By Alex Comstock
Rather recently, I was turned on to a book titled Growing & Hunting Quality Bucks, authored by Tom Indrebo. Tom is the owner of Bluff Country Outfitters, located in Buffalo County, Wisconsin. I was chatting with a friend who knows Tom, and he highly recommended that I read the book. Naturally, when I get a book recommendation, I don't hesitate to read it, as reading is something that I love to do. With all of that said, lets jump in to the review of the book, and what made it such a great read.
Overview: First, I'd like to give an overall overview of the book. In a nutshell, Tom lays out how he opened Bluff Country Outfitters, and what has made it so successful. There are multiple insights to how great of a business Bluff Country Outfitters is, given by more than one highly respected person within the industry.
After learning the background of Bluff Country Outfitters, Tom jumps in to explaining everything that he does on a month to month basis. He outlines exactly what he does all throughout year, and it is very informative. Everything from how he scouts in the winter, to where, why, and how he shed hunts, to how he targets stand sites in the fall. In total, this book is jam packed with great information, and there is a lot to be learned from it.
What are some specific things that I took away from the book?
There is so much great information in this book, it's hard to single out just a couple things that I wanted to highlight, but with that said, there are a few items I wanted to single out about the book that I particularly took notice to.
Water Holes: Throughout the book, Tom hits on water holes, and how important they are for his operation. He strategically places these water holes throughout his farms and hunting areas to encourage daylight movement. For some people, water holes aren't plausible, but for those of you that have the ability to put these in, take notice to how Tom talks about these if you get a chance to pick up this book.
Strategic Stand Sites: Another thing that hit home for me was how carefully Tom places each one of his stands. He's in a unique situation being that he hangs so many stands because of his position as an outfitter owner. He doesn't get lazy with any of his stand setups, and carefully goes over every little detail when determining where to put each stand.
Trail Cameras: What I found particularly interesting about the book was the transition Tom went through from not having trail cameras, to running trail cameras with film, to the "modern day trail camera", and how these helped Tom with his hunting efforts. He goes into great detail throughout the book on how he uses cameras, but doesn't rely on them. This was yet another thing that I found to be of great help, and I will definitely apply things I learned in the book to my hunting efforts.
So if you're looking for a book to help you with your all around deer hunting ability, this book is a must read. Like I said earlier, the detail that Tom goes into pertaining to everything under the sun about hunting mature bucks is fascinating. The simplicity in which it's written makes it an easy read, and easy to understand as well. I know I'm glad that I read it, and if you want to give it a read, check it out here.
If you'd like to learn more about Tom Indrebo or Bluff Country Outfitters, you can visit their website by clicking here.
