Show Notes
In this episode of the Pennsylvania Woodsman Podcast, Mitch is joined by his friend Dana Schreffler, who shares his journey into archery hunting. Dana has deer hunted in the past but has just recently become more serious, and his off season preparation led to quickly filling all his tags this year. As the two podcast while butchering some deer Dana shot on opening weekend, they delve into the journey that began for Dana a few short years ago and what evolved into his hunting plans for 2024. They discuss the importance of scouting, understanding property dynamics, and adapting to changing conditions in the field. In this conversation, the guys share their experiences and insights from a successful hunting season, discussing strategies for hunting deer, the importance of balancing family life with hunting, and reflections on personal growth as a hunter. They emphasize the significance of communication with your spouse, the lessons learned from hunting, and the satisfaction of achieving goals in the field.
Show Transcript
Mitchell Shirk (00:00.888)
You're listening to the Pennsylvania Woodsman powered by Sportsman's Empire Podcast Network. This show is driven to provide relatable hunting and outdoor content in the Keystone State and surrounding Northeast. On this show, you'll hear an array of perspectives from biologists and industry professionals to average joes with a lifetime of knowledge. All centered around values aiming to be better outdoorsmen and women. Both in the field as well as home and daily life. No clicks, no self-interest, just the light in the pursuit of creation.
And now, your host, the man who's too good to stop for a roadkill deer, check it out, Mitchell Shirt.
Mitchell Shirk (00:43.768)
Hey everybody, welcome back to another episode of the Pennsylvania woodsman podcast. As always, I'm glad you guys tune in. In this week's episode, we're in the second week of deer camp and how it's, hard to believe that it's, it's already the second week of deer season. We're closing in on the end and it makes me think of that you per song. It's the second week of deer camp. got a swollen head. If you guys don't know that song, you need to go and look that up on YouTube. That is a classic.
I'd play it on here, but probably some kind of copyright law. I'd get sued for playing it on this podcast, but that is a classic. The second week of deer camp, my first week of deer camp, I gave an update last week and I was going back up to camp for the first full weekend at the end of first week with my crew of camp and we had a great hunt. It was a rodeo. There's a ton of stories and events that unfolded there and a lot of the time I get sad when it's over.
And there's no difference there. I'm sad because it's over. I wait for it all year. It is my favorite hunt. Had have such a good time. But at the same time, there's a there's satisfaction with it too. It's like a good feeling like, hey, that was a good season. And, you know, I'll look forward to the next one. I'm excited and still got my buck tag yet. I'll probably look to tell you guys a little bit about what happened on that hunt in next week's episode, just because it was a lot of.
cool crazy things that unfolded but it did end with a really nice buck in fact it was the the best buck that was ever harvested out of my camp and it was a cool crazy roller coaster trail job which is let's just put it at that this week's episode we're going to be talking with a good friend of mine who had his best hunting season he's ever had in his life we're talking with my buddy Dana Trefler
And Dana is somebody who he's deer hunted throughout his life, but he never really got into it that much until more recently. And he kind of went head over heels, archery hunting and, you know, trying to learn how to hunt a piece of property. got permission and he ended up filling all of his tags in, but you know, by the first opening weekend of rifle season.
Mitchell Shirk (03:07.906)
You know, harvests a great buck in archery season. He harvested all his doe tags opening weekend of rifle and You know, we're gonna talk about his journey it this it's a story of him leading into bow hunting getting into it how he acquired the permission on this property how he gradually got his feet wet and then Opening a whole new world of you know before he would hunt up
Family property where they knew places that they had vantage points in the rifle season They'd shoot deer and now he had to kind of break down a property a little bit and learn How he wanted to access it and hunt it for a bow and he ultimately killed his first buck with a bow it was a really nice buck and then you know started filling some tags and it's a it's a unique episode too because When we were talking about doing this he asked me he goes did you ever record a?
Podcast while you were butchering deer and I said no he goes well I'm off of work and I got to cut three deer up He goes would you help me cut these deer up and we'll record a podcast while we're cutting up tears So that's how he wrote me into this episode If you want to be a guest on this show, you're probably not gonna get me to do that Even though I don't mind butchering deer. I just like to butcher my own deer but
Of course for this this instance this was a fun time, so we're gonna talk about this. Let's get to this episode Shout out to our partners here before we get started Radix hunting the Radix m-core cell camera and gen 700 trail cameras Probably some of the best cameras that you're gonna find on the market in my opinion for the price point quality images Also check out the other hunting gear Radix has to offer monarch blind series tree stands
Stick and Pick Trail Camera Accessories. If you're in a state where you can use feeders, their feeder systems I am told are some of the higher, you know, everything about their product line. I always say high quality. Check out RadixHunting.com and Huntworth. Guys, I was using the Saskatoon Heat Boost this past week during the really, really cold spell that we had in the teens and twenties. And with only a base layer,
Mitchell Shirk (05:27.072)
a fleece insulated layer and the Saskatoon layer on top. I was able to stay extremely warm and really not have to worry about getting, you know, moving around or anything like that. The thing I always struggle with is my feet and that's, you know, I don't have a really good high quality pair of boots and that's something I should bug Huntworth to get into and make a good quality pair of boots for me.
But from the clothing standpoint, from head to ankle, I was fantastic. I'll have to improve that footing. But check out the Saskatoon and the Matterhorn. you're somebody who gets really cold, the heat boost technology, anything with that, that is an awesome garment. And it is also really great for a price point. I wore the Elkins layers a lot too when I was walking. It's the mid-weight.
And I like that it's very quiet to walk in. It's a fleece outer layer, but it still has a liner windbreaker to keep you warm. Check out huntworthgear.com and let's get to this week's episode.
when you get against bone. Well I think it's probably the quality of the steel here. So just making sure I got you here you just want to everything's going into the to the the bucket here for for trim meat right? Yep. Okay well then that's what what do you get made a lot of times just bologna's and sticks? you eat a lot of burger or what do you prefer? I bologna's and then just ground venison. Do you just take the do just take stuff to
somebody local to do or do you do lot of it yourself? do most of it myself. do ya? Do you have a processor or like a smoke or something? Yeah like just a pit boss but then a buddy of mine his dad does bologna's because he makes really good bologna. Okay. So but then if I try making like breakfast sauces I'll do that myself. do ya? Okay that makes sense. Well this is a unique podcast I've never done one like this before so Dana who I've known for quite a few years we've been talking back and forth about hunting season
Mitchell Shirk (07:22.286)
All year really and Dana text me this week and sent me a bunch of kills that he had and had a great archery season great rifle season and he goes man if you if you want to do a podcast he said I got probably the best hunting season I've ever had I said well that's perfect because I don't have any episodes recorded right now I said let's do it and I said how do you want to do this and since we live close we said well let's do it in person Dana goes you ever cut you ever cut deer up and do a podcast
Said no that sounds a little bit messy. So in order for me to get an episode out of Dana I have to come and help him cut up deer which I don't mind doing I've done that before but Dana Thanks for letting me let me take some time. At least we get to kill kill two birds with one stone here. Yeah, no problem so Right now as we speak we are in a garage and we're trimming up some deer that you shot this past weekend
I don't even know where the beginning point is for this, but before we get into these kills, how about you at least introduce yourself? And the other thing is, kind of talk about your... I mean, you've hunted your whole life, but I know you've kind of taken to deer hunting a little bit more recently than before, so kind of introduce yourself and go into that. So, my name's Danish Reffler. If anybody knows Mitchell.
and knows me, they would know that he was the officiant, Yeah, that's funny. That's one of things I haven't said much on this podcast, but some people do know that I have officiated a handful of weddings and Dana is married to my second cousin and I officiated their wedding. So yeah, fun little tidbits. So yeah, that's how I know Mitchell more than anything. But yeah, I grew up hunting, you know, the family hunting on farm.
was in the real rifle in the beginning cuz that's what everybody else did and then actually a neighbor he was big into archery and then my dad had an old p s e i don't even know what in the shed probably sixty some inches axle to axle you know about that you know maybe had four percent let off it was long i know that so we end i'd end up picking that up and i would shoot in the arbor the neighbor and he started taking me out archery
Mitchell Shirk (09:37.864)
And looking back now, we were never any good at it because wind didn't matter because we sprayed down the scent killer. yeah. How'd that work for you? We didn't shoot anything. And then it was in high school. I bought a used PSE baby G-Force from another neighbor. Shot that for a couple of years. Never had really good consistent luck with that because I was doing my own tuning because I was cheap and didn't know what I was doing.
So at this point you're pretty much just kind of going with the flow screwing around with buddies and just kind of winging it? Pretty much. I was hunting the family farm there and I remember a couple times, you know, I missed a buck. I know at one time I put the bow at the bottom of the tree and the biggest buck I ever seen walked by two minutes later as I'm climbing down. That's how that went. And then, you know, family is the way it is and I kind of got out of deer hunting. Okay. So then took a waterfowl for a little while, which I still do sometimes, but.
Now recently I got a place to hunt deer again, so I got back into archery pretty heavy. Was that all it took was just the change in place to kind of let a fire under you? Yeah, just because then I had a place to go, which not that I'm against public land, but I just wasn't into it because the way Pennsylvania is with hunting pressure, just didn't want to deal with it. Sure, sure, sure, sure. I got you. So talk a little bit about that property, you know, without being too, what's the word I'm looking for? I guess.
revealing of where it is or what it is but more along the lines of like how did you come across this property and talk about getting into deer hunting back into deer hunting with it so i i live right down the street from it and that's what i've moved in i was looking for a place to fox hunt that was close to the new house right because you do quite a bit of that yeah so i'd i talked knocked on his door i talked to him about fox hunting sure go ahead so then it was hunting foxes there and then i was there the one day in the site no i talked to him
Shortly after season ended he said he had a groundhog problem so then I started hunting groundhogs for him. And I was there one day hunting groundhogs and he was there and he was talking about the deer damage he had from you know from deer and the soybeans and groundhogs and that for that and the other so I asked him if you know do you eat deer hunt? He's like yeah I do when I have time so I said would you mind if I hunted archery? He's like no go ahead for a doe because he wanted to shoot buck and rifle which that's fine it's his place so
Mitchell Shirk (11:59.242)
Yeah, picked up that old baby G-Force and kind of got it half tuned up down at Little Mountain because I hadn't shot it for years. And of course that season didn't have any luck on that farm with that bow, but I actually finally killed my first archery deer in my backyard out of the saddle because I got one of them to hunt that farm. Okay.
that then kind of a fire under you. Yeah, which that got me going and I wanted a new bow, but I really had it in my head that I had to kill a deer with this bow before I could justify spending money for a, you know, a nicer newer bow. Well, and at this point too, are you, cause I know we've talked about this a little bit, like you're, you're, you're starting to get to a point where this is kind of, it has its hooks in you, but at that point, did it really have its hooks in you yet? I mean, I enjoyed it. I wasn't as into it as I am now. Like I enjoyed going and I,
Of course, didn't know what I was doing last season. You know, I learned a whole lot this season, but you know, it was it was building up, I should say, this season. So you killed your first deer with that bow and, know, that little fire a little bit for you and you decided you're to get a new rig and you got a bunch of new gear and you were kind of going into this this season as in 2024, a little bit fresher, different perspective. So I guess walk us through that. Yeah. So I got a new bow, you know, went down a little mountain.
I bought a new Matthews Lift, which is the first new bow I ever owned. And then, you know, over the summer it comes out there breaking limbs and everything else. thinking, I finally buy a new bow and they have problems. I haven't had a problem with it. much couple of other guys that have one that talked to haven't had issues. But so I had that in the back of my head, like at the beginning, like, great, you know, started this again and now we have this going on. Right. See, I did get a saddle the previous season to hunt that farm because I went into it late.
and didn't want hunt with a climber again and i didn't have any lock-ons and i didn't really have time to scout so i just kind of went scouted as i went with the saddle and yeah that's kind of long and short of getting into it for
Mitchell Shirk (14:03.15)
For this year so for this year. Yeah, so talk to me a little bit about going into this season Like you you get a new bow you got this new property You only got you know one year under your belt hunting it not even quite if I remember correctly But you know you go into hunting this new property tell me about what you were trying. What were your goals? What did you want to do and? like also Talk about your the preparation you had because you had that has a big life change is happening this year, too. Yeah, so
I kind of going back, I bought that new bow in November and then I find out... of 23. Yes, and then find out February that my wife is pregnant and she's due opening day of archery season or the day before. Do you know what we call that? What's that? Pissport planning. I'm just busting Just kind of happy to be there in a moment. No, that's in all reality the crude joke that that is. That's better than anything. So first of all, congratulations new dad. Yeah, thank you.
But see, once I found that out, I talked to the landowner and I said, hey, know, I'd like to hunt archery again this year. said, but I'd like to be able to shoot buck just because I am going to have limited time this season and I'm looking to just shoot whatever's the first thing that comes by. Yeah, right. Because you at this point, you'd shot buck before you never shot one with a bow, right? I never shot one with a bow. I only shot them in rifle. OK. yeah, spiking an eight point was the buck in the wall that I had. Nothing really special.
special to me but sure absolutely and that's a thing i've said a million times like nobody cares about what you like i'm i'm a firm believer that you're the only one that really cares about that the dear you should know everybody else is gonna forget what you should but anyway yeah which i've i figured that out more do it but i really don't care what anyone else thinks that issue but and that's a good at the good attitude to have really i'm here i'm hunting for myself that's what it is
So anyway, going into this season, you talked to the landowner. He was okay with you buck hunting on this property now. Correct. And I think that's a testament to you building a relationship and just gradually working your way into it. Yeah, that's exactly what that was. Because he learned that where you're at, you're a respectful person of his property and everything else. And that led to you having this opportunity. But continue. Yeah. So I found that out. Started running cameras in the summer.
Mitchell Shirk (16:24.226)
had some decent bucket velvet. Some would come and go. And I did a lot more scouting this summer and then it kind of got closer to the season. That's why I talked to you about coming down and helping me look at this place because I really still didn't have a clue what I was doing. Well, and I felt a little bit bad that of all the people that you had to ask you to get help that it was me, but I did what I could. So walk me through when you were looking at this property.
What were you seeing? What was going through your mind? And then I did do a scouting trip with you and we talked about some e-scouting stuff as time went on. What did you take away from your scouting this year leading into season? So what I knew about the property was that it held a lot of deer. It had very thick cover in the center of it. It had kind of a hardwood hillside to the east. then it had food, had water, it had cover. It had everything you needed, and it had deer.
which we figured that out. And then didn't have a whole lot of pressure because there wasn't many people that hunted it. I they around it. Just the perimeter, right? Yeah. So I had all that going for me and then went into scouting with kind of a different attitude, you know, ran cameras, had buck on camera. But I wasn't really expecting a whole lot out of it.
You say you weren't expecting a whole lot out of it. What do you mean by that? You weren't expecting like, you didn't see much as far as deer on camera that excited you or what do mean? Well, there was deer on camera that excited me, but I wasn't expecting to go in there and kill a 150 inch deer that nobody ever saw before on camera. Right, right, right. But there was deer there that you were respectable with and describe the...
Try to describe the terrain or what stuff looked like that you were hunting and then what you took away from your scouting and maybe things you might have adjusted from one point to the next. So when I at first went in there, I didn't know where they ran exactly. And I was lenient to blow them out, which looking back now, I realize I could have been more aggressive back then. But the cover that I was hunting was I was in the open woods, the open hardwood area.
Mitchell Shirk (18:36.002)
which was kind of a transition along the creek bed between real thick cover and then the neighbor's ag. Certainly. it was, in all reality, it was a, it was a really good spot to transition because the property is low pressure. I mean, you're basically the only one that's hunting it. Yes. But the problem with that property all the time is the wind direction. seems like no matter which way the wind's going, you're upwind a deer and then getting in.
without them smelling you is the hardest part for that land. is because the way it lays out, the best way I would describe it is it's a valley, creek bottom valley that runs east to west and then it meets another one that runs north and south and it's not stupid as far as like steep terrain, topography, but there's hills, there's undulation.
And with all those bottoms, some of it's a north side, some of it's south side. It's a recipe for lot of air mixing. And it's a tough property to access. Yes, it is. And I figured that out multiple times, even this season. Yeah, well, even the seasons before, what were some of the hard lessons learned there? Every time I would go in, I would either blow them out, walk it in, or the wind would switch because I didn't understand how thermals work.
So I'd be in the stand, know, maybe I have dough coming in and then Big Nanny dough smells you because the wind shifted and then we'll haunt over because she blew everything out of there So what changes did you make for this season? Paid attention to the wind. Okay. More than anything. Good. Realized wind direction, how that changes with thermals and you know pulling down the hill into the creek and access, know, this year access I went in through the creek a couple times, you know, with hip boots And that was kind of the best way to get in
to that hardwood bottom for a a north wind and I think it was for east wind. Yeah, a little bit about that because you had some serious preparation that goes into that, right? Yeah, I had to walk, I think it's like three or four hundred yards through the creek bottom, but and it starts off that you had to be in hip boots. You had to be in hip boots because there was two deep pockets that you had to walk through. There was no getting around them. And then I had to go through with a hedge trimmer and a chainsaw to get, you know, all the multi-floor rows and all the
Mitchell Shirk (20:53.568)
limbs that fell in the creek to walk through it. So it was quite the process to get in there just to make an access route. Gotcha. But once you did that, I mean, how much did that improve your access? I know one time I went in for a battery change and I walked right up on a spike when I crusted the creek bank. He had no idea I was there. Wind was right. So they didn't hear you coming in. They didn't smell you if the wind was right.
Yeah, and what's great about that creek bank is it's thick along the edges and with the terrain right along the creek, there's places that's really steep. So you're actually secluded by topography at a bunch of spots that you're, you're, it's pretty well hidden as far as the visual. So then the biggest thing you've got to worry about is your wind. But as long as it's calm, it seems like your air pulls down the creek.
Yeah, which I would drop milkweed every now and again walking through that creek and you could tell it just followed the creek down through the valley and it wasn't coming out of the banks. Gotcha. talk a little bit about, you changed your access, talk about your, your choice in stand location compared to other years on this property then. So once I figured out access routes and then I did a little, you know, scouting and figured out where they walked, it was little easier to pick a tree that was close by, but worked with the wind then.
and then having that saddle, you you climb any tree with a saddle and it's, you're there. Right. Which I was kind of skeptical about saddles until I got one and then I realized I love them. Okay. It's a good tool. It is. It isn't for everybody, but. I use it. For me, this is me personally, I like using the saddle as a tool, but to me it is not the end all be all. No, it's not. But it definitely for the property that you're hunting,
it's a simple solution for bumping around and adjusting, right? Yeah, which is pretty much what you had to do the whole time was move around and figure out how things are changing because even even as the archery season started and ended that everything changed with movement as crops came off and hunting pressure increased on the neighbor's side. Yeah, how many tree stands would you need on that property to cover?
Mitchell Shirk (23:02.476)
the property to the length that you need. With all the trees that I climbed, at least six lock-ons would have been a good number to have. And the thing with that I run into is it's not a property you own or have control of. So you could do all that work putting them six tree stands in for one season. You might hunt some of them one time and then you might have to take all of them down next year. never know. That's a pain in neck.
And I don't know if anybody walks through there, so I was worried about stuff getting stolen, because that does happen. But anyway, so you had figured out your access route. You were talking a little bit about stand location and stuff. What lead into that with going into season for this buck that you killed, because you killed a pretty nice buck really early. Yeah, so the first stand I hunted was in that hardwood hillside.
Yeah, which you would access from the top and just really just hunt the fringe of that bedding area Yeah, that's how I used to do it. Actually the first time I went in I walked in the creek And then of course the wind I knew it was gonna shift but it didn't shift soon enough and A group of does came through and they busted me You know within probably half an hour light. Okay, so that was a morning hunt. So that was a morning hunt I don't think I hunted the evening
that day you know because i had a newborn at that point he was you're talking this is opening day of season there was only a season which i had a newborn it was nine days old so props to my wife for even letting me go out yeah i'll say i gotta give her a big shout out there so then the next time that i was able to hunt was okay she's a shirk they're pretty cool yeah she said she'd give me a shout out on this podcast or else anyway so then the the next time i had to hunt i think it was the was the monday after opener and the wind
wind was coming out of the northwest so i talked to another neighbor that borders that property and they let me walk across their field just to get in from the east side so i went in from the east side that night and wind was good i did bump two doe out that i walked around they were in some thick cover that i never saw them and they skedaddled so i climbed the tree that i was in i knew it was a major crossing of the creek there
Mitchell Shirk (25:20.654)
when I was in trim and shooting lanes and I was mainly looking for the dough group that busted me that opening day because I kind of had it out for that big dough. That was a little vengeance on my side. 100%. So I climbed that tree. First time I was in that tree. Watched the button buck mess around there for probably an hour and a half. You know, I'd see a flash in the cornfield.
think here we go and then he gets a little closer and I'm like it's the button buck that I kept seeing. So he bedded down like 50 yards from me. He was there for a couple hours that night right before last light he got up and left. So I'm sitting in that tree and the wife's texted me you know when you coming back which I told her I'd be back you know after dark and you know newborn things she was kind of getting tired of it and wanting some help so that was probably like 630.
So it's in the back of my mind, I'm like, well, all I saw was this button buck and this doe group didn't come back through. So maybe I'll just get down. So right about the time I'm gonna start packing things in, I took one last look around and I see movement coming out of the east, which wasn't on a major trail, but there was a trail they use there. So quick grab the binoculars and I look and I see four on one side and I'm like, this is a legal buck and we got time, so.
quick put the binoculars away, grabbed the bow, spun around and I stopped him at about 11 yards. I shot him which nerves on the first archery buck. I hit him high but I hit him below the spine and in front of the diaphragm so it was a double lung hit. with this year I went to those single bevel broadhead, know, razor sharp. Went right through him, didn't make a big pop and he kind of trotted like 30 yards and then stood there for a little bit and started getting dizzy and fell over.
So then I'm like, this is it, this is over. So then quick called the wife and say, Hey, I just shot a buck and she was thrilled to hear Cause then you were done early. Yeah. Back to being dad mode. Well, she was really thrilled that I was not going to be home when I said I would, but she was glad that I was done early with a bucket lease. Short-term pain to ease the long-term solution for her. That's what I keep telling her, but I don't think she listens. You know how she is. I don't know what you're talking about.
Mitchell Shirk (27:45.1)
So you connected on that buck. Was that the year you had pictures of? I actually, I never had pictures of that buck, which he was an eight point. I don't know what he scored. I don't care. I don't care that much.
I would say looking at the buck, mean it's a really nice buck. It's probably like a 110 inch deer. Was that your best buck you ever killed? I'd have to actually measure it to compare to the 8-point I shot years ago in rifle, but he's probably bigger than that one. so by far your best experience as far as a bow kill is your first buck with a bow, the excitement, and the hard work. Tell me about the satisfaction you had doing all the
did and the things that you changed going into this season for it to be successful? It was really nice to see it all come together, seeing that I did different preparation and prepared more. Was there anything else that you did different than other years past as far as preparation, things that stand out that you would have never done years ago? Yeah, I stopped paying any attention to scent killer and stuff like that. Just played the wind? I just played the wind. I never washed clothes in scent-free detergent.
I'd throw them on the bedroom floor when I was done and put them on the next morning if they were still clean and the way I went, I just paid attention to the wind. That was probably the biggest thing that helped me because before I'd be like, well, I sprayed down so I should be able to get away with this. Well, figured out you can't. Right. And that's a thing that some people never learn, to be honest with you. You know, I for the longest time, I would still do a lot of scent.
cleaning preparation type stuff. I would still watch the wind, I would, you know, pain myself to keep my clothes clean and do this and be scent free. And I thought it got to a point where was like, why am I bothering with all of this headache and hassle if it doesn't work and they still smell me and I got to watch the wind? So was like, what does it matter if I stink really bad? Yeah, that's kind of where I was at with it. I was tired of, you know, being so mindful of washing this and keeping this clean and.
Mitchell Shirk (29:52.622)
I just said, you know what? We're gonna hunt deer like we hunt predators and just play the wind and call it a day. It's time for fall food plots and I encourage you to look no further this year than planting vitalized seeds carbon load. Guys, this is a highly diverse plant mix of grains, grasses, brassicas, and legumes that is extremely winter hardy. It gives great tonnage and it's browse tolerant. This thrives after the nitro boost and it acts as a weed barrier in the springtime.
and not to mention all the benefits it does for your native wildlife, giving ample tonnage and sequestering nutrients from deep within the soil. Check it out at vitalizeseed.com where you can get your order today and learn more about soil health and providing great tonnage to wildlife this fall.
Dreaming of owning a hunting property, small farm or remote homestead? Or maybe it's to sell and move on to your next adventure? Whatever your dream is, Steve Choco and Basecamp Country Real Estate can make it happen. Basecamp Country Real Estate land professional Steve Choco is dedicated to providing unparalleled service in the land real estate market with national advertising power that turns for sale into sold fast. Visit us online at Chocoforster.com or call Steve today at 814-360-454-5255.
Again 814-360-4510 Right, it worked. And that's I mean do you think a lot of that had to do with your experience predator hunting? yeah, because I figured out you know predators though they get one whiff and they're gone And I never hunted with scent killer with them I just knew that they were gonna be downwind you work and I get a shot 100 % Which I don't know why it took me so long to put two and two together, but it's all the same
It doesn't matter how long, it's part of the journey of learning. It's just a matter of figuring out and moving on. Yes. So some people, some people takes longer. I'm pretty stupid. So it takes me a lot longer to learn stuff than other people, but you learn that pretty darn quick if you're only bow hunting two or three years. So hats off to you for that. So congratulations on an awesome buck. Tell me where your frame of mind was for the rest of the season after you filled your buck tag on day two of the season. Yeah, I was, I was just looking to basically fill doe tags at that point.
Mitchell Shirk (32:05.55)
And then I was getting out whenever I could you know having a baby you get you get time when you get time and right I probably hunted more in archery than I should have because the wife was sick of it by that point, but Ended up the times I had to go out. I either had just button bucks or Dough that were too far so I didn't hunt a whole lot more in that archery season or this archery season just because of you having a kid and having time to go but so then
figured I will do it in rifle and if I still have tags left then we'll try for late archery if the life lets me. Right, right. I think that's a pretty good thing. We've bounced around this conversation quite a bit as far as communicating with your wife and a newborn and hunting and I know you're like me, you probably wanted to hunt every possible chance that you could but there was a new balancing act. Talk about your experience in that phase of your marriage because that was
completely new for both of you and that really can throw a monkey wrench into things in a good way, but it's an adjustment. Yeah, it was different because of course, you know, had a new bow. I wanted to use it. You know, I had one buck under my belt. I really wanted to get a dough with that bow. So, you know, I was probably being selfish more than I should have.
and I would go sometimes when I shouldn't have but then I would stay home sometimes and either give her a break when she went out with her friends or something. it was a big communicating thing where definitely had to talk about it prior. Good. Yeah, huge. That's important. But she was probably more lenient than she should have been too.
That's that's part of marriage and I just said this on an episode not long ago I've heard now that I've done this podcast and I've heard this from buddies off of off the air I've heard it in hunting media many many times about you know building Brownie points and you know doing as much as you can in the offseason to be there so that way when your time comes in the fall, you know, you've earned this and I'm not saying it doesn't
Mitchell Shirk (34:13.525)
like that for some people that may be checks and balances in some marriages, but I truly believe that most of the time that very thing is something that guys create in their head to justify it and make it okay and that their significant other has to live with that. for me personally, and I think for a lot of people, I don't think it works that way. think it's loving your spouse and being present and communicating what's your goals and
aspirations are and then working together to do that in a way that is good for both of you. You know, I was, I was, and I'm saying this because I was that, you know, stickler this year in my sense, in a sense too, because, know, my wife was away coaching field hockey for a bunch of months, a couple of weeks, I should say. And, you know, I had it in my head that, you know,
I'm, you know, she was away this amount of time and that should equal this amount of time away from me. And it just, it's just not how it works. It's just me adding up to so many hours that she's gone and comparing that to how many days away I go, it's different because if I go away for five days hunting, that's five days from morning till night with her no support. That's her getting up, you know, being with the kids, getting them ready, taking them to the babysitter, going to work, you know.
meals, everything like it is a lot on her and that doesn't mean that her, you know, hockey schedule where she's away four hours a night, it just doesn't add up. And for me to think that is completely selfish. And I'm using my example because there's a lot of other examples for, for marriages and couples and guys out there that, would have that kind of logic. Right. And
Some spouses probably don't view it that way. And the only way you're going to know is if you communicate. So I went on a rambling tangent there just to say, don't stop communicating. Don't stop supporting and loving your wife because that's, at the end of the day, the most important thing that we can do. Yeah. I can tell you right now that Brownie points just doesn't work in my relationship because it's not even, you know, if she went out with her friends and it was fine with the baby and then I went out hunting and the baby was upset the whole time. Well, that's
Mitchell Shirk (36:32.526)
It's different. 100%. How do you measure that? You can. You can. And it all goes back to communicating what each other is comfortable doing and what your goals are. Because, you know, I could tell you right now, my goal is to hunt as much as possible and shoot as many buck as I possibly can in Jersey and Pennsylvania and bear hunt and all this. And I could tell you right now, my wife cares not a single bit about that. All she wants is for me to be fulfilled in what I'm doing. And she does support me in that.
She could care less. were talking about that earlier. You know, just like you said, I don't care what anybody thinks of what I shoot or what I do and how I do it. Guess what? My wife really doesn't care what I shoot. She just cares that I'm fulfilled personally and that we got some meat in the freezer. that's, and you have to personally, I think if you're in a relationship, you got to, you've got to keep that into consideration. She probably has goals in what you're doing too. And I think it's selfish to, to just look past that. Yeah.
But, well we're cutting up a bunch of deer here as I said in beginning of this podcast and you obviously blasted all of them in short order. So you did some archery hunting, no other kills this year. You got into rifle season and tell me what happened. So somehow I talked Kristen and letting me go out and rifle, you know, with a newborn yet. So went out opening morning. You didn't take the newborn with you? No, I think it was a little bit too cold for him. That's true. It was pretty stinking.
So I went out opening day, same farm. I was actually in the same tree that I shot my buck in. I figured I had a good view of that cut corn field to see what happens. opening day, it's a war zone as soon as light starts. really? Yep. So every neighbor is shooting. I'm seeing Doe run across the top of the field, silhouetted in the early morning light there. And I had a four point come walking through directly downwind. He figured out I was there and he
booked it out but she was already in a hurry to get through. And then I'm pretty sure it was that same button buck that I kept seeing all archery season come stumbling through. have couple videos of him just milling around directly downwind looking at me, not a care in the world. And I went out not realizing how cold it was because I didn't look at the forecast and I'm kind of hard-headed. So I didn't have enough clothes on and it was about nine o'clock and I'm thinking about getting down because I'm cold and I wasn't seeing any deer at that point.
Mitchell Shirk (39:01.966)
915 I look up and there's six dough coming over the ridge in the cornfield and about a hundred and seventy yards from where I was but I figured well now's the time to do this because I'm cold and I want to get down so I ended up shooting two of those should have had three but I was waiting to put a follow-up shot in the second one because she didn't drop right away so drag them out clean them up and then
Luckily I was able to get out Sunday. So I got a late start because I was helping a friend look for a buck that his son shot at. It's that opening day. We were out till about midnight and didn't find it. So I got home late, I got up late, I slept in. Only went out about 10 o'clock. So I went, just figured I'll still hunt on the ground. I didn't feel like climbing a tree. And I went walking in through
top corner that one field which wind wasn't good for that whole east side hillside again and two steps in the wood i busted dough and a yearling out figured great that's way this gonna go so i walked about five hundred yards up over the the ridge there and i knew there was a valley in the back that they they would hang in i figured with pressure they're gonna be in there so for about an hour i just crept over that ridge glassing into that little valley
Maybe, I 50 yards from the edge I felt the wind on the back of my neck then. And then probably that same doe and yearling got up and took off. Never stopped across to the neighbor's side. And I was kind of disheartened a little bit. So, I went down to the barn that's there and actually the landowner was there showing a guy some hay. talked to him for a while and I glassed through the valley that's in there. Didn't see nothing. So then I walked back and, which I had walked down the lane.
which is going east to west and I kicked up probably the same button buck again. then I get another leg. Yeah, we'll just talk for now. But then, so I walked back the lane kind of wind in my back and I figured I wasn't going to see anything. So I kicked up a four point and like, something came back in after I was through. So there's no underground at this point. No, it was just real frozen.
Mitchell Shirk (41:26.262)
So it was real quiet walking and I could go I was healed it's pretty much on that dirt road Which was actually kind of concrete at some spots because it washed out But then I'm real slow And I just happened to catch out of the corner my tail flicking the bushes maybe 25 yards away. I'm like, here we go so I'm watching and I see another tail flick and I okay there's two and trying to make sure they're not button bucks again and looking real close looking real close and
there's the front half. Yep. I got a, not a clear shot. So this probably went on for maybe, maybe two minutes at the most. And it felt like 10 minutes that I was there, maybe an hour. Always does. And I'm, you know, trying to creep front and not let them see me, which wind was good. So as long as I was slow, I was probably all right. So I finally get a clear shot at this one in the front. Shoot, you know, 25 yards, but it was through some brush and she took off and I'm like, great. You know, it's real thick in there. Hands and knees. You got to crawl on to get through it.
So I'm walking, I walked over where I shot her and I found some blood and I'm like, cool. So I start following the blood and then I seen a piece of stomach matter on the ground. I'm like, great. And my heart sank cause I'm like, don't tell me I, know, gut shot her. Who knows where she's going to go. And I'm walking and blood got better and then blood got worse. And I ended up tracking her for like 182 yards through all this thick stuff, know, sticker bushes everywhere. Yeah. It's as thick as you can get. Finally found her then.
which I'm guessing it had deflection because it hit her, hit her back a little bit, which was kind of a liver shot. And then it came out front left shoulder, pretty much perfect. So we've got one lung in there at least, but she must've been quartered a little hard than I thought. And yeah, who knows if I hit bushes going through, but then I found her and worked out. You were tagged out pretty damn quick. Yeah. So second day of rifle season, I was tagged out for the year, which is
But first for a while. And that was really when you talk about goals, your goal was filling the freezer. My goal was filling the freezer after I shot that buck. That's what I was going for. And you accomplished that. And the one question I had for you was you talked about your drive picking up archery hunting. And you got excited. You shot your first deer with that old PSE. You bought a new bow. You really wanted to kill your first buck with a bow. You accomplished that.
Mitchell Shirk (43:46.734)
You scouted, you did all this preparation, now your goal of filling the freezer. At this point where you're at, has anything made you like, now I want to try this, or I want to achieve this goal? Or are you at the point now where it's just going to continue to say, I just want to fine tune what I'm learning in the woods, what I'm learning about this property to be better with X? What's going through your mind now when you think about futures and goals and stuff like that?
I don't really have any goals as far as like I want to shoot you know a 130, a 140. I want to get to the point where I can pick up on sign and say up this is where I need to be you know maybe one or two sits and you get it done in that spot you know just be a better woodsman is the goal that I have going forward. And increase your efficiency because as we were talking earlier in this conversation time is not on your side as far as hunting when it comes to family and everything else.
And that's big. And I think that's an awesome goal to have. the thing I run into with that, you know, I've had that, that struggle in the past, you know, last year I had a really great season and it seemed like every time I went in the woods, I was, I was shooting stuff. was being, it was efficient, right? And there was this weird feeling of not, not feeling completely fulfilled or, or, or like it wasn't as
how I want to order this. It just felt weird that I was done so quick. was one of those where I realized that while I love to shoot deer, I love to fill my tags, I wanted to enjoy hunting more than just killing. So there was like, even though I accomplished a goal of being efficient and only have so much time, it was weird. like, I just have to find like my own personal fulfillment in how I view my season. So that's why like this year I looked at it and said, one of the things I enjoy
was spending time at camp and being with the guys at camp. I tried to set my season up that I would spend more time in rifle season at camp. And that's something I've never really done. But I enjoyed it. you know, first three days I was there, I'm going back up this weekend for another three days. And I might not kill as much as I have in the past where I've got more scouting. I'm hunting properties with higher deer. But
Mitchell Shirk (46:11.054)
There's a sense of accomplishment and drive in that place, in that setting for me. So that's kind of where I'm finding my fulfillment. That's a range. don't know why I went on that tangent, but I did. But congratulations on one heck of a season. So now what are you going to do from now until next year season? I'll probably make bologna and bratwurst hot dogs. Bologna and bratwurst. Slowly chip away at the stuff in the freezer now. I like it. I like it. Well, this was fun. I never did a podcast cutting up deer.
We just finished up one or two hindquarters. I don't know. It seemed like it was really quick when you got two guys. And also when you're talking, it goes quicker. Cause if you're, if you're butchering by yourself and you've got nobody to keep you occupied stuff, I just feel like it's the most slow, boring mundane thing when you do it with people and always more fun. Yeah. I brought, I think it was maybe two hinds and then two fronts. I was like, this will take a while. And we're done here in about half an hour. I'm like,
It just didn't take long at all. No, well you had a bunch of them. Do you have most of them deboned? You still got more to debone? No, this was the first one off the hook. First one out of three. That's the problem when you shoot them. Once the trigger gets pulled, the work begins. Well, congratulations again. Thanks for doing this. Is there anything else that you want to leave us with before we close out? Nothing I can think of other than thank your wife when she lets you go. That's a great one. That's a great one. We'll catch you on the next one, pal. Thanks again. No problem.
