Thadventurous

Gobble Gobble…

It has been a while since my last post. A lot of things have been happening. But I will catch you up on the most recent.

This hunting season started off great! I have never hunted turkeys and have been watching a flock of turkeys near my house. I decided to give it a try and bought a call, a couple decoys, and some shotgun shells. I am looking forward to a new Thadventure to share.

Before opening morning I spent time practicing with my call. I thought I sounded like a turkey, and my dog Boone thought so too. It drove him crazy and he would come running to me trying to figure out how I made those sounds. He may have just thought that I was crazy and was coming to check on me…

Opening morning… I planned to get out of the house well before sunrise and I had a spot picked out where I could hide. It wasn’t much, but the turkeys were always walking near the area and I thought it would give me the best chance. I thought the birds roosted in the trees nearby and would hopefully fly down in the morning and come running to see the new decoys. That was close to what happened. Immediately after I set up the decoys, the turkeys started to gobble and they were on the other side of the field. It was exciting to hear the birds talking in the morning as I laid in the brush thinking to myself, “what are you doing? What are you going to do if you get a tom to come close? How long are you going to be laying here? I wish someone was with me.” As the birds flew out of their roosts, I saw one tom and a group of hens. They all started to walk towards the side of the field, but closer towards me. The tom must have heard me sweet talking him and saw the decoys. Then he immediately stared strutting and walking directly towards me. At one point he was just over 100 yards, then he was at 60 yards, then he got to 50 yards and I was thinking to myself, “He is getting close, this is going to happen…” Knowing that he needed to come a little closer I got my shotgun ready. As he made a few more steps, I squeezed the trigger and he collapsed on the ground. This is when I wish I had someone with me to hoot and hollar with, or to give the “we got it done” fist bump. First thing I did was make sure the tom was dead and I texted Mary, my wife, to let her know what just happened. Then I started to text everyone who I thought would share the excitement.

Some say turkeys are dumb, everyone says they have great eyesight. My first experience turkey hunting made me think that they were not the smartest, and how did they not see me laying on the ground. My next outings would prove that they are not that easy to harvest.

After being successful on my first ever turkey hunt I invited a friend to go with me. We had similar experiences this time out again, but we did not get a turkey. We had hens and jakes within 5 yards, but the tom we were after would not come closer than 70 yards. We spend part of the morning watching the birds up close and at a distance as they walked into the trees for the rest of the morning. Excited to try again for the big tom we saw, we went out later in the week. This time his 10 year old son came with us armed with a turkey tag and hopes of getting a chance at his first tom. Again the birds walked around the field and then decided to come and check out the decoys. The tom again would not come closer than 60 yards. Excited and determined we would go out again the next week. Same thing happened, but this time the birds acted like we weren’t there. We were determined and hopeful to get an opportunity for my friends son.

The following weekend I made plans to head to Cottonwood, Idaho to hunt turkeys with another friend. We drove out to the hunting area and spotted a group of toms near the road where we could hunt. Anticipating the next morning, we set up a plan that didn’t work. However, the evening was different. We knew where the turkeys were going to roost and we knew where they were. We set up between them expecting the turkeys to come by us on their way to the roost. It was a great plan until a tom snuck up behind us and started strutting and fighting with our decoy. Once we realized there was a fight going on, my buddy steadily and slowly pointed his shotgun at the tom. Once he had a safe shot, he hammered the bird and it began to flop around on the ground. Not bad for a couple guys who are beginner turkey hunters.

Earlier this week I heard there were turkeys nearby. I contacted the farmers and I recieved permission to hunt. I scouted for a couple days before hunting. I heard there were a lot of birds, but I only saw a tom and a few hens feeding in an open field. The morning I went out hunting was mainly to recon and find out the habits of the birds. I got out well before sunrise and set up my decoys. I didn’t hear any turkeys gobbling or yelping. Then out of nowhere the tom and a few hens magically appeared in the middle of a field. I let out a couple yelps to invite them over. My invitation appeared to be ignored. As I laid in the grass along the side of the field watching the birds feed, I noticed they were getting a little closer. Now they are just over 200 yards away. As the morning went on, they kept getting a little closer. When they finally got within 150 yards they seemed more interested in the decoys. The tom started struting and moving in my direction. The hens led the charge toward the decoy, but the tom was close behind. As he got closer, I ranged him at 60 yards and I knew he needed to get closer. I let him walk a little closer as I settled the sights of my shotgun at his neck and squeezed the trigger. As the shot went off, he rolled to the ground and got back up. With his head up inviting another shot, I promptly delivered another shot. He crumbled with the last shot and I now have harvested 2 toms in my first year of turkey hunting.

I know I am fortunate to harvest 2 toms in my first year of turkey hunting, but grateful to have the opportunity to chase these birds. I have not eaten wild turkey, but I will provide an update. In the spring I was looking for hunting and fishing opportunities until salmon season. I think I just found my new favorite spring Thadventure!

What’s been going on???

Since my latest post a lot has happened with Thadventurous. Meet Boone… New Project… Fishing… New Boat… Daily Thadventures…

Meet Boone… In March, Mary and I picked up our new puppy. We decided to add a German Shorthaired Pointer to our family. The adventure of selecting a puppy, training, and watching him grow has been tough, expensive, but most importantly fun. He has not been the easiest puppy. He likes to eat anything he can get into… The list includes food on the counter, foam mattress topper, and D-con. He has made a couple trips to the vet because of a possible blockage due to a meal of mattress topper, then he spent a couple days with the vet because he had a craving for mouse poison. He is healthy now and is still acting like a puppy. He is a good dog. He loves the water, loves to retrieve, and can follow come, sit, and stay. Most importantly he loves to cuddle and give kisses…

The New project??? Earlier this year Mary and I purchased my grandma’s house and property. We have been working to get the renovation moving and have just recently received permits. The house is just down the road from where I grew up and I have lots of great memories of spending time on the farm and hanging out with my grandparents. There is a lot of work to be done, but most of the hard labor has been completed. With a lot of help, we have removed a lot of the old trees and shrubs, removed the carpeting, multiple layers of linoleum, and sheet rock. The house had a large room which contained a concrete pond and walkway. After over 8 hours of jackhammering the concrete, we came to the conclusion that concrete was either cheap or free when it was built. We are excited to get the permits and start the renovation. I will keep the blog updated with progress.

Fishing… Of course I have been out fishing since the last update. We wrapped up a poor steelhead season with not much to tell… COVID-19 put a stop to a lot of the fishing because of the need to travel out of the area and back. We thought it wound be irresponsible and inconsiderate to travel to a small community and back home. This put a stop to a couple planned trips. Salmon season in Idaho was not great. I was able to get out for a couple days and caught a salmon on the last day of the season. Fishing for salmon in Idaho can be tough and a test of your endurance. The day I caught the fish we spent over 14 hours on the river hoping to get lucky…

New Boat… Mary and I finally did it… We bought a used jet boat. We have taken it out a few times and have had a great time. We are getting better at operating the boat and is a little new for us. We know how to operate a boat but have never operated a stick steer boat. I recently completed my boater safety course in Oregon. This is mandatory to operate a boat in Oregon. The latest trip was to Owyhee with my dad and uncle. We found crappie and had a great time. It reminded me of the times I would go with my grandpa and catch buckets of crappie and spend the afternoons cleaning fish. I am looking forward to more days on the water with family and hope we can share the fun.

My daily Thadventures… I am fortunate to have a loving and supporting wife. I have been able to share Thadventures with her. But before go on new Thadventures, I make sure she is ready for the day. We joke that I am her “executive chef” but I try to make sure that she has breakfast and lunch ready to take with her to work. Then if I am home, I like to make sure that dinner is ready or close to being ready when she gets home. However, some days I drive her to work so I can work on the house and the renovations.

During this strange time in the area, country, and world I have been able to safely continue outdoor activities. Please stay safe and healthy because hunting season is less than a month away and stay tuned for more Thadventurous…

2019 Hunting/Fishing Recap…

The 2019 hunting and fishing season has come to an end. Now I can share the harvests and Tag Soup recipe…

Fishing was successful, with multiple days catching steelhead, and getting lucky and catching a salmon in Idaho. The highlights of the fishing season… Albacore fishing in Washington, 200+ albacore with 9 other family friends. Sturgeon fishing and catching 5 sturgeon with 2 in the 8ft range. The best though was catching trout with the nephews and niece in Sun Valley. Every cast and all the kids caught fish. A very successful trip…

Hunting was a different story. A lot of memories and days in the field made 2019 very successful. I didn’t harvest any animals during the 2019 hunting season and that has caused me to rethink my strategies and plans for 2020. Maybe I am too picky with the animals I am targeting. But always shooting something does not determine success. The challenge, experience, company, and memories I think define success. With that 2019 was successful!!! With a pocket full of tags and no animals means a lot of ingredients for “Tag Soup”

Tag Soup Recipe:

Ingredients:

1 – Alaska Caribou Tag

1 – Alaska Wolf Tag

1 – Idaho Elk Tag

1 – Idaho General Deer Tag

1 – Idaho Extra Cow Tag

1 – Idaho Wolf Tag

1 – Idaho Bear Tag

Anticipation

Excitement

Sweat

Friends (season to taste)

Steps:

1. Layout all tags based on season timing and make plans

2. Marinate tags in anticipation and excitement

3. In a pot, bring water to a boil and add Sweat

4. Gather friends and add to the pot for taste

5. Slowly add tags based on season timing I combined the Alaska tags together. Then throw in the Idaho Wolf and Bear Tags, for color and because you always have them in case you need them. Then slowly sprinkled in the Idaho General Deer Tag, but not all of it. I set part of it aside in case I wanted to use it later. Next I ground up the Idaho Elk Tag and stir it in. After the elk tag is combined evenly, sprinkle in the remainder of the deer tag. Smell the soup and as it is almost complete, dice up the Extra Cow tag and throw it in the pot.

6. Let the soup simmer and check frequently to smell the memories

7. Garnish the soup with more friends and share

Remember the taste, the ingredients used, and why you have the ingredients. Then make changes as needed to next year’s soup.

I’m back….

It has been a while since I have last posted and a lot has been done. A few adventures and a few new experiences… New nephew, Oregon Coast, New York, and of course hunting and fishing.

I was fortunate to be able to travel to the Portland area to visit my new nephew (“Ry”) and spend time with his brother (“O”), my sister and her husband. The trip was awesome, Mary and I were able to spend time with “O” and spoil him with trips to Cabelas and the Lego store. He is a very smart guy and loves his Cars. My new nephew “Ry” is great baby. I didn’t hear him cry once, just chills.

During the trip to Portland Mary and I took advantage of being close to the Oregon Coast. We drove to Lincoln City and relaxed. We ate good seafood and I was able to learn a little about crabbing. Next time I go the coast I hope to catch crabs…

Recently, I was able to accompany Mary on a trip to New York for a conference. New York has a different pace and lifestyle. I prefer the west. The experience was great, we were able to see a lot of the tourist spots and enjoy the Christmas season with the lights and store fronts. We went to a musical, Hades Town, which was great. I didn’t know what to expect and I thought it was awesome. The difficult part was the small theater. The seats were packed in tight and thankfully I didn’t have the seat next to a dude with big shoulders. The 9/11 Memorial was a very special place, and very moving. Getting around NY was a lot easier than I thought with the subway and walking. I think I walked more in NY than I did most days hunting.

Earlier in November I was able to go steelhead fishing in Riggins. It was cold and windy with ice chunks floating down the river. I was able to catch one steelhead, but promptly released it to keep fishing. Idaho is experiencing a poor steelhead return this year, so I was grateful for finding one to bite.

Hunting season is still in progress… I am always writing about the trips and not harvesting any animals. This post continues my streak of poor luck… Maybe I need to find different areas to hunt, or learn the areas better. Hopefully I can write a post where I successfully harvest a big game animal this year. But time is running out… If I do not fill this last elk tag, I will share my special recipe for “Tag Soup”. It is pretty bland and disappointing, but is loaded with memories…

Hunting Season Update…

My hunting season has been very consistent with not harvesting any animals. I have spent multiple days in the mountains looking for elk and deer. I have spotted some good bulls this year, but were either in the wrong unit or too late in the evening to pursue.

One disappointing experience was crossing 8 sets of wolf tracks. I figured I wouldn’t see any elk in that area… Maybe I would get lucky and spot a wolf, but that didn’t happen.

My bull elk season is over for this year, but I had a great time chasing them. They are just faster and have home field advantage…

My deer season was about the same but I never came across a good mature buck. I spent a lot of time in different areas but was not able to locate a good buck. I am debating on chasing bucks with my archery equipment later in November. If I do I will definitely blog about it. Should be exciting to chase bucks during the rut and hopefully see some impressive ones.

I was able to participate in a harvest. My sister-in-law was successful in harvesting a doe. Which means I was successful in field dressing and packing a doe. It is all part of the experience and I was happy to be there and see her happy about her accomplishment and to share in the excitement.

My next adventure is a trip to the Oregon Coast. I will be traveling to the Portland area to visit my sister and her family and newest addition. Then off to the coast for a few days. Hopefully we can try catching salmon and crabs. Maybe we will try and get on a boat to go bottom fishing.

I will provide an update when I get back. Also, if I do not go deer hunting, I will share a recipe for “tag soup.” This is a recipe filled with a lot of frustration, sweat, and good memories… Stay tuned…

Hunting Season…

Last week was spent chasing deer in Idaho. Not much chasing because I didn’t see many deer. However, I did enjoy the outdoors, animals, scenery and friends.

I spent the first couple nights alone in camp. It was cold and lonely with temperatures dipping below 20 degrees. Waking up and crawling out of the small 2 person tent was a challenge, but the anticipation of what I would experience was enough to get me up and moving.

The first couple days involved shorter hikes, some does, and elk. The elk were still in the rut and the big bulls were screaming and chasing off smaller bulls. I saw 3 bulls which any hunter would be proud to chase. One of the bulls was the largest bulls I have ever seen in the wild. I had a great time watching them work a herd looking for cows in estrus.

On the second day I was joined by a good buddy in camp who came to join me in hopes of spotting a bear to pursue the next day. Having someone in camp with you makes a big difference and adds to the enjoyment of sharing time in the outdoors with friends. We didn’t see any bears or bucks to chase but had a nice hike into some beautiful country. We were later joined by my wife and sister-in-law at camp. My sister-in-law had an either sex deer tag in her pocket with anticipation of finding a buck or a doe to harvest. We had one opportunity to harvest a doe that evening but was not able to take advantage.

The last day was a short hike through the area we spotted the doe from earlier. The deer were using the area for bedding and refuge during the day. I spotted the deer in the a couple days before but decided to not push the area to hopefully keep the deer in there for my sister-in-law to have a chance to fill her tag.

We ended the hunt unsuccessfully seeing any deer, but we enjoyed the time outdoors and hopefully will have more chances to get out and chase deer.

The time spent outdoors is always enjoyable and a new adventure. The first couple days were tough and discouraging. Having someone in camp to visit with and share the experience makes the adventure much more enjoyable. I get pleasure from working to help others be successful and find animals, but I wish we were able to find more animals.

This weekend I am headed out to chase elk and deer in Payette National Forest. Hopefully, with the weather forecast and good e-scouting and knowledge of the area we are able to find elk and get something on the ground. Stay tuned…

Pictures from Alaska

Alaskan Adventure – Part III

At a new camp and seeing more caribou our hopes were high to get opportunities but time is ticking…

Day 9: With more caribou in the area we made a plan to spot the herds and make an aggressive move to get in front of them. At this point we needed to make something happen today and give us the last day to pack caribou back to camp if we were lucky… We got to our vantage point to find caribou early and finalize the plan. We spotted a couple herds off in the distance and based on the previous day’s movements we set off to cut off the herd. After a river crossing and a 4 mile trek through the river bottom we crested the small ridge and spotted the herd. With 4 caribou tags to fill, 4 miles in would be a tough job to get all the meat back to camp. However, that would not be a task we would have to endure. After spotting the herd we estimated that they were still a mile out on the tundra. We looked the herd over pretty good and could not spot any sure bulls. The caribou did not have large enough antlers to determine that they were bulls. We decided at that point we were not going to pursue the herd and started the hike back to camp across the tundra and river. After 8+ miles round trip and multiple river crossings the feeling of defeat started to set in. Back at camp we regrouped and started to discuss options. Then the snow started to fly…

Day 10: We woke up to about 4 inches of snow on the ground and we knew that it would take a miracle for us to harvest a caribou bull. The caribou would need to travel very close to camp in order to get the meat back to camp in time to be transported out the next day. The weather forecast did not look favorable for the next day either. Our group decided to contact the transporter to come and get us out. The current weather was clear but another storm was headed our direction and could prevent us from getting out as planned the next day. Our Alaskan caribou adventure was coming to an end. Our transporter picked us up and took us back to Kotzebue…

Final Thoughts: Looking back at the experience and adventure I am happy that we took the trip. Experiencing the Alaskan wilderness was amazing. We saw animals but did not get the opportunities to harvest caribou that we expected. This is hunting and harvesting is not guaranteed. But I look forward to the next opportunity to go back. There are a few things that will do differently on my next hunting trip. Prior to the trip I would identify “what will make this trip successful?” Then at the end of the trip we would be able to say this trip met our expectations. I would also share this info with our transporter to make sure we are clear on expectations and have the same goals. Another aspect of the trip would be timing. We were the last group of hunters for the transporter and our group felt that we would be placed in better locations earlier in the season. The transporter could have been just trying to finish up the season. The reason for this thought is because our camp moves. We felt that the first two locations were selected because of convenience for the transporter. The first location we were dropped off at was also a pickup location for other hunters, and we did not see many caribou. The second location was also a pickup or staging location for other hunters. Two groups of hunters were being transported to the location to either be moved or to go back to Kotzebue. One group and husband and wife team were successful and harvested two bulls. The second group, a film crew, had successfully harvested bulls and had one tag remaining to fill. They were being moved to a new location. With all of our moves we burned three days of hunting because you cannot hunt the same day that you fly, but our second location was a wasted day of hunting so we burned four days of hunting because of being in poor locations. Our last location had the most animals and if we had more days to hunt we would have changed our approach and possibly had more opportunity.

We had a great time in Alaska and we were able to experience something new. Our flights to the back country were safe and the scenery was amazing. I would say that our trip was successful although we did not harvest a caribou. But hopefully we get another opportunity in the future…

Alaskan Adventure – Part II

We have spent multiple days looking for caribou without seeing good bulls or opportunities to pursue bulls. We can only harvest bulls. This gets tough because cows grow antlers and immature bulls have small antlers. The way to determine a small bull is a bull is to look for genitals…

Day 5: We went to our vantage point close to camp and did not immediately spot caribou migrating. We have been discussing that we need to find new areas and we decided to hike to a mountain peak about a mile away… However, a mile in the tundra is like 3 miles at home. The hike to the peak was through a forest and swamp… Upon reaching the peak we realized there was no way to chase caribou. We could not travel fast enough through the forest and swamp to cut off the caribou. After a couple hours looking for caribou we decided to head back to camp. We went back to our vantage point and started to look for caribou moving before evening. We didn’t see any caribou, but we were able to see other hunters a few miles from us. These hunters were up river to the North, which is the direction we expected the caribou to travel. Basically, blocked all opportunity to get a caribou coming from that direction. We contacted the transporter and arranged a move for the next morning…

Day 6: We woke up to a clear morning with virtually no wind. Perfect to fly and come get us. We broke camp, took down tents, repackaged food and resources and pack the gear to the airstrip. We were picked up by 1 plane and shuttled to a new location 2 at a time. The new location showed promise and offered the hope of opportunities. We spent the remainder of the day setting up camp downhill from the airstrip out of the wind. We hiked a bit to find water and haul it back to camp. Then we spent a couple hours gathering firewood. There were only willows and we unsuccessfully tried to burn the larger pieces of willow we cut with a hand saw and hatchet. We found out that the green willow twigs would burn so we stripped off all the twigs to burn. Scouting that night, because we cannot hunt the same day we fly, we spotted a herd of decent bulls. However, they were out about 5 miles and on top of a mountain. Hopefully they would migrated down the next day for an opportunity…

Day 7: We got to our vantage point and immediately began looking for the bulls spotted the night before… Nothing… We moved to another vantage point to get a better view of the river bottom and came across a lost calf. The calf was all we would see that day. Our transporter contacted us that night and asked if we would like to move… Immediately we responded with “YES”. They are coming to pick us up in the morning…

Day 8: We woke up early to break camp and haul all of our gear up to the airstrip. Our transporter contacted us to tell us the weather in Kotzebue was not good and they could not fly. “Check back in at 11.” At 11 we checked back in with a response to check back in at 12. Eventually they came and picked us up to move us 70 miles north. There were reports of 1000s of caribou in the area. We landed at the next airstrip and during the flight we spotted multiple herds of caribou and our hopes were rejuvenated. We set up camp, gathered wood and water, and set out to scout. We spotted multiple herds moving but they were all about 5 miles away. We made a plan for the next morning and knew we would have only 2 days to make something happen…

To be continued…

Alaskan Adventure – Part I

I am back from my Alaskan caribou hunting adventure. I spent 9 days in the back country of Alaska with 3 good friends. The adventure began well before we started traveling. All of the planning, gathering equipment, shooting practice, packing and re-packing to meet weight restrictions.

Day 1: Traveling to Kotzebue, AK

Traveling to Kotzebue was very uneventful and very smooth. All of our equipment arrived as planned. Flying over the Cook Inlet into Anchorage provided beautiful views of snow covered mountains and glaciers. Upon arrival into Kotzebue, you realize just how small it really is. Our transporter arrived as scheduled and picked us up at the airport and took us to their office to store gear for the night. That evening we stayed at a B&B and would be the last chance to enjoy the conveniences of running water and electricity.

Day 2: First day in the back country

After taking care of the administrative tasks, buying licenses and permits, discussing field care, and camp expectations we loaded the plane to our camp. We took a short 30 min. flight on the Cessna 180. Camp looked promising along a large corridor that caribou historically travel. Since we could not hunt on the same day we fly, we set up camp and gathered firewood, tried to catch fish, and did some scouting. We spotted the first herd of caribou, moving south as we expected. We also spotted our first bear in Alaska. The bear was miles away and was never an issue. But the caribou sighting gave us hope for a good first day of hunting.

Day 3: First day of hunting…

Our tactics for hunting were to hike up to vantage points and spot the caribou moving and move to intercept them. We crossed the river first thing in the morning to put us in the middle of the migration path. The problem was that the caribou were not migrating through the area that morning. Later that afternoon we spotted a herd of caribou with one decent bull. Our group’s attempt to harvest the bull did not work out. We ended up eating Mountain House dehydrated meals that evening…

Day 4: Closest we have been to caribou

We split up this morning and went to different vantage points. I spotted a few caribou a few miles out and we watched them move to under 250 yards from us. However, they were not legal to shoot but it was interesting to watch their path. The other group set out to a different vantage point over a mile away from camp. They spotted a group of bulls moving away from them a couple miles out. The one thing we understood better was the fact that you cannot catch up to moving caribou. The tussock / tundra is grueling. Everyone told me it would be like walking on frozen footballs, but I think they are more like frozen sponges. Every step your foot sinks about 6 inches.

The rest of the story…

I will add more days to the blog soon and will also include pictures as I get through them.

The trip includes more plane rides, camp setups, difficult hikes, and some pics of caribou.