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1 week ago | 
fieldandstream.com | Scott Bestul
These days, with every deer hunter and his brother running trail cameras and able to keep tabs on specific bucks for years, we sometimes hear about 7-1/2, 8-1/2, or even 9-1/2-year-old or older whitetails finally wearing a tag after an epic campaign. But the truth is, most wild deer never come close to reaching those ages.
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1 month ago | 
fieldandstream.com | Scott Bestul |Dave Hurteau |David E. Petzal
For spring gobbler hunters, the late season is a bit of a double-whammy. First off, a fair number of the toms that were gobbling their heads off and running to decoys in the early season are in hunter's freezers (or bellies) by now. Second, what gobblers are left on the landscape have likely been bumped a time or two, have heard a lot of artificial yawping, and have possibly been shot at. Bottom line: They are at their absolute wariest.
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1 month ago | 
fieldandstream.com | Scott Bestul
Editor's Note: Longtime F&S whitetail columnist Scott Bestul passed away on April 19th, after a long battle with cancer. In memory of him, we will be republishing some of the Bestul's best work. In today's story, the author captures, on an intimate level, how the outdoors can help us through tough times. I WAS A MESS when I first set foot on the place.
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1 month ago | 
fieldandstream.com | Scott Bestul
Editor's Note: Longtime F&S whitetail columnist Scott Bestul passed away on April 19th, after a long battle with cancer. In memory of him, we will be republishing some of the Bestul's best work. Today's story highlights his no-b.s. reporting. Never one to ape anyone's marketing claims, Bestul instead put them to the test and reported the results without fear or favor. The story below is a perfect example, introduced here by F&S hunting editor, Will Brantley.
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1 month ago | 
fieldandstream.com | Scott Bestul
Editor's Note: Longtime F&S whitetail columnist Scott Bestul passed away on April 19th, after a long battle with cancer. In memory of him, we will be republishing some of the Bestul's best work all this week. One of the things that made Bestul such an effective writer was that he was never afraid to get personal, to open up to his readers about even the most difficult topics—and to show how the outdoors touches every aspect of our lives. There's no better example of this than the story below.
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1 month ago | 
fieldandstream.com | Scott Bestul
Editor's Note: Longtime F&S whitetail columnist Scott Bestul passed away on April 19th, after a long battle with cancer. In memory of him, we will be republishing some of the Bestul's best work all this week, starting with this classic from a collection of "Great Stories," originally published in the February 2015 issue. LAST APRIL I guided my father, 84, and my Uncle Al, 82, to the base of a steep, tangled, and secluded bluff.
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2 months ago | 
turkeyandturkeyhunting.com | Scott Bestul
Answering the “should I wait or should I move?” question is one of the toughest skills to acquire when hunting spring gobblers. Here are some factors to weigh when deciding whether to stay or go. By Scott BestulIdo an awful lot of turkey hunting in May, largely because I, a) like the warmer weather and, b) enjoy the broader look at gobbler behavior offered by the fifth month.
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2 months ago | 
fieldandstream.com | Scott Bestul
Food plots are becoming an annual ritual for the nation’s whitetail hunters and land managers, and the yearly conundrum of “what should I plant?” can be vastly simplified if you devote at least a portion of your food plot space to perennials; plant types that, once established, can be counted on to grow for several years with minimal maintenance. Perennials offer several advantages for the food plotter.
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Mar 7, 2025 | 
fieldandstream.com | Scott Bestul
Earlier this week, we kicked off our 2025 Strut Reporters coverage by breaking down the five key phases of the turkey breeding season and asking our experts—15 of them from all around the country—to pick the key dates when turkey hunting will be at its best in your neck of the woods. Now, with the year's first spring gobbler seasons opening or about to open in the Deep South, it's time to take a closer look at the earliest phase of the season and the tactics and tips you need to fill your tags.
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Mar 3, 2025 | 
fieldandstream.com | Scott Bestul
The 2025 spring turkey season is finally here. The year's first gobbler hunters took to the woods in Florida and Hawaii yesterday morning, and all through the Deep South, puffed-up toms are already spinning in circles and gobbling their heads off. Yes, most of us still have weeks to wait, but our turn is just a few more welcome warm fronts away.
