Blog Entries from the WeHuntSC.com blogging crew
We?re excited to announce that Wildlife Energy Drinks will sponsor all 5 of the 2010 Deer Hunting Competitions here on the site. Wildlife Energy Drinks was one of our very first sponsors and continues to support us in our efforts and we are very grateful for the support!
Last year I posted a review blog on Wildlife Energy Drink. See the Blog Review on Wildlife Energy Drink
This year, Wildlife Energy Drink has come out with a new product ?the Wildlife Energy Shot. The Energy Shot is suitably shaped as a shotgun shell and is designed for times when endurance is needed. Each competition winner will receive 2 cases of Wildlife Energy Shots.
Check out www.WildlifeEnergy.com for more information on Wildlife Energy Drinks, Shots, and other products.
And the prize packages just keep on getting better.
Regards,
Clint
We?re excited that Founders Federal Credit Union is donating a camo Founders hat for each competition winner for our 2010 deer hunting competitions. If you?re like me, you can never have too many hats and I can tell you that these Founders hats are quality hats and some winner will be glad to win one.
As you probably know, Founders is a reputable, South Carolina based, Credit Union that has roots in the Fort Mill area. We?re glad to have any sponsors, but we especially like to help promote SC based organizations. So we?d like to give a big thanks to Founders for donating hats to this year?s competition winners.
If you?re looking for a solid Credit Union that?s got great customer service, then go to Founders and open an account?and if you?re wondering?yes, I have a Founders account!
This past Saturday Adam and I spent a great deal of time working in the heat and boy was it hot! We are preparing to put in some of our Tecomate Seed fall food plots. We went out collected a few soil samples and sprayed some round-up. At this location we're going to put in two food plots. One will be a half acre plot where we will plant Monster Mix. The other will be around 3 acres located on an old power line where we will plant Max-Attract and Ultraforage in alternating sections. The smaller plot has had crops on it before so conditioning the soil won't be too bad in that location. There are some weeds there, but not too many. The old power line, however, is slam full of grass and weeds so we've got our work cut out for us to be able to have a successful plot in this area.
While we were there, we also spent a good deal of time scouting and walking the land. We found some rubs, saw some sign, and even saw a deer as we scouted. We feel these are good signs, but we shall see as the season goes on. Our goal was to find areas where we wanted to put our food plots at this location and get the soil samples + start spraying and that's exactly what we did. I think I soaked 2 shirts with sweat and I got really dirty by the end of it all. I wore pants out this time since last time we did this I caught poison ivy. I also wore boots since I've been seeing a lot of pics of snakes lately. I had the perfect combination for being protected from the elements and also being hot and sweaty.
The Small Plot The smaller location is at the back end of the property and it looks to be a good location. Our area of SC has parts of town that are all clay, some are all sand, and then there are areas that are mixtures of both. The area of this plot is made up more of clay than dirt. The small plot is probably about 100 - 120 yards long and 25 yards wide. This should turn out to be a nice food plot and it also has a few oaks on the edge with a good crop of acorns. We'll need to trim back some of the other trees to improve the vision to all end s of the plot. This location will be the easier of the two to plant. As you'll see in the below video, Adam took the soil sample and then sprayed the field with Round-up to kill the weeds while I documented everything.
In hopes of not getting our plot overtaken with weeds (as we did in the summer at the one location), we're going to spray it with Round-up, then come back in with the GroundHog MAX to disk it up, then return a few days later to spray it again. The reason we'll spray it the second time is to kill any dormant seed that we may have turned up while disking. After we spray again, we'll give it a few days before we go back in to plant the seed.
The Large Plot The larger plot is the one that's located on an old power line. The power company use to have poles run through this section of woods, but in recent years they have removed the poles. This left a great place to put in a food plot. The only problem we have is the weeds and grass that now resides in the area. There are a ton of weeds currently in the area and so we've got our work cut out for us to get an effective food plot installed.
We are going to try to put another long and narrow plot in this location. Here again we collected another soil sample and sprayed Round-up heavily. We're going to let it sit for a few days and hopefully get a good portion of the grass and weeds killed. The weeds are so tall that I may even go back in and mow it down some. Then we'll go back in, with a tractor and the GroundHog Max, and disk. Following suit, we'll let it sit for a few days then return to spray again as we want to kill off any dormant seeds turned up while disking.
You can see the video of all this below to get a visual for what we?re talking about and attempting to do.
So you've seen the hopeful locations of 2 of our fall plots. We're optimistic that we can pull it off, but again only time will tell. In the mean time, we've got a lot of work to do. More to come.
Remember when I said that I was taking some new batteries back out to the game-cam on the GroundHog MAX, remote food plot? Well, turns out that if you actually have working batteries in the game camera that it does take pics! Also, lithium batteries work better than the regular. Looks like I?m learning about all kind of stuff this summer.
Since putting new batteries in the game camera, I?ve been able to get some decent pics of does in the plot munching on some Tecomate Seed Lab Lab Plus! Still have not gotten any bucks to walk past the camera yet though. I?m thinking about putting a camera on the other end of the plot as well since it is very long and narrow and I can tell that the deer are browsing the plot and crossing through it at various locations.
Another thing I?ll note is that at the remote food plot, the Lab Lab Plus is growing so much that it?s starting to grow to the edges of the food plot and up the sides of other trees and branches of nearby plants. It?s pretty neat to see it doing that.
Here is a pic of the remote food plot as of August 20th. This food plot made possible by GroundHog_MAX & Tecomate Seed
Below are some of the pics that I pulled from the camera of does browsing the remote food plot. I think it has taken them a little time to get use to this new food plot being in their area and again, it looks like they?re being selective of which plants they eat. Nothing amazing, but does show how high lab lab plus as well as some deer getting tangled up in some Tecomate!
Location 2 Update Pics
I also got some pics from one of the other food plots we?ve been working on. This location grew well and did not have a drastic weed problem like the other area I was documenting so thoroughly. As you can see from the pic to the right the milo is growing strong and is getting tall. I believe these plants are the ones that once they get hit with a frost that the starches in them turn to sugar and the deer will start eating them more. At this location, the deer are accustomed to having food plots in it year after year and are ready to eat as soon as the plants start growing. The deer have wiped out most of the broad-leaf plants already, but they?re still coming through to eat.
Below is one of the pics we got of some does in the plot at night. I could post several more, but it?s the same does in the plot over and over again.
It?s good to get some pics of deer in the plots and hopefully we?ll get some bucks in the pics before too long. Sure hope that I have working batteries in my camera should a monster buck come through?and if he does, I?ll post it here for you to see.
We?re excited to announce that Thermacell is partnering with us to sponsor 3 competitions this deer hunting season. Thermacell is going to sponsor our Big Buck, Archery Big Buck, and Women?s Big Buck Competitions.
The competition winners will receive:
Thermacell is a product that most hunters won?t leave home without and Thermacell recently won an award because they make such quality products. Thermacell?s outdoor Lantern won Field & Stream?s ?Best of the Best? award in the miscellaneous hunting item category. In our summer give-away, we gave out a couple of Thermacell Lanterns to registered members of the site and all the feedback that I?ve heard so far has been great about it. It?s obviously making waves in the hunting community as Field & Stream?s ?Best of the Best? is a highly coveted award to win. So congratulations to Thermacell for being selected.
If you still don?t know what a Thermacell is?let me sum it up for you by saying that it?s the best mosquito repellant out there. See the below video to get an idea of how it works:
Thanks again to Thermacell for working with us to sponsor this year?s competitions. I?m sure the winners will be very glad to win a Thermacell, a holster, and 3 refills as part of their prize package.
As many of you have read on the site, Mike Lee has been our go-to guy at Tecomate Seed throughout the Food Plot Journey and he also spoke at our ?Hunter?s Night Out?. Mike has been great throughout the whole process and he has endured my elementary level of knowledge of all things food plot related. Mike is now transitioning into a new role with the company and we wish him well in his new role. When you wear many hats at an organization this sometimes happens and so Mike will be concentrating on a different division and will thrive there as well.
Mike?s transition into a new role helped us meet another knowledgeable resource with regards to food plots and game management. Jon Charles, out of Raleigh NC, is stepping in to be the new Southeastern Regional Representative for Tecomate. I?ve spoken with Jon several times and he was also a featured speaker at the Pee Dee Deer Classic. I can tell you that he?s very educated about game management and food plots. Jon owns River Oaks Wildlife Management which is a professional wildlife management and consulting firm specializing in deer health, nutrition, wildlife habitat development, high forage food plots, crop production, custom deer feeds, and mineral supplements specifically designed for deer and elk. Jon brings a nice mesh between science and the outdoors that we can greatly benefit from. He is a well noted speaker and writes for several outdoor publications. Jon will be our new go-to guy at Tecomate for the remainder of the Food Plot Journey and is the new contact for Tecomate Seed in the Southeast. So if you?re looking for a very knowledge resource in the Carolinas with all things food plot / herd management related?or to get some Tecomate Seed, then Jon Charles is your guy!
So the Food Plot Journey continues and we are half-way there! It?s been a while already and I?ve learned a lot since January. We?ll be starting the process again and installing our fall plots in the coming weeks/months. I?ll continue to document that as well and I hope that we can get some good pictures throughout the fall/winter. I?m excited to try to get some more Tecomate products to grow again! I think I?m learning and the deer are benefitting?more to come.
In the mean time, here are 2 updated pics from the Remote Food Plot. I?m going to try to get updated images of the other plots soon as well.
We are excited to announce that Carolina Adventure World is partnering with WeHuntSC.com to sponsor all 5 competitions this hunting season. Carolina Adventure World is an outdoor park located in Winnsboro, SC and is a must see facility for ATV, dirt-bike, and camping enthusiasts. See the Carolina Adventure World review blog entry for more details about the facility.
With regards to the contests, Carolina Adventure World is giving away 2 free day passes + a free Carolina Adventure World hat for each competition winner. After visiting the park, I can tell you that this is part of the prize package that you will definitely appreciate. A BIG thanks to Carolina Adventure World for partnering with us this year on the competitions.
And the competition prize packages just keep getting better?
Here's the video again
Have you ever heard about Carolina Adventure World? If you haven?t, then you?re missing out?especially if you?re into ATV?s, dirt bikes, or any type of off-roading. I had previously heard of how awesome Carolina Adventure World was from some of my friends, but had never actually been to the facility. I was finally able to check it out and the place truly is awesome! After visiting the site, I now understand why my friends raved so much about it.
Carolina Adventure World is located in Winnsboro, SC so no matter where you may be in the state, it?s not a bad drive. I headed down from Rock Hill and it was a really easy drive straight down 77. It only took me about 45 minutes to get there. You take one turn off the exit and 2 miles later the next turn is into the huge gates out in front of the park. When I saw the front gate, I could easily tell that the park was a nice size operation. You know how an entrance kind of signals the scale of the development that you?re entering...it was the same way with this facility. The entrance had a big gate and 2 huge signs that can easily be seen from the road. If you?re on the right road, you don?t have to worry about missing the place because there?s no way you could ride by it with the entrance.
As we descended down the hill Jim took me to the storage and maintenance buildings where we picked up our ride for the day. While we were back there I saw a huge building where they keep a lot of their rental ATV?s, dirt bikes, helmets, shin guards, boots, and other gear. In case you?re interested, Carolina Adventure World rents Yamaha Rhino Side by Sides, Yamaha Grizzly ATVs and Honda Dirt Bikes. The building where they store their rides was a nice and clean facility.
Just next door the guys were working on a 4-wheeler that had something wrong with it. Jim mentioned to me that Carolina Adventure World offers assistance with repairs to any visitors that happen to have a problem with their ATV while they?re at the park and that CAW can also stow ATV?s should visitors desire to leave them there for a while. So, if you?d like, you can store your machines at CAW between visits and they can have it cleaned, gassed, and ready to ride and waiting on you! CAW has staff on hand that can also provide any repairs or service needed before you return to the park.
After talking with the guys at the shop for a minute we got our ride for the day, a really neat vehicle called a ?Razor?. We then headed back to the main entrance and to the Welcome Center. We stopped at the Welcome Center to check it out and it is first class. It was very clean and had anything you could possibly want if you were looking to ride, eat, or even shop for clothes! The Welcome Center serves multiple purposes to Carolina Adventure World visitors. The Welcome Center is where you get started at the park. You purchase your passes there, find information about the trails, buy anything from food, to coke, to wenches, goggles, vinyl stickers, t-shirts, to hats, and on and on. They also have large bathrooms in the back and a big kitchen. The Welcome Center has an open-aired wraparound porch feel too it where rocking chairs and ATV?s that can be rented are located.
Beside the Welcome Center is a shower room where you can go and get washed up after riding if you?d like. We weren?t riding too fast or for too long and I still got pretty muddy and was tempted to go in there, but didn?t! The wash room is definitely a good resource to have on location, but its primary use is for visitors who come to stay the whole weekend. Carolina Adventure World is RV & Camper friendly and encourages families and/or groups to come up and stay for multiple days. The park is structured so that RV?s and Campers both can have access and they provide electricity, water, and an on-site dumping station for those wishing to come and call the park home for a few days. I was pretty impressed with that. And if you don?t own an RV?Carolina Adventure World has RV Campers for rent that sleep up to eight people. If you?re interested in that, be sure to call early to make reservations as they book the RV?s early for weekends.
Across from the Welcome center is a huge parking lot where visitors park and unload their ATV?s and dirt-bikes. If you?re like me and are not good at driving a trailer you don?t have to worry because the parking lot is plenty big enough and makes it?s easy to make wide turns. The Welcome Center is also just up the hill from the main mud bog.
The mud bog is just past the Welcome Center to the left and appears to be the location of where a lot of fun takes place. Though, Jim mentioned to me that most ATVs that get in the mud bog are equipped with snorkels and gear ready to be submerged beneath the water. The mud bog has a small section of bleachers beside it and is oval-shaped with an island of land in the middle of it. The island has some lights on it so I assume you can ride through the mud at night there as well. Beside that mud bog is another mud bog on a lower level that is similar except it doesn?t have an island of land in the middle. The first mud bog leads to the next mud bog in a stair-step-like manner with regards to the lay of the land. Beside the mud bogs is the much needed wash-off area. It?s kind of like a car-wash, but for ATV?s. The area has pressurized water hoses that can give you the necessary PSI to get the mud off.
After passing all this we continued down to the dirt-drag-strip which was really neat as well. The strip is fit with the digital clock that shows accurate times and the starting line had starter lights too. We pulled right up to the track and gave it a whirl. Jim noted that the track was a little muddy due to all the recent rain, but that normally it?s pretty solid and you can get a better grip which gives more speed and better times. It?s very similar to a regular drag-strip, but is just on dirt and is smaller and shorter. I believe Jim said the track is around 300 feet long.
A mother and daughter riding through the park
After we checked that out we went riding a little further around the facility and started riding on the trails. Not too long after we were down a trail some huge bull dozers, backhoes and large machinery came into vision. Jim informed me that Carolina Adventure World crushes rock on site to help with the maintenance of the trails. They pack the rock on the trails where erosion occurs and sometimes use it to elevate trails when necessary. I was impressed with the level of commitment to the on-going maintenance of the facility.
Along the way of the miles and miles of trails we crossed a nice wooden bridge that ran over Big Wateree Creek which is like a small river. We also saw many mud holes that were primed and ready to be ridden through, and we scaled a lot of steep hills and slopes. You may think that SC is all flat, but I?m here to tell you that this place has some major hills and rugged terrain. You can literally find any kind of riding trail that you can imagine there. We rode all the way to the back and ended up at a really swampy looking pond. It was nice looking and when we rode up to it about 7 wood ducks flew off. I imagine that the duck hunters would love to have been in this swampy area.
After riding on a few of the trails and service roads some more, we headed back up to the front of the facility. By this time I had a good bit of mud on me and had taken 151 pictures and 52 videos and both cameras had mud on them as well. I was worried if the footage would make it out alive, but everything came out just fine.
Other bits of information that may be interesting to you is that Carolina Adventure World holds several competitions and events throughout the year. From mud bogging competitions, to events for hunters, and even organizational retreats and dinners, CAW is in the mix in a lot of ways.
Jim noted that Carolina Adventure World holds several Championship Mud Bog Races throughout the year. See www.ChampionshipMudRacing.com for more info on that. Along with hosting the championship races CAW has held the Brian Fisher Weekend Event several times, has rides where they?re open until midnight, bon fires, and even a poker run.
I would definitely recommend this place to anyone interested in 4-wheelers, ATV?s, dirt bikes, mud bogging, or off-roading. The scale of the operation is huge, there are tons of trails (2,500 acres to be exact), safety measures have been taken, they have on-site repairs and rentals, and everything you need is at the Welcome Center. If you?re into the outdoors and off-roading, then you won?t regret giving Carolina Adventure World a chance. While we were there we saw people from multiple states and some were there with their families enjoying the park. If you do go out and see the facility and ride, let me know what you think about it. I?m not aware of anything else like it in the area. Much like True Timber Camo, this place is a hidden gem right here in our own back yard.
Below is a video I made of the day at Carolina Adventure World
For more information you can stay tuned to CarolinaAdventureWorld.com for details of upcoming events. Should you want to be ?in the loop? all the time, CAW also sends out an E-Newsletter with details of upcoming events that you can register to receive. Still planned for the rest of this year is a Big Labor Day Weekend Ride, another Poker Run, the famous Red Neck Nationals and the year?s final Championship Mud Racings Event to determine the CMR?s End of Year $18,000 payouts! I didn?t know you could make that much money slinging mud! Maybe that can be my second career :)
* I will continue to update this blog entry and the competition pages as more sponsors become involved. So keep checking the list because the prize packages will continue to get better.
We?re pumped up to see what everyone around the state will be seeing and harvesting this coming hunting season. As usual, we are hosting a couple competitions on the site and hunters from all over the state will compete to win prize packages and we?ve got some really good prizes to give away! This year we have removed a competition and added 2 new ones to the mix. You should also notice the rules for the competitions before posting any images because we are changing how the competitions work a little.
The Rules and New Changes
Again, see the rules for each competition before posting
The Competitions & Prizes
We look forward to seeing what happens around the state again this year!
* If you?re an organization interested in being a sponsor and would like to get involved, see the Sponsor FAQ page.
This blog entry has nothing to do with hunting or the outdoors.
I see all kind of videos on YouTube and I?m sure you do too. Though, every now and then I?ll see something that?s extremely funny, unbelievable, or creative. When I see those kinds of videos I will normally forward the link on to some of my friends. This past week I saw 2 related videos that encompassed funny, unbelievable, and creative at the same time. While the nature of the crime isn?t funny, the guy in the video is.
Video 1 ? The News Story A news show in Huntsville Alabama covered a story as seen in the below video
Video ? The Remix Apparently some guys saw the interview and did a remix of the story, turned it into a song, auto-tuned it, shot some more video to mesh with the clips from the news station, and posted it to YouTube as seen in the below video. The video went viral and is still circling the web.
After I saw the remix video I realized the creativity of the guys who created it. I don?t know how people come up with stuff. To see the first video alone, I would never have been able to envision what they did. To think of the idea, edit the videos, get the lyrics right, and make it all time out and look good took some brilliance. Creativity like this is what makes a video go viral. The remix video already has over 8.5 million views and has only been out for a couple of weeks. Other people are covering the song now and posting their own versions of the remix. The song is also already available on I-Tunes and you can even get it as your ring-tone! Run and tell that homeboy!
