Speaker 1: 0:00

Welcome back to the Garden State Outdoors and Podcast presented by Boone Duck Hunting. That's why your tagline, jcl, known perfect. You don't know what's unknown to the game. You don't know what's a lesson you can bring. Accidentally drifted my canoe between a sow and a cub and she charged and hit the back of the canoe. His head hit the ground before his ass did.

Speaker 2: 0:25

Begging, begging and crying to go with my grandfather, go with my father on these gear drives.

Speaker 1: 0:31

You know, the last trip over I shot a great Cape Buffalo with my bow, Charging through the grass.

Speaker 3: 0:36

And then the whooping.

Speaker 1: 0:38

And then you hear Welcome back to the Garden State Outdoorsman Podcast. I'm your host, Frank Mastika. And you got the old Squatch sitting in and taking it all in here, as always, and today we got our very special guest, ms Christina Rafalco. Christina, welcome to the show.

Speaker 3: 0:57

Hi, thank you for having me on the show.

Speaker 1: 1:00

I appreciate you taking the time out and coming on the podcast. I'm really looking forward to this one, so I'm ready to have a good time, if you are.

Speaker 3: 1:10

All right, sounds like it's going to be a lot of laughs.

Speaker 1: 1:13

Oh yeah, it's going to get better, trust me.

Speaker 2: 1:16

Yep.

Speaker 1: 1:19

So you know, for the people who don't know you, why don't you give us like little background story on yourself and how you got started and wherever you?

Speaker 2: 1:26

want to start.

Speaker 3: 1:28

Well, 48-year-old single mom too 13 and 12-year-old, which I'm very proud of Got into archery with my last relationship about four years ago, started out with a simple diamond bow and target shooting, loved it absolutely, just fell in love with the archery and then, you know, grew from there, went out hunting a couple times with, you know, my bow and my bow and, um, I just really enjoyed like spending the time in nature and the quiet and the peace and being a busy mom. If I could turn around and go, I'm going to go hunting and someone's going to watch the kids, bye-bye. You guys are always like, yeah, I got to get out in the woods and away from the old lady, I'm getting away from the kids, I'm going too Forget that I'll. I'm going too Forget that I'll be out there too. So, yeah, that's when I basically got into it.

Speaker 3: 2:30

And you know, when I first started out, it was a small piece of property behind my guy's buddy's house and we hadn't set up. You know, with the sorry, it's all right, no worries, worries, set up a ladder, stand. Actually the funniest part about this is is, um, I was afraid of heights, like massively afraid of heights. So there's this one meme going around, like you know, the guy's like three feet off the ground in his stand, you know, scared of heights but wants, wants to hunt. That was me.

Speaker 3: 3:06

I was like absolutely fearful. So I had like a 10 foot ladder stand and I was still scared of it. Now I climb 30 feet and I'm fine with it, but I went into the blind a couple of times. I hate the blind. I can't say I hate the blind Blind.

Speaker 3: 3:22

You know it's a whole different shooting experience. I mean, if you're shooting with a crossbow shotgun or something of that nature, completely different when you're shooting a compound. I mean you got to make sure everything's like. You got enough room. You know I don't have a massively long draw length, but 26 and a half inches, half inches. You know I still need that room too. You know, and I'm, I'm five, I'm 5, 10, so like I need my room. You know, even like sitting, you gotta like be up and over, like so you don't hit the. You know the ledge of the window there. But uh, yep, I, I got it to the blind and I'll never forget my first uh hunt it.

Speaker 3: 4:08

Uh, last shot of the day is that you know we're getting to the darkness and this little tiny doe jumps in spots. Must have just rubbed off on the tree, turn in the corner and um shot her and then uh had to wait, it wasn't the best shot in the world tiny target, tiny, you know crappy shot, but I still took the shot. Uh, we had to leave. Her came back about an hour later. I'm all nervous, sweating all over the place.

Speaker 3: 4:38

We knew exactly where she was when we left her and the place that we were hunting the private property literally there was a community around it and then the property itself just like, went back and back and back and and then people owned different parts of that property in there. So, um, we go up to the house and joe's up there and he goes well, how'd you do? Oh, she shot something. He goes well, where is it? We got to come back. So we come back about an hour later and she must have bled out in like 30 seconds. And basically, you know, he field dressed it, stuffed it in a cooler. It was so small.

Speaker 1: 5:18

I think we've all been there, though.

Speaker 3: 5:24

You know well it was with some of the freshest venison you'll ever eat. You're the tenderest dick in the world.

Speaker 2: 5:30

They are tender.

Speaker 1: 5:32

Very tender.

Speaker 3: 5:33

It's the veal of venison, you know, yep, so kind of got into it from there. The blood part never bothered me, anything like that, because I worked in the operating room. I was like, you know, I saw more blood being in there sometimes. Um, then I started getting into the ladder stand and stuff and we were still in the same property and then, uh, for my birthday, he bought me ladder stand like a real one this time, not 10 feet and it was like 20 feet up, and we get it all set up and we get a camera on the property, we set up a feeder, like now I'm really into it, right, yep, and I've been practicing a lot with my shots and stuff.

Speaker 3: 6:14

And it got out there a couple of times and you know, this buck came in the one time and there was a stream Water Me and water are not ever friends, but anyway there's a stream and I take a clean shot on the buck right through it. I see it right through it. I get down, he's in a climber. So you hear him go up, you hear him come back down and I was like dude, just stay up, I'm just going to go check out the arrow, and then I go over stripping blood. I'm like all right, clean trail following the trail bucks laying and he's, like you know, just back off back on it and he goes in charging it, like you know, sasquatch, no offense, and then bumps it and trail lost in the stream, never to be recovered again because that property, like I told you went deep down and back and I was just like, oh my god, and I was just sitting there like my first buck gone, just gone.

Speaker 3: 7:19

I think we called uh casey, yeah, yep, and uh, everybody knows casey mack. And then uh called him up and he was just like, bro, I'm tied up. And then we called somebody else I can't remember who else we called because it was like mid-season, late fall, and uh, they couldn't come out either and then we just couldn't, we just couldn't track, and then at that point we messed up everything so bad trying to find it. It was like there was no sense of bringing a dog in, you know. So it just is gone.

Speaker 3: 7:52

Um, I think I came back it was like a week, maybe two weeks later and whoever owned the adjacent private properties came in, stole my ladder stand. Oh, I stole my birthday gift. Um, put a note, put a note on the camera, you know, took the feeder, like just it was like it was kind of unbelievable, like my strap was still at the top and my hanger was still up there, but no ladder stand to be had, went around the woods see if we could like track anything, put a couple posts up on something like you know the new jersey bow sites and never recovered, you know, led to this like series of people giving clues but not giving clues, and what a hot mess that was. And yeah, just you know, it really put a big like damper on it for me because it was like this is a fellow hunter, yeah, and yeah, okay, if we're, if you're hunting the same property or we had permission to hunt that property, you're hunting the same property. We work it out. You know you can go. You're going this day? Okay, then you know we'll go this day or whatever. You know, like we're putting food out, you're putting food out like work together instead of like against each other, you know.

Speaker 3: 9:14

So that kind of brought me into public property uh, got involved in the monmouth uh Park System, got my. I was on at the private property, I was an apprentice, so I got my full-on license. It was after they finally allowed you to test with COVID. So I did all the online testing and I couldn't take the actual field test because everything was shut down with COVID. So I had to wait till I could get in.

Speaker 3: 9:47

So the first class they offered, which was out in like Lacey Road and like Fork River, going into. Like there was one place back, it was loaded and I guess everybody was waiting like to get there. So it was the first available class open and it was a whole bunch of people. I was the first person to go up. They pulled me. They're like okay, just start shooting. I was like, okay, sure, no problem. He's like okay, yeah. And then just that many people out there, yeah and uh, can you hear me still? Yeah, you're good, okay, cool. And then, um, can you hear me still? Yeah, you're good, okay, cool. And then got my license, got onto the public land again. First we used my 10-foot ladder stick, because now my other one was stolen.

Speaker 1: 10:35

Yeah.

Speaker 3: 10:35

So you're back to that one huh, we're back to the 10-foot stand. But we set it up on a hill looking down the valley so it looks like it wasn't 10 feet, but it was 10 feet and everybody knew it was my sand so I didn't really know. But um, went out there, started really like you see more. You're on public land, you know. But you also see, you know kids riding atvs, motor, you know dirt bikes going through, other hunters going through.

Speaker 3: 11:04

I'll never forget the one time I'm out there and this is what I was telling you as a woman in the woods. Okay, first of all, you got to know, like completely all your surroundings and who else is out in the woods with you. And I was always kind of like the parking lot bitch because, like I told you, it would be like I had to be able to see my vehicle, like when it was, you know, after your last shot, I want to be able to like get down, be able to see, like hit the clicker and know my vehicle's like there, you know. So I always was like 50 to a hundred yards from the parking lot and as the trees, leaves would drop, I would actually be seeming closer. But anyway. I get out there and I'm up in the stand the one day Now I've already dealt with dirt bikes, I've already dealt with some kids walking through and then this guy comes out because it was a Friday afternoon.

Speaker 3: 11:57

He was going out hunting on a Saturday morning. Guy comes out, legit, sees me in the stand, walks right underneath me. I'm like yo, bro, I'm like I'm up in the stand, walks right underneath me. I'm like yo, bro, I'm like I'm up in the stand. What are you doing, man? He goes, I got to go bait my stand. I'm like you see me here, I'm hunting right now, like no remorse, no, nothing, no respect. Legit drops his corn you guys love the rest of the story Drops his corn, proceeds to walk back right underneath me, not that I'm even on the main path or anything. I jumped my stand and went to his because I was like hey, thanks for paying it for me there you go.

Speaker 3: 12:39

I was like you know, what I was like thanks for paying for me. Now I'm going out there, hell yeah. And then that same property, because it was a new property for Monmouth County Park Systems. It was off of White Street, which was like off Route 9, like the freehold area kind of, and they opened up that property but a lot of dirt bikers were in it beforehand because it was like a big bowl but there was a ton of deer in there, a ton of ticks too, but a lot of dirt bikers were in it beforehand because it was like a big bowl but there was a ton of deer in there, ton of ticks too, but ton of deer, because like the whole center of it was just like almost open field so the deer be passing through all the time and big bucks in there even you could see everything in there.

Speaker 3: 13:18

But it was a great piece to hunt. But for me I stopped hunting it because you know, here I am blonde ponytail on the back and these dirt bikers are going by and harassing me at this point and I'm just like, oh, forget it. You know like I'm out of here. So I ended up pulling my stand out of there, went over to uh bear swamp, which is, uh, on the other side of what is that? Manasquan Reservoir.

Speaker 3: 13:48

Yep, yeah, I know a couple people who hunt that, yeah, met a lot of hunters in there and I became like the woods wife. Nick Santer, he's a big hunter. Yep, yeah, nick hunted out there Him and I hit it off. You, you know, he knew my truck, I knew his. So, like we always knew, when each other were out there, you always make sure I get back out to the you know my vehicle. If I was out by myself or whatever, um, good guy taught me a lot of tricks too, you know. Plus, when you're up in the tree, you know you're sitting there texting each other and stuff. But at that point I was back into a 20 foot, so you don't have to worry about the 10-foot stand. We got a piece through it so it went up to a 20-feet. So there, you go.

Speaker 1: 14:32

We can't see you now.

Speaker 3: 14:34

I still see my car, though we're just hunting around now, but I was out there again parking a lot of fish and he even helped me out, like picking out a spot, like that kind of like, had the runs that go through it and I legit there was probably 50 yards off the parking lot and like some of the deer that I would see in there are like absolutely amazing. That's actually where I got my first buck, cool. But you know, when I really started getting into it it was at Bear Swamp and I would start studying the winds and descending and the moon, and you can study everything with deer.

Speaker 2: 15:18

They're just going to do whatever the hell they want to do anyway.

Speaker 3: 15:21

And I got really big into the scents. Though, like you know, as a woman I'm going to tell you the hardest thing All those scented, de-scented products for your hair and skin and all that stuff suck, they all suck. I can't even comb my hair when I use that stuff. But you guys don't even have to worry about that kind of stuff, but for us it counts. But out there, so I got into the sense like I was saying, and before I got my buck the one time I went out there and this was crazy. I'm out there and I have this stupid little button buck and everybody saw this button buck because he literally went to everybody's stand to go off their feet. Cause he's like literally went to everybody's stand to go off their feet and so he's in in front of me one day. So I started practicing, like you know, some blowing and some calls and stuff and playing around with that now, because I'm like all right, I got the book right. He's not moving, he can't see me, he doesn't smell me and he's just hanging out chewing and I'm like all right, and it's like the beginning of rut. So I was like, let me try some things out. And then so I threw out a call and he just like kind of looked up at me a little bit, like looked around. Then he just went right back to chewing. So I was like all right, let's see what else I can get going on here.

Speaker 3: 16:37

I'm not going to lie to you. I had the angriest spike I have ever seen in my entire life come charging out of the woods at me. I mean like he legit looks like one of those crazy bulls in a Looney Tunes commercial Because he was pissed. I mean like his coat was super dark. You'd almost think it was the Jersey Devil because he had crazy spikes. If he could climb my ladder, stand and beat the shit out of me, he had the crazy spikes. He was just he. If he could climb my ladder, stand and beat the shit out of me, he would have, because he was so pissed off.

Speaker 3: 17:10

He gets all the way out there. He looks at the button buck, looks at the food, flips his head up, looks at me and I'm like, oh yeah, and he just and gone. Like I couldn't even grab my bow. If I wanted to, he would have been a prize, but I couldn't grab it. That's how fast he came in and he was out. I was just like what the hell was that? I'm trying to like explain it. I think nick was in the woods at the time and I'm like telling him what happened. He's like get out of here. And because he was down, like down the trail from me, and he's like I didn't see anything, I'm like, dude, I'm telling you, this thing just blew in, blew out. Anyway, I had another friend of mine, steve Haydu. He hunts out there too. Okay, so the day I get my buck and if I'm talking too much, you guys can just tell me- no, listen.

Speaker 1: 18:06

no, that's what this show is about. Go for it.

Speaker 3: 18:08

So the day I get my buck, it is right after a Nor'easter, it's, I think, it's end of rut, because it was getting pretty cold out. It was right after a Nor'easter. I was pretty bundled up but like, still, the wind was still kind of blowing and get out to my stand. Well, first I get pulled to the lot. I'm like, wow, nobody's here. I'm like, oh, maybe I made a mistake doing this today. I was like, ah, forget it, I'm already here. I might as well just go sit up there. So go, go sit up there. So go ahead and sit up there.

Speaker 3: 18:48

I can see my car and I see steve pull in and he had like one of those electric bikes and he, you know, went all the way down to his stand, baited his little electric scooter along the trail. I can see, you know, off in the distance riding back to his car. Then he had one of those train whistle horns on the car. He honks as he's leaving. I'm like dick, you know, like thanks. And he was like, oh, good luck. You know, whatever he was a, he was good guy. And then, uh, now I'm sitting in the tree, winds blowing tree sway. I'm like getting a little nauseous but at the same time I have this, just this drip that is coming down right between my like hairline andaiter, and it's hitting the back of my neck and it's so annoying. So I get up, take my harness off or unhook myself, start trying to adjust it up the back of the harness and tuck it in, and I look out of the corner of my eye and there's my buck coming in and I'm like get the hell out of here.

Speaker 3: 19:46

So now, like, everything turns into slow motion and I'm just like heart's racing and body is trying to move as slow as possible. So he doesn't even see me, he's just strutting along all by himself and, uh, turn around and like I get myself turned around and I'm, I'm locked back in. And then I'm like sitting there and I'm like you know the real slow motion, trying to get my bow, and I'm like, okay, he's still coming in, never lifted his head, he's just like just moseying on it and like, and then he's coming around and there's, at this point he's about 20 yards off me, but there's a tree in between me and him. So, because the tree's there, I'm like all right, it's all back. I'm sitting there, drawn, you know, and he's coming past the tree and you see the hoof and then you see the foot, then you see the leg, then you see his snout and then you're like I'm watching him through my peep, like coming, coming, coming.

Speaker 3: 20:47

I'm sitting there, I'm just watching and then, like, then there's the neck and there's the antlers and you're like just holding the shot and just like your heart is racing and you're just holding position, holding position, holding position. Finally his shoulder starts to come through the tree. He's going to quarter away from me. The second I had the shoulder in my peep. I'm watching it, watch it. It lifted just enough and I finally release, hit him with a heart, shot. Nice, he uh 20 yards. I watched the because I it's the first time he's using lighted knocks to switch switch. Those things are a game changer.

Speaker 1: 21:24

Oh yeah, oh man we love my lighted nocks.

Speaker 3: 21:28

Oh my God, I'm sitting there, I'm watching the nock and I'm watching the deer and I'm like you see them go like bang into one bush, bang into a tree. And I just see the nock and everything, because I was like my eyes were closed for like a second because I was on the parking lot. Bitch, I'm 50 yards off, like the main drag there, and I'm like please don't let me hear cars honking, please don't let him get back up. I'm like, oh god, god. And I'm like freaking out. I'm like no, no. And I'm like looking and I see the knock, I see him down. I'm like, okay, he's not moving. Okay, he's still not moving. I'm like when do I get down a check? I'm like, all right, I text, uh, text my guy and you would think he shot the buck. And I call him up, like call him up. And I'm like, hey, uh, I shot a buck, he goes. Why? Like yeah, I shot a buck, he goes. See, I told you you should go out today.

Speaker 3: 22:21

I'm like what, dude? That's not even the point. And he's like don't move yet. Don't move, wait for me. I'm like, yeah, okay, I'll wait for you. I'm sitting there. I'm like he's still not moving. I'm like I can't wait for him. I got to go see what's going on. Climb down, look at the sight of this shot splat everywhere and then, as I'm walking towards him, you could see the blood. It was like as the heart pulsated. The blood was just squirting out through the arrow. Nice, get over to him and boom, he's out, he's done, he's seven-pointer. Tattooed it on me, even Nice, I don't know if you can see it in the background, but there's his Euro mount.

Speaker 3: 23:12

Yeah, yeah, you can see him, yep, yeah, and yeah, it was a very exhilarating. I'm standing over him and I have like tears coming down my face, because it's just such a moment you know to capture that face, because it's just such a moment you know to capture that. And um, I hear, hear my guy coming down the road. Sorry, pop up, but I turned him off. Um, he's honking, blazing on the horn. I hear him see all I can see him coming into the parking lot. He comes running out to my stand.

Speaker 3: 23:40

I'm not in my stand. I'm not in my stand. I'm clearly with the buck. I'm waving. He's looking around there. I'm like, no, you can't see me, I'm in camouflage. He just looks over. He comes running over. He just sees the blood everywhere. He's like holy crap. He looks and he's like, oh my God, that's bigger than my first buck. I'm like this is what you have to say. You know like what a conversation. And he was just so. He was just so proud, so happy. I was like thrilled, beyond thrilled, but it is incredibly emotional, you know.

Speaker 1: 24:20

Oh absolutely it's just like. Just like how you and him had that whole like come on, it's the same with me and squatch like every time I shoot one, he's sometimes I think he's happier than I am you know, and he's like, oh nice, and I'm, I'm the same way with him. So yeah, I know, I know that feeling. It's a great feeling.

Speaker 3: 24:43

It is a great feeling and, like, I think that's that feeling alone carried into why I wanted to mentor. Because, yeah, you know, when I did a couple mentoring hunts I did, uh, with UBNJ they had the female mentoring hunt and you know she, she's a young lady, 18, probably 18 years old, and uh, you know she shot before, but it was nice to be with her and, like the patience she had, we got a button buck that day and she waited, waited, waited waited and I was just like go, boom, splat, done.

Speaker 3: 25:21

You know it was a perfect, it was the perfect time and I was proud. You know, like I was proud for her, I was happy for her. I think I enjoyed watching her happiness more than my own, you know it was really great. And then I did, uh, another hunt with them. Um, uh, special needs hunt. Everybody knows lou, so I'm sure you know lou too. And uh, I took lou out, didn't shoot anything but laughed our asses off for a few hours. So you know that was really great and you know I'm lucky to be with that organization. They um I've met some really great people in it. Um, they've really they have helped me out tremendously.

Speaker 3: 26:07

Like you know, I lost my hunting partner that was my buddy. So I had to kind of restart again and plus I moved out from Ocean County over to Burlington County. So it was a whole change of venue for me and that gets the little. You know, when you're still in that novice phase, you know that gets a little unrattling. So you try to figure out where to go because I didn't want to give up on it. You know I loved it that much, I did not want to lose that.

Speaker 3: 26:40

So I kept going with it and I got hooked up with some private properties over this last season and had a great time. I mean just being out in the woods and enjoying a couple of friends took me out as well and just always great. I mean there's that and I'm sure every hunter knows this, but there's that one epic moment when you're in the woods and it's right before that sun sets and the whole woods goes golden, it's quiet and it's golden, and it is unless you're in that moment experiencing the quiet and how everything just settles down, like the birds are chirping, chirping, chirping, and then everything just stops and there's just that golden moment in the woods. I could do that every single day of my life, I mean that is just awesome.

Speaker 1: 27:21

No, there isn't.

Speaker 3: 27:24

There is nothing like it at all. I mean, I've seen some fun stuff like the fog rolling in. I think that was this past year. I'm out there and I'm like everything starts getting like more diminished, diminished, diminished. And then I'm looking and the fog's just like literally rolling across the woods and I'm like, oh, this is gonna be fun getting out today look, I'm only 50 yards from the truck that one, actually that one, I wasn't that one.

Speaker 3: 27:50

I was in there, of course, deep, yeah, I was. I was on private property backed up to state property, so I was like really in there and I'm like it was like my first time in there too, and I was like, oh, this should be epic. Trying to get out of this that's funny.

Speaker 2: 28:11

That's like when we went up to the farm Frank and we were out like the second Time turkey hunting. It's foggy, like as we're walking Out through his field it's barely Daylight and the fog is rolling in and we hear gobbles, but we're like they came from over there. And then it was overcast and we were Sitting and. I started calling birds in and they were coming from every direction.

Speaker 3: 28:36

Oh nice.

Speaker 2: 28:37

It was still foggy and we had a big tom come in and it hung up because we were on a tree line and then he looks. He's like there's another one out in the field. I'm like, frank, we got turkeys coming in. I'm like, shoot the damn jigs, we got two tags tags.

Speaker 1: 28:54

Yeah, they're literally right in front of us big one.

Speaker 2: 28:57

He's like I really want the big one. I'm like I don't think it's gonna happen, man, but you know, but it was like that fog and that yes misty morning, like rain that was a great hunt, though, man.

Speaker 1: 29:08

Oh, we had we had.

Speaker 2: 29:09

I'm telling you, it was so funny.

Speaker 1: 29:12

He literally sat there for five minutes. Frank, just please Shoot one of the jakes. They're ten yards away, just pick one. I'm like dude, I don't know Like I really want that, like my heart was Set on like either one of those two. And he's telling me he's like listen to me, I've shot in Turkey, and you know, and it's fell. And then another one comes Like it's fine, shoot that one. First I just I couldn't do it. And then afterwards I looked at him. I looked at him and I was like Scott, I probably should have shot that turkey.

Speaker 3: 29:50

I'm sure he was like oh dog.

Speaker 2: 29:52

Yeah, I take the. I like oh duh. Yeah, I said all right, that tom that you want is like 60 yards man, and I'm like I got a three and a half inch magnum. I'm like take my gun and, if it's good, shoot. And he's like all right. And there was one time I'm like and you know, you try not to be like overpowering and just suggest things.

Speaker 2: 30:13

And I'm like Frank yeah, bud, I said if I was going to take a shot at that, tom, I would probably squeeze off. Now you think all right, all right. And he's like get hunkered down and he's thinking about okay, this shotgun is a freaking beast. I told him. I said put your ass into it, because I said this thing will knock you over. I'm like you're not used to this thing he's like all right.

Speaker 2: 30:38

So I can see the hesitation, I can see the thought of how he's gonna go after this bird and then the bird gets cut off by like four jakes and they come running through and I'm like shoot the jake. I'm like just shoot the freaking jakey. This is the shit that goes on and we're laughing our asses off, not only that.

Speaker 3: 31:02

With turkey hunting too, where they can see every motion that you're making too.

Speaker 2: 31:08

He's kneeling down and he's like I gotta move my legs cramping up. I'm like, alright, I'll go this way and I'm trying to film and we're knocking over chairs and cameras and we're like, thank God, they didn't hear us because we would have been in the shit if they could hear us, because we were making so much noise.

Speaker 1: 31:26

And he's going, frank, I love you, buddy, but you got to shoot. Just pick one.

Speaker 3: 31:39

Just pick one and shoot one, dude. I'm like, come on, man. I say now I lived over in tom's river so it was easier for me to just hit the turkeys with the car, because they everywhere over there. Yeah, I've been through the it's yeah, they just like run right across the road, just like hit the gas pedal and you got one, yeah easily, You'll at least get one.

Speaker 1: 31:56

Put it that way At least.

Speaker 3: 31:58

I mean, I lived over in Silverton and I've never seen them, like you know, flock into Silverton before and the one day I'm like walking like around the corner from me and there's a group of chicks, and I'm like what the heck is going on here, like you can almost throw a rock at it. They're just walking along. Like I'm like this is ridiculous. Out here I've seen a couple like big toms and you just sit there and like I'm just fascinated with it. Now I can't say that I personally went turkey hunting, but it's something I definitely want to do and I know it's like incredibly hard to do with a bow, so yeah, yeah, I mean it was tough with the gun, but we still we.

Speaker 1: 32:39

you know I got to get my my shotgun license.

Speaker 3: 32:42

though I've gotten the, I have all the education courses done. I just have to go for the test. I did the apprentice for like the last three years, which was great, like on, uh you know, six days, I had two tags. So, yeah, yeah, not that I've had any luck with that big time tag soup this past season for me listen, it was.

Speaker 1: 33:05

It was a weird year for for some people. You know, like I was able to um meet back up with one of my buddies, believe it or or not. He used to be engaged to my sister back in the day and me and him just started talking again and found out he only lived like 10 minutes away. He had like 200 acres of private you know property.

Speaker 1: 33:28

So you know, I got him back in hunting because he used to hunt with us and then he he got out of it for a while. So like he's just getting back into, he's asking me a lot of questions, like he wants to learn. He goes dude, like this is so much different from when I used to hunt with you, like 15, 20 years ago. You know, like there's so much technology, now there's this, there's that. He's like if I didn't have you, he's like if I didn't have you, he's like I would just, literally, probably, just like you know, shoot him off the barn or something you know like but uh, yeah, no, the technology is insane.

Speaker 3: 34:02

I mean we, when everybody talks about even storing their, their gear and their, their clothing and stuff at the end of the season, like you know. But the, the scent locks and all the um, that's me. I'm a big scent freak. I don't know why you are not. No, I am not.

Speaker 2: 34:18

Oh, I am too.

Speaker 3: 34:19

Uh, I like my stuff's like on lockdown so I'm like, if it smells like I'm like throwing those onyx in it, the pulled I mean that stuff that really does pull the smell right out of it too. Yup, especially like you don't even realize it, like, okay, like my archery bag alone, like that'll be sitting in the garage, that'll pick up like the smells of the garage and then your bow has it on it and you don't realize that because, like, maybe to you that's a normal smell. But the second you get out there you're like, wait a minute, this smells a little bit like car oil here.

Speaker 1: 34:50

like, oh, no, so I'll usually like, I'll usually just like store all my stuff in, like you know, like a tote or whatever, and like I'll put it in back of my truck and leave it in back of my truck, so it's not in the house, it's not in the garage. You know, and I'll usually, you know, when I need it, I'll usually go get it get changed and then go out, but you know that's during the season.

Speaker 3: 35:15

I'll like my stuff in the night before, run the Ozonics in the truck and then it just pulls the smell out of everything on there. So that stuff is great. You use the Ozonics a lot. I like to use it with my gear. Yes, I mean, I know some people have said that it kind of breaks down the materials of their gear.

Speaker 2: 35:36

So you don't have the one that mounts in the tree behind you.

Speaker 3: 35:41

No, I have. It's called a Scent-A-Way. It's a grab and throw. Okay, and you just power it up, put it in there. It'll run until the battery dies on it and it just pulls the smell out of everything. Oh, that's good, yeah, it runs, you can plug it in and it has a little car one. But I didn't really find that that worked that much, except to charge something off of it.

Speaker 1: 36:06

Yeah, I tried the car one. I didn't think it was that great.

Speaker 3: 36:10

No, it's like the little square. Little square one right the center one is the green green writing on it. Yep, their grab and go one is really great, because that's the one I, that's my go-to. I'll put that in the truck with everything and just let it run and overnight in the truck and the next morning head out or next afternoon and it's all ready to go.

Speaker 1: 36:31

That's good no, that's real good to know. Um, christina, I was gonna ask you that that buck that you shot um you were using fixed heads or mechanicals. I was always wondering if you you got to be a fixed head person right, yeah, fixed, because I only pull 42.

Speaker 3: 36:47

Well, now I pull 42 pounds. I think at the time I was pulling maybe like just below 40. So with the mechanicals, a lot of them won't pop open until you're like hitting 60. So I think the lowest on a mechanical is like 50, and you don't want to take that opportunity for it to not open and expand. No, no.

Speaker 1: 37:08

No, I'm with you on that one, because I think I saw that picture on your Instagram with the arrow. It was actually like stuck in the beard.

Speaker 3: 37:17

It looked like it was a shoulder band right.

Speaker 1: 37:19

It looked like it was a shoulder. I was about to say yep.

Speaker 3: 37:22

But when we field dressed the buck, it was right into the heart, like right into the ventricle, so it went through the one lung, like just clipped like the vena cava, and into the ventricle so it went through the one long, like just clipped like, um, the vena cava, and into the heart. It was part like when I actually had an arrow over there. Got home and I'm cleaning my equipment up and uh, go to like clean up the arrow and like this long congealed strand of blood comes out the middle of the arrow and cause, you know, it got me even thinking, like you know, all those times like people like lose when they're tracking, you know now this is a shot from the air and it was a clean shot, but that how quickly that congealed. You think about like all these people with like the gut shots and they lose the you know, the deer, the doe, the buck, whatever, and they lose it. Because I mean, if it's congealing that fast, it's just like, oh crap. You know, like I just shot it like two hours ago.

Speaker 2: 38:22

We just had our trivia and a lot of the trivia on the show was, you know, wounded deer questions how you would react to a shot that went off and how you would follow up with tracking that deer, which brought up a really cool thing that I watched. I don't know if you know who Dan infall is, but he's one of the best whitetail hunters. He's out of the Midwest. He's been hunting for years and years and years. He goes. Sometimes he goes around with the hunting public guys on on YouTube. I don't know if you've caught them but, anyway, he's a very well-respected outdoorsman.

Speaker 2: 38:58

He was saying how he likes and if he has the room to do it, stay on a deer. Just for that specific reason, he wants that deer to pump, not lay down and coagulate, not lay down and scab over. It's kind of a marginal hit which, yeah, I mean I've been down both roads because growing up where I grew up we had plenty of land. I mean I I've wounded my share of deer over the years, you know, and I'm not proud of it.

Speaker 2: 39:27

I'm up. I get upset over it oh yeah, but yeah, I've always made every attempt, even days a week, two weeks after, to try to figure out what happened, even if I don't find a deer. If I do find a deer, okay, it's a bonus. But I try to piece everything together like a mystery. What did I do wrong? Or maybe I didn't do anything wrong because I've seen the resilience in animals to live.

Speaker 2: 40:00

Yeah, okay I've seen bucks I mean literally, I've told frank this story a nine point buck. My neighbor and I took it shot. I shot it nine times, nine times with a 35 Marlin. He shot it twice in the throat with a 270 at like 10 yards and that deer finally died and we got him. But we looked at each other and we're like I mean the shots that I made, they were dead. Yeah, the shot, I mean literally 10 yards when I pushed that deer out of its last bed towards my buddy yeah, he's not in the white patch in the throat with a 270 how is it possible it hit the ground and it's back up on all four and he shot again and I'm like, why the hell is he shooting again, you know?

Speaker 2: 40:50

and I'm like, is it down? And he goes, it's down. I'm like, oh, thank the lord. And you cannot believe the resilience these animals have. And that's why fred bear said you know, you want to chase animals, you want to be after something, go after a whitetail buck, it's the most you know. Yeah, game, I mean they're, they're incredible. I've had deer, just you hit them and they die and it's like, yeah, why is there so much difference? Yeah, and animals and and you know, it's like you sit there and you go, man, and that's that's the respect part of being a hunter, when you're out there and you see how much that animal had that will to live yeah, you know, and you do take its life and maybe you know, you do find it.

Speaker 2: 41:37

It really humbles you. You go, man, you know, I mean I, I think, I think about it like, I'm like if I got hit like that I'd be screaming, crying, dying you know, these animals.

Speaker 3: 41:48

I've seen them walking around. They're still fighting for their life, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 2: 41:52

They're so resilient. I had you know, it's amazing.

Speaker 3: 41:58

Like the one button buck I shot the one time, lost him Like not today. I lost him. I knew I had a good shot on him. Yeah, he stayed up in my stand, waited like 20 minutes. It was still early, Nobody was out. It was still early, Nobody was out, it was just me out. So I was just like all right, let me go see what's going on. Came around the corner he's down. I'm like all right, that was easy. Another time I shot big, big doe, Double long shot, but she still ran off like 100 yards. I know guys that go sitting around chatting, like we are right now, and during the rut these bucks they're running 200, 300, 400 yards still going and if they congeal in that time they're still living. You can have a lethal shot on one of them with an expandable and they're still gonna like live through. They'll do somehow live with one lung if they have to.

Speaker 1: 42:58

Oh, yeah once those endorphins and the hormones are pumping in those guys oh yeah, it's like some of them are just like impossible to stop, because I remember I shot actually this eight pointer behind me. He, uh, I shot him in New York state door rifle season. He was about like a hundred yards. I messed up, I pulled the shot, the first shot I I got shot him but he did a loop and he ended up actually running right to me because he didn't know where the shot came from. So I'm watching him and then he gets like halfway to me and he didn't know where the shot came from.

Speaker 1: 43:35

So I'm watching, and then he gets like halfway to me and then he just starts walking nice and slow, nice. So I'm like all right, frank, like calm down, he's not going anywhere, like he doesn't know where you're at. He walks within 30 yards and again I had the 270. I shot him, boom, he hits the floor. Yeah, I'm like, yeah, I start like cheering all that. I turn, I turn around and also he gets up and he's, and he's walking again and I'm like no way took I, I ejected the bullet. I was like all right, this time I'm shooting him right in the shoulder like I'm breaking his front legs completely.

Speaker 2: 44:13

Yeah.

Speaker 1: 44:14

Shot him. See, like I said, broke his legs. He I'm watching him run, His legs are dangling and he's kicking only with his back legs and he, just, he gets out about 80 yards and he stops and he's just standing there and I'm like you, I'm like like you gotta be shitting me, like this is the last bullet I have in the gun.

Speaker 1: 44:36

Yeah, and I was like, well, I'm gonna try one more time. I put it on his lungs and I shot him and finally he hit the floor and that was it. But I'm like my uncles call me everybody's like frank, are you all right? Like you know, like what's going on? You took four shots, you know, did you get it? I'm like, yeah, yeah I got it.

Speaker 3: 44:54

I don't even I told them, like I don't even want to talk about it, you know because unless you're in the moment, like people were like, yeah right, like you just obviously had a bad shot. No, like you could have a spot-on shot. I mean that's another thing. You're hunting in the blind. You gotta wait for that blood level to like hit the shot. Yeah, I'm gonna start bleeding out. I mean, how many people have lost deer shooting out of a blind? It's like you gotta be. Like I don't understand, and I think that's where, like I get a little lost, like with the blind designs. I mean, like I get the low profile and kind of keep you hidden in there. Why don't you make a stand up one? Because it's just easier to like hit him at that.

Speaker 3: 45:37

Let at least get some kind of level on him. You know, everybody knows, you get a crap shot in a blind. You're waiting.

Speaker 2: 45:47

It's a waiting game, yeah.

Speaker 1: 45:49

Especially if nothing bumps it. I actually switched, like my bow profile, because, like this one particular spot that I used to hunt, all the time there was no trees. The only way to hunt it was in a ground, blind.

Speaker 2: 46:03

Yeah so I'm like all right, and like the bow.

Speaker 1: 46:06

I had the axle the axle. It was so freaking long I used to be battling it all the time. So I bought a 28 inch like matthews vxr just for that reason, and then it figures as soon as I bought it. I stopped hot in there.

Speaker 3: 46:20

So but you know, I, you know between the three of our masterminds, we'll come up with a design, a schematic for design for proper blinds.

Speaker 1: 46:31

Yep but yeah, I've been there with blinds man fighting them and it's, you know, it's a lot easier when you have a gun.

Speaker 3: 46:40

Yeah, well, yeah. Plus, I mean even if you're going into last shot, you're losing daylight in there 10 minutes before last shot, so last shot last shot in there.

Speaker 3: 46:49

You know you're just like, and and you're, you're limited what you can see around you. I mean, there's nothing worse than sitting in a blind. You know there's a deer behind it and you're just waiting and waiting for it to come in and it's just like, oh my, we just want to jump out of the blind and be like rambo in it, because you're just like, this is impossible. You just, you can hear breathing, you could feel a stomp, you know those are trying to blow you out because the deer's right there.

Speaker 1: 47:18

And you're just like, oh my god, yeah, he's so close, you can feel them. You're like yes, you know like you can like smell uh the glands you know, that happened to me one time but, believe it or not, it was not a freaking deer, it was a bear. Oh my god. Yeah, he came like within like five years or five years, the five yards and I was like holy shit, I was you know, like that was a little too close for comfort. That was a little too close for comfort.

Speaker 3: 47:52

I can only imagine that would unnerve me. You're up in Sussex County. I was biking over in Lafayette. Behind there on the trail rails, there's that one park. It's like a soccer field in a park that runs along the highway, the main drag there, and then it goes to a cornfield on the other side of the bike track.

Speaker 1: 48:20

Yeah, so I trout fish that stream a lot.

Speaker 3: 48:24

Oh really, when I trout fish, I'm usually over Flatbrook and the, the TCS, over there, down the, the one road that's a dead end, lead over to 206 or whatever that is. There's a big, big hole in there. Everybody probably already knows anyway, Big hole in there.

Speaker 3: 48:50

Go over to Three Bridges, never mind that other spot, but uh, but um. So I'm biking back there and I'm like what is that? And I'm like looking, we're flying down the trail. I'm like what is that bear? And there's a dude that's like 25, you know, feet behind us and he's like why is everybody stopping? I'm like there's a dude that's like 25, you know, feet behind us and he's like why is everybody stopping? I'm like there's a freaking bear and he's like he. He literally just turned around and took off. He was gone. And then I'm looking, I'm like what are we gonna do? And uh, okay, so we keep waiting. Like a minute or two didn't see any activity. Bear was kind of the small size, like cub size. So I was like, oh, this is just no good, just start biking again. And there was Mama Bear. Now we're caught between two bears and I'm like we should have turned around when the other dude turned around. And he's just sitting there like ah, and all I can see is the movie Like big bear, chase me, yeah.

Speaker 2: 49:57

Yeah, yeah, all right.

Speaker 3: 50:01

So, uh, he turns around and he just like that's it and he just takes off and I'm like dude and I'm like it's not fair. You've got a 29 inch radius on your tires. I'm 27 inches back here and he's like holes ass takes off on me. I was like peddling his fence like good to get out of there. You're just like, oh god, another story for another time. Those bears and the bear population, like you know, they stopped the hunt for so long that the population went bananas and the bears all they did was read, you know, populate in other places now.

Speaker 3: 50:36

Oh yeah, bears popping up in like at the beach and stuff and it's like, yeah, yeah, they're surfing, yeah, exactly. They're like they're over at a you know IBSP playing with the foxes.

Speaker 1: 50:50

Now you know it's a good clamming over in Barnegat.

Speaker 3: 50:57

I know you said, christina, bear hunting was something that you were looking to get into right, yes, yes, I would love to get into a bear hunt, get the experience of it. I know that going out bow-wise, you need a group of people. It's not something I would definitely do on my own, no way. And now, bow wise, you know you need a group of people. It's not something I'll definitely do on my own, no way. Um, not, I think, so much as for fear, but as for like I wouldn't want to screw it up. You know what I'm saying. Yeah, like I, and plus it'd be something that I'd be new at. So I would definitely want, like a group of young buddies, go out with and and do that. Plus, like your bear meat some of the most delicious meat that you can ever eat, especially if they're blueberrying up on you. So, yes, that's what I hear. So, yes, I did want to get into a bear hunt. So if anybody has an, opening cool, listen, we always.

Speaker 1: 51:48

You know, I know um, like our one guy, mike, he always likes to go down to um. He goes down like by black river and everything. He bear hunts down there a lot. I joined him a few times down there last year. But uh, yeah, I mean listen, if we get a bear hunt going, you know the invite's always there, I'll let you know.

Speaker 3: 52:07

And if you want to come out and try.

Speaker 1: 52:09

You know, at least you have more hands to help drag and everything. Because I know like I've never shot a bear with a bow before, but I've killed one with with the shotgun in jersey so I know, yeah, bow, hunting a bear, you know is, uh, it's different it's a group it's a, it's a group effort and you're.

Speaker 3: 52:33

You're not up in trees, you're not in blinds, you're on the ground, hiding behind like a rock and a tree so it's about as as raw as it gets and and the kill zone's a lot different on a bear too.

Speaker 1: 52:44

A lot of people are like oh, like you know some people who don't know like I've talked to people and they're like oh yeah, you just aim behind the shoulder. I'm like no, I'm not on the bear like it's like just think like middle, middle, basically, you know yeah, people are like oh, the bigger the target, no, it doesn't work like that with a bear at all, you know, and the last thing you want to do is piss a bear off, especially with a bow. You've got to go in there and look for him afterwards.

Speaker 3: 53:13

Not even that you have to reload and pull back. He could be on you at that point, if you're really thinking about it, you're going to get a clean shot. That is a tiny window. Even though it's a big target, it's a tiny window. You're going to have to be 20, 20 yards, 30 yards off of it. That's. That's nothing in bear running time, that's like two seconds.

Speaker 1: 53:37

You know, like I've always seen bears in the woods too, and they're they're constantly moving. Like you never see one stop for that long to make like a good shot, especially with a boat, like they're always constantly moving they're usually pulling. They're usually pulling down your bags oh, yeah, yeah, or they're touching my shit they're in your cooler, in the back of your truck I'm like oh not again you gotta see christina, because we share trail camera pictures with each other.

Speaker 2: 54:07

He's like yeah, look at this asshole. He gets like. This asshole just ruined my set. I'm like, hang it higher, man. He's like I did. It's like 10 feet off the ground he's climbing, he's bending. I'm like I don't know, man, Bears are pain in the ass.

Speaker 3: 54:22

Bears are. They are their own design.

Speaker 2: 54:27

They are.

Speaker 3: 54:27

They are their own design they are, they are. They are like, they are designed for just about anything. I mean they, they starve themselves. I mean, if you really think about bears, they starve themselves all winter long. They feed right up until they starve themselves and put themselves down. Like temperatures here have been too warm for them, like like the last couple years, and that's why the population took off. But you know, you're sitting there and they're like, they are designed to suffer the worst possible conditions and survive in them.

Speaker 3: 55:02

I mean the claws on them, the claws, I mean their teeth, the incisors of them. I mean they are just designed, the fur on them, the claws, their teeth, the incisors of them. I mean they are just designed, the fur on them. I mean unbelievable. I mean they're a beautiful animal. They are a reckless animal. I mean people that sit there and they're anti-bear hunts. Well, have you ever been mauled by a bear, or a family member, or your garbage or your house broken into Like bears? Don't stop. There's no barrier to a bear. What do you? No, you don't do that bear. They don't hear you, dude, you know, you can yell scream, do whatever.

Speaker 1: 55:38

Most of the time they just look at you and like what are you going to do about it?

Speaker 3: 55:41

yeah, you know like what do they say? If you do run into a bear, you got to make yourself bigger than the bear. You make yourself bigger than the bear.

Speaker 2: 55:49

Make yourself bigger than the bear and a black bear. If it comes at you, you can fight it. If it's opposite and you're at grizzly country, play dead.

Speaker 3: 55:56

Oh, forget it.

Speaker 1: 55:58

You're a grizzly country. That's a whole different beast. Over there they don't play.

Speaker 2: 56:03

No Real quick story about a bear hunt that I was on. I was hunting with my recurve. I went up to hunter mountain hunter mountain, where the ski lodge is. We my cousin lives up there, so I show up. He's like you're using that. I'm like yeah, he was, can you hit stuff with it? I'm like yeah, it's like all right, he goes. You know we're going after bear. I'm like I'm not afraid, dude. He's like all right. I'm telling you I was in a valley like this, like yeah, yeah just like this.

Speaker 2: 56:34

I came over a log and the bear came over a log on the opposite side of the valley. It was coming right at me and and I had I. There's no way I'm not pulling the bow back, shooting a bear that's facing me because its reaction is going to freak train over the top of me my only instinct was to take the bow up over my hands.

Speaker 2: 56:52

And I'm going ah, you know like that hands up and I'm like, oh my god, and this bear is chomping its teeth at me and I'm like, oh shit, this thing ain't backing off. So I did it again and I was like swinging the bow back and forth I'm like I'm yelling at it and yeah it booked and I was like, oh, thank god, because I was like. I was like I, you know, I can hold my own, but I was like not against a freaking bear. Bears are just now.

Speaker 2: 57:20

I'll throw you yeah rag doll, you know yep yeah I was just thinking. I'm like my next thing was I was gonna pull an arrow out of the quiver and just use it like a spear and just like poke it in the face or you know whatever.

Speaker 1: 57:31

Try it.

Speaker 3: 57:32

Just send it off they snapped their teeth.

Speaker 2: 57:34

They snapped their teeth, man, and I was like oh he's pissed.

Speaker 1: 57:37

Yeah, you're in trouble when they do that usually.

Speaker 2: 57:40

And like a year later, up in the Catskills I was hunting up in the one spot we go, spot we go, and it was first light and I saw something walking directly up under and I'm talking that steep, oh wow, bear. And I'm like, all right, I'm shooting.

Speaker 2: 57:54

I never shot a bear before and I had to write it was opening day of deer season okay I pull the hammer back, I shoot when he's like parallel to me up the hill, it comes tumbling down. I'm like, oh shit, I didn't think about it. He's just coming down and I'm grabbing my 45 off my hip. But I'm also like grabbing my gun again. I'm like, no, you better grab your 45 because it's going to be close quarters shit.

Speaker 2: 58:19

Here I'm behind this big blow down on the side of this ridge and it goes wham and it hits the tree like right next to me and it goes wham and it hits the tree like right next to me and it goes whoa, and I got the .45 full cocked and I'm just like, I'm like a little scared girl kid, you know I'm going. Oh shit, is it dead, oh God.

Speaker 3: 58:46

Bear's breathing his last breath.

Speaker 2: 58:50

I'm thinking back, I'm going. Well, I know they do the death bone when they die, but that sucker literally did it on the opposite side of the log, where I was sitting. I got the hammer back, I come around the tree and I'm like, hey, buddy, are you dead? And he's not moving.

Speaker 1: 59:07

And I'm I'm like, oh, thank god he's dead because you know what he did when he was doing that stuff.

Speaker 2: 59:14

He's like man, you're an asshole yeah, yeah, man, you talk about like just I never even. It never even crossed my mind. I've got 185 pound bear uphill for me when I going to be dead weight and come tumble. It didn't even cross my mind.

Speaker 3: 59:32

Yeah, you forgot that whole day in science where they went over gravity and stuff.

Speaker 2: 59:38

You forgot all about it. That day I wasn't there.

Speaker 3: 59:43

I skipped that day.

Speaker 2: 59:44

Sir Isaac doesn't know anything I was working a lot drinking C-2007 with my friend. It was something day. Sir isaac doesn't know anything, you know it was, and I'm like I, just like I was like oh my gosh man, I'm like that was freaking incredible well, I could only imagine it was a mountain. It was a mountain bear, so it didn't get into garbages and stuff. And my grandfather was a butcher so he taught all us kids and everybody how to cut meat.

Speaker 2: 1:00:13

So I always do my own processing, but I never did a bear before. I'm like all right. Well, it can't be too much different than a deer. Just follow the muscles, you know.

Speaker 1: 1:00:21

Yeah.

Speaker 2: 1:00:22

They do look a little strange when they're naked.

Speaker 1: 1:00:28

They got forearms, like naked you're like they got forearms.

Speaker 2: 1:00:33

Like you know, I got they're like this and I'm like I'm like, damn, they look kind of like human. I'm like, ah, that's weird. I'm like I don't know, you know. And then, but I just cut it up quick, but I'll tell you I cooked it up.

Speaker 3: 1:00:45

Yeah, oh my gosh, it's so good, so good I can only imagine, I have not said, I can say I have never had it, so but yeah I've been told we gotta try this year yeah, yes, I gotta get out there, definitely, I think the biggest bear I saw in in uh the wild was off of a wall pack 300 pound black bear just just leisurely walking across the field and there's like all these people trying to get close and take pictures.

Speaker 3: 1:01:16

I'm like I am literally watching stupidity happen in front of my eyes I'm like what is wrong with these people?

Speaker 3: 1:01:25

it's like watching a freight train too, because I'm just sitting there and I'm like, why are they getting so close? This is a wild animal. I'm like, oh my God. And of course, now we're sitting there watching it, but then, like you know where the uh, archery range no, yes, that wall pack is, yeah, yeah, big open field in there. And then you go back through there, yep, yep, that's where the bear was coming across. So now you know that one, that one dirt road that leads back to the archery range. Back there is all packed up with people and no one can get through and the bear is getting pissed off. And I'm like this is a great spot to be. You know like there's nowhere to turn around. There's a. You know like, where are we going off the cliff? Yeah, oh my God. So people just crack me up. It's like it's a wild animal, folks.

Speaker 2: 1:02:13

Yeah.

Speaker 3: 1:02:14

And anyway, you were saying something before Go ahead.

Speaker 2: 1:02:18

I just was going to ask you about your equipment. What, what company boat do you shoot?

Speaker 3: 1:02:23

I am shooting right now a carbon rose bow tech uh love that one um I'm still using, uh, my, uh, red. What is it? Red magnums or mike bush? You guys know mike bush, my blessed soul, is not with us anymore, but uh, he made my first set of arrows for me. I still have some of them left. He front-loaded them. My favorites to shoot, though, are the FMJ's Full Metal Jackets.

Speaker 1: 1:02:54

Love that. I was shooting them for a long year. I actually just switched over to Warhead arrows, but I was shooting those for a couple years. They're solid arrows. They're real good arrows too.

Speaker 3: 1:03:08

I like the way they shoot and the way they fly. I, you know, had a couple of them. I thought I wouldn't get more, but uh, you know a couple of them and they're, they're great arrows. But yeah, I shoot the carbon rose. I love it Absolutely, love my bow. Uh, if I go to change it, I definitely want something with a double cam, just for a little more stability, okay. But you know, other than that, I mean when I was at the military response, uh, responders shoot. Not too long ago, um, like the little girls came up and they're like, oh, can I see your bow? Like they're all excited about it because it's a yellow purple on it and stuff, and it was really cool, like I. Like they came up to me, like we're checking it out and stuff, like it's, you don't meet a lot, I guess, female hunters out there. I know they do.

Speaker 3: 1:03:57

Yeah, we definitely need more of them and there's a group, there's a good group of them, a handful I would say that are really into it with UBNJ. I know there's a few people that I follow on Facebook and Insta that are in into it with ubnj. Um, I know there's a few people that I follow on, uh, facebook and insta that are in it as well. Names escape me at the moment right now, but, um, you know, I I admire their, their, and you know as much as hunting is a brotherhood, you know you guys welcome sisters into it very easily and it turns into a really solid community. I mean, if I ever have a question, I could just you know, text anybody and just be like, hey, I got a question about this broadhead, or you know, uh, my fletch busted, or you know whatever, and everybody's like super cool about stuff you know know they help me out a lot.

Speaker 2: 1:04:48

That's him right there. He's called me at like a quarter on a hunting night and he's like Squatch and I'm like yeah, I'm like okay, listen, calm down, we're going to get through this. And then, you know, the next day I'll be out hunting and I have something go on, and you know we're we're like each other's, like you know psychology sounding boards.

Speaker 2: 1:05:18

Yeah, yeah, literally you are because it's like, and it's what keeps us sane, with all the stress that we go through while we're hunting, and and not that it's like bad stress, it's fun stress, because, yeah, we're out there having fun doing it. But him and I like it does you know, even if we're working and like I know he's hunting, or eight o'clock, what the frig is he doing? Why hasn't he shot anything yet?

Speaker 1: 1:05:42

Yeah, what are you doing?

Speaker 2: 1:05:46

Dude, did you see anything yet? Well, I had one close but no shot. I'm like damn it, you know. And then we're always constantly like going back and forth. But, like you said, it's a nice brotherhood, sisterhood thing, you know, of being able to reach out and say, hey, you know what, Try this. And he's having something going on with his bow right now. We were just talking a little while ago, before the show started.

Speaker 2: 1:06:13

And I was Giving him some stuff just to check out, look at and everything, because I made his arrows for Him up and you know Whatever, but I used to set Bows up and Whole nine yards. I do, I do a little bit Of everything, but you know, it's nice. It's nice like, like goes, oh man, I'm sorry to buy it. I'm like, oh, dude, you're not bothering me, man, it's, it's, I enjoy it. You know, and I'm a little bit older than a lot of the guys that we hang out with and stuff. So it's, you know, they they kind of like, they know I've been around, they know around, and oh, I can do this or do that. I already got the experience with it and if I don't, I'll get you an answer.

Speaker 2: 1:06:57

I'll find it, I'll get somebody that I know that can help you but yeah, I mean jeez, you know, if you've got questions reach out to us.

Speaker 3: 1:07:00

We, yeah, absolutely no. That's super awesome and I appreciate that. I always wondered this and maybe I could bounce off you guys now, like, uh, and maybe I can bounce it off you guys now. I swear it's after six days that the big bucks all go nocturnal. It's like they get chased, chased, chased, chased went through the rut and then all of a sudden they're just nocturnal.

Speaker 3: 1:07:20

You'll see them all and then gone right after six days. As soon as you start pushing them through the fields, that's it. You lose them. It drives me insane. Do you guys have any advice how to pull that buck out of?

Speaker 2: 1:07:36

being nocturnal, it's hard it all depends on the pressure yeah yeah, you know good, because I mean. But my biggest thing to tell you, if it's heavily pressured, you got to think like a deer. You got to imagine it's somebody walking around in your house and you like it's dark. Imagine your house is just dark, right, you got no lights on, but you know somebody's in your house. You've got that sixth sense. I know they're downstairs, I know they're over in the corner.

Speaker 2: 1:08:09

Okay, so imagine a buck, any buck, a buck that's three and a half years and older is going to turn into that monster that goes and says, okay, I've had enough of this scent, I've had enough of this noise. I'm not moving until I can absolutely positively be sure I'm not going to get shot with something and it's funny to say it that way, but it's in reality is how they break it down so what I? Would tell you okay is, hunt edges of bedding in the thickest of the thick gotcha and get in there early and hang your set high. Play the wind Not 10 feet.

Speaker 2: 1:08:53

Oh, no, I'm still here at five feet off the ground. That's okay, that's okay, but get near those places, and I had a situation that happened to me.

Speaker 2: 1:09:08

The property was 100 acres, acres. It was a lot of pressure around it. We were just four guys on 100 acres and I I was like seeing the bucks, but then I wasn't seeing them. Same thing. The pressure got to them. I said, okay, gotta get my lazy ass out of the stand. I gotta go into the thick, the thickest of the thick. Yeah, I'm gonna get myself in a corner of a rock wall and a tree on my back, you know, just to rest up against and I guarantee it that I know that buck is gonna come out of that thick stuff right at last light.

Speaker 2: 1:09:39

You know, I'm here to tell you. I heard sticks breaking, everything else, and he came right out in front of me about 10 yards and I shot him. Wow, wow. So you, even if you walk in to a thicket bedding area, a deer's reaction when they're under pressure is to lay still and not move, because their best defense is thinking that you don't see them yeah and a lot of people make a mistake when they're doing deer drives.

Speaker 2: 1:10:07

They, they constantly move and I tell guys, don't constantly move, stop, because even if you don't see the deer while you're driving, that deer sees you, because, just as you know, if you're sitting in the woods and somebody's walking to you, they can't see you. You can see them way before you can A deer does the same thing. So get yourself in a position Get in, you may bump him, he may go 20 yards and lay back down.

Speaker 2: 1:10:33

He doesn't know what you are maybe you're a squirrel or another deer, but that's one thing I can tell you is just imagine you're being chased down yourself. You're not going to go hide in the open, you're going to hide somewhere thick that you can see what's coming in towards you and you can have an escape. If you can get into someplace like that early, even if you blow your cover and you set up and you wait till that golden light Remember we were talking before that everything settles down. That buck is going to get up and curiosity is going to get the best of him. He's going to say I wonder what came in there before? And I hunt, Frank will tell you I hunt the thickest Of the thick. Where I am, I'm in an old orchard and I just Bush hog lanes.

Speaker 2: 1:11:17

In there I also have four beautiful rabbit Beagles that I Used to run in those woods. That's why the trails Are cut the way they are. I don't run them anymore because they're older.

Speaker 2: 1:11:27

But my deer land is the same way and I've gotten in my stand because there's no leaves on the ground, it's just old, thick orchard. Yeah, and I'm quiet and I'll watch the deer get up and I'm like son of a bitch, I'm like they didn't hear me come in and I watched that deer get up in front of me, hit a run circle and come right down the lane that I mowed, yeah. So that's why I'm saying your best bet, when there's a lot of pressure, think of where you would go. What would I do if I was being chased? What? How the hell would I get away from something and lay still till I know I can get up and make a break for it and then get yourself a setup and sit like that. The only other thing I can tell you that from my experience of 40 something plus years, is go where people ain't.

Speaker 1: 1:12:22

Yeah.

Speaker 2: 1:12:24

Even if it's a half an acre, it only takes 25 yards 10 yards to kill a deer Gotcha, watch my houses, they'll bed tight to houses.

Speaker 1: 1:12:36

Yeah, oh yeah.

Speaker 2: 1:12:37

If you've got a friend, that's say like it's an adjoining property where there's a lot of pressure, stay close to that house.

Speaker 2: 1:12:43

You may. You may be 10 or 15 feet in somebody's backyard where the wood line hits and you set up in there. You'll kill a buck because he's staying close to the houses, because he knows the pressure's not there. I went too deep. I went too deep. I was going to my stand, I was going too deep and I, by a spoof, I saw the buck behind somebody's house and I'm like you're staying shallow, buddy, I got your number buck behind somebody's house and I'm like you're staying shallow.

Speaker 2: 1:13:11

Buddy, I got your number and I and I figured him out, but just just try to put yourself in that deer situation. You're not gonna the five and a half year olds if they know, something's up.

Speaker 3: 1:13:21

Good luck yeah, exactly I know exactly what you're saying too, because, like uh, the, where we live now, there's a. There's a tree line that runs the back of the houses and a giant open field and it goes into an airport uh field and I and I watch them. I have watched the the deer like all, like my, my target buck is out already in velvet and I'm like looking at it. I'm like I'm watching you, buddy, you're watching the times. I'm watching when you're moving, I'm watching how you're moving and I'm like looking at it, I'm like I'm watching you, buddy, you're watching the times, I'm watching when you're moving, I'm watching how you're moving and I got my eye on them. So I'm hoping this year I get them last year if you do, you gotta send me a picture.

Speaker 3: 1:14:01

I want to say believe me, I'll be sending everybody. And a final thought, for everybody too, is that this full moon that's coming up tomorrow is the buck moon. So this is a time for growth and and intellectual uh, for the uh, wellness and stuff like they're. They're getting into their. You know phases now where their antlers are going to grow. You know they're going to get buffer, so it's an exciting time. I love this time of year because you know you start seeing those antlers growing and it is exciting to see what's coming out of the woods.

Speaker 3: 1:14:42

Oh, today driving home I picked up my daughter from a softball clinic and we're going by the one field and I said is that a buck? Like literally stopped the car, is that a buck? It's just like three or four of them in a real close proximity of me. And uh, she's like no, it isn't. I said. Then it lifts his head, she goes, yeah it is.

Speaker 1: 1:15:07

I was like don't ever lie to me again yeah, but I was just going to piggyback off of what Squatch said real quick too, what I noticed, especially like up here by me, when they get, when the bucks get, a lot of pressure, especially after six day, I'll hunt the thick stuff, like Squatch said, and try to go where there's nobody. I agree with him on that. For me up here I've seen most of my big shooter bucks right before christmas, like that week right before christmas eve yeah, and they usually walk anywhere from one o'clock until dark, so a lot of times I won't even hunt the morning.

Speaker 3: 1:15:52

I'll get in there like around noon and just sit and wait and I've seen more big bucks like that yeah, every time that I've seen a big buck or had one come in on me I mean another time when I was hunting bear swamp, I all as I literally just got in the stand it was like 3 30 in the afternoon I just climbed my ladder stand, I just put, hung my bow down, getting myself nestled in, and then I had this tiny doe jump in on me and I hear it behind her and I'm like, no way, I don't even have my nothing's.

Speaker 2: 1:16:29

Nothing is ready, nothing is ready and I'm just looking at her and I'm just and I'm sitting there and I'm looking at her and she doesn't see me.

Speaker 3: 1:16:36

She's not picking up on me, nothing like that. She's just chewing away and I'm just like, okay, I hear him and I know I can't even move, I can't even flinch. I know it because he stopped and I'm like, and I'm sitting there and it was a waiting contest and I finally went like to like the little lean back, turn and he's looking right, the man like eight pointer, two beautiful golden eight pointer, just staring at me on public land, and I'm like no one's gonna believe me no one's gonna believe me that this happened.

Speaker 3: 1:17:10

I literally got down after they left and just left for the day. I was like screw this I'm ordering a pizza I'm going home. Yeah, right, it's like I don't know. I enjoy it so much and I really love getting out there and I hope there's like a lot of ladies that want to get out there too, you know, yeah no, absolutely. I agree we all got started sometime I go ahead.

Speaker 1: 1:17:41

Are you, are your kids um big into hunting as?

Speaker 3: 1:17:43

well or no. My daughter is expressing a lot of interest in it. She's uh tied up a softball right now. She got involved in that and uh, I've actually coaching with her, so I don't know how I'm gonna manage all this this fall, but this should be fun a little challenge.

Speaker 1: 1:17:59

Listen, we always find a way to do it.

Speaker 3: 1:18:02

Yeah, exactly and then, uh, my son. He is getting into the archery. I took a little step back. He's going to a coding camp for Roblox, so he's really excited about that. But hopefully after that's done and that's wrapped up, he's going to get back into it. Rick going with UVNJ and the SBA League. They all were kind of working with him and trying to get him on board. He likes it. He's been shooting with my dad the rifles. He's got it in him.

Speaker 1: 1:18:40

He's got it in him.

Speaker 3: 1:18:44

He loves getting out there shooting the .22 and stuff it's in him. That's what it's all about, exactly Back to 4th of July weekend.

Speaker 3: 1:18:48

What does the family do? He loves getting out there shooting the 22 and stuff. So it's all about Yep, exactly, In fact, the 4th of July weekend, what does the family do? I had a game what was it? Sunday morning I'm playing with the military group A beer league, softball, and so I play on the mornings and then they're all're all like are you going to come by? Afterwards I was like, yeah, I'll come by. I said I've got to go meet my family over at the range. We're all shooting today. They're like what? I'll be over after?

Speaker 1: 1:19:23

that.

Speaker 3: 1:19:23

Good old. American fun.

Speaker 2: 1:19:27

That's what it's all about.

Speaker 3: 1:19:28

Exactly.

Speaker 1: 1:19:31

Hey, Christina, we're reaching that point in time, but I appreciate you coming on and talking hunting. We got to definitely get you back on because you're a blast, Sounds great. And I know you're going to have way more stories. I can't wait to hear them.

Speaker 3: 1:19:45

There's still more stories I didn't even tell today.

Speaker 1: 1:19:49

I'll get you back on and we will tell more stories. I promise sounds great, I can't wait well, last thing, um, is there any advice that you would have, for you know, like women that want to get in the hot end or anything like, can they reach out to you if they're interested?

Speaker 3: 1:20:06

absolutely, oh absolutely, absolutely. They can hit me up on Instagram cjr.76. Drop me a message. My advice is don't be shy. Ask questions. You know you're not going to learn, you know, by not asking. You know I'm not a shy person. I do ask a lot of questions and be friendly with the people that are hunting the woods with you. You know there are a lot of good guys. Hunters are a different breed of man. I think you know we're all out there for a purpose and a respect of nature and it's not like the dating world.

Speaker 1: 1:20:46

That's for sure.

Speaker 3: 1:20:52

But you know the guys are different and they like to share knowledge and you know I find, as a female hunter, that they want you out there, you know, to experience it as well. You know there's not. You do have some of your older-fashioned people that you know that hunting's a man's sport, but I find a lot more men to be more responsive to me out there. You know, especially when I was hunting the public land, you know I was, like I said, the woods wife. So they all had my back. Nobody would leave until they knew I would back out in my vehicle. I was safe. You know we'd sit out there and talk afterwards if anybody saw anything and we all had each other's numbers in the woods, texting and such.

Speaker 3: 1:21:33

So it's a lot of fun to get into. It's a respectful sport. At times it is difficult. There's a lot of stuff to learn and I commend the females that are out there getting it done and I welcome all other females to get involved in it as well. You know it's there's plenty of deer to go around plenty of deer.

Speaker 3: 1:21:59

The population just seems to keep growing and growing.

Speaker 2: 1:22:01

I can't wait for like.

Speaker 3: 1:22:02

New Jersey to open up Sundays that we can hunt Sundays, you know? Yeah, I know, I just passed Pennsylvania.

Speaker 2: 1:22:08

They just passed it in Pennsylvania. They just passed the bill.

Speaker 1: 1:22:11

You can hunt Sundays. Yeah, I did hear that.

Speaker 3: 1:22:13

yep, yep that's great, so hopefully New Jersey follows suit, yep.

Speaker 1: 1:22:18

So it's all about this anyway, it's all about the money for them. Well, yeah.

Speaker 3: 1:22:24

They get us with our money. Of course they do. I mean how many many seasons we got to sign up for and how many permits and such. So yeah, they get their money out of it. Yeah, so I'm sure if they put some kind of spin on it for sunday permit people be signing up for him paying for of course they would so, christina, thank you again having me.

Speaker 1: 1:22:48

Listen, good luck this season. Like I said, I'll keep in touch too. I want to know everything that goes on. I'll let you know what goes on and everything, so especially deer or boondocks hunting. You can always just check our pages and everything we post everything anyway. Yeah, I've been following Perfect. What about you? Squatch Any last words?

Speaker 2: 1:23:09

I hit you following Perfect. What about you? Squatch Any last words. I hit you up on Instagram, so if you got any questions, follow me back. You can always hit me up on there.

Speaker 3: 1:23:17

Sounds great, thank you.

Speaker 2: 1:23:19

Check out my YouTube channel Outdoors and More with the Squatch. There's some cool videos you can watch. Frank and I yeah.

Speaker 1: 1:23:25

I'm in man.

Speaker 2: 1:23:27

You two yelling at each other to shoot turkeys you know, as always, uh, you know, on Sundays and Tuesday nights I do the whitetail advantage. Check us guys out on there. It's a, it's a hoot, you'll love it. And uh you know, also with Mike and Frank on the uh boondocks in the garden state. Outdoorsman, pleasure to meet you. Thanks for coming on Great stories. It was really a nice time. I enjoyed it.

Speaker 3: 1:23:54

Thanks guys, I really enjoyed it too.

Speaker 1: 1:23:56

I appreciate it, christina, but I just want to give one quick shout out Well, actually a couple quick shout outs to our sponsors, for here, with Gilly Puck, we're always trying to use those. We got Moultrie peck's honey and give buckshot taxidermy a shout out too. He, he does all my work. He's been my taxidermist forever up here in sussex county, so you can just give him a quick look and he does awesome work. So we appreciate it, guys and, like I said, christina, we're gonna get you back on.

Speaker 1: 1:24:28

We got a lot more stories to tell I hope you guys enjoyed this episode and we'll see you guys next time.