North Carolina Outdoorsman

Summer Honey Holes

2011-07-17T23:00:00.003-04:00

Got this picture from the Bass Madness blog
As my wife loves to say, I have a season for every season. In the Fall its hunting, football(Appstate that is) and...well...more hunting season. In the Winter its hunting/cool mods to my truck season. In the spring nothing gets my blood pumping faster then the sound of ol Mr Tom gobbling as he approaches, other then Sunday afternoon at Augusta National. So by the time summer roles around I have not only been bitten by the golf bug, but out of no where comes this familiar obsession with needing to catch fish. The problem I keep running into these days is finding a good place to do that. Once upon a time finding a summer honey hole was no challenge at all.Here lately it seems near impossible to find a place that hasn't been trashed, over fished, or lost to some form of development. Couple that with the crazy price of gasoline these days, and us outdoorsman find ourselves unwilling or unable to find a good place to fish within a reasonable distance. Recently I was lucky enough to stumble onto a place that has produced some great fishing. A small pond only 2 or 3 acres in size full of large mouth bass, that has seemingly been ignored or forgotten.It is a ton of fun catching fish here, they are very aggressive because they haven't been caught. The biggest I have caught out of this pond so far is 4 lbs. However we have seen bigger fish swirl or jump as if they were taunting us. On average the fish here weigh in around 2 lbs. My old standby summer setup is a watermelon seed or pumpkin seed trick worm( finesse worm will work also) on a 1/0 or 2/0 worm hook(blood red usually),bullet weight or not depending on the pond vegetation. Combine this with a bump..bump...reel 1 rotation retrieval, more often then not I find a fish. What are your go to summer setups for landing that lunker? What cool stories do you have about fishing your favorite spots? Has anyone else had a hard time finding a good spot?

Review of the New Cooper AT3

2011-06-01T23:42:00.003-04:00

Obviously not my truck, but a great picture of the new AT3

Well, I literally just completed a really long post about my experience with these new tires, and for some reason instead of posting to my blog, the whole post just disappeared. I do not have the energy to retype everything so I will give you the short of it all.
I have had 3 weeks to test the new Cooper AT3 tire. This tire has passed every test I have thrown at it including deep mud,sharp rocks, hill climbs, 70 MPH on the highway in pouring rain, and over loading my truck with fire wood for a weekend camping trip. There are three things I really like about this new tire. It has a 55 thousand mile warranty which is great for guys like me who don't want to buy new tires every 2 years. It is much more quiet and smooth riding then its predecessor the Cooper ATR, and it is a sweet looking tire. I literally look at it every time I walk by my truck. Personally I don't mind the hum of a tire rolling down the road, but some people don't like it. The aggressiveness of this tire rivals the BFG AT which has held the top spot in the All Terrain tire world for years. The AT3 has more of an open and deeper tread then the Toyo Open Country AT and the Nitto Terra Grappler which are also competitors. I have put about 600 miles on this set, so far I am really loving them. If I were to design the perfect tire for all of my needs it would be very similar to this tire. Warranty, weight, sidewall strength, tread pattern and tread depth are all important factors I consider when looking for tires. The AT3 so far has met or exceeded all my needs. I hope it continues to perform well as I put the miles on. There will be much more to come. Stay tuned, I think my fellow outdoorsman should be very interested in what this tire has to offer. And no, Cooper did not tell me or pay me to give this tire a positive review.

The New Cooper AT3

2011-05-11T22:19:00.000-04:00

So a few months back I did a post called "Tires for my Tacoma". I wrote about the research I had done in selecting a new tire for my truck. If you have read the post you know I was very picky. The tire I choose was the Cooper Discoverer ATR. Apparently my post caught the attention of Cooper Tires because I was recently contacted by their Marketing agency with a unique opportunity. Cooper has recently designed a new all terrain tire dubbed the Cooper at3. The want to give me a new set of these tires and a video camera to document the tires performance. Yesterday I received the flip video recorder and got the tires installed.
For years BF Goodrich has set the standard in terms of all terrain tires with the BFG AT KO. Has Cooper changed that with the at3? Much more to come soon.

A special addition to my arsenal

2011-03-09T17:33:00.005-05:00

To start things off, I did not make it to the Dixie Deer Classic this past weekend. Friday and Saturday I was swamped with other stuff and Sunday just didn't work out like I had planned. I heard from several people that it was a great time and that I really missed out. I suppose if I had gone it would have been painful to just window shop since I don't have the funds to spend on any new hunting gear any way. Seriously though, I wish I could have made it, next year for sure.
Moving on, Recently I acquired a shotgun that was my grandfathers. It is a Fox 20 gauge side by side. I believe it was manufactured in the 1960's. At that point the Fox Gun Company had been owned by Savage Arms for quite some time. This gun is not one of the highly sought after Fox side by sides of the early 1900's. However it is still quite the specimen. It handles incredibly well and has very little visible damage. I haven't fired it yet, I plan on taking it to a gun smith just to have it checked out first. However from the looks of things this gun has barely been used. I absolutely cannot wait to take it out into the field. It holds 3 inch shells so it should be the final verdict for early season ducks. Also it will make an outstanding small game getter. Hopefully I will have the opportunity to take a few quail or dove with it next season. Here is a great link to learn a lot more about the famous fox shotguns AH FOX COLLECTORS ASSOCIATION. Also check out the article from the most recent Winter edition of the Quail Unlimited Magazine. It goes into great detail about the story and production of these guns over the last century. I cannot locate a copy of this article on line, but if you have the magazine it is a great read.
I could not be more excited about this gun, not only because it is a Fox shotgun , but more importantly because it was my grandfathers. If I have any say in the matter this shotgun will be enjoyed by my family for generations to come. The gun pictured above is nearly identical to mine markings and all. Until next time...

Brewer's first duck

2011-02-27T22:11:00.008-05:00

Tough life, this was after a day of shed hunting by me and Brewer. Abby our cat is always up for a nap too.

Well, finally after almost 2 years, many long training sessions and several duck hunting trips that turned into wildlife viewing escapades, Brewer and I found our selves in somewhat of the right place at the right time. Several weeks ago(waterfowl season) I was hunting with a friend at Falls Lake. A merganser flew by and my friend dropped him with one shot.Ignoring his training and out of built up excitement, Brewer took off into the water without me giving the signal and was on the bird within a few seconds. Turns out the bird wasn't quite dead yet when he got to it, caught off guard he swam in circles around the bird for a good 30 seconds barking. I am certain he could be heard for a solid mile in all directions. Finally he got the courage to grab the bird and he made it back to shore. It would have been a near perfect retrieve but he dropped the bird just short of my hand, shook off his coat and just looked at me like what now. Patience is a must when training your pup. Brewer is 20 months old, and my first gun dog. We are both learning as we go but I was so proud of him when he brought that duck back to me.This was a huge step for him in the right direction, I am confident we will get there... But in the mean time I thought I would share this funny story with you about Brewer's first duck. Unfortunately I was without a camera to capture this feat, I have really got to get a camera.

-Andrew

Tires for my Tacoma

2011-02-09T19:25:00.002-05:00

This post was going to be a few weeks down the road, however having recieved a comment from a reader suggesting tires, I felt I should go ahead with this one. So if any of you are like me at all, you get into ruts where all you can think about is the next cool thing you want to buy or in this case need to buy. For the last several months I have done tons of research on the right tire for my tacoma. I have a pretty good base knowledge of tires but my situation is a bit unique. I have a 2004 Toyota Tacoma extra cab with a the 2.7 liter 4 cylinder engine. It is also a five speed manual transmission and 4WD. The truck has 1.75 inches of lift in the front and around 2.5 in the rear along with a camper shell.My dilema is that while I want to continue to run a larger then stock tire, I also have to be gas conscious and make an effort not to wear out my clutch before its time. Currently I run a 265/75/16 Bridgestone Dueler Revo in the Passenger rated (4 ply) version. This is one size larger and 3.5 lbs heavier(42lbs) then my stock tire. These tires have been outstanding, and I have gotten right at 62k out of them. If I had rotated them more and kept better tabs on the air pressure I probably could have made them last longer. Any who, I also get 22 mpg on the highway if I keep it just under 70mph.
I want to move to a different size tire 235/85/16, I really like the tall skinny look of these tires. Not to mention the added benefits of less wear and tear on your drive train/steering components,and being a little less likely to hydroplane. The problem is that this size only comes in the LT (light truck)E rating (10 ply rated). This makes for a much heavier tire, which defeats the purpose of a skinny tire in my specific case. One other variable to throw into the mix is the fact that whichever tire I buy has to last as long as possible(not always a priority). So here is a list of criteria for my perfect tire.

- at least 31.7 inches tall
- fairly aggressive tread
- at least 50k warranty on tread
- no more then 45 lbs per tire, less is better
- in the ball park of $150 per tire
- good online reviews

Of course I would love to run the old stand by BFG AT but in the size I want to run that tire weighs 49 lbs, which equals less clutch life and worse gas mileage. As far as tires go, that one is my absolute favorite no doubt about it. After researching many different all terrain tires and judging them against my picky criteria one has emerged a clear winner. The Cooper Discoverer ATR. In 235/85/16 It is 31.78 inches tall, has a tread depth of 16.5/32, a 50k treadlife warranty, fits my budget and weighs in at a light 42 lbs per tire according to www.gripston.com. I think it will be a great fit for my backwoods adventures while still providing a good tire for all of my daily driving. Other tires I seriously considered where the Hankook Dynapro ATM, the Bridgestone Dueler Revo, Toyo Open Country AT, and the Kumho Road Venture AT. All of these tires came very close but had one strike against them. I havent purchased my new tires yet but it wont be long. Well I have to go for now, This was a brief overview of my findings, but hopefully it will be helpful to someone else.

Coyotes in the triangle

2011-02-09T17:23:00.004-05:00

If you talk to any hunter around NC or do a quick google search it is easy to figure out that we are being encroached upon by the wily Eastern Coyote. Or perhaps we have encroached on him. In either case encounters with these wild dogs are becoming more and more common all over North Carolina, including the triangle area. I have written a very similar post in the past, but in the past few weeks at Raleigh Country Club, basically in the heart of Raleigh, there has been a fury visitor roaming the grounds. While the coyote hasn't been spotted in two weeks, for about a week before that he made several appearances during regular working hours in broad daylight. He was spotted one morning at 9:30 standing on one of the greens not 50 yards from the main clubhouse. While the NCWRC website linked above lists coyotes in this area topping out at around 44 pounds, I saw this one in person and I estimate him/her to be closer to 55 pounds.Regardless of my opinion on its size, animal control was called to set traps since you cant have a coyote mingling with golfers. To date there has been only a raccoon caught in the trap and no more sightings of the coyote.Maybe he went back where ever he came from or maybe he just got smart, who knows. The greenway for the city of Raleigh is not far at all from the golf course, perhaps he found a safe place along that trail. One thing I learned is that if you are suspicious a coyote may be roaming around your area, look for sign. Scat was seemingly easy to find, holes dug in search of moles and voles where abundant and a deer carcass dumped by hunters was found in pieces throughout the golf course. Even if I had never seen the coyote it was pretty clear that something similar was taking up residence close by. I will keep you posted on this on going story, but in the mean time, I would love to hear other stories of coyote encounters in North Carolina. Shoot me an email or just leave a comment.

Moving Forward

2011-02-04T14:30:00.004-05:00

Hey guys,

So I guess I have some explaining to do seeing as how its been so long since I have posted anything. There are two things that I will blame for this dry period. One, having no energy to keep this up to date and two, thinking that no one was reading it any way, so why bother. Well I was caught off guard the other evening at an Appalachian State basketball game while catching up with an old friend and they mentioned reading my blog. I was blown away since I hadn't talked to this person in several years. To make a short story even shorter, this has given me a renewed interest and a new attitude for not giving up on NC Outdoorsman. I think I am going to set a goal of at least 1 post a week, maybe more, maybe not. I am excited again about writing so we will see where this goes. Recently there have been several things in my life worthy of writing about. Posts coming soon will include:

-Coyote at Raleigh Country Club

-Deer Season in review

-Brewers first duck

-Time to buy tires for the Tacoma, a breakdown of my search for the perfect tire.

-New BBQ recipe on trial for the Super Bowl, how it stacked up.

-Appstate football update

-$50 DIY Camper shell paint job

-Can my bird dog shed hunt too?

Moving on to a more serious subject. What a tragedy that occurred on Falls lake this past Sunday evening. As it has been well reported, the body of 40 year old Greg Feeter was discovered in the water Wednesday evening by authorities. Feeter was kayaking and perhaps fishing from his kayak on Sunday and didn't return home that night. We may never know what happened, but what a tragic reminder of the importance of being safe above all else while enjoying the great outdoors. Greg may have taken every necessary precaution, I am not saying he didn't, because he was apparently an experienced paddler. I know many times in the excitement of preparing for a hunt I will forget my harness or something along those lines and take a gamble I should never take.Since it only takes one small mistake, we have got to become more safety conscious in our outdoor excursions. My prayers go out to his family and friends.

Check back in a few days to learn about the coyote roaming around Raleigh Country Club

A long awaited update

2010-09-20T18:05:00.007-04:00

The future is bright for the Black and Gold. Photo courtesy of AppFan.com

Great spirits often encounter violent opposition from mediocre minds

- Albert Einstein

I heard this quote the other day for the first time and thought it was profound.
On another note, it is fall, deer season is getting into full swing and the Boys up in Boone are starting to look really good just like we thought they would.

Brewer is currently sleeping beside me on the couch making it really hard to type, his foot keeps creeping up onto the key board.

If you live in the triangle and are looking for a good church, come check out South Bridge Fellowship in the Brier Creek Shopping center movie theatre. It is rock solid, currently we are in week 2 of a series titled "Lies we live by" For real, you should check it out.

I recently smoked a boston butt that was probably the best bbq I have ever had, and ever since then all I can think about is doing it again. Right now I am about to give in and go to the store to get another boston butt. I think I will try to cook this one in the crock pot. One of the things I have learned about making bbq is that there are many ways to make it taste great and it is really hard to screw up. If you are in need of some simple great recipes shoot me an email.

I finally got my federal duck stamp today, GAME ON, brewer cant wait. We went dove hunting the other day after work, only 2 doves flew over and I got one shot off that didn't even come close. He needs some good work with real birds. Hope to get after them soon.

I know I am INCREDIBLY biased, but when will Armanti Edwards get some love from the panthers, he has been inactive the first 2 games of the season. Could it get any worse for the panthers, I submit that it could not(say it like Brian Regan wait for it). Who wouldn't love to see a little Mountaineer Package thrown into the offense here and there.

Football Jones

2010-04-29T21:15:00.006-04:00

No time to write, but I got football on the mind. I have always been a panther fan, but with Dexter Jackson and Superman now on the roster, I can no longer be just a casual fan. These Mountaineers look like they mean business, time will tell, but I think this could be another year to remember for the Black & Gold.

NC Turkeys- Public land Hunt

2010-04-15T21:46:00.003-04:00

Turkey Track
Well, This NC outdoorsman finally got a free afternoon a few days ago. I could hardly function waiting around for the work day to end. When the time finally came, I ran home, let the good as new Brewer out for a little potty break, and then hit the woods. In the not so distant past, I had witnessed Turkeys on two occasions in a field just off of the game lands I would be hunting. I also frequently found lots of sign in the area. I could not have had higher hopes, but it was not to be. I probably walked 4 miles, calling every 150 or 200 yards give or take a little. I threw the whole book at those birds and never got a response, being this early in the season I was a little surprised. I found 2 sets of fresh tracks in separate locations, so I know the birds are around. I finished up about 7:00 pm and drove home thinking of what I might do differently next time. Maybe Saturday afternoon I will make it back out there. I have to say, the one satisfying thing about this hunt was that I made a game plan before hand and stuck with it the entire time. Usually my impatience gets the best of me and I call an audible. Even though I didn't bag a bird, this was a great experience for me, and I cant wait to get back out there.
Thanks for stopping by,

Andrew

Kayak Tuna

2010-04-15T21:24:00.004-04:00

This image courtesy of Field and Stream

Check out this record setting Tuna caught by Matt Shepard from a kayak off of the North Carolina coast. This story is courtesy of Field and Stream . This is pretty amazing, and now I really want that Kayak

Interesting... Turkey Heart Research

2010-04-11T09:21:00.004-04:00

Not my hand, but this is a Turkey heart.

I found this over at the NWTF website. This is pretty interesting. Thought you might want to check it out.
Attention Michigan Hunters: Have a Heart?

Field Care Tips for your Trophy Tom

2010-04-11T07:59:00.006-04:00

Up-Close Outfitters had a great day on the South Carolina opener, here is a picture of their success.

Via the Moose Droppings blog, I found the Annie got her gun blog. Over there I found a great right up Anne has done about taking care of your turkey in the field for mounting. Here is the link,Field care tips for Wild Turkeys check out this article and the rest of her blog, tons of info over there. Anne and her husband own the Colorado Institute of Taxidermy Training, so they know their stuff.
I know I couldn't make it out yesterday, but hopefully some of you did. How did it go, BAG or BUST? I want to hear your stories and see your pictures. Leave a comment or send me an email with some of your pictures. To Daniel "Moose" over at Moose Droppings, I owe you a Thank You for finding these great resources.

Thanks for stopping by,

Andrew

Chronic Wasting Disease- The things you need to know

2010-04-08T17:46:00.009-04:00

This is a photo of a buck with CWD courtesy of ESPN OUTDOORS from an article written a few years ago.

Daniel over at the Moose Droppings blog has just done a great short write up on Chronic Wasting Disease with some really informative links. Check it out to get up to speed on what is going on with this disease. There have been some changes made to NC law regarding CWD that hunters need to be aware of.

Turkey in downtown Raleigh?

2010-04-08T16:08:00.004-04:00

This is not the same turkey, just a funny picture, though I cannot decide if it is real or not. This was taken from an article in the Boston Globe about Turkeys showing up in Massachusetts a few years back.

Today at Raleigh Country Club(my place of employment) there was a wild turkey spotted running across the golf course. I did not see it my self but one of the employees got a photo of it on his cell phone. It looked like a hen, but it honestly could have been a gobbler, it was not a great photo. RCC is located off of New Bern Ave about half a mile past the belt line just shy of downtown Raleigh. I was really surprised to hear of this at first. However when I began thinking about it, I suppose it isn't really all that strange. The Raleigh Green way basically comes through the golf courses back yard. That green way goes for miles and miles and provides a good amount of cushion for wildlife in an otherwise urban area. Also if you consider the amount of woods you see around a lot of the belt line and HWY 264, it really isn't that far fetched to have a turkey stroll through like it did. Apparently a nice gobbler crossed the golf course last year about this time too. Why the turkey came through today, who knows, maybe it was shot at on Youth Day last Saturday, or maybe scouting pressure pushed it out. Maybe it was looking for love(in all the wrong places,lookin for love in...) Sorry,I couldn't resist. Generally where there is one, another is not too far off, we will see. The peculiar thing about all of this is the direction he was headed. The turkey came from the New Bern Ave side of the golf course and was headed to Poole Rd via the neighboring church yard. There is nothing but houses and busy roads for several hundred yards until the woods parallel to interstate 440. This would be quite a feat if the bird managed to survive Poole Rd and all of the houses, dogs and people along the way. Hope he made it.
This gets me fired up, but unfortunately I will not be able to hunt opening day. Hopefully one afternoon next week or the following Saturday I will make it into the woods. If you make it into the woods before I do let me know how it goes. Leave a comment or shoot me an email. Until then, thanks for stopping by.

-Andrew

Coyotes.... Coming soon to the woods near you?

2010-04-05T17:26:00.008-04:00

I put these pictures up on another post a few months ago. This is a coyote trapped on a friends land in Forsyth county a little while ago. I generally dont think these animals are a threat to humans. This one was hurt and cornered.

While I was in High Point Yesterday visiting family, a friend of mine called to tell me about his coyote encounter. He hunts on a farm in north Raleigh that backs up to Interstate 540. My in-laws live in a neighborhood about 1.5 miles away from there with lots of people and pets. Yesterday, my friend was out at the farm working on his food plots. He had finished up his work for the day and was riding around the property with his dog Bennett in his camo gator. He saw motion off to the side and thought it was a deer so he stopped. He sat there for a minute until he saw movement again, this time he could tell it wasn't a deer and it was walking towards the gator. When it got close enough he realized it was a coyote and they had a stare down for about 10 minutes. The coyote apparently couldn't figure out what it was looking at. Then Bennett, an extremely small white English Setter jumped out of the gator. Mike said immediately the coyote charged with a full head of steam, when Mike jumped out of the gator it stopped and ran off in the other direction really fast. However within 10 seconds Mike happened to turn around and saw the same, or possibly another coyote stalking Bennett from behind. He turned and took a step towards the coyote now at 20 yards and it instantly fled not to be seen again.Although they are not very big most of the time, Coyotes are known to be pet killers, no doubt it could have its way with Bennett who weighs in at around 30 lbs.The Eastern Coyote which inhabits our area usually weighs between 30 and 50 lbs and stands on average 20-24 inches at the shoulders. Northern Coyotes tend to be larger. It is a good thing that it seemed to still exhibit a fear of humans but this is not the first story I have heard like this, and recently these sorts of encounters are becoming the norm. I have had a few encounters with Coyotes, but only in the western part of the state, and none of them where threatening to me. What, if any action should be taken to control these wild dogs? I know for a fact I am going to start hunting them since there is no closed season for coyotes in our state. Look for more info on this topic soon, I want to research this problem a little more. Do a quick google search of Coyotes in your area and see what comes up, you might be surprised.

-Andrew

Weekend in review

2010-04-04T11:37:00.010-04:00

Just a few images of the destruction brought on by the tornado that ripped through High Point last week. Images courtesy of WGHP FOX 8 NEWS

On Friday I just had to take Brewer out to do some shed hunting. It had been three weeks since he hurt his foot and all signs told me he was ready to go. Well he jumped a deer up as soon as we got into the woods and was gone for a while. I was really worried and nearly horse after calling and whistling to him for sometime. I think it was a combination of him being so restless and a little rusty that made him run off. A couple I had run into earlier found him not far from me roaming the woods. He hurt his foot again in a different spot(just a scrape,nothing serious) and is now out of commission for even longer. Steffi was thrilled with me, and I didnt even get to shed hunt because he ran off. When I got him back we called it a day. I have got to do something to break him of chasing deer. At first it was funny, now it is potentially dangerous. I think I will have to go the E Collar route. That is the only thing I can think of that will solve this problem. Great, another expensive must have on my hunting list! I will let you know what happens with that. As for now, Brewer is on house arrest once again. Way to go Dad!
Saturday a friend of ours got married in Raleigh. Steffi was in the wedding so she was busy all day. My friend Keith's wife was in the wedding also, we saw this as a prime opportunity to go wet a line. Keith has a 14 ft jon boat with a trolling motor, fish finder and swivel seats with backs. If you have ever spent any time on a jon boat without comfortable seats you understand how nice those are. We didn't get to head out until lunch time.We had about 3 hours to burn so we planned to fish the local Wake Forest reservoir. By the time we picked up some minnows and got to the lake it was pretty warm. We were bobber fishing about 2 feet deep with 2 small split shots half way between bobber and hook. We mostly worked the cover along the shoreline. Keith caught a couple small large mouth right out of the gates and I followed shortly after with a small white bass. We spent the next hour or so getting skunked and then we found the crappie hole we had been looking for. We caught 8 crappie total. Keith accidentally dropped one back into the water and 2 or 3 others got off the hook right at the boat.So it was a pretty good hole. I must say it had been quite some time since I had been fishing, and it showed. It took an hour or more for me to get back a little touch and precision with my casts. I must have gotten hung up 15 times. I was actually a little embarrassed. (talking to my self, PULL IT TOGETHER) Oh well, what can ya do. Thanks for your patients Keith. There were several great photo opportunities but Steffi had the camera with her for bridesmaid stuff. I am trying to get her to buy a new camera so I can have her old one and eliminate this problem of sharing. Other then that, this little excursion was great, it could not have been a nicer day to be on the water. The wind blew just enough to keep us comfortable and we caught something. This has me really wanting to spend more money. A few years back a friend of my family GAVE me a 15ft aluminum v-hull fishing boat with a trailer, trolling motor and 4.5 hp outboard. It has been parked at my parents house ever since I got it. I have not taken her out on the maiden voyage yet because she needs a little TLC that I haven't been able to give her. Well the time has come. Saturday was just too much fun not to go back out again really soon, why not start getting my boat in ship shape, it is perfect for small reservoirs like the one we fished. I wasn't able to tow it back with me to Raleigh this weekend, but hopefully it won't be much longer. Look for some pictures soon, I will show you step by step what all I do to it. In the mean time, its almost Turkey Time, so if your not fishing, you should be getting ready to tomahawk Mr Tom, In other news, Steffi and I had just finished watching a movie the other night and just happened to turn on the news. When we did they were covering the tornado that had just ripped through High Point. My parents house was about 1 mile out of the path of the twister. I saw the wreckage and destruction first hand today since we visited family for Easter. Unbelievable. Pictures cannot describe what it was like in person. I saw one 2 story house that was now only 1 story with no sign of the upper half to be found. The house literally 20ft beside of that house was not touched, not even a shingle came off. There were many other instances like this, really strange? One house was literally split in two pieces, the roof and attic from one side was on the ground upside down and the other side still attached. It was a chilling and ominous feeling to see the literal path of the tornado. I hope everyone can pick up the pieces and get back to normal soon.
On a much lighter note, It was like Christmas for me at my parents house this weekend. I finally picked up all of my fishing doodads from dads garage and he gave me his old shop vac(he bought a new one) and his driver(Ping G5). I needed a driver desperately seeing as how mine was made in 1998( Titleist 975D) and is the size of most people 5 woods these days. Any who, cant wait to get out on the links and swing the new driver a little, and I am thrilled about the shop vac. I am so sick and tired of feeding the stinking timed vacuum quarters. What an anxiety attack trying to get all the dirt out before that thing cuts off.
Thanks for stoppin by,

-Andrew

Lets talk a little football

2010-04-01T15:32:00.002-04:00

I know I know, it is so early for college football talk. I just have not gotten into the March Madness this year. It has nothing to do with who is playing, I just haven't been into basketball this year. In any case, I always have college football on the brain, more specifically, Appalachian State Football. With season ticket sales opening up today for the Black & Gold Nation, it feels like a great opportunity to talk a little football. I am excited about the upcoming season for several reasons.
1. Some new faces on the coaching staff. I loved all of our old coaches, but I am really excited to see what these new guys can bring to the program. Bob McClain from Tulsa will take over Offensive Line duties, he replaces Shawn Elliot who left for South Carolina. I think Coach Elliot did a great job with our O-line guys, look for no drop off with Coach McClain.
Coach Scot Sloan comes to us from Riverside Military Academy. He replaces Defensive Coordinator John Wiley, who left for East Carolina. Coach Sloan will be Defensive Backs coach, Coach Dale Jones will move up to DC from Linebackers Coach. I really look forward to seeing what Coach Sloan has to offer. He brings years of coaching experience on the college level. I am also really excited to see Coach Jones at the DC position, he has already eliminated the Bandit Linebacker position and put a strong side linebacker in its place. Coach Wiley did a great job over the years but I really feel a fresh look to the ASU defense will do good things.
I am perhaps most excited about our new Strength and Conditioning Coach, Mike Kent. When Coach Dillman left earlier this fall, I found my self worried he would be very hard to replace. The intensity, motivation and work ethic he brought to our program was unbelievable. Enter Mike Kent, Coach Kent may actually be over qualified for this job. I think the only reason he took it is because he loves ASU and wanted to be back in Boone. Coach Kent has spent many years moving up in the world of college athletics at some really BIG TIME schools including Kansas State, Pittsburgh and Louisville. Before all that he spent 9 years at ASU as Strength Coach. I am thrilled to have this guy back on our home turf. Coach Dillman did amazing things with our athletes, but if there is a person that can take our guys to the next level, it is Coach Kent.

2. Though we lost the Greatest APP of all time #14, we have 2 really solid options to take over the offensive reigns in Jamal Jackson and DeAndre Presley. Both I feel have similar abilities. Jackson may be a bit more durable at 6-3 190. But Presley 5-11 170 has the game experience. It should be a battle to the finish to see who gets the job this fall. I will spend time on our offense more later. Some expect to see a dropoff in offensive performance next year. I havent convinced my self of that just yet with the guys we have returning(we will be just fine) but in any case, this leads me to #3.

3. Defense, in 2005 and 2006 our defense was ridiculously rock solid. Remember the days of #44 & #97 wreaking havoc in the back field, and #47 ball hawkin all day long. Bobby Lamb and UNI remember Hunter and Murrell for sure. Will we ever have another Corey Lynch, tough to say. Looking at this coming year on the defensive side of the ball, we have some great talent returning and some new comers who are sure to WOW you. Guys Like Mark Legree, DJ Smith, Dominique McDuffie, Troy Sanders, Michael Frazier, Justin Wray, Ed Gainey and Jeremy Kimbrough will be our resident Head Hunters. Others like Bobby Bozzo, Demery Brewer, Jabari Fletcher, Lanston Tanyi, Tony Robertson and Gordy Witte along with new JUCO transfer Chris Aiken will power the front line. I know I have left some guys out, but the point is, this could be a phenomenal season defensively for the Black & Gold. The guys listed in the first group are all very fast, physical players who will be aggressive and opportunistic. The guys in the second group have another year under their belt and all signs indicate great expectations for this group as well. Look for the Veterans like Fletcher, Robertson and Bozzo to play with a chip on their shoulder, and look out for Chris Aiken. Weighing in at 6-1 310 he just might be the real deal. Aiken spent 5 years in the army and served 2 tours in Iraq before going to Blinn College in Texas for 2 years and transferring to ASU. He is a man.

All in all, we have a lot to look forward to next year. I think we will see a fresh new face to the APP's Defense that will be really exciting to watch. Lots of hard hits and turnovers coming your way soon. Offensively one really cant worry too much with guys like Devon Moore, Cedric Baker, Devin Radford, Brian Quick, Travaris Cadet, Matt Cline, Ben Jorden and hopefully Coco Hillary returning, along with the much anticipated entrance of guys like Rod Chisholm, Andrew Peacock and Tony Washington. Besides, who doesn't get excited about a team coached by Jerry Moore, in my opinion there isnt a finer coach in the country. I just couldn't resist talking a little APP Football. Since no one is here to talk with me, I wrote it out. I am sure there will be plenty more to come. Check out the splash page at GOASU.COM. See you at the ROCK.

GO APPS

Think it through, dont over think it

2010-03-23T20:35:00.006-04:00

Random but funny

Recently on my quest to find the perfect marinade/recipe for steaks, ribs and such, I made a great discovery. The less I do the better things turn out.Just the other day I just had to finish cooking the bacon for our bacon swiss burgers on the grill. Lets just say we had swiss burgers, there was no bacon left within 20 seconds of putting it on the grill. I can laugh about it now I suppose. One of my friends at work just uses salt & pepper on his steaks, so I tried it a few weeks ago and I will never do anything different. I have nearly perfected my rib recipe, at least according to me, by not using so much stuff. My point being, often times with all of the information available to us these days we tend to over think things. I believe this holds true for hunting also. With all of the new products, TV shows and crazy fast bullets and bows on the market today, I find my self making things harder then they need to be. As you know I have a list a mile long of hunting stuff I need. I have to remind my self that I really have what I need. Scent Lok, scent free technology wasn't around 50 or even 25 years ago, but somehow people managed to kill deer. All of the great camo patterns we have today haven't been around that long, hunters killed great bucks without wearing it. These really light weight aluminum climbers haven't been around that long either. I recently watched an educational hunting video from 20 years ago that referred to a "hang on" stand with ratchet straps as a "portable" stand. Today's compound bows are approaching speeds of 350 fps and some of the new rifle calibers shoot well in excess of 3000 fps. This is all fine and good. I have absolutely no problem with any of it. I use scent lok, and take every precaution with my scent before entering the woods.I cannot own enough new camo and my favorite rifle caliber is the fairly new 270 WSM. My bow is fairly old, but I would love a newer faster one. I watch just about every hunting show I have time for, and I subscribe to a few different hunting magazines. With all of this information being thrown at me I find my self really thinking hard and analyzing every step of my next hunt. On many occasions I find my self really torn on wear to sit, or what tree to pick, and taking valuable time to make a decision. I find my self failing to commit to a well thought out plan at the first sign things aren't going right. Usually I have the latest greatest tips and tricks floating around in my head making me doubt what I know to be true from experience. Many times I have abandoned my original plan 30 minutes into the hunt only to regret it later. Hunters were successful way before present technology existed by using much simpler methods. Next time you find your self in an outdoor dilemma, tred through all the TV shows, magazine articles and latest greatest equipment floating around your head, focus and rely on your instinct, draw on your experiences to make your decision. Here are some time tested salt & pepper principals for hunting that won't do you wrong.

-Know the area your hunting
-Master your weapon
-Pay attention to the wind and weather
-Stay focused, be patient and stick to the plan

Thanks for stopping by,

Andrew

Spring Turkey Tactics

2010-03-17T19:01:00.004-04:00

A picture I took from a few years back. This is Frank Askew before the Up-close Outfitter days. This hunt took place in Boone,NC on private land. I remember this hunt very well because it was my turn to shoot and I never got the chance. When Frank saw the length of the beard on this guy I guess he couldnt resist. It was almost 12 inches long.

Its approaching that time of year again. For most big game hunters spring turkey season provides the perfectly timed reason to get back into the woods. Winter has passed, thoughts of beaches and cookouts loom in our heads and that warm sunny afternoon with the window down and radio playing is almost here. I am always looking for any excuse to get out into the woods when the weather turns nice,and there really is no greater spring time sound then that of a gobbling tom.
These days turkeys seem to be gaining more popularity with hunters. This is a double edged sword since they arent making land anymore. Especially around the triangle area where I live, with it being one of the fastest growing places in the country. While I dont know the numbers for turkeys in our area, I believe there is a healthy population. With the upcoming season a few weeks away, here are a few tips to keep in mind if you plan on joining the masses in pursuit of our feathered friend Tom. Dont get me wrong, more hunters is what we are after. However some of the ones I have run into in the field lack any common courtesy or sportsmans etiquette.

-Scout Scout and Scout-
Dont just show up on opening morning and expect a turkey to be roosted 100 yards from the parking lot. Even during deer season I take note of any turkey sign I run across. Get into the woods and go for a hike, whether it be public or private land, begin to develop a game plan. Many people locate the birds on the roost the evening before the hunt. This is a great way to help you develop a game plan, but dont rely on it. Try to locate turkeys on the land you have access to a couple of times before the season. Maybe once on a rainy day and once on a sunny day. Turkeys tend to behave a little differently when it rains. Do not under any circumstances use calls to locate birds before the season starts. Your gig will be up. Just sit and glass if no sign is found.

-Calling- There are a great variety of calls on the market now from $5 to much much more. The majority of hunters tend to use the same calls. Be aware that most of the guys you will be sharing land and birds with will be using whatever calls happen to be on sale when they go into the local sporting goods store. Turkeys become pressured and call shy very quickly. Trust me when I tell you I know how tight things can be, especially for us married guys who have to get approval for new hunting toys. Spend a few more $$ and get a better call. You want to sound unique. Ok even if you cant afford a new call, at least master the one you have, dont wait until the night before or even the week before to start cuttin and cluckin. Being a good caller means being proficient with whatever you have.
There are two different schools of thought when it comes to calling. One being call often and aggressively, the other being a much more conservative method of calling softly and less often. Both have produced for me in the proper context, use your judgement. Take into consideration the weather, hunting pressure and what point of the season it is. Turkeys are less chatty in the rain and later in the season.(There are always exceptions use your thinker)

-Stay Focused- Do not stop hunting until you get all of the way back to your vehicle. Even when you are covering ground you have already covered, stay focused and remain in hunt mode. Several times I have missed out on a bird because I was walking back to the truck and thinking of other things. One time, a gobbler was literally beside my truck, I never saw him until he saw me, that bird hasnt stopped running yet. Remind your self what you are doing, stay sharp, stay aware. This alone will go a long way to helping you bag that bird. You would be surprised at the number of missed opportunities because you were not paying attention to your surroundings.

-Cover up in Camo- While you might think this is a given, I have seen some guys who do not take this seriously. Turkeys have ridiculously good vision, camo from head to toe is a requirement in my book.

For more great TURKEY tips click on the link for Up-close Outfitters in MY LINKS.

Thanks for stopping by, go get em.

Andrew

The Brew boy is sidelined for a few days

2010-03-14T13:54:00.002-04:00

Yesterday I had Brewer out running around on the game lands. We were shed hunting and had worked our way down to the lake shore in a bedding area. Just as I began to notice all of the trash that had washed up on the shore, here comes Brewer limping up to me with blood everywhere. I was really worried at first because of the artery that runs just underneath a dogs foot pads. Luckily I noticed a chunk of skin hanging off of his pad. It was bleeding pretty bad, but it seemed to resemble a skinned knee or elbow on a person. He must have cut or scraped it on a piece of trash. He was still running around chasing things, but I figured we needed to go because he was leaving a trail of blood with every step. By the time we got home the seats in my truck and my clothes were covered in blood. We tried for a while to get the bleeding stopped, but everytime he walked around it would continue. We found the only vet open in the area on Saturday afternoon which happened to be the vet at Pet Smart. Normally I shy away from stores like this when shopping for Brewer, but I must say I was impressed with the Dr and her staff. I will not hesitate to take him there again if needed. After a long wait he was finally fixed up. I have to take him back to the vet this afternoon to change his bandage. The wound bled a little more last night but I think it has pretty much stopped now.Banfield Veterinary office(the one in Pet Smart) was much cheaper then the emergency vet we called. It was going to cost us $100 just to show up there. Yesterday it was $98 for everything and it will cost $40 more today. I know it would have been double that at the emergency vet.
Any who, I think he will be fine. As you can see in the pictures his paw is rapped in a bandage and then covered with a plastic bag. He hasnt really messed with it at all in 24 hours, I think he knows it is helping him. Hopefully in a week or so his foot will heal and he can return to playing outside, until then, it might get a little crazy around here because he will have loads of energy. Dr's orders for him to take it easy. They couldnt stitch or glue anything because of the location of the wound, it moves and bends with every step he takes. I will keep you posted on his progress. So far he is being a real trooper.

Dixie Deer Classic

2010-03-10T18:19:00.002-05:00

I finally made it over to the Dixie Deer Classic on Sunday about lunch time.(had to work in the morning) I did not get to spend nearly as much time there as I wanted. I was however very impressed with what I saw. I am sure by the time I got there some vendors had closed up shop and the merchandise was picked through, but it was still impressive. I planned on attending a few seminars, that didnt happen either, and I am kicking my self for that now. There were thousands of people that represented many different walks of life.It was great to see a variety of people interested in hunting. As many people have reported after viewing this years trophy wall, what we thought would happen with the quality of deer in our state seems to be happening. It appears that the best bucks are becoming better each year and that there are greater numbers of shooter bucks as well.Obviously this is very encouraging for us hunters.I think this will be a continuing trend. The number of people involved with deer management and conservation movements in our state and around the country is growing. One other thing I noticed about this event was the amount of information available there. Just about anything you wanted to know related to hunting was there. It was funny to walk around inside the buildings and hear all of the turkey calls simultaneously being used. It sound like a turkeys where takin over.
Quick funny side story. I told my self I wasnt going to spend more then 20 or 30 dollars at the show and only if it was on something I had to have. So I went to the ATM after work and entered $40 into the computer(costs $10 to get in). When I reach over to get my cash I realize it is a thicker stack then I expected. The ATM had given me $200. Not only did this nearly put us in the red, but it was already burning a hole in my pocket. Remember, my wife says I am really impulsive, and I dont deny it anymore. I thought to my self, I smell T-R-O-U-B-L-E (sing it like Travis Tritt).Luckily I controlled the urge on more then one occasion and left having only spent 20 dollars on a new lead for Brewer of all things. But it wasnt easy!
There were vendors from all over the country including outfitters, hunting gear manufacturers and lots of other related stuff. All I can say for next year is, clear the calendar and save some cash. I cant wait to go back. The lines for Lee and Tiffany and Michael Waddell were really long, but I would have waited if I had the time. Just the chance to small talk it up with those folks would have been awesome. If you really want to get a better look at what went on this weekend, slide on over to Moose Droppings and check it out, he spent a lot more time there, talked with more folks and took lots of pictures. His link is to your right under MY LINKS. Thanks for stopping by.

-Andrew

Oh --Oh --Oh --Oh --Oh (Say it like Tim the tool man Taylor)

2010-03-06T21:11:00.004-05:00

Yesterday I got to yank somebody out of the mud in my Tacoma. It was a shining moment for my truck, and it made my day. Brewer and I had just gotten out to our local stomping grounds (a huge open field of mud surrounded by lots of woods on either side) when I saw someone pull up behind me. I have never seen anyone else there, but there are always tons of tire tracks.(The land borders public land and is not posted at all) This guy and his son were going to ride dirt bikes in the field and got their 2 wheel drive Nissan truck stuck in the mud. Turns out he was neighbors with the owner of the land. So any way, on to the good part, the guy had a chain and a tow rope, so I told him I would try and pull him out. I must admit I was a little skeptical of my 4banger Taco with less then half of the tire tread left(he was stuck pretty bad).Not only did I have to pull this guy out, but I also had to navigate some pretty deep mud to get in position to give him a tug, but my doubts would soon be put to rest. The good old Tacoma passed this test with flying colors. She navigated the mud like it wasnt there. We hooked up the rope and I dropped her into 4 low, one slight tug and out he came. My pride immediately swelled. We talked for a few minutes "That truck sits pretty high" he said, "yeah she has 2.5 inches of lift" I replied, you get the idea. After a little more small talk we went our separate ways. This event did 2 things for me. It made me more confident in my trucks abilities and made it me want to get going on all of those modifications I talked about in the last post. Got to be prepared, right. HAHA. Just a cool story I thought yall would appreciate. Well I am looking forward to tomorrow, I am finally gonna go to the Dixie Deer Classic. I hope to spend a good amount of time there, I know I am gonna try to catch a seminar or 2. I will let ya know how it all goes.

-Andrew

Wish in one hand.......

2010-03-01T16:52:00.006-05:00

As I have mentioned before I suffer a setback common to most outdoorsman. Too many wants, too little resources. I have a 2004 Toyota Tacoma SR5 4X4. In my younger years I was an avid 4wheeler, or maybe more like a wanna be. I broke enough stuff on my first few vehicles to make a believer out of my dad, thats for sure. Any way, I thought I might one day grow out of this phase, and no longer enjoy the humm of a mud tire screaming down the road. Turns out I was wrong. Although I must admit I am more attracted to the expedition style rigs these days, as opposed to the rock crawlers. Here lately I have had my Tacoma on the brain 24/7. I recently purchased a campershell from a friend who sold his Tacoma. I still need to paint it to match my truck, but I love it. I stay awake at night thinking of how cool it will be to store all of my hunting gear in my truck all season long next year, and how I need to put in a herculiner bed liner, and how I need to build a false bottom with all sorts of compartments for all my other stuff and so on.... And that is just the beginning, I need to buy a whole new leaf pack from Old Man Emu because I run a 2.5 inch Add a Leaf right now that makes the truck ride like a dump truck. Along with that I will need new shocks (Bilstein 5100's), and new coil overs (OME 881's) for the front to replace the spacer. Then the other thing that I cant stop thinking about is a rear selectable locker like the ones that are standard on the Tacoma TRD's. Ohh how nice it would be to have a TRD. But before all of this lets not forget I will need new tires soon, what tire should I get and in what size? Do my 265/75/16's look small ? I have not even mentioned the fact that ever since I got in a wreck (THAT WAS NOT MY FAULT) my front bumper has been a little dented and crooked, How great would an ARB bumper look on the front of my truck, and why not go ahead and throw in the winch too, the 2 go hand in hand.If only I could have all of this stuff..... Then I could start to seriously consider an ARB selectable air locker for the front diff. HAHA, its never ending. Luckily my truck came from the factory with 4.30 gears so I can run a larger tire without having to re-gear. I guess I will have to take it one step at a time. I got the campershell, that is a big step. This stuff has been driving me crazy, and it will just have to keep on doing that, because those wishes arent coming true anytime soon. I really need to replace some of my camo before next deer season rolls around, there goes a couple hundred. I need a dozen arrows and new broadheads, my rubber boots are beginning to dry rot and I dont even have a stand to hunt from. I used a friends climber all season this year, I am sure he will want it back. My binocs cost 17$ 4 years ago, they only work at high noon(just kidding, but not a big stretch), and if I had a scope on my 8mm Mauser I would have probably killed a nice buck this year, those iron sights just dont cut it in low light. Wouldnt it be great to have another gun, maybe a revolver, maybe a lever action 30-30(always wanted one of those)or maybe another 270 WSM(my favorite caliber, I sold my last 2 for different reasons). Not to mention, I always hunt on gamelands. How nice would it be to have access to private land away from the crowds and crazies.Maybe I should lease some land next year. I also need waterfowl decoys in the worst sort of way.
What is funny about all of this stuff I have mentioned is that is doesnt even make the list( the long long list) of things we really need according to my wife, rightfully, painfully so. I listed all of this stuff just to give you a bit of an insight into some of my mindset here lately. Recently Steffi had a real health scare and it has really reset both of our perspectives. Right now it looks as if everything will be just fine, but a few days ago our world nearly turned upside down. This has all played out in the best possible scenario up to this point and it has really brought us closer together and began to strengthen our marriage. I do not believe that God brings on sickness or hardship to anyone, but I think sometimes he allows it, giving us a chance to learn something we would not have otherwise learned and increase our faith in him. One of our prayers recently has been for God to reveal a part of himself to us that we never knew before, and he really has. We often hear of people talking about how God provided for them in some amazing way, or how God healed them, or how he taught them something, but when it comes to ourselves, we often believe we are the exception. The one person too far isolated from God by our actions and mistakes to know him as a healer, provider, or Savior etc... Instead of living out our lives apart from God, we should understand that God constantly pursues each of us and he wants us to trust in him completely. All things do work together for the GOOD of those who love him. (Romans 8:28) Consider this, in your next trial, hardship, or battle, perhaps God wants to reveal himself to you in a new way. The Bible says that his grace is sufficient for ALL of our needs, and that we are made righteous through faith in his son Jesus, not through our lack of mistakes, proper behavior, or knowledge of God, its a matter of the heart.
Through all of the stuff with Steffi I have learned a few things about my self, whats important, and what I really want. That list of things above is on my mind all the time, but I dont need any of it. The other day I chose to make a decision in Church when our Pastor read this verse Luke 12:34, For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Of course I treasure my wife more then those things, but often I fail to show it. When I realized this it literally changed me. Being married is probably the hardest thing, and the most natural thing I have done. When Steffi and I got married I vowed to always put her first, to treasure her, to make her feel irreplaceable to me, because she is. Through her being sick I realize I have failed up to this point. I havent been unfaithful or anything along those lines. I just need to be my best for her and to her. A pastor once told me just in case he died before his time, he was gonna make darn sure that no other man could be a better husband to his wife then he was. I am thankful now for the opportunity to do that.
And to think all this stemmed from a simple verse I have heard 1000 times before. Funny how that works.

-Andrew

The German Shorthaired Pointer

2010-02-22T17:06:00.005-05:00

The German Shorthaired Pointer has one of the most unique and unclear origins of any sporting dog breed. I have read many different accounts of how the GSP came to be. Most accounts say that dogs such as the Spanish Pointer, English pointer and several other German scent hound breeds were involved in producing what we see today. A few accounts of the breed origin argue that the English pointer was never involved.The actual dates vary as well, some say the GSP was around as early as the 16th century, others say the 18th century. Point being, there really isnt a set in stone list of what breeds went into the mix or when it actually happened. What we do know is it happened something like this. For many centuries in European culture only royalty could hunt and they had a kennel full of dogs for every purpose. The common man had no priviledges and no money, but he needed to survive and provide for his family. He couldnt afford a different dog for every purpose, so he set out to create an all purpose dog.This dog would have to retrieve fur and feather from water or land, point and track a variety of game,be a watch dog, and blend into the household. Hence the GSP or "Common mans" dog. I would agree that Brewer has all of these traits, and I will probably never have a different breed of dog. He is still a puppy and very unrefined, but I cannot imagine a better dog for me. And to think I wanted a Lab. Easy easy, just kidding, I still love labs, and if I had one I would be bias towards them too. I will also confess I am curiously attracted to the state dog of South Carolina, the Boykin Spaniel. I watched a few of them work at a field trial and have been interested ever since, but the GSP is still the dog for me. What kind of dog is your favorite and why? Thanks for stopping buy, stay tuned.
Checkout this link for a great video on the history of the GSP. http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid58743927001?bctid=59961806001 .
I am trying to just post the video on here put blogspot is not cooperating.

99 years

2010-02-17T17:11:00.003-05:00

Yesterday my family laid to rest my great grandmother. She was 99 years old. Lessie Smith Briley.

From the High Point Enterprise

ARCHDALE — Mrs. Lessie Smith Briley 99, former resident of Lake Dr. died Sunday morning at 3:10 a.m. in the GrayBrier Nursing and Retirement Center.

Mrs. Briley was born June 26, 1910 in Guilford County a daughter of Willard A. and Etta Smith. She had been a resident of High Point and Archdale most of her life and was retired from Adams Millis Hosiery. She was a graduate of High Point High School in 1928 and a member of Welch Memorial United Methodist Church. She was a former Sunday School Teacher in the Children’s Dept and Assistant Teacher of the Adult Bible Class. Mrs. Briley was a former choir member and past president of United Methodist Women. She was married to Roscoe Leroy Briley who preceded her in death in 1987.

Surviving are 1 daughter; Mrs. Sylvia Paul and husband Joel of Archdale; daughter-in-law Mrs. Carol G. Briley of High Point; Sister-in-law Mrs. Ruth Smith of Florida; 5 Grandchildren; 4 Great Grandchildren and 3 Great Great Grandchildren. Also surviving are several nieces and nephews. Mrs. Briley was preceded in death by a son Richard L. Briley, 3 Brothers and 3 Sisters.

Mammaw Briley as we called her, was as classy a lady as they come. She drove until she was 92 years old. One of the funniest things I remember about her is one of her dogs Winston. Winston was a cocker spaniel. He came to her normal but as time progressed he took on the appearance of a color phase black bear. Winston was a big fan of hot dogs and mammaw let him endulge him self. When my grandfather(her son) died, she sat by his side and ran her hands through his hair and called him her baby. She didnt remember a lot of us at that point, but she knew her son. She truly lived her life dedicated to God. Mammaw was the cornerstone of the legacy we try to up hold. Not many people make it to 99, but then again not many people walk the straight and narrow like her either. I am honored to be her great grandson and I hope to live my life like her. This loss does not sting, but it is cause for rejoicing. There is no doubt she fought the good fight,she finished the race, she kept the faith, this life ended, but she received another.

1 Corinthians 15:55 Where oh death is your victory? Where oh death is your sting?

Bone Collecting Legalized in Virginia

2010-02-15T17:32:00.004-05:00

Article courtesy of J.R. Absher from the Newshound at Outdoor Life http://www.outdoorlife.com/blogs/newshound/2010/02/bone-collecting-legalized
For years, sportsmen in Virginia who regularly head to the woods in the late winter and early each spring to collect shed deer antlers were violating a state law.

And very few hunters—and not all game officers, for that matter—were aware of the obscure regulation. That’s because under a strict interpretation of the Virginia statute, possession of all wild animal parts (without a permit) was strictly forbidden.

Thankfully, a bill passed last week by the Virginia House creates an exemption for the collection of whitetail deer headgear. Introduced by freshman Delegate James Edmunds, HB1283 was approved by a 95-1 margin.

The measure now heads to the Senate where its approval appears imminent.

As presently written, state law prohibits the ownership of “any wild bird or wild animal or the carcass or any part thereof, except as specifically permitted by law.”

According to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, the law was intended to guard against the illegal trade of wild animal parts and to allow only licensed hunters to possess their legally taken big game trophies.

Ironically, Edmunds, a Republican who represents Virginia’s 60th District, discovered he was technically breaking the law after a colleague noticed some sheds decorating his General Assembly building office in Richmond and told him about the statute.

The greenhorn representative was not cited for his unintentional infraction.

Im a proud papa

2010-02-14T08:53:00.005-05:00

The fun trial almost didnt happen for us yesterday. We didnt get to leave Raleigh until about 10 pm Friday night. It snowed the entire drive and things got pretty dicey a time or two but we made it to High Point(my parents house) alright. I made a game time decision at 6:00 am Saturday morning to go for it. It turned out to be the right decision. It was about an hour down the road to Rimrock Shooting Preserve in Harmony , NC. We saw a few wrecks on the way but made it just fine. There were about 15 or 20 dogs in the event. It was basically just for the members of the Yadkin Valley Chapter of QU, so it was small.I got my first experience as a judge in the competition. It wasnt as hard as I thought it would be and judging another hunter and dog helped me when my turn came. Brewer did awesome for his first event. For those of you who do not know how these events work I will explain. Yesterday there were 2 different fields used. One for flushing dogs and one for pointing dogs. When it is your turn to go, you have to sit in a designated place with your dog where you cannot see the field while someone plants the birds. The field is about 15 acres give or take a few acres. You have 20 minutes to find 3 birds, shoot them and complete a full retrieve. The field is a cut corn field and the birds are planted in patches of the corn. The faster you complete your run the better. For pointing dogs like Brew, the dog has to hold a point for three seconds, then the hunter has to walk in and flush the bird, shoot it and not take any steps. To get points for a full retrieve the dog has to retrieve the bird to hand, the hunter gets one pivot step and thats it. The best dog/hunter combos yesterday did this in around 3 minutes, but they are old pros. Brewer actually found 4 birds, one flew too low to the ground all the way out of bounds. Brewer was fast on his tail or I would have shot. Since the bird went out of bounds, It was a lost cause and we moved on. He pointed and caught 2 birds I flushed out and he retrieved them to my hand. But since I did not shoot the bird I was penalized a little. With our time running out he went on point again, the bird flew and I connected with a second shot.It was the perfect point, shot and retrieve, but time expired before Brewer got back to me with the bird, so we lost a lot of points. We scored 150 points, the best scores for the day where in the 240's. The top six pointing dogs and the top 4 flushing dogs were selected for the final round. We came in 7th so our day was over, but I am still so proud of how well he did. Just a few seconds sooner and we probably would have advanced. On 2 occasions, Brewer made the most beautiful point I had ever seen, he locked up hard, it was textbook stuff, he looked just like those stickers for your car with a GSP pointing. I wish I could have taken a picture of those points, they were awesome. Steffi and I could not be more proud of how well Brewer did yesterday, he completely exceeded my expectations and I cannot wait to compete with him again. I learned a lot yesterday, it was a valuable experience for both Brewer and my self. I know we can improve greatly the next time out. Steffi took some great pictures that I will put up tomorrow. I left the cord needed to transfer the pics from the camera at home.
On another note, I just realized that Daniel "Moose" McLaughlin, the man behind the Moose Droppings blog, gave this blog a great endorsement. He did a post just about me and NC OUTDOORSMAN back in January and I just realized it. I want to take this opportunity to really thank him for that. I wish I had realized this sooner. I greatly appreciate him doing that, he has a great thing going over there at Moose Droppings, I check it out everyday. Hopefully I can continue to improve this blog and my writing to get to his level. If you havent done it already, go to my links on the right side of the page and click on Moose Droppings, he has a very informative blog and I guarantee if there is big news in the outdoor world, he knows about it.
Well, it is Sunday morning and we are going to Church with my parents. I have to get in the shower before I make us late. I am really excited about the future of this blog, we will see were it takes me. Thanks for stopping by, there is plenty more to come. Thanks to all the guys from Yadkin Valley QU and Rimrock Preserve for putting on a great fun trial yesterday, cant wait for the next one.
By the way, I am officially 28 years old today.

-Andrew

Fun Trial time

2010-02-12T16:21:00.003-05:00

Well, the Fun Trial is here, Brewer and I never got much of the work in I had hoped we would. I am pretty nervous about tomorrow. I know it is not a formal setting, I just hope Brewer doesnt make me look totally ridiculous. This morning he chased a car down our street. He has never done that before. I am pretty sure I woke the entire neighborhood up at 5:45 yelling his name a half dozen times. Richard Wolters in his book Game Dog states that by this time you should not have to yell at your dog to get him to obey you. As a matter of fact he says that yelling is probably never the answer because the dog believes he can get away with his current bad behavior until you yell. As soon as you believe the dog has learned to respond to you, never give a command more then 2 times. If the dog sees or hears you give the command and still chooses not to listen, nip that problem in the bud, dont let it get to yelling. I think this is one place I have not followed through well in Brewers training. There are some things he does well when we tell him, other things like responding to the COME command no matter what, he needs work on. I am pretty sure that he will not chase any more cars, unless he went into shock from getting spanked and has blocked out the whole experience. He knew he behaved badly and tried to hide from me in the flower bed. I picked him up by the skin on the back of his neck and the skin on his back and carried him inside popping him 3 times on the rear when we got there. He stayed away from me for a minute or 2 and then he came and said he was sorry.
Sunday I officially enter into my upper 20's. My dad always said I should be careful what I choose to do because time flies and I will be 30 before I know it. Well, 28 isnt 30, but it really emphasizes what I already think about daily. What the heck am I going to do with my life, cause this aint it. There are a few plans in the works, but I am constantly anxious about making those plans a reality, and life constantly seem to change my plans. I feel like the principal states, Lack of purpose equals lack of direction which eventually leads to spiritual death. Or better said by Aaron Tippin "You ve got to stand for something or you ll fall for anything".
I know I have purpose and I know I have God's grace to rely on.I just cannot seem to climb out of this rut. How do we as followers of Jesus learn to activate our faith? I believe we must trust in God fully. To trust in God fully, at some point we have to take a chance and give something to God in our lives that we dont want to. It is called a leap of faith. It shouldnt be so hard but it is. In our culture if we cannot see it, hear it, or touch it, "it" is considered a strike against progress and deemed unnecessary or irrelevant. We have eliminated the need for God in our lives, or so it would seem. We have everything we need and we have it RIGHT NOW. Even those of us who profess our faith to God. We expect blessings and answers and miracles and direction RIGHT NOW. One of the things that encourages me every time I think about it is this, throughout the Bible, there are Heroes and Villains. God takes the most unlikely people and turns them into relentless passionate purpose filled advocates for him and his glory, and he does this time and time again. The thing we often miss about all of these people is the process God took them through. We read a few pages of their story and get fired up asking God to give us courage and faith like Nehemiah or David or Moses or Noah. We lose sight of the fact that their faith was forged over years of struggling to get it right, trials and tribulations and screw ups. David was anointed king of Israel when he was very young, it was not until about 15 years later that he actually became king. Could you imagine that, knowing you had been anointed King over all of Israel by God,and then having to wait and wait and wait to sit on the throne. Are you sure this is what you said God, cause right now, I dont see how you are gonna make this happen. Sound familiar? All of these men fought their fights, won and lost physical and spiritual battles, all the while God was with them, patiently waiting on what he knew was to come. Lets not forget our walk with God is a process, there are steps to be taken and lessons to be learned. All of us will stumble and fall. Proverbs 24:16 "The Righteous man falls seven times, and he riseth again" The ins and outs of how our culture operates is not a reflection of how God operates. Even in my lowest darkest moments I have felt God's pursuit, heard his whisper in my ear. What a great God I serve that he would pursue me still, with full knowledge of my actions and cold heart. Our walk with God is a process, faith is cultivated by faith and revelation. The more you trust in God the more he reveals himself to you, the more you know about God the more you trust in him, the more you trust in him the further he takes you. Its not about who is good or bad, or what you have done or anything like that. its about trusting. Hebrews 11:1 "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." The Bible states that as long as the earth is in motion there will be SEED TIME & HARVEST. So right now you are either sowing, waiting, or reaping.....

Bone Collecting

2010-02-08T16:29:00.002-05:00

I told you yesterday that Brewer and I were going shed antler hunting. Well we went, and while we didnt find any antlers, Brewer did find what looked to be the femur of a deer. So while it wasnt a shed, we are definitely on the right track. I also stumbled upon my new honey hole for early deer season next year. I have walked all around this particular piece of public property many times, but I still have not covered it all, apparently. I cannot wait to try this spot out, I have hunted within a few hundred yards of this spot and seen deer often. I wish I could draw you a picture, but you will just have to trust me when I say this spot is money in the bank. It is a secluded creek bottom that bridges 2 pieces of land together that are divided by a small cove off of the main lake.It is literally invisible from the main path, and you have to be purposefully wondering around to find it. I just never walked this land far enough in that direction before because it is a pretty tough walk through a bunch of thorns, who knew. I am hoping it is far enough off of the beaten path to keep other hunters away. On another note, Brewer flushed 2 quail from a thicket in that creek bottom and they flew right over my head, too bad it was Sunday. I was excited to see them though, the game lands manual says they are there but I have never seen one until yesterday. I wish I could say he went on point, but he flushed them. Maybe he can be the first ever GSP to enter the flushing dog category this weekend.
Well the ribs were disappointing in my opinion. Steffi liked them,but I expected more spice, and the were not as tender as I had hoped for. I did learn a thing or two from this little experiment and I will be sure to get it right the next time. I felt bad, my brother in-law came over to watch the game and I told him not to bring much, that I had it covered. We had chips and very little salsa(I thought we had more), sweet potatoes, hot dogs (that he brought),and the ribs that finally got done after the first quarter. The beef roast was a bust and it never got served. I had an apple pie to bake, but I realized too late that it took an hour to prepare. He probably will not come back over, at least for dinner. Sorry Andy

Gonna be a good day

2010-02-07T09:46:00.005-05:00

I have not posted nearly as much as I wanted in the last week or so. The weather has kept me from doing anything with Brewer for the most part, and I have just been tired. Today is Super Bowl Sunday, I am pulling for the Colts, but I will not be devastated if the Saints win. Steffi has to work all day, so that is disappointing, she might make it home by halftime. Today is looking pretty nice so far, me and the Brew will get to run around this afternoon. It is just about time to start looking for shed antlers, I think I have him trained to find them since I hide his antler( a shed I found last year) in the house and around the yard, he usually finds it. We will see.
If you know me you know I love to eat, Steffi says I dont have an off button like most people, she might be right. Since it is Super Bowl Sunday, a traditional excuse to pig out, I am currently preparing 2 racks of baby back ribs, and a large beef roast. In the same way I am strangely attracted to hunting critters of all sorts, I get really excited about any opportunity I have to use my grill. I generally do not follow recipes. I usually experiment with different things even after I find a good way of doing something. Most of the time this works out pretty good, but sometimes disaster strikes. My wife wouldnt tell me the truth, but just the other day I tried to cook a roast in the crock pot, I thought I followed all of the right steps, but somewhere along the way I messed up. The truth lies in the fact that Brewer only wanted 1 tiny piece. After he managed to chew it up he just walked over to his water bowl took a few sips and didnt ask for more. Amazingly though, Steffi liked it, interesting....It was really bad, way too chewy and dry, who knew you could dry something out in a crock pot? My point being, I cannot consider my self grill master or chef just yet, but I am pumped about these ribs. They are currently absorbing a dry rub of brown sugar, chili powder, garlic pepper, black pepper,a little salt and a little butter. This afternoon, I will cook them in the oven at about 225 degrees for 2 hours. Then I will use a combination of A-1 marinade and Kepley's down home BBQ sauce to add some more flavor and moisture and place them on the old stand by Weber charcoal grill for a few minutes for that smoked flavor. That is my make shift recipe for baby back ribs, I will let you know how it turns out. I havent decided what to do with the beef roast yet, but it is currently marinating in A-1 classic marinade and black pepper. I could drink that stuff.
I am in for a great day. The house is clean, I get to go shed hunting with Brewer, come back and fire up the oven and grill, watch the big game and enjoy some great food. Hopefully Steffi gets off sooner rather then later so there is still food left when she gets here.
I plan on continuing to reinforce Brewers training today by attempting to make him quarter different areas in search of sheds. I know this could be confusing for a dog to hunt shed antlers not birds, but I think he can handle it. If he cant, maybe I will find some nice sheds at the Fun Trial next week. One last note, Steffi and I took Brewer to the Vet this week because we though he was sick, turns out he is fine. I was anxious to get him on the scales to see how much he has grown. Last time we took him was sometime in October or November. He was 30 lbs then, now he is 50 lbs.He doesnt look like he has grown much to me, but I see him everyday. I think he is 23 or 24 inces tall. He is 8.5 months old. Both his mom and dad are a good bit bigger then he is now, so I think he has a lot of growing left to do. They are both around 70 pounds and stand about 2 inches taller then he does. Of course I want him to be as big as possible. I realize this serves no purpose except to inflate my pride, so if he doesnt get that big its ok, but I hope he does. We had the vet clip his nails because he will not cooperate for us at home. Turns out he doesnt like it there either. My self, Steffi and the assistant had to pin him down while the vet clipped his nails. He turned in to a little monster, growling, whining and yelping. The funniest part was when we had him held down, he saw the clippers moving towards his foot, and before the even touched him he yelped really loud as if it already hurt. I felt so bad doing that to him, but those claws were getting long. The only way I could get him to calm down was by asking him where the DUCKIES and BIRDIES were and asking him if he wanted to go HUNTEM UP, this seemed to distract him just long enough for the Doc to finish. He was all kisses and wags afterwards because he was graciously rewarded for his courage with doggy treats. Next time we might just put him under.
Well, time is a-waistin, Thanks for stopping by, I will let ya know how those ribs turn out and hopefully have some pics of the sheds I find today.

-Andrew

My latest adventure

2010-02-01T18:50:00.005-05:00

My posts here recently seem to be all about Brewer and me, so bare with me, here comes another one. One of my absolute favorite things to do is to go out after a fresh snow and look at all of the critter tracks. I took Brewer out to the local reservoir this afternoon. This particular reservoir has lots of land around it for us to roam around on. We were following the trail around the lake and as usual Brewer was working the area around us. He disappeared for about 20 seconds and when I blew the whistle a gray fox came flying out of a thicket 50 yards from me, a few seconds later here comes Brewer full blast right on his heels. Despite our best effort that fox gave us the slip and was never seen again. Brewer followed the scent and I followed the tracks to an intersection of about 5000 fox tracks that went in every possible direction and we were done with that. However that did lead us to an area on the back of a field that was littered with deer tracks. I followed a set of buck tracks into some ridiculously thick cover only to find an empty bed. However as I came out of the thicket I looked up just in time to see a deer give me the flag and run off. Luckily Brewer had not seen the deer.It never fails , especially at this particular spot that he finds a few deer to chase, the high pitched bark ripping through the woods is always a dead give away. He did chase a few deer today, but not this one. We tracked this deer for about 200 yards, but it was getting dark and Brewer had stepped in almost every one the deers tracks so they were getting hard to distinguish from his. One thing that struck me as odd was a pair of really fresh scrapes I stumbled upon while tracking this deer. At first I thought they might be turkey scratches but there were only deer tracks in and around them. I took a picture with my cell phone(didnt have my camera AGAIN). I will have to investigate this spot again soon. It seems a bit late for scrapes?? On the way back to the truck we came across a horse of a buck track(fresh) and followed it a bit. Brewer got ahead of me and then I heard the barking. He finally came back to me a minute later. I never saw the deer but judging by his track I bet he was a big boy.
I told you I was going to be revamping Brewers upland training in preparation for the upcoming fun trial. Today also on the way back to the truck(before the other buck track), we walked through a large field, I had him quarter the field by whistle and hand signals. He was tired by this point but he did well. Some people say the only way to hunt over a GSP is when they are worn out, they might be right. Thanks for checking in. Stay tuned

-Andrew

Let it snow

2010-01-31T09:51:00.007-05:00

Brewer wanted to go play with the kids in the neighborhood. We made him wear his winter coat, he tolerated it for a few minutes but it didnt last

Here in Wake Forest the predicted winter storm was all we hoped for.Steffi and I went to the grocery store on Tuesday night and stocked up. I dont usually buy into the whole "stock up or be sorry" theory when it comes to winter weather, but it was fun to play along this time. So we shacked up and havent driven any where yet. I normally love to get out and drive around, but I havent had a need to. Yesterday we walked to Hardees for Breakfast. Steffi and I always laugh over our uncanny ability to miscommunicate. We brought the Brew down to Hardees with us so I went in and she stayed outside with him. I thought she said she wanted a sausage biscuit and coffee, and I thought she also said we should just get the 2 for 2 deal, so I got 2 sausage biscuits, a small coffee and a small drink for me. I wanted more food but I thought I would appease her and only eat 1 biscuit since she is always worried about my diet. Well when we got home she got upset because there were only 2 biscuits instead of 4. She wanted 2 for herself. Whoops, just one small example of our great communication skills.
Brewer acted like a wild indian the whole time he was outside.
Yesterday was the last day of duck hunting season in NC. I wanted to go, but I figured I had been out enough and I wouldnt push my luck. I mentioned in some earlier posts that I was really an amateur waterfowler at best. This is still true, and while I didnt kill any ducks this season, I learned a great deal. Also I didnt even start chasing the ducks until The first or second week of January. I cant wait to get after them a little earlier next fall. There is a small chance for some redemption. Feb 13th , me and Brewer are participating in a FUN TRIAL with the Yadkin Valley Chapter of Quail Unlimited. This will be a great chance for Brewer to get some more experience with birds, hopefully he will hold on point. Its been a while since he was in upland mode, we will see how it goes. I am just really excited at the chance for him to find some birds that I can shoot. Since this is a fun trial, it will be much more informal then a field trial or hunt test, which I dont think he is quite ready for just yet. In the next two weeks I will run Brewer back through some of his basic upland training, as I do this I will give you the run down on what I did and how its going. Once again, I dont want to give the impression that I am some expert at training gun dogs, but I do think I have learned some foundational steps I would like to share. Well time to go play in the snow and find some critter tracks to follow. You should get out in it too.

Are you sure those were ducks?

2010-01-25T16:51:00.005-05:00

We got out after some ducks on Saturday morning. Brewer was still his usual wild man self for the most part, little bits of progress are noticeable. My hunting partner shot a duck, looked like a great shot, Brew couldnt wait to get that bird, I sent him out and as he got close the duck revived itself and dove underwater. Befuddled, Brewer looked back at me and swam in a circle, then the duck popped up again some 30 yards away, once again Brewer got close and the duck dove. This played out a few more times until I managed to call him back in, the duck and Brewer were way out in the middle of the water. While we never were able to retrieve the bird, I was really proud of the Brew. He showed great determination and obedience (for an 8 month old) on that chase and it did nothing but boost my confidence in him. Richard Wolters, or some of you lifers of the dog training world might not be as impressed with Brewer, but for me this was huge. We saw lots of ducks on this outing, on two different occasions we saw a group of 2 or 3 teal(could have been small f-22's) fly right over head. The problem with this was if you want to shoot a teal you have to see them coming, those little rascals are so fast. By the time I had my gun up(both times) they were out of range, but it sure got my heart racing. We saw several other ducks, not sure what kind they were except for a pair of mallards we jumped just out of range on the walk out. This was my first duck hunt from this spot, and it is definitely a spot to remember.I plan on going back there a few more times this week as duck season comes to a close.
I am really getting into waterfowling more now that I have begun to put a little time into it with Brewer. I always loved it but I would never substitute it for a day in the deer woods. Next year maybe I will give it a try a little earlier in the season. Hunting is like any other hobby I suppose, the deeper into it you get, the more it costs you. I cannot stop thinking about getting a kayak for duck hunting and fishing. I have wanted one for some time now, but taking note of how many more birds I would have had a shot at if I had been on the water on Saturday, not on the bank, really has my wheels turning. This is all in theory of course, because in my world, probably much like yours, if I had been in a kayak on Saturday, all of the birds probably would have flown over the point were I actually sat, and I would be thinking how I wasted my money. It would still be fun to have though.
This has been a short update sponsored by me, please check back in for more soon. I hope to regain a little consistency with my posting this week and perhaps work up a few posts on something besides my excursions. Thanks for stopping by.

-Andrew

Still chasin those ducks... have you seen them ?

2010-01-20T20:29:00.002-05:00

When Richard Wolters said that the first few hunts you take a dog on should be about the dog, he was exactly right. However, he failed to mention how frustrating this might make you. Brewer still refuses to sit still for more then 1 minute when I take him duck hunting. This has led me to the practice of jump shooting. While we havent stumbled onto any ducks just yet, we are getting pretty good at the tactic. The main place I go is a piece of game lands surrounded on three sides by water. There are several coves and main lake channels accessible from there. There are 2 fire roads that start at the parking area and dead end into the lake. Along the way there are several coves. Me and the Brew just work in a zig zag pattern off of the fire roads hitting each little cove as we go. It is tons of fun, and good exercise. We have seen a bunch of geese, thousands of sea gulls, and several blue herons. It is just a matter of time(time is not on my side, season ends soon) until we bump into some ducks. I will stop a few times during each hunt and sit down, I make Brewer sit for about as long as he can, and then we resume jump shooting. This may be a bad way to go about this, but my plan is to gradually increase the time we sit, in hopes he gets the idea. When we are sitting and he catches a glimpse of birds in flight, he freezes and points until I distract him. This is encouraging to me. As I said before, if I could just get one duck to fly by within shooting range while he is sitting still and manage to make a good shot, he would understand the game.
Well, I fell asleep last night before I got a chance to finish this, Steffi came home and we ate dinner and watched TV. It is almost 6 am now and I will be late for work if I continue to type, more to come here.

-Andrew

A call to action

2010-01-17T17:42:00.003-05:00

Well, I dont think I have ever felt more useless than I felt the other day. The day after the earthquake in Haiti, I found my self really wanting to be there,to be able to help in some tangible way other then money(dont have much of that to give) but I was stuck at my work doing REALLY unimportant things, as is usually the case. This is no ones fault but mine, I am not knocking where I work, rather indicating I have to do more with my life. This has pushed me to make a few decisions I have contemplated for a while. I wont spill the beans now, but things have to change, so I am forcing my own hand. Its not just the recent disaster or some emotional decision making that has led me to this. This has been a long time coming, if you read back a few posts to when I talk about purpose, this ties right in. Too often we get caught up in what we should do with our lives, and we miss what we could be doing right now. Opportunities to be faithful to God are abundant every hour of every day. Raleigh or Africa, who cares. God says, if we are in him, he will bless us whatever we choose to do, where ever we choose to go. Christ is the standard, not anybody else. No one has my relationship with Christ but me, I cannot compare my self to others, but to Christ. To quote the pastor today, "Our relationship with God is meant to be personal, not private." We are called to come together as a community of believers and lift each other up. The message of Salvation and Grace must be delivered at all costs, where and to who doesnt really matter. We spend way too much time worrying about that among other things, and as a result of our failure to jump in, we end up missing out on a lot, doubting our faith and taking an unnecessary road to redemption if we get there. We should trust God from the beginning when he says he knows the number of hairs on our head, and the desires of our heart, because he really does.He put them there. We should seek him first, not last,our faith should be battle tested before the real battle.Trusting God at his word should be a natural response, but we make it a last resort. We should know that he has our best interest at heart, despite what our logic or emotions tell us. Dont get me wrong,I am not angry, just reflecting back on how I could have activated my faith without being in the face of disaster. Thankfully, God's grace is more abundant then all of my failures and my story doesnt end here. I only have some indirect ties to Haiti, but my heart really goes out to the people there. If only through prayer, this is a call to action.People are fighting for their lives as we speak and they have not been found yet.
To the people of Haiti, I cant imagine what you are experiencing, my continued prayer is that you persevere and cling to the one who does not grow weary. May hope sustain you until help finds you.

-Andrew

Finally got after them ducks... sorta

2010-01-12T19:24:00.004-05:00

Hunters be on the lookout for this duck... Authorities say he is hooked on quack

I know I know, unoriginal,I couldnt resist.

Well a buddy and my self accompanied Brewer out to some game lands this afternoon in hopes of shooting a few ducks. We picked a good spot, most of the lake was frozen over except for where we had planned to hunt. A blue heron came in within shooting distance to land,it saw us and took a hard right turn outta there.That was pretty cool to see, and if it had been a duck, we would have been on him like a rat on a cheetoh(say it like Roy D Mercer). Unfortunately we did not see anything during legal light except for about 1000 sea gulls. After shooting light, a flock of about 30 geese flew right over. Thats how it usually works for me. I was just out there the other day and saw a ducks every where. Oh well, cant wait to get back out there. Maybe I will get to try it in the morning next time. One thing that did not go so well this afternoon was Brewer. It was his first real duck hunt. I knew he would have trouble sitting still, but I thought he might settle after a little while. Let me tell you, he never settled, as time went by, he got more and more anxious. I knew that his first few times duck hunting needed to be more about him then me, but he was driving me crazy. Most of this comes back on me though. I really should have been working him more regularly. For what I have done with him, I cant expect much more at this point. He was restlessly whining and barking, at first I tried to tie him to a small tree right beside of me. This didnt work for two reasons, he couldnt quite be right beside me ( 1 foot away wasnt close enough), and he kept getting wrapped around the tree, he would bark and shake the tree trying to free him self. I finally figured out there was no use in trying to shoot anything. I just held on to him the whole time and let my friend be the gunner. Should I really be surprised we didnt see anything? I did fire one shot at the ice, couldnt resist. I made brewer heel, as I brought up my gun his eyes followed the barrel out onto the ice looking where I was pointing. I made the mistake of not telling him to stay. When I fired, the wad from the shell went flying out onto the ice and he was after it faster then I could react. I called him off of it because the ice wasnt safe, but he would have retrieved it to my hand. I was so proud of him, he understood that when the gun fires there is something to retrieve. You should have seen him look out onto the ice when I pointed my gun, he was in hunt mode then. I know this is very insignificant for anyone who has never trained a gun dog, but I thought it was awesome.
The next several posts will be regarding waterfowl hunting. Since I had such a great response before when I asked for waterfowling tips (0 replies) I thought I would ask again. What tips, tricks, ideas do you have for public land ducks and geese, or just late season birds that have been called to and shot at? What kind of vision do birds have, decoying tactics etc...

Breaking the mold

2010-01-09T18:04:00.009-05:00

Well I thought deer season was over the other day, then I told you it wasnt. Turns out it was, my buddy got his dates mixed up and we missed the last day after all. Oh well, its all good. I was looking forward to getting a hunt on video, maybe we can get some turkeys on camera this spring. Sorry for the delay in posting anything new, I have just been busy.I saw a lot of ducks yesterday on game lands, but I wasnt duck hunting, just running the Brew and looking for wabbits, no rabbits, thats what I said , wabbits(anyone seen the new elmer fudd commercial, I love that guy) and squirrels. So any ways, here we go.
As I have mentioned in previous posts, I believe that throughout the season, and perhaps from one season to the next, deer learn to pattern hunters. What we wear, what we smell like, different attracting scents we use, and how and when we travel through a tract of land. I was reading a Deer and Deer hunting article the other day that covered some of these things, so I cannot take credit for all of this. I just want to elaborate on their ideas a little.
To start off, we need to determine what type of property you have access to. Does it contain bedding areas, feeding areas, staging areas and travel routes. Or is it one of those or the other? Knowing this will help you to understand why deer move like they do on your property. We also should observe how other hunters move through the property since most of us dont have the luxury of being the only hunter around. Right now is the perfect time to investigate these things if you dont know. Get out and walk all around your property.Sit in the woods an afternoon or two in a different place then you hunt, walk into the area a different way too. Go talk to your neighbors and see if you can walk around their property, offer to return the favor. With a better knowledge of what purpose your property serves in the life of a deer, you can develop better strategies to pursue them. Here is a list of other things to keep in mind to separate yourself from other hunters.

1. Dont always hunt from a tree stand. I hunt from the ground quite often. It gives me two advantages. Since I hunt on public land most of the time, I dont make any noise getting setup in my climber, or getting down.I can sneek right in and be setup immediateley without even a squirrel noticing(haha). And also, I keep my options open by hunting on the ground, not all areas have suitable trees for climbing, the wind might not be right for a certain area, or I might encounter another hunter. I generally use my camo folding stool.It weighs about 3 lbs and has a shoulder strap, it works great. I can make it work on a hill by putting a rock or stick underneath the front legs to level it out no problem. Ground blinds are great too, however I find that generally they need to be in place for a few weeks before you hunt from them. This gives the deer time to become comfortable with them. Deer notice new things like that in their territory just like we notice something new in our yard or house. While there are many advantages to hunting from a tree stand, we do not want to become too predictable, so it is great to get on the ground from time to time. One of my favorite things to hunt from is an old blow down, these work great to conceal movement and break up your outline.

2. Hunting hours 99 percent of hunters do the same thing. Get in the woods before first light and exit the woods by 10:00.Or they get in the woods at 3 and leave at dark. I want to suggest two things that may help us bag more bucks. First off, we should set several days per season apart (preferably during the rut) to only hunt from 10:00 or 11:00 in the morning to 2:00 or 3:00 in the afternoon. If you can stand it, stay in the woods until dark, but you might see some great action in the middle of the day. Secondly, make it a point to NOT walk into the woods on several of your morning hunts until it is light out. Once again I believe deer(especially older wiser deer) get used to hunters entering the woods before dawn and may stay away,or run as we approach. We have all been there. This makes sense to me seing as how the average age of a deer killed by a hunter in NC is 1.5 years.Creep into the woods an hour later a few times in the morning and see what happens. A few old time hunters I know use this tactic and they kill more deer and have more big bucks on their wall then anyone else I know. To go along with this, go out of your way to be careful as you exit the woods. Being careless here can also tip the deer off to your presence. Many hunters make this mistake(including me).

3. Givem what they dont have This third idea applies to those hunters who have the luxury of planting food plots and manageing the land they hunt. To get the most out of your property, know what the properties are like around you. Figure this out legally, we dont need more trespassing hunters. What food sources/habitat is on the neighboring properties. Figure this out and do something different. If there are lots of clover or mixed green plots around, plant something else deer like. There is all kinds of stuff deer eat. If you will have long term access to the property, plant some apple trees, persimmon trees or pear trees.Create some clear cuts, bedding areas, wind rows, fence lines or false edges of fields etc... If you do not have long term access to the land, deer love sweet potatoes, pumpkins, strawberries and watermelons among other things. You dont have to spend a lot of money to do this, just a little maintenance will do the trick. What can you offer the deer that no one else around you can? Figure this out and you will be sure to see more deer and see them more often.

4. Leave the calls alone. I like to watch hunting shows just as much as anybody. One thing we see them doing is rattling and calling with grunt tubes or snort weezes all of the time. I would be very cautious about using any calls or rattling unless I have a visual on the deer I want. Many times hunters over use or misuse those tactics and it ends up hurting more then helping. Sitting and observing is your best bet in my book. A man who taught me a lot about hunting told me his secret to killing big bucks, Stay in the woods he said. That is simple enough.
These are just a few ideas. There are many other things you can do to break the mold and become a more productive hunter. Think outside the box a little, dont be predictable. While I came up with a lot of this, thanks to Deer and Deer Hunting for coming up with most of it. I know I am leaving some stuff out that I meant to put in this post, I will revise it if I remember. Thanks for checking out this blog. Stay tuned, got some good stuff coming soon. I know I am a little off the wall with my flow and sentence structure, all this is no attempt to be professional,its
just me.

-Andrew

Well, deer season isnt over after all ...

2010-01-05T17:32:00.006-05:00

It turns out that my friend up in Virginia has an extended muzzle loader season that runs through Saturday. So its up to Va for me, and let me tell you, we always see deer up there, lots of them. I cannot wait, who cares if it is really cold. Lookout deer, its freezer fillin time. I am gonna take the video camera too. Hopefully I will have some good footage to post for yall by Saturday night. The amazing Brewer has performed yet another feat. This afternoon I had him out running through the woods by a big lake.There were geese at the lake, so I sat him and pointed to the geese. When he finally saw them (250 yards across the water), he jumped in and off he went. Generally he is very obedient to my whistle in the water, I guess there were too many geese. He swam clear to the other side of the lake, took a right turn after the geese and went another hundred yards. After several minutes of swimming, he finally listened to me and swam the whole way back. By this time I was undressed and ready to jump in after him, but he never faltered and made it back to shore just fine. I still cannot believe how far he swam, you had to see it to appreciate it. Part of me was really scared and mad because he disobeyed me, but part of me was so proud of how far he swam chasing those birds. I let him know how I felt, he said he was sorry and we went on. This could have been bad, and it would have been all my fault for being slack on his training. He knew better, but it has been a while since we worked on the basics SIT STAY COME in the water( we do it everyday on dry land). It should be the same to him, but the water just throws him off a bit. This is an unacceptable error on my part, and I will fix it ASAP. A bird dog(in retriever mode) must be obedient in any situation the moment you command him. If this is not the case you are asking for trouble as I was today. On the other hand, I will not hesitate to send Brewer on a super long retrieve after seeing what he is capable of. Lets keep in mind he just turned 8 months old, and has never been waterfowl hunting. He doesnt flinch around guns, he loves to retrieve and he loves birds. What I was trying to do today was get him more exposure to ducks and geese. I want him to want the birds, which he does. He just hasnt learned exactly how it all fits together yet, but that is coming soon. He has pointed and retrieved quail to my hand, so he wont have too much trouble. All in all, he is doing great in his training, I just need to devote more time to him. This week is going by slow, partly due to the weather I think, isnt it cold. This makes for long (but manageable) days at work. All we need now is the snow. Will we get it or not? That is all I got for today. Stay tuned, tomorrow or the next day I am going to do a write up on alternative or nontraditional strategies for deer hunting.... Should be good
-Andrew

Brewer at 10 weeks

Speak your mind

2010-01-04T23:00:00.005-05:00

Is there a more beautiful bird then the Aix Sponsa (Wood duck)

The annual NCWRC hearings have begun. Today was the first meeting, hunters and fishermen get to voice their opinion to the NCWRC in hopes of changing the rules. Go to the NCWRC website under my links to find a list of hearings scheduled for your area. This is a great opportunity, dont miss out and then complain when you dont like the rules next year. On another note, Brewer locked me out of my house today. I was experimenting with homemade duck decoys on the back porch and his paw pushed the latch down on the door. I had just come home and locked the front door behind me. Steffi was still 2 hours from being home so I had to hang out at the neighbors until she got home. The worst part of this was that while I was outside, Brewer was inside. Luckily there werent too many casualties, a Christmas tree ornament and a plastic bag.

Out in the cold

2010-01-03T18:04:00.006-05:00

Be careful going after those squirrels this winter

Today my wife, my self and brother in law visited South Bridge Fellowship which is a church in between Raleigh and Durham in Brier Creek Shopping Center. We went there on an invitation of a friend of mine. I am looking forward to going back. There were lots of people, old and young, black and white. The message was solid and it seemed like a great church. We really want to find a church home soon so we can get plugged in and more active in the community. This could be the place.
This afternoon I went out to the game lands with Brewer and my friend with his dog. We just wanted to run the dogs and get into the woods and explore some new areas.It was COLD so we covered a lot of ground. Brewer is out cold on the couch right now. We found some great spots we hadnt seen before. This included some potentially great duck hunting spots, we will see. Scouting around like that is almost as much fun as hunting. I have got to start bringing my camera though, I always forget. Well, there is some good football on right now and I gotta get dinner started. Grilled cheese and chicken noodle soup, mmm mmm good. Until next time, get out and scout around, you will be a better hunter for it. It is small game season right now, have some fun and get more familiar with the land you hunt. You will be surprised what you learn.

-Andrew

Another season comes to an end

2010-01-02T17:32:00.007-05:00

These are pictures of a Wayne County , NC buck believed to be taken illegally. The buck has been taken from the men who killed it along with a spotlight and gun. What a buck, what a shame. Pictures and story found on moose droppings. Check my links to find it

Well, deer season is finally over for me. My freezer is empty, but not for lack of effort or opportunity.Looking back now I should have taken a doe or two when I had the chance. Hind sight is 20-20 right. Overall, this was probably the most exciting season I have experienced yet. I didnt get to go hunting until the 3rd week of October because we moved into our house in September. I had three encounters with good bucks.Two of those encounters really stand out to me. The first was a violent fight between a good six pointer and what I think was a really good 8 pointer. I could have shot the 6, but he lost the fight to a bigger deer that didnt present a shot. The second encounter was another nice 8 pointer that walked to within 7 yards of me. I was hunting on the ground with my bow and he came to me on a string at last light, I lost my cool and tried to draw, he picked me off and the game was over. Only three times out of maybe 15 did I not see any deer. I almost exclusively hunted on game lands and I think that made me a better hunter. I really didnt have to get away from other hunters though. Only 2 times did I run into other people. One of those times a group of people were just fishing from the bank. Two of the times I didnt see any deer were my last hunts, This past Thursday afternoon and Friday Morning. Friday morning a deer snuck by me before shooting light and that was it. While I would love to have some venison in the freezer, this season was a success in my book. I know I have increased my chances of bagging a big buck next year. Next September cannot get here soon enough, but in the mean time I will do some scouting and shed hunting to keep stay sharp. One thing I learned this season is the importance of staying focused while in the woods. Had I been focused when that great 8 came in I probably would have sealed the deal, but he caught me off guard. I am beginning to believe that my perspective in the woods can dictate the success of the hunt. When I am focused on the hunt, I dont make mistakes, when I drift off to lala land I get sloppy. That sounds simple, but all you hunters know its not. When you have been sitting a while without any action, or the conditions arent ideal, it is easy to get distracted. Keep your head in the game and it will pay off. More to come in a few days, until then, leave a comment or email me with some of your hunting stories/lessons learned from this season. Stay tuned, all kinds of good stuff still to come.

Kamikaze Brew

2009-12-29T17:49:00.004-05:00

Well, it seems that Brewer has been on a kamikaze mission as of lately. As I told you the other day he almost drowned/broke his leg. Today,while I was letting him get some exercise at the lake,I was looking over a concrete ledge that dropped off about 8 feet. He got a running start and jumped off the ledge, landing on wet concrete covered with algae. It wasnt pretty,and it happened so fast. I saw him hit the concrete before I realized what happened.Nothing broke his fall, there was just a loud thud on impact. He held his right front leg stiff for about 10 seconds and then started swimming so I knew he was fine, but what a scary jump! He still isnt showing any signs of being hurt.I will never know what he was thinking, there was nothing down there to attract him. Sunday, Steffi and I were visiting my parents for Christmas. There are woods in their back yard that create a buffer between their house and the city reservoir. I always take him back there to run around, it is a peninsula so there is only one way in and one way out. We were walking along the shoreline at a place where there was a steep drop off to the water. It was only about 1 foot of drop of though. Brewer was dying to get into the water, but I didnt feel like cleaning him up before we went back inside so I kept telling him no. Well he crept too close at one point and slid into the water face first, when this happened his back left leg went around a sapling and his foot got stuck under the bank at the same time. At first I laughed, but when I saw he was stuck and panicking I tried to help him. He was trying to swim away from the bank to free his leg and couldnt keep his head above water, he managed to turn his body around and bring his front half onto dry land, but this put his leg in a really bad bind(this all happened in about 3 seconds). I had to lay down the hill on the ground and break the sapling in order to get him unstuck. He was fine immediately afterwards, but I know it scared him. He was whimpering and whining and he gave me a face full of kisses before he continued playing in the woods. If I couldnt have gotten to him in time, who knows the outcome. I never let him get more then 75 0r 100 yards away unless we are in an open field for this reason. I would like to say he has learned something from these two events, but I am not so sure.
Deer season is coming to a close in the next few days (unless you are in an urban archery zone), so I will write a couple more deer hunting blogs. After that I want to concentrate on waterfowl and upland hunting for a while. I will cover a lot about dogs and birds in the weeks to come. While I have learned a great deal about training and raising a gun dog over the last few years, I do not consider my self an expert by any means.Hopefully I can get a few guys to weigh in on those topics when we get there.
As long as the rain holds off until dark I will be hunting tomorrow afternoon. I would normally head to my favorite spot, where I took Keith the other day, but rumor has it that might not be a great decision. Keith went back to that spot on Monday morning( I had to work). When he got there he saw 2 guys on 4 wheelers beyond where any vehicles are allowed. Keith approached them and said they wreaked of alcohol and were acting very strange.Keep in mind it is 5:45 in the morning and completely dark. The guys said they were waiting to put up some fence posts in a nearby pasture. I call B.S. I would say those guys were drinking and spotlighting deer all night, probably shooting at them and leaving them to rot.If I hadnt seen this play out other places before I would not be so condemning. Needless to say Keith saw 2 deer that morning, they were not really close. I know there will always be morons like this, but it still makes me angry. We do not need to fuel the fire of non sportsmen by doing stupid mindless things like that. Even if those guys werent spotlighting and shooting deer, they were drunk and driving 4 wheelers in an illegal area. Get a clue you ignants(my new word), dont ruin it for the good guys. I dont know where I will go tomorrow, probably back out to that spot, I will let you know how it goes.

-Andrew

The time is now

2009-12-27T21:04:00.009-05:00

Not the whole family , just the ones I have pictures of. It is hard to find a good picture of my mom, she is the one always taking the family pictures. That is her with my brother and me in Baltimore down by the water.

Well, Steffi and I just got back and unpacked from Christmas with the family. She wants to watch The Sound of Music, so what a great time to catch up on some stuff here. Brewer nearly drowned today, but we will get to that later. What I really want to talk about is how the family gatherings just arent the same since both of my grandfathers have passed away, and how I miss them both all the time. I probably think of my grandfathers more then most people do. They cross my mind several times a day, everyday. They were both great men in their own regard. They were both men of faith, one was more vocal about God then the other, but that didnt matter. They both faced health problems for a long time. One had his first heart attack when he was 39 and he lived well into his 70's fighting heart disease. The other battled emphysema for the last 10 years of his life. He literally struggled for every breath the last 3 or 4 years. I cannot imagine what that was like. I . Along with my dad, my grandfathers taught me to fish and play golf, the foundation of my passion for the outdoors. Neither was perfect, but through their struggles they taught me about perseverance, life, death, and leaving a legacy. I aspire to be like them, I feel a deep obligation to carry on what they started. To be a man of character, constantly reminded of my imperfections, yet rooted soundly in the grace of God, hell bent on not giving up until Im taken away. I see both grandfathers in me and I am proud of that. Steffi and I talk about life and our purpose all the time. I told her the other day that I am not afraid of death, but of not walking out my purpose before death comes, and of not continuing the legacy left to me. Jesus went before me and conquered death, my grandfathers knew that and were not afraid to die, neither am I. I always get charged up with purpose any time I go home and spend time with my family. Steffi and I are in desperate need of kick starting our life. We dont know exactly what its going to look like, but we know this isnt it for us. Neither one of us is built for the 9-5 for 30 years and retire. There is nothing wrong with that,actually there is lots of respect and honor in that, and part of me wishes I could just do it(My father and grandfathers did). I am just not built for going about it that way. We are both tired of having good ideas and taking no action. That is why I started this blog, it may never amount to much, but who knows. I am approaching 28 years old, I cannot afford to have another meaningless year, month, day, hour, minute... If I believe in God, and his purpose for my life, then at some point my circumstances just dont matter anymore, its now or never. To quote Pastor Reggie Hunt "at some point you got to start being whatever it is you are going to be, regardless of your circumstances"
How many great Sunday services or inspiring moments does it take to walk by faith. I have been here 10,000 times. I have a purpose to live out, I have a legacy to uphold, if I fail, so be it. I refuse to reach the end and wonder what might have been. To quote Teddy Roosevelt

"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."

I love my family and I am thankful for them , as well as Gods faithfulness and grace that is active in my life. Looking at the news right now, there is chaos and war throughout the world. We need visionaries and purpose filled people to step up and be leaders. Gods people need to make a difference. The time is now. Where do you fit in?

Finally got back into the woods!

2009-12-24T10:52:00.003-05:00

After over a week of no hunting, I spent the morning deer hunting with a friend of mine. We went to one of my game lands honey holes, and sure enough, we were the only ones there. I think we saw between 8 and 10 deer.Keith had a nice 8 pointer in his sights that wouldnt stop moving. He was following a doe that had come by a few minutes before. The buck hesitated at about 60 yards and was gone before we really knew what had happened. We also saw a spike, the rest were does. You would think with all of those deer around one of us could have managed a shot, but we couldnt. We sat together on the ground with opposite shooting lanes. For some reason, it was hard to identify which direction the deer were coming from. We could hear them walking, but by the time we pin pointed their exact location, There was really not shot. We sat looking down into a creek bottom that fed into a back cove of a lake. It was pretty thick all around us, but with no leaves on trees, we could see alright. The deer came from almost all directions. All in all, it was a great morning, aside from the constant need to blow my nose( just getting over that winter bug) and the usual cold toes. I love late season because it seems most of the other hunters have given up for the year. If I can get my honey do's done, I might take the Brew duck hunting this afternoon(Steffi has to work all day). Yall stay tuned and have a Merry Christmas..... eve

-Andrew

Response to thedealer8

2009-12-22T22:49:00.003-05:00

Thank you for your comments on the Antler Restriction piece. I know exactly what you are talking about. Many times it is very difficult to tell whether a deer has antlers or not at long distances. You are also correct when you mention antler points are more a product of good nutrition then an indicator of age.Generally I find that older bucks have more mass then younger bucks with impressive head gear. There is no doubt that the success of a program like this would face many challenges. First and foremost, hunters are basically operating on the honor system when it comes to how many deer we take, along with when and how we take them. There always has been and always will be people who think the law does not apply to them and people who lack the vision to understand its not all about them. As I mention in one of my entries about deer and hunter numbers, the NCWRC has in place a method used to calculate total deer harvested by hunters, killed in automobile crashes, by poachers and disease. I feel confident the NWRC is not as ignorant as some hunters think when they calculate these things. While we will never be able to get everyone in agreement, what if 50 or 60 percent of the states hunters jumped on board. What a difference that would make. To address another point you made,
Instead of issuing citations for killing an illegal buck, we could come up with another system. Perhaps we could count that one buck as a buck and a doe on the hunters big game tags. Maybe people get a free pass the first time. There are lots of things we could come up with. I would not be in favor of punishing any one except for people who are repeat offenders. Another option that may help to limit people shooting young bucks is to include more teaching on how to field age bucks and does as part of the Hunter Safety class.Sure people will mess up, misjudge or whatever, but as long as we begin to change hunters mentalities we are on the right track. This restriction would be a process just like any other big change in life, but I am confident that most people would adjust in time. I am still not all in favor of antler restrictions, more people are practicing quality deer management now then ever before. It is a great time to be a deer hunter any where. Thanks for bringing up some great points. All of these things you mentioned would be important considerations in creating such a drastic change.

-Andrew

Looking at the numbers part II

2009-12-21T17:18:00.009-05:00

Nice gamelands deer taken with Up-close Outfitters in Western NC.

I meant to elaborate more in part 1 of this write up. However I didnt because it was getting late and I couldnt really think well. To sum up what we talked about, I believe, according to the numbers, there are more mature trophy class bucks in North Carolina then the state gets credit for.I suppose that depends on your definition of a trophy buck though. I think mine is a mature buck with a rack of around 120 inches or better. I believe we are slowly becoming a sleeper state when it comes to hunting the big boys. Give it 5, maybe 10 years and more people will begin to realize there is some great hunting to be found right here. Certain areas of the state have produced bigger bucks for many years, other areas have produced spikes and forkies(I made that word up) at best.If the current trends continue,I expect to see a more even spread of good bucks throughout most areas.This is due to hunters becoming more concerned with deer management, since humans are now the single biggest factor involved in controling the deer population. In the mean time,lets find the good bucks now.Here is what I plan to do. Since most of the deer killed by hunters are taken with rifles in NC, I plan to bow hunt more early season,(I like to bow hunt all the time) and not give up late in the season when everyone else has. Concentrating on early and late season will set you apart from most of the other hunters.The goal is to be hunting unpressured deer,or to find the pressured deer. While you may not think this is possible on public land, I know it is. Sure I will hunt during the rut,but it wont be my bread and butter. NCWRC has outstanding resources for studying when and where to hunt. The 1.8 million acres of game lands covers most, if not all regions and habitats of the state. Some places are only accessible through lottery, most are open to all. Our state is divided into 17 river basins.A map of this is available at the NCWRC website. Study the river basins around the areas you choose to hunt. What vegitation/crops are prevelant? What is the make up of the land? Usually areas deer travel can be located on a property with the use of a topographic map. These are easy to obtain.There are many websites online that allow you to customize a topographic map.It usually costs around $10 dollars. What is the deer population density, harvest history? What types of hunting are allowed(dogs or no dogs)? Get to know your area, scout out places in the spring and summer.Take note of wind direction every time out.Shed hunt, I am currently trying to train Brewer to find shed antlers. All of this does not take as much time as it may sound like. A couple afternoons of scouting a month is it. Get out and turkey hunt, or small game hunt a day or two. Deer learn to pattern hunters, how we enter and exit a piece of land, where we choose to hunt.If you pay attention, you will notice that most hunters flock to the same spots on any given property. Take advantage of this, come up with alternate routes, find new areas off the beaten path.I read an article a while back that said something like 80 or 90 percent of hunters dont go further then 1/4 mile from their vehicle.Venture just a little further. By doing these things you will continue to set your self apart from other hunters and increase your odds of finding the big boy.

Looking at the numbers

2009-12-19T16:45:00.016-05:00

So the snow never really came, dangit (say it like Hank Hill). Oh well, lots of winter still to come. I didnt get to go hunting at all this week. Between Christmas shopping and coming down with this horrible cold, it just didnt happen. I decided last night that if I was smart, I would have finished all of my shopping a long time ago.I mean, it is the responsible thing to do right, get it all done early so it doesnt interfere with my hunting. That might eliminate the grouch in me. Sometimes Steffi calls me Oscar, as in Oscar the grouch, when I dont get to go hunting. Any ways, on to what I want to talk about.
According to the North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission, North Carolina has a White tail deer population of about 1.1 million. I have read some reports that put the number closer to 1.3 million. Either way, that is a lot of deer. Also the NCWRC reports that there are around 250,000 deer hunters in North Carolina. While this number seems small to me, I can't find any other data to dispute it. In 2008 the NCWRC says that 176,297 deer were taken by hunters. According to the 2008 Deer hunters Almanac, North Carolina averaged an annual harvest of just under 140,000 deer between 2000 and 2004. From 2005 through the present the state has seen a steady incline in the harvest numbers. According to both the NCWRC and D&D Hunting, the vast majority of these deer are consistently taken during gun season. This number does not account for deer killed by poachers,vehicles, disease or anything else but hunters. When these other factors are considered, the NCWRC estimates that around 250,000 deer are killed each year in NC. Breaking down the numbers a little further we see that NC hunters are beginning to adopt stricter deer management tactics in an effort to increase the quality of antlered deer taken in our state. In the past, the majority of bucks taken in our state have generally been yearlings.In many cases yearling bucks accounted for as much as 80% of the total annual buck harvest. This article from North Carolina Game and Fish magazine goes into detail about this. http://www.ncgameandfish.com/hunting/whitetail-deer-hunting/NC_1109_01/index3.html
(Once again I cannot get this link to work, so you will have to copy and paste it) It encourages me to know that other NC hunters are beginning to pass up smaller bucks and take more does. As the article above mentions, bucks and does are recruited equally into the herd, so they must also be taken equally to produce a well balanced herd. That is deer management 101, but we will save that discussion for another day. My original thought, when I came across these numbers of hunters and deer was that with such a large herd in North Carolina, it seems there would have to be a very large number of mature bucks that reside in our state. If approximately 250,000 deer are killed annually, and our estimated deer population is around 1.2 million, you do the math. That leaves a heck of a lot of deer to grow one year bigger and wiser. Things that influence antler growth are nutrients, age , and genetics, in that order.I do not believe genetics play nearly as big a role in antler size as most hunters think. According to NC wildlife biologists, the states deer herd is stabalizing, meaning it is healthy. In other words there are enough nutrients and habitat to support the deer.I personally believe we could probably increase our annual harvest by 25% with no harm done. I know that each year many trophy class bucks are taken, but these numbers tell us there are probably many more to be found. I am not saying that 500,000 of the remaining deer each year are trophy bucks, not even 100,000 for that matter. Lets say that in 2009 180,000 deer will be taken by hunters,85,000 bucks, 95,000 does.Of those 85,000 bucks, lets say 1%(850) are trophy class. Another 70,000 deer will die from car accidents, poachers, disease etc... Of the remaining popuation, 1 million. Conservatively, lets say that 1% of these deer are trophy bucks. That means that roughly 10,000 trophy bucks are still around. I am no wildlife biologist, I have no data to back up this theory. I just believe that we may have more great bucks here then people realize. Where are they hiding?

COME ON SNOW!!!

2009-12-18T13:14:00.005-05:00

What is this weather gonna do? I want a heavy snow, probably wont get it though. I dont have much time now to write, so let me send a shout out to Armanti Edwards, senior quarterback at Appstate. Last night you became the first person ever to win the back to back Walter Payton awards. The FCS equivalent of the Heisman Trophy. No one deserves it more.Your courage,coolness under fire and ridiculous set of skills are unmatched. We all hate to see you leave, but cant wait to watch you play on Sundays next year. We may never see any one like Armanti Edwards again at APP or in the FCS, hopefully I am wrong. (We got some studs waiting in the wings) but I cannot wait until next season. Thanks #14 for giving your all for Appstate. GO APPS

Im an amateur waterfowler

2009-12-17T21:09:00.005-05:00

So to be perfectly honest with yall. I have only been duck hunting a handful of times. However it didnt take long for me to really love gettin after those birds. All of my life I have wanted a dog of my own. Growing up we had 2 family dogs. Holly, a Cocker Spaniel, who really didnt have a fair life, and Quincy the miniature Dachshund. Holly was kept in a pen out in the back yard and as much as we loved her, we didnt play with her or let her out nearly enough. One day she dug under the fence and got hit by a car. We were all upset. Quincy was a great dog, he used to get loose and run up and down our street. (not where Holly got hit) He was so long that his rear end would start catching up to his head until he was running almost sideways. He was an indoor dog that got a lot more attention then Holly. He used to lay with me on the couch and watch tv on his back like a person. Quincy, aka The Quinster aka The Stir, developed spinal problems from being so long and we eventually had to put him to sleep after he became paralyzed.Despite always wanting another dog, it wasnt until I got into hunting, and more specifically bird hunting a little, that I really considered it. I originally wanted a lab, but my wife has a slight allergy to labs. I think it has something to do with their hair. After much debate, we compromised on a German Shorthaired Pointer.What an awesome breed!! I have much more to say about Brewer later, but to get to the point, I dont have a ton of knowledge when it comes to waterfowl. I know enough to look like I know what I am doing and maybe shoot a few birds, and thats it. Some people call a lot, some people just a little, how long do you like to sit in the blind ? I dont know how many people are reading this blog, maybe just a few people. If you are a duck hunter or goose hunter, come up with some tips, maybe a top 5 or top 3 things to remember when waterfowling or something like that. I want to hear from yall. Leave me a comment or email me and I will post it. I am always interested to hear peoples tips, secrets, tricks etc.. I have been seeing a lot of ducks in the last week on small ponds and such.I have not been duck hunting yet this year, give me some hunting reports, send me some pics to post. I am hoping to go next week. Brewer is 7 months old, he sits well, stays well, and responds to my instruction via whistle really well. He just doesnt like to sit still very long. He loves the water, and retrieves great from the water. I am more confident in his abilities to retrieve birds then my ability to shoot them. I have REALLY got to get him on some birds though. I havent done it nearly enough. If I do take him duck hunting, it will have to be for him and not for me. A friend of mine invited me to take Brewer out to some local game lands on Saturday with him and his Beagle. I know that is unconventional, rabbit dog and bird dog running together. We didnt locate any quail but the Beagle caught scent of a rabbit a few times. It was a great time, we ran ourselves and the dogs ragged, and I found some great new hunting spots in the process.Have any of yall found a good population of quail on gamelands? You dont have to answer that, I wouldnt tell either. Well I could go on and on, but it is late, and I promised Steffi I would clean the kitchen. Plus she needs the computer back. Speaking of Brewer, he just got kenneled for eating the Christmas tree and licking spackle off the wall. Trust me, he knows better.Haha

-Andrew

Antler Restrictions for NC

2009-12-16T17:52:00.008-05:00

This is an often debated topic among hunters from all around the country. Should antler restrictions be imposed on hunters.This would only allow bucks to be taken that met a certain criteria. No more spikes or small 4 pointers,does and bigger bucks only. What do yall think? Could the hunters of North Carolina Benefit from such a law, or is that imposing too much ? Pennsylvania is the only state that I am aware of to create such a law.From what I gather, in some parts of the state a buck must have at least 3 points on one side of his rack. In other parts of the state 4 points on one side of the rack are required. I found a very interesting article on how things have played out in PA since these restrictions were put into place in 2002 :http://www.northamericanwhitetail.com/huntingtactics/NAW_0907_10/ (you have to copy and paste the link, I cant get it to work right at this moment)
I am not sure where I stand on this topic. The first buck I ever killed was a spike, and I was very proud of it. Though I have killed several other bucks since then, I have never killed what most people would consider a trophy class buck. I have had a few close encounters with really good bucks, but never sealed the deal. The idea of antler restrictions raises a few questions in my mind, some are touched on in that article above.
1. Are antlers really the most important thing? Maybe so
2. Will these restrictions help to recruit new hunters?
3. How will this affect the overall deer population of our state?
4. With tougher restrictions in place, could we get a few more weeks of deer season?

If I dont kill a deer this season, it will make 3 straight years of no deer. This is not because Im lacking the opportunity. This year I have seen deer(within bow range) almost every time out. The 2 years before that I lived in Maryland and while I didnt get to hunt as much as I would have liked, I still passed up plenty of deer waiting for the big boy. I realize now that I probably should be taking a few does each season. Since I have now stuck my foot in my mouth saying I always see deer, I will not see another deer this season. However if I do have the opportunity to take a doe I will. I have taken enough smaller bucks to hold off now, although my heart still pounds when they walk by. Antler restrictions or not, I want to take mature bucks. It doesnt even matter to me that they have eye popping antlers, I am after the smart ones who have survived a few seasons. While I feel that I may have rambled a bit, and forgotten a few points I meant to make, hopefully this will make you think about the next deer you take. Once again, I have no problem with people taking smaller bucks, but hopefully hunters begin to evolve, and as seasons pass they become more selective. I just want to get the ball rolling on this topic, plenty more to come later, as we take a look at different aspects of deer hunting in North Carolina.
By the way, the antlers in the daily photo were from a buck found dead this fall in Winston Salem, NC. I havent seen them in person but I am told the inside spread is over 25 inches!!! I didnt get to go hunting today like a said I would. My wife was supposed to get off of work early, so we planned to spend the afternoon together. She is walking in the door right now at 7:30 pm. It must be tough being the worlds best nurse. It is really tough being the husband who messed up dinner.

-Andrew

The Second Rut ?

2009-12-15T17:17:00.004-05:00

I just got back from an outing with Brewer(my dog). I would normally have hunted this afternoon. However I had to make a trip to the dentist office to get a cavity filled. Should have listened to my wife when she said to floss. Any who, sore jaw and all, I took Brew out to one of our favorite romping grounds. There is large neighborhood just a few minutes from our house.Only a small portion of it has been developed, so we love to go out there and just explore the little patches of woods that are still there. Deer sign is always abundant, and usually we cant make it through a trip there without Brewer chasing a few deer. He is a bird dog, but I dont mind,GSP's were bred to be versatile dogs,plus he is very obedient to my whistle so he doesnt go far. Any who, to get back to the point. This is one of my favorite things to do, I love to go exploring the woods, finding deer sign, scouting out new places, its great. Having Brew there with me makes it even better. Today, we encountered a few things, the first was a man walking with his two small dogs, they were fiesty. Seconds after we passed the man with the dogs, I noticed I white tail shoot up and take off from a cleared lot that was elevated 10 ft or so above the road we were on. I did a double take, did I really just see a deer right there, with all these dogs and people within maybe 75 yards. I ran up the hill to investigate, the deer was no where to be found, however, fresh tracks in the mud told me I wasnt seeing things. There were 2 sets of tracks. A doe and a buck.The deer appeared to be following each other. I walked the tracks backwards to a small but thick patch of woods, maybe 50 yards by 30 yards. A friend of mine was hunting yesterday afternoon and saw a nice buck with a doe and found fresh new scrapes near his stand. I mean the rut has been over for a few weeks now. I have read lots of opinions on the second phase of the rut, or the second rut, but I never really knew what I thought about it. What do yall think? I plan on hunting tomorrow afternoon,if today is any indication of things to come, it might be a good day. I havent fired a shot all season, bow or rifle.I've had some close encounters, but for the most part I have just been picky, but the season is almost over and I am craving back straps.I will be hunting on public land. You have to love the state of North Carolina, 1.8 million acres of gamelands and growing. Most of my hunting is done on gamelands. If you havent explored NC's public lands yet, you are missing out. More to come on this later. Until next time. Happy hunting

-Andrew

MY FIRST HUNT

2009-12-14T16:43:00.001-05:00

The sky was crystal clear and still completely dark. It must have been about 20 degrees. I was bundled up in some make shift camo with my buddies .243 in hand. I was 20 years old & had never been hunting before. I didnt know much about my life up to that point. One thing was for sure though. In that moment I realized I was a hunter. I was all in, hook line and sinker. We sat up against a big rock out in a field watched the sun rise while we scanned the field. We saw plenty of deer that day, my buddy shot a doe that afternoon.I never got a shot off. We had each picked out a doe from a group in the field we hunted that morning, I couldnt find the deer in the scope and he shot as the deer caught our scent and ran. It didnt really matter though, I had never experienced anything like this before. From the moment we walked out into the moonlit field, cold gear on, rifle in hand, I could think of nothing finer, and still cannot. Among other things, I was born to be a hunter. It is part of who I am and I am proud of it. I believe that God created each of us with a specific & unique purpose. I also believe that when we walk in that purpose and we are aligned to Gods word, it makes us passionate, confident, and influential people. While this quote from St Iraneus is not from the Bible, it is one of my favorite qoutes. "The glory of God is man fully alive" Remember today that you are fearfully and wonderfully made,align yourself to Gods word and his heart, pursue your passions. What makes you come alive?

I make no claim to be a master of grammer, forgive me in advance for my rambling, non flowing non-articulate blog entries. So much to say, sometimes I just shutdown or lose my self, my wife says I have A-D-D. I am pretty sure she is right. Hopefully this is the first of many entries. this blog is dedicated to all of the outdoorsman here in North Carolina and the surrounding states.( My first hunt was in Virginia) Gonna be posting lots of hunting and fishing pictures/stories/tips and other cool stuff. I hope you stay tuned.

-Andrew

P.S. My heart goes out to all the Appstate football players and coaches. What a great season,we came so close. You cannot replace our seniors,they will be missed, but I cant wait till next season. Any team with Coach Jerry Moore at the helm is SOLID in my opinion. GO APPS