I was out and about this morning checking a creekbed in Caswell County, NC for signs of Feral Hogs on a property that I had found some sign on several years back. No hog sign but here’s a photo that just happened to catch my eye.

This next one is of a wicked cloud that came over house. The sky was as blue as I’d ever seen.

Wayne Estes and Spencer Hodges with a 5 fish limit of 135.40lbs. Congrats!! You can see more photos and results HERE

As you all have already realized I’ve been away from the blog for quite sometime now. I’d like to thank each and everyone one of you for reading this blog and I hope that you’ll continue following the SkinnyMoose Bloggers as they bring you the very latest and greatest outdoor news and entertainment. I will be on and off the blog sporadically from here on out because I am tied up building and maintaining an all new message board called www.carolinasoutdoor.com ,an all new hunting and fishing forum dedicated to North and South Carolina outdoorsmen. Come join us or at least check in often to see what the folks in the Carolinas are doing in the field. Once again thanks for your support.

Sorry for the delay in posting folks. After surgery I fell victim to a pretty serious cold. This kept me behind schedule at work, and after a few weeks away from work it seems a few months to “catch up” isn’t quite enough. You folks be sure to check out some of the other bloggers at SkinnyMoose these folks areposting some great articles to keep everyone up to date in the hunting and fishing industry. Thanks for your consideration.

WOW!! Now that’s what I call fast responding!! Less than 15 minutes ago I did a post about a buck that was sent to me in an email. The email had little info provided with it and simply stated it was taken by a 9 year old and had 40 scoreable points. Well, I just recieved this photo in an email by someone named Jim who says the fellas name is Baler and that the buck scored around 220BC unofficially. The “wire” is described as hot wire that was put up in an attempt to keep the buck out of a garden. According to Jim this is only the second buck this fella had ever taken.

Here’s another buck photo that was sent to me by email. After searching around the web a bit, I ran across the same photo over at CamoGirls Blog , it appears she is looking for any input behind this buck as well. The email that was sent to me simply stated that it was killed in OK somewhere by a nine year old and had 40 scoreable points. Camogirl added in her post that it’s been rumored that Cabelas has offered $150,000 for the buck. Certainly someone out there has the story behind this buck. If so, send us a comment or hit the “contact” button at the top of my blog.

After reading through a local hunting forum I visit frequently I ran across a discussion where a member had posted a topic asking “How do you deal with Buck Fever”. There was a link provided in the post and from there folks started telling their experiences of how they deal with the excitement of a huge buck in their presence. The responses were very wide ranged and for some, the feeling that I get appears to be no longer a part of their hunting experiences.

Personally, I get DEER FEVER no matter the time or place. I get a feeling that runs through me like no other when I’m in the woods and a deer is spotted. That feeling is what makes me a hunter, not a golfer. (No harm in golf, it just doesn’t do anything for me). The adrenaline rush I get whether the deer is 300yards out across a bean field or just 40 yards behind me in a thicket is what deer hunting is all about to me. I can be 15 feet up in a climber with my bow in hand and get the shakes like you’ve never seen as a lone doe makes her way towards my stand.

Knowing how to control the overall excitement and rush is where experience comes into play. I’ll be the first to admit, I’ve had to back out from shooting an animal because the shakes got the best of me. With time this all changed. I still get that initial burst of adrenaline and I still get excited, but, I’ve learned to concentrate on the task at hand which means placing my shot in the best possible area to take the animal out quickly. After the shot, I tend to make life easy on the squirrels because I usually shake all the remaining acorns out the tree before being able to climb down. Knowing that it’s my duty as a hunter to make sure I don’t wound this animal probably helps me more than anything else.

The day I lose these feelings will be the day that my hunting career will be over. I’ll gladly place my guns back in the safe, probably sale my bow, and move on to something else. Maybe I’ll try golf again?

Sorry for the lack of post lately. I ended up having to go through an unexpected surgery which has had me off my feet for awhile now. I’ve been up and about for a few days now but in all honesty I just haven’t had the brain power to come up with any post that I felt would be worth reading. My surgery also has prevented me from attending the hog hunt I had scheduled near the Pee Dee River here in North Carolina. The rest of my group should be en route today and return sometime Sunday. Hopefully they’ll have a great trip and send some photos into Southern Adventures!!

It seems every season we have a handful of several treestand hunting accidents that we hear about. Here across the Skinnymoose Network this past hunting season there were several tree stand related accidents reported on across some of the blogs. These accidents, in most cases could probably have been prevented. When you think tree stand safety, what are some of the things that come to your mind?

Mention treestand safety to someone and the conversation almost always turns to safety harnesses. The type of treestand safety I’m referring to today is not whether or not you wear a safety harness while in the stand. I’m referring to post-season work that needs to be done on your stands to ensure that you get a chance to hunt next season.

First thing I like to do when it comes to stand safety, is to remove as many of my stands as possible and bring them back home for visual inspections/repairs. I do alot of hunting from metal ladder stands, some single man stands and some buddy stands. I like to paint any surfaces that are showing signs of rust, replace any rusted bolts and just do an overall inspection of the stand. I also like to remove any climbing sticks, or screw in steps that I may be using to get into a Loc-on style stand. I know it may seem like a major pain to go through this year after year, but, ensuring that you return home safely should be your number one goal.

For some folks, I realize removing the stands isn’t going to be an option and alot of the work must be done in the field. If you decide to do your post-season work in the field this time of year now is really the perfect time to move a stand to a different location as well. The leaves are off the trees, the temps. are cooler and as we all know this can make moving a stand much more enjoyable versus 90 degree summer weather here in the south.

Checking your stands for faulty welds, rusted areas, dry-rotted straps, etc. could be the first thing that makes the difference whether you return home safely from your ‘08 season. Let’s keep ‘08 safe and start out on the right foot, check those deer stands and repair and replace whatever is needed.

RALEIGH, N.C. (Jan. 30, 2008) – The National Wild Turkey Federation will name Sgt. Brian Blankenship of the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission as its Wildlife Law Enforcement Officer of the Year for North Carolina.

The recognition will come during the 32nd annual National Wild Turkey Federation Convention and Sport Show held Feb. 21-24 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, Ga.

“Without the tremendous level of support for wild turkey conservation from wildlife officers such as Mr. Blankenship, restoration efforts and wildlife management strategies would never have succeeded,” said Rob Keck, National Wild Turkey Federation CEO. “We wanted to ensure that they receive the thanks and recognition they so richly deserve.”

Sgt. Blankenship was selected for the honor in part because of “his commitment to apprehending poachers via extensive patrolling and use of decoys” and his work with introducing young people to the outdoors.

By earning state-level accolades, Sgt. Blankenship and other state winners are eligible for the National Wild Turkey Federation’s National Law Enforcement Officer of the Year award.

Sgt. Blankenship is a 12-year veteran of the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission and serves Alleghany County. He is a graduate of Western Carolina University, with a degree in Natural Resource Management.

courtesy of NCWRC