Summertime is normally when all of us hunters get prepared for the upcoming season. Well, many of us do other things as well, whether it is planting/growing food plots, clearing shooting lanes, setting up feeders, hanging trail cams, or even partaking in another hobby.
Personally, I do a little bit of all of that. I try to plant a small food plot each season for the fall; I put new salt blocks out as the ones from the spring are about gone. These two things alone can help draw deer to your hunting area for the early season straight through rut. Food plots can help deer growth and can provide a reason for deer to travel to your hunting area each day. I personally love going out to the edge of food plots or around orchards in mid-August, just checking out what deer are coming out shortly before dark. I know for many of us planting food plots in the summer heat is not fun at all, but remember a little hard work in the heat, could go a long way this fall.
If you use a feeder, now is a good time to start thinking about stocking up on feed, because prior to the colder months is normally the cheapest time to buy feed, such as cracked corn. You also want to check to make sure you feeder is in working order, and between August 1st and the 15th is normally a good time to put your feeders out and start to feed, if you have not already done so . This gives the deer a good month to get use to the feeder, and when it drops feed. By the time opening day of bow season rolls around, the deer will no longer be skittish around the feeder giving you a much better chance at getting a shot.
July and August are also great months to hang your trail cam, you will find out where the does are traveling with their young, and catch bucks in their summer patterns. I enjoy watching the bucks grow over the summer and always have the hope of harvesting one still in velvet on opening day. So get out and hang your trail cams and see what is out there, this is also a good way to decide on an opening day treestand location, without causing too much commotion in your hunting area.
Even with all of these small tasks, and shooting your bow, many of us still find it a boring time of year. I admittedly have hunting “ADHD” but only when it comes to my hobbies. I can never wait until next hunting season, so I am also an avid fisherman. Between freshwater fishing to take up the evenings after work, and the Chesapeake Bay just a short drive away to aid me in weekend boredom, I am all set.
Fishing can be a great relaxing filler waiting on the next hunting season, so if you are not a fisherman and find yourself bored during these summer months, try it out! If you want to try fishing and using your bow, check out bow fishing!!
Then you always have the last two options to cure the summertime blues. One, you could tackle your honey-do list, which if you are like me and once hunting season starts those items will never get done, not a bad idea. I still try to put things off as long as possible; I hate the heat during the summer!
The last one is the most important one to remember, spend some time with your wife. Take her on vacation and get any of those weekend trips she has wanted to take out of the way. As these trips can somehow be preplanned for you without your knowledge and amazingly enough, right in the middle of rut. Funny how that happens, right? Thankfully, I have a very understanding wife that enjoys hunting as well, but even she has things she likes to attend that happen to be in middle November.
What activities do you partake in during the summer to help with your summer blues?
