Feathers and Fins....San Saba, TX

Took my 7 year old on his first "official" hunt last month.  We packed up the RV and headed for San Saba, TX where my brother-in-law works his family pecan farming business.  The property they live on sits on just over 450 acres of pecan orchards, with another 2000+ acres spread out around the local area.  The orchards are home to beautiful pecan trees, many well over 100 years old.  To me its a outdoorsman's dream.  The San Saba river runs one border of the farm offering fishing and incredible wildlife habitat (turtles, water moccasins, ducks, cat fish, bass, nutria, toads, etc).  The orchards are a haven for deer (i started taking pictures of deer but it literally got old.  Easily 40-50 deer every morning and evening), dove, turkey, squirrels and of course the nemesis of most farmers...wild hogs.

For my son and I our focus was turkey.  My brother-in-law had been seeing them frequently in one particular orchard.  We had two and a half days to stalk the property, set up some decoys and work the turkey call to coax out some gobblers.

Shot of what the orchards look like...

Our "camp" for the weekend (a little different accommodations then my Minnesota trip).

Once we had the trailer set up it was time to unpack the important gear and start walking the property.

The orchards are bordered by higher grasses and a mix of oak and pecan trees.










Beyond the tree line along one border it drops off into a ravine.  Right away i could tell this would be where we would start our evening stalking session.  This particular section met up with a section of the river which then gradually led back and opened up at the far end of the orchard.

The San Saba river...looks pristine from this angle...

But those are some muddy waters
hiding all kinds of critters...

You can see the damage the hogs do to the river bank.  My brother-in-law uses the river to irrigate so he is constantly repairing and moving his equipment from the damage the hogs and nutria cause.  Both animals are KOS at all times.














We finished off the day with a little archery practice...

...as well as some target practice with the Ruger 10-22.

Also uncovered some fresh water clams down at the river (actually i think they are classified as mussels)

Before sunrise the next morning we hit the first area where turkey had been seen regularly.  Put out some decoys and threw up a makeshift blind with a couple layers of camo netting against a pecan tree.

We hung out here working the turkey call for an hour or so after sunrise...but all was quiet.  We left the decoys in place and headed across the orchard to the ravine and began a slow quiet stalk.  Stopping every 20 yards to let out a few calls.  Still nothing but we spooked a few deer out of hiding and found the mother load of squirrels which we returned for later.

Nasty vultures always looking for a free meal...











Where the ravine eventually came back up to the orchard we found a few little goodies...a nice shed and some turkey feathers.  We would return here sunday morning and try again.

But until then it was back to the trailer to pick up our fishing gear and hit the river to chase some fins and relax.

I love photographing old farms.  So much history and character on a piece of land thats been worked for over 100 years.

Sunday morning started off with a proper breakfast...










Then it was back to the ravine before sunrise for one last chance to find the turkeys.  We sat in this spot for some time trying a variety of calls. Twice I thought I got a response but it was tough to tell with all the other birds chirping and the occasional chatter from the few surviving squirrels.

We decided to head back up to the orchard and circle around to where we found the feathers at the other end.  Once there we sat for a few and I decided to throw out a couple short clucks.  Immediately we got a response.  The loudest gobble i have ever heard.  My sons eyes went as big as silver dollars and every hair on my neck stood up.  Again i hit the call...GOBBLE GOBBLE GOBBLE came back from beyond the tree line.  This went for 10 minutes...back and forth.  I knew from where we were laying even if i called him out into the short grass of the orchard I wouldn't have a shot. So we had to move.  It seemed like an eternity before we reached a better spot with good cover of tall grass behind a pecan tree.

Hit the call again...nothing back.  Dammit! I had given us away.  Hit the call again....GOBBLE GOBBLE GOBBLE! he was CLOSE!  Between us and tree line (about 20 yards) was a barbed wire fence and some scrub brush.  I needed him to clear the fence to have a clear shot.  Suddenly we hear hen clucks 30 yards to the left!  Could this get any better?!?!?  I let rip a few more calls eliciting a perfect response from both birds each time and they were on the move.

Then it happened...I repositioned myself slightly for a better look and in doing so rose up to my knees.  And there he was eye level with me at the fence!  In a split second he was gone back into the trees.  I cursed under my breath and looked at my son who had been so quiet and still the whole time.  He said two words that almost brought me to tears..."patience, Dad".

Of course I wanted to shoot that bird and have my son's first hunt put meat on the table.  But overall I couldn't have been more happy.  We explored for 2 days, had the best father-son time a guy could ask for and in the end had the most suspenseful 30 minutes calling that gobbler in and it won't soon be forgotten.  We will be back there before the season is over and next time I will remember my 7 year old's words of wisdom...patience, Dad.

A few more random pictures...

Turley Dogwood Creek above and ML Knives custom to the left...

Thanks for coming along...God bless!

February in the Minnesota North woods

When a friend of mine invited me up to Minnesota to join him on a back country trip I jumped at the opportunity.  Within days my tickets were booked and I started packing weeks in advance.  It had been a while since I'd used much of my cold weather gear.  I preformed the usual safety checks making sure everything was in good condition.

Let me start by saying I grew up in the Cascades in Washington state.  I am no stranger to cold weather, rain and snow.  However, nothing could prepare me for the extreme cold I was in for.  I left Texas where the temps were in the 70's.  Landing in Minneapolis the temp was right around 0.  Snow on the ground...no big deal, not that cold.  The next morning we would wake and be on the road by 4am.  The temp gauge in my buddy Ryan's FJ Cruiser read -10 degrees Fahrenheit.  Ok, getting a bit colder. Our 5 hour road trip took us to the some of the furthest most Northern roads in the state.  Temperature: 22 degrees below zero.  Painfully cold for the ill prepared.  

After unpacking our gear at the trail head I learned my first lesson:  If you have a piece of gear that is less than 400 grams of Thinsulate you're in for some serious discomfort.  Luckily my more experienced friend had an extra set of liners to wear inside my gloves.

Our trip would take us North toward Canada following the frozen Sioux River.  Our goal was to scout a number of the Boundary Water lakes, hunt some small game and hopefully photograph some wolves.

My gear setup: Osprey pack and a small sled with additional gear (pack boots, extra sleeping bag, rifle, food, snow shoes, etc).  On the river we would cross country ski.  Over portages and hunting through the woods we switched to snow shoes.

The vastness of this country is tough to conceptualize.  Over a million acres of wilderness.  We started off with Ryan in the lead cutting the trail.  The snow was deep making our progress slow.  Lesson number two learned:  Pay attention to your body heat.  Shed layers to prevent sweating.  Put the layers back on when you stop.  When its negative 20 degrees out and you get cold to the bone it take a lot of calories and time to warm back up.

We continued several miles up river to our next portage.  Less then ten miles from the Canadian border.  The sun was dropping fast...so was the temperature.  (We wouldn't find out until later that night it was 35 degrees below zero...not including any wind chill factor).  We decided to stop and make camp.  It was nice being with another experienced woodsman.  Right away we picked a spot and without much discussion went to work preparing for the night.  We worked together getting a tarp set up to serve as a retreat from the wind.  Next Ryan put his Bahco saw and Wetterlings to work getting us a base for the fire and wood.  I put together tinder, kindling and cleared a fire pit.  With one strike from the fire steel we had fire.

Our shelter was fairly basic.  We draped a tarp over a fallen tree and filled in the backside with snow.  The floor would consist of my BCUSA tarp and we each used two Thermarest  pads under our bags.  With the fire setup at one time we were actually able to raise the temp up to 17 degrees under the tarp.

Next order of business was boiling snow for drinking water.  The cold sucks moisture from your body at an insane rate.  Lesson number three learned:  Dehydration in these temperatures renders a wicked headache.

The last couple hours before nightfall were spent warming by the fire, eating, discussing plans for the next morning and enjoying the pristine wilderness surrounding us.

Later in the evening Ryan spotted what he thought was a wolf about 100 yards from camp.  With our flashlights we could make out three shapes, eye shine and pointed ears.  But as we made our way toward their location they seemed to just vanish.  Clearly just the snow playing tricks on our tired eyes...or was it.  We would find out two days later.

The next morning I crawled out of my down Marmot bag, which I had slid into a larger synthetic bag which in turn was inside a USGI gore-tex bivi.  Immediately I realized the top of my down bag was frozen solid.  Lesson number four learned: At 35 below zero if you sleep with your head inside your bag the condensation created from breathing will freeze.  I would deal with this later.  I had more important chores to tend to.  Fire, coffee and the sunrise.

The night before I had put together fire preps and wrapped them in my coat so they would be ready for the morning.  A nest of grass, birch bark, jute twine and some kindling.

My MP Knives Bowie slicing

 through birch like butter.

Lesson number five learned:  Boil water, pour into Nalgene
bottle and wrap with two wool socks.  Place in your sleeping
bag overnight and in the morning you WON'T have a solid
block of ice.

Is there a better way to start the day?  I think not...

Day two:  We made the decision to stay in this spot.  We had a good camp and cutting a trail on skis through the deep snow all day to reach the lake wasn't as appealing.  We had hoped to do some ice fishing but instead we strapped on our snow shoes and headed into the woods in search of small game.  I had brought my stainless Ruger 10/22 takedown model.

Turned out due to the extreme temperatures small game was no where to be found.  The entire afternoon we got a few shots off at some Fox and Red Squirrels.  Also kicked up a nice grouse but came home empty handed.  Nonetheless our 4 mile round trip that day was spectacular.

We tracked a Lynx just off the river.  His tracks ended here where he left his mark...

Another set of tracks continued through the snow...we were not the only ones on the Lynx's trail.

A lone wolf with tracks not more then a few hours old.  Every five hundred yards he was marking his territory.  We followed him until late in the day when it was time to head back.  Again the sun dropping fast and this night temps would dip to -40 degrees Fahrenheit.

Back at camp we had a couple hours before dark. Ryan had brought an ice auger so it was time to test it out.  In just seconds he drilled through 4 to 6 inches of ice.  Up bubbled the ice cold river water.










Day three:  Pack it up and head home!  We woke up to a fresh dusting of snow that had blown in covering our bivys.  After a morning feast of bacon, oatmeal, coffee and some random carbs we packed up and headed back.  I took the lead this time.  The wind was brutal and snow had covered much of our tracks.  It was still much easier then cutting a fresh trail.

As we approached the area where two nights before we thought we spotted wolves we discovered this...

There had been wolves stalking us.  They were using the track created by our sleds to travel up and down the river.  Their tracks only left ours to head up into the woods...to a trail that ran behind our camp.  They had been watching us all along.  They truly are intelligent and incredibly elusive predators.  We tracked these three along our trail the entire way back to Ryan's car!

And every once in a while they left us a present...










Even though I didn't get to photograph any wolves I am not disappointed one bit in my trip.  I learned a lot from Ryan about surviving in such an extreme climate.  I saw some of the most beautiful land our country has to offer. And I gained a new respect for you that live your daily lives in the North woods of Minnesota...your'e a hearty breed and I tip my rabbit fur lined bomber hat to you!

Some more random pictures...thanks for looking and God bless!

And best of all....

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Lost Maples Hike. Field Test: EmberLit UL Stove

November rolls around and here in south Texas we have a major changing of colors in a few parts of the hill country.  Lost Maples State Natural Area is home to a very uncommon growth of Uvalde Bigtooth Maple trees.  Late October through mid-November the foliage makes a spectacular change painting the valley with reds and oranges.  This was my second trip through the park with my oldest son, last year's trip being his first overnighter.  The weather was perfect...afternoon temps in the high 60's to low 70s and night time lows just below 50 degrees Fahrenheit.  According to the park rangers we were about a week too late to catch the best of this year's change.  We still were blessed with some fantastic scenery and photo opportunities...

We set camp at the farthest point of the park's backcountry.  Nice and quiet and off the beaten path.  

After camp was set first order of business was getting my EmberLit UL stove fired up.  Here are the specs straight from the EmberLit website:  http://www.emberlit.com/

The Emberlit-UL (Ultralite) Stove. Weighing in at less than 6 oz (170 g) the Emberlit-UL stove caters to those who pay special attention to the weight of their gear. Made of pure titanium, the Emberlit-UL is just as strong and impervious to corrosion as its stainless steel brother but at half the weight. With use the individual panels that make up the Emberlit-UL may take on a slight warp. This is normal and doesn’t affect the assembly or durability of the stove. Likewise it comes with a lifetime guarantee… you’ll never wear this one out either. Despite the extra difficulty and expense of working with Titanium this stove is PROUDLY Made in the USA!

I ran this stove for well over 12 hours.  Assembly takes less then a minute.  It gets extremely hot extremely fast.  10 ounces of water boiled in about 4 minutes.  I was burning primarily cedar and some oak.  Being titanium it is not only light weight but after use it cooled down and was ready for disassembly in no time!  So if you were on the move and wanted to stop for a quick cup of coffee and needed to get back on the trail...this stove fits the bill.

Order one up and throw it in your pack, you'll be glad you did!

Want to roast some marshmallows?  The EmberLit has you covered!

Bacon?  Oh yeah...there's always room for bacon!

Another piece of gear I brought along was my recently purchased BCUSA 10x7 UL tarp in multi-cam. When packing up I realized in the supplied stuff sack the tarp fits perfect in my Mors style bush pot.  Here is the info from Bushcraft Outfitters:  Bushcraft Outfitters (BCUSA)

This rip-stop fabric is very lightweight with excellent tear strength and NanoSphere® liquid repellency.  The fabric has been processed to reduce air permeability, which creates excellent wind-break properties.  The NanoSphere® repellent finish is applied to the face side.  This product is typically used for outerwear and tents due to its strength, light weight and packability.

• 40x40D Ripstop Nylon
• NanoSphere® Treated
• Tabs are mil-spec Coyote Brown
• Thread is mil-spec Coyote Brown
• Stuff sack included
• Stuff sack cordage is 550 paracord with a USA made cord lock
• Tabs: 12 perimeter and 1 additional ridge line (3 total with edge tabs)
• Weight (includes stuff sack): 13.5 oz

All components of this tarp are 100% made in the USA.

Luckily we only had a few drops of rain all weekend but it was nice to have the tarp up just in case.  The wind was coming in pretty consistant from the East so it made a nice wind block as well.  The tarp is exceptionally well constructed and is a new permanent part of my gear.

For two and three day outings I would generally use my Frost River Isle Royale Jr.  With no water sources in this part of the back country we had to pack in all our water.  Therefore, I decided to use my CamelBak Mother-Lode with its 100oz bladder.  I forgot how comfortable this pack was.  I probably had room for another two days worth of food and water.   In a different environment where I could filter my daily water needs I could easily use this pack on a five to seven day trip.

Do more with less!

Fire prep for the weekend was a handled once again with my MP Forged Hatchet. 

The "Beaver" makes quick work of oak and cedar...from feather sticks to larger kindling.

Here is a shot of my oldest son and I with some great color in the background.  All in all it was a fantastic weekend.  The gear I brought along to test preformed flawlessly but more importantly some great memories were created for my son and I.

As always, thanks for coming along...your comments and questions are always welcome!  Happy Thanksgiving and God Bless...

Fire prep and little hot chocolate...

End of the week, time to make good on my promise to take my youngest son for a little dirt time.  It was off to our favorite spot for a little fire prep and something hot to drink.  Once we arrived at our "camp" my 4 year old went to work gathering twigs and I put my new Adventure Sworn Bushcraft USA knife to good use.  Any review you find on an Adventure Sworn knife will tell you these are serious tools.  And they are.  I couldn't be happier with feel and balance as I made quick work of some cedar into a pile of shavings.  

Mother nature provided some handy tinder.  I need to research and find out exactly what this plant is but the extremely dry, fluffy, feather-like ends remind me of thistledown.

A small handful should do the trick...

After the tinder and shavings I let my MP forged hatchet (which I have code-named The Beaver) handle the processing of some kindling.

A few minutes later...

This is the first time I've actually used this stainless steel cook pot made by Stanley.  It comes with a plastic tab on the lid which I replaced with a large split ring.  The single walled stainless preformed as advertised.  Once up to temperature and the water boiling the folding handle was barely warm.  For $14 at the local bog box store I think its a great piece to have in your kit.  It also come with two heavy duty plastic cups that nest inside.  Badger approved!

Waiting patiently....

Stanley Adventure Camp Cook Set...$14
Packet of instant hot chocolate...$.99
Spending three hours in the woods with my son...priceless.

Thanks for joining us!