Hey Ya'll,

              Well it's been great so far. Four days under way and we've got does down, bucks seen, sheds found, and yeah even some missed shots but how great to be outdoors. Well the rain here has been a contender for us during this opening week of firearms season in Missouri but nothing is going to bring us down. We had alot of fun opening weekend and heard some great stories already about some nice takes and some great misses. The best part of any hunt though is the friends sitting around sharing the experience and stories of the days activities. Thats right quote me it's the hunt. Yeah the kills and trophies are great but spending time with those you admire and even love out doors doing what we do is the real drive behind this great sport and all the effort put into preparing for the season we get to spend with friends and family chasing that buck or doe. If for some reason any of ya'll get the chance to come to Missouri to experience some of the best whitetail hunting in the world I encourage you to take the opportunity to do so and expieriance the way us rednecks as we are called pure our meat, prepare our fields and treat or companions when we are doing what we love. best of luck to those of you outthere doing it and an invite to those of you who will, hunt like its your only passion in life and tell the stories well and we'll share ours with you to.

                             Thanks Again, God Bless, and Best of Hunting,

                                   Jackie Wells

Hey Ya'll,

           Well here we are in the middle of another Great season & trying to figure out what is keeping the game outside of our shooting range. Well I think the number one thing we either overlook or over do is scent control. The biggest fad right now in hunting is scent control, but it shouldn't be a fad. This is something that all serious outdoors-man should take seriously. Most of the game we hunt, their first line of defense is their sense of smell. This allows them to explore their surroundings while still being hid. We however have so much scent around us that it takes something either really sweet or really fowl for us to notice. But it is something that an animal notices & takes very seriously and so should we. Scent control is a very precise practice, we cant just through dirt on our clothes and call it good! There is a precise practice to scent control and not every product out there is a good choice. The product is just a tool in scent control though there are many aspect to properly controlling our orders in the outdoors that will prove to be worth the time and effort. The first place I want to start is at home. How many times have we without thinking thrown on a coat or a shirt to mow the lawn or take out the trash that we will also be wearing to chase game with later that season. Fabrics such as our favorite cotton are very absorbent when it comes to scents. Much like leaving an onion in the fridge that ends up making the cheese taste bad our clothes are the same, the trash never touched our clothes but as we carried it to the curb the scents of the contents filled our shirt and other garments with their scents. Proper storage and cleaning of our garments is a key to scent control, we have to lock our hunting garments away from any un-natural scents so as to be as scent free as possible come hunting day. That being said we must also research the products we use to perform these task. Many manufactured scent products are just that un-natural and if you spent all day outdoors ( like the game) you could tell the difference also, so research and find a product that uses natural scents (or as close as possible) and ones your club or successful hunting buddies recommend. The second area I want to address is the vehicle. We spend all day the day before preparing for this day we get up early put on our hunting clothes and take a forty five minuet ride in the truck with all those scents, then multiply them by turning on the heat to stay warm, it's like you screaming "hello deer I'm here" the instant you step out of the truck. The best way to transport our garments to our destination is to leave them in the air tight bag till we arrive and changing then. Also our shoes, what you stepped in at the gas station when you stopped for gas and donuts is still there and will leave a scent trail a mile wide on your way to the stand or blind. We need to take steps to neutralize the odors before we go trekking through the woods. Proper neutralizing of our garments before we take off is good also.A little spray down before we takeoff can save us from some of those odors we might have accidentally picked up and save our day.We also have to take into consideration the wind direction when placing a stand or blind in comparison to where we expect to see the game we are hunting. Scents can also be used to our advantage, there are a lot of attractant scents available to not only cover our scents but to also bring deer to the stand. Like the rule for scent control products it is also a good idea to research and use as natural of a product as possible, and something that has been proven in the field and not in a factory. I don't want to sound like a task master by any means or make the experience more work then fun but good habits in some of these areas can make us more successful and the little  time it takes can be very rewarding. Besides I take pride in the fact that I have properly done my part in all these areas to make me and those who hunt with me more successful besides a labor of love is no work at all.

                                 Thanks Again, God Bless, and Best of Hunting!

                                             Jackie Wells

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