Anatomy of a Hunt – Practice
By GP | September 3, 2010
A hunter should know the capabilities of their sporting tool and their own personal limits as it relates to their marksmanship. Some folks, who are cool and collected on a target, have a melt down on live targets.
We shoot our archery tackle year round. We are always looking for time to shoot and something to shoot at.
In the winter there are local indoor leagues, rabbits to pursue; spring brings turkey for those of us who really like to be punished by these smart birds, golf shooting, stump shooting, outdoor 3-d ranges and the back yard.
Topics: Anatomy of a Hunt, GP, General Discussion | Post a Comment »
Home Makeover: Fridge
By Chalene | September 2, 2010
Annoyingly the drywaller is STILL working! Glad he’s getting a lot of practice after his real job but still…Here is what I am dealing with…
Yup. In case you didn’t catch it, there is a refrigerator in my bedroom. Nice. (please excuse the mess) It has access to the back deck so I can still get food and the heat doesn’t make it work too hard. What’s awesome is I can get out of bed, grab a popsicle and hop right back in. Nothing’s better than popsicle in bed. Try it! (I bet your walk to the freezer will be longer than mine!)
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Some Pictures from the Winner
By admin | September 1, 2010
Paul, the winner of the 12″ Anniversary Dutch oven, sent us some pictures from his recent camping trip! Take a look at all of the great dishes he made…
Cinnamon Buns
Butterflied Chicken
And Scotch Eggs!
Topics: Dutch Oven, General Discussion | 1 Comment »
The Anatomy of a Hunt
By GP | August 31, 2010
Since only about 10% of the U.S. population participates in hunting anymore; this will most likely have appeal to about the same portion of you who frequent this blog site. For the rest of you….send us a blog about how you incorporate outdoor cooking in your lives. And thanks to those of you who have been brave enough to share your ideas.
My parents took me hunting right after I could walk well enough to manage the bottom of a ditch to flush pheasants. I have a photo of me at about the seasoned age of 3 with my mother, and a brace of grouse. Then in my later years she wondered why I hunted so much! (go figure)
A camper and good meals were always a part of our outdoor lifestyle. Some of the best tasting lunches I can recall were cheese and tomato sandwiches, cold pork and beans, Oreo’s and cold milk from the old silver ribbed Thermos to wash them down. The cool October noon times, smell of sage brush as we sat eating on the tailgate of the old white 71 Chevy was about as good as it got for this teenager. And often lunch was accompanied by the carcass of a deer and the anticipation of fresh liver and onions for an upcoming meal. Evening meals were mostly from a Dutch oven, breakfasts were off the camper stove, pancakes being the staple.
Before I get too far into this many part series I’d like to go on record with this comment: This is a Pro Hunting piece. Pro in the sense that I’m all for hunting as a conservation tool that allows us to continue to enjoy wildlife beyond bullet or arrow head. For a better understanding of that comment Google: E Donnell Thomas Jr., and get his book “How Sportsmen Saved the World”. It is the most complete explanation to hunting I’ve ever read. I feel it should be required reading for every curriculum of higher education that is perusing a career around wildlife. I’m not so sure it shouldn’t be required reading as part of hunter education classes. I may at times refer to some aspects of “modern” hunting that I’m not fond of, and wish the issue would disappear from the sport. Hunters, like other groups, are not necessarily a band of brothers. We have our “ilk” that tarnishes the activity like many other groups do. So follow me around this fall as we wander around on this great mother earth. I hope to cover the ups and downs, good foods and train wrecks.
The true Blog world is timely. I’ll work to be such. However, I’m already behind because short of a flash light…I work hard to not take electronics to the woods with me and so the lap top stays home.
September 1st, for the bulk of most hunters is the mark of the beginning of fall. Grouse seasons open, Dove, and many archery seasons. Our bow hunt opened August 21 for deer and elk here in Utah. That time of year brings with it several challenges with the heat. It is imperative that you know how to handle meat in the heat. You have more time in 85 degree temperatures than one would think to salvage the meat but you have to move it along. I regret that I soured one elk neck and shoulder in 40 years of hunting. That should have never happened and I regret to this day that I didn’t do the right thing and tell the outfitter I worked for to shove it! Instead, at his insistence, I hung the huge bodied bull elk my client took “whole” on the teepee type game pole so the camp could oogle over it. (You think hanging it was a trick, you should have seen us get it into the Blazer). I couldn’t get one shoulder point and the neck off the ground and as a result the heat stayed in the meat and it bone soured by morning in that area of the carcass. When I got the animal parted out and into the ranch meat cutting service the butcher and I agreed that part would have to go. A week later after my second session of guiding, I stopped in to collect the remainder of the meat that my client had signed over to me. The butcher decided it was all soured and had tossed it to the coyotes (mad doesn’t even cover it)!!!! He was behind and it was an excuse to get one out of the way easy.
I’ll show you in an upcoming blog what we do to handle meat in the heat. For now let’s get started with the “load and go”. Deciding what to take, how much to take is always the worst part for me. What kind of camp will it be? How long will we/can we be there? What about the menu? The beginning of this process somewhat resembles the movie “The Clampets Go to Maui”!
Topics: Anatomy of a Hunt, GP, General Discussion | Post a Comment »
Home Makeover: Where are we now?
By Chalene | August 26, 2010
Well, in the process of carving out the soffet, we needed some sheet rocking done. As we’ve been trying to remodel our home, we have discovered we are not handy. There are some things we can do, and some that we know if we try, our marriage will suffer.
So, we have hired out some help to sheetrock. It is taking a long time. Sad but true that you get what you pay for, but at least we don’t have to do it!
So, as soon as they are done, I will start to paint. My FAVORITE!!!!! Seriously. I like it. I beg to do it at other people’s house. Wierd yes. Useful yes. Win-win in my book!
Topics: Home Makeover | Post a Comment »