Average Joe Hunting Adventures with Dan and CJ

[Lostinthewoods]

Since elk season is less than 26 days I wanted to start shooting my broadheads because I want to make sure they are flying well and that I'm truly shooting well.

First shot is always a cold bore broadhead shot. Then I'll shoot a few groups with it to make sure they are all meeting their mark.

They have been flying GREAT! I couldn't be any more excited about this year.

 

[sn.outdoors]

Thank you for the kind and encouraging words guys. I'm continually amazed by how quickly time can slip by. Don't think thread is in a way encouraging me to take advantage of the time I have and to get out and do something every opportunity I can.

Wow... grammars is good... I meant to say, "In a way this thread is..."

I'm also way behind on keeping you guys up to date on what's been going on. I've been pretty busy the last 3 weeks, and have not had much time to sit down at my computer. I haven't even loaded most of my pics from the camera onto the computer yet. I'll work on it tonight.

 

[sn.outdoors]

Before I joined the military and moved away, fishing pretty much consumed my life. I started fishing before my memory began recording in my brain, and as soon as I was old enough to bike to the closest lakes and rivers I was constantly fishing; almost everyday in the summer. This started when I was around 10 years old. I would always leave a note on the kitchen table that said where I planned to fish, when I left, the route I'd take and when I'd be back. I also remember the first and only time I deviated from that plan... My dad was PISSED!!! But I learned a very valuable life lesson...

Sadly, due to work, life, and focusing almost entirely on hunting, I had only gone fishing about 10 times since I joined. It's one of those things that makes me a little sad when I think about it. The majority of my "fishing" time was actually at work (yes, I went fishing for work) while I'm NE Washington, but I don't really count those hundreds of brook trout toward actual fishing time; I was "working."

Anyways... I'd been looking forward to walleye fishing with my stepdad for years, but having not been home in the summer since I joined the military, we never had the opportunity to do it. This trip was long overdue. We were both a little nervous about the trip, but for different reasons. I didn't want to look like a fool after not fishing much for almost a decade, and my stepdad had established a reputation for being a very successful walleye fisherman, and he really wanted to get us on fish. Another factor adding to the pressure was the short time window we had. I needed to leave WI after we were done fishing to drive the 24hrs back to Idaho to make it to work on Monday.

Regardless of the circumstances, we were bound to have a good time. There are not many summer activities better than watching the sun rise over a calm Wisconsin horizon, feeling to cool, humid chill of morning in your bones, and the fresh smell of the lake water all around you. It made me miss my childhood dearly.

The conditions were not ideal, and the fishing started slow. After the first hour we only had 3-4 perch in the boat. We were getting hits, but we (as in me) had a hard time getting a feel for setting the hook. I struggled to feel the jig hitting the bottom and couldn't tell the difference between a strike and pulling through rocks. My stepdad did his best at explaining what the feel was, but as we all know, some things you just need to experience for yourself to grasp the concepts.

My stepdad pulled in the first and biggest walleye of the day at about an hour and half, and caught another one shortly after. The perch bite kicked in hard around that time too, and it was quite a challenge working a jig in one hand and tending to the straight line off the back of the boat. As soon as I thought I was getting the feel for jigging I'd have a perch or sheepshead toying with my second line.

I finally hooked up with my first walleye of the day almost 2 1/2 hours into the morning. I caught it more by chance than any sort of technique or anything on my part, but it was a start.

My stepdad switched to a different color jig and brought 2 more fish in the boat before I decided to make a change. I asked him which color he never uses and went with that. I figured whatever, nothing ventured, nothing gained. I used a sightly heavier jig head so I could feel the bottom a little better as well.

After just 2 casts I hooked up with my second walleye, and this time I thought I actually felt it. 3 casts later over the same spot I had fish number 3 in the boat, and now I knew. I knew what to feel for, and all those years and thousands upon thousands of casts from my childhood came back to me. I had the touch. I remembered what I was doing. And it felt fantastic.

Over the next hour I caught the remainder of our walleye limit and my stepdad (who has dabbled heavily in tournament fishing on his off time) invited me to come fishing with him any time I wanted.

We didn't catch any big fish, but compared to the last time I fished the same lake for walleye 9 years ago, these were great. The fishery has come a long way since I left, and it was great to see it first hand.

It's easy to identify when someone has done something enough times to have mastered the task... My stepdad is a pro. I, on the other hand, am far from being a pro.

Like I said earlier, this trip was long overdue. My stepdad and my mom got together a little over 5 years ago, and I'm extremely happy they found each other. They're both very happy, and (more importantly ) I have lifelong fishing buddy.

As many of you know, it's hard to have a fully satisfying vacation. My trip back to Wisconsin was a trip full of nostalgia. It was one of the most refreshing vacations I've done in my life. Being able to see almost all of my family, watching my children enjoy the same places and activities from my youth, and fishing with my stepdad was everything I'd hoped for, and I couldn't be more thankful.

 

[sn.outdoors]

Last weekend I blitzed down to NM to pick up my elk and deer mounts from last season. It was a season that'll be tough to surpass. I might kill bigger animals in the, and maybe more big animals in one season in the future, but it'll be hard to beat killing 5 big game animals in 6 days of hunting. I also had a ton of fun with friends I may never get to hunt with again, in places I may never return to. Last year I tried my best to make an extra effort appreciate each day in the field, and soak in each place I hunted.

A fact of life for military personnel is moving; it's both a blessing and a frustration. An obvious advantage is the ability to experience a lot of different areas, but the downside of that is not being able to get to know a area intimately. You meet at ton of people from all walks of life, but you also have to say goodbye to more people as well.

I say all of this because it makes these trophies even more special than just their beauty, age, and score.

I'll let the photos do the rest of the talking.

 

[sn.outdoors]

Each of these animals is more than just an animal on the wall that I killed; they're memories I cherish.

 

[Crossbowguy]

Very Nice!!! Trophy wall anyone would be proud of!!! Keep knocking them down!!!!

 

[Crossbowguy]

Those are some impressive groups with the broadheads too!

 

[sn.outdoors]

Very Nice!!! Trophy wall anyone would be proud of!!! Keep knocking them down!!!!

Thank you. I've been blessed with great opportunities and was lucky a few times. I'd say the wall is doing pretty well for someone who doesn't care much about rack size As far as adding trophies to the wall.... I don't know, its getting pretty cramped and moving them is a bit of a pain. Any new animals will have to be either very big, or very special to make the wall. I'm most lucky to have a wife who appreciates not only the beauty of the animals, but also the special meaning they have for me.

 

[Crossbowguy]

Your lucky because my trophies either go in the garage or the camp. "No dead heads in the house"!!!!

Thank you. I've been blessed with great opportunities and was lucky a few times. I'd say the wall is doing pretty well for someone who doesn't care much about rack size As far as adding trophies to the wall.... I don't know, its getting pretty cramped and moving them is a bit of a pain. Any new animals will have to be either very big, or very special to make the wall. I'm most lucky to have a wife who appreciates not only the beauty of the animals, but also the special meaning they have for me.

 

[Lostinthewoods]

Your lucky because my trophies either go in the garage or the camp. "No dead heads in the house"!!!!

Any good deer hitting your food plots yet?

 

[Lostinthewoods]

Going through some game camera pictures from last year, I'm fired up because I know there are a few bulls that should still be alive in the area I'll be hunting in about THREE WEEKS.... ahhh!!!!

I hope I get a chance to run into them








This will be my fourth time hunting the unit in a row and I've got some great honey holes.
They have been getting some really good rain up there the past few days and it should continue out a little more.

Those bulls better watch out because I am coming for them!!!!!

 

[Crossbowguy]

I've got one seven point that I have a few pics of and got one pic of a new buck two days ago b ut can't tell much about him yet. Hoping to get a pic of my split beam buck!

Any good deer hitting your food plots yet?

 

[sn.outdoors]

Yesterday I took my daughter out scouting for some "anti-whoap." I was pretty confident we'd find some, since every other time I've been down to this particular spot I've seen antelope.

We spotted this younger buck from the truck and the wind and terrain were perfect for a stalk, so I asked my daughter if she wanted to walk over there and take a closer look. "I don't know daddy. It's kind of far, and what if he attacks us?" "Ah.... I don't think that'll happen, but if it does i'll make sure to get it on film, and he's right over there. So let's go"



This was the first time we'd actually tried to sneak up on an animal together, so she was't familiar with all of the rules, i.e. NOT TALKING. We weren't exactly the most quite, but the wind was pretty steady and covered our sound well. I was fully expecting to get to the top of the small ridge and find the goat high-tailing it out of there, but he was exactly where we last saw him.... and only 45 yards away!





I could have gotten at least 10 yards closer if I were alone, but at this point I tried, unsuccessfully, to get a selfie with my daughter the antelope and me in the same pic. Once he noticed us, I was surprised he didn't take off. He waited about a minute before he ran and stood 100 yards away from us.



Later in the day we crossed paths with a couple of goats, and one of them was pretty decent.



To be honest, NM ruined me for antelope. Antelope this size don't get too many people excited in NM, but I'd be pumped to kill one like this in ID.

We relocated a few hundred yards from a water hole and spent the rest of the afternoon watching the sunset. I saw one really nice mule deer buck, but wasn't fast enough with the camera to get a pic. We watched 4 muley does come to water with 6 fawns, and that was it for the rest of the night.


I know my daughter had fun because she stayed awake the entire ride home telling me how excited she was to tell her mom about the anti-whoap and to show her the pictures. I can't wait to get out there in less than a month and see if I can't get close again. I have a feeling it won't be so easy when the season comes, but I sure hope it is.

 

[Lostinthewoods]

Took care of some nonstandard, but very important preseason tasks today.
Some more vehicle maintenance, RV upkeep, and took care of some other odds and ends.

Replaced my RV battery and my old bed foam. I'm really "roughing" it out there



Replaced my oil and ran fresh gas in my generators


Replaced my fluid/filters and put a deep pan on my truck transmission






I had to get this stuff all sorted out because I leave the country here soon for work and when I get back I've got less than a week until I leave for NEW MEXICO!!!

 

[Crossbowguy]

That's an awesome stock with your daughter, and something she will never forget! I took my daughter for a wheeler ride yesterday and pulled a couple of my cams, unfortunately I forgot them at camp on my wheeler. Will retrieve them tonight. Hope to have some bigger bucks move in soon!!!!

 

[Crossbowguy]

Any good deer hitting your food plots yet?

 

[Lostinthewoods]

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I bet that gets you excited!!!! Great looking buck!!!!!!!

 

[sn.outdoors]

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And he's moving in the daylight! Man it's been way too long since I've chased whitetails. I hope you can connect on that guy soon.

 

[Crossbowguy]

He's definitely got my attention! He's got decent tine length and mass. I'm hoping he keeps coming in during daylight hours. This pic was taken 50 yards behind my camp.

 

[Lostinthewoods]

He's definitely got my attention! He's got decent tine length and mass. I'm hoping he keeps coming in during daylight hours. This pic was taken 50 yards behind my camp.

I certainly hope he sticks around for you and that we see him down here in a few months!!!
Best of luck!!!!