Will Brantley

3 weeks ago | fieldandstream.com | Will Brantley

Bullfrogs start calling once the poison ivy is about 4 inches tall and the carpenter bees are buzzing around the rafters of the barn. All of that signals the real start to summer, and it happens in early May around here. But the legal frog-hunting season doesn’t open until later in the month. I think that’s for the best because it forces country kids to have to sit and listen to the barruummphs for a couple weeks before getting after them. Delayed gratification is a good lesson to learn.

1 month ago | ducks.org | Will Brantley

Wearing a ghillie suit will help hunters blend into the background in open environments such as harvested croplands, shorelines, and riverbanks. A wide-open field or marsh full of birds can be both tantalizing and frustrating. You can see the birds. You know where you need to be. But where will you hide? Sometimes all that’s required is some extra effort, outside-the-box thinking, or a little of both. Mike Miller operates Whiskey Creek Outfitters, near Fort Cobb Reservoir in southern Oklahoma.

2 months ago | fieldandstream.com | Phil Bourjaily |Will Brantley |Travis Hall |Matthew Every

A turkey hunter's life, to paraphrase what they say about a soldier’s, is 99 percent boredom, 1 percent sheer excitement (instead of terror). You make plans, scout, walk for miles, and wait for hours, days even, in hopes of a momentary thrill. But those few minutes can change your whole season, even your entire spring. Like many Americans, I am blessed, and slightly cursed, to live a comfortable, unexciting life.

2 months ago | realtree.com | Will Brantley

We’d seen the gobbler strutting with a dozen hens the evening before, and I figured we were in for a show the next morning. But two hours after daybreak, and we hadn’t heard so much as a peep. My 10-year-old son, Anse, had been drawn for a two-day youth-only hunt on a popular WMA, which a few turkeys around but lots of hunting pressure. My gut said to stay put because I knew the bird was nearby, but we weren’t hunting on my tag. I asked Anse what he wanted to do.

Mar 11, 2025 | fieldandstream.com | Will Brantley

We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs. Learn moreSince 2017, Ravin has been a crossbow brand synonymous with blistering speed, long-range accuracy, and radical new design. I’ve been testing their newest model, the LR, all winter. It isn’t as radical or as fast as some of Ravin’s more recent models, but it is a better crossbow. Here’s the scoop.