First to Score

With the Kansas deer season just a few days away, we are all chomping at the bit to start filling tags.  Some jumped the gun and headed out of state to get an early start!  Terry beat us all to the punch and scored first!  He smoked this nice mullie a few days ago in Wyoming.  Not a bad way to start the 2011/12 season, he was first...but the rest of us won't be far behind!    

Colorado Math

They say bow hunters only have a 25% chance of taking an elk in Colorado. The good news is, according to my math, next year the odds are in my favor and after two unsuccessful attempts I will have a 75% chance of success! On our trip this year, I had three chances to take decent bulls, but passed while in pursuit of a true trophy.  Long story short, I got within about 80 yards of a really nice 6x6, which I hunted for three days, then he vanished never to be seen again.  I guess they don't get big by being dumb and this bull was no exception.  He kept himself surrounded with about 40-50 cows nearly all the time.

All in all this years trip was a good time, the weather was mild and the elk were abundant.  We will be back in the San Juan Mountains next September huffing and puffing in the high altitude with the math on our side.  In the mean time, we are back in Kansas gearing up to put the hurt on some whitetails and early teal.  But first, we are heading out to Lane County to take out our "no-elk" frustration on some antelope.  

Pictures from Colorado hunt:

See ya!

Goodbye 104 degrees Fahrenheit and hello San Juan Mountains!  Just put on my 'lucky' M2D camo hat and I am outta here, not coming back until I have one of these guys in the back of my truck.

'O Canada!

We just returned home from the great white north!  Our annual spring trip to the Manitoba Providence of Canada will be one to remember.  It's always fun to be with people as they experience northern Canadian fishing for the first time, especially when it's family.  Along for the trip was Steve (father in-law) and Dad (Jerry).  I referred to the pair as "My Two Dads", which always drew strange looks from folks.         

The fishing is intense and extreme with the occasional element of danger.  Each day typically involves 12-14 hours of flinging lures and navigating miles of lake.  The weather is unpredictable and often dishes out major swings in temperatures and conditions.  The sun does not set until 1AM CST and rises at 4AM CST.  For first-timers the routine can be a bit exhausting, but the payoff is always worth the effort.

    

Manitoba is home to the oldest master angler program in North America, 50 years and going strong.  The Master Angler program provides an awards system that recognizes anglers’ abilities and achievements.  There are two criteria for entering a Master Angler qualifying fish, the length measurement, and the use of a hook and line to make the catch.  We are always in the pursuit of "Master" fish.  On our trip we were all fortunate enough to catch at least two fish which qualified for the coveted award.
 

The walleye fishing was outstanding during our trip.  Almost everyday we caught a stringer full of walleye and would take a break from fishing to eat a warm shore lunch of fresh fish.  One particular afternoon, we had dropped-off supplies in anticipation of an afternoon shore lunch.  Upon our return, we discovered there had been a visitor to our picnic spot.  Apparently a bear decided to rummage through our supplies and found a tasty treat in my backpack.

Longest Week Ever

When you are sitting at work trying to be productive, retired friends are a curse!  There is nothing more distracting than getting a phone call on a Wednesday afternoon and the retired caller on the other end just wants you to know the fish are biting and they just put number 27 on the stringer.

The next seven days will be filled with distracting fishing reports from northern Manitoba.  Each year we head north to Canada in search of monster lake trout, walleye and northern pike.  The only problem is, half of our group is retired and leaves a week prior to us working folks.  It's difficult enough trying to focus on the tasks at-hand while eagerly anticipating such a trip, but getting calls and photo texts from the lake is just cruel!

This year I will be guiding Steve (father in-law) and Dad (Jerry) on their first Canadian adventure.  This will be my seventh trip and as always the case, the last few days before we leave will be the longest!

        

Run & Gun in Wyoming

The 2nd Annual Old West Invitational Turkey Shoot was this past week in Hulett, Wyoming.  My hunting partner for the event was Tim Wells of the Sportsman Channel's T.V. Show "Relentless Pursuit".  We had a great time chasing Merriam's on the Redding Ranch.

Hillside view of Redding Ranch

Guided by owner Dave Redding, we chased birds all over the countryside trying to capture a bow kill on camera.  How did the hunt turn-out???  You'll have to wait and watch the video to find out!

Along for the festivities were my two best hunting buddies Benjamin and Brock.  The two boys had a great time running foot-loose in the big town of Hulett.  They were able to visit Devil's Tower and do some serious bouldering and pay a visit to Mt. Rushmore in Keystone, SD.  They got to meet Michael Waddell, Mark Drury and Former NBA Player John "Contract" Koncak.  Ben even got a lesson in turkey calling from legendary turkey caller Mr. Ray Eye.  The boys had a great trip, they saw hundreds of deer, antelope, turkeys and elk, got to go swimming, ate tons of junk food and didn't have to shower for three days...that's what I call a vacation!
    

    

M2D Camo Works

Sparky Sparks is on a mission to prove his M2D Camo is 'Made to Deceive' long beards in all environments.  Recently, Sparky attended the Kansas Governor's One-Shot Turkey hunt where he and hunting partner Tim Mercer made quick work of two nice long beards.

Prior to hunting in Butler County, Sparky had hooked up with Rick Paillet "the Verminator" where he was able to successfully deceive another wise ol' tom in M2D Camo using his new Fire and Ice call.

Then Tim headed to Washington to do some hunting with Sparky in the snowy northwest and again M2D Camo and the Fire and Ice call were able do their job!

Now, I find out Sparky has scored again, this time in California!  I started hunting in M2D camo about two weeks ago and have been impressed.  The color patten works really well in almost any environment.  You can order M2D camo at: www.M2Dcamo.com

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