Monday, April 11, 2011
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
New Blog
Hi Everyone,
I wanted to let everyone know that I have accepted a position to be apart of prostaff for the Up North Journal. With being on the prostaff I have a blog over there. So that will be my primary blog and this blog will be used for pictures and press releases about the Great Outdoors. If you would like to follow me over there the address is: http://www.upnorthjournal.com/wordpress/randyduncan/
Thank You for the support over the past couple of years and continued support. Remember to share the Great Outdoors with someone new. It might just change their life.
Randy Duncan - The Everyday Sportsman
I wanted to let everyone know that I have accepted a position to be apart of prostaff for the Up North Journal. With being on the prostaff I have a blog over there. So that will be my primary blog and this blog will be used for pictures and press releases about the Great Outdoors. If you would like to follow me over there the address is: http://www.upnorthjournal.com/wordpress/randyduncan/
Thank You for the support over the past couple of years and continued support. Remember to share the Great Outdoors with someone new. It might just change their life.
Randy Duncan - The Everyday Sportsman
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Saturday, January 1, 2011
First Ice
It is that time of year where most of the hunting seasons are coming to an end and the weather is starting to get cold. Christmas was only a week ago and it has been freezing cold for the past week and a half so the hopes of the lakes and rivers making good ice are good. So that means ICE FISHING season is here. I look forward to this just as much as opening day of duck season. So it was a couple weeks before Christmas when I got a call from Mike Adams and during the conversation ice fishing was one of the topics. Well we made plans to go out Sat. morning and check ice conditions to see how soon we would be out ice fishing. So after the phone call ended thoughts of fishing were bouncing in my head. When I tell ya it is like an opening day of a hunting season I was not fooling around. After I would get out of work me and my sons would sit down and go through all of my fishing stuff to make sure everything was in working order. It was over kill for first ice but I figured while I was pulling everything out I might as well get everything set. I take the bare minimum with me when I fish first ice. First ice can be the most unpredictable of the season. Also if I need to get off the ice quick I don’t have a lot of gear to get off the ice. So Friday night came and Mike called to setup the plan of attack we decided the plan was 8ish at the Up North Journal cabin and we would head over to one of our little fishing spots. Well 8 o’clock couldn’t get here quick enough. I went through my fishing stuff one last time before bed and then it was time to catch a little sleep before fishing.
Well Saturday morning was here and I arose out of bed because it was my opening day of ice fishing season. The only thing that I didn’t do was spray my clothes down with my Dead Down Wind sprays. So everything was in the car and off to the Adams’s house I went. When I got to the house I greeted Mike with a Hello and I think with the smile on my face he knew I was ready to fish. We loaded up all of his gear into the car and we were off. We stopped by Mc D’s to grab a coffee and a quick bit to eat and we finalized our game plan. A quick trip over to one of the many lakes in the area just to see if anybody was out and sure enough there was shanties out on the lake so we knew the ice was good in the area. So we headed over to one of the lakes that we like to fish. As we pulled up to the parking area we had seen a couple of shanties out on that lake. That got me more excited so much I forgot to grab the bait and had to go back and get it. We loaded up the bucket and grabbed the auger and we were off. As we were headed out a couple of anglers were headed in and we asked how the bite was and we were told that it was good if you like little ones. Well I love catching the big boys but I can get just as excited about catching the little ones too. Especially if you are in the mood to just catch and release then it doesn’t really matter the size when you are catching fish. So as we were walking to the lake I don’t know if Mike seen it but I was acting like a kid on Christmas morning, I couldn’t get on the ice quick enough. As we hit the ice it was as if all of the stress of the world just lifted and all that mattered was being outdoors and sharing stories with a good friend. As we were making our way across the lake you could hear the ice making noises as new ice is forming. I am not going to lie it does shoot a shiver up my spine when I am walking and the ice pops and cracks. What did bring a smile to my face was when Mike danced a little jig as the ice popped underneath us. But as we got settled and drilled the first hole I remembered that the bait was still in the car. So I headed off to the car to get the bait and to grab my Hat with Flaps. As I got back to our spot Mike had another hole drilled and we were fishing. We fished that spot for about 20 min with no luck so Mike and I talked about moving more in the middle of the lake where him and I have had luck in the past. We packed up the gear and off to the next spot. When we got to the spot there was all ready a hole that had been drilled by someone earlier in the morning so Mike let me use that one and he punched a hole for him and we were fishing again. Well this was the spot because it wasn’t 5 minutes and I had the first fish thru the ice. It looked more like a minnow but hey it was a fish and it was on my line so it counted. After a little teasing by Mike back in the hole it went. Well it wasn’t to much longer when there was a tug on the line and up thru the hole came another fish. This time it was a lot bigger. Not a huge fish by any means but it was a big enough for me to eat. As the morning went on and we spent about 3 hours out on the ice I managed to catch 6 fish all together brought 4 home and had a great time swapping stories with a good friend. So we packed up the gear and headed back to the car we compared notes on the day’s activity and we were still surprised that we were able to get out fishing before Christmas. After I dropped Mike off at his house I knew that when I get home one of my other fishing buddies would be asking a ton of questions. Well he did not disappoint because once I got home that was when the real fun started. My oldest son was waiting by the door and the first question out of his mouth was any fish. He could tell by the smile on my face that there was fish to be cleaned. He grabbed a chair from the kitchen table and slid it up to the sink where the 4 bluegill were at. As he climbed up to the sink his eyes were as big as silver dollars and he was all excited he got to help with the fish. The biggest one out of the bunch was still alive so as the sink filled with water the fish was swimming around and splashed my son a couple of time which he thought was funny. It was funny until he went to grab the fish and one of the fins poked him in the hand. At that point it was enough of playing with the fish so he got down and watched as I filleted the fish and he helped get the crackers and milk together so we could fry up the days catch. So after eating and cleaning up it was back to getting ready for Christmas and the weekend. Even if it just for a few hours a week, make sure to get outdoors and let your mind clear of all of the stuff. It does a body good.
I want to wish everybody out there a Happy New Year. Remember to take someone new out and show them the Great Outdoors. Have a Great Day.
Well Saturday morning was here and I arose out of bed because it was my opening day of ice fishing season. The only thing that I didn’t do was spray my clothes down with my Dead Down Wind sprays. So everything was in the car and off to the Adams’s house I went. When I got to the house I greeted Mike with a Hello and I think with the smile on my face he knew I was ready to fish. We loaded up all of his gear into the car and we were off. We stopped by Mc D’s to grab a coffee and a quick bit to eat and we finalized our game plan. A quick trip over to one of the many lakes in the area just to see if anybody was out and sure enough there was shanties out on the lake so we knew the ice was good in the area. So we headed over to one of the lakes that we like to fish. As we pulled up to the parking area we had seen a couple of shanties out on that lake. That got me more excited so much I forgot to grab the bait and had to go back and get it. We loaded up the bucket and grabbed the auger and we were off. As we were headed out a couple of anglers were headed in and we asked how the bite was and we were told that it was good if you like little ones. Well I love catching the big boys but I can get just as excited about catching the little ones too. Especially if you are in the mood to just catch and release then it doesn’t really matter the size when you are catching fish. So as we were walking to the lake I don’t know if Mike seen it but I was acting like a kid on Christmas morning, I couldn’t get on the ice quick enough. As we hit the ice it was as if all of the stress of the world just lifted and all that mattered was being outdoors and sharing stories with a good friend. As we were making our way across the lake you could hear the ice making noises as new ice is forming. I am not going to lie it does shoot a shiver up my spine when I am walking and the ice pops and cracks. What did bring a smile to my face was when Mike danced a little jig as the ice popped underneath us. But as we got settled and drilled the first hole I remembered that the bait was still in the car. So I headed off to the car to get the bait and to grab my Hat with Flaps. As I got back to our spot Mike had another hole drilled and we were fishing. We fished that spot for about 20 min with no luck so Mike and I talked about moving more in the middle of the lake where him and I have had luck in the past. We packed up the gear and off to the next spot. When we got to the spot there was all ready a hole that had been drilled by someone earlier in the morning so Mike let me use that one and he punched a hole for him and we were fishing again. Well this was the spot because it wasn’t 5 minutes and I had the first fish thru the ice. It looked more like a minnow but hey it was a fish and it was on my line so it counted. After a little teasing by Mike back in the hole it went. Well it wasn’t to much longer when there was a tug on the line and up thru the hole came another fish. This time it was a lot bigger. Not a huge fish by any means but it was a big enough for me to eat. As the morning went on and we spent about 3 hours out on the ice I managed to catch 6 fish all together brought 4 home and had a great time swapping stories with a good friend. So we packed up the gear and headed back to the car we compared notes on the day’s activity and we were still surprised that we were able to get out fishing before Christmas. After I dropped Mike off at his house I knew that when I get home one of my other fishing buddies would be asking a ton of questions. Well he did not disappoint because once I got home that was when the real fun started. My oldest son was waiting by the door and the first question out of his mouth was any fish. He could tell by the smile on my face that there was fish to be cleaned. He grabbed a chair from the kitchen table and slid it up to the sink where the 4 bluegill were at. As he climbed up to the sink his eyes were as big as silver dollars and he was all excited he got to help with the fish. The biggest one out of the bunch was still alive so as the sink filled with water the fish was swimming around and splashed my son a couple of time which he thought was funny. It was funny until he went to grab the fish and one of the fins poked him in the hand. At that point it was enough of playing with the fish so he got down and watched as I filleted the fish and he helped get the crackers and milk together so we could fry up the days catch. So after eating and cleaning up it was back to getting ready for Christmas and the weekend. Even if it just for a few hours a week, make sure to get outdoors and let your mind clear of all of the stuff. It does a body good.
I want to wish everybody out there a Happy New Year. Remember to take someone new out and show them the Great Outdoors. Have a Great Day.
Monday, November 22, 2010
Beman Bone Collector arrow recall
Hi everyone. I wanted to share this link to the Beman Arrow recall. If you shoot Beman arrows or know someone that shoots them make sure and share the article with them.
Here is the link:
http://www.usrecallnews.com/2010/11/cpsc-11259.html
Thanks,
Randy Duncan
Up North Journal - Team Fowlmouth
Here is the link:
http://www.usrecallnews.com/2010/11/cpsc-11259.html
Thanks,
Randy Duncan
Up North Journal - Team Fowlmouth
Thursday, October 28, 2010
New Member to the Up North Journal Team
|
Michael Adams
michaeladams@upnorthjournal.com
President – Up North Journal
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
My hunt with Brady
This time around I am writing about a hunt that I went on in honor of a little boy named Brady. Brady is a 4 year old boy that lost his battle with cancer a little bit ago. I hope you enjoy this post as much as I was apart of it.
As I read Chico's blog and started to understand the story of Brady it really started to get to me. My wife and I have two sons around Brady's age so it hit me like a ton of bricks when I learned of the story. Because it reinforced the fact that nobody is immune to cancer. So every time I read something about Brady I knew I had to do something to honor this young man. So with seeing my Up North Journal teammates putting Brady's name on their arrows I tried to figure out what I could do now to honor Brady. Well as people close to me know lI am a huge small game hunter and I love getting new hunters especially kids started into hunting and the outdoors. Well squirrel hunting is usually the first hunting season everybody starts out with. So with this on my mind and kicking around the idea of putting Brady's name on something that I use in the field and seeing as Chico always names his arrows and shells. Then listening to the last Up North Journal podcast episode 179 when Chico was talking about putting Brady's name on your outdoor equipment, it was the final piece that made it a great idea. So this was the plan, Brady was going hunting with me on my next outdoor adventure.
I treated this hunt just like I treat every hunt when I take a youth or a new hunter out for the first time. The only difference was I was going to be pulling the trigger. I was going to use the gun I shot my first squirrel with and head out to one of my favorite local public hunting areas.
So here it is the second Sunday of the season and today is the day Brady and I were going to go hunting. My oldest son seen me getting ready to go and he knew I was going hunting. He wanted to go so bad but I told him that this time it was going to be just me going and he would go next time. Well after a little crying he was good with that. Trying to explain to a 3 year old about Brady was pointless all he understood is daddy was doing something special and will take him hunting next time. So I got to my hunting spot and sat in my car for a bit staring at the shotgun shell going over what this hunt means to me and what I wanted to get out of the hunt. So I grabbed a marker and Brady went on to the shell and him and I were off to the woods.
The area I started at has a trail system that is used for all different kinds of outdoor activities so I decided to just walk the trails for a bit and see what I could find. As I walked along I kept a keen eye out for a flicker of a tail or the rustling of leaves that would signal to me a squirrel. The first little twitch I seen was a chipmunk and I thought for a minute about harvesting the animal but after thinking about what this hunt was all about I passed on the shot and decided that if I didn't find a squirrel then I would try to harvest a chipmunk.
As the morning drew on and grew closer to the afternoon I was starting to get discouraged as the fact I haven't see one squirrel. As I sat on a stump to take a break I remembered that I had my squirrel whistle with me. Now when I hunt with other people I get a lot of teasing and looks when I use it because it looks odd for a game call but I have had good success with it. The call mimics the distress call of a squirrel and it will get other squirrels all worked up so they start barking and will help you locate them. Well I figured what the heck let's try it. As I was blowing away on the call I heard some rustling coming down the trail. Turns out it was a lady and her dog walking the trails. Well I decided that I was going to move a way from this area because even if I seen a squirrel I didn't want to scare this lady with a gun shot. So I headed down a trail that I hadn't been down before and it more looked like a deer run then a trail but I seen a bunch of old foot prints so I figured it was a regular trail. As I was walking along the trail I heard a bark from a squirrel so I knew it was game time. So as I scanned the tree tops for the source of the barks I was just hoping that it was not a woodpecker because a chirp from a woodpecker can sometime sound similar to a squirrel bark. Well i found the source of the noise and it was a red squirrel perched up on a branch about hundred yards ahead of me. Squirrels have great eye sight and hearing, many say better then a whitetail deer. It is also said that if you can sneak up on a squirrel and harvest one you should have no problem stalking a deer. Well I don't know if that is true because I have harvested a lot more squirrels then deer but that is another story. So with every step I took I made sure it was placed in a way that there was no noise. It probably looked pretty funny but it was working because I was closing in on the unsuspecting squirrel. As I got closer I started to hide behind trees and stick to the shadows. I even picked up a handful of acorns just in case I had to create a distraction for the squirrel. So as I got to within about ten yards of the tree that the squirrel was in. I then started to go through the shot in my head because I wanted to make sure I didn't miss because this was Brady's squirrel not mine. So I pulled the hammer back on my trusty 20 gauge and took a deep breath to steady my nerves and I put the bead of the barrel up to just under the head and in one motion I squeezed the trigger and BOOM. The squirrel fell to the ground. I took a quick scan of the tree to get a reference of the tree so I knew were to start the tracking. As I walked up to the tree I started to scan the ground and found the squirrel laying only feet away from the base of the tree. As I picked up the game to admire what God had created I took a moment to stop and take in what had just transpired. I unloaded the spent shell and stood there with the squirrel in one hand and Brady's shell in the other and just enjoyed the peace of the outdoors. After a couple of moments I did the sign of the cross and said a couple of prayers. First to thank God for the gift of the squirrel and then I said a prayer for Brady and his family and make sure that there was peace with both of them and someday they will be reunited.
So after saying my prayers and getting the squirrel into the game bag I grabbed my gun and walked along the trails back to the car. I didn't load another shell into my gun that day because this hunt was for Brady and not for me so I just walked the trails and enjoyed the fresh air and the serenity of the outdoors. As I got back to my car and was putting my gun and vest into the trunk I looked back to the woods and just had a huge smile on my face hoping that Brady was happy with the harvest. So after a quick drive home I went to the garage and set all of my stuff down and went inside and hugged the family and showed the boys Brady's squirrel. After I processed the squirrel and a quick clean up I took a piece of the tail and I will be using the fur to tie some flies so Brady and I can go fly fishing together real soon.
Thank You for taking the time to read this and always remember to never take anything or anybody for granted because you never know when it will be taken away. Enjoy the Great Outdoors and be safe out there.
Brady you made this hunt one of the best. Thank You again little buddy.
As I read Chico's blog and started to understand the story of Brady it really started to get to me. My wife and I have two sons around Brady's age so it hit me like a ton of bricks when I learned of the story. Because it reinforced the fact that nobody is immune to cancer. So every time I read something about Brady I knew I had to do something to honor this young man. So with seeing my Up North Journal teammates putting Brady's name on their arrows I tried to figure out what I could do now to honor Brady. Well as people close to me know lI am a huge small game hunter and I love getting new hunters especially kids started into hunting and the outdoors. Well squirrel hunting is usually the first hunting season everybody starts out with. So with this on my mind and kicking around the idea of putting Brady's name on something that I use in the field and seeing as Chico always names his arrows and shells. Then listening to the last Up North Journal podcast episode 179 when Chico was talking about putting Brady's name on your outdoor equipment, it was the final piece that made it a great idea. So this was the plan, Brady was going hunting with me on my next outdoor adventure.
I treated this hunt just like I treat every hunt when I take a youth or a new hunter out for the first time. The only difference was I was going to be pulling the trigger. I was going to use the gun I shot my first squirrel with and head out to one of my favorite local public hunting areas.
So here it is the second Sunday of the season and today is the day Brady and I were going to go hunting. My oldest son seen me getting ready to go and he knew I was going hunting. He wanted to go so bad but I told him that this time it was going to be just me going and he would go next time. Well after a little crying he was good with that. Trying to explain to a 3 year old about Brady was pointless all he understood is daddy was doing something special and will take him hunting next time. So I got to my hunting spot and sat in my car for a bit staring at the shotgun shell going over what this hunt means to me and what I wanted to get out of the hunt. So I grabbed a marker and Brady went on to the shell and him and I were off to the woods.
As the morning drew on and grew closer to the afternoon I was starting to get discouraged as the fact I haven't see one squirrel. As I sat on a stump to take a break I remembered that I had my squirrel whistle with me. Now when I hunt with other people I get a lot of teasing and looks when I use it because it looks odd for a game call but I have had good success with it. The call mimics the distress call of a squirrel and it will get other squirrels all worked up so they start barking and will help you locate them. Well I figured what the heck let's try it. As I was blowing away on the call I heard some rustling coming down the trail. Turns out it was a lady and her dog walking the trails. Well I decided that I was going to move a way from this area because even if I seen a squirrel I didn't want to scare this lady with a gun shot. So I headed down a trail that I hadn't been down before and it more looked like a deer run then a trail but I seen a bunch of old foot prints so I figured it was a regular trail. As I was walking along the trail I heard a bark from a squirrel so I knew it was game time. So as I scanned the tree tops for the source of the barks I was just hoping that it was not a woodpecker because a chirp from a woodpecker can sometime sound similar to a squirrel bark. Well i found the source of the noise and it was a red squirrel perched up on a branch about hundred yards ahead of me. Squirrels have great eye sight and hearing, many say better then a whitetail deer. It is also said that if you can sneak up on a squirrel and harvest one you should have no problem stalking a deer. Well I don't know if that is true because I have harvested a lot more squirrels then deer but that is another story. So with every step I took I made sure it was placed in a way that there was no noise. It probably looked pretty funny but it was working because I was closing in on the unsuspecting squirrel. As I got closer I started to hide behind trees and stick to the shadows. I even picked up a handful of acorns just in case I had to create a distraction for the squirrel. So as I got to within about ten yards of the tree that the squirrel was in. I then started to go through the shot in my head because I wanted to make sure I didn't miss because this was Brady's squirrel not mine. So I pulled the hammer back on my trusty 20 gauge and took a deep breath to steady my nerves and I put the bead of the barrel up to just under the head and in one motion I squeezed the trigger and BOOM. The squirrel fell to the ground. I took a quick scan of the tree to get a reference of the tree so I knew were to start the tracking. As I walked up to the tree I started to scan the ground and found the squirrel laying only feet away from the base of the tree. As I picked up the game to admire what God had created I took a moment to stop and take in what had just transpired. I unloaded the spent shell and stood there with the squirrel in one hand and Brady's shell in the other and just enjoyed the peace of the outdoors. After a couple of moments I did the sign of the cross and said a couple of prayers. First to thank God for the gift of the squirrel and then I said a prayer for Brady and his family and make sure that there was peace with both of them and someday they will be reunited.
So after saying my prayers and getting the squirrel into the game bag I grabbed my gun and walked along the trails back to the car. I didn't load another shell into my gun that day because this hunt was for Brady and not for me so I just walked the trails and enjoyed the fresh air and the serenity of the outdoors. As I got back to my car and was putting my gun and vest into the trunk I looked back to the woods and just had a huge smile on my face hoping that Brady was happy with the harvest. So after a quick drive home I went to the garage and set all of my stuff down and went inside and hugged the family and showed the boys Brady's squirrel. After I processed the squirrel and a quick clean up I took a piece of the tail and I will be using the fur to tie some flies so Brady and I can go fly fishing together real soon.
Thank You for taking the time to read this and always remember to never take anything or anybody for granted because you never know when it will be taken away. Enjoy the Great Outdoors and be safe out there.
Brady you made this hunt one of the best. Thank You again little buddy.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Hello Old Friend
Ah hunting season, it is like that old friend you haven't seen in a while but it is like you all never left each other. My first taste of the Good Life is the early goose season here in Michigan. I am going to tell ya if you have never tried goose hunting it is a trip. Even if you don't like the taste of goose you can always donate the meat to a charity or soup kitchen. Early goose season is a great way to start the hunting season. It is still warm out so you don't have to get all of your big bulky camo out, you get to hang out with family and friends, and plus you don't have be quiet until the birds start coming in. So that means you can rekindle friendships and work on new ones. For me it also helps me recharge my batteries. Nothing beats sitting in a blind or laying in a layout blind and hearing the crickets and birds fly over that just makes things better. This year was no different except for the fact that there were hardly any birds where I was hunting and the weather was not helping. I tried to fight it with every fiber of my being but I ended up saving my vacation day and I went to work instead of hunting opening day. Because it was a balmy 90 degrees on opening day and there were no birds to be found in the areas I was hunting. There was just a hand full of people that I talk with on the social network sites that had birds but even their numbers were down. So as I was working away at my job kicking myself for not going out on OPENING DAY and dreaming of the flocks of geese that were still in Canada. It was brought to my attention that I had forgotten about a vacation day that was coming up on the Friday of the first weekend of the season. After finding that out I was in hunting mode. My brother called me and said he was going to be hunting some state land that Friday and wanted to know if I wanted to go. Well after twisting my arm I said YES. Well the night before we were to go out it was my youngest sons birthday so the family and I went up to my parents house and had a great time talking hunting with my brother Joe and hanging out with my family.
So my opening morning was finally here. 2:30 am came way to early but it is hunting season so it is worth the trouble. I headed up to my parents house to meet up with Joe. We piled into his truck and we were North bound and down. Well we ended up with a spot that has always been good to me and my brother. As a matter of fact him and one of his buddies hunted it during the week and got 2 geese. So we unloaded all of the stuff into the blind. Joe ran back to the truck for something and I went out and set up the decoys. Just before light I heard a lone honk in the distance so I was already getting excited. The lone goose must have known the shooting hours because 3 minutes before legal shooting hours the goose flew over the blind. I could have been mistaken but it looked like he looked back at me and stuck up a feather to tell me GOOD LUCK. So my brother made it back to the blind so that meant it was game time for the Duncan boys to lay the smack down. Well things were so fast paste and exciting that I was able to take a quick nap and finish reading a old hunting news paper that I had in my pack. After a couple of hours Joe heard a honk and yelled get down. He started making sweet music with his Get Em Locked Up goose call. Well I had a chance to see the goose out of the corner of my eye. It was a beautiful sight wings cupped feet down and gliding into the decoys. For a moment I forgot to shoot because I was enjoying the show. Which in hind site might have been a good thing. After emptying my gun and my brother emptying his gun we watched the goose turn and fly off to enjoy another day in the great outdoors.
Even though that was the closest I got to a goose this early season it was still a good early goose season. Next on my list is small game season that opens up on the 15th. So again I will be in the field with friends and family chasing the bushy tails and maybe a random crow. So until next time everybody be safe out there and enjoy the Great Outdoors.
So my opening morning was finally here. 2:30 am came way to early but it is hunting season so it is worth the trouble. I headed up to my parents house to meet up with Joe. We piled into his truck and we were North bound and down. Well we ended up with a spot that has always been good to me and my brother. As a matter of fact him and one of his buddies hunted it during the week and got 2 geese. So we unloaded all of the stuff into the blind. Joe ran back to the truck for something and I went out and set up the decoys. Just before light I heard a lone honk in the distance so I was already getting excited. The lone goose must have known the shooting hours because 3 minutes before legal shooting hours the goose flew over the blind. I could have been mistaken but it looked like he looked back at me and stuck up a feather to tell me GOOD LUCK. So my brother made it back to the blind so that meant it was game time for the Duncan boys to lay the smack down. Well things were so fast paste and exciting that I was able to take a quick nap and finish reading a old hunting news paper that I had in my pack. After a couple of hours Joe heard a honk and yelled get down. He started making sweet music with his Get Em Locked Up goose call. Well I had a chance to see the goose out of the corner of my eye. It was a beautiful sight wings cupped feet down and gliding into the decoys. For a moment I forgot to shoot because I was enjoying the show. Which in hind site might have been a good thing. After emptying my gun and my brother emptying his gun we watched the goose turn and fly off to enjoy another day in the great outdoors.
Even though that was the closest I got to a goose this early season it was still a good early goose season. Next on my list is small game season that opens up on the 15th. So again I will be in the field with friends and family chasing the bushy tails and maybe a random crow. So until next time everybody be safe out there and enjoy the Great Outdoors.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Bay City Waterfowl Festival
Here it is the first part of August and that means it is time for the Bay City Waterfowl Festival in Bay City MI. This show seems to be my most favorite. This show brings in a little over 13000 people every year. It is like every other show a bunch of decoys and call makers.But this show is special to me in many different ways.
One of the reasons it is special is the fact that Bill Maholland from Get Em Locked Up goose calls comes into town. My younger brother is pro staff member for Bill so me and my family have gotten to know Bill real well. To the point he is now apart of the family. So Bill and his wife came into town a couple days ahead of the show so the waterfowl show started early for us.
On the night before the show we all showed up to my parents house to hang out and swap hunting stories,share hunting tricks and talk about the huge flocks of birds that we have seen. It was a great night for us, the neighbors on the other hand probably didn't like all of the calling but hey we were having fun. It was nice to sit out by the fire and hang out with family and friends. One of the highlights of the night was when a family friend Scott Rivard and his son Seth stopped by. Bill and Joe took Seth to the side and was teaching him how to blow a goose call. In the matter of minutes Seth was breaking over the short reed goose call with no problems. After that Joe and Bill was teaching him how to cluck and moan and it was all over at that time. I could tell that Seth had caught the bug of goose calling. I always love seeing the face of someone when they catch the bug of this great heritage of the great outdoors. Seth's dad Scott is an avid outdoorsman so Seth has been around the hunting heritage but there was something that night that was special about Seth's calling. So much so the guys talked him into calling in the kids division goose calling contest on that Sunday. More on that later. Another highlight was when Bill went and got his Nintendo Wii and we all played Remington Bird hunter. So that was a late Friday night and Sat morning was going to come way to fast.
Well Sat. morning came and the first stop for me was my parents house for breakfast of Scrapple and eggs and to talk about the show. Well after breakfast to was off to Bay City to set up the Get Em Locked Up booth and I was working the Delta Waterfowl booth so it was going to be a busy morning. Once we got the booth up and the calls out I ventured over to the Delta booth and helped set up the tent and set out the merchandise. There was a good amount of people strolling through the show and we had a few people come up and buy some memberships even got to talk with other Delta Waterfowl members and compare notes on what some of the chapters are doing. After working the booth for a while Joe and I walked through the show to see what the 2010 show had to offer. Well Corey Sorensen had his calls company W.I.D.E.O. calls. Joe and I stayed at his table for a good will talking with Corey and his dad about the calls and swapping stories. While we were there Corey asked Joe to be is partner in the 2- man duck calling competition.
At about 11 o clock the Delta president asked if I wanted to judge the kids duck calling competition. I have never judged a calling competition so it was going to be a fun time. So the the kids got up there and blew their hearts out. It was fun to hear the difference in calling and the difference in ages. I always like it when youth are involved in the hunting heritage and I hope every single one of those kids continue in the heritage. If they do I think we will be in good shape for the future of hunting. After the kids comp was over the 2- man duck calling competition was up. There was 4 teams in the comp and the competition was so good that all of the teams had to blow 3 extra rounds to find a winner. Corey and my brother finished 2nd and missed 1st by three points.
Once the calling competitions were over it was back to the Delta booth. After a couple more hours it was time to go. We all ended up back at my parents house again for great food and good friends. Most of us were pretty tired from the show so it was a quiet night of watching hunting videos and talking about life.
Sunday morning came and it was another day at the show. Well when I woke up and looked outside I wasn't sure it it was going to be a good day because it looked like rain. Well I ventured to the show and decided to hold off putting up the Delta booth. In the mean time Kyle Fleming was there with is call company so I helped him set up his booth. At about the time we finished his booth the rain started up and boy did it rain for about an hour or so. While it rained I was able to sit and talk with Kyle and find out that he had been to the World Duck Calling Competition in Stuttgart AR and finished in the top 10 five times. To finish in the top 10 once in a field with the best duck callers in the world is a big deal so to do it multiple time is a great feat. Along with talking about the World Duck comp. Kyle talked about making duck and goose calls and I turned into a sponge soaking up as much info as I can. Because I don't think there is a waterfowl hunter out there that hasn't thought about hunting with a call that was made with their own hands. So waiting out the rain talking with Kyle was a great treat for me. The rain stopped and it was ready to start the show. The highlight of Sunday was the calling competitions. Today was the Michigan State Duck calling competition. The winner of that competition gets a invite to the World Duck competition that I talked about earlier. While the rain was coming down I got a call from Mike Adams to see if it was raining because a few of he Up North Journal guys were coming up to the show and little Mike was going to blow in the hunter division goose calling competition. After the rain stopped the sun came out and it looked like Sunday was going to be a good day. Well I met up with big Mike, little Mike, Chico Lopez, and Logan a buddy of little Mike's. At about the time I met up with the UNJ crew it was time for the kids goose calling competition. Well our buddy Seth was blowing in the beginner division using one of the Get Em Locked Up goose calls. I could tell he soaked up everything that Joe and Bill taught him. Out of ten competitors Seth finished forth. That is a great finish for someone that has never blown in a competition and a good showing for Get Em Locked Up goose calls. We all congratulated Seth on a great competition. After that comp it was ready for the hunter division that little Mike was blowing in. Well it turned out to be a big day for little Mike and the UNJ family because he won his division. Congrats Mikey!!!!
After Seth was done with his comp and waiting for Mikey's division I took my son and Bill,Seth, and Scott all went over to the wood duck box tent. Inside of the tent my son, Seth and Scott all built wood duck boxes to be used for the next breeding season.
The last calling competition of the day was the Michigan State Duck. Corey Sorensen was blowing in this competition representing GK calls. When it was all said and done Corey walked away with the winners trophy and his ticket to the World Duck Calling Championship. Congrats Corey we will all be rooting for you at the Worlds.
Over all this was by far the best show I am been at. I could be the fact that I had a lot going on but I am all ready looking forward to next year so if you ever get a chance make sure and stop by Michigan Duck Hunters Bay City Waterfowl Festival. If you ever see the Up North Journal logo make sure and stop and say HI. As always enjoy the Great Outdoors. Take care and be safe out there.
One of the reasons it is special is the fact that Bill Maholland from Get Em Locked Up goose calls comes into town. My younger brother is pro staff member for Bill so me and my family have gotten to know Bill real well. To the point he is now apart of the family. So Bill and his wife came into town a couple days ahead of the show so the waterfowl show started early for us.
On the night before the show we all showed up to my parents house to hang out and swap hunting stories,share hunting tricks and talk about the huge flocks of birds that we have seen. It was a great night for us, the neighbors on the other hand probably didn't like all of the calling but hey we were having fun. It was nice to sit out by the fire and hang out with family and friends. One of the highlights of the night was when a family friend Scott Rivard and his son Seth stopped by. Bill and Joe took Seth to the side and was teaching him how to blow a goose call. In the matter of minutes Seth was breaking over the short reed goose call with no problems. After that Joe and Bill was teaching him how to cluck and moan and it was all over at that time. I could tell that Seth had caught the bug of goose calling. I always love seeing the face of someone when they catch the bug of this great heritage of the great outdoors. Seth's dad Scott is an avid outdoorsman so Seth has been around the hunting heritage but there was something that night that was special about Seth's calling. So much so the guys talked him into calling in the kids division goose calling contest on that Sunday. More on that later. Another highlight was when Bill went and got his Nintendo Wii and we all played Remington Bird hunter. So that was a late Friday night and Sat morning was going to come way to fast.
Well Sat. morning came and the first stop for me was my parents house for breakfast of Scrapple and eggs and to talk about the show. Well after breakfast to was off to Bay City to set up the Get Em Locked Up booth and I was working the Delta Waterfowl booth so it was going to be a busy morning. Once we got the booth up and the calls out I ventured over to the Delta booth and helped set up the tent and set out the merchandise. There was a good amount of people strolling through the show and we had a few people come up and buy some memberships even got to talk with other Delta Waterfowl members and compare notes on what some of the chapters are doing. After working the booth for a while Joe and I walked through the show to see what the 2010 show had to offer. Well Corey Sorensen had his calls company W.I.D.E.O. calls. Joe and I stayed at his table for a good will talking with Corey and his dad about the calls and swapping stories. While we were there Corey asked Joe to be is partner in the 2- man duck calling competition.
At about 11 o clock the Delta president asked if I wanted to judge the kids duck calling competition. I have never judged a calling competition so it was going to be a fun time. So the the kids got up there and blew their hearts out. It was fun to hear the difference in calling and the difference in ages. I always like it when youth are involved in the hunting heritage and I hope every single one of those kids continue in the heritage. If they do I think we will be in good shape for the future of hunting. After the kids comp was over the 2- man duck calling competition was up. There was 4 teams in the comp and the competition was so good that all of the teams had to blow 3 extra rounds to find a winner. Corey and my brother finished 2nd and missed 1st by three points.
Once the calling competitions were over it was back to the Delta booth. After a couple more hours it was time to go. We all ended up back at my parents house again for great food and good friends. Most of us were pretty tired from the show so it was a quiet night of watching hunting videos and talking about life.
Sunday morning came and it was another day at the show. Well when I woke up and looked outside I wasn't sure it it was going to be a good day because it looked like rain. Well I ventured to the show and decided to hold off putting up the Delta booth. In the mean time Kyle Fleming was there with is call company so I helped him set up his booth. At about the time we finished his booth the rain started up and boy did it rain for about an hour or so. While it rained I was able to sit and talk with Kyle and find out that he had been to the World Duck Calling Competition in Stuttgart AR and finished in the top 10 five times. To finish in the top 10 once in a field with the best duck callers in the world is a big deal so to do it multiple time is a great feat. Along with talking about the World Duck comp. Kyle talked about making duck and goose calls and I turned into a sponge soaking up as much info as I can. Because I don't think there is a waterfowl hunter out there that hasn't thought about hunting with a call that was made with their own hands. So waiting out the rain talking with Kyle was a great treat for me. The rain stopped and it was ready to start the show. The highlight of Sunday was the calling competitions. Today was the Michigan State Duck calling competition. The winner of that competition gets a invite to the World Duck competition that I talked about earlier. While the rain was coming down I got a call from Mike Adams to see if it was raining because a few of he Up North Journal guys were coming up to the show and little Mike was going to blow in the hunter division goose calling competition. After the rain stopped the sun came out and it looked like Sunday was going to be a good day. Well I met up with big Mike, little Mike, Chico Lopez, and Logan a buddy of little Mike's. At about the time I met up with the UNJ crew it was time for the kids goose calling competition. Well our buddy Seth was blowing in the beginner division using one of the Get Em Locked Up goose calls. I could tell he soaked up everything that Joe and Bill taught him. Out of ten competitors Seth finished forth. That is a great finish for someone that has never blown in a competition and a good showing for Get Em Locked Up goose calls. We all congratulated Seth on a great competition. After that comp it was ready for the hunter division that little Mike was blowing in. Well it turned out to be a big day for little Mike and the UNJ family because he won his division. Congrats Mikey!!!!
After Seth was done with his comp and waiting for Mikey's division I took my son and Bill,Seth, and Scott all went over to the wood duck box tent. Inside of the tent my son, Seth and Scott all built wood duck boxes to be used for the next breeding season.
The last calling competition of the day was the Michigan State Duck. Corey Sorensen was blowing in this competition representing GK calls. When it was all said and done Corey walked away with the winners trophy and his ticket to the World Duck Calling Championship. Congrats Corey we will all be rooting for you at the Worlds.
Over all this was by far the best show I am been at. I could be the fact that I had a lot going on but I am all ready looking forward to next year so if you ever get a chance make sure and stop by Michigan Duck Hunters Bay City Waterfowl Festival. If you ever see the Up North Journal logo make sure and stop and say HI. As always enjoy the Great Outdoors. Take care and be safe out there.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Waterfowl Boot Camp
I woke up Sat morning and I knew it was going to be a good day. See this fine morning I was headed to the Waterfowl Boot Camp in Ohio. This was my first Boot Camp and it was a good time. The first stop on my list was a seminar put on by George Lynch of Lynch Mob Calls. I have been a fan of George's for a while. Really ever since I bought my copy of his DVD Hanging Em Low 2. (Which features hunts from our very own Up North Journal Team Fowlmouth). So to finally meet George in person was a treat. I walked away from that seminar with some great advice and a few new tricks to try this season.
So after a quick stroll through the vendors area it was time for another seminar. This time the seminar was put on by Shawn Stahl from Fowl Pursuit and RNT calls. Again it was great to meet Shawn and pick up some helpful tips and tricks about goose calling and waterfowl hunting in general. I am a very visual type of learner so to see some of the calling techniques in person that I hear on the instructional Cd was great.
When Shawn's seminar was over the seminar with Jeff Coats of Pitboss Waterfowl and Ducks Dogs and Decoys . It was a fun time picking up some tips on photography and carving decoys. I also liked hearing some of the hunting stories. The story about his trip to Alaska to go duck hunting was the best. If you ever get to meet Jeff please have him tell that story. It sounded like a crazy time but a fun time.
Now that I was done with the seminars I took another stroll through the vendor area to look at all of the calls, decoys, and outfitters. It was like Toys R Us for a waterfowler seemed like every big name manufacturer was there. One of the booths that I stopped at was at the James Patrick Lynch booth. See James is a country singer that was the featured act for the Boot Camp. If you have watched Woods and Water TV on the Sportsman Channel then you have heard James. He sings the opening music for that TV show. Man James is a really nice guy. As soon as I walked up to the booth it was like walking up to a old hunting buddy. We talked about all of the hunting products for sale, the show, he talked about Nashville, country music, and swapped a couple hunting stories. Please go to his website and check out his music. Besides his regular country music he has a whole CD of nothing but hunting music. I give it 2 thumbs up.
All in all it was a nice show. I would imagine that I missed some stuff but it was fun. It was a nice way to start off the waterfowl show season. I hope to see everybody at other shows. If we are ever at a show together make sure and stop me and say Hi. Just look for the Up North Journal logo. As always Thanks for stopping by. Enjoy the great outdoors and be safe out there.
When Shawn's seminar was over the seminar with Jeff Coats of Pitboss Waterfowl and Ducks Dogs and Decoys . It was a fun time picking up some tips on photography and carving decoys. I also liked hearing some of the hunting stories. The story about his trip to Alaska to go duck hunting was the best. If you ever get to meet Jeff please have him tell that story. It sounded like a crazy time but a fun time.
Now that I was done with the seminars I took another stroll through the vendor area to look at all of the calls, decoys, and outfitters. It was like Toys R Us for a waterfowler seemed like every big name manufacturer was there. One of the booths that I stopped at was at the James Patrick Lynch booth. See James is a country singer that was the featured act for the Boot Camp. If you have watched Woods and Water TV on the Sportsman Channel then you have heard James. He sings the opening music for that TV show. Man James is a really nice guy. As soon as I walked up to the booth it was like walking up to a old hunting buddy. We talked about all of the hunting products for sale, the show, he talked about Nashville, country music, and swapped a couple hunting stories. Please go to his website and check out his music. Besides his regular country music he has a whole CD of nothing but hunting music. I give it 2 thumbs up.
All in all it was a nice show. I would imagine that I missed some stuff but it was fun. It was a nice way to start off the waterfowl show season. I hope to see everybody at other shows. If we are ever at a show together make sure and stop me and say Hi. Just look for the Up North Journal logo. As always Thanks for stopping by. Enjoy the great outdoors and be safe out there.
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Happy Father's Day
Well I woke up this Father's Day expecting to just chill around the house and deal with a sick kid. My oldest was not feeling good the whole weekend. But both kids were feeling good this morning so we decided to do some visiting. Well on the way up to see my dad I get a call from my brother telling me him and dad were going up to Saginaw Bay to do some fishing and to see if I wanted to go. Well the wife and I talked and I was on my way to the bay for some fishing. The kids and my wife dropped me off at the gas station were my brother and dad were at. It is good thing I keep a spare fishing pole and a small box of tackle in the trunk. So kissed the wife and hugged the kids and jumped into the van and the Duncan boys were off to do some damage to the fish population in the Saginaw Bay area.
We didn't have a boat so decided to fish the waters that feed into the bay. So we headed to one of the bridges that has been a good fish catching site. After about an hour or so and couple lost fish my brother hooked into a nice northern pike. It looked legal but with us going to be out for a while he decided to threw it back so it can make more pike to catch. We stayed a little bit longer then decided to change locations.
The next location was right across from one of the waterfowl refuges in the state so I was all excited to see and hear the birds calling to each other. Well the birds weren't doing much chattering but this was a good spot. We could see fish all over but they were being real finicky. With it being the middle of the day and hot it was understandable. Then all of a sudden my dad yells "Hey I Got One" so my brother and I ran over to see what he had. What we seen was a very nice looking northern pike.
After talking with my dad I found out that was his first pike ever so it was great to be there to see him catch it. Well that turned out to be the last fish of the day even though we tried a couple of other spots after that.
So even though I was the only one not to catch a single fish, this was by far one of the best trips that I have had outdoors. Spending time with my dad and my brother was the best and the fish was just the great side note to this day. Because when I get to spend time with my dad I seem to learn something new. The stories might be the same stories time every time but I seem to always pick up something new.
Happy Father's Day to all of the dads out there.
Thanks for stopping by. Enjoy the outdoors and be safe out there.
So even though I was the only one not to catch a single fish, this was by far one of the best trips that I have had outdoors. Spending time with my dad and my brother was the best and the fish was just the great side note to this day. Because when I get to spend time with my dad I seem to learn something new. The stories might be the same stories time every time but I seem to always pick up something new.
Happy Father's Day to all of the dads out there.
Thanks for stopping by. Enjoy the outdoors and be safe out there.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)