Focus Outdoors TV

Successful Waterfowl Scouting

When most people think of using a spotting scope, they think of big game hunting. Maybe spotting whitetail or antelope on the open prairies or elk and mule deer in the mountains. Others may use them for viewing wildlife from a distance, may it be songbirds or larger species for the simple enjoyment of seeing wildlife in their natural environment. Here is a new twist for using a spotting scope that many may not have thought of.

All of you waterfowl hunters, this is one for you. This past year, we as a staff of Focus Outdoors TV had the opportunity to use many of the incredible products that Hawke Optics has to offer. One of my favorite uses for my Nature Trek ED 20-60 x 80 spotting scope by Hawke Optics is scouting for waterfowl. On several occasions this past fall I put my Nature Trek ED 20-60 x 80 to use when we needed to get a positive identification on waterfowl that were using large bodies of water for roosts. Many times, because of the incredible clarity and crispness of this spotting scope, we were able to identify large numbers of birds on large bodies of water we otherwise wouldn’t have been able to identify. Several times these birds were far enough out or tucked into a corner, making them nearly undectable. Without the use of this incredible spotting scope from Hawke Optics, we may well have never known these birds were even there. The ability to not only spot these birds, but also positively identify them, led us to many successful hunts last fall.

All avid waterfowl hunters know the importance of being in the right place at the right time, the spot on the spot, or X marks the spot. You don’t want to be the guy that got up way before daybreak and set up a huge decoy spread, only to find out that all the birds were using the other point a couple of hundred yards down. You will never be ‘that guy’ if you are equipped with a Nature Trek ED 20-60 x 80 spotting scope by Hawke Optics. The fully multi-coated optical system of this spotting scope will give you a crisp, clear, and very bright, high-resolution image that will put you where you need to be. The ‘ED’ glass increases performance and enhances light transmission, so you will be able to successfully spot those rafts of birds when they drop back in late in the day. If you are a waterfowl hunter who enjoys big water and you are looking for a new set of optics, check out the Nature Trek ED 20-60 x 80 spotting scope; and see the birds and the spot others may not.

The Geese That Got Away

It is not very often that you get an opportunity to have a great hunt because someone else passed on it. This was one such occasion, and my hunting companions and I owe it all to my Hawke Optics Nature Trek 10×50 binoculars.

On one of several scouting trips last fall, one of my buddies and I were scouting an area that gets a fair amount of hunting pressure, when we saw a flock of about 10 Canada Geese set into a very large stubble corn field. We were not the only hunters in the area and therefore likely not the only ones who saw this flock of geese. As we drove in the direction of the field, we were not surprised to see another group of hunters already watching the birds we had seen, we were likely ‘too late’. Much to our surprise, as we got closer, the vehicle began to leave the spot they were watching from; we made note of the vehicle and got ourselves to a good vantage point from which we could see the entire field. Only a couple of hundred yards out were the birds we had just seen, and they had joined an existing group of 30 or 40. This may have been the reason the other hunters had moved on, not enough birds to mess with. Since this was a very large field with road access only on the side we were on, and I already had my Nature Trek 10×50 binoculars out, I began to glass the entire field. While glassing the far end of the field, close to a mile away, a flash caught the corner of my Nature Trek 10×50 binoculars. That flash was a goose stretching its wings; upon closer investigation, there was not only one goose in the back of the field, but it was clear through my Hawke Nature Trek binoculars, that there were close to 500 geese. Was it possible that the other group of hunters did not see those birds?

I had hunted this field in the past and knew that the land owner lived several miles from our current location. We decided to head in that direction and see if anyone had contacted him about hunting this field. A few miles down the road we came across the vehicle we had seen early; they were watching geese that were using another field. We stopped and talked to them to see if they were planning on hunting the field we had seen them at earlier. They, much to our surprise, said “no, that they had 6 hunters and that the 40 or 50 geese in that field were not enough for them to mess with”. They said “this field has 150 to 200 geese in it” and they had gotten permission to hunt it so they were going to hunt there in the morning. We had heard all we needed to say see you later and good luck. We were on our way to get permission, which because of our previous relationship with this landowner, was no problem. We had our spot for the next day!

The next morning brought perfect weather and an easy limit of honkers and several bonus mallards for myself and my four hunting companions. There is no question we owe that hunt to having superior optics to the other group of hunters. As an avid waterfowl hunter, qualit optics are a must and I recommend you look at the full line of high quality optics offered by Hawke Optics. The superior clarity and high resolution image of their products will help you see the birds others have missed.

Focus On The Outdoors with Hawke

I have been using Hawke products all year long. The most versatile piece of my Hawke equipment is my Hawke Nature Trek binoculars, which are powered at 10×50 and water proof. I use my binoculars at home to watch wildlife in our area, which is somewhat rural and has a lot of critters in the surrounding habitat. A highlight at home was watching a pair of sandhill cranes that were a nesting pair interact together. I could watch them from a distance so not to disturb them. That was so important so they acted as natural as possible. My Hawke’s gave me a clean, concise visual as if I was standing there with them.

I have also used my Nature Trek binoculars at our cabin and it has been fun to watch the ducks and geese on the lake. Also, to watch the industrious musk rats in the reed beds; they are always busy.

I have use my Hawke binoculars to do a lot of scouting. When waterfowl scouting, it is very important to have a quality pair of binoculars to reduce eye strain and Nature Trek has great quality and very good relief. Hawke binoculars’ clear optics are a great help when you are trying to find the exact place the waterfowl are sitting and if you are there, your chance of a successful hunt go way up.

One of the more interesting ways I used my Hawke Nature Trek binoculars was to scout trails for ruffed grouse. This idea was brought up to me by a friend of mine that lived in northern Minnesota. He had a vast trail system to work with and the trails were loaded with clover; a favorite green food for ruffed grouse. The plan was we would stop at every knoll on the trail and glass the trail ahead of us for grouse that had come out onto the trail early in the morning to peck at the clover. We also did this at every corner of the trail. This worked very well because of the height of the cover. When you’re mobile scouting like this, one important feature on your binoculars is a focus knob that is easy to find and adjust. The Hawke Nature Trek binoculars are just that! On this specific trip, we could not only see the grouse on the trail, but could focus in on the food source that they were after the most. In this case the favorite was clover, but we also noticed there were green forbs thy would pick at a lot. This was interesting to watch and without my 10×50 Hawke Nature Trek, I would not have had the powere or clarity I needed to see all the details that make for a successful time in the field.

So, remember to focus on the outdoors with the right equipment, Hawke!

Oh We Predators

I went predator hunting for the first time in years. I was lucky the day I had enough time to go was gorgeous; clear, cold and quiet. I picked a spot where I had success a few years ago. The area had corn fields, hay fields and fence lines mixed in with shelter belts. There was a great place in this area to set up, the ridge! From the ridge you could see 300 yards in three directions. To help cover this vast amount of area I had at my aid my Hawke Optics Endurance 30 rifle scope. For this distance I like to have a powerful scope, my Endurance 30 is 3 x 12 x 50. That allowed me to be consice at any range.

I set up and started to call. Ten minutes in, there was a red fox about a hundred yards out. I put up my Hawke Endurance 30 and focused in on the fox, which was on a fence line and walking towards me. All of a sudden I saw a movement behind the fox. I readjusted my Hawke Endurance 30 and used the focus ring to see what it was. A coyote coming from the north was hunting the fox. I worked the Endurance back to the fox, he was unaware of his enemy’s presence. Then, another movement to the south of the fox was another coyote. This fox was in big trouble and finally big red knew it. I focused my Hawke Endurance 30 a little better on the fox and was impressed with the great shape it was in. I noticed in my clean, clear Endurance the fox was headed toward a willow thicket that jutted out into the field. I could see he was getting frantic. The fox disappeared into the willows. I was so engrossed in this life or death drama I almost forgot why I had come; almost! I worked the focus ring on my Hawke scope, found the coyotes, they were still coming but much slower. The coyotes were on edge as if they knew there was a fourth predator on the make this morning. I had to refocus my mind and my scope; the scope was easier. I put the scope on the willow thicket and just in the nick of time. The fox could not take the pressure the coyotes were putting on him and busted out into the field.

In my Hawke Endurance 30, I could keep up with him no problem, but even as nice a picture I had, I don’t like shooting at any animal that is running. Just as that thought was going through my mind, big red stopped. I could see him look back over his shoulder, worried about the coyotes, when the Hawke is the predator, that ended his life. The field of view through the Endurance 30 made following that fox on the dead run very easy. Instantly after I pulled the trigger on the fox, I refocused that Endurance 30 and checked for the coyotes. Gone. Vanished into the wind. As I walked to pick up my beautiful red fox, the coyotes started to yip and scold me for shooting their prey. As they howled and yipped, I could only smile and think to myself that the fox was the only one that didn’t know there were four predators on the make that gorgeous morning.

Sick ‘Em on a Chicken

We were on our way to our first ever Prairie Chicken hunt for our group. We did not know what to expect as far as terrain or how the birds would act. We left home a couple days early to make sure we had enough time to scout the area we were allowed to hunt in. The Minnesota Prairie Chicken hunt is permit only for residents. If you drew a permit, you have a specifc area to hunt and you have to stay within those boundaries.

My hunting partner for this special hunt was Focus Outdoors Pro Staff member, Mark Haslup. As we scouted our permit area we found a lot of public and private land. We were there to shoot a TV show, so we were in search of private land. Mark was our map reader and as he searched the plat book, he found a golden nugget. The nugget was the Anderson Seed Company. The Andersons were around and after a nice chat, they gave us permission to hunt. I like to say the Andersons are great people; Mark and I enjoyed the time we spent with them.

As we pulled out onto the road we saw our first birds. They flew out into a large hay field with a mixture of alfalfa in it. The field was cut short. This was a sign of things to come. We found this property had quite a few short grass fields and the birds loved them. There was a lot of ground to cover. Mark and I talked about the most efficient way to scout it all. The topic of big game scouting came up; optics are the key to success in that game. Mark brought up that with the short grass in these fields that glassing them would be condusive to covering more ground. I agreed and brought out the secret weapon; my Hawke Nature Trek ED spotting scope. Mark and I continued to scout our area; at the next short grass field, we stopped to set up the Hawke Nature Trek ED spotting scope first. The Nature Trek ED is powered 20 x 60. Hawke designed this scope to be very user-friendly. My Nature Trek ED 20 x 60 has a lens shade, zoom control, and a focus knob on top where it is easy to find. I have prescription glasses so the rubber eye piece is very nice.

With my Hawke Nature Trek ED 20 x 60 spotting scope, I have different mounts to keep the scope steady; one for a tripod, one for a window mount, etc. I started to glass the field and sure enough, the grass was short enough to see the birds. The Hawke Nature Trek ED gave me such a good sight picture, I could tell at a great distance the birds were sitting on a small rise, which was the only contour in the field. Withe the Hawke spotting scope we worked a lot of ground in a single day and recorded the smallest details, which helped make our hunt a success.

We glassed for many hours that day. I was amazed at the eye relief, no eye strain at all. Remember, my Hawke Nature Trek ED 20 x 60 spotting scope allowed us to scout from a distance and not spook the birds and scare them out of the area. This proved to me spotting scopes are not just for big game hunting. Thanks to my Hawke Optics, I was able to get the details to make our hunt awesome.

Focus Outdoors Founder, Tom Poorker, and Pro Staff members Doug Schoenborn and Jeremy Lawson will be at Pheasant Fest, February 17, 18 and 19 at the Kansas City Convention Center- Bartle Hall in Kansas City, Missouri. Look for them at the Focus On Gun Dogs booth and Tom and Doug will be doing their seminar Gun Dogs from A-Z with a question and answer session in Seminar Room 2202 on Friday at 6:00 pm, Saturday at 3:00 pm and on Sunday at 1:00 pm. Stop by and say hi! 

The Minnesota Ruffed Grouse show that airs this week features WYSIWASH and their product line up. For more information go to, www.wysiwash.com. The show will be on again on Saturday at 3:30 pm EST on the Pursuit Channel (DIRECTV Channel 608, DISH Network Channel 240).

Hawke Optics

I recieved my new Hawke spotting scope early this season. I have been very happy with the quality of the optics. I have used everything from Burris to the Cabela’s brand and this new Hawke blows the rest away. The easy of use and the eye relief is some of the best I have used. I have been so impressed with the optics that I am in the proccess of switching all of my rifle scopes over to Hawke. 

Today’s show is a snow goose hunt from North Dakota with Migrator Valley Outfitters. It airs on the Pursuit Channel (DIRECTV Channel 608, DISH Network Channel 240) at 12:30 pm EST.

We have a time change in our schedule. We are still on every Monday at 12:30 pm EST, but now we’re on Saturday at 3:30 pm EST on the Pursuit Channel.

Thanks to all that voted for Focus Outdoors yesterday in the Pursuit Channel Fan Favorite show bracket. Unfortunately we came up a little short. As always, you can find us every Monday at 12:30 pm EST and Friday at 5:00 pm EST on the Pursuit Channel.

Focus Outdoors is in the Pursuit Channel’s Favorite Show Bracket! We need your votes! Please go to Pursuit Channel’s facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Focus-Outdoors-TV/195159057206669#!/ThePursuitChannel) and vote for Focus Oudoors! Voting for Focus Outdoors is only open Monday November 7th.

We have 13 shows from the past on YouTube. Click here to view those: http://www.youtube.com/user/FocusOutdoors or visit http://www.pursuitchannel.com/ShowDetail.asp?ShowID=192 to watch past episodes from this year. Remember, you can ‘Like’ the show on Facebook.

We’re heading to Northern Minnesota to hunt ruffed grouse and woodcock with Ken from Wysiwash. Honk if you see our truck and trailer!

Heading to Saskatchewan to hunt waterfowl with RJM Guiding & Outfitting and Scott Butz of Reel Wings. Good luck to all this fall!

The Focus Outdoors crew is heading to South Dakota for early season Canada Goose hunting. Good luck to everyone that is hunting. Have a safe Labor Day weekend.

Thanks to all who stopped by during the two weeks of Game Fair. Now it’s time to get back to finishing shows for our upcoming season on the Pursuit Channel.

Thank you to all who stopped by our booth, Focus on Gun Dogs, during the first weekend of Game Fair. We look forward to meeting you this second and final weekend, August 19th through the 21st.

We have secured products that will be for sale at special prices during Game Fair. The Wysiwash Sanitizer-V and a 9-pack of Caplets, the Wysiwash Sanitizer and a 9-pack of Caplets, along with an aray of Primos BOOST Series Hearing Protection muffs, behind the ear and in the ear will be featured. More possibly to come!

Focus Outdoors will be at Game Fair in Anoka, MN! Pro staff members Tom Poorker and Doug Schoenborn will be giving seminars on gundogs, answering all questions A to Z. You should come and visit many members of the Focus Outdoors family at the Focus on Gundogs booth! Join the fun August 12th through the 14th and August 19th through the 21st.