It was my first morning hunting in Montana and Alan and I were setup in a ground blind out in some flats between Robbie and Nikki Dockter’s Antler King food plot and a river bottom. We were hoping to catch the deer on their way back to bed before they got to the breaks which surrounded the river. That first morning while in the blind, we saw a shooter buck but he was running and was out of range. A lot of the deer seemed to be on a trail that ran behind the blind, so we decided to move it to a better location. We got it all setup and ready for the next morning, off a heavy trail in the alfalfa. That next morning we saw some nice bucks, but not anything within range. It seemed like they were afraid of the blind, probably because it was in a new spot. The third morning we saw more bucks, and they were getting less shy of the blind. They were coming within 80 yards now. September 6th was the fourth morning we hunted the blind. We forgot our chairs, so we were kneeling the entire morning. We saw a shooter, but he was still too far. A bunch of does and small bucks (whitetails and mulies) started to filter our way through the alfalfa and hung around for quite awhile.

It was getting to be 8:00, and thinking it was about time to head out, I took my arrow off of the string and set my bow down. Not even two minutes later Alan says, “Katie, there’s a big buck. Get your arrow back on!” So now I am crawling on the ground trying to reach for my bow that was propped up in the front corner of the blind and knock my arrow back on. I managed to do it without spooking the deer that were already right out in front of us. I looked out the window and saw a huge velvet whitetail. He jumped the fence and was heading in towards the other deer. He stuck around for awhile but I had a stalk blocking right where I wanted to shoot. Having to wait so long was killing me. Finally, after letting a doe walk past him and after ranging him at 35 yards, I went to draw back. When I lifted my bow arm up,my arrow got caught on the front of the blind and came off the rest, making a big noise. Luckily, none of the deer heard it and I was able to draw back again. I took the shot and heard a “thump!”. I knew it was a good shot just by the sound. When I went to look at where my arrow hit, it was a perfect double-lung shot. He took off and crashed into the fence and over a hill. (Editor’s Note: the sincerity of her reaction to arrowing this monster buck will bring any hunter almost to tears!)

There were many firsts on this trip…first time hunting out-of-state, first buck I’ve ever taken in velvet, first pope and young scoring buck, first time shooting a deer over 20 yards with my bow, first deer shot out of a blind. After all that excitement and when things were starting to wind down, I got an even bigger surprise….Alan proposed! I can’t think of a better way to start off the season. For the rest of the trip and to this day I am on cloud nine, with my buck at the taxidermist and a ring on my finger!

~Katie Pipp

Ann Altmann and her husband, John, headed out for the afternoon hunt on opening day of the Wisconsin bow season.  They didn’t have to wait too long before the deer started to come out of the woods and feed out in the bean field.  Ann couldn’t believe her eyes when out stepped a buck they have had some history with over the years (video footage last season and trail cam pics this year).   When he walked within bow range, Ann didn’t hesitate and let the Muzzy fly!

Ann’s full story will be posted soon!

Katie Pipp has been waiting for this moment for a long time. Her last buck with a bow came back in 2005.  This year, Katie and her boyfriend Alan headed out to Montana to stay and hunt with good friends and fellow team member,s Robbie and Nikki Docter and Billy McKinley.  One morning, she was set up in a ground blind when this big velvet buck walked into bow range!  The rest of Katie’s story will be posted soon!

GIVING BACK

Droptine Divas, our family’s business since 2007, produces whitetail hunting DVDS that focus on hunting our own land as a family.  In June 2011 we were very excited to debut our first TV show on The Sportsman Channel called “Workin’ For Whitetails,” with the same theme – our family, our land, our way.  We recognize how important it is to pass this great tradition of hunting onto younger generations, so in June 2009 we hosted our first Kicking Bear camp at our home in Wisconsin Dells.  The 2-day camp is free and is focused on mentoring kids who are underprivileged. Children and their families get to spend this time together learning how to shoot bows, hunt sheds, camp and just have some good ol’ fashioned fun in the outdoors!  Each year, through the generosity of sponsors, local individuals, and businesses, we are able to host approximately 200 individuals and give away actual hunts to several of the kids at the camp.  We are now going on our 4^th year of hosting this event and are so blessed to be able to make a difference in a child’s life and sometimes the whole family.

Jump forward to August 2011 –  We get a call from The Sportsman Channel saying they are in need of volunteers for their Hunt.Fish.Feed event in Milwaukee.  We told them to look no further!

SUPPER TIME!

August 15^th found Shelly and me in the truck leaving our homes in Wisconsin Dells, WI and making the familiar two-hour drive to Milwaukee.  We’ve made this trip a lot in the past to see the Milwaukee Brewers play baseball, but this time it was different. This time we were heading down to a local shelter to help prepare a meal of wild game and fish donated by local sportsmen and coordinated by The Sportsman Channel and
Time Warner Cable.

Our show, “Workin’ For Whitetails,” says it all.  Shelly and I are deer hunters so when we got escorted back to the kitchen and were asked to help prepare the salmon, we had to chuckle! Here are two girls who can prepare venison in a variety of ways but relatively no experience filleting or prepping salmon. Thanks to a great crew, we caught on quickly and got to work.  The kitchen was a hustle and bustle of volunteers making sure everything was ready to serve and when the doors opened the people couldn’t believe that tonight they were dining on fresh salmon and venison tacos with all the fixin’s!

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

I am proud to call myself a hunter and very proud of my fellow hunters and fishermen who were so generous in donating their game and fish! It’s good for all of us to remember that one act of kindness might spark hope in someone less fortunate.  I encourage all of you to get involved in your local community and help make a difference!  I promise you won’t be disappointed!

Thank you to all of the people who donated their time to help make this Hunt.Fish.Feed a success and a big thanks to The Sportsman Channel for creating such a wonderful program that gives back to communities throughout the country!

~ Tara Seiler

Congrats to Ron Kratz!  He won the Stic-N-Pic trail camera stand giveaway!!  Be sure to enter everyday to increase your odds of winning!  Good luck and as always thank you for watching and supporting Workin’ For Whitetails!