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June 8, 2008
Purchased some new DVDs last week. It is interesting to note that a couple of the hunt teams seem to kill a lot of bucks all on the same farm. My guess is that us regular guys could do that also. One team seems to have a main line to governor tag access. You and I seem to be relegated to limited public land unless you want to drive a lot of miles with $4 gas. $4 gas will have a major impact on all of this fall. That is discouraging.
May 15, 2008
I love my new Hoyt Katera XL. I am definitely a Team Hoyt guy now. I just added a 6-arrow Fuse Posi-Lite quiver and 6 Easton Full Metal Jackets. Re-fletched them with some white and fluorescent yellow 2" Bohning blazers so I could see them. Arrows are flying super out to my 22 yard maximum driveway distance. Excellent speed and penetration. Appear to be a good purchase decision. These new FMJ arrows are very easy to pull out of my Glendel Full Rut 3D target.
April 25, 2008
Bought a new Hoyt Katera XL from Scheels on April 19. I have shot this bow 5 of the last 6 days. This is absolutely the most forgiving bow I have shot in my 31 year archery life. I was never much of a speed bow guy but this bow delivers as advertised. It is super fast, but that is from a guy who was shooting a Protec with a wheel-and-a-half system before. So far I am extremely impressed. I actually hit where I am aiming now. Hoyt hit a homerun with this bow in my opinion. With that said, I am slightly concerned with the lower brace height as the bow string consistently makes contact with my arm guard.
April 13, 2008
Seventy-five 'special' non-resident licenses were issued in 2007 by the Iowa DNR (i.e. Governor's Tags). It appears to us in reviewing the data that most licenses were issued to outdoors type TV programs. Terry Drury mentioned receiving one on his Whitetail Madness 10 DVD. The reasoning is to promote the state's natural resources through TV, the internet, magazines, etc. It also appears that some of the 'special' licenses are being issued to such groups as the Iowa Bowhunters Association for auction and fundraising. It is interesting to see the fees these licenses have received at these auctions. One price was $4,500. We are unclear as to where the funds for these licenses are going. Is it staying with the organizations or is it going back to the Iowa DNR? Our question: if the deer are owned by the state then is it OK for these organizations to sell them and keep some of the proceeds? Does it comply with state bidding regulations? We don't know that we have seen any advertisements have you? As Iowa residents we are questioning why this number suddenly jumped from 25 special licenses in 2005 to 75 in 2007. We get the impression it is a way around the non-resident deer licenses limits established by the legislature (currently set at 6,000 by Iowa Code 483A.8.3.C).
Different topic: I am the proud parent of a 12-year old who successfully passed her Hunter Education course this week. It was fun to watch her shoot a 20-gauge shotgun for the first time.
April 2, 2008
I bet you did not know this was in the Iowa laws, Iowa code 483A.24 (you may have to type 483A.24):
The director shall provide up to seventy-five nonresident deer hunting licenses for allocation as requested by a majority of a committee consisting of the majority leader of the senate, speaker of the house of representatives, and director of the department of economic development, or their designees. The licenses provided pursuant to the subsection shall be in addition to the number of nonresident licenses authorized pursuant to section 483A.8. The purpose of the special nonresident licenses is to allow state officials and local development groups to promote the state and its natural resources to nonresident guests and dignitaries. Photographs, videotapes, or any other form of media resulting from the hunting visitation shall not be used for political campaign purposes. The nonresident licenses shall be issued without application upon payment of the nonresident deer hunting license fee and the wildlife habitat fee. The licenses are valid in all zones open to deer hunting. The hunter safety and ethics education certificate requirement pursuant to section 483A.27 is waived for a nonresident issued a license pursuant to this subsection.
I find it interesting they are not required to meet hunter safety requirements. We have the list and there are some big names on that list. I would like a special privilege but I am not sure what I need. I already live in the best place in the country to hunt whitetail deer...Somewhere in Iowa. How about requesting a random drawing for residents every year for an additional free any-sex deer tag? The number should be equal to the number in 483A.24 and once you have been drawn, you can't receive another license of this type ever again.
March 3, 2008
One of my long time hunting buddies has just published his first book. My Neck of the Woods, written by Bryce Lambley can be ordered as follows: Send $20 by mail to Hermit House Publishing, Bryce Lambley, 720 Blvd. St. Lot 31, Fremont, NE 68025. He's not set up for Pay-Pal, so it'll have to be a personal check in all likelihood.
Marc 2, 2008
Spent a couple of hours in the mud, water and weather looking for sheds. Found zero. Got some good exercise but fell on my butt. It hurt like hell. Still somewhat treacherous in the woods.
February 21, 2008
I received an e-mail with a story so funny I had to post for all to read. I do not know the author but will gladly give the credit for such a great story. Let me know if you know the author. The story is long but very funny.
The e-mail read as follows:
Roping a Deer
...Names have been removed to protect the stupid!
Actual Letter from someone who writes, and farms.
I had this idea that I was going to rope a deer, put it in
a stall, feed it up on corn for a couple of weeks, then kill it and eat it. The
first step in this adventure was getting a deer. I figured that, since they
congregate at my cattle feeder and do not seem to have much fear of me when we
are there (a bold one will sometimes come right up and sniff at the bags of feed
while I am in the back of the truck not 4 feet away), it should not be difficult
to rope one, get up to it and toss a bag over its head (to calm it down) then
hog tie it and transport it home. I filled the cattle feeder then hid down at
the end with my rope. The cattle, having seen the roping thing before, stayed
well back. They were not having any of it.
After about 20 minutes, my deer showed up -- 3 of them. I picked out a likely looking one, stepped out from the end of the feeder, and threw my rope. The deer just stood there and stared at me. I wrapped the rope around my waist and twisted the end so I would have a good hold. The deer still just stood and stared at me, but you could tell it was mildly concerned about the whole rope situation. I took a step towards it...it took a step away. I put a little tension on the rope and then received an education.
The first thing that I learned is that, while a deer may
just stand there looking at you funny while you rope it, they are spurred to
action when you start pulling on that rope. That deer EXPLODED.
The second thing I learned is that pound for pound, a deer is a LOT stronger
than a cow or a colt. A cow or a colt in that weight range I could fight down
with a rope and with some dignity. A deer-- no chance. That thing ran and bucked
and twisted and pulled. There was no controlling it and certainly no getting
close to it. As it jerked me off my feet and started dragging me across the
ground, it occurred to me that having a deer on a rope was not nearly as good an
idea as I had originally imagined.
The only upside is that they do not have as much stamina as many other animals.
A brief 10 minutes later, it was tired and not nearly as quick to jerk me off my
feet and drag me when I managed to get up. It took me a few minutes to realize
this, since I was mostly blinded by the blood flowing out of the big gash in my
head. At that point, I had lost my taste for corn-fed venison. I just wanted to
get that devil creature off the end of that rope. I figured if I just let it go
with the rope hanging around its neck, it would likely die slow and painfully
somewhere. At the time, there was no love at all between me and that deer. At
that moment, I hated the thing, and I would venture a guess that the feeling was
mutual.
Despite the gash in my head and the several large knots where I had cleverly arrested the deer's momentum by bracing my head against various large rocks as it dragged me across the ground, I could still think clearly enough to recognize that there was a small chance that I shared some tiny amount of responsibility for the situation we were in, so I didn't want the deer to have it suffer a slow death. So I managed to get it lined back up in between my truck and the feeder - a little trap I had set before hand...kind of like a squeeze chute. I got it to back in there and I started moving up so I could get my rope back.
Did you know that deer bite? They do! I never in a million years would have
thought that a deer would bite somebody, so I was very surprised when I reached
up there to grab that rope and the deer grabbed hold of my wrist. Now, when a
deer bites you, it is not like being bit by a horse where they just bite you and
th en let go. A deer bites you and shakes its head--almost like a pit bull. They
bite HARD and it hurts. The proper thing to do when a deer bites you is probably
to freeze and draw back slowly.
I tried screaming and shaking instead. My method was ineffective. It seems like
the deer was biting and shaking for several minutes, but it was likely only
several seconds. I, being smarter than a deer (though you may be questioning
that claim by now) tricked it. While I kept it busy tearing the bejesus out of
my right arm, I reached up with my left hand and pulled that rope loose. That
was when I got my final lesson in deer behavior for the day.
Deer will strike at you with their front feet. They rear right up on their back
feet and strike right about head and shoulder level, and their hooves are
surprisingly sharp. I learned a long time ago that, when an animal -- like a
horse --strikes at you with their hooves and you can't get away easily, the best
thing to do is try to make a loud noise and make an aggressive move towards the
animal. This will usually cause them to back down a bit so you can escape.
This was not a horse. This was a deer, so obviously, such trickery would not
work. In the course of a millisecond, I devised a different strategy. I screamed
like a woman and tried to turn and run. The reason I had always been told NOT to
try to turn and run from a horse that paws at you is that there is a good chance
that it will hit you in the back of the head.
Deer may not be so different from horses after all, besides being twice as
strong and 3 times as evil, because the second I turned to run, it hit me right
in the back of the head and knocked me down. Now, when a deer paws at you and
knocks you down, it does not immediately leave. I suspect it does not recognize
that the danger has passed. What they do instead is paw your back and jump up
and down on you while you are laying there crying like a little girl and
covering your head.
I finally managed to crawl under the truck and the deer went away.
So now I know why when people go deer hunting they bring a rifle with a scope so that they can be somewhat equal to the Prey.
Author Unknown
February 15, 2008
Following is the lobbyist declarations for HF2052 and HF2068:
HF 2052 - Lobbyist Declaration
Scott Pope JANUARY 30, 2008: Against, IA. Sportsman Federation
Brice Oakley JANUARY 24, 2008: Against, IA. Conservation Alliance
Don Avenson JANUARY 24, 2008: Against, IA. Conservation Alliance
Jessica Harder JANUARY 24, 2008: For, IA. League of Cities
Julie Smith JANUARY 24, 2008: For, IA. League of Cities
Larry Pope JANUARY 24, 2008: For, IA. League of Cities
Megan Osweiler JANUARY 24, 2008: For, IA. League of Cities
Tom Cope JANUARY 24, 2008: Against, IA. Conservation Alliance
Bob Skow JANUARY 23, 2008: Undecided, Independent Insurance Agents of Iowa
Dan Fulwider JANUARY 23, 2008 Undecided, Independent Insurance Agents of Iowa
Larry Blixt JANUARY 23, 2008: Undecided, Independent Insurance Agents of Iowa
Amber Markham JANUARY 22, 2008: For, IA. Farm Bureau Federation
Don Brazelton JANUARY 22, 2008: Against, IA. Bowhunters Assn.
Georgia Van JANUARY 22, 2008: For, IA. Farm Bureau Federation
Joe Johnson JANUARY 22, 2008: For, IA. Farm Bureau Federation
Laverne Schroeder JANUARY 22, 2008: Undecided, IA. Sportsman Federation
Roy Overton, JANUARY 22, 2008: Against, Izaak Walton League - Iowa Division
HF 2068 - Lobbyist Declaration
Jennifer Kingland FEBRUARY 12, 2008: For, IA. Assn. of Realtors
Susan Cameron FEBRUARY 12, 2008: For, IA. Assn. of Realtors
Diane Ford-Shivvers FEBRUARY 11, 2008: Against, IA. Dept. of Natural Resources
Don Brazelton JANUARY 29, 2008: Against, IA. Bowhunters Assn.
Amber Markham JANUARY 28, 2008: For, IA. Farm Bureau Federation
Georgia Van JANUARY 28, 2008: For, IA. Farm Bureau Federation
Joe Johnson JANUARY 28, 2008: For, IA. Farm Bureau Federation
Kevin Howe JANUARY 28, 2008: Undecided, IA. Ducks Unlimited
Laverne Schroeder JANUARY 28, 2008: Undecided, IA. Sportsman Federation
Michael Treinen JANUARY 28, 2008: Undecided, IA. Ducks Unlimited
Michelle Lickteig JANUARY 28, 2008: Undecided, IA. Ducks Unlimited
Nancy Boyd JANUARY 28, 2008: Undecided, IA. Ducks Unlimited
Roy Overton, JANUARY 28, 2008: Undecided, Izaak Walton League - Iowa Division
Scott Pope JANUARY 28, 2008: Undecided, IA. Sportsman Federation
I don't want to hear one realtor complain about property taxes. I wonder how many Farm Bureau clients deer hunt.
February 10, 2008
Time seems to move extremely slow this time of year. I did manage to get out glassin' Sunday night. Saw a lot of deer in places that they were not visible this fall. I assume there was an abundance of food at these locations. Saw some one and two year olds still carrying horns and one nice upper 130s 5x5 that looked to be in great health. Saw a two year old in a switch grass buffer strip about 150 yards off a highway. He looked to have a broken right rear leg. His health looked poor. He will be lucky to make it through the winter.
Did spend some time messing with one of my Moultrie I40s today. Can't wait to get it back up and start to take pictures again. That camera seems to be the industry leader right now for dependability and bang for the buck. Sounds like it will stay the same in 2008.
Checked the status of two House Files yesterday relating to deer hunting. Seems they are both still active. E-mail your legislator and let them know what your opinion is. All the information you need is listed in the right navigation bar (e.g. to contact your legislator and to see how the bill reads).
Favorite Web Site
For Trail Camera Addicts
New Book
by Bryce Lambley