Forum Replies Created
-
AuthorPosts
-
in reply to: Stream Crossing #42615
I can’t answer the question without seeing the creek. You’re really asking two questions–how to stay dry and how to stay safe, and they’re different. The trouble with crocs and garbage bags is that they provide very poor footing in water moving fast over slippery rocks. My choice in real high water (other than turning back if its too nasty) is lightweight stocking foot breathable chest waders with felt (where legal) or cleated soles. That’s also the absolute best way to stay dry in Alaska. Don
Funny–I just had a note from one of our regular contributors in the Midwest complaining about the awful uphill drag he faced when he shot a big buck down in the bottom of a hole. I asked why he didn’t just cut it up and pack it out. You guessed it–had to come out whole. This was in Indiana. These regulations are ridiculous. (Fortunately, neither Alaska nor Montana has them.) First, by making it hard to get game out of remote areas, they encourage road hunting. Second, spoilage of meat and hides will inevitably occur (and wasting game is illegal almost everywhere.) Sounds like you guys who live in these states need to go to work on your game departments. Don
in reply to: More international good press for bowhunting #36833Nothing at all wrong with that outcome, R2. People accommodated, and when they did, they stopped demanding “control” hunts. The end result is no deer running around town packing arrows, and that works for us. Don
in reply to: More international good press for bowhunting #35564No hijacking at all, Preston. I’m always glad to hear from you. The Anchorage archery moose hunt, held for all the reasons you mention, also produced images of moose running around with arrows in them, and the hunt was promptly cancelled. All the biological points you make are accurate. The problem is that arrows, in contrast to bullets, leave graphic evidence of what has happened when they don’t do their job. Here in Montana, rifle hunters wound, cripple, and lose many times more game than bowhunters do, but it’s the picture of a deer packing an arrow that makes the papers and leads to cries to eliminate bowhunting. Suburban management hunts are further complicated when rifle hunters with no archery experience see a big buck in their yard, go down and buy a bow, and fire away without the training and experience to get the job done properly. (I think we’ll all agree that IBEF is a great starting point, but a certificate is no substitute for the experience needed to get a job like this done properly.) From a PR point of view, the best approach may simply be to let the deer eat people’s flowers and lawns so they’ll understand that there’s more to this than Bambi. Don
in reply to: More international good press for bowhunting #34937I agree wholeheartedly that the bow and arrow are poorly suited to suburban hunts intended to reduce nuisance game populations. They tried that on the moose in Anchorage some years back, and the “bowhunt” was a disaster for just the reasons illustrated in this photo. But other than that, what’s the point? Someone made a bad shot and failed to recover the animal. Let all those who have never had this happen to them cast the first stones. Don
in reply to: Scent control? #33287Call me the ultimate skeptic, but I don’t believe in anything except close attention to the wind and rubber boots. Think of it this way. Imagine taking a 65 gallon drum and dumping the offal from the last deer you killed inside. Then take the 20 carp you just shot and dump them in too. Then clean the dog kennels and add what’s on the shovel. Then pick up 50 miles of roadkill whatever and toss that in. Seal the barrel and leave it in the sun all summer. Then open it up and take a whiff. Like it or not, that’s what we smell like to deer and elk. The notion that spraying something into the barrel is going to make it smell like roses is magical thinking. Don
in reply to: Lamentations #33275Sad but true. I’m old enough to remember when I automatically felt a certain kinship with anyone identifying himself as a bowhunter, and was seldom disappointed. That was a long time ago. Suggestions? Sure. Find another website–like this one. Don
in reply to: prescription glasses.? #11150I wrestled with this for years. Glasses are a huge PIA in the field. They fog up in wet weather like Alaska’s, and frost up in cold weather like Montana’s. One time I got 10 yards from a bedded caribou in the rain and had to take my glasses off and wipe them so I could shoot. Every time I rubbed them it made a little squeak, and the bull would turn around and stare. (I eventually killed him anyway.) My solution? Daily wear contacts! Don
It absolutely can be done. Years ago I was scouting elk pre-season when I spotted a big tom crossing the canyon in front of me several hundred yards away.I had an elk diaphragm in my pack and decided, “Why not?” A few minutes later, I saw a big tail twitch right behind me… Well, it seemed like a good idea at a time. Since then, I’ve had friends inadvertently call in cats while calling turkeys and elk, and even rattling for deer. Those approaches all wound up aggressive, close range, and scary. Of course, every time I’ve deliberately tried calling cougars during the season, there’s been no reply. My hounds make a great Plan B. Don
in reply to: Aussie turkeys #54138As my memory serves me, they are confined to Fraser Island on the Queensland coast. Maybe one of my old Oz mates can chime in and correct me if I’m wrong. I’ve never hunted them, but some of my friends there have, and they can’t understand why we get so excited about outwitting our turkeys here.
in reply to: Aussie turkeys #53191Biologically, the Australian brush turkey is a totally different bird, unrelated to ours. However, as I’m sure ausjim knows, there are limited populations of our turkeys in Australia–and they are equally stupid, as they are everywhere they have been introduced around the Pacific (New Zealand, New Caledonia, etc.) The explanation is simple–absence of land based predators. Without things trying to eat them, birds are either born dumb or get that way fast. Don
in reply to: Big cats in Northeastern Australia? #53186A few years back, there were multiple reports of a “black panther” on the loose in Great Falls, MT. Lots of theories, no confirmation of anything. Over the years there have been multiple reports of melanistic color phase cougars, none ever confirmed to the best of my knowledge. Who knows?
I have nothing but fond memories of Australia’s Top End. Don
in reply to: You've got to be kidding me!!! #53173Get used to it, guys. If someone thinks they can make money selling it, you can count on its eventual appearance, no matter how ridiculous. Don
-
AuthorPosts
