By Keith Kinyon. I was fortunate enough to get permission to hunt a 160 acre piece of property in Northern Midland County for the 2017 turkey season. The owner of the farm did not want me to use a pop up blind, decoys, or a turkey call. “You don’t need all those gimmicks,” he said. The sharp-eyed 70 year-olds farm held a huge number of turkeys and I felt lucky to be able to hunt there so I was not about to question him too much. The first evening I ignored his advice on where … Read More
Wild Turkey Fever
By Tom Lounsbury. When April arrives I automatically develop a case of “wild turkey fever”, an annual spring malady that has been afflicting me for almost 50 years now. I find myself habitually sorting out turkey hunting gear, practicing with various turkey calls (when I do this indoors it eventually nets a rather blunt complaint from my wife) and patterning my turkey shotguns, of which I have a few favorites, at my backyard shooting range. Although I already know how each shotgun patterns, I need to assure that I am still in tune with them, … Read More
The illustrious Ruger .44 Mag. Carbine
By: Jim Kushner This little semi-auto carbine is easy to carry and fast to get on target. especially if you hunt thick cover or from an enclosed blind where room to move is limited. It is only a little longer overall than a yard stick and weighs about 6 lbs. It has an 18 1/2 inch barrel and holds 4 rounds in a tube magazine that loads from the bottom similar to a pump action shotgun. A friend of mine used one of these successfully from his pop up blinds until his daughter started deer … Read More
A Classic Michigan Bear Hunt (w/video)
Black bear hunting in da U.P…..eh. On September 15th, 2016 my dream of bagging a Michigan Black bear came true. My name is Nick Grillo and I am an avid Outdoorsman. I have always been around hunting but I started out deer hunting when I was 14. Deer Hunting has always been one of my main passions in life, that is until I sat 7 yards from a black bear, face to face at ground level. Man….now that was a rush. I still love deer hunting, but definitely gained a huge respect and passion for … Read More
My First Michigan Bear
“This was my first Michigan black bear hunt and it was everything I hoped it would be. Wild Game Dynasty was exceptional! My hunting partner and I arrived at camp a day early to an excellent dinner after a long road trip. Prepared food was exceptional each morning & night.. The area is beautiful. There is a reason why the U.P. is called “God’s Country”. I could not believe how hard our guides worked for all of the guys at camp. I did shoot a nice Michigan black bear! The bear came in exactly how … Read More
Guided Spring Turkey Hunt
“As one of the extremely fortunate winners of the 2015 Pure Michigan hunt, I looked forward with great anticipation, to my guided Spring Turkey hunt. Despite pending, unseasonably foul weather in the forecast, Gary immediately put me on a great Tom, allowing me to fill my tag before the snows flew once more. A great hunt, put on by a great guide!!” – Mike DiLorenzo, Clinton Twp., MI
Nice Buck First Day Out
Whether this is your first time hunting a certain species or a veteran in the wild, ELO has an experience awaiting you.
Life And Times Of Michigan’s Wild Pheasant
Featured Pic (above): Dr. Kelly Straka is the new MDNR Wildlife Division Veterinarian and is proof positive ladies love to hunt wild pheasants too. Her favorite shotgun for wild Thumb roosters this past December is a semi-automatic 12 ga. The MDNR places a strong focus on pheasant (and small game) hunting in Michigan. By: Tom Lounsbury. The pheasant’s history in Michigan is relatively short when you figure overall events in century form. I’m always amazed by the amount of folks today who believe the pheasant is an indigenous (native) wild bird species to North America. The … Read More
So You Want To Train A Bird Dog?
By: Amy Gauthier So you want to train a bird dog. Congratulations! You are interested in an activity that will teach you more about yourself than almost any other hobby. As I sat down, attempting to produce my first dog training article, my head began to spin. So many questions are asked by hopeful new puppy owners: Where do I start? What do I need? What do I DO? Ah, the articles that could be written to answer these questions…and they have been written, in magazines, and books galore. Who am I to add to … Read More
Where Are The Brakes On Skiis !!?
By: Tom Lounsbury. This certainly has been an unusual winter here in the Thumb. The atmosphere mostly represented spring-like weather, and a lack of snow, which in turn may have prevented me from getting a few “lumps”. Then just recently over a foot of snow (my 14 inch rubber chore boots are topped out in the white-stuff) dropped down on our farm, almost overnight. Old Man Winter seems to be making up for lost time, which has me pondering taking advantage of it. I must admit I’m not much of a skier. I tried downhill … Read More