The Archery Deer Season - 1995
Whoa... What was that? Did I actually shoot a nice four point buck on my first morning out deer hunting??? Yes I did. For the most part it was a very normal hunt. The buck walked down the trail I was watching, I waited till he was behind a tree to draw my bow back. When he stepped out from behind the tree I let the arrow fly. All in the space of about 3 seconds.
The one notable aspect of this hunt was finding the deer. I hit him good, right through the heart, but it was starting to rain. Rather than push him immediately, I chose to get my brother so that there would be two sets of eyes looking for the deer. On the way back to begin the search, we cut through the woods instead of walking on the trail. As we approaced the area, I smelled the deer. Don't laugh, it is possible to smell deer before you see them. The deer turned out to be 50 yards ahead, upwind of course. I followed my nose to my deer. :)
I always make it a point to get out and bowhunt during the week after Christmas. This year I was able to get away for a day and a half. It was brutally cold & I did not see a single deer. My brother shot a nice doe, his third deer of the year.
The Firearm Deer Season - 1995
My firearm deer hunting this year was limited due to the fact that I already had a deer in the freezer. If I hadn't already shot a deer, I would surely have hunted harder with my gun. Consequently, I only hunted a few weekends. -- Also, the area I traditionaly gun hunt has for some reason become very popular with hunters. I saw a lot of orange, and very few deer.
Want to read last years deer story? There's a picture too.
Hare Hunt - February 1995
February 10th saw the annual February camping trip and snowshoe hare hunt. The weather on saturday did not cooperate. The snow fell left to right at about 40 miles an hour, the temperature got down to 3 below at night. Very hard hunting, but we did get one hare. Sunday was a beautiful sunny day. My friend, brother and I hunted in the morning, missing a few rabbits. What could be better than stomping around a frozen cedar swamp in a snowstorm looking for white rabbits to shoot??
Back to the Top December November
October After an unsuccessful opening morning on Lake St. Clair.., I only saw 7 geese, I've resigned myself to hunting closer to home. In the yard in fact. I live near a lake that is used daily by many groups of geese. Me and the dog have been going out every night, me honing my goose calling skills, and him learning how to sit still while I hone my goose calling skills. It's been tough work for both of us. We've had some success.., to date I've shot at three birds and knocked one down cleanly. My new recipe for success is "T" shot in a 3 inch shell. Works wonders.
Regular Waterfowl Season in Michigan
I got to go out for one day of duck hunting in December. I tried one of the local managed huint areas and was the 33rd draw among 33 groups of hunters. Saw lots of ducks, but were not able to bring any home.
November Duck hunting has been on-again, off- again. Some days I'm on the lake, other I'm off. Otter and I were out on the lake last weekend. In spite of our calling, camoflage, and stillness in the blind, the birds were decoying quite well. My friend Curt & I had several opportunities to shoot birds on the glide at close range. We did manage to collect two fine widgeons. My pooch Otter made a fine retrieve on one of them. The day started out cold and rainy, and only got worse. By the time we got off the lake at 11:00 am, it had not stopped raining once and the temp had dropped into the low 30's as the rain turned to snow.
I would not recommend shooting widgeon. The ducks we shot were very fishy. I tried to roast mine as it was not shot up too bad. While it was cooking, and once it was done, it smelled like a roasted, rancid sardine. There was no way I could have brought it anywhere near my mouth. Out of the oven and into the trash. I think it must be some kind of survival mechanism. I will surely never shoot another widgeon.
As of this writing, duck season is only 5 days old in this part of Michigan. Since I live near a lake where I have access, I have been able to go out every day. A large part of what I am trying to do by hunting ducks daily is to get my dog Otter comfortable with the idea of sitting in a boat, or quietly sitting on shore, while we wait for birds. He's doing okay so far. Check out the Otter Page and read about Otter's excellent first retrieve.
The Early Goose Hunt - September 1995
Turkey Hunt - May 1995
This years turkey hunt was somewhat disappointing. Not only did I NOT get a permit, but I could only go along on one weekend hunt to call for my friend. Needless to say, one weekend to pattern and shoot a gobbler is not enough. We did see one large bird and managed to call a hen into our decoys. What can I say... "The weather was nice". Though I didn't find any while turkey hunting this year, I often find morels in the spring woods.
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I have had limited opportunities to ice fish this season. Most of my fishing has been done on the lake which is across the road from my home. That lake is infested with large predators.
On tip-ups this season I have caught many pike and a 22" largemouth bass. The bass took my chub and ran quite a distance. As he got closer to the hole, he spit out the chub. I pulled the line out of the water to check if the chub was still there. It was so I put the line right back down into the lake. Mr. Bass must have been waiting because he immediately hit it again. After a quick measure, I let him go. Maybe I'll run into him next summer when I'm out on the lake with my flyrod.
As far as fishing, I prefer to flyfish for trout. Unfortunately, good fly fishing is not available very close to home, so I fish for many other species.
Bass and panfish are my summer targets, panfish through the ice my winter.
Ice fishing season got off to a slow start and got worse from there. I was able to get out on the ice a few times last winter. The ice quickly melted due to a prolonged warm spell. Fishing in the bays and canals of Lake St. Clair was good once the ice formed. Many many small perch. You had to catch 100 or more to keep a good dozen. Even then, they look alot smaller once you get them home to clean.
Ice Fishing - December-February 1996
Ice Fishing - January 1995
What's better than a nice winter day on the ice though?? Especially when the perch are biting.
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