Friday, December 30, 2011

Friday Honky-tonk

I've been sicker than a bag fulla assholes, busy at work, and the whole family is in town... hence the reason for my lack of posts. I'm sure my readers are distraught, all three of ya.

I'll pick it up a bit next week, I promise.

In the meantime, one of my favorites... makes my skin crawl every time I listen to it.


Can't find a date on this, but it was recorded live with Verlon Thompson at The Cactus Cafe, Austin, Texas. From '09's Somedays the Song Writes You.

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Wednesday Grind

Some new Crowbar for ya...


From '11's Sever The Wicked Hand.

Horns Up!  \m/     \m/

Friday, December 23, 2011

Friday Honky-tonk

A new segment... My Christmas gift to y'all.


Live track was recorded 19 May, 2011 at the KEXP (90.3 FM) Studios, Seattle. From '11's KMAG YOYO (& Other American Stories).

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Who boos Santa? We do.

Here's a good read on a long-told tale from Philly. I'm not a superfan, by any stretch of the imagination, but I'll always follow my team through good times and bad. As my friend on the Main Line can attest, that's what bein' an "Iggles" fan is all about.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Full drop-rack buck

Droptines are cool.

Drop racks? Damn, son.


Read about this Michigan goofball here. Awesome buck and a cool story.

Wednesday Grind

Any metalhead knows who does it better, but I gotta give KSE their due for pullin' off a pretty solid cover...


Dio's version recorded live, 22 October, 2005 in London. Originally released on '83's album of the same name.

KSE's version recorded live, 10 June, 2007 at the Download Festival in Leicestershire; Originally released on '07's As Daylight Dies.

And just for kicks and grins, in case you haven't seen them, I'm posting the original music videos as well because they're both hilarious...




Horns Up!  \m/     \m/

Monday, December 19, 2011

Ronery no more


So long, Kim Jong Il... Enjoy getting Eiffel Towered by Saddam and Osama.

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Friday, December 16, 2011

Bradford County Bucks, 2011

Take a look at some of these pictures.... this is just a sample of the quality huntin' we have in NEPA. A buncha these bucks were taken either by our group, or a stone's throw away from where our group hunts.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Wednesday Grind


From '98's Inquisition Symphony. Live track is from the 2001 DVD Live, recorded in Munich 24 October, 2001.

Little bit of a slower grind, but still good stuff. Who else can rock out that hard to a cello?

Horns Up!  \m/     \m/

Six steps to meaty bliss

1. Whack a big fat buck (or doe, as the case usually is for me).

2. Cut that sumbitch up and make all the big pieces into little pieces.

3. Find all of the good, lean hindquarter meat, trim the junk off, slice it into 1/4" strips (across the grain), and marinate it in this for 24-48 hours.





4. Load up the dehydrator. Try not to let your mouth foam all over the meat.




5. Cook on high (about 150°) for eight hours, give or take a few. (Warning: Simply walking into your kitchen, if not your house, will induce automatic salivation for several days after this procedure.)

6. Remove the jerky from the dehydrator (eat a few pieces.... yaknow, for quality control), bag it up (eat a few more pieces), clean your mess up (eat a few more pieces just for good measure), throw the bag in the fridge (grab another piece for the road) and enjoy!


This is the first time I've made deer jerky. I gotta say, the recipe was fool-proof and this could very well be the best damn deer jerky I've ever had. I've let a buncha people try it and everyone loves it. I'll definitely make a batch of this every year now.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Monday, December 12, 2011

.700 WTF - A new reason to live

It ain't the biggest.

It ain't the baddest.

But it's pretty damn badass.

Seriously... most rifles with a caliber this large require a bipod or a tank to use them. Oh, but not the .700 WTF rifle.

This can only be described as a gun nut's wet dream come true. Check it out for yourself, and make sure you watch the video all the way through.

CharlieDelta, in case you're wonderin', you're the first one I thought of when I saw this.

Friday, December 9, 2011

New Oxford's Angels - Follow up

When things like this happen, a community wrapped in disconnect can join together and do amazing things. It doesn't take away the sting of the tragedy, but it brings the community closer and helps out the families who need so much support.

Most notably, a local businessman who put all his children through New Oxford High school donated 100% of his restaurant's profits on Thursday night. It was initially supposed to be from 5-7pm; he kept it going until they ran out of food. Other businesses have followed suit.

Folks who didn't even know the victims have created projects such as stickers and ribbon angel ornaments to sell, all to benefit the families.

Multiple candlelight vigils have been held.

Friends of the victims have written a song.

The school's wood shop teacher used a borrowed router and, with the help of students, created several wooden plaques for the families and one for the crash site.

I write this as one of the victims, Chelsea McFalls, is being committed to earth. The Mass for Diego Aguilar and Anthony Campos was this morning; Oscar Banda's Mass will be this evening and Casey Sheridan's Mass will be tomorrow morning. With the support of the community, hopefully their families will find peace and that their scars can slowly begin to heal.

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Da Turty-Point Doe?

It's true. Look at this goofy bitch...

Olney, Ill. —  A true “freak of nature” was taken west of West Salem during the second shotgun season over the weekend.

Richard Lomas, a farmhand for George Knackmuhs, shot this 30-point doe on the late Richard Knackmuhs Farm.

The deer, which features a non-typical rack, a drop antler still in velvet and no evidence of male genitalia, also does not appear to have ever given birth.

Locals estimate the deer to be about 4-5 years old.

That'd be one helluva buck to kill. To whack an antlered doe like that is somethin' else. I'm purty sure I'd be gettin' a full-body stuff job on that one.

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Wednesday Grind


I'm lazy and don't feel like typin', so I'll point y'all to Wikipedia for the extensive background on this song. This track's from '02' DVD Rude Awakening.

Horns Up!  \m/     \m/

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Hail to thee, our Alma Mater...

My community suffered a terrible blow last night. Five teenagers who had just left school for the day were killed in a horrific accident, just several hundred yards away from the home where I grew up.

Nobody really knows just what happened yet, but the fact of the matter is that these are kids that my little brother went to school with; brothers, sisters and cousins of kids that I went to school with. New Oxford is your typical Small Town, USA, where your school and community mean a lot to everyone. This is the kind of hurt that everyone in the area feels.

The bad thing is that it happens to almost every high school class in America... this kind of situation brings back vivid memories of some of my friends and classmates who left us too early. To lose five at once is a different kind of pain.

Things are gonna be kinda rough around here for awhile.

Monday, December 5, 2011

More deer, more bucks

Finally gettin' my hands on some pictures from the last week, in addition to more success from the weekend. Matt got a big ol' warrior in Huntingdon County on Friday... all scarred up and broken off. On Saturday, I whacked another doe for one of my farmers upstate... a big, fat doe that spent way too much time eatin' his corn, so he was pretty happy. My buddy Mike took his second buck ever, a Bradford County five-point on heavily-hunted public land. Cousin Nate whacked a humongous doe, and as always there were a buncha misses and lots of good stories.

Matt's buck... look at the scars. This buck
pounded lots of doe ass, and fought for all of it.


Mike's first Bradford County buck, a public land 5-point.

I also got my hands on some other pictures from the previous week...

Uncle Bill's opening day 8-point

My buddy and co-worker Brett whacked this
huge York County 9-point on the opener as well.
Still another week to go, so hopefully there'll be more to post!

Friday, December 2, 2011

Grind make-up (again)

I swear, between deer season and the holidays, I'm just gittin' dumber. I promise that one of these days I'll get my shit together and the Grind will return to its regular Wednesday slot.

In the meantime, I haven't done Maiden in a while...


From 2000's album of the same name. Live track is from the Death on the Road DVD, filmed from Westfalenhalle, Dortmund, Germany, on 24 November 2003 during the band's Dance of Death Tour.

I may have mentioned before that seein' Maiden live with my ol' man and brothers is a bucket list item. If their DVDs are any indication, their live shows must be fuckin' amazin'.

Horns Up!   \w/      \w/

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Deer Camp - A great read!

Please take a few minutes to visit my friend on the Main Line and read this fantastic story.

With most of my readin' bein' news, political or informational in nature, I've learned to put up a pretty thick wall between my readin' and my emotions. This read, however, busted right through that wall and set me back to reminiscin' back to the good ol' days...

Our deer camp used to be an old trailer with no electric or runnin' water, somewhere in the hills of Huntingdon County. It was set back up in the woods a few hundred yards back off the hard road, and if you were goin' too fast you'd miss the lane.

We'd always hunt on the Eastern Shore of Maryland on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, then we'd head to the PA camp. Dad had no stake in the camp, but it was owned by family friends from Maryland and we were always made more than welcome.

We'd arrive in the daylight on Sunday, and we'd set about gettin' things situated around camp. The few that hunted the lands around the camp would go check on their stands. The rest of us hunted a nearby mountain, so we'd work on stackin' wood for the stove and other busywork. Anyone that felt it was needed would climb up on the porch and throw a few rounds at a pie plate on a tree about 40 yards off. The boys from Maryland always had somethin' exotic layin' around to eat. I remember eatin' shark, mountain lion, elk, moose and caribou in addition to good ol' fashioned venison. I'd usually wind up explorin' the stack of ol' Playboys in the corner, which was nothin' short of a goldmine to a 12-year-old.

As the sun went down, the gas lights would come on and the wood stove would be fired up. Since I was the pup of the group, or Camp Bitch as I was commonly referred to, I'd get out the mustard, ham and bread and set to makin' a few dozen sandwiches. The old guys would settle under the old Budweiser poster at the table with their bags of change and commence to playin' poker. It was always like a scene from an old movie... several grizzled men clouded in a sea of cigarette smoke, sittin' at a table loaded with beer cans, playin' cards and loose change. The best part was always the stories and dirty jokes that flew faster than the cards. Sometimes, if I finished my sandwich duties in a timely manner, they'd let me play a few hands. I don't remember winnin' many hands, and I'd guess that if I did it's because they let me. Someone would gather up the buck pool from everyone, and it'd be stuffed up into a crack in the ceilin' until a winner was decided on Wednesday.

We'd eventually get around to makin' our final preparations for the mornin' and they we'd head off to the rack room for a few hours of shut-eye before we left to climb the mountain.

My formative years of huntin' were spent at the Huntingdon County camp, until antler restrictions swayed the Maryland crew from comin' up. We still went up and hunted the mountain for a few more years after that, but that went by the wayside when we began stayin' with Ron at our current camp. I've always wanted to make a day trip on the bike to the old camp, but I reckon it's been so long since I've been back that I likely couldn't find it anyway.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

First rifle whitetail buck

It's been said that even a blind squirrel finds a nut every now and then. Well, I reckon I can relate yet again.

I've done things backwards... I've managed to arrow a few bucks with the ol' stick and string, but for some reason a buck with the rifle has always eluded me. I can think of a few misses and close calls over the years, but it just never happened.

Well, I finally got it done yesterday in my 16th year of huntin'.

This buck came over the hill to my dad, who was a few hundred yards away. He didn't have the best shot, but he threw one at him and missed. About five minute later, I saw the buck sneakin' through the brush, and as soon as I got a clear shot, I laid 'im out with one of Jesse's special handloads.

I still think that bowhuntin's where it's at, but I'd be lyin' if I said I wasn't shakin' like a dog shittin' razorblades before and after the shot. He's far and away my best buck, and I'm just tickled. I'm equally as pleased to finally have a buck accounted for with my deer rifle, which I've had since I was 14. I'd have been just as happy to see Dad get him, but he killed an equally nice eight-point off of that hill last year so he wasn't too bent outta shape about the miss.

This buck wasn't that old, but he'd definitely been ruttin' hard... his neck was the size of a basketball and there was hardly any fat left on him.

Me with the ol' man, my favorite huntin' buddy.

Reflectin' for a few moments before the drag

Mainframe eight-point with a small droptine - 16" inside spread

Truck fulla buck.

153 lbs dressed.

Jesse's Barnes TSX loads did the job again.

Friday, November 25, 2011

A little behind/Grind make-up

Work, family, slavin' over the stove, gettin' ready for the PA gun opener, waterfowl huntin' with the ol' man and my brothers, more work... This week has pretty much been batshit crazy.

Yesterday was the ol' Turkey Day. After our tradition mornin' waterfowl hunt with Dad and the bro's, I spent all day surrounded by my best blessings, my family. That, and shoveled copious amounts of fantastic grub into my gut. Between my girl's family and mine and the combined culinary skills, I'm pretty sure I'll never be thin.

I'll be workin' tonight at the bar, which is nothin' new. The difference tonight is that my 10th year class reunion will be in the back. Hopefully one of the pricks that spent 13 years givin' me shit will do it again tonight, just so I have the satisfaction of cuttin' 'em off and throwin' 'em out.

Monday marks the PA rifle season for deer. I didn't whack a buck in bow season, so hopefully I'll git 'r done with the gun on Monday. I posted this gem before, and I present it again for your viewin' pleasure. Sadly, it's not far from the truth on most public (and even private) land.



Last but not least, let me make up for missin' yet another Wednesday grind with some heavy hammers...

From '05's Octavarium. Live track is from Santiago, Chili in '05

And it's been awhile since I've posted some Slayer, and I'm in the mood. From '85's album of the same name. Kerry King is a fuckin' boss.

Which reminds me of a Slayer joke a buddy sent me a long time ago...

Hitler, Justin Bieber and Tom Araya went to Hell. They met the devil sitting at his throne. He asks them why they're in Hell.

Hitler said, "I killed twenty million people and caused a holocaust on the Jews." The devil replied, "Good job. Sit to my right."

Bieber said, "I poisoned the world with my shitty music and whiny-bitch voice that irritates the hell out of every normal person in the world." The devil replied, "Well done, asshole. Sit to my left."

Then, looking at Araya, the devil asked, "Why are you here?"

Araya replied, "Get off of my fucking throne, bitch..."

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Mule deer European mount

On a less angry note, I officially wrapped up the Wyoming trip by finishin' the mulie skull the other night. Lemme tell ya, that was one of the most difficult skulls I've ever done. He was old and nothin' but gristle... took forever to get that shit off the bone. Regardless, it turned out well and I'm pleased.






Hopefully some ol' shittin' buck will wander too close on Monday and I'll have another one to work on after I get Joe's done.

Angry

I'm sick of this fuckin' place.

Friday, November 18, 2011

Bear Camp

Well, it's about that time. When the clock hits five, I'll be off 'n gone to pick up the ol' man and head to Centre County to "chase the bear". We only get tomorrow to hunt, but at least we'll be out there.

We had a great time and some success last year, and although I didn't connect with my first opportunity at a bear, in my mind's eye I can still see that black ball come rollin' out of the thicket like it was yesterday. Hopefully it won't take me six more years to see another one, much less get a shot at one. And hopefully, when it happens again, I can make amends for last year's miss.

From last year's check in:

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Thursday Grind

Work beckoned, and I missed my hump-day grinder. So, we'll try again today... one day closer to the weekend. That said, I dedicate this song to my place of employment...


From Damageplan's '04 album New Found Power, and also featured on Corey Taylor's '09 album Be Sides.

Horns Up!  \w/     \w/

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Antelope European mount, part 2

The finished product...


When I detached the sheaths, there was a pretty thick membrane between the bone and the sheaths that had to be simmered off. I solved the problem of fillin' that gap by usin' some thicker automotive O-rings. Slid them over the bone, and the sheaths went on nice and snug.

Once I get my hands on a table saw again, I can get around to buildin' a display board for it. In the meantime, I have the mule deer rack to do, and Joe's buck from last weekend. Hopefully I'll have my own whitetail to do in a few weeks...

Monday, November 14, 2011

Zombie Apocalypse

I had a long-ass weekend. Too much work and not enough play.

Managed some time in the tree... had a few close encounters with some buck, got to full draw on a nice buck, but no arrows thrown. T'was an excitin' end to the early PA bow season. A good time was had, but I definitely paid for not sleepin' instead.

That said, I'm feelin' apathetic as hell today, so we'll head to the J-Ro archives for an entertaining way to deal with those pesky zombies (or nosy neighbors, stuffy bosses, or other parasites that may be botherin' you at the time).

It's shiny, sharp, and invariably awesome. What's not to like?

Friday, November 11, 2011

Thank you, Vets...

 Today, I honor all veterans, past and present. This includes my grandfather, Maj. Kenneth G. Reinhart, USAF and his brother, Lt. John E. Reinhart, USMC. John was killed in '59 during a training exercise, if memory serves me correct.

A hearty thanks to my friends and all the others who have served or are currently serving. You provide us with many liberties and securities, and us as civilians are all forever indebted to you!

Thursday, November 10, 2011

236 years

Happy birthday, y'all. I appreciate y'all doin' what you do to keep us huntin', drinkin' and bloggin'.

Thanks to my buddy Kyle, who (last time I heard from him) is stationed in Turkmenistan. When his service is done, we're gettin' on the bikes and just ridin' for a few days. Lookin' forward to that.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Wednesday Grind

The only problem with newer music is there ain't really any good live tracks to be found yet.

Thus, you get the campy music video. At least there are fine women in this one too.


From '11's American Capitalist.

Horns Up! \w/     \w/

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Deer everywhere, and the arrows were flyin'

We'll try a long, long time before we top a weekend like this. In two days of huntin', nine bowhunters harvested seven deer, including four buck.

Schlongie's ol' man, Reds, started the action on Friday night by arrowin' a beautiful ol' nine-point. Unfortunately, they weren't able to recover the deer until Sunday, so it was the first one shot but the last one found. Saturday mornin', my ol' man started things off by smokin' a button-head. Both of my brothers followed suit, with Joe arrowin' a nice eight-point (also recovered on Sunday) and my big brother makin' us all proud with his first bow harvest, a fine Bradford County six-point. Joe also whacked a big ol' doe after backin' off of his buck's trail. I got a young doe, and Schlongie's Uncle John hammered a big ol' wide nine-point at last light.

On a cool side-note, this was the first time that my brothers and our dad all killed deer the same day, so that was pretty special to be a part of.

Sunday at Bowhunter's weekend is usually a laid-back affair, but seems like all we did this year was cut up deer all day... which is a fantastic problem to have, I might add. We were short a few hunters as well, so who knows what kinda damage we'd have done with them in the woods.

Overall, it was a great long weekend spent with my family and close friends, as always... we certainly set the bar pretty high for next year!

The 2011 Bowhunter's Weekend crew
Reds, John and Schlongie with John's 9-point - 167lbs dressed, 20" inside spread
Joe and Jesse with their deer
Reds' big 9-point, dressed out at 175lbs
This is how we spent our Sunday!

Many thanks again to Ron for takin' us all in and takin' great care of us, and thanks to all our landowners who allow us to use their land.

Friday, November 4, 2011

Bowhunter's Weekend

Every year, a buncha my buddies and I get together up at Ron's house for a weekend full of huntin' and hangin' out. This started out a handful of years ago when Schlongie and I decided that we needed to get his ol' man up there to bowhunt with us, and has turned into an annual gatherin' of sometimes epic proportions. Last year was purty good... we harvested two bucks and had a ton of action, then had a helluva party afterwards.

Well, it's upon us again. As soon as the work day is through, I'll be loadin' up the truck and hittin' the pavement. I'll be one of the late arrivals, as some of the guys are already up and huntin' as we speak.

I'm a little bummed though... two of my good friends work for the power company, and they have been workin' like dogs all week gettin' power back to everyone after last weekend's snowstorm. Not sure that they're gonna make it up, but there should still be a pretty good crowd up there.

We'll have a good number of bows in the woods, and hopefully we'll be able to lay the smack-down on some whitetails like we did last year. It's the peak of the rut... it's always an amazin' time to be in the woods with all the activity. I'm gonna be babysittin' my trail cam location or in the general vicinity... hopefully I can get an arrow into one of those nice buck that were in there all summer.

I'll be up there 'till Monday... hopefully I'll have some pictures for ya in the upcoming days.

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Wednesday Grind



From Liecestershire, England at the Download Festival on 10 June, 2007... The headliner that night was Maiden so I can't begin to fathom how fuckin' crazy this show was.

Horns Up!  \w/     \w/

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Antelope European mount

My evenin' project... And that's what it all boils down to (pun intended).



Watch your pets

As the peak of the rut is upon us, J-Ro took time out of his day to remind me where I sit on the deer huntin' totem pole. I've always known there were better deer hunters than me out there...

But I never thought I'd be bested by a snake, however.

Officials in south Florida were in for a surprise last week when they cut open the belly of a 16-foot Burmese python they had captured and killed in the Everglades.

Inside the reptile they found a 76-pound, fully intact deer, the Sun-Sentinel reports.
For you folks that don't hunt, that's a decent-sized yearling doe.

The girth of the snake's stomach, stretched to accommodate the carcass, measured a whopping 44.1-inches. From head to tail, the reptile measured 15.65 feet.
 I'm 6'4" and wear size 44 jeans. Note to self... never get one of these bastards for a pet.

Read the rest of the article, and be sure to check out the pictures. Gives me another reason to keep my ass away from Florida.

Monday, October 31, 2011

Stay thirsty, my friends

The Most Interesting Man in the World's guide to life: Keep thyself surrounded by a sea of D's...

My favorite bartenders, Michelle and Jen.

Sharin' interestin' stories with a 50's pin-up girl and a Trophy Rack...


There are perks to workin' at a bar, and one of them is Halloween when all the crazies come out. It's nice to be able to dress up as somethin' fun to go to work. I didn't have a lot of pictures taken of me in costume... ironically though, most pictures involved beautiful women.

H/T to The Beard Coach for an awesome costume idea. My original thought prior to findin' his blog was to go as the Macho Man Randy Savage, but I had no clue where I could quickly and cheaply come up with that much neon. My other options were oldies/goodies, but this was a much more relevant idea, somewhat easy, and I looked snazzy to boot.

Friday, October 28, 2011

Pumpjack

Holy duckfuck Kerrcarto, why didn't you tell me about these fuckin' guys earlier?!?


I'm gonna have to work on aquirin' more of this shit!!!!

•••

The weatherman (who apparently gits his rocks off lyin' to me) has predicted a late October snowstorm that should give us six-eight inches (that's what she said). Hopefully it's just a lie... I'm all about snow, but I'd prefer that the ground be a bit drier beforehand. It's so damn wet from all the rain the last two months that the alot of the area corn has yet to be harvested... there's new sprouts growin' outta the ears that are still standin'. Crazy shit.

Either way, I'm gonna be out and about so I'll hope for the best. I'm plannin' on gittin' up a deer stand tomorrow evenin' before the Halloween festivities.... love me some deer huntin' in the snow.

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Wednesday Grind


Some good heavy shit from the other side of the pond. This Danish rock will clear your fuckin' sinuses on a hump day!

Video is from '07's Live - Sold Out! DVD. Song's from their first album, '05's The Strength/The Sound/The Songs.

Horns Up!   \w/     \w/

Monday, October 24, 2011

New Toy

The trip to Wyoming did a number on my personal funds as expected. However, I stumbled upon this at a gun show over the weekend and couldn't help myself, and the price was right and doable.



It's a CVA 12-gauge black powder shotgun, 1999 NWTF Limited Edition "Gobbler" model. Being that a long-time bucket list item is whackin' a turkey with a black powder gun, I'm really excited to finally have one. They ain't easy to find used and priced right, especially with a sidelock. Been lookin' for one of these for several years now.

Hours of figgerin' out how the work the damn thing and copious amounts of load development await me, but I'm lookin' forward to it. Hopefully it'll pay off come next April.

•••

And a new song that I heard over the weekend that's stuck in my head... might as well share the joy. The video is actually purty funny, and there's some fun cameos at the end.

Drink up, bitches.

Saturday, October 22, 2011

A beautiful fall evenin'

Napped a lil' too long this afternoon, and didn't want to take the time to git up a tree with the bow. Gives me a good excuse to take the ol' flinter for a walk. It's a perfect evenin'...


Thursday, October 20, 2011

Uncle Bill's buck hunts from Wyoming

More Wyoming pictures to come... it's takin' a while to crop and tone all of 'em.

In the meantime, here's some video for ya.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Wednesday Grind

Back on my normal big-boy schedule, which mean back to the Grind...


From '04's New Found Power. Crank it the fuck up!

Horns up!  \w/    \w/

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Days 13 & 14 - Another one in the books

Alotta miles, one last dinner and one more hotel, done, done and done. We're back in good ol' South Central Pennsyltucky.

It's a little bittersweet to be home from such an awesome journey, but the fall foliage is here and bow season is in full swing. It's good to be home:-)

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Day 12 - The long road home

Headed out after breakfast this mornin'... Some 730+ miles later, we're settled for the night in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Lots of miles today, but we did manage to stop for a bit at the original Cabela's in Sidney, Nebraska, and we also grabbed a meal at a Whiskey Creek, courtesy of our friend Budrow.

Long day tomorrow... 800+ miles will find us back in Sandusky, Ohio.



Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Day 11 - Nearing the end

The meat's been picked up. Everyone's packed up and ready to go. We had another fantastic dinner and got to spend one last evening with all the great folks here at Bear Track.

Leavin' in the mornin' will be very bittersweet. After over five years of plannin', it's hard to see this awesome vacation windin' down so quickly. Three hard days on the road and it'll be back to the real world again.

My laptop is packed up for the ride home, so the last of the pictures will have to wait for a few days.

Dear PETA...

Stop over for supper sometime. We have plenty.

Day 10 - My first Merriam turkey

Laid-back day today. Slept in a bit, got my mulie head skinned out, took a nap, all that fun stuff. Ron and Karl were both done huntin' so Karl spent the day nappin' and Ron spent the day with Pete Dube, the owner of Bear Track, helpin' at the ranch.

Bill and I got to spend the evenin' with another guide, Roman... Talk about a wild-ass, and a helluva hunter and a quality guide to boot.

As soon as we got to the ranch, we saw a lone jake feedin' in the same field we shot at 'em in yesterday. We made a quick stalk and I whacked him with Ron's .223 Remington. Not quite the luster of smokin' a spring bird, but I was quite pleased with my first Merriam bird. Gives me a little more resolve to get out here in the spring and call in an ol' longbeard someday.

We cleaned the bird up and then headed to the field where I killed my doe yesterday to fill Uncle Bill's last tag. The deer were out by then, so we made another stalk. Bill missed his first shot, but more came out about a half hour later and he put a young doe down, so he's tagged out now as well. His friends, Bill Sr. and Jr., also both got doe antelope and Jr. got a doe mulie, so Sr. has a doe tag left.

Roman and I will hit that field again in the mornin' to try to fill my last doe tag. Then we start packin' for the trip home and enjoy our last day of vacation.

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Day 9 - Whackin' and Stackin'

Put some serious meat on the pole today!

Our guide, T.J., wasted no time this mornin'... Uncle Bill dropped a beautiful 4x4 mulie with eyeguards and kickers on each side just before 8am. By 10am, I had a beautiful antelope down and we were headed back to the lodge.

On the way out, we joined up with Ron, Karl and their guide, Scrawny. Karl had whacked a wide, tall antelope just after I got mine and we were both headed to the lodge. On the way out, we found a nice doe antelope and Uncle Bill punched another tag.

After hangin' out at the lodge for a bit, Scrawny decided it was time to go "Whackin' and Stackin!" We headed to a nearby ranch that has a problem with the whitetail population and did some work. Ron filled both of his doe tags, and I took out a nice big doe as well. We also had a few good turkey stalks while we were there. I did a buncha missin', but Uncle Bill managed to drop a young jake.

We've just had a blast huntin' with these guides out here. T.J. has been awesome. He's been very patient with me, and I've learned a lot from him the last few days. The best part is it's just like huntin' with one of my good huntin' buddies back home. Ron and Karl have hunted with Scrawny on previous trips, and I know they have a blast. I'm gonna miss these guys when we have to head home.

Came back to the lodge to see that Uncle Bill's friend, Bill Sr., also got a dandy mule deer buck.
All our buck tags are filled now, so we get to fill our remainin' doe tags at a little more relaxed pace.
Karl's wide antelope buck

Uncle Bill and I with our awesome guide, TJ

Uncle Bill's mulie buck with awesome kickers

My first antelope

TJ and Uncle Bill with his Merriam jake





Sunday, October 9, 2011

Day 8 - Another awesome day

More meat on the pole today! Ron filled both his tags with a great mulie and a goofball antelope, somethin' he's been tryin' to find for years.

I scored on a nice ol' mulie this mornin', and Uncle Bill got a dandy antelope soon after. Bill's friends Bill Jr. And Sr. also got goats, although I didn't get a chance to get pictures of them.
Ron's mulie buck

Ron's antelope with a unique damaged horn... very rare!

My first mulie buck

Bill's antelope buck

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Day 7 - First day success!

Ron got his turkey, Karl got a beautiful mule deer buck, and Uncle Bill's friend, Bill Jr., also got a beautiful old mulie.
Ron's Merriam longbeard

Bill Jr.'s old, wide mulie
Uncle Bill and I had a great day, but no shootin' for us. We saw hundreds of antelope and made a few good stalks, but just couldn't seal the deal. Had the crosshairs on a shooter, but he gave me only a few seconds to shoot, and between me shakin' and the stiff wind, couldn't get a good shot so I held off. Didn't expect to get buck fever that bad... Whatta rush!

The weather was a little sketchy today and some productive roads were impassible. It'll be real nice the rest of the week though, so the huntin' will only get better.

Friday, October 7, 2011

Day 6 - Kickin' Back

Lazy day today, very relaxing. Went into town for breakfast, then spent an hour at the range makin' sure the guns survived the trip okay. Felt good to touch a few off again.

Other than that, purty much a lazy day. Kickin' back with some good Montana beer, Madison River's Copper John Scotch-Style Ale. Got my pack loaded and things ready to go for tomorrow's hunt. We'll get our guide assignments and other info after dinner tonight, and after that it's just a short night's sleep and we'll be hard at it.

I'm ready... Hopefully a lot of pictures for you tomorrow.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Beer

New Belgium's Fat Tire Amber Ale from Fort Collins, CO and Big Sky's Moose Drool Brown Ale from Missoula, Montana. Prime rib dinner with a power outage. Good times:-)

Day 5 - Assorted critters and such

We're settled in at the lodge at Bear Track Outfitters. Purty laid back day, but I'll post some pictures from our drive around the ranches this mornin'.