Scouting Tactics, Ozone, and Scent Control

   Hey y'all, welcome back to Johnson Outdoors! Today I'm going to touch on some of my scouting tactics and how ozone works and how its a vital tool in scent control; shoutout to Mr. Tyler Webster for the recommendation on what to write about!

   So first and foremost let's talk ozone. There are multiple companies out today that are selling ozone producing products, Scent Crusher and Ozonics are by far the leading innovators in the industry but lately I've seen HME and ScentLok coming out with their own ozone units. Since, I'm a Field Staff member for Scent Crusher, I'm going to talk about their products.

  How does ozone work? Well, let's go back to chemistry class, ozone is comprised of three
oxygen atoms (O3), and since its an unstable compound, it's going to try to find a way to become stable. So the O3 molecule uses odor causing bacteria as a catalyst to help it get rid of one of its oxygen atoms which then turns into pure oxygen (O2). To put this simply, it turns odor into pure, scentless oxygen. Now, ozone does have a smell, chances are you've smelled it before too! Remember that fresh yet weird smell after a heavy thunder storm? That's ozone! So since it's a naturally occurring compound, the deer don't spook. I have used Scent Crusher for the past three years and ever since then, I have never been winded by a deer. I've had a big mature nanny directly downwind and if it weren't for her seeing me move, I would've smoked her!
  I currently use two of Scent Crusher's products and that is the OzoneGo and the Ozone Gear Bag, but Scent Crusher has products to keep you scent free from the moment you wake up in the morning until you go to bed. Here's a quick rundown, you wake up in the morning and jump in the shower, Scent Crusher has body wash, shampoo, and deodorant that uses copper as the active ingredient to destroy odor, then you go into the kitchen, and Jimbo has a fresh pot of coffee and bacon cooking, enter the Room Clean, it's an ozone generator that treats the room you're in to kill any smell around, then you go into your hunting room and take your treated clothes out of your Ozone Hunter's Closet and put them into your Ozone Gear Bag, jump into the truck, plug in the Ozone Go to kill the smell of wet dog from last weekend in your truck. While you drive to the woods, you can run a cycle in your gear bag, then you get to the stand, your clothes are freshly treated and your up in the stand, the wind shifted, you can pull out the new in the field unit, called the Field Pro and get it running in the stand.
   Point being, there are products for every situation, and every one of them is effective, with Scent Crusher, the quality is there for a very affordable price, on top of that their customer service is second to none! If you'd like to see the full line, visit www.scentcrusher.com.

   On to scouting tactics, everyone has their own method and there are a vast majority of people that have way more experience and way more success than I do. My knowledge is based off hunting Florida ranch land and swamps and Georgia farmland and planted pines. I'm currently hunting in Illinois on public land so its a very large learning curve. That being said, I start scouting the week following the close of season, the deer are relaxed and you can see where they move along trails and which late season food sources are still around and being utilized. In my opinion, food is key, find a food source, and set up a trail camera on it. Deer are lazy, so they will take the path of least resistance, so if you have a cattle trail that runs through the thickest, nastiest scrub on your property, I highly recommend trying to set up along that
trail. Sometimes there are so many trails, you can tell where they go or what to do. This is when I put miles on my boots and follow the trail and see where they go, doing this, I've found bedding areas and small hidden food sources that have been getting slammed. Everyone's property is different though, so the best way is to just get out there and see where the deer are moving. Start with transition areas, set up on the edge of thick brush and open hardwoods, check out a field edge, or hang a stand over a firebreak. If you put your time in it will be rewarded.

  That brings me into my final segment, scent control. So we talked earlier about how ozone eliminates human odors and makes your clothing and gear scent free, but what about those long day sits in the hot early season sun? This is where scent control comes into play, you want to try to set up downwind of the predominant area you believe the deer will be coming from. This is something I just started doing more myself, I would always hunt harder, not smarter, and my season suffered. Lately, I've been taking into account the area topography and where the deer usually travel from. You don't want to set your stand on the north side of a food source, if the deer bed on the north side and you have a predominantly south wind. Sure, your wind is best for the food plot, but you just let every deer in that bedding area know you're there. It's a struggle, but from what I've learned, you want to set up on a "sort of ok" wind. Meaning, if the wind is predominantly south, and the deer bed on the north side of your food source, try to set up on the west side. It narrows your chance of getting busted, and keep the deer in the bedding area unaware, and uneducated.

I hope this post helps, again, big shoutout to Tyler for picking this topic for me, it was a tough one, but I hope I was able to shed some light. Thank y'all so much for the support, good luck this season, and God bless!

-Chris 

Who Wants A Job in the Outdoor Industry?

  Hey Everyone! As always, I'm way behind on my posts and I promise I'll try to be more consistent. If you've read my blog before, then first and foremost, WELCOME BACK! If you're a first time reader, then I implore you to check out my earlier posts as this one is going to be a little out of the ordinary. 

  Something I've learned, and begun to notice more and more often, is the mentality that people in the hunting industry have. Most of the people that are highly successful are extremely genuine and will tell you first hand that if everything, (the cameras, the sponsors, the fame) were to go away; they would still be doing what they're doing because they love it. They have a true passion for what they do and can not imagine their life without being in the woods and being an advocate to get more people to start hunting and enjoying God's creation. 

  Now, notice I didn't say money, or land. Why? Because these people aren't making a fortune hunting, and you can say "they get paid to hunt", but let's take a much closer look. Most states have a one to two buck limit, yet on these shows, they kill two, three, sometimes even five bucks in a single stretch. Ten episodes and they have a kill on just about every one of them. How? They travel to other states! Sure, that's the simplest answer, but let's look further. They only have one state that's their home, so that's only one resident state, meaning they have to purchase non-resident hunting licenses for the year along with non-resident tags, not to mention the fuel to drive to these states, the food and drinks for not only their hunt, but the road trips and every additional cost along the way. Some of these people have families, so they not only have multiple mouths to feed, but also have to buy their family members' licenses and tags, and if there are children, they have to find some time for school, unless their homeschooled and even then, that's more time and money spent, on top of trying to pay the bills for their own home, land, and even all the different hunting leases they might pay for. Not to mention, travel to all the different trade shows and hunting expos to promote themselves and their product... you can see where I'm going with this. It costs millions of dollars just for travel and expenses to be able to travel and hunt, but let's add in the TV show aspect. 

  On average, it costs close to $4,000 to edit a single episode, then they have to pay the network close to $120,000 an episode just so they can air it, and that's even if the initial pilot episode get accepted! Sponsors are there, so they can help afford all this, which is why most hunting shows sometime feel like an extended infomercial. However, sponsor money can only take you so far; these people have outside jobs, their farmers, UPS drivers, steel workers, pipe fitters, engineers, welders, the list goes on. Trust me, there's no one getting rich quick. 

  Why am I writing about all this? Because I've been fortunate enough to talk or listen to people who have "made it". I never thought that these people live their lives with this much on their plate on a daily basis, just for our entertainment. I was ignorant to much of what goes on, and I still am. However, I want others to learn how much actually goes into being a part of this industry, even on this minor scale.

  Now, there are multitudes of other jobs available in the industry, but you're not going to be rich and famous, and most likely, you may end up hunting less than you do right now so before you decide to pursue a "hunting career" just keep this in mind. With all this TV show nonsense, there's needs for cameramen, editors, graphic designers, administrative assistants, marketers, advertisers, game wardens, conservationists, biologists, land management specialists, you see where I'm going with this? Just because you see a face on the big screen doesn't mean that's the only job, with every personality there's a team of people working day in and day out to make sure they all still have a job come next season. In some aspects it's extremely trying on their family life, they're always away from home meaning their spouse is left to take care of the house, the bills, the kids, the land, etc. 

  So why? Why do these people do it? What could be so great about putting your family through all that stress? And I wish I could give you an answer for that. From what I've seen, these families are closer than ever. They have a deep set of values and cherish each and every moment they get to spend together. Their spouse understands why they do what they do; they understand what it takes and what the ultimate goal is. These people love the outdoors. They love God's creations and want to make sure that hundreds of thousands of others get to cherish and enjoy His works. 

  So, before you decide to try to pursue a career in this field, please realize, it is one of the most difficult career fields in the world. No one has a set formula on how to get to where they are because everyone has had a different path that led them there. But, no matter who you ask in this industry, if you ask them "is it worth it?" You won't hear a single person say "no". 

Thank you all for reading, please let me know what you think in any comments below, good luck this year and God bless!

-Chris Johnson

One Common Goal

  Hey everyone! Welcome back to another installment of the Johnson.Outdoors Blog. Today I'm going to write about something that I've noticed growing throughout the hunting community and that's hunters bashing and putting down other hunters for their choice in how they choose to hunt.
  Let me begin by saying that I am in no way an "expert" on any of what I'm about to say, so there could very well be some inaccuracies in what I write. That being said, this is just my opinion so you can take it for what it's worth.

  First let's talk about weapon choice. Many bowhunters it seems bash people for using a rifle or crossbow, so I'm getting this out of the way right now. I began hunting with a rifle, I loved being able to reach out to 200+ yards and smacking a doe and watching her drop where she lay, and I still do, however, I also bow hunt, the reason? Because it's what I love to do! I love getting in close to an animal and getting to watch him get right on top of you before you can even draw, it's not as simple as point and shoot, its more intimate. So I know all too well the allure of bowhunting, but as long as it's legal, I won't bash those that use rifles, because I know there's nothing like getting sighted in on a buck that you've been after all year and having it all come down to that slow squeeze of a trigger. Rifle hunters tend to contribute more than bowhunters in regards to economic advantages. How? Their lethal projectile can't be cleaned off and re-used again and again, whereas our arrows can. They also usually have to wait longer to enter the woods, whereas bowhunters get to be the first in the woods for the season. As for crossbow hunters, I believe crossbows have their place as well; though I don't own one, I know many hunters that do and they use them for a variety of reasons. Most have shoulder issues or are simply too weak to pull back the necessary poundage to hunt in their respective state, so they use a crossbow. Crossbows are great for helping to introduce someone new to the sport as well, because after about an hour of shooting, they can be dead-on and ready to hunt. Why would you fault someone for becoming proficient with a new weapon that will allow them to effectively harvest their game? If it's legal and used ethically, then why should anyone care what weapon someone chooses to take to the woods? Practice, shoot often, become proficient, then go enjoy God's creation.

  Now let's talk about game choice. I was never one for "trophy hunting", my concern was always to fill the freezer, however now that I understand more about effective management strategies, I like to be more selective on what I choose to take. It seems the largest target of controversy are those that choose to travel across the pond to hunt African game. Just today, I saw a post bastardizing a family that successfully harvested an elephant and a post attacking Kendall Jones for her lion kill and praising the suicide of international hunter Melania Capitan, worse was one of those posts was shared by a hunter here in the states! How can you support the legal harvest of one animal and not another? Let me make this perfectly clear, plain and simple, all animals need to be managed. Some have been managed well enough by Mother Nature, and others call for the intervention of man. African game hunters contribute more than we could ever know to the local populations and their economies. The game keepers hand select which animal is to be harvested, whether it's because that animal is sick, can no longer breed, is damaging to the local populations farms and livestock, or even threatening the lives of those that live in the area, it is chosen to be the animal to be hunted. Now, the hunters pay thousands and thousands of dollars to hunt this one particular animal, and all of that money goes back into the preservation of that species and helps pay the game wardens in the area, along with supplying a source of income for the villages that have claimed the land. Even more so, once that animal is harvested, the majority of the meat is donated to the village to feed its inhabitants. So that one single elephant or lion that you get upset about being killed, not only died to help prevent the spread of disease throughout the herd or the  destruction of an entire village's livelihood, but also fed that village and provided income for the entire area, I don't know about you, but I feel like that's pretty cool to me.

  Speaking of game choice, I also often hear or see hunters bashing others in the forums and elsewhere about what someone chose to kill. I've shot button bucks, I've shot does, I've shot a few mature bucks, and I've shot some that could've probably waited another year, point is, I made the decision to pull the trigger, meaning that I chose to harvest that animal. I didn't ask someone on what I "should" shoot, I made the decision to put meat in the freezer and to put my tag on that animal, meaning that I am proud that I took that animal, so who is anyone to judge me? That being said, I personally am not one to pass up a bunch of does just to shoot a spike or a fork horn for meat (unless that was the only legal option); but I won't fault someone for killing what made them happy, maybe their management plan called for thinning of younger bucks to keep a balanced age structure. I talked to an old man once that told me he refused to shoot does and would shoot young bucks all day, when I asked him why, his reasoning seems fairly solid, he said, "Why would I take a potential estrous doe out of my area when a monster buck could possibly be following her? Does are good to have around when they don't have the younger bucks running them ragged. On top of that, if I shoot a doe, and she was pregnant, now I've killed more of what could've been my future population." Like I said, the man had a point, I didn't necessarily have to agree with it, because it was his management strategy, but it definitely made me think.

  At the end of the day, we are all on the same team. We all love to hunt in different ways, with different methods, as long as its legal and ethical, why shouldn't we support one another? It's as Fred Bear said, "If you aren't actively working to protect [all types of] hunting, then you're working to destroy it." Shoot what makes you happy, don't worry about another's trophy, who cares what it scored. Be happy for them and rejoice in continuing our tradition and the fellowship that comes with it.

-Chris Johnson

Determining a Deer's Age

  Seems like every hunting related Facebook group, or even conversations amongst buddies always seems to drift towards heated discussions over the age of a certain buck. If I had a dollar for every time I had seen someone post a picture of a buck they have on camera with the caption "Age and Score?", hell, I'd be in New Mexico this September chasing elk! Many friends have also asked my thoughts on the age of a buck and I'm by no means an expert, but I'd like to think I have a solid grasp on the concept (at least enough to regurgitate what I've learned).

  First of all, if you're going to begin trying to age deer on-the-hoof, you'll want to know what not to do. Everyone always seems to think that the size of a buck's rack dictates his age, and that couldn't be further from the truth, so get a stack of Post-It Notes and put them over the antlers, we're aging deer, not measuring his rack. That being said, estimating the age of a buck isn't an exact science, nor is it 100% accurate every time, just like anything else, it's a skill, acquired overtime through tons of practice and experience gained by following through. More on that later.

You'll want your buck to be standing broadside to the camera, with his head up. 
You'll want him to be standing still, with his entire body visible 
and the camera parallel to the ground.

  Trail cameras have become an invaluable tool for deer management and scouting, and though its exciting to get that big buck on camera and try to age him, you want to make sure you're able to get an ideal photo before estimating age. What's an ideal photo look like? I'm glad you asked!! You'll want your buck to be standing broadside to the camera, with his head up. You'll want him to be standing still, with his entire body visible and the camera parallel to the ground. You'll also want to start estimating during pre-rut or near the peak of the rut, because that is when he will be the healthiest and all of his testosterone levels will be soaring. I know, cameras parallel to the ground goes against everything in the magazines about getting good trail cam pictures and not alerting the deer, but if you plan on aging deer then bite the bullet and set it at waist level, trust me, Mr. Big won't mind all that much (as long as you have self-control and stay out of the area as much as possible).

  Overtime, see if you can get multiple photos of the same buck, organize them in folders on your computer, and see if every photo coincides with what you estimate his age to be, if so, then you may be on to something.

  Finally, follow through! You can guess age all day, but it won't do you any good or help you get any better if you don't follow through by pulling the jaw and estimating an age that way or by pulling an incisor and sending it off to a lab to get analyzed. It's like taking a test in high school, doesn't do you any good if you don't know what you got right and what you got wrong. We follow through when we throw a punch, we follow through when we shoot our bow, so why not follow through on checking the accuracy of our aging abilities?

  Now, that we got that out of the way, the Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA) has a wealth of knowledge from all sorts of deer biologists with years and years of experience, so why not utilize it?! Hell, most of what I'm going to touch on you can read for yourself right here.

  So let's ask ourselves, what kind of deer do we want to shoot? Are you wanting to just fill the freezer? Kill a mature stud? Kill a young 'n' tender - I mean yearling? Ultimately, a trophy is in the eye of the hunter. I've shot a button buck and felt just as excited as when I shot a six and a half year old stud, so for me to tell you what to kill is asinine. Kill what makes you happy!

  Most hunters and biologists will agree that a buck is considered mature when he reaches four and a half years of age, however many will argue that the rack will be substantially larger when he hits five and a half, to each his own. A four and a half year old buck will have a fully developed chest, neck, and stomach making his legs appear short, his stomach and back will be sagging and his neck will be swelled up like you wouldn't believe! His waistline will be even with his chest and during the rut, his tarsal glands will have really heavy dark staining. Let's face it, we can easily tell when a buck is mature compared to a young buck, just like with people. An 18 year old kid, for the most part, is going to be lean and lanky compared to a young adult in his early 30s that's hit the gym everyday since he graduated, and that 32 year old man, is going to look way different than an 87 year old man that served in Vietnam. Deer aren't much different, observe their behavior while on stand, you can tell a young buck from an older buck by how they act around does. A young buck is gonna be chasing everything that moves, just like that 18 year old, whereas that mature buck is gonna let the ladies come to him just like that Vietnam vet and 32 year old gym rat. Now obviously, personalities differ from deer to deer, you may have an old mature buck that's chasing every doe in sight like an old man in a nursing home that just discovered Viagra, point is, nothing in this world is definite.

  Now, I can keep writing and go on and on, but I think visuals will work best for learning. 

I always post this photo when people begin to ask about deer age as a quick aid to help out. I realize it's difficult to read so I'm going to type out the key points below.

1.5 Year Old                                             2.5 Year Old

- Looks like a doe with antlers                 - Slightly thicker body than a yearling's

- Thin neck and body proportions            - Legs still look long compared to the body

3.5 Year Old                                            4.5 Year Old

- Looks like a toned athlete                      - Thick body and neck, stomach sags slightly

- Thicker neck and chest                          - Everything is in proportion - Solid antler growth

5.5 Year Old (and older)

- Everything is thick especially the neck

- Skin and belly start to sag

Even though, this is a great guide provided by Sigma Outdoors and Missouri DNR, there is no substitute for experience and practice. 

  Location, location, location! Again, this isn't an exact science, one size fits all method. Every deer is different and each area/region has it's differences. Let's face it, you can't even begin to compare a South Florida four and a half year old to a Saskatchewan four year old, you'd just end up confused and frustrated, which is why following through is so important! Gather your own data about the deer in your area, and use this all as a reference. 

  Below is another poster that was provided by the QDMA. If you'd like to purchase a large, laminated copy to display at your hunting camp, post up in your box blind or to reference out in the field, you can do so here. 

For now, here you are:

I can't begin to tell y'all how grateful I am to have your support, thank you so much for taking the time out of your busy day to read this little blog. If you have any suggestions or comments, feel free to let me know! If you would like to see more of what I'm up to, or just follow along with my endeavors, I'd love to have you! Check out my Instagram page @Johnson.Outdoors or my YouTube Channel here, to see my latest hunts and videos, until next time, good luck out in the field, and God bless!

-Chris Johnson

Challenges Across the Board

   It's been a long time since my last post, but so much has changed and continued to change that it's been making my head spin. Sometimes change is good, other times not so much, but with hard work, dedication, support from friends and family and a whole lot of luck, you can push through and turn them all into a positive experience.

   First of all, the biggest change, Donald Trump is our next president. With all of his children into the outdoors in one way or another, it appears to be a bright future for the outdoor community. Dead Ringer Hunting's long time Pro Staff Director Greg Hopf had stepped down and he will be sorely missed, but in turn, Eddie "The Bird" Roberts has been appointed as the new Pro Staff Director, so the future looks bright for Dead Ringer as well.
   I have also recently picked up a position on the Wind Pro Field Staff as well, and I have to tell y'all, I have never had an attractant that wasn't food based work as well as these products have. I highly recommend for anyone reading to check them out.
   Scent Crusher has flipped the scent control industry on it's head. The new company is quickly growing and shows no signs of slowing, and with the largest Field Staff, it's no wonder why. Their products work!

   I've also been blessed after many trips to the woods, all day sits, and gallons of diesel spent, to have been able to harvest a yearling with my bow this season. What made this so special was that it was my second deer I've ever taken with my bow, the first deer I've ever harvested on public land and first deer ever harvested on film! That's right, a major milestone for me was to take an animal and get a good, clear video of the shot, recovery, and my reaction after the shot. Self-filming makes this nearly impossible as you're sure to always forget something, but I was able to pull it off!! If you would like to see the video, just click here.

   With all this positivity it's hard to imagine anything could go wrong, but as with anything, with all of the good, you must also be ready to take in the bad.

 The morning I shot my yearling, I found my number one hit-list buck dead in the ditch. He had been hit by a car that morning, the blood was still wet on his nose, luckily I was able to claim a salvage tag on him so he can get the respect he deserved. But I figure what hit me the hardest was having someone I care about tell me, "You will never have a normal life, a family, or anything as long as you continue to make hunting a priority." That was a blow I never saw coming, and has taken even longer to recover from. Prayer helps, as does time, but all in all, it takes determination and hard work to push past the negative and find a positive.

  So in closing, I guess the point I'm trying to make is to keep pushing yourself. Keep chasing that dream, that goal that you want to obtain in your lifetime. God has a plan for you and if anything, you have my support. Good luck in all of your endeavors, thanks for reading.

- Chris Johnson

The Big Five (Hunting Story)

  As the days before my scheduled hunting trip passed, the anticipation kept building. We had a small list of "hit-list" bucks and at the top of that list was a mature buck that we called The Forkhorn (aka the Big Five). We all agreed that this buck had a "kill on-site" policy, so much so, it became competitive as to who could get him first. But as season goes, we all went many sits without seeing any sign of him.

  Then the day finally came! The day I had looked forward to all month, November 13, 2014, the day my vacation began and I got to drive the eight hours north to my Georgia hunting lease. I drove straight through and by the time I got there, it was 2:00am, so now I had a decision to make; either unpack and set up camp and get less than two hours of sleep, or sleep in the truck and get about four hours asleep and set up camp the next day after the hunt. So the best idea seemed to get the most sleep I could and deal with camp after my hunt.

  As luck would have it, I woke up on time, but was so tired I was dragging. With sunrise being at 6:30am and fast approaching, I unloaded the four wheeler, unpacked my camo, and got dressed. By the time I got all my gear together, completely dressed out, and got on the four wheeler to leave camp, it was 6:33am! Needless to say I was late! I floored that Honda as fast as I could safely go, and tried my hardest to get to the stand as quickly as possible.

  When I got to the edge of the field, I had a very pressing feeling that there were already deer out on the field. The field was already harvested so it was nothing but dirt, but the feeling was there, so I stepped to the edge of the field and glassed the edge where there were usually deer and like a ghost, there he was the Big Five! I instantly dropped to my knee, grabbed my shooting sticks, and went to find him in the scope of my Browning X-bolt 7mm. As I was looking through the scope, my shooting sticks started to collapse, but I was able to confirm it was, in fact, him. I grabbed my range finder, and  saw that he was over 325 yards out, but I saw he was appearing to scan the field for does, so I grabbed my grunt call and hit it three short times. What happened next was by far the coolest thing I had ever seen! He began sprinting at me full speed, behind him was a big cloud of dust, I had never had a deer run towards me as fast as he did. As he began to close the distance, I grabbed my range finder again, he was at 177 yards, broadside, and had slowed to a trot. He began to bow up, hair raised on his back, head hung low, and ears laid back; it was clear he was not happy about having a second buck in the area.

  I put the crosshairs behind his shoulder, took a deep breath and slowly squeezed the trigger. In the scope I saw him lurch forward and his front leg come up off the ground as he disappeared off the field. Feeling I made a good shot, I walked to where he went in, found blood, dropped my shooting sticks to mark the area, and headed the rest of the way to my tree stand. As I was sitting in the stand, I kept hearing a thump, followed by the shuffling of leaves. I looked over, and once my eyes adjusted, through the brush I could see my buck taking his final kicks. Once I felt he had passed, I jumped down out of the stand and went to retrieve my buck. 

  He had such a huge body that I was very excited to put him up on the scale, I was also very excited to see that he was a partial piebald! He had white hooves with white socks, and a double white patch! Once I got him loaded and back to camp, I then realized where my priorities lie. I had a phenomenal buck on the ground and no place to put him. So after I got the camp all set up and put him on the scale I was surprised to see he weighed in at 220lbs! 

  When I got him back from the taxidermist, I decided that just for laughs, I would score him. Once again this buck shocked me with a gross score of 115 7/8"! To this day, he remains my absolute favorite buck, and every time I look at him up on the wall, I go back to that day, when a short series of grunts, landed me my oldest, and heaviest buck to date.

-Chris Johnson

Adapt and Overcome

  Hey everyone! And thank you for visiting Johnson Outdoors! Today I'm going to talk about adapting to new changes and learning new ways to overcome any obstacles that may be in your way.

  For those readers that are new to my little blog, or for those that didn't already know, I am active duty military (U.S. Coast Guard), but I'm doing everything I can to follow my dream of making a name for myself in the outdoor industry. One of the ways I'm doing that is by, not only writing in this blog, but also trying to film my hunts throughout the country and taking advantage of every opportunity I'm afforded.
  When I transfer to a new unit, I get a small say in where I go; it's called a "dream sheet". With this "dream sheet" I am given a list of billets (jobs) that are open for the position I hold, then you get to list those from the places you want most, to those you want the least. When choosing my billet, I think about not only the unit and what that might be like, but also where it's located and what sort of hunting and fishing opportunities I may be afforded there. These past couple months I've been doing just that, I got transferred from South Florida, where I'm from, to Northern Illinois. Huge change right?

Fishing
  My biggest adjustment came with figuring out what type of freshwater fish were up here and how to target them. Luckily for me, I'm stationed with a friend that's grown up fishing the Great Lakes, so I was able to learn a lot from him. Unlike South Florida fishing, here, its mostly panfish and catfish that get targeted so small hooks and nightcrawlers or leeches get the best results. First time out we ended up with six channel cats, so its safe to say that i think I'll be just fine with fishing up here.

Hunting
  It's a huge difference hunting up here compared to down south, the regulations are vastly different and I'm still getting used to learning how everything is up here. Only way to learn is to get out there and try right? So I've gotten all my licenses, and since Illinois is a primarily bowhunting state, there are a good amount of public land areas that allow bowhunting only, I've looked up the different public land areas around me and what they require to hunt them. I've also applied for a couple firearm permits so should I not be successful with the bow, I can still try with my shotgun which will also be a new experience for me. So stay tuned for any updates on how my season goes up here.

Overcoming Obstacles
  So as anyone trying to get into this industry knows, it takes a ton of blood, sweat, and tears. And over these past few years, I can tell you there are more tears than anything else, but if you're willing to put in the work and not give up, there are plenty of opportunities out there! This past weekend I had a fantastic opportunity to meet some of the biggest names in the hunting industry at Deer Fest. I got to talk with Lee and Tiffany Lakosky, Pat and Nicole Reeve, and Kip Campbell! I've looked up to these people my whole life and getting the chance to meet and talk hunting with them was by far the coolest thing I could have ask for.

  I had been getting a little discouraged, my initial excitement of moving to the land of giants had been dashed by my frustration of trying to figure out the regulations for the area. I hadn't given up on pursuing my dream, but it definitely fell on the back burner for a little while. Talking with Pat, Lee, Tiffany and Kip re-ignited that passion, and since this weekend, I feel as if I have a fire lit under me. Pat had noticed my Scent Crusher hat and we began to talk about how I held a Field-Staff position for them, he asked who all I was on with, and when I said Dead Ringer, he cracked this big grin and said "ohhh we like them too!" It was awesome, I had dreamed of being able to rub elbows with these people and here I had one standing in front of me smiling! I'll never forget what he told me, it almost brings tears of joy to my eyes as I'm writing this. He told me, "You're doing everything right, you've gotten on with some great companies. You know, we've been at this for 30 years, just keep doing what you're doing, and I guarantee you'll make it [in this industry]" I could barely contain my emotions, all the hard work, all the rejection, the advertising that seemed to fall on deaf ears, it all was finally coming together. After I took a picture with the Reeves and thanked them for everything, I  got to meet Kip Campbell. I had always wanted to meet Kip, from watching his show, to the commercials, just everything about him on TV made me think that he was definitely someone I would want to be around, and I'm happy to say that he is the most genuine person I have ever met. We talked about the commercials, the show, and overall about how many people in the industry (and out of the industry) aren't as they seem, I won't name drop. but his experiences kind of opened my eyes to how big some of the egos in the industry are, and it was very nice to see he was not one of those people.

So, what was taken away from this? There are many genuine people in the industry, and even though you always hear that, it's nice to see the truth behind it. I've looked up to these people so much and to see that they truly live up to their name and are genuinely great people. It puts things into perspective that as long as you stay yourself and remain humble, there is a spot for you in this industry. And even though I held these men and women in high regards before, now, I have gained even more respect for them and everything they've accomplished.

-Chris Johnson