11/23/2013 - NJ Permit Bow 8 Pointer

Well I haven't been hunting as frequently as I used to for a variety of reasons, but took to the field the last few weeks to take advantage of this prime time of the year!  The temps dropped last night, but along with that drop came a pretty good breeze as winds were gusting 20+ out of the NW as I drove out to the woods.  I arrived nice and early, got my gear together and headed to my tree, getting settled in with plenty of time before daybreak.  Outside of the tickling branches of nearby trees, things were pretty quiet as I sat awaiting sunrise and hopefully some deer movement accompanying it.

It didn't take long, shortly after first light I nonchalantly glanced to my left and immediately saw antlers.  He didn't make a sound as he came in, he approached with purpose taking the trail immmediately in front of my stand, leading him to an opening I'd have at a mere 18 yards.  I grabbed my bow off it's holder and got into position as he made his way through the brush.  Just as he stepped into the clearing, I drew and settled in on his chest, he turned and took a step quartering away as I aimed and released.  The hit was good entering behind his ribs and exiting just behind the leg on the opposite side. He ran hard for about 50 yards and bounded over a blowdown, then another 20 yards before he paused and fell.  A nice quick kill, perfect!

From my stand I could see his white underbelly at his final resting place.  I let him sit for a few minutes while I reflected on the sequence of events…it all happened so quick, seemed like 5 seconds from the time I saw him until I shot him.  Certainly made for a great hunt and confirmed why this time of year is the absolute best for chasing whitetails!


Here's some shots from this morning…

First…new rub right under my stand…didn't even know it was there until I got down!  Sweet!


Here's a few shots of the blood trailing, although it wasn't really needed.




















And where he fell...



And a shot of me with my buck...



Beautiful morning and a great hunt!  Still lots of season left and the tags to go with it!  I'll be out there!

10/19/2013 - Salmon Fishing in Pulaski NY

Well it's been awhile since I blogged, but this was a trip that was certainly getting a little write-up!
I headed up to NY to salmon fish for the first time and joined up with my brother Brian and nephew Sean to get in the action!

Here's a few pics from a phenomenal day on the water!



Sean ready for action!



Brian, always enjoying life!



FISH ON!!!  This was the "good" spot!



My first NY salmon ever!  Big fish in a narrow river!



Shot of the river we fished...



Another shot of the river...



Father and son shot, they both battled these fish at the same time and I was running around like a madman with the net and then the camera!  What a crazy and awesome time!



The boys coming back for more!



One of the runs we fished...



Another crazy story...this fish actually spooled Brian, literally...broke off his reel and he only had hip boots so couldn't pursue.  I chased after it with the net and then hand lined it in once it spooled him, Sean netted the fish!  That's an episode I'll always remember!



Another fish I caught in that stretch!



And a shot of one of our stringers!  Nice!!!  Good eats for awhile!

05/02/2013 - North Carolina Trout Fishing

Kevin, Chuck, and I took a day trip out to western North Carolina to do a little fly fishing for some trout in a delayed harvest stretch!  The weather was pretty overcast and gloomy, but we had an absolutely awesome time with some tremendous fishing!

Here's a few pics from the day!


Well, we weren't expecting it that day, but were lucky enough to get there right as the state was stocking the river! Pretty cool how they drive a ATV around the woods to spread out the stocking!



Chuck is already laughing at me and my camera!



Kevin, getting his gear out!



I guess I was a little pumped, I was dressed and ready to fish before Kevin even had his sneakers off! haha



A quick little group shot before we head to the river!



No camping, delayed harvest area, lots of trout!



Kevin, our friendly fly fishing guide!



A nice, lush green hike to the river...



Beautiful river!



Very scenic...



Nice shot of Kevin getting ready to wet a line...gin clear water!



And a nice shot upstream in the stretch we fished



Do you see what I see?!?!



My first North Carolina trout, a nice brookie!



And another...



Chuck joins in on the fun, he had an absolute blast!



And another brookie...



And another nice one...



And another...good times!



And another, lot of fun!



And another, skinny little guy...



Then I saw a nicer one swimming along and actually saw it suck in a leaf and spit it back out thinking it was a bug?  Either way, I could tell it wanted something bigger, so I tied on a wooly bugger, gave it a toss, and landed that very fish on my first cast...awesome!



Then a little while later, Kevin made his way upstream and hooked into a really good one...this fish ran him down to his backing!



The fight is on!



Kevin, making his way over to my side of the shore...



Calm as can be...but he knew it was a good one all along!



Kevin's biggest NC trout with the flyrod to date, a beauty of a rainbow!  Glad I could be there to share the experience with him, awesome!



A little while later, we started to move upstream in search of some more fish...and came across this nice stretch.



Where I landed this nice brown trout!



And further upstream, there was this beautiful pool, definitely some fish in there!



Another shot from down the bank...



And a little father/son shot with Chuck and Kevin!



Chuck didn't take long to get into a few fish, he was on fire!



And I caught another nice brookie...



And another brookie...



And then landed this nice one, Kevin was nice enough to come over and snap a quick pic!  We fished this pool for awhile and caught a few more and then made our way back to the trucks...



A little texture fun back near the truck...



Closer...



And as we drove out, I jumped out of the truck to get a few shots of the river...beautiful, scenic, big boulders, totally awesome!



Another shot of the river...



And one final shot of the river before heading on home!



Back at Jan's place, Chuck broke out a surprise jacket!  He was actually one of the original members of the Black Knight Bowbenders in Jackson, NJ before they moved down to North Carolina!



Totally awesome!  BKB style!



And he was a pretty good shooter too!



Black Knight Bowbenders of Jackson, NJ!



Well that's all for my second day in North Carolina!  An awesome time with some old friends, and a few fish landed to make it that much better!
Can't wait to head back down and spend a few days fishing that river, one day just wasn't enough!