Nature Walk

This past Saturday I decided to take Gus out for a little nature walk to get him some exercise.  It was foggy, breezy, drizzly, and quite warm for the end of January.  The forecast called for rain around lunch time so Gus and I headed out around 7:45.  We hopped in the Pilot and headed over to the public hunting grounds just off of Tin Can Road.   During pheasant season, this area is one of our favorite locations, but we've never ventured past the open fields.   I parked just off the road and Gus rushed out of the Pilot as soon as I opened the rear door.  I had a "large loop" planned out in my head that would bring us right back to our parking spot.  I'm always amazed how different the woods look in the dead of winter.  All the trees are barren and the snow allows you to see deeper into the forest than usual.  Gus zigzagged back and forth through the woods as I followed a nice deer trail to the top of the ridge.   Gus and I worked our way across to the open field and back into the woods.

Gus and I finally made it to the edge of the woods and ventured into one of our usual pheasant hunting spots.  I was quite surprised that we made it through the entire field without kicking up any birds.

Gus was just getting warmed up, so we crossed Tin Can Road and entered the large CRP field, another good pheasant spot.  We walked along the fence line and made our way towards the bike trail and the "back field".  The snow was quite deep, so it was slow going for me however Gus didn't have a problem!  We finally crossed the bike trail and entered the "back field".  I had high hopes of Gus running into a pheasant or two in the standing corn rows, however we never flushed a bird.

As the corn ended towards the back of the field, we did come across numerous turkey tracks in the snow.  It was obvious the turkeys were taking advantage of the standing corn as a mid-winter meal.  I even noticed a nice deer rub as we made our way back towards the Pilot.  

Ed The Archer

Now that hunting season is officially over, there is some down time until the baseball season starts as well as field archery and 3D tournaments.  The "down time" can be dangerous for me (and my pocket book) because it's when I start tinkering with my equipment and buying accessories that I may not necessarily need!  One thing I do need, however, is a new set of strings for my bow.  I bought my bow (2008 Martin Bengal) off of Archery Talk, which is a website that is dedicated to archery.  While the website has many good articles, tips, and videos, the online forum and classifieds sections are by far the most popular.  Many people sell hardly used, sometimes new archery items for really good prices.  My entire set up was purchased from AT!!  I bought the Bengal in the summer of 2008 and it was hardly used.  The original owner had it for a few months and decided to get something different.  I really wanted to get new strings after the hunting season so I started researching string manufacturers and getting price quotes from bow shops for installation etc.  Boy was I surprised when the average cost turned out to be between $120-150!  I figured I’d just have to bite the bullet and spend the money until I stumbled across this unassuming little add on Craigslist:

“They say I make one of the finest bow strings in the madison area, you be the gudge. my strings are made from BCY 452X. many colors to choice from. you bring me your bow it takes about 3 days, as my strings are all pre stretched. choice your colors, I will time your cams, set your tiller, greese your cam bearings if needed, install a D loop, nocking point, and shoot your bow to settle in the string and peep sight. all this for only $60.00 give me a call lets talk Ed. (XXX)XXX-XXXX”

I was very skeptical.  I wasn’t even going to call because I thought it was too good to be true, but finally I said ‘the heck with it’ and made the call.  I was surprised to hear a pleasant, older gentleman answer the phone.  He was glad that I called and we ended up having a fairly lengthy conversation about his services and archery.  Needless to say, I found a “diamond in the rough”.  Ed has been involved in archery for almost 60 years, mostly on the competitive side.  He makes strings and works on archery equipment as a hobby and doesn’t make a profit for his services, hence the very reasonable price.  Needless to say, I left work early yesterday to take my bow over to his house.  He seems to be a simple man that loves archery (as well as trap/skeet shooting) and good conversation.  I spent an enjoyable 20 minutes in his basement picking out my string colors and asking him questions.  I can’t wait to get my bow back next week to see his craftsmanship.  

Wing Mark

This past Sunday (1/3/10), I was able to get out for one last deer hunt.  While it was bitterly cold (7 degrees), it was also very beautiful with all of the snow and bright sun.  Besides a quick "flash" of a doe in the woods, the deer hunting was uneventful, however I did manage to chase a flock of turkeys around for a few hours.  I kept bumping into them while I "poked" around The Land.  One of the coolest things I've seen in a long time is this wing mark left in the snow.

I snapped a picture of it with my cell phone.  I'm not sure if this mark was made on the landing or the take off.  Pretty neat either way.   I like it so much I've put it as this Outdoor Journal's mascot/picture. 

ECO Blog

In addition to this personal outdoor journal, I also contribute to a blog for the hunt club that I am a part of.  We call ourselves Exeter Crossing Outfitters.  Most of my 2009 outdoor/hunting experiences are included in my posts on the ECO blog at http://exetercrossingoutfitters.blogspot.com/

Moving forward, I will be using this Outdoor Journal for all of my personal outdoor experiences and the ECO blog for only "ECO specific" posts.  More than likely, however, there will be some overlap on the two blogs.

First Post

My intention for this blog is to record and document my outdoor activities. I am hoping to update this blog religiously for each of my outdoor experiences to accurately capture information that may be helpful on future expeditions and to serve as an overall memoir of my outdoor adventures.