For several tense minutes, not a word was spoken between the three of us. We watched the bull elk move along the valley. It was quartering towards us and moved slowly as it nibbled at bushes and sage. Damian continued to peer through his rifle scope, watching every move the bull made.
Read MoreFrom a bed of weeds on the side of the road, a gangly little mutt sprang to its feet as the trucked pulled into the rest stop. With hackle raised and spine arched, a low growl emanated from its curled lips. I could now see that the brooding dog wasn’t more than a pup, despite the animal’s facade of wolf-like ferocity. The young mutt’s four oversized paws were a tell-tale sign that this dog still had some growing to do before it could fit into its clodhoppers.
Read MoreIt started with the ubiquitous 20-minute delay in leaving the tower at Energy Center 3 and that pervasive fire that would allegedly burn uncontrolled for the few days in my absence. My father idled outside the office’s doors. I extinguished the brush fire and jumped in the truck. “Sorry for the delay” I said, “I don’t think I have ever been able to get out when we have agreed.”
Read MoreIf the house had ever been painted it had been decades ago, and a handwritten index card duct-taped to the door read, "Owner armed and dangerous. Nothing inside worth dying for," and another read, "If you have a cold, the flu, or any other plague, go visit a Yankees fan and leave me alone"; but we knew our knocks would be greeted by the gnarled, aged, yet handsome face of its only tenant, Wade Martin.
Read MoreThe next day was our last day to hunt for mule deer during Colorado’s 2nd Rifle Season. I pulled my beanie down over my eyes. The wind whipped around our tent as it gusted through the shallow gully choked in sagebrush.
Read MoreUsing a kayak, or some sort of small watercraft, doesn’t require too much effort, and it can really provide a significant advantage. As deer get more and more pressure from hunters during the season, they will use natural obstacles, such as rivers, to provide cover and solitude. By using a kayak or canoe, one doesn’t create much noise and doesn’t leave behind a trail of human odor. It can be a great way to sneak up close to bedding areas without alerting deer to your presence.
Read MoreWhile walking through one of the National Forests in east Texas, I came across an interesting thing. I found a young loblolly pine, about 7” in diameter, that had mud caked onto the trunk reaching about 4’ off the ground. At the base of the tree, a large circular mud pit had been beaten into the ground. Pig tracks littered the ground all around the pine tree. I was new to Texas and new to hog hunting at the time, but this was unmistakably a point of interest for the pigs
Read MoreI left work early and headed into the Allegheny National Forest. It was early bow season in Pennsylvania and I couldn't wait for the evening hunt. Several days ago I had set my treestand in a large maple tree. The location of the stand was in a steep valley. On one side of the stand, a tributary to the Tionesta River flowed past. On the other the side, the steep ravine rose up from the valley floor.
Read MoreIn the spring, Dan drove from Pennsylvania to Texas for a backpack-style pig hunt. Going into this hunt, we weren't expecting to backpack into a remote and secluded valley; Texas simply lacks the large tracts of public land that people often associate with backpack hunting. That being said, we still wanted to try and get off the beaten path as much as possible. We packed our bags and headed into the National Forest of eastern Texas where we hunted and camped for 5 days.
Read MoreDespite the cold October morning, I felt quite warm and comfortable as I fired-up the vehicle in the morning darkness. Much to my delight, my girlfriend Ellen, chose to join me and my two friends, Dan and Ben, for a morning duck hunt on a tributary that flowed into the Allegheny River. It was still dark when Ellen and I pulled to the shoulder of the road, right behind Dan’s parked pickup.
Read MoreI have a treestand location that’s basically just outside my backdoor that I call “Wi-Fi”. This stand got its name because it is close enough to my house that I still get a wi-fi connection from the router. Don’t let the fact that the stand skirts the tree line in my backyard fool you. This stand gets a lot of use, and many game animals have been seen and harvested from it. The close location of this stand to my house is extremely convenient, especially when time constraints from everyday life only allow for a short hunt after work. Because of this, “Wi-Fi” is my go-to hunting spot on the weekdays
Read MoreMy friend, JK Young, filmed this short video a couple of years ago. We had a discussion about eating beaver meat and Jeff thought it would make for an entertaining short film. Beaver season was still in full swing, but all the other trapping seasons had come to a close in Pennsylvania. I had hung most of my traps up for the season, but we decided to make 4 sets along a local stream.
Read MoreIn the predawn darkness, the headlights of the Tacoma revealed a substantially washed-out section of dirt road. I switched the truck over to 4-wheel drive, and began driving forward over the unconsolidated sand and washed-out road. I continued on, carefully navigating around large logs and debris that had been deposited onto the road from the periodic flooding. In the past year, the Neches River had flooded much of the low-lying ground around Davy Crockett National Forest. The road abruptly came to a dead end and the headlights from the truck illuminated the moist green leaves of the forest.
Read MoreMuskrats make a great meal. The meat is soft and dark. The taste is very mild. There isn’t really a gamey taste to the meat. The muskrat rear-legs resemble that of buffalo chicken wings and can be prepared to resemble such. The following quick recipe is the way that Ellen and I have prepared our Muskrat Wings.
Read MoreGame animals not only provide pelts and meat, but they can also provide great home decoration. Recently I decided to clean and preserve a beaver skull from a 51 pounder that was caught this year. Cleaning skulls for presentation is really pretty easy. You just need to set aside some time to do it. The next time you have a memorable catch or hunt, consider preserving the animal’s skull for a great looking decorative piece.
Read MoreWhen I was about 12 years old I had the opportunity to talk to an old-timer who everyone called Rabbit. Rabbit and I started talking one afternoon because I brought in a couple of muskrats that I was going to sell to my local fur buyer. Rabbit told me, in his raspy voice, “Use your boot and make a shelf for your trap on the side of the bank. Take an apple and pin it to the bank just above the trap. An apple’s like candy to dem muskrats.”
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