46 Outdoors Prepare and Pursue Hunting Checklist for July

Photo: Chris Carson

July in Texas... What can anyone say about July in Texas?  It's hot and miserable, but if you love the outdoors, you embrace the heat.  Heat is part of deal here in the Lonestar State.  When the fireworks are over, it's a grind to get through the dog days of summer to those first few "cool fronts" usually in late August that plunge temps into the lower 90's.  I have always looked forward to August 15 as the date that the tide turns on the heat of summer.

As hot as it is, there are still things that must be done to PREPARE for the upcoming hunting season, and even better, there are still species to PURSUE.

A couple words of caution... Stay hydrated and keep an eye peeled for snakes!


Check out your 46 Outdoors Prepare and Pursue Fishing Checklist for April...

• Water... is the highest priority.  Make sure there is a water source available.  If you have windmills and tanks, make sure everything is in working order. Bring some water in if you must.  Poly tanks are pretty inexpensive. Use the low profile tanks so that fawns can drink too.  That mature monster buck you want to shoot 5 or 6 years from now is just a fawn or yearling today. Clear out vegetation around tanks so that wildlife has easy access and good escape routes from predators.  
• Blinds... Finish those pesky repairs and new set ups.  If you've waited this long, shame on you! However sometimes the heat of summer brings about issues, get them fixed as they arise so that you don't have a problem on opening day.  Don't forget the wasp spray or you likely won't get near your blind.
• Feeders... I typically start bumping up my feed times about now.  Much of the vegetation is dying off and things are dry.  A little more food will keep more animals around this time of year, but if you don't have water, you won't have animals either.
• Feed The Roads... I like to feed the roads whenever I go the lease this time of year.  Deer are establishing patterns now that will carry through until the rut.  Even in areas where the deer go to acorns in the Fall, you will have more deer in your area if you feed roads. However, if you have cattle on your lease and you feed the roads, you will feed the cows, so skip this if that is the case for you. 
• Feeder Pens...  Make sure you feeders are penned up.  Cattle and hogs will do a number on you equipment if you don't.
• Hunt for predators, and hogs... I'm not going to the lease without hunting something. Many times that means night hunting.  Keep that fawn crop healthy by keeping those predators at bay.  I have seen a hog run off with a fawn too, so use this opportunity to put some pork chops on the table.

Photo: Chris Carson

If you've been keeping up with the Prepare and Pursue checklist, July should be a piece of cake.  I do my best to get most of these things done in the cooler months so that when I make my trip to the lease in July, all I have to do is feed the feeders and roads morning, and nap in the afternoon.  Then in the evening, I take the family on a little wildlife drive. Watch the sunset over the mesquite and head out for some night hunting. The rest of the month, you can usually find me on the water somewhere. If you haven't figured it out yet, that's the beauty of the list.  It allows me to spend most of the summer fishing!

We carry a few products at Twisted Oak to help you with the night hunting.  From lighting solutions by Sniper Hog Lights to predator calls, hog attractants, and bug spray, we have what you need.