Slips, Trips and Falls Should Never End With A Bang
Nobody likes to tell another hunter they are getting old and need to start acting like a sensible senior citizen. This kind of message is too personal for the ammo aisle and just a shade out of line among friends and family at the Thanksgiving table. It is also the last thing our outdoorsy grandmas and grandpas want to hear. They want recognition for their … Continue reading Slips, Trips and Falls Should Never End With A Bang
Leave Most of the Gadgets Home
Today, it is pretty easy for hunters to get loaded down with equipment. While we’re moving to a simpler lifestyle, sporting goods retailers, it seems, have built assembly lines and supply chains that can move the latest gadgets from field to checkout lines at magnum speeds. My favorite outfitter is now a big box store with thousands of items for every kind of outdoor excursion. … Continue reading Leave Most of the Gadgets Home
Call It a Day at Sunset
Time flies when you’re hot on a deer that steps into your field of view in the last hour of legal shooting. So does situational awareness. Darkening skies, deep shadows and falling temperatures are ignored, if noticed at all. At least, until you have the deer on the ground and you’re looking for the headlamp or the flashlight mode on your camera! Waiting too Long … Continue reading Call It a Day at Sunset
Avoiding Hypothermia is a Matter of Time
All but a few of the hunters visiting our ranch ignore hypothermia in their hunt planning. Although they may mutter something about the virtues of long underwear and layered clothing, all they really know is that Nebraska’s far from the rugged Rockies or Yukon and that a warm hearth and cup of coffee are never more than a few hundred yards away. The only problem with this stereotypical conviction, is that surviving hypothermia is not a matter of distance, but of time. And this is true no matter where you hunt! Continue reading “Avoiding Hypothermia is a Matter of Time”
Are You A Conservationist or a Preservationist?
I have long held the conservationist outlook articulated by the great forester and civil servant, Gifford Pinchot. As the first head of the U.S. Forest Service in the early 1900’s and widely regarded as the father of American conservation, Pinchot advocated for the wise use of forest resources for the maximum benefit of the greatest number of people. He acknowledged the economic value of the timber industry to communities, but also recognized the need to design new harvesting systems that treat timber as a renewable resource, a radical idea at the time. Continue reading “Are You A Conservationist or a Preservationist?”
More to Camouflage Than The Pattern
As a young hunter, I never paid much attention to camouflage clothing. In fact, almost no one paid much attention to it in the 1960’s and early 1970’s. The popular camo brands we have today hadn’t been invented yet and the idea of concealment was something we tried to achieve on the cheap – by staying upwind and using natural cover. I usually went into the field with the same comfortable clothes that I wore hiking or fishing – jeans, a wool Pendleton™ topped by a coat or sweater and knit cap. This outfit was perfect for fall day hunts in Southern California’s San Bernadino Mountains. At least I thought so at the time. Continue reading “More to Camouflage Than The Pattern”
Giving Muley’s A Break in 2024
We support the NGPC’s 2022 decision to create a Pine Ridge Mule Deer Conservation Area (MDCA). Although we are eager to do our part for mule deer conservation, we are also dismayed that it throws a wrench into your deer hunting plans. Continue reading “Giving Muley’s A Break in 2024”
You’re in Mountain Lion Country
Use caution when you hunt the pine ridge. You’re in mountain lion country! This means that while you are stalking that deer, there’s something else in the woods that may be stalking you. Continue reading “You’re in Mountain Lion Country”
Another Cockamaimie Idea!
I got an email yesterday that Senator Ben Hansen (Blair), submitted a bill (LB1247) on January 16th to open leased school lands to public hunting with an effective date of October 1, 2024! Making more public and private lands available for hunting is often touted as a way to stem the shrinking population of Nebraska’s hunters, which today is just 9.4% of Nebraska’s population. Unfortunately, … Continue reading Another Cockamaimie Idea!
December Snows A Winter Treat
Just about any season in Nebraska can put on stunningly beautiful displays. This year, overnight freezing temperatures, light winds and a December snow left a light dusting on ridge line pines. When dawn came, the trees emerged with an eerily serene glow. Dead still and quiet, we loved the feel of this morning as much as the unique spectacle. After a quick coffee, Sergei … Continue reading December Snows A Winter Treat
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