Ask Ross

If you have questions about the outdoors, don’t hesitate to drop me an e-mail and we’ll try to answer your question. If we don’t have an immediate answer, we will research and get an answer for you.

These questions can be about hunting, fishing, backpacking, camping, archery, firearms and anything outdoor related.

Check us out and see if you can stump us. I hope that we can be of help to you in our never-ending quest to become better sportsmen and outdoorsmen.

Address questions to admin@lwoodrowross.com.

Regards, L. Ross

Tips for Deer Hunting Success

Success in deer hunting is not usually an accident. It is the result of good planning and hard work. Here is a list of tips that will get you started on the path to success:

 Scent control – This is crucial if you intend to take a deer and even more so if you are after a real trophy animal.
 Scouting – You cannot do too much scouting. You have to know the habits of the deer you are hunting. This includes available foods, bedding locations, major travel corridors, etc.
 Patience – If you are hunting from a ground blind or elevated stand, you must be still. Deer see movement much better than they see a stationary hunter. You must be able to maintain silence for long periods. Keep your mind occupied. The time that you lose focus will be the time the buck of a lifetime appears and you will not be ready.
 Practice – You must be proficient with your firearm or bow. This requires proper sighting in, practice and maintenance. Do not wait until the day you go hunting to drag out the bow or gun and discover that it will not shoot to the point of aim.
 Preparation – If you are lucky enough to have your own property, plant and maintain food plots, trim shooting lanes, set up stands are suitable location and monitor deer movements with motion-activated cameras. This technology can reveal where the big bucks are and when they are using your food plots or major travel corridors.
 Physical – If you are in good physical condition, you will be a better hunter. You will be able to better control your firearm or bow. The demands of walking and packing gear to a hunting area will be easier. Last of all, you do not want to shoot the monster buck and have a heart attack dragging it out. What a shame not to have the pleasure of seeing the look on your friends’ faces when they see your buck.

Deer hunting is like most things in life. You get out of it in proportion to what you have invested. If you are serious and follow these basic tips, you will have a much greater chance of being successful.

Primitive Camping

Hello all you campers out there.
Last February, we spent a week in the Jocassee Gorges and it was great. This year we are looking at a spot in Western North Carolina near one of the trout streams. We are going to pack in less and not take any matches or lighters. All fires will be started with bow drill or flint and steel.
I checked out a great survival video by Gene Ward. I didn't realize that he had passed away in 2006. It was great and had a lot of tips that are helpful. Check out the website that his wife is maintaining.
We need to learn more survival skills. We don't need them in everyday life, but it is nice to know that we could survive a disaster or being lost in the wilderness. It is good for a person's self-esteem.
I will be offering some tips on fire-starting and survival on this blog and on my websites (www.lwoodrowross.com and www.flyfishnorthamerica.com).
Get out there and enjoy nature.
L. Ross

More About Bows

Hey guys:
I just ordered a kit to build a bow. It is semi-finished and requires a minimum of work. It is a bamboo faced hickory bow. The company has various models of different woods. You select the weight and right or left handed. It arrives at slightly higher than your selected draw weight and you work it down with a spokshave and sandpaper to the desired weight. It is a 68" longbow, but various models are available.
The price is right and I'll keep you posted on the quality as soon as I receive it and get it ready to shoot.
It is still very dry in upstate South Carolina and we are praying for rain. The trout streams are low and the food plots for deer and turkey are suffering. We need sustained rains to get back on track.
We just returned from Amish country in Lancaster, PA and drove part of Skyline Drive near the Shenandoah Valley. It is a gorgeous part of the country and we took loads of photos. Check it out when you can. It is a neat place to see.
I hope your deer season is great this year and you get the buck of a lifetime.
Warmest regards, L. Ross

Bow Hunting

Man! Bow season is already here.

I have been shooting the compound and went hunting once this season. I did not see any deer, but after leaving the stand, I heard one snort and it sounded like several fled after a couple more snorts. I stalked the area, but never saw deer hair.

It has been extremely dry in upstate South Carolina and we need rain desperately. The food plots are not doing well. The mast crop is poor due to the late spring freeze and acorns, hickory nuts and soft mast are scarce.

The black bear population is up and the scarcity of mast will force them to come down from the mountains into the more urban areas and we are sure to have some nuisance bears this fall and winter.

My interest is turning to primitive archery and I have a bow kit on order. It is a hickory bow laminated with bamboo and is rough finished. I will have to do the final tillering and finishing. I have to order some arrows and even though I love carbon arrows, I may purchase some port oxford cedar to make some authentic primitive arrows for use with the new bow. I am eager to get started on this project.

If you are interested in primitive archery, check out Rudderbows on the internet. They have some neat kits and some finished bows as well as accessories.

The weather is finally taking a turn to cooler nights and slightly cooler days. This should help the fishing, but the water levels are extremely low. We need soaking rains for days on end to restore the levels.

We're headed to Amish country in Pennsylvania later this month and will be taking a lot of photos as usual. I'll post some on my website (http://www.lwoodrowross.com/). Check it out.

If you want to see some info. on fly fishing go to my other site (http://www.flyfishnorthamerica.com/).

There is another blog on my website with some interesting topics.

I'll be making some apparel available on the site soon (t-shirts, fleece jackets, etc.). I hope you'll take a look.

Enjoy the change of seasons and get outside. Go fishing, hunting, hiking, kayaking, biking, or anything that will get you out in the great outdoors. It always makes us feel better.

Good luck in all your activities.