tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15627626585014405342024-03-13T14:39:07.987-04:00Passinthru OutdoorsPassinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.comBlogger186125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-41677422465169600532015-03-08T08:03:00.001-04:002015-03-08T08:03:46.714-04:00The Eastern Bluebird and Nest BoxesWell we still have 3 to 4 feet of snow still on the ground here in Northeast Connecticut but the day time temps are finally starting to climb. According to the calendar spring is just 2 weeks away but I think we might be battling snow and ice for a few weeks after that. But there is hope, especially when I get new visitors to my backyard like the Eastern Bluebird.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QbMBmLLwm4I/VPw5iVg85YI/AAAAAAAAJ_I/hVCJaN7-AvE/s1600/bluebird.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QbMBmLLwm4I/VPw5iVg85YI/AAAAAAAAJ_I/hVCJaN7-AvE/s1600/bluebird.JPG" height="362" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taken March 2015 at my feeder</td></tr>
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The male Eastern Bluebird is easily identifiable by their brilliant royal blue color and rust colored throat and neck while females will be more gray on the back with blue in the wings. Definitely colors that catch your eye when bird watching. Bluebirds will visit your feeders and enjoy fruit, mealworms, peanut hearts and even suet. They are truly a treat when they visit.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qRhD2wHu3d0/VPw6dG_TypI/AAAAAAAAJ_Q/m7cUmhb938s/s1600/bluebirdnestbox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qRhD2wHu3d0/VPw6dG_TypI/AAAAAAAAJ_Q/m7cUmhb938s/s1600/bluebirdnestbox.jpg" height="320" width="257" /></a></div>
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Eastern Bluebirds will start their nesting in early March and it is important to get your Bluebird nesting boxes built and installed early in the nesting season if you want to keep them around. <a href="http://nestwatch.org/">Nestwatch.org</a> has a downloadable set of <a href="http://nestwatch.org/wp-content/themes/nestwatch/birdhouses/eastern-bluebird.pdf" target="_blank">Bluebird nesting box plans</a> that makes this project a snap.<br />
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I hope you are lucky enough to have Bluebirds visit your backyard this year. <br />
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<br />Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-39306955083033310982015-02-13T15:22:00.000-05:002015-02-13T15:22:14.234-05:00Wood Ducks and Boxes The Wood Duck is one of the most colorful ducks out there and by far my favorite duck to watch and hunt. Fast agile flyers, bright colors and the unmistakable squealing sound are just a few characteristics that make them special to me. I remember one overcast and misty morning when my son and I were out bowhunting deer and walking down a old logging trail only to have a dozen plus Wood Ducks explode out of a tree above us. Since then both of us have been a fan of the Wood Duck.<br />
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With almost 50 inches of snow on the ground over the past few weeks and more on the way as well as unbearable single digit temps I need a indoor project so why not make some Wood Duck boxes. Because Wood Ducks are perching ducks and cavity nesters, this offers up unique opportunities to lend a helping hand to your local populations. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.ducks.org/media/Conservation/Waterfowl%20Biology/_images/DuckBoxJpeg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.ducks.org/media/Conservation/Waterfowl%20Biology/_images/DuckBoxJpeg.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of Ducks Unlimited - ducks.org</td></tr>
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Habitat loss has been and continues to be a leading contributor to waterfowl populations and the loss of bottomland hardwood forests was pushing the Wood Duck near extinction. Female Wood Ducks typically build their nests in tree cavities near
wetlands. They carefully inspect the site for a variety of
characteristics, including size, shape and security from predators and
the elements. In many areas, wood ducks have difficulty finding suitable
natural nesting sites. Wood duck boxes provide a man-made alternative,
where hens can nest in relative safety from predators. Creating a wood duck box and strategically placing it can draw birds
into an area and create a local population. Location and proper
maintenance are the keys to successfully assisting wood duck breeding
habits in your area.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BAs0cecPDgk/VN5bDVfqUII/AAAAAAAAJ7o/pPwgruJxQYs/s1600/woodduckbabiesbruce.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BAs0cecPDgk/VN5bDVfqUII/AAAAAAAAJ7o/pPwgruJxQYs/s1600/woodduckbabiesbruce.jpg" height="185" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Credit: Bruce Morrell - <a href="http://www.picturesbybruce.com/" target="_blank">Pictures By Bruce</a></td></tr>
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Finding a suitable site to
place wood duck boxes can be challenging and you need to be aware of the following.<br />
<ul>
<li>Suitable brood habitat must be available close by in order for ducklings to survive once they
exit the box. </li>
<li>Shallow, fertile wetlands with thick cover
and an abundance of invertebrates typically provide the best habitat for
broods. </li>
<li>Wood Duck boxes should be erected on either wooden posts or
metal poles outfitted with predator guards. </li>
</ul>
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You can download <a href="http://www.ducks.org/media/Conservation/GLARO/_documents/_library/_landowner/WoodDuck_NestBox.pdf">wood duck box building instructions</a> and learn much more about maintenance, placement, waterfowl ID, a ducks life cycle and other ways you can help conserve waterfowl and wetlands by visiting <a href="http://www.ducks.org/conservation/waterfowl-biology">Ducks Unlimited Waterfowl Biology Page</a>.<br />
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You can also check into your local waterfowl organizations and chapters to see if they have a wood duck box building day like our <a href="http://www.ctwaterfowlers.org/" target="_blank">Connecticut Waterfowlers Association</a> will on March 14th from 10:100 am until 3:00pm at Flaherty Field Trial Area in East Windsor. you can get more information here: <a href="http://www.ctwaterfowlers.org/club-news/wood-duck-box-building-day" target="_blank">CWA Wood Duck Box building day</a>. <br />
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If you are not a member of Ducks Unlimited and would like to learn how you can help DU with their wetland and waterfowl conservation mission please check out there website at: <a href="http://www.ducks.org/" target="_blank">www.ducks.org</a>.<br />
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Now get your boxes built because I'm sure all this snow won't stick around forever and spring is just around the corner. Well I hope it is!<br />
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<br />Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-65475899005485909982014-11-13T13:51:00.000-05:002014-11-13T13:52:30.821-05:00Saskatchewan 2014 Waterfowl Hunt TeaserIt's been a couple of weeks since we got back from a week long waterfowl hunt in Bladworth Saskatchewan with <a href="http://www.livingskyoutfitters.ca/">LivingSky Outfitters</a>. This is our second trip with LivingSky and arriving in camp and seeing owners Trevor and Jeff and the rest of the guides and crew it felt like a family reunion. Such a great group of folks that work hard to make your week of hunting the duck factory everything you ever dreamed off. We have hundreds of pictures and hours upon hours of video to get through and sort out so for now here is a few pics and short video clip to keep everyone happy.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snow Geese were the main attraction.</td></tr>
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I've never seen so many snow geese in one spot. The larger water where they were roosting couldn't fit another goose even if you lubed him up and used a shoe horn. Just amazing. Look down the horizon in the picture above and those are all snow geese.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WmL0KZ6b4p8/VEL1_PXqt3I/AAAAAAAAJ1Y/3PGZ-oZmtmU/s1600/Saskatchewan2014_140.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WmL0KZ6b4p8/VEL1_PXqt3I/AAAAAAAAJ1Y/3PGZ-oZmtmU/s400/Saskatchewan2014_140.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">5 man limit of snow geese and ducks - 140 birds</td></tr>
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The ducks loved to come into the snow goose spread so if you wanted to you could shoot ducks and snows in one hunt and which we did a couple of times.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8dKszfCzXIY/VEL2A82xzdI/AAAAAAAAJ1g/LQJb6pghQpo/s1600/Saskatchewan2014_sandhill.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8dKszfCzXIY/VEL2A82xzdI/AAAAAAAAJ1g/LQJb6pghQpo/s400/Saskatchewan2014_sandhill.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sand Hill crane mission accomplished.</td></tr>
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The weather was warm and the Sand Hill cranes were still around in huge numbers and one of our guys had been waiting years to hunt for a cranes so we setup one evening and gave it a go and thank goodness these 3 decided to try and land on us because the other 500 just flew on by. oh and it was delicious!<br />
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Last but not least a short video clip from our last morning which was a snow goose hunt and we limited out in 42 minutes and had to see 100,000 snow geese that morning. It was incredible!<br />
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<br />Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-59252839022557733602014-11-04T14:45:00.001-05:002014-11-04T14:45:24.651-05:00A Moose Visits our Neighboorhood.The other day I was fortunate to watch a beautiful cow moose out in a field near my house. It looked exactly like the same cow that visited the same field last year even at the same time of the yea just around Halloween. I'm not sure what attracts here to that field at this time of year, but she seems to enjoy checking out the cows and showing off for the crowds that stop to watch her.<br />
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Unfortunately this field is on a main road and it gets lots of traffic which makes for some interesting watching of the two legged wildlife known as Homo Sapiens or just plan people. It was difficult to determine what to keep my eye on, the lady who can't drive and smashed into a care as she tried to pull off the road to check out Miss Moose or the cows walking to the fence to see what this familar looking 4 legged creature was.<br />
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one thing for sure though, if people would just relax, take their time, stay in their car and keep their voices down they would get to enjoy much more of Miss Moose next time she is out in public~Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-52263505537261536412014-09-19T10:56:00.000-04:002014-09-19T10:56:02.780-04:00Where oh where have you been?!I must apologize for my long absence and my neglect of my blog. Work and outside commitments has been flat out crazy this spring and summer and still crazy going into the fall but I will do my best to get back to some sort of regular posting here.<br />
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The cold temperatures here in the Northeast Connecticut have everyone excited for the fall hunting seasons. Resident goose is now open as is our Archery deer season and i actually got out for both this week - report to follow.<br />
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The next three weeks will be plenty busy at work as I try to get ahead of the game before I leave for a week of waterfowl hunting in Saskatchewan.<br />
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I hope everyone enjoyed their summer and found time to get outdoors!Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-69279793565985066502014-04-25T14:48:00.004-04:002014-04-25T14:49:01.137-04:00Turkey Time - Are You Ready?<div style="text-align: left;">
For some states Turkey season is already under way, but here in Connecticut we still have a few days left before our season opens on April 30th, 2014 so I know I'm a little late with this post but what better time then now for a turkey hunting refresher. </div>
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No turkey hunting post is complete with mentioning the <a href="http://www.nwtf.org/">NWTF - National Wild Turkey Federation</a> and what there efforts have meant to restoring wild turkey populations across North America. If you hunt turkey then in my opinion giving back to the sport is important and becoming a member of NWTF or attending a NWTF event or fundraiser is an excellent way to do so. Check out this link for ways you can give back. <a href="http://www.nwtf.org/help_now/">http://www.nwtf.org/help_now/</a><br />
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<h4>
What is the NWTF?</h4>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The NWTF — a national nonprofit organization — is the leader in upland wildlife habitat conservation in North America.<br />
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Founded in 1973, the NWTF is headquartered in Edgefield, S.C., and has local chapters in every state. The NWTF is dedicated to the conservation of the wild turkey and the preservation of our hunting heritage.<br />
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Through vital partnerships with state, federal and provincial
wildlife agencies, the NWTF and our members have helped restore wild
turkey populations throughout North America — from a mere 30,000 in the
entire United States to more than 7 million across the United States,
Canada and Mexico.</blockquote>
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Who Are They?</h4>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
We are sportsmen, women and children who care deeply about our natural resources and the wild places we love to hunt.<br />
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We cherish the memory of the ridge top gobbler we hunted last spring
and fondly remember the cornfield where we saw that big buck at sunset
two years ago.<br />
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Collectively, we come from all walks of life to engage in conservation and preserve the hunting heritage we all hold dear.</blockquote>
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... the champions of conservation.</h4>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
According to many state and federal agencies, the restoration of the
wild turkey is arguably the greatest conservation success story in North
America's wildlife history.<br />
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We have spent more than $412 million to conserve nearly 17.25 million acres of habitat. <br />
<b><i>That area is larger than the state of West Virginia.</i></b><br />
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Wild turkeys and hundreds of other species of upland wildlife,
including quail, deer, grouse, pheasant and songbirds, have benefited
from this improved habitat.<br />
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Our dedicated volunteers bring new hunters and conservationists into
the fold — nearly 100,000 every year — through outdoor education events.</blockquote>
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Most certainly in the the State of Connecticut I do believe that the restoration of the wild turkey to be the greats conservation success story in our history. I watched out turkey season go from a lottery only hunt in just one small corner of our state to the entire state being open to turkey hunting and now the ability to purchase and hunt both on state land and private land. As you can see from this <a href="http://www.ct.gov/deep/cwp/view.asp?a=2723&q=326110&deepNav_GID=1655">Wild Turkey facts sheet</a> post on the <a href="http://www.ct.gov/deep/cwp/view.asp?a=2723&q=325726&depNav_GID=1655&deepNav=|">Connecticut DEEP Wildlife website</a>.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Wild turkeys were abundant
in Connecticut when the first settlers arrived. However, a combination
of forest clearing and a series of severe winters eliminated the turkey
from Connecticut by the early 1800s. From the 1950s through the early
1970s, attempts at wild turkey restoration through artificial
propagation were largely unsuccessful. The major breakthrough in
restoration efforts occurred when free-roaming wild turkeys were
live-captured and translocated using a rocket net. This large,
lightweight net is fired by rockets from a remote blind and carried over
turkeys that have been attracted to the area by bait.<br />
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Between 1975 and 1992, 356 wild turkeys were released at 18 sites
throughout the state. These releases and subsequent population expansion
have resulted in the successful restoration of wild turkeys to all 169
Connecticut towns. Recent land use practices in Connecticut have also
favored the expansion of wild turkey populations as the landscape has
become more forested. As a result of restoration efforts and the
increase in forest habitat, sportsmen have been able to hunt wild
turkeys since 1981, and landowners and others have enjoyed observing
them in their natural state.</blockquote>
Know and obey all the local hunting laws. You have to understand things like license requirements, gun and ammo restrictions, Private land permission, legal birds and bag limits, hunter orange requirements, decoy regulations and sometimes just knowing what other hunting opportunities are available during the spring turkey season can shed light on what you might encounter while out there. If you plan on hunting other states, make sure to keep your regulations straight. In Connecticut during the spring season any legal turkey must have a visible beard. That means it is legal to shoot a bearded hen, but just because it is legal doesn't mean you must. My clan chooses to let the bearded hens walk on by. Sometimes we might choose to shoot mature birds only and let the young ones take jakes if they want to. As long as it is a legal bird and you choose to take it then it's a trophy in my book.<br />
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Hopefully many of you planning to hit the woods on opening day to chase turkey have already got your preseason preparations done, but if not you still have time to hit the woods and get your scouting in as well as patterning your shotgun, choke and ammo combination. These birds are not only smart but they are tough so doing your homework and knowing where they roost, feed, strut, breed is crucial to a successful hunt, but even if you know all these things and have practiced your calling you better make sure you are putting enough pellets on target so spending time on the range to get the best possible choke/ammo combination for your firearm is extremely important. For those chasing turkey with stick and string, well I have major admiration for you folks. I have yet to use my archery gear for turkey and plan to some day but they are challenging enough for me with the firearm so I'll stick to that for now.<br />
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Making turkey sounds is important, but knowing what sounds to make and when to make them is even more crucial to success. Some times I ask myself - do I really need to carry all these different calls with me? Well the answer many times is yes. There have been hunts where I have used every call in my vest within a 100 yard area, knowing there are turkey's there only to have no response on all but one of those calls. The tone, pitch and volume sometimes just need to be what they want to hear and it is the only thing that works. One tip about calling - try to sound natural. What this means is don't use the same sequence, tone and volume when you call. Mix it up. If you are letting out some yelps in a 5 or 6 note string then for the next series maybe only yelp twice then pause and then yelp two or 3 more times and even through in some clucks in between and after. Listen to the real turkeys and you will quickly notice that don't sound like a broken record repeating the same sounds and notes over and over so you need to do the same. YouTube has plenty of great videos of live hens calling in the field. Watch them and practice mimicking their calls.<br />
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Think safety and think defensive minded! There is so much to cover when talking safe turkey hunting but understanding what you are actually doing out there will help put it all in perspective. You are most likely dressed in full camo and hidden well. You probably have a realistic turkey decoy out in front of you somewhere and you are making realistic sounds of a turkey. This could be a recipe for problems but if you pay attention to these <a href="http://10 Tips for a Safe Spring Turkey Hunt">10 Tips for a Safe Spring Turkey Hunt</a> provided by the NWTF then you have the building blocks for a safe hunt. If you are using decoys spend a little extra time when setting them out to make sure that anyone that might come across your decoys in the field can be seen and that if they take a shot at them you are not in the line of fire. Remember think defensive minded at all times. Decoy setup isn't necessarily a science but if you observed enough turkeys during your scouting you've picked up some little tidbits of information on how other hens, young toms and that old mature tom interact with each other. Use that to your advantage when setting up your decoys. Make them visible and position them in a way that causes that old tom to concentrate on them and not you. There are times when the best decoy is none at all. Don't worry the birds will tell you what they want.<br />
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<br />
Patience is key when turkey hunting. If you've spent time in the spring woods chasing turkey then at some point I'm sure you've been in the situation where you've been working a gobbler that was sounding off and all of a sudden everything goes quiet. Not a peep. Your brain goes into overdrive trying to figure out what went wrong. You change up call after call and still nothing. It's time to move, right? So you start to stand up and your hear it. Put, put, put... and off he runs. Turkey's have incredible hearing and eyesight and they use this to their advantage. In nature it is the hen that usually goes to the tom so you are asking him to come to you. Learn to be patient and not to quick to move your setup when a bird goes quiet on you because he just may be circling in nice and quiet for a look. If he is with other hens, once those hens start to wonder off, he might just come back looking for you.<br />
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Once you got that bird on the ground make sure you take care of any tagging requirements before setting up for some nice in the field photos. If you are allowed multiple birds, maybe even set back up and see if you can't get another bird to commit. If you are going to mount the whole bird, cape it or even just mount the fan, take time in the field to keep blood off the bird and all the feathers in tact. If you don't plan to use the turkey feathers maybe you cans wing by the local fly fishing shop or know some folks that tie their own flies and offer those feathers up to them. I've tied many flies using feathers from turkeys I was luck to harvest.<br />
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For most the most regarding part of the hunt comes when that turkey is sitting on the dinner table. I know for a fact that after harvesting a bird a comment will be made about eating turkey poppers before we even make it half way back to the truck. You can pluck the bird, skin it or even breast it out. Most folks I know just breast it our, but don't ignore those legs and thighs as they make great additions for soup. My two favorite recipes are Southwest Turkey poppers and Turkey, mushroom and Wild Rice soup and you can get those recipes here: <a href="http://passinthruoutdoors.blogspot.com/2012/03/my-favorite-wild-turkey-recipes.html">My Favorite Turkey Recipes</a>.<br />
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I wish everyone a very safe and successful spring turkey hunt and remember to share the outdoors with someone new if you can.<br />
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Additional Turkey Hunting Resources:<br />
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<a href="http://www.nwtf.org/pennsylvania/sites/default/files/images/tky-hunting-success-safety.pdf">Turkey Hunting Success and Safety pamphlet</a> from the NWTF. <br />
<a href="http://www.nwtf.org/for_hunters/hunting_tactics.html">Turkey Hunting Tactics</a> - NWTF Website<br />
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<br />Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-75222117580590003962014-04-15T09:56:00.000-04:002014-04-15T09:56:10.398-04:00Connecticut Opening Day of Fishing April 19, 2014Finally after a long hard winter, the weather has finally warmed up enough to feel like spring here in Connecticut and that means fishing season is just around the corner. Actually the season opener is just 5 days away. For many opening day is more about traditions then the fishing. That means fishing the same spot with many of the same folks, maybe even camping out or stopping by one of the many fisherman breakfasts that will be happening around the state.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2c6vhRYIowk/TaMhCbsGB3I/AAAAAAAAAiU/jcG6uZzK40Q/s1600/SalmonRiverTMAPool.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2c6vhRYIowk/TaMhCbsGB3I/AAAAAAAAAiU/jcG6uZzK40Q/s1600/SalmonRiverTMAPool.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Salmon River, Colchester CT</td></tr>
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For me the tradition of opening day has long faded, mostly because as my kids were growing up opening day conflicted with other opening days like baseball. Also with many Trout Management Areas open to year round fishing, I no longer have to wait for opening day to wet a line and chase some trout. But I still enjoying seeing others as they work on their opening days plans and preparations. For me I will most likely spend the early morning out in the woods scouting for turkeys, but I will most certainly stop by my local fisherman's breakfast and then head home to get ready for the family invasion for our Easter celebration and maybe, just maybe I will even run down to the lake and wet a line just to say I fished the opener.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TQSoreiRGNs/T2c9FYCt_hI/AAAAAAAABBI/yDqojPN0FHg/s1600/willibow2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TQSoreiRGNs/T2c9FYCt_hI/AAAAAAAABBI/yDqojPN0FHg/s1600/willibow2.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Willimantic River Rainbow Trout</td></tr>
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So for all those heading out on opening day in hopes of catching that wall hanger, here are some links with great information on fishing in Connecticut.<br />
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<h3>
DEEP's Fishing Website</h3>
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Everything you need to know about fishing in Connecticut can be found on the <a href="http://www.ct.gov/deep/cwp/view.asp?a=2696&q=322708&deepNav_GID=1630">Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection's (DEEP)</a> website. Here you can get information about licenses and permits and even make an <a href="https://ct.outdoorcentral.net/InternetSales">online purchase</a>. Review the <a href="http://www.ct.gov/deep/cwp/view.asp?a=2696&q=322688&deepNav_GID=1630">2014 Anglers Guide</a> for the latest fishing regulations and a list of lakes, pond, rivers and streams opening to fishing. Don't forget to review the <a href="http://www.ct.gov/deep/lib/deep/fishing/weekly_reports/troutstockingreport.pdf">Stocking Reports </a>and maybe even subscriber to the <a href="http://www.ct.gov/deep/cwp/view.asp?a=2696&q=322752&deepNav_GID=1630">weekly fishing reports</a>. If you have young ones that like to fish or you are introducing to fishing for the first time stop by the <a href="http://www.ct.gov/deep/cwp/view.asp?a=2696&q=513800&deepNav_GID=1630">Youth Fishing Passport</a> page for all kinds of great information and special events for the young fisherman. Don't forget to stop by the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/CTFishAndWildlife">Connecticut Fish and Wildlife Facebook</a> page so you can share photos from your trips and to get the latest information available.<br />
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<h3>
Check those water levels</h3>
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I am always checking the water levels of the streams and rivers I plan to fish, especially after we've had some rain. Spring showers can blow out a stream or river quickly and using the <a href="http://waterdata.usgs.gov/ct/nwis/rt">USGS Website</a>. You can use these water reports to view current conditions, see the median levels over the course of many years and to use it to gauge how quickly a body of water returns to normal levels after a rain.<br />
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Whatever your opening day plans and traditions are I wish you a very safe, fun and successful day.<br />
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Now get out on the water and enjoy!<br />
<br />Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-49874698582438033542014-03-08T07:28:00.003-05:002014-03-08T07:28:24.296-05:00Saskatchewan Waterfowl Hunt 2013 - Day 3We thought it was tough getting to sleep after our first full day of hunting, but last night after an amazing snow goose hunt it was even more difficult. The sound of snow geese filled my head all night long and made for a restless night which isn't good considering we had another 4am walk up call this morning.<br />
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<h3>
Morning Goose and Duck Hunt October 16</h3>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O6tuFTMagmA/UxsGxXKFhHI/AAAAAAAAIt0/nYIlGq4G0NI/s1600/day3sunrise.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O6tuFTMagmA/UxsGxXKFhHI/AAAAAAAAIt0/nYIlGq4G0NI/s1600/day3sunrise.JPG" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sunrise from the blind</td></tr>
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</h3>
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We did something this morning that our outfitter Jeff from Living Sky Outfitters in Bladworth Saskatchewan doesn't like to do unless his scouting tells him to and that is hunt the same field twice in a week. The soybean field we were headed to during another dark morning ride was the same field we hunted on our first evening duck hunt. I wasn't that worried about hunting the same spot again, especially after seeing the amount of time, effort and work Jeff, Trevor and his crew puts into scouting. I knew we'd have a good morning. Unlike our first night were we had to target ducks, the original game plan was to target large flocks of geese that were using the field the morning before. It's difficult enough driving these dirty gravel roads in the middle of nowhere in the dark, but our guide Billy had to be on his game as large cow moose stepped out in front of the old brown suburban towing a 17 foot trailer. It was a good thing Billy was bright eyed and all in because there was a very nice bull moose following the cow. Cool visual, but a little scary!<br />
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You can tell after two days we were in a groove as no one had to say a word, we got out and started the task of unloading the trailer, setting up the A-frame blind and laying out 6 dozen full body goose and duck decoys along with a Mojo or two. It didn't take us long to get the spread setup, the suburban and trailer parked and all settled in to the blind to enjoy the first cracks of daylight. My favorite time in the woods, blind or on the water is just as the sun starts to show itself and the wild starts to wake up. The air seems to change, the sounds get louder and the anticipation grows. Love it.<br />
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The day started out with a good wind, cold in the 20s and an early flight of 4 mallards that dropped in to the spread only to leave unscathed which was mostly by choice even though bubba did let one fly only to miss. We could hear the snows getting vocal on the roost in the distance as 4 more mallards hooked into the spread. These four weren't so lucky and they quickly became staying ducks. The next group of visitors were two dozen Canadian Geese that were low and on a string right to the spread and we knocked a few of them down as well.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0bA1hgrJnP0/UxsGnSoW9cI/AAAAAAAAItg/C6CWj6Qg2-Q/s1600/Day3profile.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0bA1hgrJnP0/UxsGnSoW9cI/AAAAAAAAItg/C6CWj6Qg2-Q/s1600/Day3profile.JPG" height="400" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That's me</td></tr>
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It wasn't long after that till we were covered up in geese and I mean covered up. Sitting there watching hundreds of geese working the spread and tolling in making for calling the shot a certain challenge, especially when we had geese on the ground in the spread. You almost get caught up in the spectacle of it all and forget you still need to make the call to shoot. Well our guide made the right call and I was fortunate enough to shoot a triple with my Browning BPS pump gun which was a first to me. I was so damn excited I had to edit out some language in the video. It truly was a show as they spiraled down out of the sky and into the spread. After this I'm not sure I really cared if I shot another bird that morning. How do you top what just happened. Well you really don't and you soak in ever flight of birds and appreciate the fact that you have the ability to be there doing what you love.<br />
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We had another good group of geese work over the spread high and a few even joined the decoys on the ground but they didn't commit. A small group of 10 broke off and made a swing low off the left corner and we took a few of them. All that action and the sun wasn't even completely above the horizon.<br />
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After the flurry of geese came some small flights of ducks and we worked them over to pick off a few here and there to pass the time while waiting for more geese. We did manage a few more small flights of geese including a flock about 8 giants that offered up some shooting off the left side of the blind. We did get to laughing a bit as bubba chased down a running giant goose. I laughed so hard my side hurt and I had tears in my eyes. I'd love to bring the dog on a trip like this but then we wouldn't have enjoyed the bubba retriever show.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TlqdMZxKHgY/UxsGg1dKP2I/AAAAAAAAItE/FPTrAJRKcas/s1600/Day3amgroup.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TlqdMZxKHgY/UxsGg1dKP2I/AAAAAAAAItE/FPTrAJRKcas/s1600/Day3amgroup.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not a bad morning considering the X was across the street</td></tr>
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We definitely were not on the X today, because as we looked out the back of the blind across the dirt road to another field that was a couple hundred yards away and it was covered in snow geese, canadas and a load of ducks trying to get in. Watching the ducks work into that field was just incredible. We decided to stick it out and see if we couldn't scratch out a few more geese which we did, but we came up 6 short of a 5 man limit. With nothing really moving and birds out on the feed we decided to pack it up and head back for some lunch.<br />
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<h3>
Afternoon Duck Hunt</h3>
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After a short break to get some lunch at the local bar which by the way had delicious food and specials every day and was priced very reasonable, we were headed back to the field for an afternoon duck hunt. The weather warmed into the 40s and cloudy but the wind picked up a bit. We setup the A-frame blind on the edge of a pothole in the brush and we were positioned looking up hill at the spread which consisted of a few dozen full bodies and a single Mojo. This setup made for some challenges as the ground wasn't level making standing up a challenge until we flattened things out and adjusted the angle of the front of the blind. Not to mentioned that we were sitting lover then the decoy spread by about 15 to 20 feet. We also had another guide named Ronnie who is a good ol boy from Virgina with us and he definitely got a kick out of or crew. I think they sent Ronnie along thinking Billy needed help wrangling us in but it really was so Billy could join us for a little hunting of his own.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-03looOvL6o0/UxsGn5SChfI/AAAAAAAAItc/ltach2Ih7A0/s1600/day3bubba.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-03looOvL6o0/UxsGn5SChfI/AAAAAAAAItc/ltach2Ih7A0/s1600/day3bubba.JPG" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I call this Where's Bubba?</td></tr>
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The ducks starting coming back in pairs and small flocks so we picked away at them and got some good shooting. The one rule we had was to not drop any birds in the water as our guide billy wasn't in the mood to go wading as usual we didn't listen. Not really on purpose but those birds flying straight at us had some speed so when they get hit a couple landed in the water. No worries, Bubba put on the waders and retrieved them up for Billy at the end of the hunt<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4PbnprJhkVE/UxsGhzDxMmI/AAAAAAAAItM/9DxetkrjLNE/s1600/Day3pmgroup.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4PbnprJhkVE/UxsGhzDxMmI/AAAAAAAAItM/9DxetkrjLNE/s1600/Day3pmgroup.JPG" height="282" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Afternoon's results where some nice Mallards</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9Jh4GKLp-po/UxsGxPio0sI/AAAAAAAAIt8/XSa4sEsILmA/s1600/day3pmhandsfullofmallards.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9Jh4GKLp-po/UxsGxPio0sI/AAAAAAAAIt8/XSa4sEsILmA/s1600/day3pmhandsfullofmallards.JPG" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hands full of Greegheads.</td></tr>
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The area we hunted was covered in potholes and just about everyone of them had birds on them. We also saw a some mule deer. We continued to pick away at singles and doubles while we got plenty of laughs and lots of exercise running up hill to retrieve birds. It was nice to sit around enjoying a slow but steady hunt and we still managed to fill out our limit of ducks which was a good thing seeing we were eating ducks again for dinner tonight. Man were they tasty.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-avNsJUIuSUc/UxsGoeMbCeI/AAAAAAAAItk/VQPB432V7JI/s1600/day3dinner.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-avNsJUIuSUc/UxsGoeMbCeI/AAAAAAAAItk/VQPB432V7JI/s1600/day3dinner.JPG" height="290" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A little appetizer of duck before dinner</td></tr>
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<h3>
Gear Used</h3>
One thing I used every day so far is my <a href="https://store.drakewaterfowl.com/cart.php?m=product_detail&p=75">Drake EST Heat-Escape Waterproof Pullover</a> by <a href="https://www.drakewaterfowl.com/">Drake Waterfowl</a>. Even though this is an early season piece it is something I find myself wearing even into the late season. It's comfortable, seems to stop the wind very well and doesn't restrict my shooting that a heavy late season jacket can sometimes do. For calls, I'm a <a href="http://buckgardner.com/">Buck Gardner</a> guy so I had two of my favorite ducks calls with me in the Buck Brush and Brad's Reactor both Acrylic calls. The <a href="http://buckgardner.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=59_61&product_id=112">Buck Brush</a> is just a sweet sounding single reed call (they also offer it in a double reed) that gives me everything I need and is easy to blow, plus it is Buck's favorite call so you know it is good. The <a href="http://buckgardner.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=59_61_137&product_id=115">Brad's Reactor</a> is a double reed call that has VFR Technology (Volume Flow Reduction) built into the insert which reduces the escaping air and provides more back pressure making for some sweet sounding quacks and you can get really soft with them or nasty. Your choice.<br />
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<h3>
Things I learned</h3>
As fun as being covered up in large numbers of birds is, today's slower paced duck hunt was something we needed as it allowed us to veg a little and have some additional fun in the blind. After all, time in the blind with friends and family is what makes this sport so special. I love to deer hunt and do so with my kids and friends, but when you can sit elbow to elbow and tell some tale tales and still kill some ducks, that is a mighty fine day.Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-16974359317766285502014-02-11T20:01:00.001-05:002014-02-11T20:01:16.887-05:00Saskatchewan Waterfowl Hunt 2013 - Day 2We took the easy way out last night and had a pasta dinner with goose and duck sausage which the outfitter provided, salad and some fresh bread and some brownies for dessert. Talk around the table was loud as each of us tried to put into words what we experienced on <a href="http://passinthruoutdoors.blogspot.com/2014/02/saskatchewan-waterfowl-hunt-2013-day-1.html">day 1</a> of our hunt with <a href="http://www.livingskyoutfitters.ca/">Living Sky Outfitters</a> in Bladworth Saskatchewan. After cleaning up from dinner and sitting around while we enjoyed a few beverages we finally laid our heads on a pillow and tried to fall asleep. Easier said then done as I still have images of the skies filled with snow geese and 100+ flights of ducks buzzing our spread. Not sure when I finally fell asleep, but I do know that our 4am wake up came a little too fast. Today's game plan was a morning duck hunt with the chance for some dark geese and then an afternoon snow goose hunt. The crew from Georgia struggled a bit with their shooting on Day 1 during their duck shoot in the AM, but they did make up for it on their snow goose hunt that afternoon.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cIIBbjW8pZo/UmVDCgeFyXI/AAAAAAAAFgw/k9VTH-W08Gw/s1600/sunrise1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cIIBbjW8pZo/UmVDCgeFyXI/AAAAAAAAFgw/k9VTH-W08Gw/s1600/sunrise1.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 2 Sunrise</td></tr>
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<h3>
Morning Duck and Dark Goose Hunt October 15.</h3>
We woke to temps in the low 20s and frost along with clear skies and no wind. Waterfowler's don't like those clear no wind kind of days, but we were to make the best of it. We setup a homemade A-Frame blind just inside some tall brush with a high spot in the bean field about 50 yards from us before the field dropped off and headed down to the wood line. We setup 6 dozen full body decoys made up of canadas, some giants, mallards and pintails along with a robo duck. We had the sun at our back and as I mentioned, no wind.<br />
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It didn't take long for the first batch of ducks to buzz our setup only for a few to land amongst the decoys about 5 minutes before legal. They left before legal with a smaller group that flew by. No matter, we took that as a good sign. It wasn't long before we had a small toll of birds that offered up some shooting and even with a little sleep still in our eyes we did manage to knock down a few out of that first flight. We had ducks work into the spread from the right, from the left and directly from behind us. When the birds came from behind you could have reached up and grabbed them they were so low and that was so damn cool.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6gp2nTInToI/UvJcX42BSQI/AAAAAAAAIS0/TL9r9Sq0s9o/s1600/day2amgiant.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6gp2nTInToI/UvJcX42BSQI/AAAAAAAAIS0/TL9r9Sq0s9o/s1600/day2amgiant.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bubba and Brian with a couple of geese.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DGwZ14ODjLE/UvkoInqUwrI/AAAAAAAAIaU/QqKWYXsAPJE/s1600/Day2Pete.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DGwZ14ODjLE/UvkoInqUwrI/AAAAAAAAIaU/QqKWYXsAPJE/s1600/Day2Pete.JPG" height="286" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pintail Pete with a couple of giant geese.</td></tr>
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We did have a couple of large flights of cacklers swing through and those little guys are as freaking noisy and talkative as snows. Holy crap are they loud. We did knock down a couple Specklebelly geese which is a treat as we don't seem them in our flyway. One of the specks smashed a decoy right at the front of the blind when he dropped from the sky like a wet bag of cement. There weren't many specks still around but we did see some almost every day.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bEuueX4nQY0/UvJcWOr6xZI/AAAAAAAAISU/iIkR3YWOZRw/s1600/Day2amdecoydown.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bEuueX4nQY0/UvJcWOr6xZI/AAAAAAAAISU/iIkR3YWOZRw/s1600/Day2amdecoydown.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Smashed decoy being retrieved.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OuBK_9u7guc/UvJiLXBm8dI/AAAAAAAAIUA/BvBIeRY9ufo/s1600/Day2amspeckretreive.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OuBK_9u7guc/UvJiLXBm8dI/AAAAAAAAIUA/BvBIeRY9ufo/s1600/Day2amspeckretreive.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The General makign a great retrieve on a specklebelly.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2Ue0u7tVD2g/UvJcYJiTJeI/AAAAAAAAIS4/yihnZMtMsRY/s1600/day2amspeck.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2Ue0u7tVD2g/UvJcYJiTJeI/AAAAAAAAIS4/yihnZMtMsRY/s1600/day2amspeck.JPG" height="400" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My first Specklebelly</td></tr>
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The highlight of the day had to be the 4 Giant geese that took a pass at the far edge of the spread and thanks to our Patternmaster tubes we knocked 3 of them down. The fourth decided to swing back around and fly the same edge and it was also knocked down. Two unfortunately required another shot but all 4 were recovered and they were massive!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sH2j1ImFhm8/UvJcWX7yGyI/AAAAAAAAISY/UtFQRDKTRo8/s1600/Day2amgreenheads.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sH2j1ImFhm8/UvJcWX7yGyI/AAAAAAAAISY/UtFQRDKTRo8/s1600/Day2amgreenheads.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brian with some ducks</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IyH07_fu7jE/UvJcXNltdpI/AAAAAAAAISo/cPxEs-20r0E/s1600/Day2handsfullofgeese.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IyH07_fu7jE/UvJcXNltdpI/AAAAAAAAISo/cPxEs-20r0E/s1600/Day2handsfullofgeese.JPG" height="400" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bubba with arms full of giants!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3cfiG75v1Nw/UvJcW3hz80I/AAAAAAAAISk/R1B64iibUck/s1600/Day2amgroup.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3cfiG75v1Nw/UvJcW3hz80I/AAAAAAAAISk/R1B64iibUck/s1600/Day2amgroup.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 2 Morning Results</td></tr>
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We ended the morning with a limit of 40 ducks consisting mostly of Mallards with a few Pintails mixed in. We did end up with 6 Giant Canadian geese, 2 specks and 8 cacklers. We estimated that we had seen over 3,000 ducks and a few thousand geese.<br />
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<h3>
Afternoon Snow Goose Hunt</h3>
The whole trip was just incredible but if I had to pick just one part of the hunt to put on the top of the list, this snow goose hunt was it. We refer to this hunt as Snowmageddon! We don't get into the snows in our area of Connecticut and every goose hunter has heard the stories about how frustrating it can be to hunt snows, but when it works it is just an incredible sight to see. Incredible. Amazing. Unreal. There isn't a single word to describe it but I will try my best to do so.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wCwgda4yOU8/UmVDApVL_WI/AAAAAAAAFf0/47eiRESi2Tw/s1600/gooseninja1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wCwgda4yOU8/UmVDApVL_WI/AAAAAAAAFf0/47eiRESi2Tw/s1600/gooseninja1.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brian the Goose Ninja ready to go.</td></tr>
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We had to get a little earlier start then normal for the afternoon hunt as we had a 850 decoy snow rig to put out which consisted of 8 dozen full body and the rest socks, shells and flyers. The weather had warmed to the low 50s, still very clear but the wind had picked up to about 15mph. Our rig was setup in the middle of a cut wheat field that was easily a couple miles square. Picking the right spot in these large open fields is a challenge and something our guides were damn good at. After getting the spread out, we put on some white jackets and pants and tucked ourselves in amongst the decoys. The electronic caller was set out and turned on as well. The bag limit is 20 white gees per person per day and considering we only shot 30+ the first morning as tens of thousands flew by we weren't to concerned about the limit, just hoping for some fun.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fFCLpG_jEus/UmVDAf3b4HI/AAAAAAAAFf4/8v2xvedBcGI/s1600/Petem.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fFCLpG_jEus/UmVDAf3b4HI/AAAAAAAAFf4/8v2xvedBcGI/s1600/Petem.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pintail Pete getting comfortable among the decoys.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After putting out 859+ decoys I'm ready to get busy.</td></tr>
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The hunt started out with some small flights on snows checking out the spread as we picked off ones and twos that would just seem to drop out of the sky and try to get in. This went on for about an hour or so and then the number of flocks and size increased for about 20 minutes and they committed in larger numbers. The excitement level was extremely high and the laughs loud and smiles wide and bright. Once it slowed decided we needed an accurate count and we were 40+ birds.<br />
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If the hunt had ended we would have been impressed but our guide for the night Jay told us to sit back down because there were still many more flocks to come. About 20 minutes later you can see flight after flight off birds heading our way and many of these flocks were in the hundreds of birds. Over the next 30 minutes all chaos broke loose as our guide struggled to call out all the birds that were committing to the spread from all over the place. We would shoot 5 or 6 that dropped in and the birds above would start there way down as well. It was fast and furious trying to reload and get your bearings again. The tears in my eyes from laughing so hard made it a little more challenging but we got it done. While you were picking out birds to shoot, you had to dodge the ones your buddy shot as they were crashing down on top of you. I had one land and crush my shell box as I rolled out of of the way. Bubba had one hit his boot as he was shooting at a different bird. It was pure mayhem! We had birds walking amongst the decoys in the spread as more were landing. One of our guys lost track of a walker and just hammered a full body decoy that flew up int he air about 10 feet and did 3 flips. That made it even harder to shoot a bird as I was doubled over laughing and crying.<br />
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We new we were close to the 100 bird limit at that point and decided to get up and gather up the birds and while doing so the birds just kept coming and coming some even landed as we walked among the spread in our white suits. Official count was 95 so we called it quits, sat back down and enjoyed the show which continued for about another 20 minutes. I had birds cruising just feet above my head as I laid there video tapping them and at one point almost had one hit me.<br />
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<b>GOPRO Footage </b></div>
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<b>Additional Video Footage</b></div>
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<b>After The Hunt Footage</b></div>
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The geese finally stopped coming and we started to pick up as the sun was setting and as I looked back towards the sunset I was amazed at the toll off birds off in the distance that seemed to be setting into the sun itself. I couldn't imagine a better sight to end an amazing hunt.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sunset Toll~</td></tr>
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<h3>
Gear Used</h3>
The A-frame blind we used was home made and made of 8 sections (2 front panels, 2 back panels and 2 ends) of aluminum with a soft mesh covered in grass mats and brushed in with the local brush from the setup. It is easy to adjust the angle of the blind as you just changed the angle of each stake on the panels. We used buckets to sit on as well. You can never have enough cover and brush on these things and you need to make them look like they belong and it did. Most of the decoys were from <a href="https://greenheadgear.com/">Greenhead Gear</a> with a few different brands mixed in. We bought ammo from the outfitter when we arrived and it consisted of 4 cases <a href="http://kentgamebore.com/waterfowl-loads/fasteel-waterfowl.html">Kent Fast Steel</a> 3inch #2s and one case of 3.5inch BB. We used all the 3inch #2s and returned about 6 boxes of the BB's as we didn't really need them. The giants shot during the morning hunt were taken with 3inch #2s. The BB's might have saved us a chase or two though. The Kent shells seemed a little dirty along with the dust bowl we hunted every day, we made sure to break down the guns and clean them once a day. Other then that I was very happy with the Kent ammo. We had one gopro mounted on a head strap and two small video cams (Sony and JVC) mounted on gorilla tripods and set on the ground or attached to the Aframe blind.<br />
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<h3>
Things I Learned</h3>
I'm not sure I learned anything new but many things were reinforced. The first is how important scouting is. Our outfitters and guides would help get the hunting crews setup in the AM and then hit the roads to scout and they covered a lot of ground and always had us on birds every day and every hunt. The second was the reinforcement of cover and concealment. You'd think with all those birds around you could get a little sloppy but we spent plenty of time brushing in the blind and it truly looked like part of the landscape when we got done. Actually I did learn one thing. Bring ear plugs on a snow goose hunt! I could NOT get the sound of snow geese out of my head after this hunt. It took a whole day before I seemed normal again.Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-35799813735699531532014-02-05T14:44:00.000-05:002014-02-05T14:44:19.723-05:00Saskatchewan Waterfowl Hunt 2013 - Day 1Our first trip ever to hunt waterfowl at the waterfowl factory called Saskatchewan started bright and early this Monday morning. Wait, did I really say bright? It definitely wasn't bright, early yes but bright - no. In fact it was really dark and cold as we made the 1 minute drive from our trailer to the <a href="http://www.livingskyoutfitters.ca/">Living Sky Outfitters</a> headquarters which was located across town - a whole 3 streets away in this 5 street town of Bladworth.<br />
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We had flown into Saskatoon late Saturday and spent the night near the airport so we didn't have to rush on Sunday. As we made the ride down on Sunday afternoon from Saskatoon, where we flew into late Saturday and stayed the night, to our temporary home of Bladworth took just over an hour but it was an hour that just added to the excitement and anticipation that had already built up the last couple of months. As we drove south along Highway 11 we were greeted by fields filed with geese, way too many to count while driving along at 100 kph, that's about 65 mph for the rest of us. Damn near every single pothole that had water, had ducks or geese on it and there was a wide variety of them as well. <br />
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Both Bubba and I were up before the alarm and had already double checked our gear before the General came stumbling out of his bedroom with a large grin on his face and mumbled something about "who needs a damn alarm with you two around!" The was not Gerry's first trip to Saskatchewan for Waterfowl or hunting with the owner Jeff of Living Sky Outfitters so he obviously wanted a little more sleep.<br />
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We were one of two groups of 5 hunting this week. Our crew consisted of Me, Jim (bubba), Gerry (The General), Brian (The Decoy Killer) whom are all from Connecticut and an acquaintance that we hunt with in Maryland we call Pintail Pete. The other 5 man crew were good old southern boys from Georgia. It was 22 degrees out and it didn't bother us northern boys as much as it did the southern crew. The game plan was for our crew to hunt snow geese, while the southern crew would hunt ducks and dark geese.<br />
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So we piled all our gear and us into one of the suburbans and our outfitter Jeff lead the way to the field we would be hunting that morning. We had a familiar face along with us as our guide was someone we hunt with regularly in Maryland and he is a great guy, who works hard and has fun and is very good at his job. After about a 20 minute ride we turned off the gravel road and into a cut wheat field and drove to a spot in the middle of if it. We stopped Jeff and Billy got out and discussed the setup for the morning and then came back and gave us some direction and we went to work putting out a 450 decoy spread that consisted of full body snows, canadas, mallards, pintails, some snow goose silos and a couple of robo ducks along with 6 layout blinds and an electronic snow goose caller. With the 7 of us getting the spread out and the blinds brushed didn't take long at all which is nice when you have guys that hunt together back home and know the drill.<br />
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As we settled in to our layouts waiting for the birds to start moving we started with some excited conversation and a little teasing. It wasn't long after that the sky started to lighten up and show signs of life. Game on! It didn't take long for a 3 ducks to come screaming into the spread and I am happy to report they all stayed. I like staying ducks and hate those leaving ducks! Off in the distance you could hear the sound of snow geese getting ready to lift off and due to the flat terrain we could see a very large group of snows way, way off in the distance and highlighted by the rising sun get up from the roost and head out. These were not the geese that were using the field we were in, but it definitely drove the excitement level up as we watched a couple thousand snows fill the sky.<br />
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The white tornado of snows willow leafing into the spread never occurred, but we watched thousands and thousands of snows fly over our spread heading to a new field and it was definitely heart breaking and frustrating, but also breath taking. Just an incredible sight to see and the noise level was deafening and something I ended up hearing in my sleep that night. It was so loud that the electronic caller that sat just a few yards away could not be heard over the natural sounds coming from the sky. We did pick off some snows as smaller groups liked the spread and tried to join in. We also picked up some more ducks as well as some dark geese including a lone Speckle-belly. For us it was a GREAT morning, for our Guide and outfitter not so much.<br />
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We packed up the rig and headed back to barn and on the ride out we flushed some huns along the side of the road, which we thought about trying for and as we were stopped there discussing a game plan we were greeted by all those snows that flew over our spread heading our way and back to the roost. It made for some nice video. We also found the rest of those stubborn white birds on our ride out to the main road as they just sat feeding in another field. We had to see 20,000 or more snows that morning.<br />
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Back at the outfitters headquarters we talked a bit about the morning hunt and listened to what the scouters had seen that morning, discussed plans for the afternoon and then headed out to get some lunch and a quick nap.<br />
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Due to the fact that hunting geese in the afternoon was closed for another day here in our part of Saskatchewan we set out for an afternoon duck hunt in a pea field. We setup an a-frame blind in some tall grass on the edge of the field and brushed it in really good and then set out 4 dozen full bodies duck decoys consisting of mosly Mallards with some Pintails mixed in. Two Robo ducks were placed in the spread as well as a dozen geese for some confidence decoys.<br />
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Seeing we couldn't hunt geese on this evening we most certainly expected to see plenty of them and we did. We even had them landing out in our spread and farther out in the field and of course the ducks wanted to land with them. When that happens you just have to get out of the blind and walk them geese up and get them out of here. We even had 3 speckle bellied geese land on the edge of the duck spread and they stick around for a few minutes, until a few ducks showed up and committed only to become staying ducks!<br />
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It was a very interesting afternoon hunt with thousands of ducks working by the spread and enough of them committing to it so that we could put 34 ducks in the bag to finish off a 5 man daily limit of 40 ducks. Many of these would become dinner the next night. <br />
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<h2>
Gear Used</h2>
I was toting my Browning BPS 12ga pump with a Code Black Duck Patternmaster tube which I just added this year. We were shooting Kent Fast Steel 3" #2s and they did the job just fine. There was also a Mossberg 935 12ga with a Patternmaster Long Range tube, two Remington 11-87s with factory chokes and a Benelli SBE II with Patternmaster tubes in our blind all week. I was totally amazed at how much gun I actually had while using the Patternmaster tubes. If you put the bead on them, they dropped and that included the birds trying to get out of dodge. The tubes are deisgned to reduce the length of your shot string giving you more pellets on target and from what I had seen, they most certainly succeeded. If you haven't tried a Patternmaster tube, I strongly suggest you do. I just ordered additional tubes from my Remington 870s.<br />
<h2>
Things I learned </h2>
I learned quickly that my simple plan of setting my video camera up on a tripod on the ground or attached to the blind was just not going to work out the way I had hoped. The reason - well the birds just refused to commit to the area that was visible to my camera. That was very inconsiderate of them don't you think. That night while trying to sleep I also learned that those dang snow geese are so loud that their sound rings in your head for hours, upon hours after the hunt.Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-81967283526918790732014-01-28T09:48:00.001-05:002014-01-28T09:48:13.659-05:00Orvis Cover Dog Photo Contest and Canine Cancer CampaignIf you have dogs or just enjoy seeing photos of dogs then you have to check out the <a href="http://coverdog.orviscontests.com/contest.html?contestId=9">Orvis Cover Dog Photo Contest</a>.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://coverdog.orviscontests.com/contest.html?page=viewInd&id=87565&contestId=9" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Hannah and Jackson" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ORJIyFWNahs/USUJtFeIn0I/AAAAAAAABYo/zZgY1ayPHPA/s1600/hannahjaxsnow1.JPG" height="310" title="My Hannah and Jackson" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Hannah and Jackson</td></tr>
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The contest is part of the <a href="http://www.orvis.com/caninecancer">Orvis Canine Cancer Campaign</a> with <a href="http://www.morrisanimalfoundation.org/">Morris Animal Foundation</a> to raise awareness and money for canine cancer research.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Our current Cover Dog Photo Contest is scheduled to end on March 31,
2014. Those who enter the contest between January 15th and February
15th, 2014 will be entered in a random drawing to win one of these great
prizes:
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<ul>
<li>Grand Prize: a one-year supply of Blue Buffalo Dog Food, a deluxe Tempur-Pedic® Dog Bed and a $500 Orvis gift card</li>
<li>Five Runners-up: Fleecelock Wraparound Beds</li>
<li>Ten Honorable Mentions: Personalized Collars</li>
</ul>
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As of March 2013, Orvis and our customers have raised more than $910,000 to help fund canine cancer research. <a href="http://www.morrisanimalfoundation.org/" target="_blank">Morris Animal Foundation</a>—the
global leader in supporting scientific research that advances
veterinary medicine—has used these funds to develop early
cancer-detection tests and safer and more effective chemotherapy
protocols for dogs. To aid researchers and continue this important work,
the MAF developed a tumor tissue bank for common canine cancers. They
have helped fund 150 canine cancer studies are 28 colleges and
universities. Going forward, the MAF is also committed to funding the
Canine Lifetime Health Project and the groundbreaking Golden Retriever
Lifetime Study.
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With your continued support, we can help create a brighter future for dogs everywhere.</blockquote>
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You can enter your own furry family members into the contest or stop by to enjoy the photos and you can also donate to the Orvis Canine Cancer Campaign by voting for your favorites.<br />
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My Hannah and Jackson are entered here:<br />
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<div style="color: white; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: bold; letter-spacing: -1px; line-height: 16px; padding: 4px 5px 0px 5px; text-align: center;">
'Hannah & Jackson</div>
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<img src="http://coverdog.orviscontests.com/calendar_contest/thumbnails/91205.jpg" /></div>
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<a href="http://apps.facebook.com/orvisphoto/view.aspx?id=87565"><img alt="Vote" border="0" src="http://coverdog.orviscontests.com/images/facebook/dogVote.jpg" /></a><a href="http://www.orvis.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="http://coverdog.orviscontests.com/images/facebook/dogPowered2.jpg" /></a><br />
<div style="background-color: white; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=84213314671">enter your own dog</a></div>
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Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-3986972985089766092014-01-17T10:09:00.001-05:002014-01-17T10:09:35.758-05:00Sharing my Christmas Present with my Followers<br />
I must have been a good boy last year because Santa left me a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Peterson-Field-America-Desktop-Calendar/dp/B00CNOC24I">Peterson Guide to Birds of North America 2014 Daily Desktop calendar</a>. Every day I get to learn about a new bird and refresh myself on some I already know. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Purchase on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Peterson-Field-America-Desktop-Calendar/dp/B00CNOC24I">Amazon</a></td></tr>
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Along with some very colorful images of the birds there is a description of the bird, details about the bird's size, the habitat it lives in and even the sounds it makes. There is also a range map image in the lower right corner.<br />
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So in keeping with my Backyard Birds theme lately, I will be sharing the daily bird with you and all you have to do is follow along on our <a href="https://www.facebook.com/PassinthruOutdoors">PassinthruOutdoors Facebook page </a>or my <a href="https://twitter.com/PTOutdoors">@PTOutdoors Twitter feed</a>.<br />
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If you want to learn more about a specific bird I suggest you stop by the <a href="http://www.allaboutbirds.org/Page.aspx?pid=1189">Cornell - All about birds home page</a> and use their <a href="http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/browse">Browse for a bird by name and shape</a> ID section.<br />
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Enjoy!Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-75372302718218486262014-01-07T11:39:00.001-05:002014-01-07T11:39:58.096-05:00Backyard Bird Identification BasicsIt was just a normal morning with me eating breakfast and sipping coffee while enjoying the activity at my bird feeders when I noticed a new feathered visitor jump on the suet feeder. I quickly grabbed my camera and snapped a couple of pictures and then opened up the laptop and went about figuring our what it was. I knew it was a woodpecker and looked similar in size, shape and even some markings to a Downy woodpecker that visits often. I was able to find what I thought it was by using an online bird guide, but I was still a little unsure. The next morning it visited again and this time I could hear what resembled like a cat meow. Using this information I went back to my online bird guide and verified that it was a yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Of course I still confirmed my sighting on a few Facebook pages.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker January 2014</td></tr>
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It can be a real challenge when trying to identify a new visitor to my feeder and I am no expert. Having a camera handy is very helpful but if you don't have one there are a few things to make note of quickly before your friend disapears.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EamHZMWwuSE/UswsyBKhdzI/AAAAAAAAH7E/jOi5OlsNAgg/s1600/Redbelliedwoodpeckerdec2013_2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EamHZMWwuSE/UswsyBKhdzI/AAAAAAAAH7E/jOi5OlsNAgg/s1600/Redbelliedwoodpeckerdec2013_2.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">White-breasted Nuthatch (left) - Red-bellied Woodpecker (middle) - Dark-eyed Junco (right)</td></tr>
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<h3>
Size and Shape</h3>
Many of our feathered friends can be very colorful and we can get caught up in those colors during their visit but the most important piece of information in making a good id is it's size and shape. Also becoming familiar with bird silhouettes will help as well. Gauging the size can be a challenge with nothing to make a real comparison to, like another bird, but practice this and make sure to pay particular attention to things like the bill, wings and tail, not just their shape but size relationship to the rest of the body. Using the silhouette of the bird will help you narrow down your search in your field guide.<br />
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Color Pattern</h3>
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It's easy to get caught up with the amazing colors of some birds, but for ID purposes concentrate on the overall colors, light and dark, instead of the exact details of each feather. Also how bold or faint the color is. Many birds can have very similar markings , but one bird might have bolder colors then the other. When observing female birds that are not as colorful as the males, it becomes an even bigger challenge and takes practice.<br />
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Behavior</h3>
How a bird acts, sits, moves, flies can be very helpful in narrowing down a list of choices. You must take your time and watch them. I learn a lot about bird behavior when I am trying to take their pictures. It is almost impossible to chase some birds around in your viewfinder as they almost never sit still long enough, but by watching them I learn what each one does before coming to my feeder and this allows me to setup a ambush spot to take their picture even if they only stop on a particular branch for a second or two. Pay attention to a birds posture when sitting as there will be some keys here to help in your ID. Also how a bird feeds is another clue. <br />
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<h3>
Habitat</h3>
Where a bird lives and at what times of the year it is present will really help you narrow down your ID when you have a couple of options. Knowing what birds might be in your area is a good start.<br />
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<h3>
Field Marks</h3>
Field marks are the details such as distinctive stripes, spots, colors and patterns that offer up additional clues. You will also want to learn a little bit about the anatomy of a bird. Field markings on the head, around the eye, on the wings, tail or belly are all good places to find clues.<br />
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Songs and Calls</h3>
I enjoy listening to the birds around my feeder, even during the warmer months when they start just below my bedroom window long before I am ready to get up. If you can see a bird while it is singing that is great. Sometimes you will hear them before you see them. Some sounds can sound like words as well.<br />
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Online resources and Field Guides</h3>
Below are some links to some online resources, smartphone apps and field guides that can be useful in helping you with your bird ID.<br />
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<a href="http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/browse.aspx">The Cornell Lab of Ornithology</a> - By far my favorite birding resource. Their site is full of information about birds from online bird guide where you can browse the database by name and shape or get great tips on how to attract birds to your backyard. There is also plenty of links on ways to get involved and links to live bird cams.<br />
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<a href="http://ebird.org/content/ebird/">eBird</a> - is a real time online checklist program that allows you to record your sightings, keep track of your checklist and share your sightings with other birders in the community and all this helps contribute to science and conservation.<br />
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<a href="http://www.petersonguides.com/">Peterson Guides</a> - Hard copy field guides as well as apps for your smartphone or tablet and their apps and database are connected with eBird to give you the latest information of sightings for your area.<br />
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Now you have some basic information to start your birding activities. Good luck!Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-1568377945317811722014-01-02T21:46:00.001-05:002014-01-02T21:46:17.735-05:00Backyard Birds Photos December 2013Found some time to take some photos of my feathered friends that visited my bird feeders in December. Enjoy them!<br />
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Mr. and Mrs Norther Cardinal</h2>
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Mr and Mrs. Downy Woodpecker </h2>
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Mr. and Mrs. House Finch </h2>
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<br />Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-32346129963528869232013-12-11T11:57:00.000-05:002013-12-11T11:57:15.706-05:002013 New Jersey Muzzle Loader Deer Camp Report<br />Made the trip down to New Jersey for our annual Muzzle Loader deer camp at <a href="http://www.outdoors.org/lodging/mohican/">Mohican Outdoor center </a>in the <a href="http://www.nps.gov/dewa/index.htm">Delaware Water Gap</a>. After missing last years camp, I was excited to be back and this year I brought my daughter. Yup, I broke the no girls in deer camp rule and I am proud of it. My daughter and I were the only ones from Connecticut this year and My brother Steve couldn't make it but the rest of the characters where all present including my dad.<br />
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Sunday morning found us delaying our departure due to icy roads in our area of Connecticut but we were on the road by 9am. Made the stop at <a href="http://www.stokessport.com/">Stokes Forest Sport Shop</a> to get my daughter her NJ licenses. This used to be a tradition for our trip, but since they went to the online purchases we only have to stop for first time licenses or when someone forgot to do it online. As tradition holds, there was a line of other hunters doing the same thing. We left the sport shop and headed down in to the Gap but made a quick stop fore a warm delicious Taylor Ham, cheese and Egg sandwich. We can't get Taylor Ham here in CT, so I always take the opportunity to get some when available. We arrived at the Mohican Outdoor Center where the Blueberry Hill cabin becomes our home base for deer camp. The cabin sleeps 16, has heat, fireplace, 3 bathrooms with two showers, a full kitchen and no TV or phone or even phone service! Sure beats when we used to stay in hotel rooms<br />
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Once we said hello to everyone, my dad, bill, my daughter and myself decided to do a quick scouting trip to check out the areas we were thinking about hunting in the morning. We started down a short section of the Appalachian trail that connected to the Copper Mine trail and continued down to kaiser trail and then cut back through the woods to our starting point. We didn't bump any deer but we did see plenty of fresh sign and some really good buck sign. With our plans confirmed we headed back to the cabin to unpack and settle in for our first evening. Raymond was busy manning the smoker as he was smoking some pork ribs which would be the main dish for dinner that night and they were delicious!<br />
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We got an early start on Monday morning and were headed down the trail just after 5am and there were not to many other hunters around which is not a good sign. The woods are big and the hiding spots for deer many so you need hunters in the woods to help move them around a bit. As legal shooting light approached I always sit in anticipation of the first shots and with Pennsylvania being just across the river and Monday being their firearms opener as well it didn't take long to hear the first shots of the season. It was a pretty quiet morning with the sound of distance shots breaking the silence every so often, but none that suggested the shots were close or from any of our 11 man crew which was spread out over 8 miles. About 8am we heard a close shot coming from the direction of where Bill and his son Eric had setup and withing a minute or two of the shot the radio cracked and it was Bill letting us know he just dropped a deer. That definitely got the attention of my daughter he she was scanning the woods hoping to see one for herself. About 9:30 my daughter was ready for a little walk to warm up and we headed off our perch and to the trail to head down to my dad and check in with him and then we heard another shot which sounded like it came from where Billy and Bob where setup just off the top of the mountain on the river side. It wasn't long before the radio went off and we confirmed that Billy shot a nice doe. We made it over to my dad and he had seen one nice deer to far off and we looked the area over and decided to build a hide for my daughter and I to sit on Tuesday. The rest of the day was pretty uneventful and we headed back to camp a little before the end of legal shooting.<br />
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We spent some time getting dinner ready, while everyone cycled through the showers and participated in many discussions about what everyone saw and gave thoughts on their plans for Tuesday. Plenty of laughs to be had over dinner as well and then it was time to cleanup, sit back and watch Jeremiah Johnson on the computer before heading to the sack for a good nights rest.<br />
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Tuesday found us once again heading down the Coppermine Trail and into our blinds well before legal light. My dad had a spike sneak into him early and it headed our way but stayed low and we never did see it. We had two come by our setup but too far for a shot and they didn't stick around long. About 7:30 I get a text message and it was from Raymond who had just shot a 8 pointer about 5 miles down river from us. Turns out Raymond's deer would be the biggest buck and he would win the big buck pin and have bragging rights for the year! Billy missed twice that morning as well and young James also had a swing and a miss. My daughter and had had another encounter with 4 more deer in the brush but never did get a shot at them. We poked around the woods until about noon and then headed back to the cabin to get packed up and see what everyone wanted to do.<br />
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The Muzzle Loader season in the zone we hunt is a 15 day season, but the days are spread over a full month so we only had Monday and Tuesday to hunt. The other 13 days would occur after the 6 day firearm season ended. Kaleigh was tired and ready for a nap, so we decided to pack it up and head back to Connecticut which allowed me to beat all the dang traffic. No deer for us, but we will get back down for another hunt or two and hopefully get lucky.<br />
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So final count was 3 deer taken and 3 misses which makes for plenty of ribbing and a little bragging. as always time spent with family and friends is what really matters at our camp so it was a success for sure.<br />
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<br />Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-64006544589828447032013-11-27T10:05:00.002-05:002013-11-27T10:05:34.516-05:002013 Connecticut Goose and Deer Openers - RecapWhat can possibly be better then opening day? Well how about two opening days just a day apart! That's right last week on Thursday was the opener for the second split of goose season here in Connecticut and Wednesday was out Firearms Deer opener. It was definitely a busy week and our crew did well for the most part filling the freezer with deer, geese and ducks.<br />
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I couldn't make the goose opener on Tuesday but the boys had a full blind and had a 6 man limit on the ground by 7am and it included one banded bird from Labrador Canada.<br />
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Wednesday found our crew out in the woods chasing deer. My son and I hunted state land and he let 3 does walk looking for a buck. Most of the shooting we heard occurred before 8:30am. Bubba shot a nice little spike buck on Private land and Busch Pilot took a doe.<br />
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Thursday found me in the office and my son in school while the boys hit the goose blind with a few new faces where they once again ended the morning with a limit of geese and 4 banded birds from Labrador Canada.<br />
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Friday it rained hard and once again I was in the office - I have 4 days vacation coming up so I couldn't take any more time off, while Bubba and Busch Pilot fought the wind and rain and chased ducks and geese.<br />
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Saturday my son, daughter and I were back out on state land chasing deer. For the first Saturday of the season it was really quiet. Too quiet. It could have had something to do with the high winds which were blowing a consistent 20mph and gusting damn near 40. We heard a few shots way off in the distance early and that was about it. Around 9am, we were cold and needed a walk so off we went. We were working around the thickets making a big loop around and through them when my son hit the ground and whispered deer. I had never seen them or heard them until I caught a deer butt on top of a knoll. My son said they were in the thick brush about 30 yards from us, and I never even saw them. My daughter said one was a buck, so I took out the doe in a can call and played soem sweet music. Sure enough I caught some movement through the brush and could see deer legs coming our way. Still couldn't see the deer though but knew it had to be a buck. No one could see it in the thick brush, but I could catch his legs as I was laying flat on the ground. So I hit the can some more and saw those legs move closer to us. I told my daughter that if she has a shot to take it, but she still couldn't see him and the deer was less then 25 yards away. My son was about 10 feet to our right and he couldn't see him either. He wanted my daughter to shoot but gave him the okay if he had a shot. It seemed like 20 minutes but it was only about 2 before I saw the legs turn to my right and I told Brendan to get on him. My daughter and I still had lots of brush in our way and could only see parts of the deer but he must have stepped into an opening because I heard my son bleat at him, the deer stopped and the Remington 11-87 barked. My daughter excitedly said, holy crap I just saw you shoot him in the shoulder through my scope. We walked over to where the deer was and had great blood so my daughter and son took up the lead and fought through the thicket to find a nice little spike buck piled up less then 30 yards away.<br />
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Bubba and Busch Pilot hit the goose blind Saturday morning with the kids and limited out once again. No jewelry though.<br />
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Sunday we spent the day processing deer and making all kinds of tasty venison treats like Sausage, bolonga and hot dogs. It was a busy week with plenty of happy hunters and delicious food in our freezer from natures Pantry.<br />
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Hope everyone is having a safe and successful hunting season and we wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!<br />
<br />Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-27685175122900804542013-11-13T10:22:00.002-05:002013-11-13T10:22:49.457-05:00Moose Update and Other RamblingsQuick update on our resident moose. We haven't seen here since the previous weekend but we did run into some new moose sign that wasn't there the previous outing. <br />
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I found this tree which looks just like the first one we found and the more I think about it, I don't believe this was done by a bull moose with his antlers, but by our resident cow moose who is stripping and eating the bark. I'm sure some of you in moose country can chime in here, what do you think? <br />
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I even took my better half out for a walk to retreive a seat we left in one of our blinds so while out there we tried to find Mrs. Moose but we didn't. We did have a great hike on a cool fall afternoon though. Very refreshing.<br />
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This is an old foundation out on a piece of State forest land. I sure would have liked to live out here back in the day.<br />
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The deer activity out in this area has been quiet and with the rut about to kick in and the cool weather I was a little discourage with the lack of sightings and sign. We only have one more week until our gun season opens and that will change it even more.<br />
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Haven't seen many ducks around lately but the beavers have done such a good job with their damn and widening out this brook, I'm hoping it will stay open through this recent cold snap and offer up a little hiding spot for some traveling ducks. Just need to get through gun season before I hunt this area.<br />
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<br />Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-55249358111541494932013-11-04T11:58:00.002-05:002013-11-04T11:58:25.761-05:00Connecticut Moose SightingThe little Northeast Connecticut town of Stafford Springs that I live in is the third largest land area town in Connecticut with a population of just over 11,000 people and a wide variety of forested land and one that usually isn't mentioned in the same sentence as a moose, but lately it has. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo published on <a href="http://www.wfsb.com/story/23830219/moose-spotted-in-stafford-springs">WFSB.COM</a></td></tr>
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We have had a few moose sightings over the past few years as reported in the <a href="http://www.depdata.ct.gov/wildlife/flip/CWmagazine/CWmagazine.html#/8/">July/August issue</a> of <a href="http://www.ct.gov/deep/cwp/view.asp?a=2723&q=325712&deepNav_GID=1655">Connecticut Wildlife Magazine</a>, but recently we just had another. This past Wednesday morning just a few hundred yards down the road from where I live a large moose was spotted out in the open farm field shared by some cows. Of course, I drive the other direction to work and missed out on this wonderful sight and I was not happy about it.<br />
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Back in late September while doing some bowhunting the boys and I came
across a few different piles of old moose scat and we figured it was
left by the moose that was reported back in May, but actually it may
have been left by one of the moose being reported to be around in town
this fall. We had talked about how cool it would to see a moose here in
our little neck of the woods and at that time little did we know that
we would actually see one in this area. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Moose scat we found in late September</td></tr>
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This past Friday we had rain and wind in the am so when it stopped that afternoon the boys decided to take advantage of the damp and quiet forest floor and do a little ins season scouting. They headed out to the same little section of sate forest land near our house that just happens to be up the road from where were the recent moose sighting occured. As they were nosing around along the edge of a swamp they came across a small tree that had what looked like an extremely large deer rub. It was over 6 foot high and there was no way a deer did this, so they decided it was made by a moose and it most certainly would look so. They got talking a bit about what they would do if they saw a moose and not 40 yards later my son Brendan spotted something large and black under some dark thick pines and thought it was a bear, but it turned out to be the same cow moose spotted on Wednesday. They watched her a bit, moved around to get a better look and she must have noticed them because she turned towards them, made some noises and started moving their way. Obviously they were a little concerned and put a little distance between them and the moose but watched her for a bit before continuing off on their walk about.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brandon and Brendan with their find</td></tr>
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When they arrived home and showed me the picture of the rub and then told me the story about the moose I was so wound up I wanted to jump out of my skin oh and just a little jealous. I have seen moose in the wild, but never one in my home state. Well Saturday morning we headed out to the same section of state forest for some bow hunting. Brandon got setup in one of our ground blinds, not far from where they saw the moose while my son Brendan setup along a swamp and I went on a scouting mission. It was a great morning as well all saw deer and Brendan almost got a shot at a nice doe and we had considered it a win for sure. Little did we know it would get even better.<br />
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I met up with my son Brendan and we continued my walk about over the back part of the property so we could check for some newer deer sign and as we started off the hill and down into some thick brush we heard the sound of branches cracking. at first we thought we jumped a deer, but the noise was way to loud and a whole lot slower. We stopped dead and listened. Once again we could hear loud crunching and branches breaking and then we heard something that sounded like the sounds I heard a moose make and Brendan confirmed it was the same noise the moose made the day before. We both thought there was no way in heck we were going to see this moose two days in a row. Well we didn't want to push her around so we sat and watched and listened, but the noise went off the hill and away from us in a very slow and methodical manner without a sighting. I was excited and a little disappointed but I was sure it was the moose. We continued on our way to pick up Brandon at his ground blind and never did see the moose but we did jump a deer that went running by Brandon at warp speed. He was amazed at how fast and how far it was jumping and how quiet it was.<br />
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When we got to Brandon we told him what had just heard and he claimed he heard loud noises from that direction earlier as well. I wanted the boys to take me to the rub they found so I could see it myself so off we went. As we were working through the thick brush about 200 yards away from where we started we jumped something and my son whispered MOOSE! Sure enough I caught a glimpse of her through the brush. I quickly pulled out my video camera and waited to see here again. It was like she had disappeared and I kept wondering how the heck something that dark and large just blends in. I decided to sneak up on the hill where she ran and I quickly found her tracks and took about 4 or 5 more steps and heard here moving through the brush but couldn't see her. All of a sudden I heard loud crunching coming my way but I knew it was her and sure enough a nice whitetail doe came running my way and I was happy to have my camera rolling. At one point she stopped and turned to look right at me before bounding off and running by the boys. <br />
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I didn't want to disturb the moose any more then we had already done, so we backed out of there and took another route to the rub. I did get to see the rub and it definitely looks like a rub from a very large animal, but you can be the judge and comment on what you think it is.<br />
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<br />I do hope Mrs. Moose sticks around so I can take her picture. Gun season is a few weeks away and we will definitely see more hunting pressure in the woods here and that just might push her away.<br />
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November is always a magical time in the deer woods here
in New England, but little did we know just how magical it would be for
us and being able to share that with the boys makes it even more magical.<br />
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<br />Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-34642308787399222772013-10-21T11:49:00.001-04:002013-10-21T11:49:20.329-04:00Saskatchewan Waterfowl Hunt 2013 - Just a TeaserWell we made it home safe and sound from a week long Waterfowl hunting trip to Saskatchewan with <a href="http://www.livingskyoutfitters.ca/">Living Sky Outfitters</a> in Bladworth SK. I am still struggling to put this trip and experience into words and have almost 50gb of video to sort through and hundreds of pictures so for now here are some pics and a short video clip to get everyone excited.<br />
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Took this after our snow goose hunt were we stopped 5 birds short of a 5 man limit of 100 birds and just continued to watch thousands and thousands of snow geese work over our spread. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sunset Toll </td></tr>
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This Picture is only a small portion of the field across the street from one of our morning hunts and it was literally covered in snows, black geese and ducks - lots of ducks. We still managed to take our share of birds this morning. It was an incredible site and the picture doesn't do it justice.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The X </td></tr>
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Just a few pics of the snows that kept coming after we stopped hunting. We just laid back and enjoyed the show.<br />
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Yes, they have more then just ducks and geese at this waterfall factory. We saw moose, deer grouse and plenty of other wildlife. This nice young muley was trying to hid just a mere 40 yards off a dirt farm road. He definitely blended in and let us take soem pics and video of him. <br />
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Here is a short video clip of a few ducks working our spread after we just finished a 5 man limit of 40 ducks. Took this one with my cell phone under the hood of the layout while we stayed setup for some geese.<br />
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There will be many more posts from this trip to come over the next couple of weeks!Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-58918611227383734892013-10-12T09:00:00.000-04:002013-10-12T09:00:04.470-04:00Gone Hunting - Saskatchewan Here We Come<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's finally here! We are on our way to Saskatchewan for a week of waterfowl hunting and hopefully sore shoulders and full bellies! I will do my best to post a daily update either here, on my <a href="https://twitter.com/PTOutdoors">twitter feed</a> or on my <a href="https://www.facebook.com/PassinthruOutdoors">facebook page</a> and I'm sure I will have plenty of stories to tell and pictures to share when we get back.<br />
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Wish us luck!<br />
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For now we are "Long Gone To Saskatchewan!" - Corb Lund!<br />
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<br />Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-29282177510688079132013-10-10T09:49:00.004-04:002013-10-10T09:49:56.902-04:00Another First - Weekend RecapSpent the weekend in the woods with the boys again. I truly enjoy hunting with my kids and hunters new to the sport as it allows me to see many firsts through their eyes which just streghtens my passion for the outdoors. This weekend they were both bow hunting! Brandon has been practicing and very confident in his shooting so this was his first bow hunt ever.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brandon and Brendan after a morning hunt</td></tr>
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There was no problem getting the boys up and moving Saturday morning even if there were some light showers in the area. Brendan offered up his blind for Brandon to use on his first bowhunt and considering Brendan had deer encounters during ever sit in this blind, Brandon was definitely excited. As Brandon and I were sneaking into the ground blind I heard the all too familar sound of a deer snort which stopped me in my tracks. I turned to look at Brandon and he had a concerned look on his face and wasn't sure what he just heard. I explained to him that it was a deer snorting at us and he looked less nervous and more confused. As we stood there I could hear deer moving in the brush just out past the ground blind and then it happened again. Brandon kind of giggled and said it sounded like a train whistle. I never thought of that, but I guess it kind of does sound like a train whistle - okay not really - it sounds like a deer snort! After the last snort we heard the deer crashign away so we once again attempted to be quiet and made the last 50 yards to the blind and got all tucked in for a sit.<br />
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With the rain still dripping from the wet leaves and trees it made hearing anything impossible so we spent the next 3 hours on high alert only to not see anything. This wasn't a bad thing, as I spent that time coaching Brandon through and trying to teach him some simple things like marking his yardage, how to scan the woods, paying attention to the wind, etc. I did also take the time to reminsce about the first time I hear a deer bleat and told Brandon I swore it was a sheep in the middle of the woods.<br />
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About 9:30 I headed over to where Brendan was setup and we took a little
walk around the back part of the state land to get Brendan reoriented
with that piece of state land. We stopped by the swamp and the beavers
have a done a bangup job with their damn making a really nice puddle
duck spot and we most certainly saw some ducks in there which will make a
nice early morning hunt before work. The colors along the swamp were
really starting to pop and the picture doesn't do it any justice sorry. <br />
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We found some fresh rubs and some good sign and an interesting living
space made by something, not sure what though. We never moved a deer
but we did finally run into a couple of other hunters on the far back
part of the state land and we chatted with them and shared a little
information, not all of it though.<br />
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Brandon had to head out to work that afternoon so after watching our Penn State Nittany Lions lose to Indiana Brendan and I decided we needed a calming place so back out to the woods we went. It was hot and buggy but it beat being home doing chores. We didn't see a thing, but we did hear something that sounded like heavy breathing off in the distance, but it is really thick around there and we never did see anything. I'm guessing it was a Squatch as there is no other reasonable explanation. <br />
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All in all it was a nice day in the woods!<br />
<br />Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-87239859176173115492013-10-04T09:48:00.001-04:002013-10-04T09:48:11.494-04:00My Son's First Deer with a Bow and ArrowMy son Brendan has been hunting since he was 12 years old and was out tagging
along on many hunts as early as age 5. He is not new to the hunting
sports in any way shape or form, but at 22 he had another first this
past weekend. This past weekend Brendan took a nice young buck with a bow on state land from the ground non the less. This was not his first deer taken or even his first buck, but it was his first deer taken with the bow.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We found 6 piles of old moose poop in this area</td></tr>
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Brendan has had little time in the woods during the archery season since he made the varsity football team in his Sophomore year in high school. Those 3 years of high school football left little time for chasing deer with the bow and even the gun during most football seasons. After graduation he headed off to college which once again left little time for hunting. Now he is in graduate school, but living at home and finding the time to get back out in the woods on a regular basis and it has paid off for him. He shot a nice long beard this past spring and just last weekend he arrowed his first deer with a bow. <br />
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I will do my best to tell his story with the same excitement and passion that he does, but it is so much better to listen to him tell it in person.<br />
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We are fortunate to have a few nice pieces of state land within minutes of our house and I have hunted this land for over 15 years and know my way around pretty well and spent the late summer getting Brendan reacquainted with the area and offering up some suggestions on where to hunt. With the storms we've had the past two falls, there are plenty of new deadfalls that offer some great little ground hides in some key travel areas and I had one such deadfall picked out since last year just for this occasion. My only concern was how much hunting pressure we would see here especially with the new additiona of crossbows being legal for everyone during the archery season. For the first 5 days of the season, I would drive around the state forest and check for hunters on my way to work, and Brendan would do the same in the late evening on his way home from school. In those first 5 days we did NOT see a single vehicle or hunter in the spots we wanted to hunt. So Friday night before the first Saturday of the season, I suggested we attempt to hunt the area we'd been watching, but warned Brendan that I expected to see other hunters in the area. It had been a long and tough week as my mother-in-law was in the hospital recovering from bypass surgery and we were getting little sleep so we overslept on Saturday and didn't get out until after first light. Not in my original plan and I thought for sure we'd lost our spot to other hunters. When we arrived at the gate to park I was shocked to be the only vehicle there.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brandon trying to figure out why we are not seeing any Squirrels.</td></tr>
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We dropped Brendan off at his ground blind and then Brandon and I headed off to hunt some squirrels. Brandon is still learning to shoot a bow and has his safety course and license, but needs a few more weeks to gain confidence in his shooting. About 8:30 I got a call from Brendan saying he just had a really nice buck sneak in to his blind at just 15 yards away, but has he adjusted to get a shot he got snorted by another deer he never saw. One thing I enjoy about hunting is you learn something new every outing and every encounter with an animal and this was one of those lessons for Brendan. As is typical with many of us that have had these encounters they haunt our dreams on a regular basis and they sure did for Brendan. He thought he blew his only shot for the season and the season was just 6 days old! Lesson learned.<br />
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Brendan had to wait until the next Friday to get back out to the woods and as he was sneakign into his deadfall, he got snorted again. He didn't see anything the rest of the morning, but he did take some time to mosey around and check out the sign and just as weeks past there was plenty of fresh sign so he snuck out and decided to wait until Saturday morning to hunt it again instead of hunting it that afternoon.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The arrow tells the story!</td></tr>
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We had a similar game plan for this past Saturday, Brandon and I would squirrel hunt allowing me to spend time teaching Brandon about hunting, scouting, safety and getting around the woods while Brendan nestled into his dead fall again. This time Brendan made some adjustment to where he was sitting and the cover around the deadfall based on what he learned the past two sits and he obviosulty learned well and made the right decisions. About 8:29 he texted me to check in, I texted him back a few photos of some really nice rubs. A few minutes after that text, my phone rang and it was Brendan calling. When I answered I immediately new by the sound in is voice that he had shot at a deer. When I heard the words "I just shot a buck", I almost started to scream with joy, but realized we had work to do and didn't want him to get too excited just yet. So I calmed him down and gave him some coaching and told him to sit tight, don't move and watch and listen for anything.<br />
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It didn't take Brandon and I long to arrive at Brendan's deadfall where we found him standing there with a grin from ear to ear. I calmly approached and had him walk me through what had just happened. Brendan had just put his phone back in his pocket, heard some crunching and looked up and could see a deer moving through the thick brush on a trail that would take this deer right by Brendan's hide. The deer stepped out of the little hemlocks which had been blocking most of Brendan's view of the deer just long enough for Brendan to see antlers and then he went into that fast shot planning mode that we all have gone through. He waited for the deer to step behind a tree, went to full draw and as the deer made two steps from behind the tree he bleated at it and as the deer stopped and the pin settled just above the deer's heart Brendan released an arrow. He said he heard the thud and watched the deer take off tail down. The deer jumped two deadfalls and after the second he heard a large crash but couldn't see anything or hear anything after. I'm not going to lie, I was a little excited at that point and was struggling to sit tight for a bit more to give the deer a little more time, but he and I needed it to clam down and get ready for the tracking job at hand.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-roQT8A8aapE/Uk6_xy0IJhI/AAAAAAAABog/TrNb7vMgToM/s1600/bloodtrail2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-roQT8A8aapE/Uk6_xy0IJhI/AAAAAAAABog/TrNb7vMgToM/s400/bloodtrail2.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blood at the shot</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cAy1rF4F05E/Uk6_xp4KULI/AAAAAAAABok/bIc2bLGgcUg/s1600/bloodtrail1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cAy1rF4F05E/Uk6_xp4KULI/AAAAAAAABok/bIc2bLGgcUg/s400/bloodtrail1.JPG" width="363" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blood almost two feet up the tree.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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I had Brendan line me up where he thought the deer was when he shot and I found no blood or sign and my heart sank into my stomach. I thought, no way. So I had him rethink it and I played the deer and he walked me past the shot and off in the direction he saw it run. still no sign. I wasn't more then about 10 steps from where he said the deer was standing when he shot, so I spun around and headed in the direction the deer had come from and I found blood. I had Brendan come to the blood and walk it back to see exactly where the deer was standing. He was only off about 10 feet but just enough to not find sign where he first lined me up. I then had him look for the arrow, which is a key part to determining what type of shot you got on the deer. I noticed a very small drop of blood going away from the blood trail and then another. So I had Brendan follow those tiny drops and it led him right to his arrow. Those drops of blood had come off the arrow after it passed through the buck. Only at that point was I confident that the last jump and crash of that deer was where we would find Brendan's deer, but why pass up a training and learning opportunity so I sat back and had Brendan and Brandon follow up the blood trail as I coached from the back of the line. They tracked it over one small dead fall and right to a second. I decided to walk around the deadfall to the right, but stopped after a couple of steps because I could see the buck laying there dead. Brendan caught me stop quickly and said "You see him don't you?!" and I just nodded and he looked up and there it was. The nice little 7 pointer - we refuse to give him the 8th point - didn't go more then 50 yards from a double lung complete pass thru shot. There was as sigh of relief and some high fives and more then a few hugs and back slaps, oh and a few pictures and then the work began. Brendan filled his tag out, and we decided to drag it out of the area and field dress it away from his hunting area so we loaded the buck on the <a href="http://www.deadsled.com/">Dead Sled</a> and strapped Brendan in and yelled MUSH!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A6ETiEmzXhw/Uk7A0KP8eQI/AAAAAAAABpI/ZVCA83y_3s4/s1600/draggin.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A6ETiEmzXhw/Uk7A0KP8eQI/AAAAAAAABpI/ZVCA83y_3s4/s400/draggin.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That Dead Sled is nice to have for dragging.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Brendan dragged the buck out and once we reached a spot far enough from his hunting area we started a new lesson on field dressing a deer. Brendan has a degree in Health Sciences and Rehabilitation Services and is in Graduate school pursing a Masters in Occupation Therapy so he took the opportunity to turn all "Mr. Anatomy" on us and held a show and tell session showing off all the different things he learned ins school as we worked through the process of dressing the deer. I was very impressed with his knowledge and the fact that he didn't puke as it had been almost 6 or 7 years since he last shot and field dressed a deer.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-auv4Xp9FwQo/Uk6_xE2kIoI/AAAAAAAABoQ/3diwbe1Vm5c/s1600/BredansSLbuck2013.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-auv4Xp9FwQo/Uk6_xE2kIoI/AAAAAAAABoQ/3diwbe1Vm5c/s400/BredansSLbuck2013.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brendan's First Archery Deer!</td></tr>
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I'm happy he had a successful hunt for many reasons and I was glad I was there to share it, but I am extremely proud to see how well he learned from all those previous hunting trips and of course from his schooling! His passion for the outdoors is evident and growing every day, Having fresh venison in the freezer is just icing on the cake!<br />
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Being able to share my passion for the outdoors with my kids, family and friends is really what my blog is all about and I look forward to this weeks outing as fall turkey opens up and we will try to get Brandon his first bird. That is if I can get both of them away from the bow for a day.<br />
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It doesn't get any better then this!Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-28114314061635853712013-09-30T09:03:00.001-04:002013-09-30T09:03:56.588-04:00Countdown to Our Saskatchewan Watefowl Hunting Trip<br />
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There are just 12 days left until we head out to Saskatchewan for a week long waterfowl hunt. This will be a first for most of our crew and to say we are excited wouldn't really put into words just how jazzed up we are for this trip.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-H3_jcK4CGeI/Ukl2iNuh6_I/AAAAAAAABmo/FhQvLvz4amE/s1600/Saskatchewan.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="253" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-H3_jcK4CGeI/Ukl2iNuh6_I/AAAAAAAABmo/FhQvLvz4amE/s400/Saskatchewan.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Saskatchewan once known as "The World's Bread Basket" because it produces over half the wheat grown in Canada, which is obviously good for all those migrating ducks and geese as they need to fatten up for their long migrations south. It is also known as the " Land of the Living Skies" due to the incredible sunsets, northern lights and ofcourse WATERFOWL! Every waterfowler has heard about those hunts where the skies are thick with waterfowl that they almost black out the sun. I've seen video from previous hunts that one of our guys has been on and it was darn close to a black out, now I hope to see it for myself.<br />
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Planning for any hunt is important, even for just a day but for a week long hunt out of the country it requires a little more effort and stress. In the end as long as our guns show up, some clothes and our licenses don't get lost we should be good to go!<br />
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I don't know what our access to the world will be up there but hopefully I can post some live updates from the field as well as nightly report.<br />
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Wish us luck!Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-21549884712520884812013-09-20T08:53:00.000-04:002013-09-20T08:53:01.468-04:00Recipe - Simple Venison Backstraps and Roasted Vegetables<br />
Well it's official, the freezer is empty of venison as I used the last of it last night for dinner. No need to panic though because nature's pantry is open for business. Our Archery season opened last week and even though work and family has kept us out of the woods this week, we will be out tomorrow working at filling the freezer.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oUQpa2a--jU/UjxDsnYoq2I/AAAAAAAABlA/pCyImMHr6WU/s1600/venisonbackstrap.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oUQpa2a--jU/UjxDsnYoq2I/AAAAAAAABlA/pCyImMHr6WU/s400/venisonbackstrap.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Simple Venison Backstrap and Roasted Vegetables</h2>
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Normally I keep cooking venison simple and delicious. We butcher our deer ourselves this allows us to clean it up the way we like and control the portion size. I prefer to leave my backstraps in big portions which gives me many options for cooking them later on. Easy enough to use as is, slice up for steaks or any other need.<br />
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Ingredients:</h3>
<ul>
<li>Venison Backstrap</li>
<li>Spices for venison - I use Salt, pepper, onion and garlic or Weber Steak seasoning </li>
<li>Butter or oil for cooking </li>
<li>Beef Stock - Just enough to deglaze the pan after cooking.</li>
<li>Vegetables of your choice - cut into bite size chunks</li>
<li>Spices for veggies - Your choice. I use the standard salt, pepper, onion and garlic</li>
<li><a href="http://www.waldenfarms.com/products/dressings.html">Walden Farms Balsamic Vinaigrette</a></li>
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Cooking Instructions:</h3>
<ul>
<li>Cut vegetables into bite sized pieces and place in a bowl. I used broccoli, peppers and mushrooms, but your favorite veggies will do. </li>
<li>Add at least two tablespoons of Walden Farms Balsamic Vinaigrette. Substitute your favorite dressing or oil and season with your favorite seasonings. I use the standard salt, pepper, onion and garlic.</li>
<li>Spread vegetables out in a single layer on a baking sheet and place in a preheated 450 degree oven for about 20 minutes or until you achieve your desired tenderness.</li>
<li>Trim backstraps by removing all fat and silver skin and pat dry. Cut into large chunks that will fit in your pan.</li>
<li>Season both sides of backstraps with your favorite seasoning. I used the standard salt, pepper, onion and garlic. </li>
<li>Heat frying pan with oil or butter. I used a little bit of butter and olive oil.</li>
<li>Cook backstraps for about 5 to 7 minutes on each side depending on thickness and desired temperature - I prefer a medium rare for venison.</li>
<li>Remove from pan and let rest on a plate for 10-15 minutes.</li>
<li>Add some beef broth to the pan and de-glaze the pan scrapping up all the goodness - set aside for later</li>
<li>Slice the backstraps to your desired thickness and pour the pan drippings over them and serve.</li>
</ul>
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There is usually a fight for the last piece of backstrap in our house and last nights fight was a little extreme due to it truly being the last piece in the house!<br />
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Share your favorite venison recipes!<br />
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Happy hunting and eating! <br />
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<br />Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1562762658501440534.post-76166653423649325932013-09-17T12:05:00.001-04:002013-09-17T12:05:06.709-04:00Connecticut Hunting & Fishing Appreciation Day - Sept 28, 2013<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.ct.gov/deep/lib/deep/wildlife/images/huntingfishingday/HFDayLogo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.ct.gov/deep/lib/deep/wildlife/images/huntingfishingday/HFDayLogo.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Geneva; font-size: small;"><span lang="EN">On
September 28, 2013, the CT DEEP and <a href="http://www.fosw.org/">Friends of Sessions Woods</a> will be
hosting Connecticut’s Annual Hunting & Fishing Appreciation Day at
the Sessions Woods Wildlife Management Area in Burlington.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Geneva; font-size: small;"><span lang="EN"> </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Geneva; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">
Fun activities for all ages are planned, along with educational
programs and workshops about hunting, shooting and fishing. Best of all, the event
is free to attend!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Geneva; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Geneva; font-size: x-small;"></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Geneva; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Geneva; font-size: x-small;"><b>Why we're celebrating</b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Geneva; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Geneva; font-size: x-small;">Hunters and anglers have been at the forefront of the
conservation movement for over 100 years. They showed their support by
requesting taxes and special fees on hunting and fishing equipment to
help pay for wildlife and fish management, habitat restoration, and
other conservation programs through the Wildlife and Sport Fish
Restoration (WSFR) Program.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Geneva; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Geneva; font-size: small;">To find out more about activities, vendors, times and directions visit their website at: <a href="http://www.ct.gov/deep/cwp/view.asp?a=2723&q=462388&deepNav_GID=1655">www.ct.gov/deep/cwp/view.asp?a=2723&q=462388&deepNav_GID=1655</a></span> Passinthru Outdoorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10001281047468274575noreply@blogger.com0