Gregg discusses his approach to whitetail hunting and his consistent success and attributes it to the year round work he puts in on his farms. For every 1 day of hunting, there are 2 to 3 days spent working, he says. From food plots to habitat maintenance, timber stand improvement and more, there is plenty of work to be done year round. Gregg explains how quickly and positively wildlife react when land managers give back the land and resources that deer and other animals need to thrive. Deer need places to hide, to feed and to live. By putting in the work, making the investment in good quality habitat, providing good food and more, Gregg is able to consistently hunt impressive deer on his farms. Through that work, Gregg talks about building a relationship of sorts with the deer on his property by documenting their development through trail camera photos.
Then, Gregg highlights a hunt in Alaska for barren-ground caribou. This hunt was an amazing experience, he says, and nothing like whitetail hunting. You are out in the wild, there are no trail cameras and it really comes down to luck and your ability to grind it out in the inhospitable environment, he says. It's hours of sitting and glassing, a tremendous amount of walking, and accepting that you are going to be cold, wet and miserable for the duration of your trip. One of the biggest challenges with this kind of hunt, he notes, is that the tundra is deceiving. Everything is much farther than it looks, it takes a long time to get where you are going as you walk over the tundra and you have to make good decisions about whether or not a stalk is worth your effort. In the end he was able to shoot an incredible 400-inch caribou to make it a hunt he says he'll never forget.
Next, Gregg dishes on a hunting trip he took to Sonora, Mexico in pursuit of Coues deer. He talks about the misconceptions that many may have about traveling to Mexico and says this is a hunting trip worth taking. What he didn't know about hunting the "Grey Ghost", is that he'd be traversing what amounts to sheep country. The Coues deer live in the mountains and have a keen ability to be able to hide and navigate the mountainous terrain. On top of that they are small and can be difficult to spot. It's like the combination of whitetail, sheep and mule deer hunting all wrapped into one.
Finally, Gregg talks about a fairly new venture that he has embarked upon over the last several years. After making a land acquisition in Louisiana, Gregg found out that he was sitting in the heart of prime crawfish producing country. Driven by a love of farming and habitat, he put all of his energy into developing that property into the ultimate habitat for crawfish. Today, Ritz Crawfish Company produces over one million pounds of crawfish a year. Gregg talks about the process of producing crawfish, the incredible Cajun culture in Louisiana, his desire to bring awareness to the great protein source that is crawfish and how he is educating the public about the process using social media.
Be sure to watch Gregg's adventures on "Hunt Masters" on Outdoor Channel, Sundays at 8:30 p.m. ET. You can also find previous seasons and episodes using the MyOutdoorTV app!
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