Ice Fish? Have a smart phone? Check out the Navionics app for lake contours!

Navionics Lakes: US North ($13.20 in android app store)

     Recently I upgraded my cell phone to a Droid X from Verizon Wireless.  Among the thousands and thousands of neat apps in their App store (some free and some cost $) was an app called Navionics Lakes: US North.  This app cost $13.20 but gives your phone the capabilities of any GPS with a lake maps chip.  After some use I have found that the app works amazingly well and when I use it with a free My Tracks app, I'm set when it comes to finding my spot ice fishing and following my trail back to the access... all done using only my Droid X.

     First I will show you the basic layout of the Navionics app.  When you first open the app you will see a map of all the lakes in your app.  In the upper right corner you will be able to zoom in/out.  If you click the menu button on your droid (button farthest to the left of the four on the bottom), the screen you see below will pop up with more options. 

    This menu now lets you find your exact location by hitting the GPS button.  The search option will allow you to search through different tracks or way points you may have stored on your phone.  The distance button is a neat tool that allows you to drag a pin across the screen to determine the distance from one point on your map to another.  By hitting the Track button you will be able to record a track and save it to your phone.  If you hit the settings button you will be presented with more options, including the capability to have a map or satellite overlay, share your info on facebook or twitter, set the safety depth (depth of which will start to show up as white for deeper waters) and allow you to set the units you prefer (shown in three pictures below).

     If you just tap a spot on the screen a little menu will pop up (shown below to left).  If you click on the expanding arrow you will see a menu (shown below to right) where you can add that point to you phone or find the distance from your GPS.  If there is already a saved location you will also get the option to see the details for that too.

 My Tracks is a neat little app that will allow you to record your tracks and save them on your phone.  You can also share tracks and send them to a friend, email account, or google account. 

 For each track you can see other information as well as speed, time of travel and the elevation you were traveling at.  You can find this information by hitting the side arrows in the middle of the screen.












 After you record and save a track to your phone you can later go back to your tracks and pull up which ever one you want.

 (26" catch and release on Ottertail 12/30/10)

One of 2009's Biggest Bucks

 (Eric Hendrickson with his massive 2009 buck taken by Bow, photo courtesy of hillviewmanagement)

      Looking back at the 2009 hunting season there were many fine bucks taken.  One of which was Eric Hendrickson's main frame 8 pointer.  This buck might not have as many points as other mature deer but he is definitely not lacking mass which is why he is one of my all time favorite bucks taken... and by Bow!  That's right, this buck was shot with a bow!

     (photo courtesy of hillviewmanagement)

     The Hendrickson's definitely do things right when it comes to taking mature whitetail bucks.  These guys have been practicing quality deer management long before Hillview Management was established.  With more and more people every year joining Hillview Management, the quality of deer keep improving.  Not too long ago my Dad took me to see the Hendrickson's collection of mounts.  Below are a few pictures I took of their impressive display!  Enjoy

Below are a few more pictures of Eric Hendrickson's buck courtesy of hillviewmanagement.  

Big Bucks shot in 2010 Minnesota Rifle Season!

(pictured above is Jay Schmitz with his buck that green grossed scored 196 2/8) 

     Rifle season is now over but many great bucks were taken in 2010. This post mainly includes pictures of nice bucks shot mainly in Area 241 but I'm also including a few shot in southern MN by my current roommate Chad Gillespie and even a Nebraska Muley shot by one of my good hunting buddies.

(more pictures of Jay Schmitz wit his buck)

     Jay wasn't the only one to land a gross score mid 190's buck during rifle season, Suzi Karvonen was also able to shoot a monster buck near New York Mills.

 (pictured above is Suzi Karvonen with her buck that green scored a gross of mid 190 in.)

      Brady Winter decided to head to Nebraska instead of hunting the second weekend in MN where he took this nice 4x4 mule deer.  Looks like he made a good choice!

 

 (pictured above is Brady Winter with his Nebraska 4x4 mule deer)

      Kevin Trana from Henning MN took this nice 9 point buck. 

 (pictured above is Kevin Trana with his 9 point buck)

      My current roommate Chad Gillespie shot the 8 point buck pictured on the left opening weekend to follow it up with an even more impressive 10 pointer the following weekend.  Chad hunts in southern MN.  Also pictured below is a buck shot by Chad's Dad and cousin.

(pictured above are the two bucks Chad Gillespie shot in southern MN)

(the buck picture above was shot by Chad's Dad and cousin in southern MN)

     Amanda Kneisl of Bertha-Hewitt shot this 12 point buck during the rifle season.

 

(pictured above is Amanda Kneisl with her 12 point buck)

     Getting up at 5:00 A:M and hunting can result in heavy eyelids.  Good thing Pat Peltier and Katy Kraemer where hunting in the same stand so they could take turns napping.

(Sleepy hunters)

Let Em Go so they can Grow!

     Let Em Go so they can Grow!  This is a saying commonly heard while fishing but is now becoming more popular with the sport of hunting trophy whitetail bucks.  Ever since I was young I have been an avid outdoors hunter and fisherman.  Over the past few years I have become more interested with the Quality Deer Management system QDM.

(The video above is of the 8 point buck I passed up during opener rifle season)

     Currently one of the many successful QDM's in the area is Hillview Management.  The theory is simple, but without the interest of neighbors and the will to not shoot little bucks makes a successful QDM difficult to achieve.

     Here are a few rules I try to follow and encourage other hunters to do so as well.

1. Let the young bucks go.  Even if you think your neighboring hunter will shoot the deer anyways, let him go.  If you shoot the small buck and your neighbor shoots a small buck then there are two dead small bucks.  If you let the little one go, maybe your neighbor will shoot it or maybe the small buck will get away.  Either way, only one small buck at most is dead vs. two.
2. Let young hunters shoot whatever buck they want. Hunting for youngsters is suppose to be fun and exciting!  Don't pressure them into staying on the stand all day if they don't want to and let them shoot whatever deer they see.
3. Try to better your best buck.  This one is easy, try to not shoot bucks that are smaller then your biggest.  Once you get to a certain point, only bucks you are going to put on the wall should be harvested.  This may take a long time and there might be several years in between filling your buck tag, but stick with this and you will see an improvement on your buck population.
4. Shoot a doe or two for meat.  If your just looking for some meat, harvesting a doe can be a good way to help keep the deer population in check.  I might also add that back-straps are pretty good tasting as well!!!

 (Pictured above are the two 8 point bucks I passed on opening weekend)

(Pictured to the left is Cody Salo with his nice 10 point buck.  On the right is Jason Hotakainen with his Hotakainen Management buck!  Both bucks were shot on opening morning.)

Double Drop Tine Buck is Down!

    (Pictured above is Cody Gronvold with the Double Drop Tine Buck, more pictures to come!)

     Cody Gronvold sent bullets flying as he managed to take down the Double Drop Tine Buck that he videoed earlier this year Double Drop Tine Buck video can be found here.

1st Buck!!!

Congrats to Aaron Wilschewski (pictured above) who shot his first ever Whitetail Buck!

Sticker Buck Down

(Pictured above is Marty Wolf with the Sticker Buck)

     After doing some last minute preparation for the upcoming rifle season, my dad and I decided to swing into the Wolf Camp and see how our bow hunting only neighbors have been doing.  The Wolf's have been practicing quality deer management longer then any of our neighbors in the area and they have been successful hunters all the more.

     Soon we were greeted with hand shakes and deer hunting stories.  One of those story's goes a little like this...

     It was Oct. 23 and Marty Wolf was hunting in one of his portable stands.  Not too long into his hunt and sometime around 5:00 P:M he noticed a nice buck making his way toward his stand.  Having two trail camera pictures of what has been dubbed the Sticker Buck, it didn't take Marty long to notice the extra tines shooting out of either G2.  At about 50 yards away the buck decided to bed down.  With plenty of day light left, Marty decided to just wait it out and see what Stickers next move would be.  

 (Pictured above are the two trail camera pictures Marty received before shooting the Sticker Buck)

     Another deer came into view, but unlike the serious head gear Sticker was wearing, this buck only had a couple forks.  Soon the little buck made his way closer to where Sticker was bedded down and began to make a scrape.  Sticker didn't even bother to look at the smaller younger buck while the whole commotion was going on.  After the fork buck was done, he walked within 15 yards of where Marty was seated.  

     A little while later Sticker was back on his feet and ready to move.  Following on the same trail the fork previously traveled, Sticker made his way to within 15 yards of Marty.  Making a clean shot, it was not long until Marty was admiring the stickers in his own hands.
    

Other news.... 

(Pictured above is Dean Salo with his Nice 8 pt. Buck)

Local New York Mills hunter Dean Salo was at it again harvesting this nice 8 pt buck during the bow season.

Pheasant Hunting in ND

   

 (Chase Helmeke with his first rooster ever)

     During this past weekend I went pheasant hunting with my dad (David Rud), Ken and Pat Peltier, and Brent and Chase Helmeke.  I have been pheasant hunting many times before and this trip has become a yearly tradition to our hunting group.  This trip however was different and a little more exciting since it was Chase's first Pheasant hunting trip ever!  He just got his gun safety certificate a couple weeks ago and was ready to hunt.


     The guys and Chase had hunted a few places in the morning before I was able to catch up with them but I think the story goes something like this....

     As they were driving to another location, they passed some Youth only hunting land and upon driving by saw several pheasants fly into the CRP grass.  Chase, Pat, and the three labs were released on a mission to land Chase his first Rooster Pheasant ever.  Magnum (Pat and Kens black lab) started working over the area immediately and it wasn't long until a rooster busted out of the tall grass.  Chase managed to get a shot at the bird and was able to hit the wing.  Down the bird went into some cattails.

      After watching the bird soar down, David and Brent walked the dogs into the cattails to find it was a little more wet then they expected.  Brent made his way back to the truck to grab some hip waiters and the dogs began to search the area.  Not too long after, another rooster (could possibly have been the same one), shot out of the cattails and was met by flying lead straight from Chase's 20 gauge shotgun!

     Upon hitting the bird, Hunter (Ted and Davids yellow lab) took off after the bird with Pat close on his heels.  It was now a foot race as the bird took off running.   Hunter proved to be faster then the bird (and Pat for that matter) and was able to retrieve the bird.  Hunter in all his glory received many head pats and was enjoying every moment of it.  Chase too received lots of high fives and there were plenty of smiles to go around for this new hunter!  Many memories were made and we had a very fun hunting trip.

 (Pictured above with his first rooster ever is Chase Helmeke along with Hunter)

     Chase not only proved to be a good pheasant hunter, but back at the hotel room he cleaned out our pockets by winning several games of 5 card pinochle... and I guess I won a few too ;)-



I was just looking through some of my old hunting pictures and was able to find a pic of me on my first pheasant hunt.

(Pictured above is me (Ted Rud) on my first pheasant hunt in 1999)