Ben Rising vs. Scrape Master – Illinois Booner

My first trip of the year to hunt Illinois is always a exciting time, just being able to leave your own state and leave work behind is a welcome feeling. Earlier in the summer I had strategically placed some trail cameras on field edges, future scrape sites and tight pinches that were easily accessible on the farm I was hunting – looking for a potential candidate to hunt in the fall of 2016. I also had prepped in the summer by hanging some of the HAWK Heliums in some major travel corridors between doe bedding areas close to some normal breeding scrapes anticipating pre-rut and rut activity.

The cameras never lie and after getting pictures of a buck I nick named Scrape Master, the pursuit was on. I knew by the intel that if I was to encounter him and get a shot it would be in one spot close to his favorite scrape that I always got his picture. I had secluded access that allowed me in and out without a lot of detection and the Helium KickBack afforded me the comfort I needed to sit all day when those daylight pictures started showing up.