January 28th, 2025- Illinois Shed Hunting Update: We’re at the very beginning of shed season here in West Central Illinois. We have had a cold and snow covered January here in Pike and Calhoun counties. With a warm spell the next few days, it should help to melt the remaining …
Best Whitetail Outfitters and Hunts Heartland Lodge Whitetail Outfitters is regarded as one of the best deer hunts available not only in Illinois but throughout the country. What does it take to be ranked among the best whitetail hunting outfitters? We’re located in famed Pike County, Illinois- Historically one of …
What better way to spend a hot summertime evening than cruising the countryside looking for big velvet whitetails? Grab a cold glass of sweet-tea, binoculars and hit the road! Find Your Target Buck Now This time frame of the summer is an often-overlooked phase of scouting for mature bucks. Bachelor …
Most serious deer hunters will agree that a small percentage of “luck” has to be on your side in order to bag a trophy buck. Schaffer Dane may have been the luckiest deer hunter in camp this week. With unseasonably warm weather for November, Schaffer’s first few days in camp …
Finding a match set of sheds can be a difficult task to say the least. Bucks can be one sided for multiple days allowing them to drop their antlers literally miles apart. However, the majority of bucks if left undisturbed, will stay within a distinguished late season pattern as long …
Want to find more whitetail sheds? Here are 7 quick tips to help you find more shed antlers this spring… Find the Food Food is the name of the game in finding deer antlers. If you don’t have a quality late season food source you probably won’t find many sheds. …
Compared to last year’s mild winter with several days of above average temperatures and hardly any snow accumulation in West-Central Illinois, this year has been a different story. The biggest advantage to having a hard winter for shed hunting purposes is that the sheds will be more concentrated. When the …
Still have to play Santa and need a good idea for the hunter in your family? A gift certificate for a whitetail hunt at Heartland Lodge is a perfect Christmas gift for that special someone on your list! This unique gift will be one that they will never fo
I grew up with a large extended family and a deep hunting tradition. My parents were both from Pike County, Illinois and moved to Quincy where I was born. We visited my grandparents and extended family often. Many of the visits included hunting. The memories that were created will be …
After a long history of being a shotgun only deer hunting state, Illinois is the most recent state to join the movement by allowing straight walled/single shot rifles to be used in the pursuit of whitetail deer. While the ammunition industry has advanced shotgun slug technology significantly in the …
