Outdoor Odyssey - Hunting

So Much for Delegating

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 08:05:00 -0700

In mid afternoon, after the four, plus, hour drive from Houston, Layla, and I pulled up at the house at our lease in McCulloch County, Texas. We had “snuck” away early from our jobs and, as expected, were the only ones there that day. All of our gang would be up the next day.

We changed from our business clothes, slipped into jeans and camo shirts and along with Gus, our Brittany spaniel, happily trotting beside us, quickly headed out to the “secret” stock tank. On an earlier trip up I had found a spring fed stock tank tucked behind a butte, or small mesa, and way off the beaten path.

The "secret" tank lies in the oak trees, just below the saddle in the two hills.

About an hour before sunset, the mourning doves started coming into the water. Our set up was ideal. The tank had a rocky, gravelly bank all around, a couple of dead mesquites at one end and several live mesquites at the other end that we used for shade and concealment.

The doves came in singularly and in groups and were met with our bam, bam, bamming and soon we had neared our limits. It was great sport, and a lot of fun, watching Gus retrieve the birds that fell into the water.

Gus, pictured in one of his dryer moments.

Finally he rebelled. As I knocked another one down into the water, Gus walked over beside me and shook himself vigorously, liberally dousing me, and plopped down beside my foot. “Fetch him up Gus,” I commanded with no response. “Gus, fetch the bird,” more forcefully as he looked up at me and rolled over on his back! He was “done” for the day!

Trying to get Layla to retrieve the last bird for me, she declined also. It was left for me to either jump in, or to chunk rocks and cow patties at the bird to wash it close to the shore. I chose the former and unceremoniously waded out and picked it up.

So much for delegating!

The Kamikaze Dove

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 09:02:37 -0700

In the 1970’s, one of our favorite dove hunting spots in Arizona was south of Phoenix on the St. John’s Indian Reservation. Back then, a hunting permit was a whopping $5.00 and like $10.00 for a family and this allowed the hunters access to some great mourning dove hunting.

One of the best spots on the reservation was along an irrigated, grain field, the north edge bordering on thick brush that the doves were using as a roost and rest area. This particular Saturday afternoon, we, my family and the Schroder’s, had decided to combine a dove hunt along the edge of the brush and, after the hunt, a cook out in a clearing fifty yards in. The afternoon sun was to our right and the birds flew south to north, coming out of the field and flying right over us, providing easy head on, or quartering, shots.

Head on’s are easy. Track the bird, cover it with the muzzle, fire and follow through. The bird flies right in to the shot string, usually providing a clean kill, then falls near the shooter. Not having to walk around much in the sun means a lot on a hot September day in Arizona! Quartering shots are a little different, just be sure to get the right lead and then bang away!

The afternoon flight was just beginning, scattered shots coming from our four shooters that were strung out along the edge of the field. On my first shot, a quartering one, I knocked down a dove that was just loafing along, not flying anywhere near max speed, but soon, with all the shooting the birds picked up their pace considerably!

With the doves pouring over us, we kept banging away. Before long, with the temp over a hundred, combining this with all of our shooting, our barrels started heating up. Just load up and keep shooting, but don’t touch the hot part.
One bird away from my limit, I looked up and here came one heading right over me, an easy head on shot. Tracking the bird and firing, puff, a clean hit and the bird rocketed straight for my chest. Holding my shotgun with my right hand and holding up my left, I was going to be real cool and catch this one, one handed, but at the last moment the dove gained a little lift rising over my outstretched hand and smacked me right between the eyes, knocking me over!

The force of four ounces traveling at, I guess, 35 MPH, applied right between my eyes, was a wallop. Getting up and looking through my broken shooting glasses, covered with mine and the dove’s blood, I saw that, besides being shot, the bird had a broken neck. However, the dove got his revenge, but $100.00 later for a new pair of shooting glasses, I wasn’t to be deterred, and soon, my next free afternoon found me back on the reservation.

After cleaning the birds, we washed up, grilled the steaks and along with green chilies and onions had almost a feast. After dinner, Jake looked over at me and, with a straight face, asked, “Beech, you went down real easy, think you have a “glass” forehead?

Dove Season Opens Today

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 08:05:00 -0700

When this post pops up on my blog, Mickey Donahoo and I will be out dove hunting at a friends place in San Saba. Dove season opens up at sunrise on September 1 and we’ll be out there to welcome the new season in!

Years ago, the new season opening meant mourning doves and plenty of them, but over the last twenty years, white wing doves have migrated up from the Rio Grande Valley and Mexico and can be found almost all over our State. Something new has also been added to the mix, European collared doves, or ring necks. In the 1970’s they were shipped from Europe to the Bahamas and there, for some reason, the dealer released them all and they made the flight over to Florida and now, are populating our Country. These big birds, almost pigeon size, have taken over a lot of mourning and white wing dove habitat and are considered a nuisance, with no closed season in Texas. However, they cook up just like mourners or white wings and are excellent table fare!

The picture of a white wing and ring neck dove shows the size of each. In San Saba, today, we’ll be going after all three varieties, but experience from past hunts says that white wings will make up most of our bag.

Radio Interview

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 08:05:00 -0700

On last Thursday, July 22, I was contacted by the folks at The Big Wild Radio Program, currently airing on 22 stations in the upper, mid west, asking if I would do an 8 minute interview, Friday, on froggin’. After reading my September 17,2009 post on froggin’, "What's It Called", Gundy and Johnny V, hosts of the program, contacted me on Friday and taped an 8 minute segment about the sport.

The segment will air on July 31 and will be posted on The Big Wild Radio Program’s blog on August 2 and will cover shooting, gigging, grabbing, cleaning, recipes and eatin’ of frog legs. Not having a list of the radio stations, it would be best to check out their blog.

Radio personality, hmmm?

Turkey Hunting

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 08:05:00 -0700

Finally, Wednesday afternoon, getting out to go hunt a gobbler, no luck this time, but after I had been in my hide for about thirty minutes, out walked a full size, turkey hen. This was a big one, not the hens that I saw on Sunday afternoon, they were young ones, jakettes, or properly, jennies.

The big hen saw the two, hen decoys that I had put out and made a bee line for them. Right away I started snapping pictures of her.

None turned out except for this one, where she was looking in my direction, probably trying to figure what was that thing in the creek bottom, behind the cedar tree? The hen was twelve feet from me when I got this "shot"!

Having finished my taxes, when this posts, I'll be in a different "hide" trying to lure in a gobbler.

Hope springs eternal!

Opening Day

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 08:05:00 -0700

As the sun was coming up on Saturday morning, April 3, I was tucked into a “hide” along a creek where last month I’d spotted turkeys roosting in the trees along the same creek. There had been nine birds but it was too far to make out their sexual proclivities, probably hens?

This morning, to whet the big birds competitive spirit I was using two decoys, a gobbler and a hen. Maybe this would draw out a suitor? No luck and by 9:30 AM the sun was up good and in my eyes so I called it quits.

Saturday afternoon I was in another hide, in a different creek bottom, behind a cedar tree, practically invisible. One hour into my hunt, around 6:30 PM, out walked two hens. They looked at my two decoys and couldn’t figure what was going on. Not being able to unlimber my camera, I froze, they fed along and walked right between the decoys and me. Holding my breath the two hens moseyed along to within fifteen feet. I didn’t move anything, even squinted my eyes, both birds looked right at me and just kept moseying! Probably if I had even blinked, both of them would have been long gone! Exciting, but no meat on the table.

Sunday, being Easter was a no hunting day, Layla and I had to attend a funeral on Monday morning and now, income taxes have reared their ugly head, so it’ll be hit and miss on the turkeys for the next two or three days.

But still, hope springs eternal.

2010 Spring Turkey Season Opens

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 08:05:00 -0700

Last year, a terrible drought stricken spring led to a poor turkey season, but two days before spring season opened, I “shot” these pictures of a nice, gobbler that responded to my calling. My “hide” was a good one, he came within ten feet of me and these were the best shots” that I had all season.

However, this morning at sun up, the 2010 spring turkey season opens in Mills County, Texas. The big, birds have been moving around and, during my scouts, I’ve heard scattered gobbling. It looks like this year the State has gotten it right, timing the opening day with the breeding season.

As this is posted, with two decoys out, I’ll be scrooched into a hide along a creek on the southeast side of my ranch. Turkeys have been roosting along this creek and maybe today I will entice a gobbler?

Hope springs eternal!

Scouting, March 26,27, 2010

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Sun, 28 Mar 2010 08:05:00 -0700

Last Friday and Saturday morning, rather than sleeping in, I greeted the sun peeking over the horizon. Each time I was in a different spot trying to pinpoint turkey movement. Friday, when the sun was half up, I heard one gobble, then on Saturday after blasting a “come here call” on my crow call, another one (probably) sounded off. Both birds were along a creek south of my property.

Later Friday morning, nervously, a deer walked out, constantly looking behind it.

Soon, here came the family group, eight all told, but they caught me moving the camera and jumped back into the thick stuff! It was almost like a deer circus!

Saturday morning, after a couple of “blows” on the crow call, a deer walked across an opening and went on its way, I thought.

Then two cows walked by and I got this “shot” of them.

Thinking that with all the movement around my spot, why not really crank down on the predator call and see what happens. After a dozen or more squeals, I noticed movement to my front, slipped the safety off of my twelve gauge, slowly raised the shotgun and what did see, but the yearling, deer peeping around a cedar tree. It continued peeping until I tried to get a picture of it, then it crossed an opening and was gone!

At least these two gobblers should stay in our area for the nest week.

We Forgot To Tell The Hogs

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:05:00 -0700

This past Saturday, Tim Albee and I were invited to hunt hogs at a friends place outside of Mullin, Texas. Mullin is in Mills County, ten miles west of Goldthwaite. Tim is an E-7 on active duty in the Army and was a close friend of Brad’s. He served in C Troop, 7th Cavalry with Brad for a number of years and was with him for their deployment to Iraq in 2004/5.

After introductions, my friend drove Tim and I through his ranch, a beautiful place with full stock tanks and water running in all the creeks. Several spots clearly showed hog depredations.

This is one of the two hog traps we saw.

Stopping, before a spot where the creek had washed out the road, our host told us to cross the creek and then walk several hundred yards up the creek. After we passed a deer blind start looking for hog sign – droppings and rootings, then pick a spot with a good field of fire.

He added the hogs would come quickly down the creek, almost a natural funnel or mini canyon, and, as it turned out, our choice of 12 gauge shotguns for the job, would be just the trick, since the thick foliage and natural terrain would limit our shots to fifty or sixty yards. Tim was using 00 buck and I had chosen number 1 buck.

Here, Tim’s getting ready and loading up.

By 5:00 PM we were walking up the creek and finding a lot of hog droppings, we picked out our “hides”. Facing east, into the wind, we burrowed into the thick stuff and waited for the hogs to come by. The hogs would be heading south, down the creek and my friend had assured me that the hogs used this trail regularly.

Looking out over my field of fire, pictured, the creek is back by the green stuff and the hogs should come down from left to right, in and along the edge of the cover. But, by 6:00 PM no hogs, by 6:20, with dark approaching, we called it quits and in the twilight, walked back to the truck.

Saturday evening the hogs didn’t chose the trail where we prepared our ambush. No ambush this time out, but, there will be other times when we score big, anyway, if we shot something every time out, they’d call it shooting instead of hunting!

Predator Calling

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 08:05:00 -0700

On February 20th I posted a story, “Bring enough Gun”, about not taking a shot at the coyote that I had called in. Between the rain, snow and cedar fever, it wasn’t until this past Wednesday afternoon, March 3rd, that I got back out to try and call up something else.

Selecting the same tree blind that I had used in the last post, I was guarding about an eighty yard, track, heading south, between two thick, copse of woods. Beginning the calling, it wasn’t long before I noticed something, definitely not a buzzard, arcing down in a graceful, not really a dive but more of a swoop, heading right towards me.

It was a big bird with a six or seven foot wingspread. At first I thought it was a Mexican eagle, but its head was dark with lighter flecks on its wings, then I surmised it was a golden eagle (Aquila Chrysaetos). It continued its swoop over me, then on out across the field, turned and caught the wind and headed north.

Locally, sheep and goats are dropping their young and these are easy pickings for winged and furry, predators. I’ve heard of red tailed hawks coming in to a game call, but never an eagle, or was this just a happenstance? If a fox, bobcat or coyote had hold of a jackrabbit, not only the rabbit but also the furry predator would become a meal for the eagle.

Keeping up the calling with the sun sinking down low, I noticed movement out in the field south of my property. Nine turkeys traipsing along the creek, then flying a few yards to roost in the small trees along the creek. As darkness approached I walked down to the fence. The birds were perched on the small branches in the tops of the trees and it never ceases to amaze me, how can those little limbs hold up a big, turkey?

In our county, spring turkey season opens on April 3rd and maybe this is an indication that this season will be much better than last’s.

Score One For Ginger

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 08:05:00 -0700

Last week I went into town to pick up a water filter and as I walked into Mills County General Store, (it really is an old timey general store), on the counter along the entryway, there was a picture of a nice deer.

A closer look showed that it was a really, nice deer, being held up by a smiling Ginger Spies, obviously the shooter. Ginger and her husband, Rodney, own the Mills County General Store.

Walking to the back of the store I saw Rodney and asked him about the big deer. He told me that Ginger shot him on their ranch west of town, on the last day of the season, three minutes before the end of shooting time! The buck was walking in the general area around a deer feeder and took one step to many and, boom, Ginger dropped him with her .308.

The Spies took the deer to Warren Blesh, owner of RRR Ranch, for B&C scoring and it came in at a whopping 144 and 4/5ths. The buck was 5-1/2 years old, with the beginnings of palmated antlers, as this picture shows.

The deer also qualified Ginger for the yearly, Texas Parks And Wildlife’s special dinner for bucks scoring over 130 B&C.

Yesterday, visiting Mickey Donahoo to pick up my bobcat mount, I went into his taxidermist shop and he showed me Ginger’s deer. Of course I didn’t have a camera, hence no picture of the beautiful mount.

Bring Enough Gun

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 08:05:00 -0700

Many times I’ve heard that if you’re going to have a gunfight be sure and “Bring Enough Gun”. I didn’t have a gunfight this past Wednesday afternoon, however I sure did need a bigger gun!

Wednesday afternoon was beautiful, no wind, the temp around fifty, with bright blue skies, so I decided to go out and sit in a tree and try to call up a red fox or ‘coon. To dispatch one of these small critters, I took along my .17 HMR, plenty of gun for one of them!

Climbing up into the tree, I was “guarding” about eighty yards of a rough track through the thick stuff. Before me, several game trails crossed this track, the nearest one was not over twenty-five yards away. Having seen both ‘coons and foxes use this area, I began my deception using a distressed rabbit call. Blowing for about twenty seconds, then waiting for three minutes, I repeated the process several times. Then I noticed movement behind the brush along the nearest game trail!

Out trotted a coyote! It was a big one, dark fur along its back shading to a lighter hue on its sides, so I didn’t even think about shooting at it with the .17HMR. In about five seconds it crossed the track and disappeared into the thick stuff on the other side. This was the first coyote that I’ve seen on my place in the seventeen years that it has been in my possession.

Keeping up my calling, with no results, I finally slipped down out of the tree and walked back to my truck. It was “neat” seeing the coyote, but for this particular, twenty-five yard shot, I needed my twelve gauge, auto, with number one, buckshot!

All the way back to my truck, I kept thinking, Always be sure and “Bring Enough Gun”!

The Ranch Road

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 08:05:00 -0700

Toward the end of quail season, Rob Haney called saying that he had a free Saturday and it looked like the expected, big “norther” wouldn’t hit his area until Sunday night. We, the we being myself and Sonny, my Brittany Spaniel, hurried up to Rick’s ranch Friday afternoon, for a go at the quail. Predominantly white, Sonny, is pictured on my back porch.

Low clouds greeted us Saturday morning along with a medium, south wind that offered us wonderful scenting conditions. Sonny found the quail and we scored heavily during the day. As shooting time ended, our near limits stuffed in our game bags, we decided on something different for our evening meal.

Instead of our usual steak cooked over mesquite logs on Rob’s “old timey”, fired brick, bar-b-que pit, we grilled eight quail halves. They were spiced up with a half of jalapeno pepper, then wrapped with a piece of bacon and grilled until the bacon was done. We added a baked potato, along with chopped, green, Ortega, chilies and onions and we had a feast!

Up early on Sunday, Rick going to church, and Sonny and I heading out for a quick repeat at the quail. Parking my Suburban along one of the ranch roads, we were greeted by more low clouds and a steady, light northwest wind. Uh-oh, it looked like the “norther” had arrived early, beating the forecast by a good eight hours!

An hour later, we were hunting into a strong northwest wind with large flakes of snow blowing all around us. Sonny, mostly white, with a few reddish brown spots, was getting hard to see as he worked fifty yards to the front.

We bumped into two coveys, I knocked down four birds, but the balance of both coveys just melted away into the falling snow. We soldiered on for the next hour, fighting the wind, snow and poor visibility, until we were “whited out”. No Sonny out in front, one mesquite tree, out of the thousands on the ranch, close by, nothing but white, up, down and around me! Stopping in my tracks, I whistled for Sonny to come in, sat down in the snow and surveyed my situation.

As I debated my options, Sonny and I huddled together in the snow for nearly ten minutes,. Those minutes of debate and indecision, along with never having, or dreaming, that I would be caught in a situation like this, caused my feelings to race from panic, to fear, until logical thought took over. Then I used my head for something other than a hat rack, and figured out what to do.

No compass, of course, since I was ONLY hunting on Rick’s two thousand acre, ranch. I knew northwest was to the front, since I had been hunting into the wind. I knew the ranch road, where I had left the Suburban, was behind me. So, I decided to try to walk back to the truck. Even if I missed the truck, I could stay on the ranch road until I got back to the main ranch house.

Always carrying a check cord for the dog, I snapped it on to his collar, he “heeled” along, and keeping the wind to my back, carefully walked the mile back to the ranch road, guessing correctly, I turned right and within two hundred yards found the truck. Of course, it was white too!

Before heading back to Houston, I waited for over an hour for the snowstorm to break, then for the next eight hours (normally an easy six hours) slowly drove home.

All of my life I have tried to beat nature and weather forecasts, and, one more time, I lost again!

A Potential Pulitzer

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 08:05:00 -0700

With the temperature hovering near eighty, Jake Schroder and I started the long walk back to our truck down Tom Mix Wash. The dogs, Jake’s, Candy, and my, Rooster, were “quailed” out and out of the four canteens we took along, we were down to less than one. Back then, early February 1973, the wash was rough country, now it is probably million dollar homes!

We had hiked, hunted and worked our way several miles up Tom Mix Wash. This was near where, supposedly, the actor, Tom Mix, was killed in a one car, wreck along a road that bisects it. Tom was killed prior to WWII and I barely remember it. Anyway, back then I was a Gene Autry guy.

Starting right after lunch we had headed east, towards the foothills and had bumped into numerous, large coveys of gamble quail and had considerably thinned out the population. That day we enjoyed some of the finest dog work and shooting of all my Arizona hunts. We missed some, the dogs busted a covey, a covey outran us, but within a little less than two hours we had two limits!

With our game bags full, two limits of birds, walking back to the truck Jake was excited, anticipating trying out his new camera with a “timed” shutter. He was going to set it up on a tripod, get it focused in, then we would rush around, kneel down, smile and the picture, certainly a potential Pulitzer winner, would capture the “thrill of our hunt”!

We pose, remotely, along Tom Mix Wash, north of Tucson. The camera worked fine except that most of our hoard of quail was cut off!

Deer Season Ends

jbryan@centex.net (Jon Bryan) — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 08:05:00 -0700

Last Sunday, one of our friends, SFC Tim Albee, put an end to the 2009/10 deer season. This past season’s total was four does and one spike.

Summarizing, Sean, a Grandson, kicked it off with his first deer, a spike, bagged during the youth season.

Mickey Donahoo then shot two does that we gave to a friend. One is pictured here.

Then Wesley, another Grandson, scored his first kill with this doe.

Not to be outdone, I chipped in with this big, bobcat.

Overall, no big bucks, but wait ‘till next year! Next up is varmint hunting, then around April 1st, it’s turkey time!