Well, as much as I'd like to say me and my family are all tagged out, truth is we didn't see a single antler yesterday at all. Plenty of baldies, but we were hunting in a WMU that is buck only for the first week so we had to let them walk.
All things considered though, we all had a great day. We were treated to a beautiful sunrise and sunset, and great weather in general. We all saw deer, and I saw a big ol' gobbler and had two hens roost right in front of me, as well as a fleeting glimpse of a coyote. That's only the second dog I've ever seen, so that was a treat. He snuck in on my right and was gone before I could even think about getting the gun around on him.
Although we didn't have too much success where we were, my buddy Matt's ol' man, Jesse, and brother-in-law shot an 8-point and 5-point respectively, and Schlongie's ol' man whacked a coyote. Interestingly enough, Jesse's buck lost its antlers shortly after he smoked it. When he first picked up the head after he got to it, the one side fell off, then when he started draggin' the other side went. I'd have to think they were loose to begin with if that happened. Usually they don't start to shed until well into December and January.
Matt also told me about a co-worker's acquaintance in her mid-twenties who shot her first buck yesterday... a 14-pointer with a 20" spread that dressed out at 200lbs. That's a hell of a first buck!
Well, we got another week and a half, so there will be more updates. We can start whackin' does upstate on Saturday, so I expect the ol' Full Rut camp to have plenty of venison on the ground.
Good luck and happy hunting in the meantime!
Y'all take care, now.
I hunt animals, wreck bikes, eat weird things,
drink good beer and bitch about society
for your entertainment pleasure.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
One of the best days of the year!
Opening day of the PA buck season... Need I say more? I've seen several doe, but no buck yet. A few more hours left in the day, so I'll hope for the best. Updates to follow after dark...
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Thursday, November 25, 2010
Thanksgiving Geese
I'm not sure exactly when it started, but as long as I can remember, Dad has taken us boys out for a waterfowl hunt on Thanksgiving Morning. We've had a few stinkers, but for the most part there's been a lot of action and some awesome memories. I can only think of two or three occasions where one of us has missed it. It's a much of a tradition for us as the turkey is for everyone else.
We did well this morning. Joe started off by dropping a drake woodie that snuck into the decoys. We wound up with seven geese and four ducks. Another exciting and memorable hunt for the books.
*UPDATE
I should have put this picture in the initial post, not sure why I didnt...
I was doing my best imitation of a retriever dog and got stuck away from the pond when a nice group of geese came in, so I whipped out the phone and took some video. I'm usually too busy wieldin' the ol' meat stick to take video, so it was a nice, rare treat to get some footage. It's grainy, but overall not too bad for a cell phone.
Well, i'm gonna go snag some turkey at the grandparent's house and then head off to spend my afternoon milkin' the cows.
Y'all take care, now.
We did well this morning. Joe started off by dropping a drake woodie that snuck into the decoys. We wound up with seven geese and four ducks. Another exciting and memorable hunt for the books.
*UPDATE
I should have put this picture in the initial post, not sure why I didnt...
I was doing my best imitation of a retriever dog and got stuck away from the pond when a nice group of geese came in, so I whipped out the phone and took some video. I'm usually too busy wieldin' the ol' meat stick to take video, so it was a nice, rare treat to get some footage. It's grainy, but overall not too bad for a cell phone.
Well, i'm gonna go snag some turkey at the grandparent's house and then head off to spend my afternoon milkin' the cows.
Y'all take care, now.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
What a weekend it was
So bear hunting was quite exciting this year...
After going at it for six years, I finally had my first chance at a Pennsylvania bruin.... and whiffed.
When I heard the twig snap on the edge of the thick shit, I was expecting an ol' whitetail to come barrelin' out. Low and behold, it was a bear. I was completely shocked, but I managed to let loose with the ol' Winchester 30-30, but didn't connect. Put a hell of a hole in a couple different trees though.
But all was not lost. The second drive of the second day, we pushed this 300-pounder (dressed) past one of our gang. After lot of shooting and then an hour up uphill dragging, it was time to celebrate.
Look at the grill on this sumbitch...
It turns out out that it was a research bear, with a collar, ear tags, tattoos, the whole nine yards. That didn't make him dumb, and certainly not easier to kill, just means he went into the pipe to eat a few doughnuts. After getting checked out PGC Wildlife Biologist Steve Rapaski, it was determined that the boar's live weight was around 354.
I took some video at the check station. It's a little long, but it's cool to see the process.
All in all, a tremendously exciting hunt and more great memories for the ol' noggin.
Now, time to switch gears to the buck season opener on Monday. Stay tuned for more...
Y'all take care, now.
After going at it for six years, I finally had my first chance at a Pennsylvania bruin.... and whiffed.
When I heard the twig snap on the edge of the thick shit, I was expecting an ol' whitetail to come barrelin' out. Low and behold, it was a bear. I was completely shocked, but I managed to let loose with the ol' Winchester 30-30, but didn't connect. Put a hell of a hole in a couple different trees though.
But all was not lost. The second drive of the second day, we pushed this 300-pounder (dressed) past one of our gang. After lot of shooting and then an hour up uphill dragging, it was time to celebrate.
Look at the grill on this sumbitch...
It turns out out that it was a research bear, with a collar, ear tags, tattoos, the whole nine yards. That didn't make him dumb, and certainly not easier to kill, just means he went into the pipe to eat a few doughnuts. After getting checked out PGC Wildlife Biologist Steve Rapaski, it was determined that the boar's live weight was around 354.
I took some video at the check station. It's a little long, but it's cool to see the process.
All in all, a tremendously exciting hunt and more great memories for the ol' noggin.
Now, time to switch gears to the buck season opener on Monday. Stay tuned for more...
Y'all take care, now.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
PA Bruins
Ahh, nothin' gets me in the mood to stomp the laurel than a good bear huntin' story.
I also stumbled upon some tips and facts whilst I was beatin' around the interwebs.
When one hunting season ends, my brain automatically shifts gears and starts mentally preparing for the next season. When the sun set on the early archery deer season this past Saturday, I was already starting to get geared up for this coming Saturday, the first day of the rifle season for bear.
For those that haven't done it, bear hunting can be one of the most physically demanding days afield. Some people have been known to climb onto their stump in the dark and sit there all day. My friend never hesitates to rub it in that two of the last three years, he's shot his bear from a treestand about 300 yards away from his camp. Not us, though.
I started goin' up to Bear Camp with the ol' man five or six years ago. I wasn't sure what to expect, but as I stumbled my way into the truck for the ride home on Tuesday after two hard days of hunting, I knew I'd be damn sure prepared for next year.
Our group puts on drives... That's just what they've always done. A group will head out one direction in a truck and start dropping off watchers, and a gang of pushers will jump in another truck and head the other direction. The pushes are usually a mile or so across a mountain face, so you're walking at a downhill slant the whole time. Not only that, but once ya get into the laurel thickets, you're forced to either squirm across the ground like a snake or climb over it like a monkey. Another joy are the low swamps that are clogged with thorn and thistle bushes, or areas known as slashings that are basically hundreds of thousands of saplings growing in very close proximity. Good drivers get into the thickest stuff they can find and plow their way through it, knowing that they won't get a shot themselves but they might push a bruin past other drivers or to the watchers.
By the time four or five drives have been done that first day, it's well into the afternoon and everyone's pretty much bushed. When ya wake up the next morning, your body lets you know that you know you got a good workout the day before. It's rough enough that I don't even put my good deer rifle in the truck to make the trip anymore. It just takes too much of a beatin'. I strap on a Ruger .357 Security Six when I'm pushing and I have a beat-up ol' Winchester 94 30-30 to haul around when I'm watchin'.
It's a lot of work, but it's worth it when you have the whole group gather around that big ol' bruin that didn't manage to elude us.
I also stumbled upon some tips and facts whilst I was beatin' around the interwebs.
When one hunting season ends, my brain automatically shifts gears and starts mentally preparing for the next season. When the sun set on the early archery deer season this past Saturday, I was already starting to get geared up for this coming Saturday, the first day of the rifle season for bear.
For those that haven't done it, bear hunting can be one of the most physically demanding days afield. Some people have been known to climb onto their stump in the dark and sit there all day. My friend never hesitates to rub it in that two of the last three years, he's shot his bear from a treestand about 300 yards away from his camp. Not us, though.
I started goin' up to Bear Camp with the ol' man five or six years ago. I wasn't sure what to expect, but as I stumbled my way into the truck for the ride home on Tuesday after two hard days of hunting, I knew I'd be damn sure prepared for next year.
Our group puts on drives... That's just what they've always done. A group will head out one direction in a truck and start dropping off watchers, and a gang of pushers will jump in another truck and head the other direction. The pushes are usually a mile or so across a mountain face, so you're walking at a downhill slant the whole time. Not only that, but once ya get into the laurel thickets, you're forced to either squirm across the ground like a snake or climb over it like a monkey. Another joy are the low swamps that are clogged with thorn and thistle bushes, or areas known as slashings that are basically hundreds of thousands of saplings growing in very close proximity. Good drivers get into the thickest stuff they can find and plow their way through it, knowing that they won't get a shot themselves but they might push a bruin past other drivers or to the watchers.
By the time four or five drives have been done that first day, it's well into the afternoon and everyone's pretty much bushed. When ya wake up the next morning, your body lets you know that you know you got a good workout the day before. It's rough enough that I don't even put my good deer rifle in the truck to make the trip anymore. It just takes too much of a beatin'. I strap on a Ruger .357 Security Six when I'm pushing and I have a beat-up ol' Winchester 94 30-30 to haul around when I'm watchin'.
It's a lot of work, but it's worth it when you have the whole group gather around that big ol' bruin that didn't manage to elude us.
Friday, November 12, 2010
Adams County WCO Killed in the line of duty...
Some sad happenings in Adams County last night...
Being a WCO is a thankless job, and doesn't pay enough for the risks involved. Some of them are a little rough around the edges, dickheaded if you will, but this wasn't the case with Officer Grove. From what I've heard in the past and have been reading all morning, he was not only a professional, but also a fine gentleman and overall nice guy. He was out to do his job to the best of his abilities, and was more about protecting wildlife and helping people than busting their chops for the small things.
I regret that I never got to meet Officer Grove in person. When I'm not skirting the fine line between legal and illegal, I genuinely enjoy the company of our law enforcement officers and hearing their stories.
Please pray for the Grove family today, and hope that the culprit receives a quick and just penalty.
On that note, I heard over the scanner a little while ago that they may have the main suspect in question collared, although that's not official or confirmed. Shame the little asshole didn't resist arrest and spare us taxpayers the cost of a lengthy trial.
Being a WCO is a thankless job, and doesn't pay enough for the risks involved. Some of them are a little rough around the edges, dickheaded if you will, but this wasn't the case with Officer Grove. From what I've heard in the past and have been reading all morning, he was not only a professional, but also a fine gentleman and overall nice guy. He was out to do his job to the best of his abilities, and was more about protecting wildlife and helping people than busting their chops for the small things.
I regret that I never got to meet Officer Grove in person. When I'm not skirting the fine line between legal and illegal, I genuinely enjoy the company of our law enforcement officers and hearing their stories.
Please pray for the Grove family today, and hope that the culprit receives a quick and just penalty.
On that note, I heard over the scanner a little while ago that they may have the main suspect in question collared, although that's not official or confirmed. Shame the little asshole didn't resist arrest and spare us taxpayers the cost of a lengthy trial.
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Cuttin' up...
It's true what they say; when the hammer drops, the work begins.
The ol' man was kind enough to take care of the fun stuff on my first few does, but he finally showed me the nuts and bolts of cuttin' up a deer many moons ago when I shot my first buck. I'm now to the point where, although it's time consuming, I take my time and make sure that I do this process right. With all the time, money and work that goes into whackin' a deer in the first place, it's not somethin' that I want to screw up. I also posses a fun little personality trait that causes me to generally hate to pay someone to do something I can do myself. I've also heard horror stories about what comes back from the processor. When I cut a deer up myself, I get to choose how long to age the meat, how I want to cut my steaks, all that fun stuff. I will take my scrap meat to a reputable processor to be turned into pepper sticks, sausage and bologna, but only because I'm not in a position to buck up the money to get all that equipment for myself.
Thankfully, this day in age, the internet is full of great resources. I'm pretty comfortable in my process, but I still like to learn a few things here and there. I stumbled across this forum the other day, and felt it was worth sharin'. This is very similar to how I cut mine up, although I did pick a few more tricks up. It's a great resource if cuttin' up your own is somethin' you ain't done but want to try. Check it out, ya might learn somethin'.
On a side note, I've found that it's a good idea to keep a dry-erase board on the freezer, especially with a chest freezer. Every package that goes in is labeled, and then documented and dated on the dry-erase board. That way, one look at the board will tell you if there's something that should be used. When I take something out of the freezer, I simply scratch it off the board. I won't lie; when I lived with the folks we'd have some meat go to waste because it wiggled its way to the bottom of the chest freezer and wasn't found until it was too late. Perhaps that's why I'm so anal about keeping the freezer organized now.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Illegal Download of the Post
This song was actually, believe it or not, my first legitimate, legal purchase from the iTunes store. It's a good tune, hard, crisp and fast. This is a tune that I wish I had when I played ball... it'll definitely get some use before our next pickup game. Probably NSFW, so put the headphones on.
Song: My Dark Place Alone
Artist: Murderdolls
Album: Women and Children Last (Special Edition, 2010)
Y'all take care, now.
The ol' man was kind enough to take care of the fun stuff on my first few does, but he finally showed me the nuts and bolts of cuttin' up a deer many moons ago when I shot my first buck. I'm now to the point where, although it's time consuming, I take my time and make sure that I do this process right. With all the time, money and work that goes into whackin' a deer in the first place, it's not somethin' that I want to screw up. I also posses a fun little personality trait that causes me to generally hate to pay someone to do something I can do myself. I've also heard horror stories about what comes back from the processor. When I cut a deer up myself, I get to choose how long to age the meat, how I want to cut my steaks, all that fun stuff. I will take my scrap meat to a reputable processor to be turned into pepper sticks, sausage and bologna, but only because I'm not in a position to buck up the money to get all that equipment for myself.
Thankfully, this day in age, the internet is full of great resources. I'm pretty comfortable in my process, but I still like to learn a few things here and there. I stumbled across this forum the other day, and felt it was worth sharin'. This is very similar to how I cut mine up, although I did pick a few more tricks up. It's a great resource if cuttin' up your own is somethin' you ain't done but want to try. Check it out, ya might learn somethin'.
On a side note, I've found that it's a good idea to keep a dry-erase board on the freezer, especially with a chest freezer. Every package that goes in is labeled, and then documented and dated on the dry-erase board. That way, one look at the board will tell you if there's something that should be used. When I take something out of the freezer, I simply scratch it off the board. I won't lie; when I lived with the folks we'd have some meat go to waste because it wiggled its way to the bottom of the chest freezer and wasn't found until it was too late. Perhaps that's why I'm so anal about keeping the freezer organized now.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Illegal Download of the Post
This song was actually, believe it or not, my first legitimate, legal purchase from the iTunes store. It's a good tune, hard, crisp and fast. This is a tune that I wish I had when I played ball... it'll definitely get some use before our next pickup game. Probably NSFW, so put the headphones on.
Song: My Dark Place Alone
Artist: Murderdolls
Album: Women and Children Last (Special Edition, 2010)
Y'all take care, now.
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