What is up, everybody? Mark on the mic here. Jim is absent today, but that does not change the fact that we have 10 minutes to talk about velvet scouting. Now, if you're a deer hunter, that doesn't mean that deer season is necessarily limited to that finite time when you're actually getting to be out in the woods or in the field with your bow or your rifle or your mouselot or whatever implement, whatever legal implement that you're choosing to pursue these amazing amazing

craters across me. We've got Cooper Long, who is is fanatical? Is that a proper term for your velvet scouting vigor, your interest, your passion for looking at these deer in the summertime? You hit it spot on, man. Obviously, white self-fanatic, I mean, thinking about them 365. So it's like, you know, once that shed season passes, velvet starts, it's like time to start over. Start scouting again and see if you can find some bucks. Now, is this you just you just love deer so much?

Like, oh, man, I just want to go see some deer. I like to look at these things. Or is there a practical or applicable nature to it where you're really certain some things out for the fall? I'd say a little bit of both, to be honest. One, like I had mentioned, obviously trying to scratch ideas. You know, it's beginning of the year, deer starting to grow their anglers. And, you know, guys like myself can't help but go out there and try to find them. But on the contrary to that, there's also that there's a group of guys who, you know, maybe they're hunting a private piece of land and they're looking for a familiar buck.

And in my situation, that is exactly what I'm after. Not every time, of course, but if that particular presents itself, I'm absolutely going to go try to look. And with that, I mean, you know, you can either find new deer that you've never noticed before, or you know, maybe pick up a familiar face. And, you know, best case scenario familiar face or just a new buck that, you know, try to trigger and you're ready to chase, come fall.

Are you using a combination of, I guess, you know, summer tactics, you've got trail cams and then maybe they're set up in certain places that aren't maybe necessarily as visible as some of these. I'm assuming like open fields, like bean fields and things like that. We're able to spot these bucks from afar.

Exactly. And I'd say a little bit of both trail cam slash convenancy of field location, you're trying to scout, you know, and with that, obviously comes a wind. You got to play your wind. If you're not trying to bump these deer out of your out of the normal feeding patterns that they're in.

But, but, you know, within that, that scouting period like that, you, they're going to hit those bean fields and maybe enough off of fields for very not short amount of time, but a select amount of time.

And if you can get lucky enough to locate them, do your after or new bucks during those, you know, few precious weeks of beans slash alfalfa, you might find yourself in a nice group of bucks.

Whether it's a bachelor buck or just one big old mature buck that you've been looking for for years and years, you know, it's in my opinion, it's hard to beat.

What do you think is, you're talking about a few precious weeks. What's, what's that window look like where you think it's like optimal? You're going to be like, yep, they're going to be out out and about and more visible.

I would say a lot of it depends on obviously your harvest in the crops and when they were planted and things like that.

But generally, I would say anywhere from mid July to honestly, there's been times where I've even seen bucks in beans late August.

You know, if there's a late plant that year, and that's just a matter of, you know, doing your research, doing your homework and trying to find those locations.

And so like, I know there's been times this year, for example, I was out last weekend and I'm finding two foot tall beans just luscious.

You know, they look great and there's deer and they're pounding them. And then I like contrary to that, like I'd mentioned earlier, the alfalfa side of things.

That part of it is a little bit newer to me, just given the area that I can hunt and what's planted there.

But just driving around as, you know, these last couple weeks, I've been seeing deer in both beans and alfalfa.

And now precious two hours right before dark is when that's the money time.

That's what I was going to ask. Time wise, it seems like, you know, evenings are kind of a better, better play.

And yeah, like that last, that last two hours is just like that magic time.

Absolutely. And you know, it's, you know, right now it's hot. It's 85, 90 degrees.

And so, yeah, of course, you might get your early, your early, early feeders, you know, you're dosing your phones out a little earlier.

...