Chapter 1 September

Ok guys, here it is! Our first episode is up and we are super stoked about it! This is a hunting video blog of the early season through September! It has been a great start to the season, we have been seeing a lot of deer and a lot of good bucks. We have a very promising season ahead of us, and we are hoping for great success. So stay with us and follow us through the season! Our next episode will release at the end of October. We are doing a collection of every month, then at the end of the season we will do one big movie. I hope you guys enjoy this video and be sure to give us feedback on Facebook and Twitter.

2012 Intro

After gathering some new footage, we decided it was time that we put together a new introduction for our videos. Now this is always subject to change with better footage to come but right now, it looks great with what we have and we all love it. It is something to watch to get you pumped up and ready to get in the woods! Please check it out and let us know what you think!! Watch below or click on the words "2012 Intro" to watch it on Vimeo with better quality. 2012 Intro

Average Hunter Podcast!

A few weeks ago I came across this blog that was all about the "Average Hunter", and instantly I was intrigued. As you all know the Whitetail Chasers team is all about the average hunter because we are all "average hunters." We are full time college students and full time workers who have a passion to hunt. Well when I listened to some of the podcasts and read some of the articles on the blog, I really enjoyed what Matt was doing. So I went ahead and got his email and I just said hey I like what you have going on and I myself and team are average hunters lets talk more. Well as we got to talking he was infatuated with the idea of being a full time college student/athlete. He then asked me to do a podcast with him and to just talk about that and the challenges and just other things that I am associated with on here and on the Huntography blog. Well last night we did the recording for the podcast, and it was edited and uploaded this morning and it just turned out awesome! Now my phone quality isn't the best that is why it sounds like it is cracking a lot but that's not the point. So everyone give it a listen and I hope you all enjoy what Matt and I put together to represent the Average Hunter. You can listen to it by clicking on the word podcast here: Podcast

All the information for Matt's blog and Twitter and Facebook is all listed here:
Blog-- http://www.averagehunter.com/
Twitter--@averagehunter
Facebook--http://www.facebook.com/AverageHunter

Please check it out and give us some feedback on our Facebook! Thanks!

Opening Day Success

Shout out to a good friend of ours and a member of the team at Huntography Rob Freyer for taking down an awesome buck he calls "Curly" on opening day yesterday! Congrats Rob, and awesome deer! Members Jeff and Chris were also out yesterday self filming their hunts and did not have any success yet but it is looking to be an awesome season! It is still early in the year! 

Arrow Wraps

Check out these awesome new custom arrow wraps that we made for the season! This is an awesome product and very easy to make! They are also very cheap for the amount and quality you get. You can just also add on custom camo for only a dollar and a neat product that is called double dog which is a clear coat that goes on top so that the ink doesn't spread on a pass through for only 3 extra bucks! It is just a very cool product to deck out your arrows! Just head over to www.onestringer.com and start customizing your own wraps! A great product that we are excited to have this year!!

WE ARE BACK!!

WE ARE BACK GUYS! It has been a long summer and no posts, but we are back in action with hunting season right around the corner. The WTC members have been hard at work on our property. Members Jeff and Chris, have hung some new stands in possibly are honey holes for the year, and they have been checking trail cameras regularly. Let me tell you, the results we have seen on our camera is amazing! We have a new buck that moved to the top of our hit-list that we call "Nomad" cause we have never seen him before till this year. And we have a good crop of young bucks that have potential to be studs in the near future if we do our deer management right. All in all it has been a great summer, but the season is right around the corner and we are pumped up! Bow season starts September 7th, and we will be on a quest to take down a velvet buck!! Keep checking back for we have more posts to come and footage to come when the season starts!

FISH ON!!

Wow, that is the only word I can use to describe fishing on Saturday. WTC member Jeff, me (Shane), and good friend Scott Stenta (Scooter) were out on the Flats again for a full day of action! We were on the water at sunrise and didn't get off till about 3 in the afternoon. We hammered the Rockfish from the first cast to the last. Our first two catches of the day came on the first two casts, and they were about a 30 inch Cow and a 38 inch Cow, caught by my Dad and I. I think all 3 of us together caught about 60 total, of course it is the catch and release season. We did hook into a monster fish, when it took the lure it swam off and almost took all the line out of my reel. So dad got the boat in reverse and we backed up onto the fish, and when we got even with it to where I could start to reel it in, the fish came off. But to our surprise when I reeled it in, there was a scale on the hook about a little bigger then a quarter. So that right there shows the fish was bigger then the 38 inch Cow we caught. I guess that fish will go down as a legend and a myth now! I know that I had an awesome day and I am sure Dad and Scooter did also. It was unbelievable day and I wouldn't trade it for anything else! There is also a video in the making, so be watching out for that! Below are some pictures of the day. Let us know what ya think on Facebook!

Scooter with a medium sized one!

Jeff with a nice catch. We caught lots of this size!

Dad and I enjoying a day on the water!

The big 38 inch Cow we caught!!

Just to give you an idea on how big it was.

Dad with his nice 30 inch Cow he caught first cast!

Fishing Strong!

Well as you all know, the break between Deer Season and Turkey Season can seem like the longest and most boring wait. Well for us to pass time, we get out and go after some rock fish. About this time every year the Rock fish make there way up to the Susquehanna Flats and we got out and just have fun. WTC member Jeff and Chris have had the opportunity to go out a lot! They did some early season flounder fishing as seen on earlier posts and over the past couple weeks they have made some trips out to go after the Stripers. We have had a good amount of success with some smaller ones, but haven't gotten into the big boys yet. My Dad and I went out Monday and it was a rough, windy, cold day but we hung in there and didn't get skunked! No Rocks but we did manage to catch a nice Largemouth Bass. So it was worth every second of that trip. We have been drifting through 7-10 feet of water while jigging and using rattletraps. It has worked so far, so if you manage to make it out to the Flats give that a try and let us know how you do! Below is some pictures of our success:

Late October Big Buck Down!

This is the story of Chris Streaker's biggest buck he has ever killed. This story was also written by him. He is a great hunter and a great person. Him and I are great hunting buddies and will always be great hunting buddies. He deserves this more then anyone I know because he has worked his whole hunting career for a deer like this. He has put in so much time and effort over the years and it has paid off. This deer was taken on a little 8 acre piece of property that he hunts. He has shot many does' off the property but this was the only buck and the biggest buck he has seen in the woods! Congrats to my good friend Chris Streaker!

It was a mild evening on the eve of the rut. The sun had begun to set to my right. I was hunting just off of a bait pile. I had been in my stand all day and I was anxious. My legs had started to get that tingling feeling they get after sitting perfectly still for almost an hour. You see for nearly an hour I had been watching a group of deer. Watching and waiting. What I was waiting for I’m not sure. I like to think it was my hunting intuition. This night felt different. It was really getting dark now. I ever so carefully stood up. The group of deer had made their way directly underneath me. I figured being thirty feet up in a big pine would be enough to keep out of eyesight. My thought was right. Oh the joy of owning a climber.

I was beginning to go against my better judgment. I had picked out a big doe to shoot. I put my trigger release on its loop and raised my bow. My pin was set. My finger was on the release. NO WAIT. My brain froze just long enough to catch a glimpse of big ivory spikes to my right. My brain almost didn’t even register the image. Just ten yards below my stand, the biggest buck I had ever see while hunting was walking towards the group of does. He lunged at the does as they all scattered. At that same moment he stopped, quartered away from me and stuck his nose down where a doe had stood a second before. He was sniffing to find out if she was in heat. From the time I first saw him to this very moment I felt as if an eternity had just passed by. In actuality it had probably been ten seconds. I snapped back from my dream state. My bow was still drawn and my finger on the release. I estimated the shot to be twenty yards. I aimed and pulled the trigger release. I watched the vanes of the arrow spin as the arrow flew towards the brute. (I always shoot with both eyes open so that I can watch my arrow in flight). The arrow stuck as it hit home right into the boiler maker. I froze in shock. Only two things on me were moving. My eyes as they watched the deer take off, crashing through the brush out of sight with my arrow still in him. The other was my heart which was beating so hard that I became lightheaded. I had finally done it. My quest for a wall hanger was finally over. How wrong that thought was.

I waited in my stand and passed the time by calling my friends and family who hunt. I told them what had just happened. The whole time other deer were still filtering through to have their evening meal. I guess they had figured out that I wasn’t going to shoot them this night because they didn’t seem to care that I was thirty yards from them and talking at normal volume on my phone. So after at least a half an hour had passed and dark had set in I climbed down. I walked immediately over to where I had shot him. I had hair and a few drops of blood. This is good I say with delight. I began to track him through the brush, across the land owner’s driveway, and into the big woods beyond. I lost his trail after that though. There is a fence that borders the neighbor’s property and the deer often flee over the fence so I thought maybe I could pick up the blood trail again at the fence. Sure enough he had crossed it so under the fence I went. Across the stretch of woods, across the neighbor’s driveway, and into another big woods I followed again. This time the trail was heavy.

I must admit, at this point I should have backed out and waited until morning. After all, I had just traveled about one hundred fifty yards at this point. Alas, I continued the pursuit. Down into the woods I went following the thick crimson trail. Suddenly I stopped up as I heard crashing just up ahead. I figured that I had definitely just spooked up the buck. Sure enough in twenty more yards I came across a big thicket. I crawled on hands and knees following his blood trail until I came upon his bedding area. Blood was everywhere. That was it I thought to myself. I’ll never find him now. All the same, I crawled the rest of the way out of the thicket and marked the spot. I marked a trail all the way back to my hunting area and called it a night. What a long night that was.

The next day my hunting buddy, Matt and I, went back and followed the ribbon back to where I had left off. We back tracked first because we both thought that my arrow should have fallen out somewhere along the way and I had just passed over it in the dark. We looked and looked but couldn’t find it so we went back to the marking tape. On and on we tracked. Finally after three spots where he had nearly dried up and one attempt at circling back to lose us we came up to a deep ditch. Down into the ditch the trail continued and we thought for sure he would be somewhere at the bottom. After all, we had gone across four properties and an approximate eight hundred yards at this point. I know, almost sounds impossible doesn’t it? But no he had somehow made it up the ditch and into someone’s backyard; someone whom we hadn’t been able to get permission from to be on their property. Luckily though they were outside so I could yell to them and ask for their permission and tell them what I was doing. By now I was standing in their yard and by the time I was done telling him we were tracking down my deer he was pointing and saying “Oh you mean that one”.

Low and behold no more than thirty yards off to my right was the deer. I hadn’t noticed it before because half of him was covered by a fallen branch. The way I figured it the buck had barely made it up the ditch and, dizzy with all the blood loss, must have ran right into the branch and became lodged in it. To weak to get up again, he drew his last breath right where he laid. Strangely enough my arrow was still lodged in him and in one piece. Matt and I thanked the old couple for telling us he was there and we drug him up to their driveway. We walked back using the side road going to the couples house and all the way back around to the property where my truck was and we retrieved the deer. I drove us back to the hunting property to field dress him. I wanted to know exactly what I punctured with my arrow. So while dressing him I was checking organs. The liver was fine. Both lungs were fine. I got to the heart. Now as if him traveling some eight hundred and fifty yards with half an arrow stuck in him wasn’t hard enough to imagine, what I found next was unfathomable. I had managed to pierce his heart. Not all the way though but come on seriously. So somehow this animal traveled eight hundred and fifty yards with an arrow sticking half way out of him and making mincemeat out of his heart every step of the way.

At the end of all this he wasn’t quite as big as I thought he was. Ground shrinkage really can do a number on gross score. I didn’t care though. This was an incredible journey and I felt like I truly bonded with this magnificent animal. Depending on what stage of hunting you’re in the journey makes the hunt. This truly was a once in a lifetime experience.

Late October 2011

Weapon: PSX XForce

Arrow: Carbon Express Predator 2

Broad Head: NAP Thunderhead 125 Grain

Harnesses For Hunters!

Harnesses for Hunters is such an amazing thing that Will Jenkins of The Will To Hunt has put together. To many hunters are taking their lives into their own hands when getting in a tree stand without any type of safety harness on. Well Will wanted to stop this fatality from happening, so he came up with this great idea to supply hunters who are not able to purchase a harness with one! He has teamed up with Hunter Safety System and has came up with a solution! All tree stands now come with a harness in them, well If any hunters out there do not want that harness they can donate it to Will and he will find someone who does need one. Right there, the person who just donated has saved a life. It is such an easy task but the ending result is something much bigger, it is keeping one father or son, mother or daughter safe again in the woods. Please, if you have any extra harnesses contact Will to donate them. And for any hunter that needs a harness, you can contact Will and he will get you one.

For all information on contacting Will and for more information on donating or obtaining a harness, go to this website: http://www.thewilltohunt.com/p/harnesses-for-hunters.html

We want to see all hunters return home safe to their families!

Planet Whitetail!

Planet Whitetail is another great hunting blog you should all check out! My friend Dave is the founder of the blog and is a great guy! He lives his life through outdoors and shares every second of it on his blog! I first found his website searching for hunting blogs based in Maryland, and his was one that came up and I instantly enjoyed every aspect of it! He is always after something new in the hunting world that he can write about. He posts pictures of success in Maryland and in many other states. He also publishes interviews with fellow hunters who have a great story to share, and even great deals on hunting supplies. He has even worked with North American Whitetail Magazine! He is a great hunter and a great writer. We are both part of Maryland Huntography as field editors and even though I have never personally met Dave yet, all the conversations we have had and all his work he has put into his blog shows his true love for the outdoors! He is a great guy and I know we will be friends for a long time to come. Go check out his awesome blog at www.theplanetwhitetail.blogspot.com he just posted a great write up about the new Maryland State Record Buck!! Check it out!

Flounder Fishing!

Whitetail Chasers members Jeff and Chris took some time off this weekend to get out and go flounder fishing in the Indian River Inlet. And they had some pretty good success for it being a cold, windy, rainy, foggy day. Not the ideal conditions but they hung tough and caught some nice fish! They were using minnows on a Gulp Minnow Jig all day. It is times like this where spending time in the outdoors creates and brings friendships closer. There is nothing else better then being out hunting or on the boat fishing with your buddies! Good times and good memories!!

This is Jeff with one of the mornings catch!

This is Chris with a 20 inch flounder!

The cool pattern that Flounder have on one side to help them blend on the bottom!

The other side of them is white! Such neat fish!

The Will to Hunt

Will Jenkins is a full blown outdoors man! He lives and breathes for being in a stand or even just blogging about it. The passion he has for hunting has led to the creation of The Will to Hunt. It is a blog where he writes about everything that has to do with hunting all around the world, from stories of his own encounters in the woods, to interviews with other hunters. It is a really great blog, and I visit it daily. He is also a fellow huntographer representing Virginia! He has great things to offer for the outdoor world. Well, Will came to me over a week ago and asked if I could write up a story of my first archery buck that I took this past season. I was so excited I instantly said yes! And so I wrote up the story and sent him pictures and he posted it on his site! It is an honor to be able to be a part of his blog! I am thankful that I have met Will. And I know we will be friends for a long time! Everyone please go check his blog and I promise you will love it! www.thewilltohunt.com

Maryland Huntography

As seen in an earlier post, we talk about how amazing Huntography is and how it is a movement. Well it has spread and Rudy, the creator of Huntography, has created what he calls a "hyper local" reaction. Each state that he has videoed and met amazing people in, he has asked them to represent the state and blog about all the hunting activity going on in the state. Well Rob Freyer is the man Rudy has asked to be the Managing Editor for Maryland! And Rob has asked WTC member Shane Muller to be one of the Field Editors! He is proud to be working with Rob, Dave Ziegler, and Tim Babikow to represent Maryland! Go check out Maryland Huntography at www.maryland.huntography.com Shane has one blog already posted in contribute with many more to come!

A Big Thank You!

Everyone on the Whitetail Chasers team would like to give a huge thank you to our proud partners at Kershaw Knives. They have provided us with some of the best outdoor knives! These are the most durable and and high quality knives in the hunting world. The knives that we have are from the Hunting and Outdoors category that they have, but they specialize in all different types such as: cooking cutlery, fishing, pocket knives, tools and many more. If you are looking into purchasing a knife please go give Kershaw a look and we promise you, that they will not let you down. Again, we would like to thank Kershaw for all that they have done for us. Here is the website for Kershaw: http://kershawknives.com/products.php?brand=kershaw

Huntography

Huntography. This is not just another hunting DVD, it is a documentary of real hunters that have met over social media. This is a really amazing concept, there is nothing else out there like this DVD. Rudy has created a movement, and inspiration for the average person who just loves to hunt. I myself am not on the DVD, but that doesn't matter because as an average person going to school and working I still love to hunt, and meeting Rudy over social media and learning about his movement has changed my life. I feel like I am apart of what he is trying to prove, that we are all real hunters and that we all have the potential to be great. Huntography is something every real hunter out there should look in to, it will change the way you feel about a great american tradition. Thanks for the inspiration and I look forward to the new DVD! Anyone that reads this needs to go to http://www.huntography.com/ and find what you have been missing.

Pictures

This is a deer skull that Jeff Muller found. Looked like a young one. Also you will see a natural creek that lays in a section of our woods, it is really beautiful. Next, you will see a big track that I found in some mud! And you will also find a Reality Driven Pursuits hat, they are good friends of ours and have helped us out a lot!

Scouting

Well sadly we did not find any sheds, but we did get some good scouting done on our property for new places to hang stands! Found some really good sign: bedding areas, trails, tracks and some rubs! And I did snap a few pictures while walking.

Finally

Whitetail Chasers members Jeff Muller, Chris Carnley and Shane Muller are getting out tomorrow to do some shed hunting! Look out for some pictures!! Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Check out Apparition Scents

Go see Apparition Scents this Friday at the Laurel Conservation Show in New Castle, Pa. Show starts at 5:30. They have some awesome products for the hunting world that everyone should try and get their hands on! They are a great company!

Photographs

Some cool photos that member Jeff Muller took today while out getting some footage.

Have a great week!

Hope everyone's week has been great! We are working hard at work, school, and practice. We will hopefully be getting out next Sunday to go shed hunting and just getting some film! So look out for new pictures and a video to come soon!

WTC member Jeff Muller

Check out this awesome gobbler that team member Jeff Muller called in and took down!!

Turkey Season

Who is ready for turkey season? If you have any pictures of some past success, post them on our facebook page and we will share them on there and on here! We would love to hear some stories also!

2011 Season

2011 Season

The video is up and ready, this is just a collection of some clips and pictures from our 2011 season. Hope you all enjoy!

A Big Thanks

I would like to give a huge thanks and show my appreciation, to my friends of Reality Driven Pursuits. These guys are the real deal, and a group of the nicest dudes. Chad has helped me out a lot with getting this started and with helping me accomplish one of my biggest goals in life, and I greatly appreciate him for that. These guys are real hunters doing real hunts, and they also live normal lives and work normal jobs. They have some great footage and great stories, go check out there website www.RealityDrivenPursuits.com and watch all their episodes and make sure to check out there new 2012 Promo, they have some great stuff coming up this season! They are out sending the message that the whole hunting world needs to receive. And make sure you buy a nice RDP hat! Keep it up guys, and I can't wait for the new season! Thanks for everything guys, hopefully we can get you out to Maryland for a deer hunt!

Thanks everyone.

As the 2011-2012 season ends

As the 2011-2012 season came to an end for Whitetail Chasers, we look back and think on some of the fun times and exciting hunts we had. We unfortunately didn't get to film any deer being taken this season due to a late filming start but we had a successful hunting year as a team. We took a couple of bucks and a couple of does'. We did also get some good late season footage of some young does'. We had a fun year, we have some great guys on the team including Chris and Jeff. Great guys to be around and great hunters. Stay tuned for the season coming up. We have some awesome ideas and hunts in-stored for our fans. We will be doing some shed hunting soon and will hopefully get pictures and a video up for you guys. We also are hoping to get a turkey hunt on film for ya. Hope you guys are enjoying what we are doing! Thank you all.

Get ready for guest appearances!

Whitetail Chasers Introduction

Hey guys, we just finished getting the website set up and running and it will probably be edited over time but we hope you guys enjoy what we are going to bring to the hunting world. We have some great hunts and hopefully great videos in-stored for you guys for the 2012 hunting season coming up! Get ready!

To contact Shane Muller email:
Shane.Muller@email.wesley.edu