Have you ever paddled a kayak in an abandoned, underground mine? Well folks, this year on our spring break trip to Kentucky, we did exactly that. We have been paddling for almost ten years now, ever since my wife surprised me on my fortieth birthday with a guided adventure paddling the Pictured Rocks along Michigan’s shorelines on Lake Superior. After that trip, we came home and went kayaking crazy. We bought ourselves a used Old Town Loon tandem as well as a couple of cheap Sun Dolphins for the kids. Over the next several years we … Read More
When Turkeys Go Silent
One of the best things about turkey hunting is when the morning silence is broken by the sound of the first Tom gobbling from his roost. For the next several minutes to a couple of hours, the conversation between toms and hens will continue to echo through the woods and surrounding fields. It’s every turkey hunter’s dream to get a tom to hear and respond to the hunter’s calls. In fact, some might say, a turkey hunter’s true measure of success can be from his or her ability to call the turkey to the hunting … Read More
Competing with Coyotes for Turkeys
Well, my friends, deer season is behind us. The snow is gone, and those toms will soon be gobbling away in the woods this spring. Your chance to put in for a 2025 turkey hunt has come and gone but, not to worry because there will be plenty of over-the-counter tags available for purchase and that late hunt can be a good one. Last year, I told the story I called “Double Trouble” in which my good friend Andy and I doubled on a couple of nice toms. Well would you believe me if I … Read More
The Greatest Adventure In The Woods
Mentoring our youth can be one of the most rewarding things you can do as a hunter. Investing time in our young people is not only what a responsible hunter should do but it’s a way to continue your own legacy as well. Young people today seem to have a lack of good role models, so I consider it a real privilege to get the opportunity to have an impact in the life of a young person. I mentored my first youth before my own son was old enough to start hunting. I was searching … Read More
Sometimes Lessons Need To Be Relearned
Well folks I don’t know about you but we had a decent deer season for 2024. A total of 6 deer were taken off the property we hunt this year and every one of them by yours truly. Not for lack of effort by my son or the landowner (Steve) and his daughter, but I just seemed to be the one blessed with the most opportunities. The old saying goes, I’d rather be lucky than good any day. Not to discount the skill and knowledge that are needed to successfully hunt a mature whitetail, but … Read More
Reflections in The December Woods
There’s just nothing like deer hunting with snow on the ground. For those of us in Michigan, that seems to be a rare occurrence these days and your best chance of getting to hunt in some snow (while there is still no guarantee) is during the month of December. Well, my friends, if you are hunting in December and are still looking for a big buck, that means you’re either pulling your archery equipment back out of the closet or you’re grabbing the old muzzleloader. Well, at least it used to. In recent years in … Read More
An Unforgettable Archery Season
Folks, I don’t know about you but, I have always appreciated when hunting shows or writers include failures among their stories. I have always felt that those tales of failure make the stories and those telling them more real, and it makes me remember that mishaps can and will happen to all of us at one time or another. Thus is the case for this year’s archery deer season, well at least in my case. The season was not without a victory in the woods, but it came at a cost. My 2024 archery season … Read More
“The Rut” changes all the rules
Mid-October days are some of the hardest days to be at work when you’re a bowhunter. The leaves are changing color, and the temps are dropping but, duty calls and you can’t afford to hunt if you don’t go to work. Yet those vacation days that you have saved up for deer hunting are calling to you saying, “take a day off and go to the woods.” It takes so much willpower to get up and go to work when your mind keeps telling you “There’s just bound to be a big buck on the … Read More
A Rainy-Day Disaster
When I walked outside early this morning, I closed my eyes and smiled as I drew that first breath of the cool morning air. When I opened my eyes and looked up at the dark night sky, I saw my old friend Orion just above the horizon. The site of that group of stars always gets me excited for the approach of Autumn and all that comes with it. It’s by far my favorite season, and these days fall means high school football games, and of course Archery Deer season. Like many of you, I … Read More
Grunt Calls, are they worth using?
If I had to pick just one item to carry to my deer stand besides my bow or my gun, it would be my grunt call. Like many of you, I’ve watched my share of monster buck videos. One thing you’ll notice in just about every video, the hunter is using a grunt call. Folks, let me tell you, it’s not just for show and it’s not just to sell products. Those things really work! It was the year 2000 and I had just gotten permission to hunt a small section of property across the … Read More