As the time slowly ticks away toward the beginning of the muzz deer hunt 2012 I look to my left and see my wife staring off into the distance with no expression at all on her face.  I just finished telling her about my conversation with Magpie about something doing with the upcoming hunt.

She does not acknowledge I have said anything.  Suddenly I realize what is happening.  It’s “the other side of the longest week” coin.  Her side.

Oh yes, it’s real.  There is more to this hunt than just my not being able to put all things into the trailer or the back of the truck.  To not be able to load the beer and ice into the cooler before Tuesday morning at 7 a.m.  To have to store a large bag of food in the freezer until it’s time to leave.

Much more.

The rifle leaning against the trim of the door.  The stack of things in the garage that must be skirted around to get to the car.  The bag of clothes with the zipper open, on top of the bedroom dresser.  The boxes and bags in the sun room, next to the door.  The lists on the counter in the kitchen.  The long extension cord stretched across the lawn from the outside plug to the trailer.  Everywhere you look  is a reminder of the upcoming event.

The conversations each night as we relax from the days scurrying around.  Me trying to accomplish “one more thing” on the list.  Something that needs to be in the trailer and I won’t need between now and then.  Her, trying her best to stay out of my way and not have to listen to my age old story of “what if I forget something”.

She is longing for the 8 a.m. hour of Tuesday to get here.  It’s a very long week indeed, but she has had to listen to this for at least two months while I prepared the camp trailer for my honored guests.  The remodel of the trailer has long been finished and yet I have another task that I think will improve upon it.  She stopped me from doing that last week and now, does she wish she hadn’t?  I would be busy outside with that and not constantly pacing up and down the stairs, to the bedroom, into the closet and out to the garage or sun room.  Shuffle, shuffle, shuffle.

Well, my dear, only 4 more days, and it will be on day four, that at 8 a.m. I will give you a loving kiss goodbye and jump into the truck for the long drive to camp.  Only 4 more days.  Hell, it was 4 days ago and it was only Monday of the longest week!  What is happening?  Still 4 days to go!  Oh my God!

Bears Butt

Sept. 21, 2012

This time next week will the rack be back at camp with the first deer of the hunt?  Will the Magpie Express be back ahead of the rack?  Or will both rigs still be out looking for that monster muley in the woods?  Only time will tell.

The excitement is building every moment of this very long week.

From several conversations I have had with various folks who are going to be joining us on the hunt, it seems likely that we will be spending a whole lot more time glassing than driving.  It makes more sense to me after experiencing the Youth Guided Turkey Hunt last Spring.  Sitting high on a vantage point glassing slowly down into the forest for hours and hours taught me that what appears to be an empty bowl is actually full of animals of all varieties.

Looking specifically for turkeys, we saw moose, deer and elk, and of course the turkeys we were looking for.  On one such occasion I was glassing an open meadow and had been looking at it off and on for at least an hour when suddenly as I panned across it for the “umptinth” time, there stood an elk!  As big as big could be.  Why can’t that happen during this hunt?

Couple the driving with the high price of fuel and it makes a whole lot more sense to stop and kick back on a hill side and try to find an animal to put a stock onto, than to drive from hell to breakfast and not see anything but dusty roads.

Another thought is about hitting some of the hillsides and trails that we all know about and do a little still hunting.  A couple of years back, Brek joined us and he and I found a trail that was so tore up with tracks of every kind it was hard to sit next to it and wonder why we weren’t being trampled on.  I think a bit deeper on that trail down into the steep depths of the hole it headed into just might be the ticket to a big old buck.  A cool pine covered bowl of sorts and I’d bet there is water down in there somewhere.  It looks unforgiving and so I really doubt many people trek down into it.  Make sure you have your hydration pack filled as if a buck does happen to fall down in there, it will be a heck of a haul back out with it in pieces on your back.

The excitement is building more and more as I think about the hunt and the camp.  FUN FUN FUN!

Bears Butt

Sept. 19, 2012

I frequent a Utah based forum dedicated to outdoors related activities and it’s the best forum I have ever visited for things like this.  There are a great bunch of people who regularly post things on the site and like all forums there are things that get out of hand occasionally, but for the most part it’s a pretty civil place to visit.

The past few days there have been a couple of postings on the site that have some really good stories about hunting elk in Utah.  These three guys drew out limited entry bull elk tags and wouldn’t you know it, all three decided to try and shoot these big animals with “old fashioned” archery gear.  One man used a long bow and cedar shaft arrows and the other two used re-curve bows.

Anyone familiar with shooting the older type wooden bows knows that in order to shoot a big game animal you have to get pretty dang close before you shoot.  There are a lot of ethics in this sport even if you are shooting a modern compound bow.  Closeness to the animal is usually a must before pulling back on the string.

In my younger days I used a re-curve bow I had made in high school and it worked really well to deliver cedar shaft arrows out into the woods to be lost forever.  I think I soundly lost close to 3 dozen arrows without hitting any animals.  However, I did have one shot that should have been my first deer, but I blew the shot and shot low.  The arrow is still sticking out of the quakie where it planted full broadhead deep after my shot.

So, these three guys used very primitive equipment to shoot some extremely large animals.  Ethical shots at close range.  Their stories are very interesting to say the least and I thought you should read them too.

Here are the links to the two stories.

http://utahwildlife.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=44765&sid=91d345a8522511d80c8a66d0397fc031

And

http://utahwildlife.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=44815

I have personally met the man who wrote the second story (Tex-O-Bob) and he is the same person who told me about “single beveled edges” on knives, arrow points etc.

I congratulate each of these three men on their accomplishments in filling their tags on some incredible animals.  It just goes to show you that you don’t need the most modern and the best of the best equipment in order to shoot trophy animals.  I personally can not imagine being within 15 yards of a massive bull elk, screaming its guts out in a hollow….I think it would have been real easy for it to “smell” my presence, if you know what I mean.

Enjoy the stories.

Bears Butt

Sept. 18, 2012

The LONG week.  Print out the lists of things needed for the hunt.  The list for the camper, the list for the truck, the list for the atv, the list of hunting needs, the list of food.

Gather up what you can of each of the lists and place them where they will be easy and quick to get to and load up.  Load what you can, but there are always a ton of things that will have to be done at the last minute.

When is the last minute?  7:30 a.m. on Tuesday morning.

I can’t pack the tools as I might need them to repair something in the house.  I can’t pack the last of the groceries as they need to be put in the refrigerator or the ice chest just before leaving.  I can’t pack the chain saw and gas, or propane, or camp chef grill box as the truck they need to be put in won’t be here to hook up to the trailer until 7:45 a.m. on Tuesday.  I can’t set it all out by the trailer because someone might come along and steal it.  Stack it neatly and out of the way from our normal living areas.

What’s normal this time of year?  This is normal!  So why not just stack the stuff everywhere, be it in the way or not.  This is the longest week of the year.  The week before the hunt.  Today is Monday, only one more Monday before the hunt.  Tomorrow is Tuesday and then the next Tuesday is when we leave for the hunt.  The longest week is a mis-nomer.  It should be the longest year.

I’ve checked the list of things twice today.  I’ve gotten everything ready, I think.  I better go check the list again.  What did I forget?  Oh, I almost forgot the kippers…write them down.  NO!  NO!  Go get them and put them with the chips and buns, they don’t need to be refrigerated.  Got some candy.  Well, it’s last years Halloween candy, but it will be ok for those who are going to be eating it.  Hard Tootsie Rolls…yum.  It takes longer to eat them this way.  What about this Charleston Chew?  It could be used as a tent stake if we need it.

Let’s see, where is the list for the clothes I need to take?  I haven’t made it.  I will make the list…let’s see, change of pants, underwear, socks, extra shoes…that’s it.  THAT’S IT?  Why have a list for that?  Just gather them up and put them in the trailer.  Good Grief.  Well, that’s something I don’t have to worry about at the last minute.

I can’t put my rifle and possibles in the trailer yet, someone might come along in the middle of the night and pilfer through things and take it.  Nope, another last minute thing.  Golly, it’s already 5 p.m. on Monday, only one long week left to wait.  I can’t put the water in the jugs yet.  I can’t load up the ice chests.

I’ve checked the truck chains at least twice for broken links and extra chains.  We are good there.  What’s the long range weather forecast?  Hot and dry with some cooling.  But that forecast ends Sunday and there is still two more days after that before we leave.  Forget that forecast.  We will check again tomorrow.

Flint and steel kit with fresh char…check!  Hydration pack…check!  GPS with fresh batteries….check!  Flashlight with fresh batteries….check on the flashlight….mark on the “to buy list”, AA Batteries…

The longest week!

Bears Butt

Sept. 17, 2012

Memories of past hunts.  Need I say more?

Bears Butt

Sept. 16, 2012

Could this be Joe B Pond?

Weasel and I are heading to the Perry range to make sure our muzzleloaders are sighted in for the deer hunt coming up.  I told him last night I will take one shot and be done, he said he needs 3.  We will see.

My plan is to shoot out to the 100 yard target and hopefully be about an inch high at that range, that way any animal between 125 and zero is in trouble.  I don’t take shots past 100 yards usually and I like my shots under 50 if possible, but you never know what the game will do or whether you will need a second shot out that far to put it down for good.  So it’s better to be ready if needed.

And, what if a coyote pops up?  YES!  BOOOOMMMM!!!!!  $50 in the old pocket through the states dead coyote program.  That would help with some gas money on the hunt.  Maybe what this hunt should be is a coyote hunt with deer as an option….HMMMMM, food for thought.

More later on the sighting in results!

OH, and don’t forget, today is the muzz planning meeting up at Bones’ house at 2:30!  See you there!

Bears Butt

Sept. 15, 2012

THE NEXT DAY

Yesterday, when we arrived promptly at the range at 10 a.m. there was already a very large group of people assembled there.  It seems there was a hunter safety course finishing up their shooting and the place was very busy with activities in that arena.

Unfortunately for us who were there the target practice we had to wait.  The range masters said it would only be about 45 minutes and to just hang in there and be patient.  We were.

I need to interject here about the hunter safety training that we saw.  First off on the range there were three officials, but only one doing all the talking and instructing.  There was nothing wrong with that, but for me it was not a time to be teaching the trainees how to lay in a prone position, or how to sit to shoot or how to kneel to shoot, that should have been done long before coming to the range…JMHO!

Secondly, the instructors should have considered how the students performed at “aiming at the same spot” as they were instructed to do.  Even though they were shooting at a jumping squirrel target and the purpose was supposedly to hit the squirrel in the vitals as many times as they could out of 30 shots, that is not how the target is judged for passing or failing the course.  To pass the course the student needs to have 70% of the bullets strike within an area 10 inches in diameter and the animal on the paper target is just something for them to aim at.

Is it the students fault the rifle they are shooting is not sighted in?  NO.  Therefore if the student did not even hit the paper target at all, but hit the background cardboard with all 30 shots contained within a 10 inch circle (clearly more hits than needed to pass) should they not pass?  YES.  But these instructors totally ignored that part of the process and had the students “re-test” and then “re-test” a third time.  NOT FAIR is my call.  Nuff said.

So we waited nearly 2 hours to finally get to shoot.

3 Mile Gun Range, Perry, Utah

When allowed we posted our targets out on the 100 yard range and loaded up.  My rifle liked the 425 grain Hornady Great Plains hollow point/hollow base bullet in the past.  It has killed a nice 4 point buck two years ago, and a fine tender doe last season, so why not stick with success?  I told Weasel, 90 grains of ffg blackpowder and one conical Great Plains and one shot should do it.

Down the barrel went the bullet and I capped up.  At 100 yards my sights completely cover the black bull center of my target and the way I like to aim and have my rifles sighted in, I placed the bb gun type front sight, even with the top of bb gun type rear sight, centering the front sight between the uprights of the rear sight and put that entire picture just under the black bull.  I set the rear trigger and then softly touched the front trigger.  The rifle roared to life and when the smoke cleared my bullet had hit 1 1/2 inches high and two inches left of the bull…..I’m a Happy Boy!

I turned to the Weasel and said, “I’m done”!

Bears Butt is ready to kill his 2012 buck

Weasel hoped for similar success.

He too pushed a Great Plains bullet down on top of 90 grains of black powder and fired his shot.  LOW.  Very low and not good enough to take hunting.  Another shot was needed.  HIGH.  Very high and not good enough to take hunting.  A third shot….where did it go?  Not sure, but not good enough to take hunting.

Weasel cleaned his rifle between all shots using many cleaning patches and lubing the first with windex.  Windex does a fine job of cleaning out the blackpowder residue and it evaporates quickly leaving the barrel dry when finished.

After 8 shots using the Great Plains Bullets and varying his powder charges down to 80 grains with one shot and up to 100 grains with another, he decided to change to a Power Belt hollow point bullet at 430 grains in weight, and back to 90 grains of ffg blackpowder.

The first of four Power belts hit just a bit high of the bullseye, the second hit just low of the bull, the third hit lower and left, and with only one of the Power Belt bullets remaining in our arsenal, I suggested he charge with 100 grains of powder for his last shot, which he did.

I was watching through the binoculars as the rifle reported and clearly as the day is 24 hours long, a hole appeared as closely to the exact center of the bull as anyone can do with an open sighted muzzleloader!  The Weasel is ready for the hunt!

BULLSEYE! The Weasel is ready to kill his 2012 muzzy buck!

And so, I say to all the big bucks in Utah’s newly assigned Unit 2, you have 9 days to go hide, cuz we is comin!

Bears Butt

Sept. 16, 2012

Who says the upcoming muzz deer hunt doesn’t have me excited already?  So far I have smoked some trout, made a big batch of jerky and winterized the hunting trailer.  Sorry fellas, no running water again this hunting season!

And since it’s raining a little, I think I’ll go poke around my muzz hunting box and make sure all the essentials are in there.

Planning meeting at Bones’ this Saturday at 2:30!  See you there!

Bears Butt

Sept. 20, 2012

Just when you think anyone that is more than 5 years old has been fishing, up pops someone who has never held a fishing rod!  How can that be?

Well today, Sherry and I are taking a special gal with us on an outing to Blacksmith Fork Canyon to do a little fishing.  Her name is Beth and many of you met her at the rendezvous.  She had never been to a rendezvous and of course never shot a muzzleloader…she did both this last weekend and said she had a really good time!

At 26 years old, she says she has never been fishing.  So today is the day.  We have picked a nice easy place to pull off the highway, a place that is pretty and there is a “potential” to catch a fish.  We are going to make an afternoon of it with a picnic and hopefully catch a fish or two.

More on the subject will be posted after we return!

Bears Butt

Sept. 6, 2012

Later!

We made it to the “lake” about 1 p.m. or so.  The wind was blowing but only slightly more than the usual wind in that part of the canyon.  We mixed it up with the bait, Beth chose Powerbait in “Sherbert” color, Sherry chose worm and marshmallow and I chose Garlic Powerbait.

I just got Beth’s line in the water when Sherry is yelling “Fish On”!!!  and sure enough in comes a nice healthy trout.

Before long she has another one on, and another bite and then another!  It’s crazy and only Sherry can get the bites.  After the second fish, we switched Beth over to worm and marshmallow.

But the bite turned off.

Another hour went by without so much as a tickle to the lines.  And then the clouds rolled in and it started to sprinkle.  Suddenly the fish bite began again.

Beth landed her first EVER trout!

BethCathesHerFirstFishEver

Sherry said it was because it was “lunch time” when we got there and now it was “break time”.

During the lull in the action we ate lunch and I had switched Beth over to a bubble and fly…a number 18 fly I call the Green Maiden.  Beth began to catch on to hooking the fish as they pulled on the fly and very soon here was the sequence:

Fish number 2

Fish number 3

Fish number 4!

Well it began to rain with more earnest and we decided we had better get on for home.  A wonderful day fishing with two wonderful ladies!

Oh, How did Bears Butt do?  Not even a bite!

Beth caught 5 fish for the day, Sherry caught 3 fish for the day, they kept 4 to eat! Bears Butt didn’t even have a bite!

So there you have it and it was a great day!

Bears Butt

Sept. 6, 2012

I can see from the Facebook group on Willow Creek Free Trappers that folks are getting excited about this years muzzy deer hunt….me too!

Bones is having the planning meeting and that word is out.

Folks who are going to be at the hunt have already put their bids in on creating special meals for everyone!

Others have unique and special things to hand out at the hunt.

Of course we all have our own story to tell around the fire about past hunts or what they expect to happen this season.

It all comes so slowly during the year and then when it happens it seems to be over in a couple of days!  It’s my favorite time of year.

The leaves are just now beginning to turn their fall colors and by the time our hunting season ends, the leaves will almost all be on the ground and being covered with dustings of snow.  How fun can it be?

Bears Butt

September 6, 2012

Now here is something for a granddad to be proud of.  A grandson with his first ever wing shot dove!

His dad, Brandon, Conner and I headed to the field this evening for a little late dove hunting.  We figured there should be lots of doves around because it hasn’t been that cold and only one rain storm.  So the doves are still around.

Where normally we would be lucky to see 20 doves in one evening, tonight we saw over 50 and maybe even closer to 100.

I am not a good wing shot, and I shot 13 times this evening, using a bolt action shotgun and I managed to bag 2 doves.

Brandon and Conner shot right at a box of shells and Brandon bagged 3 while Conner tagged his first!

Congratulations Conner!  Fine job!

Bears Butt

September 4, 2012