May 1, 2011
My dad and I had a real fun hunt on the final day of the season. About an hour after dark we coaxed a gobble from a turkey we had hunted from time to time during the season. We set up in the edge of some hardwoods and pines and called him almost in range. He saw something he did not like and turned around and walked off. Another five yards and this turkey would have died, yet his better judgment prevailed and he survived the season.
April 26, 2011
It has been tough hunting in our woods this spring for turkeys. We have heard a few and worked just a few but most mornings have seen little to no gobbling activity. I have killed one gobbler and with just a few days left of the season, that might be it for this one. I plan to hunt a time or two more but at this point the gnats and the mosquitoes are making the experience not as enjoyable as it could be.
It has been a tough spring for many turkey hunters in our area though others have done well despite the slack gobbling activity reported by many of us. When the weather turned warm in mid February, I would have expected the gobbling activity to be going well by the time the season opened and waning by the season's end. Our birds never seem to get going and never gobbling much on any given morning.March 23, 2011
This spring has been the exact opposite of last year in the temperature department. Last spring saw unseasonably cold weather right into April. This year the woods are warm and getting to be a bit buggy as well. I am sure the mosquitoes in our swamp will be quite fierce before this season is over.
My time in the woods has been limited up until this point but I'm looking forward to more time to chase the turkeys as we go forward. The 40th Wilcox Academy Benefit Turkey Hunt is being held this weekend and I'll be in the woods all weekend trying to get a gobbler for my hunter, Barnett Serio. I'll let you know next week how we did.February 15, 2011
We are just a month away from turkey season and the weather is giving us a nice taste of spring. I am quite sure there is more winter on its way, but the break in the cold is sure going to be enjoyed. It makes one think of fishing and turkey hunting.
Speaking of those items, please keep our local NWTF banquet on your calendar for March 12, 2011 in Camden. If you are not in our area, I encourage you to find your local banquet and attend. The NWTF is doing some great work in our state, your state, and the country as a whole and they need our support.
Crappie fishermen please keep the date of April 9th on your calendar as the Wilcox Area Chamber of Commerce will host their annual Big Fish Crappie Tournament. This tournament has grown to be the largest crappie tournament in the state, with 261 anglers competing last year. This date also kicks off the 30-day Derby with over $80,000 in tagged crappie in the lake. See the www.wilcoxareachamber.org website for more information.
What has grown to be a big bass tournament series, the McNider Marine Ironman Tournament Trail, will kick off this Saturday on Miller's Ferry Lake. This is the first of 6 tournaments held here and on the Tombigbee River in Demopolis and features a guaranteed $5000 first place. Come out to the Roland Cooper State Park on Saturday afternoon around 3pm to see some great fish come to the scales. There will be well over 100 boats in this tournament. Fishermen can still get in the tournament by going to www.mcnidermarine.com for more information.
Ron Jolly, videographer with the State of Alabama, has been watching a Wilcox County eagles nest as an egg is apparently being incubated. He hopes to see an eaglet in the nest this week. It is so great to see the eagle making such a comeback in our area. Follow along with Ron at this link and see some great photos and video that he has gotten right here in our county.
And for all of those that like to cook and like to eat--BBQ especially--mark your calendars for April 30 as the Wilcox Area Chamber hosts its BBQ Cookoff. Go to the Chamber link provided above for more information on this event, including how you can sign up to compete.
The updates on this website will be somewhat sparse until we get into turkey season.
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February 3, 2011
The final weekend brought warmer weather than most of us hunters had on the wish list. Highs on Saturday and Sunday topped out just over 70 degrees and the movement of deer all day long did not happen where I was hunting. The deer I saw passed through my woods either early or very late in the day. I never saw a real good buck from the stand in my few days of January hunting. Thankfully, many of you did. Here are some of the pictures I've received in recent weeks including a nice 6 point killed by Bob Ponder in the Horn Swamp last weekend.
Overall this appeared to have been a good season throughout most of this area. Favorable temperatures throughout the season surely made a difference in overall deer movement. Of course, the real big bucks will continue to move in the weeks ahead as much of the rut remains to happen here in south Alabama.
Bob Ponder and a good 6 from the Horn Swamp
Jason Collinsworth of Thomasville got this buck on game camera and then caught
up with him on Jan. 23rd. See the photo below.
Killed by Jason Collinsworth in Clarke County, Ala
Josh Pouncey killed this buck near Monroe Springs which is close to
Old Texas in Monroe County, Ala.
Zach and Rich Manry with Zach's first buck, killed in Portland, Ala in Dallas County.
The woods of Autauga County gave up this fine buck to Rhett Hollon
This big eight point was 14-year old Rhett's first bow kill buck. Not a bad way to start off!
Eleven year-old Brooklyn Hollon (Rhett's sister) killed her first buck in Autauga County.
Kevin Sims and a south Alabama buck
The Wilcox Area Chamber's Big Buck Contest winners have been announced. The prizes will be awarded at 1pm this Saturday on the Courthouse Square. There will be a drawing for a PSE bow at that time. Everyone who bought a ticket will be entered in that drawing. Special thanks to Jim Landrum of PSE Archery for donating that bow, completely rigged, for this event.
Dale Clayton of Helena will take home the Honda ATV with his buck that scored 165, killed in southern Dallas County near Minter. Donny Brown of Mobile won 2nd place with a buck scoring 146, and Stover Perryman took 3rd with buck scoring 136. Donny wins a Browning shotgun and Stover pockets $500 in cash. Donny was also the January winner, so he also gets $500 worth of gift certificates to area merchants. The monthly winners of the $500 of gift certificates were as follows: October - Greg Gaines, November - Harvey Crawford, December - Dale Clayton, and January - Donny Brown.
Dale Clayton won a Honda ATV with this buck in the
Wilcox Area Chamber Big Buck Contest.
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January 26, 2011
I got in only one hunt this past weekend and saw the same little bucks coursing through the woods as I did the prior weekend. I have talked to quite a few hunters in the past few days and the hunting appears to be pretty typical for this time of year. The bucks are certainly on the move however the bigger bucks remain pretty elusive and trail cameras are showing they are still moving mostly at night. However, this is the time of year those older bucks will slip up here and there during the daylight hours. It does not happen often and now is the time for it. In my hunting experience I've had more sightings of big bucks the final weekend of the season than I have all the other days of the season combined. The final weekend is now upon us and here's hoping it will be a fun one.
I'll post all the pictures I've received next week so please email them to me at hornswamp@yahoo.com . Good luck.January 19, 2011
I spent most the past weekend, including my day off on Monday, in the woods. It was opening weekend for me, this being the first time this season I have actually climbed a tree in my climber and hunted a deer with my bow. It was great to return to the fun.
I bounced back and forth between two locations at the bow club and hunted pretty hard. I did not get started until Saturday afternoon, but was in the tree each afternoon before 2pm and stayed there in the mornings to at least eleven o'clock.
The spot I was most excited to get back to is where I had seen the big 8 point come under me last season, busting me in the tree before I could get a shot. I saw quite a few bucks working that area last January and knew it was a good spot that I had stumbled upon. It consists of a few hardwoods along a low, typically wet area this time of year, between two stands of pines. One of those stands is young, full of briars and deer. Last January I had to wear waders to cross a low area to reach the stand. This year, it being so dry, not a drop of water was in my path to the tree. I spotted several nice rubs after I had climbed up the tree.
The other location I hunted was a spot in a big stand of hardwoods. When there has been a big acorn crop and some still remain, the deer are still frequenting the area. This year is one of those years where the dry and cold weather has preserved the bumper acorn crop in those woods and many good acorns remain.
At each location I saw five to six different young bucks working the area. The largest was an 8 point that might score around 100. Nothing any larger showed itself and doe sightings were pretty slim. That best buck stayed right with a doe as she fed her way through the woods, never letting her get more than 20 yards from him. The other smaller bucks coursed back and forth through the woods like they do this time of year. None of the big boys showed up, but I know they are there and I am confident to see one before the month is over.
Though not much is left of the season, the best is certainly yet to come. As this full moon wanes and great weather returns for the weekend, I expect hunters in our area are going to see some great success. Hopefully I'll be in that group.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
January 12, 2011
The Wilcox Academy Deer Hunt was a big success this past weekend. Seventy hunters killed 94 deer and 1 hog, plus a bobcat or two and at least one coyote. We had three youth hunters and one adult kill their first deer. One of those youth killed his first two bucks. Most everyone took home plenty of venison and some of our hunters took home some good antlers as well. The photo shown below is one of the two bigger bucks killed on the hunt. Complete pictures can be seen at this link.
Steve Price killed this buck on the Wilcox Academy Deer HuntI'm looking forward to getting in the woods these last three weekends of January. Buck movement was overall a bit slow this past weekend. I did hear tales of those that saw bucks trailing does, but the best of the chasing activity will come about from about the 15th to the end of the month.
John Jones killed this buck near Jackson, AL over the weekend.
December 30, 2010
We are about to exit the December lull of deer hunting. From the hunters I have spoken with, most believe that the chasing stage of the rut is about right on time and will ramp up in about a week to 10 days and as usual, continue through the end of the season. Reports of quality deer killed in the area in the last week or so has been next to none.
This year I have taken over the duties of organizing our Wilcox Academy Benefit Deer Hunt. We are expecting a few over 70 hunters on January 6 through the 9th. Next week is going to be very busy for me, so don't expect an update here until the week after the hunt.
Stay tuned...the action is about to get heavy.December 21, 2010
It has been a quiet week in regards to photos of deer coming to my email inbox. It might be that the December lull has finally set in. We're cruising right on through the month, though, at what seems like a pretty rapid pace. Hunters that I talk to think the rut might be right on time this year. Some even suggest it might be a little early, with folks already seeing bucks chasing does or at least hanging pretty close to them.
I was in the woods a little over the weekend, though I did not actually climb a tree and officially "hunt." But I did see some scrapes in places that scrapes should be if things are right in the woods. It will not be long now until the real fun occurs in our woods. There is nothing like the rut.
December 15, 2010
Cold weather continues to filter to the Deep South and seems to be helping to keep the December lull of deer hunting from hitting too hard. The good bucks continue to be killed throughout our area. I'm hearing reports from area hunters of good scraping activity already going on and some have seen bucks hanging very close to the does. That could signal good news of a rut that will take place on a little earlier schedule rather than the late schedule of last year.
The first deer of the season was killed in the Horn Swamp over the weekend by a guest of mine, Matthew Cole. This big 6 point had a 17 inch spread and 10 inch G2 tines. He was not the big six I saw a few weeks back, but a mature buck nonetheless.
Matthew Cole and a big six from the Horn Swamp
Kirk Talbot and a mature buck from Wilcox County.
The buck had a 19" spread.
My old buddy Will Reaves arrowed this 230 lb. buck in Autauga County, Alabama.
Hayden Dickens (12 years old) of Birmingham usually hunts near his camp in Vredenburgh, Alabama
but killed this big buck on a recent hunt in Tuscaloosa County.
Land Reaves, son of Ed Reaves who I grew up with in Camden, killed this
big buck on a recent hunt in Georgia.
December 7, 2010
I think I recall the weather prediction for this to be a warm winter and that may well prove to be true, but things will have to change soon for such a prediction to transpire. The temps are 23 outside my window this morning and we just had another pretty decent weekend of hunting weather. December has arrived, though, and the deer know it. Killing a quality buck will be tough this month in any area that has received much pressure so far this season.
Harvey Crawford, of Camden, won the November prize in the Wilcox Area Chamber Big Buck Contest. His buck was killed in Wilcox County and the photo is shown below.
As reported last week, the big non-typical 22 point living just east of Camden was killed over the Thanksgiving weekend by 16-year old Heath Reid from Birmingham. Unfortunately Heath did not have a ticket in the Big Buck Contest as this buck was almost certainly take the top prize. It was scored at 176 B&C.
Harvey Crawford
Heith Reid and the big 22 pointer
The 22 pointer
Rick Williams and a good one from western Autauga County
November 30, 2010
Thanksgiving weekend brought some great deer hunting weather to the South and from the photos and reports I have gotten from the deer woods, it was a great time be hunting. Area hunters that I spoke with had great luck beginning Friday in the misty rain and falling temperatures as the front moved through. The good results carried on through Saturday and Sunday as the temperatures had finally cooled down from a week or so of warm weather.
I can report this week that the big non-typical buck shown on this page has been killed. He is reported to have grossed around 188 B&C non-typical. I'll have some photos for you next week. The lucky hunter did not have a ticket in the Chamber's Big Buck Contest, I am being told, so that sure winner has been taken out of the mix.
I got out myself for one hunt on Saturday morning, mostly with the intent to hunt hogs. I stalked around a portion of the property and with the ground wet I could easily slip along silently. I had two bucks walk right by me, one a very nice, mature, six point that I almost dropped the hammer on but decided against.
Ed Williams killed this buck opening weekend in western Autauga County.
Joe Nelson killed this buck in Wilcox County on Sunday afternoon.
Michael Talbot poses with a Wilcox County buck he watched his father shoot on Friday.
Thomas Grace and his first buck.
Pay close attention to the two main beams on the buck's right side.
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November 24, 2010
Opening weekend of deer season was quite warm, however, the second weekend will be much different. A cold front is expected to move through later in the week and the weather should have the deer on the move during the Thanksgiving holidays. This will be the last weekend of November hunting and we will have another monthly winner in the Wilcox Area Chamber Big Buck Contest decided by early next week. Make sure and get your entry ticket if you have not already.
Though I did not deer hunt over the weekend I did kill one hog out of a greenfield Saturday afternoon. The fields are looking much better after the last rain.
This weekend the town of Pine Apple in eastern Wilcox County hosts their 15th Hunter Appreciation Day. There is a one day big buck contest on Saturday and lots more going on during the day in downtown Pine Apple. We took our kids last year and they had a big time, as did we. If you are in the area make sure to come out to Pine Apple on Saturday.
I finally have the photo but not the name of the man that killed the fine buck on the Corps of Engineers property at Chillatchee Creek the first weekend of bowseason. Unfortunately, the gentlemen did not know about the area's buck buck contest and had not entered.
Killed by bow at Chillatchee Creek Park
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November 17, 2010
Greg GainesGreg Gaines of Pensacola won the October Big Buck Prize in the Wilcox Area Chamber Big Buck Contest. Greg will receive $500 worth of gift certificates to be used at area merchants in Wilcox County. The contest is not releasing any official scores until after the season. This buck was killed in Wilcox County and of course was killed by arrow.
Youth season took place this past weekend and the regular gun opener is Saturday. Anyone in the woods of Wilcox County or the surrounding counties will want to make sure to get a ticket to the Big Buck Contest. The top prize is a Honda Rancher ATV. There are prizes for the top 3 bucks overall and the largest buck per month. See the Chamber website for more details.
Monday and Tuesday brought us the best rain we have had in months. I tallied 2.60 inches in my gauge. I know my food plots were glad to see it. I had only gotten a light mist on them since they were planted in damp dirt just over two weeks ago.
In the Horn Swamp, we have noticed quite a population explosion of armadillos. I am not sure we have seen this many armadillos since the late 1980s. In just a short drive along the roads of the property on Sunday afternoon I counted at least a dozen in easy view. I do believe an armadillo hunt is going to be in the works for me real soon.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
November 9, 2010
Bow hunters continue to enjoy some fine weather for early November. This past weekend saw the first light frosts of the year, seemingly arriving a bit earlier than normal. The cold was not nearly severe enough to kill off much of the browse that the deer are eating, but it made a little dent on some of the more susceptible plants such as kudzu in open areas. The rain that fell last week was sparse in our area. I recorded only 2 tenths of an inch, having hoped for more than that on my freshly planted plots. Nevertheless, they are beginning to grow.
I've got a few more pictures for you of the non-typical in our area that I featured last week. These photos, as you will see, were taken in early October after the buck lost its velvet. I will certainly bring you news here if the buck is killed.
November 2, 2010I finally planted our food plots this past Thursday. I do believe the 28th of October planting day is the latest we have ever been in getting that task completed. With a warm winter predicted, there should be no trouble in getting plenty of good growing days. I understand quite a few hunters that planted in early September are now having to replant due to the dry weather. For that exact reason, we waited until now to put out our seed. An inch and a quarter of rain fell in the swamp early last week, prior to my planting. It appears another good soaking is on its way for later today and tomorrow.
As of last week only one buck had been entered for the October prize of $500 in the Wilcox Area Chamber Big Buck Contest. I'll let you know next week if that buck held on to capture the early prize money. Five hundred dollars is at stake each month for the largest buck killed in each monthly period, in addition to the overall prizes for the top three bucks. Make sure to get your ticket before you head out into the woods.
The pictures below have created quite a bit of talk around our town and I think you will quickly understand why they have. This amazing buck has been captured by two people's game cameras in August and September. This is a "free range" buck living not far outside the city limits of Camden in Wilcox County and I am confident he is going to be killed by somebody this fall or winter. He is thought to have as many as 22 points. Stay tuned as I will certainly bring you the news if a lucky hunter gets this one in his sights.
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October 26, 2010
Just over an inch of rain fell in my gauge in Camden Sunday evening and early Monday morning. It appears most of the county received about the same, giving area food plots much needed moisture. Maybe we will get just a little more when the cold front passes through tomorrow.
The forecast for the weekend looks real good as highs dip back to the 70s and the lows drop back to the 30s and 40s. I'm hoping somebody will bring a deer to score in the Wilcox Area Chamber Big Buck Contest before the month is gone. A $500 prize for the largest buck killed in October is at stake and as of a few days ago not one buck had been brought in to be scored. For more information on the contest, follow the link at the top of this page.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
October 19, 2010
Six tenths of an inch of rain fell early last week. We are a week away from another reasonably good chance of more rain. Hopefully that will be some remedy to a tough fall planting season for deer hunters. In the Horn Swamp, our plots are plowed and ready for seed and hopefully I'll get some spread and have it covered before the next rain falls.
After helping "Big Daddy" Lawler host the Gettin' Outdoors Radio show Saturday morning I spent the remainder of the weekend doing chores in the swamp. With more chores to go, I am not sure when I'll get in a tree to hunt.Bubba Martens, of Camden, hunted south Texas last week and arrowed this brute of a buck while hunting over a water trough. Bubba said it took him some time to settle down enough, after the buck appeared, to be able to draw his bow. Sitting in a Double Bull ground blind, he shot the deer at 19 yards. The property owners had never seen this buck on their game cameras that were apparently used pretty extensively on the property. The buck grossed 185 B&C.
Bubba Martens - Texas buck
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October 12, 2010
Have you planted your plots? That simple question seems to dominate the talk between area hunters these days. For most of our area the ground remains parched. Summer rainfall is always patchy with some areas getting ample rains while others get very little. A friend told me recently that his property in south Dallas County has not had a decent rain since early May, having missed all the summertime showers. Here at my house in town we got very little rain in May, June, and July. August was near normal though most of the water came in small rains that did not soak into the ground. There has been no meaningful rainfall since August 28.
Some hunters have planted in the dust and will let their seed sit and wait on rain. Others have not even broken up plots and are awaiting moisture to even begin the process. I prefer to plant around the first of October and hope to get some seed in the ground by early November. I am hoping a good cold front will soon bring some moisture. Time will tell.
Bowseason opens Friday and just like clockwork there is a cool front coming to lower the temperatures to about normal for the opening weekend. Lows in the 40s in the morning will make the first trips to the deer woods quite pleasant, though the near 80 afternoons will produce some sweat I am sure.
I'm behind on my work in the swamp to prepare for the season so it looks like I am going to be doing chores for most of the weekend. I'll start the day helping "Big Daddy" Lawler host his new Saturday morning outdoors radio show, "Gettin' Outdoors." The show can be heard on 95.5 out of Thomasville from 7:30 to 9AM each Saturday morning. We'll have Alan White, publisher of "Great Days Outdoors Magazine" on the show as well. If you are not in the woods but in the area, tune in.
The Wilcox Area Chamber's Big Buck Contest kicks off as well. I'll bring you news each week in regards to the contest and we'll talk more about it next week in this space.
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September 28, 2010
My September 1st declaration that summer was nearly gone was quite premature. September continued hot and dry here in Wilcox County. Finally this past weekend the front delivered some relief and this morning it is in the 50s outside my door. Some were fortunate enough to get a good rain Sunday as the front passed through. Folks on the eastern side of the county and some to the south report as much as two and a half inches of rain. Here in Camden we got less than two tenths and it remains quite dry with no rain chances in the forecast.
I set out on a scouting trip in the Swamp Sunday afternoon and got caught in a brief downpour. It was just enough to soak me but not enough to make much difference to the parched landscape. I found no overcup acorns, of the which the hogs feasted on last fall. I also found very few other acorns in the woods. Hunting hogs this fall and winter will not be quite as efficient as it was last time around when they were quite numerous in the hardwoods. I did manage to kill one young boar on my brief walk, the first of the season.
The "Duck Pond," dry as a bone in the early fall of 2010.
Parched and cracked earth.
First hog kill of the season, a young boar.
September 1, 2010As day breaks outside my window on the first day of September, the air outside indicates we are turning the corner on a long and hot summer. We followed one of the coldest winters in decades with possibly the hottest summer on record. The dog days of summer seemed to have arrived two months early, in June rather than August, and have persisted until just a week or so ago. It has been a dry one too but recent rains have helped. Quite a few oaks and some pines too were lost through the summer when very little rain fell and the temperatures sizzled near 100 for much too long.
But outside this morning the air is a pleasant 68 degrees and that gives hope that fall will soon be in the air. High school football has already begun and the college game will officially start this week. And for hunters, dove season begins on Saturday the 4th, always with great anticipation.
I'm looking forward to another great season here in the woods of Wilcox County. I hope you will join me each week and share some of your stories and photos here if you wish. For those that have not checked the site all summer, I finally got the Nebraska Turkey Hunt story finished. Just follow the link above.
September will find us, as usual, preparing food plots, readying stands, and cleaning up around the cabin for the coming deer season. I do not have an acorn report at this point will be looking real soon to see what I can find in the woods. Should there be a good crop, especially the big overcups, I'm sure the hog shooting will begin in earnest real soon.
Of special note for hunters in Wilcox County and counties touching Wilcox, the local Chamber of Commerce and area businesses are sponsoring a Big Buck Contest this season. The grand prize is a Honda Rancher ATV worth about $6500. Second place is a Benelli shotgun and third place is a lifetime hunting license or $500. There are also monthly winners of a $500 shopping spree plus everyone who buys a ticket will be entered for a drawing of a PSE bow and accessories. Tickets are available at most stores in Wilcox County and are $20 for an adult and $10 for youth under 16. I'll have more information coming soon on the contest.
Stay tuned....
