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in reply to: Most Admired Predators #41419
Rocks — before a wildfire wiped out pine marten habitat where I live in CO, we had a lot of them and they frequently added to the pleasure of my hunts. Sometimes they were shy and disappeared. Other times, most times, they would ignore you and go about their business of hunting for dinner. Once I was sitting over an elk spring with a little ditch, maybe 2′ wide x 3′ long and a foot deep, close in front of me. A marten came through and was sniffing around and flush a vole to sprinted off and tumbled into the ditch with the marten right after him. While the vole did a good job if escaping the weasel’s grasp for a long time, it was trapped in the ditch and eventually the marten caught it. Then the remarkable thing happened: the weasel brought it’s dinner right up to me and ate it, in about 3 bites, while sitting right in front of my boots and looking me in the eye. I think it was boasting about being a better hunter than me! And have you ever seen one run flat-out over flat and open ground? I never dreamed anything could move that fast. Just pure lightning. While their prey base has returned sinced the fires 8 years ago, we won’t have martens again until we have mature conifers. I really miss them. dave
in reply to: New Ashby update just posted; health issues #40636Hiram — Amen to that! Beasts me why some people who don’t like the results have to get so personally nasty about it. We should teach basic human decency and discourse in school. Ed will appreciate your thoughts. dave:D
in reply to: Why is Bowhunting Illegal in Germany? #40503Patrick — where do you come up with these far-flung questions!?:roll: Seriously, I for one greatly appreciate your egoless curiosity … you make us all think. Cottonwood’s friend pretty much nails it in my view. But to add some background, remember that for centuries throughout Europe, big game and hunting were reserved to the royalty and gentry. This was the time and origin of the Robin Hood myths. Poaching was a high crime that could cost you your wife and daughters, even a hand chopped off or death. It is said that a major contributor to the French Revolution was the peasantry’s displeasure with this “hunting for the rich and privileged only” situation. (The fact that once the peasants took control the basically wiped out all wildlife in short order … well that’s another story!) Thus, the preferred conspicuity of firearms hunting as opposed to the potential secrecy of bowhunting has strong historical precedent in Europa. Not only Germany but France and Switizerland also, and probly others I don’t know about. I’ll ask my Swiss/French-speaking hunting buddy Alex to wade in here, as he was born and raised in the French alps and know all about it. What would be required to get bowhunting permitted in these Old World cultures is for a substantial portion of the rich and privileged to take it up and raise hell to have it allowed. Like so many topics this is the tip of an iceberg name of “the North American democratic hunting model vs. the European elite hunting model. And I guarantee you Patrick the Curious, if we continue overpopulating our land and continue destroying our best public lands wildlife habitat, eventually the European model is all we’ll have left. That is, those who can afford it will pay bigtime to hunt on private land. The rest of us peasants will be poop out of luck. dp
in reply to: Bow quiver or not? #39288Fellers — I have friends who seriously hunt squirrels and shoot, break, and lose tons of arrowws. They really have no choice but to carry big back quivers that can pack in a couple-dozen arrows. For your specific needs — walking to and climbing up to a tree stand — well it depends on how far and how brushy the walk. Most treestand hunters are in ag areas where the walk to the stand is short and easy. In that case I don’t see that it really matters what quiver you use. But for serious ground hunting where you’re ducking under trees, fighting through bad brush, etc., and as mentioned need to wear a backpack, there’s really no choice in my very long experience other than a bow quiver. If your arrows buzz or rattle when you shoot, you have a problem with your quiver or mounting. If you prefer to shoot without a bow quiver, buy one of the many models available today that easily and silently slip on and off the bow with rubber straps. Through many bows and many years, I personally find I shoot better with a bow quiver as it adds a bit of weight and, thus, stability, to what otherwise is a featherweight bow. My Shrews, for example, weight less than a pound “naked.” Like most of life, it comes down to your particular needs and personal preferences. I do all my hunting from the ground and a lot of walking and weaseling silently through thick cover. For what it’s worth, there you go. Dave
in reply to: carbon vs aluminum #36678Nick — you inadvertently hit on one of the bigggest “disadvantages” of carbons: If you don’t lose ’em, they last forever … and thereby rob you of the joy of making up new arrows! 8) Of course a guy can always scrape off the old feathers (much easier and cleaner than with woodies) and put on some pretty new colors to “freshen-up” his decades-old carbons. I WANT to shoot nothing but woodies. Yet I can’t ignore the endless practical advantages of carbons. Sort of a metaphor for much of contemporary life, I reckon. Mixed blessing.
in reply to: Robin Hood #35033Ho-ho … once you get started on all the related links it can eat an hour before you know it. My favorite is “The Battle of Crece from the French perspective.” Had to watch it twice before I “got it.” Ouch!:twisted:
in reply to: Observations: My First Second Bow #34267P — what kind of take-down hardware does she use?
in reply to: Bow Season vs. Crossbows #34265Konrad — let’s not hikack this thread to something else, but I must say I absolutely disagree with your last sentence and have the personal experience fighting these battles to back my opinion. Consider who benefits when we be in to the concept of “we need more hunters to protect hunting from nonhunters.” The industry! Brother we don’t need more hunters — please come take about half or more of those who are crowding me out more every year here in CO — we need more better and politically informed and active hunters. Quality of quantity, that should be our goal always.
In general (that is, no longer speaking directly to brother Konrad) — the laid-back attitude of “let everyone do what they want, shoot what they want, etc., so long as it’s legal” is another failure to understand the “real deal” out there in the hunting woods. OK, I can go with that, so long as the weapon is lethal and humane and thus ethical, up to a point (I draw the line at vehicle-mounted .50 cal rifles, for example). But the fact is that archery seasons were almost exclusively based on traditional and primitive bows and that’s why they’re so liberal. Start packing modern hi-tech weapons into what is meant to be a low-success season and you not only unfairly disadvantage those of us who are trying to play the game by the original rules, but you also put the “primitive” privileges at great risk, because they aren’t primitive any more. I agree with putting the cross-guns in the same short season with the modern hi-tech “black powder” and “muzzle loader” rifles that don’t necessarily even load from the muzzle any more and almost never use black powder. And that season should NOT be in archery season. Without rules we have anarchy. And anarchy sucks. If you folks who want to let everyone into archery season and want more hunters at all costs have great hunting grounds that are so uncrowded as to allow a overall good hunting experience with no limits — please share with the rest of us became I for one am hurting to find undisturbed hunting grounds where the animals aren’t being pushed around and panicked … and it sure ain’t the antis who are doing it. 😥 Dave
in reply to: Robin Hood #34253Good one, Robin (Hoodrad?). I too really look forward to seeing it — title? — even though I’m yet to see Avatar. Risking being called a “realist” by Konrad (K — it’s the literalists who drive me nuts :P), I noticed right off that they seem to have infused the Robin Hood legend with shades of Agin Court (sp?) re lots of archers and huge volleys of arrows. And too, none of the archers is wearing a finger tab or glove, which would be a bit nasty with those 80-120 lb. English longbows. But hey, it’s show business. I can’t believe they’re doing this one yet again. The power of legend, and bring it on.
Robin — I don’t do Facebook or the like. Can you provide us with a regular link so we can forward this to friends? Thanks, dave
in reply to: Most Admired Predators #33795Steve, I’d overlooked weasels. Not my favorite predator but they’ve sure entertained me many times while hunting, and at home. Too many stories to tell but I can’t think of another predator who consistently and successfully takes on prety many times its own size. Pine martens are weasels too and extremely entertaining.
My least favorite predators are feral housecats. Where are the coyotes when we need ’em?
in reply to: Most Admired Predators #31551Yeah, Don’s article was really enjoyable and refreshingly open-minded. The singing bowyer (Mark Baker) has a similar article in the same issue. Which is most “admired”? Depends on what aspect we’re admiring. The grizzly for grandeur and majesty. The wolf for wildness, musicality and society. But overall I’d have to say the coyote — also for musicality plus tenacity in the face of adversity, frugality in needs and adaptability in diet and habitat, but mostly because it’s a ubiquitous connection to wildness and freedom. Lots of people have never seen a grizzly or wolf and never will. But you pretty much have to live in an urban cave to never have heard a coyote yelp. I admire them all above insect size.
in reply to: National Archery in the Schools Program #31545Nuss — It was my pleasure. A great bunch of folks you have there. And I’m getting good use from the camp ax, splitting kindling for the cabin woodstove. Oddly we use more kindling spring and fall than winter, since we let the stove go out and light it only when needed, while in winter it never goes out for months so little kindling needed. Thanks.
Konrad — My own “archery in schools” experience was a 1 credit class at the U. of OK … the only A I made that semester!
I would think the choice of bows the schools use would often depend on what they can get for free. A national drive to get simple inexpensive longbows for school use could be productive in that arena. dave
in reply to: "Wow, now THAT'S a VERY old bow!" #31538“Old fashioned.” That’s us. At least he didn’t say “Now that’s a very old archer.” 🙂
in reply to: Poundage/Stacking Relationship #30832From my isolated point of view, no there is not. If you were talking about “true” straight wood longbows, while still not perhaps reduceable to a mathematical formula, it mostly comes down to “the 90-degree rule.” To wit: the closer the string/limb tip angle comes to 90 degrees, the lower gain in poundage/speed you get for every inch drawn and the higher the stack. So, the shorter the ratio between bow length and draw length, the more the stack. But when you crank in recurves and deflect-reflex technology, plus glass, carbon, etc., it all becomes so very specific to a particular bow design that I can’t imagine any one formula for all. My self-made osage bows at 60″ and 55# stack like a brick wall. My 54″ r/d Shrews at #55 pull smooth as warm butter, to the last centimeter. I trust that adds to your usual and well-known confusion on all issues (I mean, just ask your wife!). :P:lol::P Anon
in reply to: Making an IF #30823Kegan — Congrats on your experimental success! And thanks for getting this thread — and this entire forum — going again. Darn shame that without leaders in this arena — Ed Ashby, Sharpster, Kingwouldbe — it gets so little action. I mean, there’s a lifetime of discussion potential here! Given the high draw weight of your bow and the arrows you’ve now set up, and assume the right head, I’d say you could line up any two of the biggest thoughest game animals in N.A. and shoot through both! 😆 Of course that’s a “joke” for the argumentative literalists among us. But I’d sure not want to be on the receiving end even if I were a big bull buffalo. Thanks for your tenacity. Keep us posted. dave
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