Editor’s Note: This past week I went to a Deer Expo and met some interesting people, scouting out what outdoorsmen needed to know about hunting, new hunting products and hunting places to go. This week I’ll share with you some of the people I’ve met, and what I’ve learned that may help you and your hunting buddies have a more fun and successful deer-hunting season this fall.

I ran into an old friend at this Deer Expo, Trey Montgomery, who operates the Lakes of Leavellwood, a top hunting and fishing destination – see www.leavellwood.com, [email protected] and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/leavellwoodlodge/ in West Greene, Alabama. Leavellwood specializes in free-range whitetail and turkey hunts and bass-fishing trips. A skilled angler often can catch and release 100 bass a day, weighing from 3-5 pounds each at Leavellwood, and 8-pound+ bass are fairly common there. At the Expo, Montgomery was demonstrating Outback Feeders from Texas and Dixie Deer Blinds made in Mississippi.

“The Dixie Deer Blinds are fiberglass and feature one of the best window systems I’ve ever seen for hunting deer,” Montgomery explains. “These windows shut so tight that you don’t have to worry about finding a nest of hornets or wasps in the blind when you open the door and go in for a day of hunting. Dixie Deer Blinds offer four types of easy-to-set-up deer blinds – a 4X4, a 4X6, a 7X7 and a 5X8. The 4X6 blind weighs less than 270 pounds. The best way to set-up all these blinds is to use a tractor with fork lift blades on it and place pieces of wood under each blind. However, the 4X4 blind only weighs about 175 pounds, and two hunters actually can set it up by themselves.” Go to https://www.dixiedeerblinds.com/ to learn more, and you can request a quote for a custom blind.

At http://www.outbackfeeders.com/, you’ll see these quality feeders that are virtually indestructible, windproof and weather-proof. There are corn, protein and water feeders available for all types of game.

Check out John E. Phillips’ book, “How to Hunt Deer Up Close with Bows, Rifles, Muzzleloaders and Crossbows,” available in Kindle, print and audible versions at http://amzn.to/11dJRu8.