July 24th, 2008
By Arthur

I was talking to my father-in-law the other evening, and he brought up something that really intrigued me. One of his renters, who had just recently returned from a year and a half in Iraq, had a plan that he thought I would be interested in helping with. The plan is a little ambitious, but in the end is definitely worth it. I honestly can’t believe that something like this doesn’t exist in our state already, but I’m hopefully that one day it becomes a reality.

The idea behind the plan is to have a dedicated place where any veteran, especially disabled ones, could be able to enjoy the outdoors. A place where they could come for a weekend, or however long, and turkey hunt, deer hunt, duck hunt, or just fish. A place where they can enjoy the things they once did and be able to forget, for just those few days, about their everyday life struggles. I think we at least owe them that much.

I have found quite a few organizations that do something similar to this, but of course they are in different states. There are also a couple organizations that do this, but they rely upon hunting clubs and such to provide the land for these hunting opportunities. Don’t get me wrong, I think that organizations like that are great as well, but the vision that he has for this project is to have a a place where these particular gentleman and women can enjoy the outdoors, and have that place be specifically built for their needs. By having a “resort” of such, it makes it much easier to provide the necessary services that will allow these veterans, despite what kind of disabilities they may have, to still be able to enjoy the outdoors.

I have to be honest and tell you I wasn’t really sure I could contribute a lot to this cause. I mean sure I would love to volunteer my services to take a couple of these veterans out on a hunt, and be a “guide” of sorts, but once I got started talking to Joe (the guy with the idea), I realized that he was already ahead of the game. He already has a lot of good contacts that he has established in the outdoor community, and with the drive I see that he has for this particular project, I have total faith that it will become a reality. He has even talked to the local VFW’s as well as the local VA and has already started the ball rolling.

The biggest obstacle he faces right now is acquiring land. He has had many people offer up donated vehicles for the lodge, and things of that nature, but land is the one thing that holds him up. He is hopeful that he can acquire some “backers” to help raise enough money to purchase a plot of land and get this project rolling.

I think this is a great idea, and I am more than willing to do whatever needs to be done in order to get this thing off the ground. I would be more than happy to take these veterans hunting and fishing, and have a chance to get to know them, and thank them for the service they’ve done for our country. It only makes sense to give back to these particular individuals and allow them to be able to enjoy our state’s great outdoors.

If any of you have anything you could contribute to this particular idea I would love to hear about in the comments section.

Popularity: 5% [?]

July 21st, 2008
By Arthur

It seems that everywhere I go lately, I come across plenty of wildlife.  This is especially true on our hunting property the last couple of weeks.  I’m definitely not complaining, and I hope it keeps up, it just came as a little bit of a shock to me. 

The property we hunt on is on a dead-end road that only has two houses on it.  It is pretty secluded and kind of “off the beaten path”.  It actually works out pretty good, because the animals seem to be more at ease in the open so it provides for more chances of actually seeing some good stuff.

The picture on the left I took as I made way down the road to the property.  These two fawns were standing on the side of the drive I needed to pull in, so I stopped the car and they were nice enough to hold still long enough for me to take a snapshot.  I love spring time fawns.  They are so cool to see and get a chance to look at.  I’m not sure where mom was, but I’m sure she was nearby.

Then, last Saturday morning, as I was driving in to check the cam, I noticed all these big black dots along the driveway.  Of course they are turkeys, but I was a little disappointed because there wasn’t a tom in the bunch.  At least I know there are plenty of tom attractors for next year though.

I also found an interesting picture on the cam last weekend.  I think it might be the “buck ghost of season’s past”.  I moved the trailcam to a different spot where I found some really good sign.  This is in the area that I didn’t even realize was still part of the property we could hunt, so I wanted to check it out this year with the trailcam and see where a well-placed treestand would hopefully produce some results.  I did a major no-no with the trailcam though, and in my haste to get away from the mosquito army, I faced it directly east into the sunlight.  This picture is over-exposed as a result, but I think all of you can see that that is a decent buck in the picture.  He does look ghostly, but I still know he is there.  It looks like this new area might be working out after all.  The camera only took a total of 12 pictures before the battery died, so I was pretty happy with my camera-to-buck ratio this week:)  I plan on slapping some new batteries in it and getting it back out to this same location, and letting it sit for a longer duration this time.  I’m pretty excited about what could show up.

So turkeys, fawns, and ghost bucks.  A little bit of everything showed up this weekend! 

Popularity: 11% [?]

July 13th, 2008
By Arthur

Another weekend come and gone.  I say this all the time, but I really can’t believe how fast the weekend’s go lately, and when the baby comes, I know they are only going to get faster.  It is sad really.  You live all week for the weekend, and then in a flash it is gone.

Now, moving onto more positive things.  First off, I have a challenge.  Will someone please tell me what is in this trailcam picture.  Please focus on the lower right squadrant and you will see whatever it is.  I honestly am not sure.  I keep thinking I see a face that is somewhat like a badger, although I think my mind may be playing tricks on me.  It could be a possum, I honestly have no idea.  Everyone’s opinion is appreciated though.(I know it’s not a badger, I just was giving you an idea of the type of face I see).

I thought I would share this camera picture as well.  He is just a little guy, and more than likely, I will let him pass this year if we meet, but I thought the picture was pretty cool.  Apparently he wanted to pose for the camera.  Pretty funny.  I also got some coyote butt on camera.  The camera was a little slow in the flash department, but I’m glad that it still managed to capture him/her.  I’m also glad, that despite his presence, I still saw two fawns as I drove into the property today, and also got one of them on cam as well.  A good camera check all the way around.

On Sunday we rounded out the weekend by shooting our bows.  We got my cousin Corrin in on the act, as well as her friend Jordan.  It was only Jordan’s second time shooting a bow, but I have to be honest and say she did pretty well since she obviously was shooting  a bow not custom setup for her.  She’s not real sure about the hunting aspect of it, and that I can understand, but I think we might be able to convince her to hunt those ugly ‘ole turkeys.  She has a soft spot for deer so no need to pressure there.  It obviously isn’t for everyone.  As long as she continues to shoot archery she can still hang out with us.

Corrin also had a first this weekend.  She robin-hooded one of MY arrows.  It wasn’t a complete robin hood because she was on a different angle than me when she was shooting, but it was still awesome either way.  If I’m going to lose an arrow I love losing it that way. Nice shot ‘rin.  That was awesome.

All in all it was a pretty good weekend.  Hopefully this work week goes by fast, and hopefully I can work in another fishing trip to the father-in-law’s private pond.  I’m having some withdrawals.

Popularity: 20% [?]

July 10th, 2008
By Arthur

Since we haven’t had a good debate on this site in quite awhile, I thought I would touch on probably one of thee most controversial hunting topics I have ever come across–should it be legal to hunt with a crossbow during archery season? I have came across this topic on many websites, and I have seen this topic almost result in fist fights in person. I’m sure there isn’t a hunting forum moderator out there that hasn’t came across this heated issue as well.

In my home state of Michigan, crossbows are legal, but only during the firearm season. Disabled hunters, who have met certain criteria, are allowed to use crossbows during the regular archery season. These criteria are very strict, and at this point in time require a doctor’s approval before they are issued, although there are some plans as I write this to ease those disability restrictions somewhat.

So where does all this emotion and controversy come from when it comes to the topic of crossbows, and being able to use them during archery season? Well, that tends to be in eye of the bow holder, or beholder to be more exact. The debates are very opinionated, and rightfully so. I have went back and forth on this topic quite a few times, but I think I have finally come to a conclusion–If using a crossbow will bring more people into hunting, and give more people an opportunity to hunt, then I’m all for it. I know some of you, who have talked to me in the past, might be surprised by this. Let me break it down for you.

The main reason’s I think I was so opposed to crossbows being used during archery was sure selfishness. I took on the opinion that somehow me hunting with a compound bow was superior to someone hunting with a crossbow. While I do still believe that a crossbow is not “archery” equipment, I do think that hunting with a crossbow poses just as much of a challenge as a compound bow does. Also in Ohio, where crossbows are already legal during archery season, the success rate between crossbow hunters and compounds hunters is pretty much the same-right around 13%.

The biggest difference I see between compound bows and crossbows is the simple fact, that with a compound, you have to draw in the presence of the animal. Now I have read many different things about how, with a crossbow, you have to move to get the shot, but with a compound you have to draw and move to take your shot. I still believe that that is a huge difference that should be addressed.

In my perfect world we would have a separate crossbow season. A season where only crossbows could to be used that was separate from the archery season. I would even be fine with a crossbow season that overlapped our muzzleloader season. I think that would have been a viable option as well.

With Michigan’s House of Representatives already passing legislation that will allow for Michigan hunters to use crossbows next season, I suppose all of us have to get used to this crossbow idea. If the Senate vote goes the way I think it will, all of us are going to have to come to grips with the reality that crossbow hunters will be in the archery woods with us next year.

In the end, we all have to remember we’re on the same team. That is the most important thing.

Note: I will return to vacation posts soon, but this topic came up and it was just too much to let pass by. I hope everyone will weigh in and let us know what your opinions are.

Popularity: 19% [?]