania season, getting him down, that's sick. Shooting him and man, it was cool. I want to say I ain't saying this to be some arrogant asshole, I'm being just what. I think I think he was six years old. Some may say five, but I think he was definitely five or six and it was his property. I think he was the. I don't think he owned the property. I think there's other bigger deer there, but it felt good to get him because I had him last year as a big six in front of me that I couldn't shoot because it wasn't legal, because you got to have four up on one side.
Speaker 1:So oh, really okay. So it's yeah okay. How do you feel about that? I mean I, before we get you know further into the the story, because this is I'm looking at the picture right now phenomenal deer, but like, how do you feel about that? You know the, the point, restrictions and everything like that. Are you a fan of those?
Speaker 2:um, they, they started that whenever I was just a little kid and it's definitely. I know it wasn't made for bigger deer, for to grow bigger racks. There's another reason behind it. I can't remember it right now, but um, I I like it, I think it's good. Honestly, I think it gives these deer a chance to live in at least hit three years old. Um, and maybe even four years old, depending on what their genetics are like.
Speaker 2:So it's definitely brought bigger deer because I mean, I bring home a deer that's I don't know 100 inches. I'm not saying 100 inches big or bad, but or big or small. My dad looks at he's like holy cow, that's a trophy right, because he's never seen deer like that, like this deer. I mean, maybe social media just influenced us enough, but you know, if he saw like 170 inch deer, he'd probably fall over and pass out. It's like his deer on his wall are all I don't know, just different era. Two thousand bucks, two thousand bucks, that's how I'll start calling it right the brown, the brown and brown is down era where you know I've talked to a lot of people from that generation wasn't a lot of doe hunting.
Speaker 1:You know a lot of like if it's a buck it's going down, does it? Does it matter which you know I I do like. I like that style of hunting just because, like, listen at the end of the day, that's like. You know it's fun sometimes not putting the pressure on you, but also love the style. You know the grind of like all right, we're looking at the older deer. The more mature deer doesn't necessarily mean have to be like you said, doesn't have to actually be a giant 140, 150, listen 100, 110, especially a four-year-old, a five-year-old, six-year-old.
Speaker 2:You know those, those real old, mature deer like I have joy going after that I have a a huge four point on camera, like he's the biggest four point I've ever seen in my life and you can't shoot him. Well, I guess you can't shoot him in any of the state, but I've had it with six points, five points as well where if you leave this WMUI hunt it could be shot. So in where I hunt it's got to be four, the rest of the state it's got to be three up. But I mean this deer is going to be massive. He's probably two right now. When he's three he's going to be a. I hope he's a big six point because then no one can shoot him still, but then four. If he's growing another antler, he's going to be massive. So it does give these deer different opportunities to grow and it's definitely raised the, the antlers, the antler size overall. For sure.
Speaker 2:I forget what that, why that rule was made. Honestly, once I heard it I was like, oh my gosh, it makes perfect sense. Yeah, I think it's heard or whatnot.
Speaker 1:But if you, if you do find out, let me let. If you do find out.
Speaker 1:Let me know I will. They're getting rid of ours in New Jersey. Oh really, yeah, they're getting rid. They said it doesn't really listen. I think it's BS. I've seen the difference of deer that has a point restriction versus not. I've seen the difference. It could just be genetics from that area. You know what I mean. Obviously there's a whole other state, but I'm looking at it through the areas that I hunt, yeah, but we're also a state where they're trying to get as many deer gone as possible. So you know.
Speaker 1:I think we'll be back to like seven officially deer that you can kill coming coming up, so yeah, you're gonna have no restrictions they say, they say state of new jersey, official wildlife, that most people don't even get one.
Speaker 1:And I could believe that like I shot one this year, I've saw, I've. When I shoot a buck, I I shoot one every year. I would love to shoot two, I would love to shoot three. I get up to seven in one state. I wouldn't want to shoot seven in one area. If I could travel around, I guess the state maybe you know, go down south, like south south jersey, go up to west, you know what I mean. That would be different but like I, much rather you know, shoot one or two new jersey, shoot one in delaware, you know, shoot a couple in in other states. If I was to shoot seven I would like it spread out and in different states, then make it in yeah, one state only maybe ruin a.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you can totally ruin if you're growing or you know not growing.
Speaker 1:But after certain deer, seven's crazy six is crazy less and I think they or you know, not growing, but after certain deer devon's crazy six is crazy less and I think they should you know, I love the delaware, or certain states too. You know any weapon, you get your two. And because we're, we're unlimited, doe too so, like I think you really want to shoot me just just kill those.
Speaker 2:I don't know what the pot. I know. Pennsylvania is like hunters per hunter per square mile is like the biggest, yeah, but uh, it's so vast pennsylvania like if you go to sure it's probably out towards your way, like northeastern and central, and there's up north pennsylvania wherever is dude like you can just walk. I mean you can get lost easily. It is the mountains. I mean there's deer there. I bet I've never even seen people, maybe for all I know the zone I can't remember.
Speaker 1:I I think we talked about on. You know, I had a pa uh rifle opener and we had a blast, um, you know, and there was just so much and we still weren't even like we hiked like five, five, six miles and like we really could have just it was so damn cold, it was like single digit weather and like we could have just kept going and going and yet again, like a hundred percent, like there were most of hunters that we encountered. Actually, every hunter we encountered was within the first tenth of a mile in. You know we, we got them all. When we're coming out of the woods, I know, um, right by the parking lot yeah, I listened to it on another podcast.
Speaker 2:They were talking about pennsylvania and uh, I guess this could be anywhere. But like, so, like we're talking here right, like we talk to different woodsmen and other outdoorsmen who like live and die by, by hunting, and, realistically, what percent of the population do you think hunt as much or, you know, have hunting as a hobby as much as we do, versus the rest of the state? You know, probably a little percentage that's going out there. Yeah, like how many they were talking about. Like how many people do you see scouted in the off season when you go?
Speaker 1:like I go a lot, honestly I yeah same, like I don't. I mean it's gone down since you know, you know with the fiance and everything like that, but like I don't, yeah, I don't even see many during during the hunting season. So it's gun season, yes, but like, especially if we're talking about especially bow season, yeah, no. And then even the gun hunters, like, in my opinion, like they're not, they're not going far, they're, they're really not. You know, it's the occasional hunter where you know, like you said, what, what we're doing, like we're the crazy diehard, like, and you know, like you got a one-year-old with you.
Speaker 2:You're bringing your five-year-old son with you, right? Yeah, you can't go in five, six, seven, eight. However far you're walking right, you may not be going that far. You might only be in the woods until 10, depending on you know how you are. I mean, we would always want we'd spend a day, or we'd spend half the day or whatever, but there's different situations, you know, like when I got a kid someday, I might only be out there until 10.
Speaker 1:yeah, no, I mean it gets, you're perfectly right and it's. You know, it's a, it's one of those tough things, that. But uh, tough for the person but really great for us and for other people who do love to get miles on on the boots and and because you can really you get out there, you could, you're gonna be, you're gonna be alone. But then the other thing is too like, not only that's like man, if you don't got a crew with you, you shoot a deer out, yeah, and then you're like, I packed that thing out, which I've never packed deer out.
Speaker 2:personally, just, I haven't had that situation come up, but I've looked it up on YouTube a bunch of times, so I should be good if I, if it does.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I agree, let's get to the Ohio part, unless you got something else to say on that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah yeah, so.
Speaker 2:I had. I had a weird vacation this year. I split it up, but so I had the middle of october off so I spent, I want to say, three weekdays for five total days in ohio first half of october, um, so I went there and I was in one spot where I hunted. Last year I had a nice. I was fortunate enough to get a nice buck down in ohio last year. It's like I'm gonna go back there and see um hunted there for three of the days and I didn't see nothing, like nothing, and just maybe a couple, though that was it. And even on my camera that I put up, I still wasn't seeing nothing over three days. Yeah, it's three days, but you know, if I'm hunting the time is limited. I want something now. So I found a new, bigger piece never been there before. I've been looking at on a map and I'm like, here I'm just gonna drive, find a place to park. I uh knocked on this guy's door for permission to park here. He's like sure, go ahead. And uh, there we were. So I'm walking.
Speaker 2:In the very first day this new piece wasn't planning on really doing much and uh, there's some crp and I'm walking, all of a sudden this big old rack jumps up in front of me and takes off. I'm like, oh, here we are, we're in it, we're in it now. And uh, so I set up there for the evening, didn't see nothing. And uh, heck, where are we? So I'm sorry, I want I went too. I've jumped too far.
Speaker 2:Before I went to this new piece, I lost my tote. So that week I think it was like october 17th or something I'm going in and I lost my toe. Whatever shit crap happens, right. And uh, so I hunt from the ground and go back the next day and I'm hunting from the ground, different, it felt. So I was wearing like my camo and everything from when I was like 16, 17. It just didn't fit. It was warm. I mean, you don't realize how good gear is made now until you, you know, we're so fortunate. Sometimes we just become blind of of these things. And that was the biggest thing with losing the tote. I was like holy crap, like I was. You know, that was a godsend. Maybe I'm, maybe I was spoiled and I just was losing sight of it. So I I'm glad I realized that and I also thought I'm like you know what? There's people that got trad bows hunt from the ground with no camera and they shoot 170 inch deer, nothing saying I can't. So, uh, after that week in ohio I spent like the days after work going to that farm and trying to hunt from the ground and you know, I learned a lot.
Speaker 2:I was put in situations where I couldn't draw back because I put myself in an area where there was just too many deer around. I didn't have enough cover. You know, I learned how to. You know, just, I just learned a lot from the ground hunting and where to set up and the type of cover I needed, and I was able to put a doe down. So that proved me that I could do it.
Speaker 2:And then another day that week, my bow blew up on me. Bow blew up on me. Dude, have you had a bow break up on you before and you don't want to draw your bow back for a good bit? But yeah, that happened, man, I was drawn back and, boom, oh, it was like, should I shoot this? Should I not? Because it was like really, maybe, like it just wasn't really a good shot. So I didn't shoot it and I went to release it and it blew up. So I went to the bow shop. Right away they fixed it. Uh went to Ohio, blah, blah, blah. And then I came back home, blow bow blew up on me again. I'm like are you kidding me? So my buddy sold me his new one of his new bows. Um, so now I get into the gritty things of Ohio.
Speaker 2:That was the adversity I hit the toe and the bows blowing up. I wanted to point that out because uh got me on the ground a lot and kind of became a little bit of a minimalist as well. But, uh, so where are we? Um. So I saw that one buck, a real nice one. I started chasing where he was coming from, finding a bunch of good sign. And one of the biggest things I learned this year or I guess applied was listening to what the blue jays tell you where they're at when they go off, because I was hearing them at this bottom every evening just going off at like six o'clock. So I went and hunted down there, ended up seeing a nice buck. Um, didn't get a shot off on him, but uh, man, I can, I can keep going. I can't keep track of where I'm at, right now but it's all good.
Speaker 2:So I just gonna fast forward to november. All right, there's bucks that I'm after, I'm seeing these deer, and november 1st yes, I didn't hunt october 31st. I came home that evening, I hunted the morning. So november 1st comes and I'm set up and it's like what right, first thing in the morning and I started rattling, here comes a buck. And this is my bait. This is what eats me alive. Because I saw him and I'm watching him and I'm like I'm not going to shoot him, I'm going to pass him. He's standing like eight yards in front of me and like there's a brush. So I'm just kind of looking. I'm not even looking at my bow, I'm like screw it. I grabbed my bow, pulled back and I waited for him to step shot, hit him right through the back strap. Like, oh man, that was my biggest thing. That ate me this year was not really putting my full focus and I basically, you know, I missed him. I missed him clear as day, right through the back strap. So that's on me. But I like to think that I wasn't fully in on that shot mentally.
Speaker 2:But later that day another deer comes in behind me, no idea he was there and uh, man, I always got my quiver ready for if I need to shoot another one, and this time I did not. I look behind me and there's this nice, I think it was like an eight point. I'm, I'm drawn. I'm like getting ready to draw back. He's through this brush. I see an opening, I think I can make it. So I draw back. I'm like, all right, all right, all right. He's standing like behind me, but uh, he's broadside and I'm he's broadside, and I'm like I can't do this, I don't have a good shot. So I kind of let down. I must have let go too soon before my strings came back. But uh, my arrow came off. The knock fell straight to the ground. I'm like, oh my gosh, no one's gonna believe me on this one. No one's gonna believe me. I tell my arrow fell to the ground. So I'm over my back, my knocks in my pack, and I'm like reaching around the tree trying to grab it. I can't get out of the damn knock. I'm like trying to, you know, pulling it, and he ends up seeing me and he bolts off. So that was two opportunities right there that I just said. Here you can live another day. Oh my God, oh my god. But uh, yeah.
Speaker 2:So then the next day, um, I was, I felt like it was a thing. Maybe it was like two days later, but this was in the rut and I was doing all day sits and I had a wedding on november 3rd. Yeah, it was two days later. November 3rd had to go to a wedding. I'll tell you what. That was not an easy one to go to, especially after this.
Speaker 2:So in the uh like around, I don't know why I did it this year and I know there's really no wrong answer, but typically I'm always gonna be around a scrape, especially in like october and through the rut. But I wanted you know I was also on doe bedding areas and you know what people say. You know, hunt the leeward, those, bet those, those, those and whatnot. But I'm like, all right, I'm going to let this scrape go behind me. And I just see this massive buck come down I want to say it was probably one forties, realistically and he's nailing this scrape, he's ripping it apart and he's on the same bench.
Speaker 2:I am and I grunt at him and I rattle. He comes walking right in and then he just stops, he goes up this little knob and I can hear the leaves crunch. You know, like that I don't have a vision, I don't have sight of him at this point. But he's only like 40 yards from me and I saw him walking up this knob and I just hear the leaves of russell. So I'm like all right, he just bedded down right there and what I realized is likely so with calling, I'm a huge caller. I don't know how you are. Do you call a lot?
Speaker 1:um, I think it's kind of situational. I'll definitely call a lot more during like that.
Speaker 2:Um, I think we had the same exact conversation yeah, like it's very.
Speaker 1:I'm a big like if I see a deer, a buck, big snort, wheeze guy okay um, now, obviously you know what. I'm pretty sure we talked about this like it's. Honestly, I've scared a lot of deer off by that. Obviously, snort wheeze is an intimidation like hey, let's see you know, what I mean.
Speaker 1:Um, but it also has gotten deer curious and deer are very curious animals. Um, it's not like I don't know. I think it's because we're on the you know, the east coast, especially like, I think, in a. Um, I've talked to guys in the midwest where rattling and stuff like that works way better than than it does here. Um, I feel like deer aren't as vocal, but it is something like I do.
Speaker 1:I just like yeah I don't know, I'm just not like yeah, yeah, it's the end, all be all yeah, well, anyway, he was upwind of me and I've seen it so many times.
Speaker 2:Where a younger buck would just come walking right in, this buck came 40 yards out, couldn't get a visual, so he went and bedded. He was still upwind of me, but he's trying to bed looking down of where he heard me at. So I'm like, all right, this deer's gonna come back. So this happened at like 12 o'clock. I had to get out of the woods at two o'clock to go to a wedding. I just had 140 inch deer tear a scrape up, come walking right in. He's bedded, probably 50 yards from me right now. So I'm sitting there, I do a couple more rattles, nothing, but I didn't hear him get up. I'm like, oh my, but if I kill this deer I'm not going to make it. So I hopped down the tree and I'm slowly making my way towards where this buck is.
Speaker 2:I'm like walking up this micro bench, going up to this knob and uh, it's cool, because late season we'll circle back to this and I'm walking up. And I'm walking up real quietly and I see, just like a. I see a rack. Right, I didn't know it was a rack, because I'm like looking up, you know, everything's shiny, the sun's coming down, it's a nice day, whatnot? I'm like, oh my gosh, that's a buck right there, that's him. So I get ready, and then he stands up or he walks forward. I don't know what he did, but he is standing 30 yards from me, perfectly broadside. He has no idea I'm there, but within a few seconds, by the time I clip my release to my D-loop and just get ready to pull back, he walks forward and there's other doe with him and he kind of trots with his doe. I'm like, no, there goes my opportunity right there. But if he would have sat there for maybe at least five seconds, I would have had a chance to get a shot off on him, but obviously that didn't happen.
Speaker 2:It's cool, though, because I ended up chasing him around late season. I had him again. Oh my gosh, I think there was two weeks left of the season and he came in, but he was I. It was a no opportunity to take a shot, but it was really cool because we had a lot of snow this year, so I tracked. Yep, I ended up getting on camera late season, and I went in. I ended up getting on camera the morning. I was hunting in a different spot though. So I got out down the tree, went right to where that was. I tracked him two times. He went and bedded on that knob in the same exact bed twice in late season and I was like that's, that was really cool.
Speaker 2:I did a lot of tracking this year and a lot of just kind of narrowing down on this single deer and learned a lot. But it was actually like the same area. I know beds their bucks don't always bed in the same bed and they'll bed in the same areas, but okay, do not same exact bed twice in a row. And, uh, that was pretty sweet and I learned. You know the way he took, because it's cool, because he's walking along this bench, there's another tree stand there and he literally goes completely around the tree stand and makes his way back, like he's probably been shot out there before, but he knows it's there. It's sweet, really cool to see how these deer think. Once you get in their shoes a little bit and really just try to focus on what these deer are doing, I love that. That's why I was so happy about my season in Ohio this year of just learning those types of things.
Speaker 1:No, that that's I mean. You had, yeah, you had yourself in it. That's why you know I get, why you're, you know you're so pumped about ohio. I mean it just seems like a end, endless amount of just action and opportunity. I mean, first of all, I give you, give you a hell of credit for for hunting on a day that you're going to go to, to a wedding during the time of the year. I am pretty sure my fiance knows that. Oh, I would have to be, was it? I have a question Was it family or was it friends?
Speaker 2:Listen, I love my wife and I'll do whatever she wants to make her happy. It was someone that I I know a little bit do whatever she wants to make her happy. It was someone that I I know a little bit, but not not enough to leave the rut, though. Not enough, right. But uh, I did it and I'm happy I went. But you know, I'm not gonna, I wouldn't, I'm gonna say I wouldn't have killed that deer if I would have stayed.
Speaker 1:So you know, you never know yeah, you, you never know, but you know what also. I think like I kind of I try to take positives out of everything too, and especially like you hunted hard this year, you know yet again like it is also nice decompressing a little bit. Now you're probably worth thinking about the deer a lot and like oh, like you just never know what could happen, but it's also like all right, instead of being in the wood and you're causing like more wear and tear.
Speaker 1:Maybe you could look at it like yeah, you know what. I went out, went to a wedding, had a good time, had some good food, drinks, whatever, yada, yada, yada, was able to hopefully decompress a little bit to continue now I know people are probably listening like, come on, that's a stretch. You have to try to pull the positives out of every little thing. You had a good time.
Speaker 2:I just talked for so long. I feel like I missed a lot. I didn't miss a lot, but I just ranted. How long do you keep these things to?
Speaker 1:I'm trying to do hour hour 15, don't I't?
Speaker 2:yeah, yeah I know there was uh, you know it was just cool because I hunt. That was like my first time really hunting through the rut and it was cool to have all the encounters. Like I saw a ton of buck that just maybe were just chasing and obviously, uh, no shot opportunity whatsoever. But it's just cool to see action-packed days like how that entire 10 days were right. Yeah, it's um tell you what going?
Speaker 2:I mean that drive. I was happy for that season the end, because at that point I was just work, I wasn't even enjoying it. I was just like I just kept getting hints and I kept like. After I saw him again in the woods late season I was like I got to go back, I got to keep going. But I just wanted to sleep in and wake up, have a cup of coffee and play NCAA and relax by that time of the year.
Speaker 1:I'm fully with you. You know we've talked about it enough on on your show and everything like that like you know, you know later in the year you kind of want to move and do different things and you know I'm fortunate enough where I get to do different stuff like that still hunting related but I don't have to kill myself trying to go after deer I'm getting in the fish and now I was, uh, trying to look.
Speaker 2:I meant to do it today when I had free time to wear my lunch to look up trout fishing videos of. I mean, it's been years, there we go. I need to have a quick lesson on trout fishing again because I'm going in again with no knowledge. I just went when I was younger with my dad.
Speaker 1:We would cast out there and cook sausages sausages on a little grill yeah, yeah, no, I listen for you guys because I know it's your, your guys, opening. I didn't know it was ours either and I completely screwed the pooch, or I perfectly said I wasn't gonna put the our wild game dinner on um new jersey's trout opener. Yeah, and without realizing, I did it again. Um, and I didn't find this out until like last week. That was like wait, when's jerseys trout opener? And I looked I go, of course, of course the same.
Speaker 1:It's on the same damn day. But next year 100 won't.
Speaker 2:I will make sure it's not on pas as well I'm gonna get a nice rod or not a nice rod, I'm just gonna get a rod. I mean, people are gonna laugh at this when I say this if they're big trout fishermen. But like growing up I fished off green power bait and meal mealworms or mealworms, those welcome to jersey.
Speaker 1:We get, we get the stockies and so, like everyone loved power bait, like they kill the power bait here okay I used to and listen I used to. I used to do that too. Now, power, I don't. I don't really like to do it anymore, just because, like I kind of want to have a little, I've caught so many damn trout in my life like I'm like all right, whatever.
Speaker 1:So like I'm a huge spinner, like I love the action, like I love spinners. Yeah, yeah, you know I I want to learn how to fly fish and everything like that. I keep saying I'm gonna do it. I keep running out of time to to learn and things like that, but eventually I'm gonna get there. But, um, you know, I got one more. You know kind of hunting, and then I got a couple of a quick little segment with you um, you know, now that it's it's the off season, I was like that I, you are putting a lot of work in the off season. You get out a lot. You go, you know you do a lot of scouting. You know what is one of. You know what is a, an important goal that you have, you know going into to next season and kind of what your um, what your um off season looks like.
Speaker 2:So I know these areas that I'm hunting. There's one new area that I have that I scouted and I'm just wanting to learn the property there. But my goal, man, what is it? Honestly, my goal right now is to find a shed that these deer survived. To be completely honest, like I'm just scouring I haven't been out in two weeks but I just want to find this, this shed of one of these three deer, to confirm they're alive.
Speaker 2:I did bump um on the same property, on the public piece, a really nice area I found, and this deer I could just just the way it acted, the way it walked and wandered off. It looked like a buck, it would look like a deer, a good buck, so and where it took me was pretty cool. I mean, that was a accomplishment right there, because I know I'm gonna hunt that spot next year for sure. But my goal right now is just to confirm that one of one of these three deer are alive with this piece of property and by doing so I'm learning a ton, because I'm going through a bunch of different pieces, different spots, finding different where they could be taken. I mean, there's a lot I could talk for on about that, but find these sheds. That's all I want to do learning new property is always fun.
Speaker 1:Yeah, oh yeah, I'm obsessed. You know that was a big thing that I moved to this year a brand new property and just learning it has just been a absolute blast and you know it's going to continue over the next years and I plan on finding and you know I hunt a lot of public and stuff like that majority of the public is what I'm doing, so there'll be eventually another, hopefully another piece. You know we got delaware down there learning, you know the spot and everything like that. But there's something about just like, yeah, picking up a new piece and be like all right, everything's brand new, you're like a kid all over again and you're, you know it's a it's. You're, you're a rookie all over again for for that uh piece of property I still want to show it on ohio too.
Speaker 2:That's another goal I want to get done, and then another piece.
Speaker 1:Are you from ohio again?
Speaker 2:um from the border, probably like 50 minutes, 40 minutes, I guess okay, all right, not bad, that's not bad at all well, the, I mean that's just to the border. I don't. I don't know who's out there listening. I don't want to give away the yeah, just because I talked a lot about the deer and like the, just a hot spot. I don't want to put anything out there where I'm at oh, I could play.
Speaker 1:It's like me to pa. I'm like 50 minutes right yeah, yeah, it's a yeah same exact thing um, so we got the new show chasey unknown, so I'm gonna hit you off with with a couple of like chasey unknown themed questions. Okay, give your best answer that you can. Um, what does chase the unknown mean to you, both in hunting and in life?
Speaker 2:dude, that's so funny. You ask that because I was just thinking I wonder what micah means when he's saying the unknown I so I'm gonna tell you what I was thinking. I think the unknown. I think that's great. You know what. You're out there chasing whatever opportunity you get and it's unknown, right, you go to a new property, like ohio, for example. You don't know what you're chasing, but every time at least for me, whenever I'm chasing the unknown, I have the best hunts and I apply a lot of more things versus when I'm pressured hunting this specific buck, yeah so perfect.
Speaker 1:That's basically like, for you know, it's basically like when I I've always talked about why I've gotten this, this whole thing, when chasing unknown and everything like that, like at the end of the day, like I have no idea what the hell I'm gonna encounter in the woods yeah, you know, I don't. I don't know what's over that bend. You know, I don't know what's in that thicket. Um, I think I find something new every single day that I hunt and even if it's not new, right, even like finding a deer track, like it excites me. Like I was out work, I work out outside and in my front yard.
Speaker 1:I just quickly looked down and there was a deer track and it's like, first of all, how many people are going to realize that there's a deer track? Like you know, we know this, because this is kind of what we, what we look for and everything like that. But it's like it's just the smallest thing, like that excites me, that gets me going, you have no idea. Like at the end day, like even with trail cameras, like I know for, but like I really don't know, I don't know what buck's gonna come, come along, I don't know. You know, I've seen foxes, I've seen bears. I've I've seen bobcats. I've seen animals try to eat other animals like I just think it's. It's absolutely just incredible. You have no idea and there's just so much unknown in what we do as outdoors.
Speaker 2:That's the best part about it, man. That's like love it. Hit me with the next one when you're deep in the woods.
Speaker 1:What unknown are you chasing? Is it a specific buck, a feeling or something bigger than that? Ooh, that's a good one.
Speaker 2:Man, let me think about this when I'm deep in the woods and it's quiet you hear the birds, man, I think I'm chasing the feeling. To be honest, I just I love getting lost, like just yeah, and just going like I don't know. I guess that's the feeling of just being alone in some area where 90 of the population isn't gonna be, or maybe ever be. You know a little bit, just something you're in there with, with, uh, with nature, and they don't know you're there. Well, most times, and you see, like you said, you see stuff that people don't typically see and feel we're here, that's, I guess that's my answer yeah, I like it lock it in now.
Speaker 1:Success is described in many different things, but how do you mentally prepare for hunt where success is far from guaranteed?
Speaker 2:well, if you don't shoot anything above 170 inches and it's not success facts I'm telling you, I'm just kidding. No, uh, I'm sorry. What do you? What was the question again?
Speaker 1:how do you mentally prepare for hunts where success is far from guaranteed?
Speaker 1:so like I would take that as well like it's, it's a, you know, and that's why I said in the beginning, like successes, like I consider, if I see a deer or something like that, like that, that that's a success. But like, as in, like, I would imagine, you know getting within, you know finding those big bucks, you know it could be for hunting. Success should be, you know, described in so many different ways. But you know, um, I think at the end day, there are challenges where sometimes you're just not feeling well and you gotta, you like, you gotta get out there, you know it's. There's days where we struggle, probably to, you know, whether it's mentally in the woods, like the motivation may be not there, or something like that, but at the end day we still have to find a way to get out there and do what we do.
Speaker 2:I think success is, at least for me, the part that I don't realize. And seeing the deer. Are the results right? So success is finding sign in-season scouting, putting pieces together right, you find a track and you're tracking this deer, so you set up somewhere and then you see him right. I think success is these things that at the time we don't really know that it's success but we're putting these pieces together. Right to see the result is obviously seeing a buck, seeing a deer, I mean yeah, obviously that's success. But I think success comes with those little pieces put together.
Speaker 1:Agreed. Can you tell us about a hunt where your outcome was completely unexpected?
Speaker 2:In a good way or a bad way.
Speaker 1:Well, let's keep it with a good way, let's not go the bad way. We've had a few bad ways this podcast already.
Speaker 2:Yeah man, I ain't about that negativity here, sorry People are going to be like Jesus, god.
Speaker 1:This guy is like really negative, but you know, that's the good part and that's why I like talking to you, that's why I like talking with a lot of the guys, because, yet again, you only, on social media for the most part see the, the positives, which is, yeah, you want to see that, but that's not how you're not going to be successful. Every single hunt there's a lot of failure goes into what we do.
Speaker 2:I feel a lot when it comes to hunting. I'll be honest, I didn't, did I. It was coming off negative that time. I hope I wasn't.
Speaker 1:No, no, no, I'm just, I'm just completely joking with you. You got me all worried. Now, like I was okay, Um, okay.
Speaker 2:Let's see what hunt come, or what hunt came on. I've completely unexpected, I'd say. You know, years ago I shot a real nice palm mated buck and I went out there and and uh, and I just I don't man, I just went out there to hunt and I had no idea this deer was alive. I had no sign of deer, big deer sign, and he popped out and I shot him down. So, um yeah, that was probably it.
Speaker 1:And the last one how does chasing the unknown fuel your drive and passion for the outdoors?
Speaker 2:Oh man, how does it fuel my passion? Let's see, I mean it's the desire to. I mean it's the desire to, to the desire to find what I don't know. I guess the desire to find what I don't know is out there. So like, for example, I went to a new property, never been there scouting. This was just this spring or I guess winter. And uh, I was just trying to find a big deer, trying to find a big shed, trying to find sign of a hundred and whatever inch deer that I want to shoot. Right, I don't know if it's out there or not, but I want to find it. And I'm going to tell myself I'm going to find it whether I do or not, but it's, it's like a what's that? What is it? When you're addicted to something, a dopamine release or something, it's just like boom, I'm in the woods. Man, that dope means just kicking off. You can like I'm just chasing, I'm just chasing it when?
Speaker 1:is it? It's literally that that feeling is like none I've ever felt before.
Speaker 2:Yep, it's literally.
Speaker 1:that feeling Is like none I've ever Felt before. I'm just chasing something that I don't know what it is. I love it. Well, brother, I mean, this is a hell of a podcast.
Speaker 2:I, you know, always love talking to you, don't worry about you know the no, no, no, I feel like I ranted the whole time.
Speaker 1:No, you should know how it is by now. As your own host, you want people to rant. Like I always tell people don't. Like that's how I got Squatch hooked up with us. Like dude, like I love it, it's less work for me and, honestly, like you rant but you're also a podcast host, so you're so used to like talking and doing like, yeah, like I feel like I rant sometimes on on your show, but I imagine that's exactly what you want people to talk, where you don't have to pull teeth with people.
Speaker 2:I do like when people are big talkers. Yeah, for sure.
Speaker 1:So I mean yet again, I appreciate you First time on the chance you unknown you know I'm I'm very happy for for that. You know it's something that you and I we've done on now, quite a few podcasts to get quite quite a few.
Speaker 1:Um, we like, we like no yeah, yeah it we're like we're, yeah, we're, we're in like sync when it, when it comes to this podcast stuff and everything like that, um, the, the conversations always flow very well, so I love going on your show, love when you guys come on, come on ours, um, you know, so I appreciate it. Any any last words? Let let the uh, let the viewers who don't know you or listeners who don't know you, give them a quick rundown where to find your show and everything like that yep, name's alex.
Speaker 2:Um, it's good. I got a page on instagram. It's called buck down. You can go check that out. Started a podcast last year. I think we're coming up on one year, so check that out as well. Let me know what you think, any feedback you got. And uh, yeah, man, that's pretty much it. I'm not really affiliated with youtube very much it. I'm not really affiliated with youtube very much, although I'm really gonna try to put together a good youtube video. I really got really want to sell film, so got everything for it. Just a slow process getting it. Oh, snap.
Speaker 2:Oh, there we go I'm the type where I'm filming everything and then a buck comes in and I forget my camera exists.
Speaker 1:So I got three cameras.
Speaker 1:Moving into to this year, I'm three yeah, see three I can't even do one man I've gotten so obsessed with filming and just like making I don't know like I I find it like right now I'm on adobe, like before you got on I was on adobe like editing one of the videos because you know, we try to do one of, you know, throughout the year of a whole like season and everything like that same thing, like I'm still working on youtube and everything like that, but I'm my patients love watching it like and I can't wait to show my children and everything like that. There, you know, and that that's a big part like yeah, like cool, you know it adds another thing to to boondocks hunting and everything like that. But like a big part is for like people like my family, friends and everything like that to watch as well yeah, I mean like, yeah, that's how I was when I first got a camera.
Speaker 2:I was like, oh, I'm gonna be the hunting public, I'm gonna put the videos together like the hunting public, and then I started.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean they, they get to travel around and just do it and edit, and then they got some pretty big editors working for them. But hey, you never know, you never know.
Speaker 2:That's why I tell myself there's a lot of work that goes into it that I didn't pick up on of the editing and I got good with it. I don't want to say good, but I've gotten familiar with editing and whatnot, so maybe there'll be a video coming out here soon. I'm definitely gonna put together some off-season videos for sure, whether it's me walking in the woods or whatever it may be.
Speaker 1:So I can't, I can't wait. Um, you know, definitely, I mean obviously you'll, I'll, I'll be watching everything like that. But we're looking forward to that and make sure everyone go. Go check alex down. Everything is going to be down in the link, uh, below. You know, we'll see you guys next time. Yep, see you later, mike.
