Bo’s Hideaway

[chbarnha]

Well just recently found this forum and have been reading quite a bit, but then I found this property tour tab. Been interesting to see everybody’s setups. I guess I’ll try to roughly do mine. I purchased this property in central Va may of 2020. Its right at 34 acres and started as a diamond in the rough I guess you could say. The previous owner didn’t even know where the property was located. There was no access road off of the hard top and no way to really get into the land other than on foot. The work began fairly quickly as I hired a guy with a forestry mulcher to come in and get started. These were the pics before and after that first big change.

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[chbarnha]

The first two pics were taken standing in the exact same location. I then got the mulcher to run a path around the edge of the 8-9 year old cutover to the hardwood point in the middle of the property and place a “foodplot” there. Aside from placing stands and planting some assorted trees around that point that was about the extent of what I did before the first season arrived.

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[chbarnha]

After some success during the 2020 season I decided I wanted to make some more improvements such as a bigger foodplot near the point, add a better variety of hard and soft mast trees, improve stand locations and several other things. This led me to bring in the forestry mulcher again for one more 8 hour day of work. At 250$ an hour I got much more done quicker than I would the old fashioned way. I had them open up the existing foodplot to almost an acre near the point in between two of my primary bow stands for this parcel. I also placed several seedling orders through both my state nursery as well as the wildlife group and nativ nurseries. On the original planting I had planted 4 sawtooths, 4 wild deer pears, 4 persimmons, and 4 crab apples. I wanted some more diversity as well as bigger numbers. On the second planting I don’t remember the exact numbers but I planted Chinese and substantial chestnuts, a mix of crab and common apples, more sawtooths (regular and gobbler), DCOs, as well as two of nativ nurseries hybrid oak 6 packs. To date I would say 90% of the trees I planted are still showing life/growing.

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[chbarnha]

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[chbarnha]

Then came time to prepare for the 2021 season, I have a new lady friend that has shown some interest in hunting so I needed to setup some locations where we could both be in the tree or blind together as she is completely green. Insert two two man ladders over the new foodplot in the back as well as a blind for when it is raining. A buddy of mine actually had a stand laying around for the blind to be elevated on. My dad actually did the blind build as something to do.

Two man stands for muzzleloader and gun

Then came the process of getting the blind up on the stand, that was a little trying at times but we got it up there.

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[chbarnha]

That brings me to the present state of Bo’s Hideaway. I planted the new plot as well as the area in the front of the property. Being they were really first effort plots I didn’t expect a whole lot, but I’m actually pretty satisfied with the results for the first year and not having the soil amended totally.

The front plot was a mix of cowpeas, brassicas and clover that I had leftover from a plot at the hunt club as well as seeding winter rye into it at about 50lbs an acre three different times to have different stages of growth. This plot is not really an intended hunting location but will get hunted occasionally.

The back plot is the primary hunting location and received more attention. Still working on the weeds but overall I’m pretty happy with the brassica/ clover mix for the first year with winter rye also thrown in at about the same rate as the front.

Now it’s time to
Hunt it and then pick up the work again after the season. Our bow season came in Saturday and my dad already killed a doe opening morning adjacent to the back plot. The adjoining pics are an satellite image of now compared to the original image, dad with his opening day doe and my target for the year.

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[KSQ2]

Looking good! Welcome to the forum! You have done a lot already with a smaller piece and it looks like you’ve already begun to reap the benefits. Also, congrats to your dad, and good luck with that stud buck, he’s a tall fella!

 

[Native Hunter]

Congratulations to your dad and good luck with the tall boy this year.

 

[Chainsaw]

Welcome to the forum. Am looking to forward following your thread.

 

[Paradise725]

Very cool buck you are after this year. Good luck! I’m looking forward to following along!


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[Mennoniteman]

Welcome to the forum, and thanks for your contribution to the Deer Hunter community, I enjoyed looking at your pictures detailing your journey with this property. This type of activity is so refreshing in this day and age to see someone spending quality time with their dad! I'd much rather spend my time looking at an outdoorsman's interesting food plot and wildlife pictures than look at 100 selfies by some narcissist on Facebook.

 

[chbarnha]

Well I work in the paper making industry at the Westrock papermill in West Point, va. We are on our annual outage this year for the whole month of oct. I’m working all 12hr midnights with no days off until November 8th. Dad just texted me after I get into work and said he let the air out of another big doe. Might have to put him on restrictions....
He’s having a good time anyway. That’s all that matters.

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[Mennoniteman]

Well I work in the paper making industry at the Westrock papermill in West Point, va. We are on our annual outage this year for the whole month of oct. I’m working all 12hr midnights with no days off until November 8th. Dad just texted me after I get into work and said he let the air out of another big doe. Might have to put him on restrictions....
He’s having a good time anyway. That’s all that matters.

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I sometimes sell pulpwood to papermills off my hunting land. It never seems to be worth much...
What is "annual outage"? It sounds like a plant shutdown?

 

[chbarnha]

I sometimes sell pulpwood to papermills off my hunting land. It never seems to be worth much...
What is "annual outage"? It sounds like a plant shutdown?

Yeah it is our annual shutdown. It used to be every March but they got the bright idea that they can make it 18months.... so that puts one in October then 18 months later there will be one in April... so they mess up a bow season and then a turkey season.... it’s lovely. Lot of guys aren’t happy about it at all.


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[Mennoniteman]

Yeah it is our annual shutdown. It used to be every March but they got the bright idea that they can make it 18months.... so that puts one in October then 18 months later there will be one in April... so they mess up a bow season and then a turkey season.... it’s lovely. Lot of guys aren’t happy about it at all.


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I'm not very familiar with how a paper plant operates. You're saying that you have to work during the shutdown?

 

[chbarnha]

Yeah, we perform maintenance on the machines, and all of the associated parts. It last 30-45 days usually. Although the first year I was there it lasted 67 days. I have two jobs at the mill. I work on a paper machine, and I’m also one of the setup safety watchmen. In that role I am the emt/fire protections system maintainer. Luckily on outages I am in safety issuing the confined space permits and various other emergencies as they arise.


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[chbarnha]

Little minor thing that we got done after the morning hunt today. We have been meaning to get the blind setup for muzzleloader and gun season but haven’t really messed with it. Today we got the blind chairs in as well as a piece of canvas to silence the floor. I don’t think the canvas is going to be the permanent solution as I’m waiting for a piece of rubber conveyor from work to line the bottom with. With the girlfriend talking about hunting I needed two chairs which makes it a little tight inside but should be manageable.

Also got pictures of a visitor I haven’t had in a while...need to get him out of there.

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[chbarnha]

Sitting this morning on what I call “the damn stand.” It’s where my dad killed boy does the first week. It sets up as a good funnel adjacent to the 8-9 year old cutover and acts as a funnel between a swamp and dried up what’s left of a pond. It’s also about 40 yards off the edge of my main plot. I’ve killed quite a few deer out of this tree. I’ve been hunting this property since before I bought it last year.

View to the plot

View of the dam and dried up pond. This is about a quarter to half acre of hardwoods I’m in which is the majority of my hardwoods except for the point.

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[chbarnha]

Well sitting at work waiting for the morning, just finished setting up two more tactacam reveals. I love those cameras. I’ve heard less than stellar reviews about the reveal x, but my original reveals have been flawless.


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[chbarnha]

Well sitting one of my other stands this morning, got off late and didn’t have much time to go to one of my normal bow stands. This stand is setup more for gun season when the dogs are running but atleast in sitting in a tree. I do have eight many oaks around me in this spot and it’s adjacent to the thick cutover. Hoping to maybe catch one slipping going back to bed.

Also sat the stand at the dam the other morning and had a slow sit until about 840, then the flood gates opened. I saw 4 between 840 and 915. None were in range. A boy I know spotted the target buck in a yard about a half mile from here two nights ago. He’s a brute for sure.

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