Ask any bowhunter what activity puts them at maximum risk for a heart attack and you may get answers like shoveling snow, pushing a stuck car, or taking part in a triathlon. While these are all certainly stressful, the activity near or at the top for causing a potential heart attack is dragging [...]
When it comes to hunting pronghorn antelope, it’s all about their eyes. After seven failed stalks, I’ll admit I was feeling whipped. There’s no sure-fire way of overcoming a pronghorn’s superior vision, at least not in mid-August, before the mating season. During the rut, a crazed buck may run in to a decoy [...]
I have often been asked the question, whether through direct or indirect means, “Why do you hunt?” It's a poignant yet perplexing question to answer. I liken it to describing the color purple to someone who has never seen the color in their life. Impossible, right? Yet if someone has seen something like [...]
As bowhunters, we spend a lot of time in the woods, forests, and hills alone, often times many miles from home…or from help should something happen. We have all heard stories of hunters being lost, hurt, or killed in the wilds every year. I have a friend who fell out of a tree [...]
Standing on the edge of the morning woods, I hesitated to step into the darkness. I listened for any sound and urged myself to walk into that seemingly black abyss and head to my tree stand. I don’t know if I am the only one who feels this way, but walking into the [...]
The December wind spiking off the Gulf of Mexico was a bitter, damp 25 degrees as we waited our turn for the pontoon boat to shuttle us over to legendary Saint Vincent Island. Thanks to the wind chill I’ve never been colder, since most of my hunting occurs in the heat and humidity of [...]
In a story I wrote earlier, I told of a bow I received for my 5th birthday, a wood self bow that I loved dearly. It met an early demise when an errant arrow struck the neighbor’s delivery van. Unfortunately, the neighbor was standing in his backyard when it happened and he told [...]
Back in the early days of bowhunting, ground blinds were the norm and it was considered unsportsman-like to shoot an animal from a tree. That’s all changed since the 1970’s, though, as bowhunters discovered the advantages of being elevated and manufacturers started producing climbing stands. The big advantage to tree hunting is that [...]
Krik of Black Owl Outdoors thoroughly yet simply explains how to navigate with just a compass and a map. Regardless of why and how you spend your times in the great out of doors, you should at least know the basic of map and compass navigation and basic orienteering. [...]
I simply needed some quiet time—what I like to call “me-time.” Time to chill out, reflect, think, and just relax. Everything seemed perfect that day. It was hot, sunny, and beautiful—my personal favorite time to hunt whitetails. Dressed in a camo T-shirt, sweatpants, and tennis shoes, I happily headed out the back door. [...]
