This is what the owner of the property found the day before we arrived to shed hunt. He wasn't out looking for sheds, just walking around the property. As bummed as we were to see this, the fact that they now had two years worth of matching sheds for the same deer is pretty awesome. The set on the bottom is from 2015 and the set on top is from 2016.
Staci and I found a great place to shed hunt. We knew that there were deer all around and that we would be in the right spot to find something. It had started to snow when we got there but the forecast called for heavier snow in the late afternoon. As outdoors women, we figured that we would be fine. We just started following tracks to figure out where the deer were traveling from. We headed through a field and towards the woods, looking for beds, feeding areas or yards where the antlers may have fallen off. Our plan was to walk the perimeter of the property to see what we could find. It is always a good sign when you see a rub almost immediately. We have seen the sheds that have been found nearby so...
Remember this guy? I was fortunate enough to meet him last March when he was a brand new black bear. I knew that our awesome bear biologist were out checking dens and sent a message to one of them asking if they had gone to King's den yet and if the cubs were there with her. My timing could not have been more perfect; they were heading to her den the next day! Using the same technology as they did the year before, they found King under a network of cedar blowdowns. She weighed in at 156lbs - four pounds heavier than she was the year before, and looked totally healthy. Last year, King had given birth to a male and female cub. Only the male cub was in the den with her this year. While the female cub could have...
Dan Johnson from The Nine Finger Chronicles started doing listener reviews of bows. It was an unbiased way to hear from everyday people about what was working for them and what bows they liked or didnt like and why. As a beginner and newbie to the world of archery, I offered to review a couple of bows. It also helped that I was in the market to buy one. Dan posted what he was hoping to get for information on each bow and left it up to us. I was the first woman on the podcast and the first woman to review bows. You can listen to the podcast of Dan and me talking about the PSE Stringer and the Mission: Craze...
I was going to get the first shot in. I put the pin on the target and released. Hubby spun around, "where did it go?" I shook my head, "I have no idea" And just like that, I was down to five arrows. We put the kiddo down for his nap and lugged our gear outside. This was the first time that we were shooting at our house and not in the archery shop. I lined up again to shoot and realized that I hadn't lined up my peep with my sight for that first shot. I tried to determine how far off my first shot had been but it was pointless. I still haven't found that arrow. I had Hubby take photos and video so that I could look at my form and posture and attempt to fix some of the early issues that I was noticing; like...
One of the few good things about social media is connecting with folks who are like you in order to compare notes, get tips and tricks and share in successes. One of the coolest women that I have met is Skye Goode who is a rock-star trapper. Learning from the book "Hoofbeats of a Wolfer" by O'Gorman, Skye watched her family members as they trapped mink, raccoons and muskrats. Her uncles got into beaver and fox trapping which helped to give Skye a more complete picture of how to learn each animal’s behavior and habitat and the types of traps, lures and set ups that worked best for each. The tipping point for Skye’s own trapping career happened when she shot a buck, “I shot a buck with my bow in the evening...
These birds were making their way to the little water hole as we pulled into the driveway. There were six total that walked through, each stopping to get some water before continuing on. Just a few more months until the spring season starts!
** The following article was written for The Liberty Project and posted on their website on October 30, 2015. You can see it here. I was never paid for this article so The Liberty Project never bought the copyright. Women’s interest in hunting is growing fast, despite online harassment I never questioned the size of my gun. If Dad could shoot it, why couldn’t I? My mom said that the kick alone would send me backwards out of the treestand. I shot the 30-06 twice to get comfortable and on the third shot three weeks later, I killed a small buck that filled the freezer. I never questioned my abilities again until I started writing about and posting photos of my hunting adventures. I was then forced to prove my...
On January 22nd of 2015, I semi-conquered my fear of coyotes. I went with Steve to his bait pile and we called in my beautiful 37lb male coyote. My coyote from 2015 A few weeks ago, we went back to the same spot. The coyotes had been staying close to the bait pile and their well worn trail ran just behind the shack. When we got there, the wind was blowing and the temperatures were dropping. It was a lot colder than it had been last year and for some reason, I had forgotten by good hunting boots and had to wear my 'normal' winter boots which were not big enough to get two layers of socks in. Getting ready to head to the shack There were fresh tracks when we got to the shack, which was promising. Steve set out the...
