The evenings in Ohio are starting to feel like hunting season. We have had lows at night in the fifties and no humidity. The big bucks are enjoying the drop in temps and have been moving more every evening. I had some success one of my trail cameras this week after I had repositioned it to a new angle. Several bucks were using the food plot at the Shadow Hunter stand but I was only getting distant pictures before the move. I even stotted one younger buck this week that has start to lose his velvet. He didn’t stick around long enough to see how much he has rubbed off already but he was rubbing a sapling when first saw him.
The fall food plots have all been planted and fertilized now and only need some rain to get started. We added a new plot this year in a dense cover area and I am hopeful that it will be a big producer this fall.
The weather in NE Ohio has finally given us a bit of a break from the hot humid days and the deer in the preserve are enjoying it. I was lucky enough to finally catch a couple of trophy bucks out in the food plots yesterday while I had my camera. (The photos will be posted shortly) Two of them looked to be in the 200″ range and the third will most likely go in the 160″ range. It was interesting to see that one of them already has his winter coat and that can only mean that fall and the hunting season are getting closer. I expect to be getting more trail camera pictures this week as the cooler weather has them moving earlier in the evenings.
We worked on the fall food plots this week and they should all be completed and planted sometime early this week. With any luck and a little rain they should be green and producing by the middle of September.
The light at the end of the lodge tunnel can now be seen. We have completed all of the fixtures and hardwood floors. The progress this week has made a huge difference and we can finally see the completed project taking form. There are still plenty of jobs to keep us busy but at least now everyone adds greatly to the “look and feel” we had in our dreams.
August seems to be passing by very quickly and it is time to plant the fall food plots. The weather in NE Ohio has been very nice this week and with the cooler evenings all of the whitetails have been on the move. The trail cameras have been out for a week and I am hoping to have some nice trophy buck pictures to show off very soon. We had some closer looks at a couple of very nice bucks last evening. They both looked to be in the 130-150″ range with one sporting a real nice 4-5″ kicker coming off his G2.
It has been a really mixed bag this weekend for weather here in NE Ohio. We had cooler temps and rain yesterday and now we are in the mid-90’s and humid today. What a difference a day makes! The deer were all moving yesterday and enjoying the rain and today they are trying to hide from the heat. The heat is a great addition to the moisture and the food plots in the preserve should all start showing the effects.
Most of the bucks are starting to harden their antlers. I’ve noticed a few of the mature bucks showing up by themselves and the groups are all starting to breakup in anticipation of the velvet coming off.
The lodge is getting closer everyday and with about a third of the flooring installed we are looking to start the trim sometime within the next week. We also started the finishing touches on the outside landscaping this weekend and the new grass should have gotten a great jump with the rain and heat.
August starts the count down to hunting season and most of the antler growth has been done. While the bucks are all still in velvet they are showing signs that the antlers are starting to harden and only the finishing touches will be added this month. We have several nice trophy whitetails at the preserve this year. With most of them sporting really nice typical frames and several running into the 170-200″ trophy range. There are even a couple that have been seen that should easily pass 200″ and hopefully will make someone a really exceptional 210-220″ dream buck.
The lodge has now reached the final stages and all of the work really shows up everyday. The hardwood floors are being installed this week and they are doing a great service by pulling everything together. We should have the entire renovation completed within the next 2-3 weeks and I am looking forward to sharing the photos with everyone.