Dr Ken Nordberg's Deer Almanac books worth the money?

TheCoachZed

TheCoachZed

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Southern NB, aka "Canada's Bible Belt"
I'd like to get some sensible, all-round reading on whitetail hunting. I've read the Benoits ("YOU'LL FIND THE BIGGEST BUCK IN YOUR LIFE IF YOU GET LUCKY WITH A SNOWFALL AND YOU'RE ON TOP OF A MOUNTAIN") and the Eberharts ("HUNT IN FARM COUNTRY AND USE A TREE SADDLE AND NO BAIT AND SO ON, AND YOU'LL FIND THE BIGGEST BUCK OF YOUR LIFE"). Both books had some practical points, but were lacking in many areas. Especially the Eberharts' lack of interest in gun hunting. I like bow hunting, but I much prefer shooting deer with a shotgun or rifle.

I'm a completely self-taught deer hunter. My dad didn't hunt, and my hunting friends never showed me what to do or where to go -- I had to figure it out myself. I've been successful every year since I got my first deer gun, but the first few years, it was a lot of button bucks and does. I've shot some 2.5-year-old bucks the past few years, and one nice, big 11. I want to take it to the next level, and that's going to have to start with going back to some of the basics I never learned. Like, how to read tracks properly, and droppings, and so on. I spent a lot of time afield this time of year, even after the kill, looking for places to hunt next year, but I'd like to get better at interpreting what I see and hear.

On the surface, Nordberg's stuff looks like a well-rounded approach, but I don't know anyone who's ever read the books. Anyone here have any recco on them, either way?
 
Hi coach, my brother in law and I both bought ourselves a copy after watching his YouTube videos for the past couple of years. He definitely has a lot of great points and tips and goes into a bit more detail as you mentioned than some of the other hunting guys out there. I will say that he does cover most of the things in the book on his YouTube channel but it is nice to have the book on hand to read through whenever you wish or bring up to hunt camp for others to read through. It ain’t cheap, cost about $50 with shipping and all but I think it’s a nice addition to the ever expanding library in my gun room.
 
It's tough filtering out the BS in an industry with such a US-centric information base that is also rife with product shilling, hunting in crazily high deer density states vs what we have in (most of) Canada, 1000's of acres of private leased ground managed specifically for whitetails, etc. I think most of the "big name" hunting personalities who hunt in similar areas to where I am (i.e. northern bush, not near any agricultural areas) tend to mostly agree on the basics of whitetail behavior but then differ in really diverging ways about their hunting tactics. The heavy emphasis on pre-/post-season scouting is pretty universal though.

Just to throw a name in the mix.... but I'd recommend checking out some of Dan Infalt's information (quite a bit free on the hunting beast forums, etc). I've never bought any of his DVD's or anything, but he seems to focus a lot more on specific hunting tactics other than "wear Scentlok head to toe and hunt 30 feet in the air in the middle of a bedding area" (Eberhart), generic "hunt the wind" platitudes, following tracks in fresh snow, etc.
 
mnr said:
It's tough filtering out the BS in an industry with such a US-centric information base that is also rife with product shilling, hunting in crazily high deer density states vs what we have in (most of) Canada, 1000's of acres of private leased ground managed specifically for whitetails, etc. I think most of the "big name" hunting personalities who hunt in similar areas to where I am (i.e. northern bush, not near any agricultural areas) tend to mostly agree on the basics of whitetail behavior but then differ in really diverging ways about their hunting tactics. The heavy emphasis on pre-/post-season scouting is pretty universal though.

Just to throw a name in the mix.... but I'd recommend checking out some of Dan Infalt's information (quite a bit free on the hunting beast forums, etc). I've never bought any of his DVD's or anything, but he seems to focus a lot more on specific hunting tactics other than "wear Scentlok head to toe and hunt 30 feet in the air in the middle of a bedding area" (Eberhart), generic "hunt the wind" platitudes, following tracks in fresh snow, etc.
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Thanks, I'll check Infalt out. I read Nordberg's book sample on Kindle and the first chapter was a disappointment. Lots of "We Nordbergs do this" and "We Nordbergs do that." Their hunting seems very dependent on tracking through fresh snow. That's just not a usual option here in southern NB.

I did glean some nuggets of truth, though, which I can apply locally.
 
Update: Bought the Deer Almanac. Like all of those whitetail experts, there is some self-promotion and a lot of ideas that are tailored to specific scenarios and hunting regs. Still one of the better books on the subject I've read. Would recommend if you can get a Kindle or second-hand copy that's cheap enough. People who grew up with actual hunting dads/mentors probably wouldn't find as much value.
 
I never heard of these individuals who you have mentioned, except for the Benoit's. To me personally, I never did have to search beyond the Benoit's, because they are the best whitetail deer hunters in North America. I practiced the Benoit methods, and my own of reading sign, when to hunt, how to hunt and how long to hunt. If you want to hunt big bucks, then hunt them where they exist. Conduct research where they (big bucks) are killed in your province or other provinces. From there you scout, talk to land owners, game wardens, police, grader operators, school bus drivers and ask many questions on sightings of "big" bucks.
Once you have narrowed it down to a few locations, then you must put in the time, pre and post "breeding" time, and remain hunting all day, regardless of method.
 
I have all his books on deer hunting, 8 editions and one on bear baiting. I even built half a dozen of his hunting chairs and gave them to family members. I got the books quite cheap while travelling in the USA years ago. I believe it improved my hunting experience in my younger days. Like reading any material on hunting...you take what you can use and give it a try. If it works, great.
 
Hunting is about 90% location. Find it, preserve it, and for god's sake don't tell everyone about where your spots are unless there's some way of assuring that they can't get there anyway. You can't get a big one if they aren't there.

People can write books about deer hunting but they won't tell the one thing that matters, except in the vaguest of terms.
 
Dogleg said:
Hunting is about 90% location. Find it, preserve it, and for god's sake don't tell everyone about where your spots are unless there's some way of assuring that they can't get there anyway. You can't get a big one if they aren't there.

People can write books about deer hunting but they won't tell the one thing that matters, except in the vaguest of terms.
Click to expand...

I tell people that hunting always boils down to "Being in the right place at the right time, with sufficient marksmanship and stealth to ensure the kill."
 
Reading books, watching videos, attending seminars, and talking to other hunters can strengthen your foundation. I love reading deer hunting books and believe that the information I glean adds to my knowledge base. Mind you not everything I read is accurate or applicable to where I hunt, and some information is outright wrong and experience will prove that out.
 
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