The Hunting Stories Podcast
The Hunting Stories Podcast
Ep 102 The Hunting Stories Podcast: Julius Craig
When laughter mingles with the profound wisdom of the woods, you know you're in for a treat. Julius Craig, a name synonymous with Delta Fludge Outdoors, joins me to swap tales that stitch together the fabric of a hunter's life. From the comical tale of his roadside rendezvous with law enforcement to the deeply personal reflections on how life's crossroads led him back to the embrace of nature, our conversation is a journey through the heart of hunting tradition and innovation.
This episode isn't just about reminiscing; it's a masterclass in the art of adapting to the ever-changing landscapes and regulations that shape our pursuit. Julius and I traverse memory lane, discussing everything from the adrenaline-fueled first hunts that forever imprint on a hunter's soul to the subtle intricacies of wildlife conservation. We've seen it all, from the thick pine forests of Louisiana to the broad horizons of Oklahoma, and we're here to share the hunter's perspective on wildlife management, land maintenance, and the joy of introducing the next generation to the great outdoors.
As we wrap up our chat, the importance of wildlife conservation and the rich tapestry of available game in Oklahoma come to the fore, reminding us of the delicate balance between tradition and sustainability. I can't thank Julius enough for bringing his voice to the podcast and for the hearty laughs we shared. If you're itching to hear more from Julius, hop over to his Delta Flows Outdoors podcast, and while you're at it, why not share your own stories with us? Let's keep the tradition alive and inspire each other to create unforgettable moments in the wild.
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Hunting Stories Podcast
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Howdy folks and welcome to the Hunting Stories Podcast. I'm your host, Michael, and as usual, we've got a good one for you today. Today we're actually connecting with Julius Craig. Julius and I connected on Facebook actually, and I'm glad we did, because I've been hearing from a lot of my listeners that we need to get more guys to do whitetail and eastern kind of hunting. And Julius is from Louisiana, currently based out of, I believe, Oklahoma, and man, he has some great stories to tell. He's also a fellow podcaster, so I put links to all of his stuff in the show notes. Please make sure you give it a follow. But that's it, guys. Let's go ahead and kick this thing off. Let Julius tell you some of his stories. Thank you, all right, julius. Welcome to the Hunting Stories podcast. Brother, how are you?
Speaker 2:I'm good. How are you today?
Speaker 1:I'm doing well, man. I'm doing better than you, I think. Right, you got pulled over on your way to chat with me today.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm on my job site and I was going to a section where I could sit and talk through lunch here and we had a high-speed chase of about five miles an hour down a alleyway for a mile and I didn't know he was even back there. So yeah, I'm sitting off my job site. I'm like, hey, man, you know I'm the superintendent for this job. I'm technically on my job. Yeah, yeah, well, let's click our ticket, man. I'm like, okay, cool there you go.
Speaker 1:Well, we'll start a GoFund or something for you to pay for that ticket. Maybe get you started in an OnlyFans and get a little extra cash to pay for that ticket. How does that sound? We can show them feet. Well, cool man. Why don't we kick this thing off, right, Julius? Why don't you introduce yourself real quick to the folks today so they know who they're hearing some stories from today, man.
Speaker 2:My name is Julius Craig. I actually do a podcast called delta flodge outdoors. Um, I started a company in 2011 ish called delta flodge outdoors. I actually sat down with a buddy of mine and developed my own um form of a deer feed slice attractant and, um, being from south louisiana, we actually named it Cajun Blend, and that's how the Delta Fludge and we spelled the Fludge F-L-A-U-G, just to throw the U in there, because, you know, everything in Louisiana has extra letters in it.
Speaker 1:Absolutely.
Speaker 2:And it was one of those things where we're sitting there and I'm like, well, dude, it's a few beers involved. I'm like it's not that hard to develop a deer feed and I went about it and it took me about four to six months to get it the way I wanted it and we started using it all the time and I've had it in stores and stuff down there. Then I went through a divorce and that set me back on a bunch of stuff and I kind of got out of hunting and everything for a few years, then started getting back into it years back probably let's see, it's 2024. I started heavy hunting again probably 2018. I quit from 14 to.
Speaker 2:I quit from like 2013, 14 area to um 18, but I still did some of my developing with my feeds and stuff. Then, when I stopped, jumped back into an 18. We started a youtube channel and um developing some more feeds. I've actually been working on different blends, as we call them, and I have probably about 10 to 12 prototypes that I've used extensively. So some of my OG staff, like my original pro staff guys, and then I dived into doing a podcast because you know, just, I like hearing stories, I like talking to people and it's a good way to do it, and absolutely a little background of where we, what I did more where what we had in mind and what we did.
Speaker 2:And then it just, you know, I still one of my one of the guys originally started with me steven, we still talk all the time. He's still down south louisiana, I'm in oklahoma. He was like when we first put it together I'm like so you're gonna be business partners on this right? He's like hell, no, that's work, I just wanted to. I'm just here to use it and help you when you need it. He's like I don't. And I was like oh, okay and um. So we went from there.
Speaker 2:Then had some bro staff guys like and um, and one of them was on my podcast a few weeks ago Brant and um. Just that. That's the background of DFO in a nutshell. And then the podcast, like doing like I said, same as yours. I kind of like to catch up and bullshit with people and get an outsider's look at stuff because, like I've had some guys on mine you know I've had Dan Enfold, john Eberhardt, then in the fishing world I've had KJ Quinn, I've had John Sokup, I've had Bassey Lee heart. Than in the fishing world of a kj queen lee that john soak up the bassy lee so you get to hear some pretty cool stories from guys that are above our level in in the aspect of hunting and fishing and uh, yeah and uh, that's awesome so diving into, like you know, like we talked about some hunting stories, probably, uh, my favorite was my, my youngest.
Speaker 2:One of my favorites is after the last couple years. I have two sons and a daughter. They're 11, 9 and 3. So, um, my 11 year old, my oldest, he's really not a deer hunter. He'll go fish with you and everything, but he is not, he's not gonna. He's not an early morning person, he's definitely not gonna weather any conditions to go out there and do it like okay, okay, sounds just like a kid oh, my nine-year-old is a diehard.
Speaker 2:He's been that way since he was big enough to go. When he was five or six we were in a ground, blind together in our place in North Louisiana and the rifle snapped off. He had a six-point at like 25 yards and it just snapped. I'm thinking to myself, oh shit. Then I load it and I check it and it's loaded, but the bullet just wasn't any good.
Speaker 1:Oh no.
Speaker 2:That cost me his first deer and it was like a six-point, five or six years old, 25 yards. And then when we moved to Oklahoma, august of 22, that season he was actually able to kill a deer and he's like I don't count it Because we live in a gated community and everybody around there would feed the deer. The front eight houses fed the deer.
Speaker 1:The back four houses shot the deer.
Speaker 2:You shot somebody's pet, we were in a rental and everything, and I'm like I asked all my neighbors what do, y'all do with the deer they're like oh, we've been, we shoot them. One of my neighbors killed a hundred and forty five hundred fifty inch eight point in between our houses like oh my goodness and then where he's at.
Speaker 2:I can't, like I can't shoot, but he's able to shoot him with his crossbow from where he was at and I couldn't with mine. And I'm laughing because he was like dead between us and um you know I'm gonna get a community, everything. So that was pretty cool. But like, so we were on, like I said, deer season. On december 23rd, actually the day before christmas eve of 22 snow on the ground, you know just, and we were on.
Speaker 2:So sorry about that, we were um no problem up and, uh, I walked through my bedroom and look and there's like seven deer in the backyard. So I go out back into the master part. I tell my youngest I hold a son like hey, you want to go shoot a deer? And he's like no, I'm good. So I asked my youngs when you want to shoot one with the crossbow? And he, he's never shot a crossbow. He's like sure, so we go upstairs open. He's like sure, so we go upstairs, open the sliding door, step out on the balcony and he kills like 130 pound doe, like she runs like 20 yards, perfect shot and everything. And like I was way more excited than I think he ever like than he got From inside the house, right?
Speaker 2:Yeah, we were outside.
Speaker 1:Okay, okay, yeah my neighbor shot his from went outside.
Speaker 2:Okay okay yeah, my neighbor shot his from like the kitchen window. It was freaking hilarious.
Speaker 1:That's too funny, man.
Speaker 2:Oh, it shoots the deer and I'm like dude, really so. But so my son shot that one. Then we bought a place. We closed on our place over in East Oklahoma, oklahoma, in March of this past year, 2023. And it's actually the location. Is sorry, I got way too many phones in here. I've got you on one and then I've got two other phones that just rang. I apologize for that.
Speaker 1:No problem, no problem.
Speaker 2:The location where I bought is actually next door to an old high fence that got messed up in the 2012 snow storm, winter storm and all.
Speaker 2:So they didn't put the fence back up in the back, so it just has three sides down. So really cool genetics around there now. And uh, so, uh, we hunted I, the opening, we went this year opening. Or like, uh, youth, and uh, at like 50 yards we hunted. We went this year opening a youth and at like 50 yards we had a doe come in and she busted us because I had my young son with me. We're in a little setup on the ground like a ground line and I'm like, hold, still, you're moving. He's like I'm not moving. He looked like a bobblehead doll. He was shaking so bad and I'm so excited. I'm like that's what it's about and it's like I get more out of seeing them than I get from shooting one. And then fast forward.
Speaker 2:I killed one the day after Thanksgiving. I killed a mid-120s, probably 11 point, and then a couple evenings later, him and I went and we were literally sitting on our ground with our back up against a brick, I mean big rocks and everything, and we have some really massive deer all over the place and I'm like he's like Dad, can I shoot it? I said it's clearly up to you. So I'm like it's your hunt, you shoot it if you want to. You know he's nine the deer's at like 50 yards. It works its way literally into like 20 feet before it realizes we're not rocks against these rocks, blows at us, runs back out to like 50 yards and he's got the gun up on a bipod. I'm waiting, I'm waiting. Deer goes on. I look at him. I was like what's the matter? He's like I don't want to shoot that one, I want to shoot one of them, big ones. You got on camera. First off, you got more strength than I did at that age. Second, I don't think I'm going to let you shoot one of the big deer as your first bug on camera. Like that I got on camera Because I mean that 11-point was one of the smaller deer and I was a few years old.
Speaker 2:He was older, so I got he was on a decline. But I've got some drop-tie nines and everything else that are like good deer and he's like that's what I want to shoot. I'm like nah, you're not shooting as your first deer, you're like you'll be ruined as your first bug. A nutshell of getting a hunt this year I literally only made three or four hunts and I I saddle hunt. So, uh, you said you just got in before we started talking a few years ago, not, and do you? You stand up, you hunt on the ground.
Speaker 2:What do you? What's your preference?
Speaker 1:so I'm based out of colorado, so most of my hunting has been western big game. So I've hunted colorado and washington, you know where you just hike 10 miles hoping to get on some elk doing some calling and stuff like that. Um, I've done a little bit of hunting in texas where I've, you know, I've sat a blind but I've never actually killed anything from a blind. So the only time I've ever put down a deer a whitetail, um it was, it was Texas public land in a riverbed which you can't hunt anymore legally. You could when I did it, and it was with a double-op buck shotgun, where I was just basically chucking down a riverbed waiting until I found a deer, found one and shot it and it ended up being about 125-inch.
Speaker 1:It was a young deer and a freak of tomorrow. It probably would have been like a 200 inch deer if it had been gotten to seven or eight years. Um, I think it was like a three-year-old deer but it was like 18 points, like little kickers and things dropping down and it was. It was a crazy little deer, but not not huge yet okay, so and uh, that was see, that's what I said.
Speaker 2:I like originally being from south louisiana we hunt um, I don't know how familiar you are with, like, pine sapling tickets and everything and pine tickets because they grow pine.
Speaker 2:So, like when I moved to oklahoma, like so I'm used to hunting either pines or swampy marshland, like got it you know so you, what you do on that, like if you're gonna go hunt like you're hunting, that you find a transition from where it's like big pines to small pines, or big pines to like a clear cut. You know you catch them going from one to the other and so you're in a tree. You know all the time.
Speaker 1:Okay, never done that, but I want to. I want to get up in a tree someday.
Speaker 2:It's fun. I grew up hunting this way my whole life. I remember being like except my boys are 11 and 9. That's what I tell to my dad all the time about it. I'm like I remember being. I killed my first deer at 10 and I remember being 11 12 years old on public land in louisiana carrying a climber and it was like it's the old steel climbers, like the heavy climbing sands. It wasn't a nice one, it was like homemade, you know, like four pound climber in. That was like it's the old steel climbers, like the heavy climbing sands.
Speaker 2:It wasn't a nice one, it was like homemade. You know, like four pound climber, you know, I'm like 12 years old, lugging it in and uh, he would go there and be like, all right, we'll climb this tree. So he, I'd climb the tree with him standing there, get about 10, 12 feet and be like stay right there and he would go home. I'd be like 12 years old, be like don't get out of the tree till I come get you. That might be we'd go in before daylight. He might come get me a lot of lunch, you know, or like when it's 3am he'd come get me.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and it was like I'm like man, I or he'd be like go in with the sun at your back and don't come out until it's this you know where I knew which way to go, and I'm like jesus christ, like I don't know, like. If it's this, you know where I knew which way to go, and I'm like Jesus Christ, like I don't know, like. If I tried that with my kids nowadays, they'd be so fricking lost, like you know, nevermind, some neighbor would probably send you off to child protective services.
Speaker 1:Right, can't do that stuff anymore.
Speaker 2:No, and it's like and it's like. So I've hunted climbers my whole life and about three years ago I switched to saddle hunting. I had a buddy of mine that did it and I went and shot a YouTube video with him because I'd never really been around him and I'm like, dude, that looks much easier and like a lot safer. And I started using one and I actually got my youngest son one for Christmas this year because he was like I want, I want one. So I got, um, you know, custom, uh, custom gear modifications. If, like, check them out, they have some really cool stuff, like my nine-year-old, like 65 pound son, they have a saddle that fits him you know, oh cool yeah and uh, they're veteran owned and everything like great company.
Speaker 2:I'm not. I'm not sponsored by them. I have nothing to do with them, other than I've done some business with them and I'd recommend anybody to do business with them. They're great people to deal with, you know and talk to.
Speaker 2:And so then they may in their. Their pricing isn't bad. They they make all kinds of saddles for, from kids to adults. They had a. They had some the other day that they had made for a show that they didn't go to, and it was like 20 or 30 of them and they were selling them for the show price of like 160 dollars. You know just, and that goes your lineman's belt, your tether and everything. You can't beat that. And um, you know so, like they're. They're, they're good, priced, good product, american made. You know like. So, um, if you check them out, if you're ever into you know getting their made in Tennessee if you're into getting one.
Speaker 2:But he switched to that this year, which is really cool, getting a. He got to start using it a few weeks ago, practicing and he's like I'm planning on either a Nebraska or Missouri hunt this year. And he's like, man, am I going? Am I going? I'm like buddy, you're too small right now. You got to pull your bow back at this poundage. So he's been, he's been climbing and shooting. He's practiced. I'm like you got a year or two before you get ready to go.
Speaker 2:But my like, I think my favorite part of the outdoors is in hunting especially is like being around the other people, like seeing other people kill, and it's like my yeah, we camped every weekend and went and hunted a lot of public land. My dad is one of them. Like we're planning a big hut in october myself, my dad and probably four or five of our uh, friends and everything. And it's like it'll be probably the first week of october. We'll spend a week. And it's like my dad's like oh well, you know, we're gonna cook, we're gonna do this. He's one of them like you eat, just because he's camping doesn't mean you're not gonna eat good. Like he's gonna throw down, like jumbo line. Smell the potatoes. You know it's gonna be a, a home-cooked meal, you know that's amazing that's we.
Speaker 2:Like one of the guys that first year he hunted with us. He's like he's like y'all don't do sandwiches. My dad's like we don't even do sandwiches for lunch. We're going to cook enough that we got food.
Speaker 1:That's my elk camp. This last year I went with Jermaine Hodge and Pat Luttrell and these boys they cook. We had steaks at least two nights and then Jermaine's half Italian, so he made the best spaghetti I've ever had, and I don't know if it was actually the best spaghetti or just the exhaustion plus a damn good spaghetti made it the best I ever had. But having real good meals at hunting camp, that changes a lot of things. It makes for a great place to be.
Speaker 2:That's what my dad always says If I'm going to be tired, I ain't going to be hungry. I'm not going gonna be hungry, I'm not gonna be both. You know it's like hunting. I'm not gonna be like I'm not gonna just, you know, eat to get by. I'm gonna eat like he'll get up, go hunting. He'll come back to the camp around 9, 30 or whatever you get. You get in 10, 11 o'clock. He's got, he's got. You know, those coleman oven stoves that you, you could set up, he's over here, like baking baking biscuits or cornbread or whatever.
Speaker 2:And like chicken. And like breakfast he'll have biscuits and sausage and bacon and eggs, like he doesn't throw out, like it's a. I laugh, I'm like dad, you know why everybody goes with you. They're going to get to eat. They ain't worried about hunting and we got one group together to go this year and a couple of the boys like I've never been off with us. So they, they're in for a surprise because, like both of them like to eat and like everything. Like, oh, I'm gonna bring my five gallon pot so we can cook this or that.
Speaker 2:I'm like you're gonna fit right in, my dad's gonna have a blast with you that's amazing but uh, but yeah, we um like where we're going is, uh, north louisiana and um a wildlife management that I've taken eight people to with me and it's like one of my buddies going with me. He'll be two of them. They're actually going. I've never been, so it'll be numbers nine and eleven. The other part of the group's been and they both asked me a few weeks ago. They was like have you ever killed a deer there? And I start laughing. They're like what? I no. And they're like then why do you like going?
Speaker 2:I said because everybody I've ever taken I said I watched 11 does in one sit all in bow range. I said I just wasn't shooting one because I know what type of bucks were in the area. I said, but I've taken eight people. Y'all be number nine and 10. All eight of them have shot deer and it's bow hunting only. They're like oh, I was like just because I haven't shot one. I said I put everybody else on them. I said I get more enjoyment out of like the guys with me killing and doing.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And, but we so. Like I said, my 11-year-old killed his first and he doesn't count it and he wouldn't shoot the spike. This year he's pumped up for season. I think I'm more excited than he is still. My little girl, she's three and I work out of town all week and I'll get in. I get it Like deer season. When I'd get in on Fridays she'd be like Daddy, daddy. Well, we go deer hunting. To her that meant we'd go sit on the four-wheeler out in the field and just watch the wood line until dark. 20, 30 minutes. Yeah, they're dead quiet and everything. And that's what I told her 11 year old brother. I was like hell. She's a better hunting partner than you. She doesn't talk, she doesn't do anything, she sits still at three years old?
Speaker 1:no way and look.
Speaker 2:Oh, it astonished me. It's like probably about six weeks ago I got in and there was a coyote, so I ran in, grabbed one of the guns, ran back out and shot the coyote. She was sick. Here she comes, like hover bed, running through the house trying to get some shoes on and my wife's like where are you going? Her name's Skylar. Skylar, where are you going? She said daddy, go hunting, I go.
Speaker 1:Oh my goodness, that's too sweet oh, my goodness, that's too sweet.
Speaker 2:But yeah, I said yeah, you'll laugh. Like her name is skylar because with the er to keep the er in, and we changed up the spelling as outdoorsy thing because both my boys are trapper and hunter no and the joke was if we had a third son, we're gonna name him fisher and that's pretty good my, my buddy brant that was that was on my podcast with me a few weeks ago and he's one of my OG guys from pro staff and he's the one going with us camping in October and everything.
Speaker 2:He actually had a son a few weeks, probably six months ago now, and like we're done. We're not having any more. I'm 39. My wife's 41. We're not having any more kids and you know 10, 11, 9, and 3, we're done. He's like 30. Him and his wife have a little girl and they had a little boy, like I said, six months ago, and they named him Fisher. He's like he's not going to be using it, are you? I'm like nope, nope.
Speaker 1:He's like, well, we're going to name ours Fisher. I'm like, hey at, I got a two and a half coming up on three, literally yesterday. We see a deer or not a deer, excuse me, a rabbit in our yard and I'm like, oh hey, her name's Haley. I'm like Haley, look, it's a little rabbit. And she sneaks up to me and she's looking at the rabbit and I'm like, should I get my bow and should we shoot it? And she's like no, daddy, I'll get it. And she just arms in the air, screams and runs across the field or the yard and just spooks the hell out of it. So I don't think there's any way in hell. My daughter sitting there 30 minutes at dusk waiting for the sun to go down. Her nickname's Hurricane Haley. So yeah, different little girls we got I was totally surprised.
Speaker 2:Mine doesn't. She's like you know, it's like raising Beth Dutton-Cross with Teeter. Okay, she was little, she had her like teddy bear and you'd be like what's that?
Speaker 2:And she'd be like that's my bar, my bar. Yeah, I'm like, why does she speak so country Like? I know I got a little bit of an accent, but it's nothing like that. And uh, but my wife, my wife from the shreveport area of north louisiana, but she's either it comes out like she can come out country as hell at times. So I'm like, no, it's your fault, our little girl is living with you too much.
Speaker 2:And uh, that's too funny like, but yeah, um, speaking of like we we had baby rabbit, Was it? I was bush hogging and luckily didn't hit it, but it was a little like I don't know. You know, probably eight week, 10 week old rabbit. I actually jumped down and caught it no way yeah, I. I've got a couple like that over the years and uh what?
Speaker 1:so you said something that I'm not familiar with. Bush hogging what? What is bush hogging?
Speaker 2:we we call bush hogging with like a big brush, hog like a to cut your fields and everything. Yeah, but cutting my fields because my place is 80 acres okay, like four, I'll see 16 of its pasture and 15 of its woods, and then five's like the house and the shop and everything okay, okay, got it the fields cut and everything, because I have horses and everything out there but I keep them kind of topped off and everything.
Speaker 2:So we'll go out there and like, cut the grass and, uh, one field where I keep the horses I keep it cut more than I do the other one. I'll top it so we get good, fresh grass all the time. The other one has like sage grass in it and um everything, and the deer like to bed in it. So I leave like the back half of it to the woods, probably 10 acres of chest high sage grass going into the woods in a big ravine and the deer had all the time and worked their way through the ravine.
Speaker 2:So I just leave it alone. Because I always told my wife, um, I was like I'm gonna buy a big place and let it grow up into a briar patch so I can deer hunt. And she's like, no, you're not. You know, we bought this place and she's one of them, like she's a city girl. So like I pick at her, like she's you, she wants the grass cut a certain way and like the clippings picked up and all this. And I'm like, nah, we're gonna just let it grow up and hunt rabbits and deer. She's like, no, we're not. And I'm like, then you better start cutting grass, because I'm out of town all the time.
Speaker 2:You know that's a quick way to get what you want right there yeah, a few weeks ago my mother-in-law, my mother-in-law and father-in-law was at the house. I'm like, oh, we need y'all to get something. And I looked at her and said I don't know. She said what do you mean? You don't know? I said I just visit here on the weekends. It's like where did you come from? I wasn't here.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:But yeah, we like, like you said before we started you've been. You didn't start hunting about eight years ago. I actually started hunting when I was probably six, seven years old, squirrel and my dad. Then I killed my first deer when I was 10 and after that I was hooked for a while and, um, I hunted from I was, you know, up to I was 18, but about probably 11, 12 years old. We would hunt public land but we were also in a hunting club in mississippi and we ran deer dogs. I don't know if you're familiar with that. Have you ever been around? Like you know, in a lot of the northern states they'll have what they call deer drives where the people push the deer and you have.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm familiar with that. Yeah, sometimes the dogs too, yeah well, yeah, they'll run deer dogs.
Speaker 2:You turn the dogs loose and they run the deer and you line the roads or the shooting lanes and shoot at the deer and it's a big controversial thing. Depends on where you're at if it's considered, you know, sportsmanlike or whatever.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:My opinion of it. Have you ever tried to shoot a deer that's running wide open and crossing a 12-foot path with a shotgun or a rifle?
Speaker 1:I have not, but I can imagine I'd learn pretty quick that it ain't that easy.
Speaker 2:They got a pretty good chance of getting across. Yep, you know and it's like you know, so it's like I grew up doing that and, like I said, killing my first deer was everybody talks about. You always remember your first deer, no matter the situation. You remember it and I agree, killing my first one at 10, I can tell you what time it was, what the weather was like, and that's been almost 30 years ago. I I can tell you what time it was, what the weather was like, and that's been almost 30 years ago. I can tell you everything about that morning, the first deer I killed in front of the dogs. I can tell you everything about it. Every other deer I've ever shot I can if I didn't have the date written down or what gun I shot it with, and where I couldn't tell you anything about it.
Speaker 2:But I remember those two Because it was. It took me probably I was two years of deer hunting in front of the dogs before I ever killed one. I I wounded several. I missed clean. I could and it was like they'd like, like I get. I would set a lot of people's scopes at Hunterwood is. Even at that age I would set their scopes. They'd bring me their rifles. They was killing deer left and right. I would get out there shooting mine and could hit. Put me. They was killing deer left and right. I would get out there shooting mine and get hit. Put me in front with the dogs. I couldn't hit shit to save my life. It was just. It took me a it took. It was a learning curve. It took me. Everybody Is that target panic.
Speaker 1:You think I've heard that people have target panic when it comes to like them doing it. They just, it's just something mentally.
Speaker 2:You hear it crashing through and like you're hearing the dogs running, yeah, but at the same time you got to be looking because you'll have deer sneaking out across too. So it's a your mind's working a hundred miles like talk about adhd kicking in. It's like you're you know and um, so that was. That was a really cool experience, getting to grow up and do that, because a lot of people haven't. And what was crazy is like we could run dogs in Louisiana and Mississippi and all that, but in both those states man drives are illegal. If you drive with people, it's illegal, but you can turn a pack of dogs loose and it's like. So it's like. Then, when I was about 18, 19, started college, so you know, my mind was somewhere else. I didn't hunt for a few years, okay.
Speaker 1:That's a common trend with hunters, as I've talked to them more and more.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it went from four-legged to two-legged. You know, spent about four years doing that. Got finished college, busy as hell with work, and I started tournament bass fishing a good bit and then, like I said, got married, was married a few years, had my oldest son and when we got divorced I didn't hunt for several years, then got back into it in 18. I've been hunting a good bit since then and like that, what? Um? One of the wildlife management's down by my house, my dad, was. He killed two deer on it down in our south, our house in south louisiana. He killed two deer there this year and we was going over. I sent him a uh I use uh hunt wise, so I sent him a screenshot of a bunch of points and you know locations, everything. He said how much time have you spent over here? I said what? 18 and 19 each season.
Speaker 2:I spent over 32 days on that wildlife management wow he's like I was working for myself at the time, so during deer season I didn't do much other than deer hunting okay, started september the 15th, so I would be there the 14th scout and we would hunt, usually a week straight, a week to nine days.
Speaker 2:Then we would go back in october, at the end of um october, because it was rifle season and it went into primitive weapon, black powder and, uh, louisiana, let's shoot anything that's 35 caliber or larger single shot exposed hammer rifle as a primitive weapon and all so you can use a 44 mag, a 45, 70 or whatever. So we'd spend another 8 to 12 days and then at the end of season we'd usually spend 8 to 12 days the last and a half season, so we would hit september, october into november, then like from the 20th of January to like the 31st.
Speaker 2:So we spent a lot of time there, like in three different time frames. So we learned a lot about it. It was myself and one of my cousins, and when you spend that much time in a place you learn it. And I had probably when I sent my dad, it was probably like 100 points I had dropped in this area. It's like 58,000 acres and I'm like this is one area. I had like another 50 points on the other side. He's like well, hell, I don't see how you killed anything. You were never hunting. If you was doing this much scouting, okay, but we did a lot, but we, so that was that's how we just transitioned.
Speaker 2:Then getting to Oklahoma, getting into hunting up here, was a totally new experience for me Because, like I said, I grew up hunting pine thickets and swamps and whether it's Sipir, louisiana. And when we got to Oklahoma, well, the area I was living in was towards the city, so I went out to one of the wildlife managements about an hour and a. In was towards the city, so I went out um to one of the wildlife management's about an hour and a half west of the city and I get out there and it's just like flat open land with a tree here and there sporadic, and I'm like what the hell? I had been to mangum oklahoma before and hunted on some private land, like in the January of 22. And so I kind of knew it had more woods, but it was flat kind of. This was just like flat and open. And where I went to I had my two little boys with me.
Speaker 2:According to that wildlife management, they said that it has low numbers of deer. You know it's some deer there, but low numbers. A whitetail and saw 22 different head of deer. You know it's some deer there, but low numbers. A whitetail and saw 22 different head of deer. No way, and they're like, and I'm like, well, if this is low fucking numbers, I'm excited, right. So hung a camera and and an area that I knew was easy to get to like should be high traffic, people-wise, just to see how many people would come on the place. And I think in a year you know I put it in September, august, september, put it in September of 22. And from then to like March of 23, I think it had three people on camera, and this was an area that, like it was, you knew it was an old fence line with trees on it, between two big flats with about six foot tall grass at them.
Speaker 2:So you knew deer would travel, but it's a common area, everybody's going to go hunt, right? You know there's no. I'm like either nobody hunts this place or they're like oh, that's too obvious, we're not going to go there.
Speaker 1:And.
Speaker 2:I had a picture I actually sent to John Eberhardt when I was doing my podcast with him in October of 23. And he's like, dude, that's like a 160-inch buck. I'm like, yeah, and it was on public land on that place and just it was loaded with deer.
Speaker 2:I never made a hunter, no way. So I was like I need to hit it this year early in season, but um, but, yeah, um, but that was my first experience like really getting to like seeing what oklahoma was like, because, like it was, it's a different. It's a different style of hunting than what I grew up doing and understanding, because you don't have now where I'm at now, it's kind of like they would call that like hill country hunting, because it's hilly and ravines and everything. Well, where I'm from you don't have that. Then you go west in Oklahoma. You definitely don't have warrants. You know like where I'm used to hunting.
Speaker 1:So that's what I.
Speaker 2:I'm used to hunting so I told my dad I was like you come out. I was like coming out here and hunting, I said you know big woods in Louisiana and everything like and Mississippi and places you know when you're hunting Michigan's big about like hunting Michigan the same way. And, um, from talking to guys like the big woods there's either it's it's hard to like, you got to locate deer to be able to hunt those.
Speaker 1:You're not just going to happen upon them.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know, like to be consistent. Well, it was like, getting here you could e-scout, then you look at, look at, you know, you look at when you go out there, topography and everything, and you can literally go set up and like the deer are going to be there. It was like I'm not going to say it was easier, like the deer are going to be there. It was like I'm not going to say it was easier, but it was a lot simpler to figure out than what you know. Like take somebody that's never hunted. Like take somebody that's never hunted that style.
Speaker 2:That's always just like oh, somebody's hunting nothing but flat land. You know like what I'm used to hunting now, and it's like take them and put them in big woods and they're gonna be like what the hell you know? Yeah, like I, like I was at first and uh, you know like, and that was that was what was cool to me, the learning curve behind it, because it's like you, I'm moving my truck, I better put my seat belt on.
Speaker 1:That's a good point. Good point you can't bookend this podcast with two tickets here.
Speaker 2:No, no, the first one was $20. If it's the same trooper, he might be a little pissed. So he's like. You didn't learn anything, did you? I was in a parking lot this time, geez. No, it's a learning curve at it. I think that's what I enjoy the most. I know I've kind of rambled. I don't know if that's what you're looking for. Story-wise, it's kind of what I enjoy the most about hunting is the, the unpredictability of the predictability of it.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:It's predictable in a way, but at the same time it's not, and you're like you know what happened, like they're supposed to be and, um, you know, and which is that? That's, you know, my, my. Like I said, my favorite of all time is taking my boys hunting. I can't wait until my daughter gets a little bigger so I can start taking her and doing. You have the one child. Yeah, I have two.
Speaker 1:I have a five-year-old boy and a two-year-old coming up quickly on a three-year-old girl. I was in Texas last year and I tried to find a way to get my son out into one one of the blinds just for like an evening hunt, but just didn't manage to make it happen. So now, now I'm back in Colorado and I'm trying to figure out what would be the best option for his first hunt and I'm thinking maybe I'm going to bring him along, I'm going to draw a pretty good antelope archery antelope tag this year.
Speaker 2:I'm thinking that'd be a good down a rabbit hole. Then Colorado and the release of wolves. What's your, what's your take on it?
Speaker 1:Think it's going to affect the wildlife like it's done Of course, yeah, my, my thoughts are that you shouldn't vote on something that you got no idea about, right, and that's what happened. Is that a whole bunch of people like wolves they think they're pretty and they voted on it, when Colorado Parks and Wildlife has thousands of biologists that they employ, that understand the populations? And wolves were already here, right, they're already in Colorado. We didn't need to reintroduce them. They're coming on their own, so leave it to the professionals. Um, I feel similarly about the. I don't know if you're familiar with this, but they're trying to ban cougar hunting and bobcat hunting um as yep, they're.
Speaker 1:They're trying to say that's uh trophy hunting, but they really have no idea. In fact, they aren't aware that colorado is actually like the best place as far as how they've managed their big predators. In the country, we have a very healthy population, it's better than it's probably ever been and it's exactly where it needs to be. They have a quota of the exact number of harvests and it's not an easy thing to hunt right Like. I've seen one cougar in my life and I've been out in the woods a ton, so yeah, ballot box biology is the problem, and I've been out in the woods a ton, so yeah, ballot box biology is the problem. Are wolves the problem? No, they were already here and they were going to continue to come. So I ain't angry at the wolves, I'm angry at all the people in Denver that are voting for wolves to be put in their neighbor's property but not their own Exactly.
Speaker 2:I was reading an article the other day that one of the tagged wolves got killed and they think that a cougar did it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's true. A bunch of them actually have been killed.
Speaker 2:I've heard some ranchers killed a couple. Then I saw where that one was supposedly killed by cougar depredation.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think another one was caught in a trap, but that one wasn't one of the collared ones. It actually came down from Minnesota, of all places. They're coming in on their own, so they're wolves that are not part of the program. But yeah, yeah, it's, it's, uh, it's crazy. I just hope. I hope that colorado can get through this, um, this trophy hunting ban of cougars and bobcats, because it's a pretty blanket statement they're trying to get in there, which is just trophy hunting, which could eliminate, you know, all antlered hunting. Right, because those are trophies, and then they could say that all should go too. So, yeah, we need it. We need to nip it in the butt and get rid of it and get people to realize that wildlife biologists know better than, uh, the you know liberal old ladies in boulder.
Speaker 2:So oh, it's, that's what um like, if you remember the TV show Duck Dynasty, like he was always talking about the yuppies. So, he got. The yuppies are voting on stuff they have no business determining 100%, 100%.
Speaker 2:And that's what we, and that was like being in Oklahoma now like, yeah, I had a great job offer, that's why I ended up here, but one I had some in other places too. But one of the things that drew me to this place was you can put in for elk tags as a draw, but if you have a lease, you can um, you can get elk tags. You know, like they're over the counter If you if you own the property have a lease.
Speaker 2:If not, you gotta put in for a draw, and If not you got to put him for a draw. And so then you can hunt antelope up here, you can hunt whitetail.
Speaker 2:Obviously they have mule deer and they're getting more and more deer out in the panhandle and then they also have you can black bear hunt. So that was one of the things I'm like where else can I go and pick up the like those five tags in one given year and that hell yeah yeah, I I did over the counter antelope in colorado like two years ago and I was basically hunting, you know, 10 miles from the oklahoma border.
Speaker 1:So then there's I saw some monster mule deers and there's, there's bighorn sheep and there's all sorts of crazy stuff. I don't know if the sheep have gotten down to Oklahoma, but there's a lot of cool critters down in that area.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that we've seen. But if I told you where I was sitting right now, since you said you hunted about 10 miles from my Oklahoma line, you'd laugh. You know the little town called Diamond Oklahoma.
Speaker 1:I never actually made it into Oklahoma, so so I was. I was hanging out near la junta and anyone's welcome to go try and hunt antelope out there. Good luck.
Speaker 2:We asked the warden like any tips or tricks, because we're archery hunting um, she's like yeah, don't, don't archery hunt antelope, so we it's a it's a tough hunt, but uh, it's still beautiful country I'm about 60 miles east of, uh, new mexico, maybe so, and then um Liberal Kansas is 40 miles north of where I'm at, so I'm about an hour out of Colorado, probably Okay got it yeah.
Speaker 2:I rode over the other day after work to one of the public lands just before getting to New Mexico and saw 17, I think 18 on an antelope. They know they got nothing to worry about right now so they were just meandering about, but it was 18 of them, two different groups, on public land.
Speaker 2:So I was like that might be something I'm interested in trying to come try out here. But I also know, talking to a bunch of the people out here, they look at antelope as like a nuisance, like we look at wild hogs. So a lot of them, especially in bow season, I'll let you just come hunt on their place if you ask for permission, because first off they're like good luck with a bow. Second, they're a nuisance. It's like now rifle season, they'll charge, they'll charge you for it. A lot of times in bow season they'll be like yeah, have at it yeah, good luck, good luck.
Speaker 1:It's funny that you say that uh, my last episode with uh john mulligan, johnny utah he was talking about how he was I don't remember what state he was in, but he was basically looking for antelope and uh, some old lady's like what are, are you casing my property? And he's like nope, antelope, ma'am, I'm just waiting for them to come to public. And she goes well, screw that, get on my property and start killing them. So he goes onto her property and he kills one and he brings it back to her house and says thank you, ma'am, I did gone. So you're absolutely right there. They can be a nuisance. They definitely chew up some, some, uh, some agricultural land.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they uh, that's what they've told me out here. I'm like, oh, okay, well, that's good to know, and uh, so I'm uh probably try that and uh, um, I actually one of the wildlife management's out here. I checked.
Speaker 2:I didn't deer hunt it because I was busy, but I threw a camera on it, let it soak for like six months and had um some uh mule deer on it and everything too. That's awesome, man, that's awesome. I've got you know I want to jump into. Like we've been putting um plant, I've been putting in some uh points in Iowa and Kansas and uh Colorado's Colorado is on my list uh elk hunt like over the counter. But it's like you know, it just depends on how everything goes there in the next couple of years.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I hear they might be getting rid of over the counter archery this year and then over the counter rifle in five years. So we'll see what it looks like, um, in the future, but hey, in the future. But hey, julius man, we're a little off topic. Just for the source of the show here. I do want to keep talking with you about this stuff, but let me ask you I know we're running low on time- you got to get back to your day job.
Speaker 2:Do you got any more stories for us? Yeah, I can, if not no big deal.
Speaker 1:We can tell the people where to find you, where to find your podcast, and I'll make to put links to all that in the show notes. But, uh, I want to make sure that I'm respectful of your time here, cause I know that you got to get back to what you do.
Speaker 2:Yes, sir, I apologize for going off.
Speaker 1:It happens, it happens every episode, no big deal.
Speaker 2:Well, my podcast is Delta Flodge Outdoors. Uh, you can find it on any where you listen to podcasts YouTube channels. The same thing, delta Flodge Outdoors. Uh, tik TOK, instagram, facebook, all of it's Delta Flodge Outdoors. Then my name is Julius Craig Mine's on Facebook and, I think, instagram and that would cover all my stuff.
Speaker 1:But yeah.
Speaker 2:I'm sorry for going all for all on you.
Speaker 1:Oh no, not a big deal at all, man. It happens every time. In fact, every time someone hears I'm from Colorado, all for all on you. Oh no, not a big deal at all, man, it happens every time. In fact, every time someone hears I'm from Colorado, I usually end up having to talk a little bit about the wolves, and it's just a wormhole or a rabbit hole from there. But yeah, julius, I will put links to all of that stuff in the show notes to make sure that everybody can find you. I encourage you guys to go out there and check them out. I know is Julius, and a feedback I've gotten is that I'm so Western based that most of my hunting stories are Western or, you know, African stories. So it was, uh, it was great to hear some more East coast whitetail stuff. So, thank you very much, man, I really do appreciate it. Um, yeah and uh, I think we'll co-release this. So, for the people listening from Julius's podcast, make sure you check out the hunting stories because, uh, we got a lot of stories for you there.
Speaker 2:I appreciate your time and uh doing it yeah, brother.
Speaker 1:Well, thanks again, man. Um, I appreciate especially jumping on so quick, and you have a good day, sir yes, sir, you too all right, guys.
Speaker 1:That's it. Another couple stories in the book. So I'm gonna thank julius, of course, for coming on the podcast. We could not have done it without him. Um, I want to point you guys in his direction to the Delta Flows Outdoors podcast. Again, links to everything will be in the show notes, so please go ahead and check out down there and give him a follow. And then, beyond that, guys, thank you very much for tuning in. I really do appreciate it, and if you have some stories that you want to tell, or if you know someone who has a crazy story, either you or have them connect with me. If it's just you, I'll convince them. But let's get some more listeners on the show, especially some more East Coast stories, because that's what I've been getting a lot of requests for. So thank you guys very much. Hope you have a wonderful day. Now get out there and make some stories of your own.
