This year's Deer Gun Season opening weekend unfolded for the most part as it had most years. Ron, my hunting buddy and I were in our favorite spots as the the first light of the day began to creep over the horizon. This year I was carrying my rifle during gun season. If you don't know me, you are likely saying to yourself, "duh of course you have your gun during gun season", but most years I continue to bow hunt during gun season. This year the bigger deer had eluded my bow although I had taken a spike the week before. This year the gun felt like the right choice and I looked forward to bringing something with a little more range!
As soon as it was light enough to see, I started spotting bucks on the move. Only problem was that they were all spikes, fork horns, or six pointers. I did have one nice pig sneak in on me, but I couldn't decide if I wanted to shoot because I was afraid the shot would spook that big buck that I just knew was about to appear. My hesitation was all that he needed when he winded me and disappeared as quickly as he had arrived.
Around 8:00 AM, I heard the crack of Ron's rifle and I smiled thinking he had his deer down on opening morning, but then there was another BANG! An then another and another followed by squealing! Ron had a herd of pigs come buy and he just happened to be carrying his new AR-10 in 308 caliber. He hit four of them before they could get out of range. The pig population seems to have expanded a bit in this area and Ron was doing his best to curb it. The first evening was similar to the morning. Many small bucks and Ron took down two more pigs.
The next day we awoke to a howling North wind that blew all morning, but eased up by lunch time. We elected to sit on our stands through the afternoon and both saw and took out a coyote each, but passed on smaller deer. With rain in the forecast for Monday morning, we broke camp that night and headed back in the morning empty handed. We will be back the last weekend of the season where we hope our luck will change!
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Friday, November 11, 2011
Bow Season 2011: Pigs, Deer, and Earth Quake!
The Explanation
So it has been a month since my last post so please forgive me, but making a living got in the way of my blog. Although when I wasn't working, I was bowhunting. I hunted four weekends including the opening weekend (although they were not all in a row) and outings two and three were mostly unexciting except for some cool video of small bucks fighting and a bobcat I called up.
Dos Pigs!
My fourth hunt was the first weekend in November. It was good and cold at night and mild during the days although it was really windy at times. The first evening I arrived late to my stand so I only grabbed my bow and headed to the stand. I was left my video camera assuming that I was getting out so late that my chance of success were limited (and I didn't have time to pull together all the gear and set it up). After sitting in my stand for only 15 minutes, I saw two small bucks about a hundred yards away milling around in the trees. They appeared to be headed my way although it would take them a long while to reach me at their current pace. About 10 minutes later I hear the bucks snorting and wheezing alarms as if they had smelled or seen me, but that was impossible since I was down wind of them. Soon I saw what the deer had been alarmed by.... It was a large black boar trotting through the trees, headed straight for me. He followed the deer path perfectly right by my tree. I drew back my bow and as my 20 yard pin settled on his lungs, I gave a squeak with my mouth to get him to stop. On that que, he froze and gave me the opportunity I needed to release my arrow. The arrow center punched him in the lungs and hit resounded with the most solid "THUD" I have ever heard. The arrow had penetrated to the opposite side of the pig's rib cage, but but didn't exit the other side as the boar sprinted into the woods. While I waited, another group of pigs came out of the trees and began to mill around in front of me. I grabbed another arrow and targeted a medium size pig closest to me. As he turned broad side I drew back my bow and released a second arrow. This time the it penetrated to the far side, but still didn't pass completely through (dang these pigs are tough). He sprinted into the woods squealing all the way. The other pigs huffed and snorted as they retreated. I snuck down out of my tree and went back to my pick-up to get my lantern and pistol for the blood trail. After an hour I began to search through the dense brush with my coleman lantern and amazingly I was able to find both pigs. They hadn't gone far once they reached cover although my arrows were no where to be seen. The boar looked huge, likely 250 pounds and the smaller one was likely 120 to 150 pounds. I was delighted to have taken two in one evening! A first for me!
From 10 Point Buck to "If it's Brown, It's Down"
The next morning I sat in my South wind stand. My only contact was a buck about 100 yards away. I was beginning to wonder if I was going to get a deer with my bow this season. If you count each morning or evening as one hunt, I had been out about 8 or 10 times and, so far, I only had a few does within bow range. My "threshold" or "expectations" for what was an acceptable deer was quickly dropping from an 8 or 10 point buck to the motto "If it's brown, it's down!" Rifle season was fast approaching and the prime time of bow season was slipping away. I decided that day, that I would take any legal buck that walked within range.
That evening I was startled to see a fork horn that just "appeared" out of nowhere. I have always been amazed at the stealthiness of these animals. He walked toward me straight on without presenting a shot and then at 20 yards, turned left, trotting along in front of me. I attempted to pull the same trick that I had with the boar by squeaking as he came by to make him stop so I could take my shot, but as soon as I squeaked, the deer jumped into the brush! Apparently he equated that sound with danger!
As I quietly cussed my bad luck, another buck, a spike, came out of the trees and into my shooting lane following the same path as the fork horn. He stopped at 20 yards, but turned right to look at something to the North and then began to graze around him on that spot. The wind was blowing that day and gave me the cover I needed. As gust blew the tree I was sitting in, I pulled my bow back and settled my 20 yard pin on his chest. I focused on the point of impact I wanted to hit on the deer. I squeezed my release slowly and the bow went off, almost surprising me. The arrow flew true and passed completely through the buck and stuck in the ground on the opposite side. The buck sprang into action and sprinted North West for over 100 yards. At first it didn't appear he was mortally wounded, but then his pace slowed and his legs began to get wobbly. He turned and I could see that his side was crimson red from the exit wound, he stumbled and was down. In all I estimate he expired within 10 seconds! I got down from my tree and hurried over to him before the sun set. Although he was small, I am always pleased with a quality animal from a food perspective and this young spike will provide some excellent table fare. I got video of the shot and it looks great, but I wish I had the presence of mind at the time to grab the video camera to film the deer running into the field and collapsing after the shot. It really demonstrates the effectiveness of archery equipment and the hunters that choose to limit themselves in this manner.
The Quake
That night I hung the deer up, began to skin him, and cut out the muscle groups I use for steaks and ground deer meat. I was making quick work of the buck and at about 10:30 PM, I was sitting on an ice chest as I worked to remove the lower leg from one of the hind quarters. Just then the earth moved in one big wave. I almost fell off of the ice chest! I sat there stunned wondering what had just happened. My pick-up was still rocking back and forth and a near-by water tank was sloshing back and forth. Wow, I had never been in an earth quake and this was freaky. Turns out there had been a 5.6 earth quake in central Oklahoma and it had been felt in many of the surround states including my location. It only lasted a second or two, but gave me new respect for those that have endured really destructive earthquakes.
It was a great hunt and the fun isn't over. I will still be gun hunting and maybe return for some additional bow hunting as well. Here is a brief video of my adventure. Again, my apologies for the long delay between posts. I intend to get back to the 2-3 posts per month again.
So it has been a month since my last post so please forgive me, but making a living got in the way of my blog. Although when I wasn't working, I was bowhunting. I hunted four weekends including the opening weekend (although they were not all in a row) and outings two and three were mostly unexciting except for some cool video of small bucks fighting and a bobcat I called up.
Dos Pigs!
My fourth hunt was the first weekend in November. It was good and cold at night and mild during the days although it was really windy at times. The first evening I arrived late to my stand so I only grabbed my bow and headed to the stand. I was left my video camera assuming that I was getting out so late that my chance of success were limited (and I didn't have time to pull together all the gear and set it up). After sitting in my stand for only 15 minutes, I saw two small bucks about a hundred yards away milling around in the trees. They appeared to be headed my way although it would take them a long while to reach me at their current pace. About 10 minutes later I hear the bucks snorting and wheezing alarms as if they had smelled or seen me, but that was impossible since I was down wind of them. Soon I saw what the deer had been alarmed by.... It was a large black boar trotting through the trees, headed straight for me. He followed the deer path perfectly right by my tree. I drew back my bow and as my 20 yard pin settled on his lungs, I gave a squeak with my mouth to get him to stop. On that que, he froze and gave me the opportunity I needed to release my arrow. The arrow center punched him in the lungs and hit resounded with the most solid "THUD" I have ever heard. The arrow had penetrated to the opposite side of the pig's rib cage, but but didn't exit the other side as the boar sprinted into the woods. While I waited, another group of pigs came out of the trees and began to mill around in front of me. I grabbed another arrow and targeted a medium size pig closest to me. As he turned broad side I drew back my bow and released a second arrow. This time the it penetrated to the far side, but still didn't pass completely through (dang these pigs are tough). He sprinted into the woods squealing all the way. The other pigs huffed and snorted as they retreated. I snuck down out of my tree and went back to my pick-up to get my lantern and pistol for the blood trail. After an hour I began to search through the dense brush with my coleman lantern and amazingly I was able to find both pigs. They hadn't gone far once they reached cover although my arrows were no where to be seen. The boar looked huge, likely 250 pounds and the smaller one was likely 120 to 150 pounds. I was delighted to have taken two in one evening! A first for me!
From 10 Point Buck to "If it's Brown, It's Down"
The next morning I sat in my South wind stand. My only contact was a buck about 100 yards away. I was beginning to wonder if I was going to get a deer with my bow this season. If you count each morning or evening as one hunt, I had been out about 8 or 10 times and, so far, I only had a few does within bow range. My "threshold" or "expectations" for what was an acceptable deer was quickly dropping from an 8 or 10 point buck to the motto "If it's brown, it's down!" Rifle season was fast approaching and the prime time of bow season was slipping away. I decided that day, that I would take any legal buck that walked within range.
That evening I was startled to see a fork horn that just "appeared" out of nowhere. I have always been amazed at the stealthiness of these animals. He walked toward me straight on without presenting a shot and then at 20 yards, turned left, trotting along in front of me. I attempted to pull the same trick that I had with the boar by squeaking as he came by to make him stop so I could take my shot, but as soon as I squeaked, the deer jumped into the brush! Apparently he equated that sound with danger!
As I quietly cussed my bad luck, another buck, a spike, came out of the trees and into my shooting lane following the same path as the fork horn. He stopped at 20 yards, but turned right to look at something to the North and then began to graze around him on that spot. The wind was blowing that day and gave me the cover I needed. As gust blew the tree I was sitting in, I pulled my bow back and settled my 20 yard pin on his chest. I focused on the point of impact I wanted to hit on the deer. I squeezed my release slowly and the bow went off, almost surprising me. The arrow flew true and passed completely through the buck and stuck in the ground on the opposite side. The buck sprang into action and sprinted North West for over 100 yards. At first it didn't appear he was mortally wounded, but then his pace slowed and his legs began to get wobbly. He turned and I could see that his side was crimson red from the exit wound, he stumbled and was down. In all I estimate he expired within 10 seconds! I got down from my tree and hurried over to him before the sun set. Although he was small, I am always pleased with a quality animal from a food perspective and this young spike will provide some excellent table fare. I got video of the shot and it looks great, but I wish I had the presence of mind at the time to grab the video camera to film the deer running into the field and collapsing after the shot. It really demonstrates the effectiveness of archery equipment and the hunters that choose to limit themselves in this manner.
The Quake
That night I hung the deer up, began to skin him, and cut out the muscle groups I use for steaks and ground deer meat. I was making quick work of the buck and at about 10:30 PM, I was sitting on an ice chest as I worked to remove the lower leg from one of the hind quarters. Just then the earth moved in one big wave. I almost fell off of the ice chest! I sat there stunned wondering what had just happened. My pick-up was still rocking back and forth and a near-by water tank was sloshing back and forth. Wow, I had never been in an earth quake and this was freaky. Turns out there had been a 5.6 earth quake in central Oklahoma and it had been felt in many of the surround states including my location. It only lasted a second or two, but gave me new respect for those that have endured really destructive earthquakes.
It was a great hunt and the fun isn't over. I will still be gun hunting and maybe return for some additional bow hunting as well. Here is a brief video of my adventure. Again, my apologies for the long delay between posts. I intend to get back to the 2-3 posts per month again.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Opening Weekend Bowhunt for Deer 2011
Well, I wish I could tell you that I bagged a deer my opening weekend, but it just wasn't meant to be. This was really more like a scouting trip where I also hunted a little since I have been unable to spend any time in the bush leading up to this season. It was a beautiful weekend with lows reaching 50 degrees and the highs only in the upper 70's.
I arrived at my camping spot at about midnight so I quickly set up camp and went to bed. As a result of my late arrival to camp, I overslept the next morning and didn't get into my stand until the sun was almost coming up. I was disgusted with myself, but the deer showed up late also. The first sightings were two does about 100 yards to my West. Soon after that I saw a group of small bucks North of me about 250 yards. They were fun to watch because they were playing around and sparring with each other. After they departed, I headed to camp (at around 10:30 AM) and had breakfast.
The evening was relatively quiet until a pair of armadillos came crashing through my area. I thought to myself, "dang, I wish I had something to shoot them with". Just then I remembered that I had my 44 Mag pistol with me, just in case I saw any hogs. I drew my revolver and blasted the first armadillo with a lucky shot. It was only then that I remembered I didn't have any ear protection! My ears rang the rest of the night.
I headed back to camp and enjoyed a nice dinner and good book under the stars. The conditions were perfect for camping. Cool nights with absolutely zero wind. You could hear a pin drop and the local wildlife was very vocal. I heard coyotes and owls calling what seemed like all night.
The next morning I was in my stand well before shooting light, but it proved to be an uneventful morning. I only spotted a couple of does and by 11:00 AM I was breaking camp. As I was leaving though, I wandered into an area that I hadn't had time to scout and stumbled upon a couple bucks. They were concealed in the brush and were unaware I saw them. I could make out a small buck in the lead, but a better buck was behind him. They got nervous and evaporated back into the wilderness like a mist...then they were gone. Now I know they are hanging out and I can begin to look for an opportunity to intercept them, but it will have to be next time.
I arrived at my camping spot at about midnight so I quickly set up camp and went to bed. As a result of my late arrival to camp, I overslept the next morning and didn't get into my stand until the sun was almost coming up. I was disgusted with myself, but the deer showed up late also. The first sightings were two does about 100 yards to my West. Soon after that I saw a group of small bucks North of me about 250 yards. They were fun to watch because they were playing around and sparring with each other. After they departed, I headed to camp (at around 10:30 AM) and had breakfast.
 |
| I broke my SPORK! Good thing I have duct tape! |
The evening was relatively quiet until a pair of armadillos came crashing through my area. I thought to myself, "dang, I wish I had something to shoot them with". Just then I remembered that I had my 44 Mag pistol with me, just in case I saw any hogs. I drew my revolver and blasted the first armadillo with a lucky shot. It was only then that I remembered I didn't have any ear protection! My ears rang the rest of the night.
I headed back to camp and enjoyed a nice dinner and good book under the stars. The conditions were perfect for camping. Cool nights with absolutely zero wind. You could hear a pin drop and the local wildlife was very vocal. I heard coyotes and owls calling what seemed like all night.
The next morning I was in my stand well before shooting light, but it proved to be an uneventful morning. I only spotted a couple of does and by 11:00 AM I was breaking camp. As I was leaving though, I wandered into an area that I hadn't had time to scout and stumbled upon a couple bucks. They were concealed in the brush and were unaware I saw them. I could make out a small buck in the lead, but a better buck was behind him. They got nervous and evaporated back into the wilderness like a mist...then they were gone. Now I know they are hanging out and I can begin to look for an opportunity to intercept them, but it will have to be next time.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Bow Practice At The Gun Range
I don't like living in the suburbs. I would rather live in a rural area that allows me to have plenty room to shoot my bow, but that isn't the reality that I currently live in. I have to drive to an archery range to shoot longer distances than I can find in my backyard. Besides, my neighbors think I am crazy and a menace for shooting a weapon behind my own house.
I could have gone to my local archery shop and shot a 20 yard range, but it was a beautiful day and it is was the weekend before deer archery season, so I elected to go my local gun range that also has a very primitive archery range. The range was over run with enthusiastic pistol and rifle shooters, but I was the only archer on the premisses. I was elated because I can choose my own distances and pull arrows from the targets whenever the heck I want to. I shot broadheads at the foam targets, field tips at the field targets and even used an elevated platform to practice tree stand shots. I shot distances from 15 to 50 yards and had a blast. Here is a short video of my shooting session. You will notice the noise from the pistol and rifle ranges that were directly behind me (they were shooting in the opposite direction). I shot until my arm felt like it was about to fall off and then I shot a little more. I can't wait for October and deer season to get here! My next post should be covering my first deer hunt of the year! Good luck to everyone for your upcoming hunting seasons, be safe!
I could have gone to my local archery shop and shot a 20 yard range, but it was a beautiful day and it is was the weekend before deer archery season, so I elected to go my local gun range that also has a very primitive archery range. The range was over run with enthusiastic pistol and rifle shooters, but I was the only archer on the premisses. I was elated because I can choose my own distances and pull arrows from the targets whenever the heck I want to. I shot broadheads at the foam targets, field tips at the field targets and even used an elevated platform to practice tree stand shots. I shot distances from 15 to 50 yards and had a blast. Here is a short video of my shooting session. You will notice the noise from the pistol and rifle ranges that were directly behind me (they were shooting in the opposite direction). I shot until my arm felt like it was about to fall off and then I shot a little more. I can't wait for October and deer season to get here! My next post should be covering my first deer hunt of the year! Good luck to everyone for your upcoming hunting seasons, be safe!
Thursday, September 22, 2011
How About Crock Pot BBQ Venison
October 1 is fast approaching and with it is the 2011 Deer Season!!!! I get goose bumps just thinking about it! My thoughts turn to preparation for the season and an unlikely preparation many may forget is to ensure you have room in the freezer. I have been diligently working through my inventory of wild game from 2010 over the past year and only have a few of my less desirable cuts left. As I took an inventory of the game freezer, I found four packages of hindquarter steaks. Now, don't get me wrong, hindquarter is an okay cut, but it isn't back-strap or tenderloin. I looked at theses numerous packages of meat and tried to envision what tasty concoction I could come up with. Then it struck me! "I'll make a crock-pot barbecue shredded venison!" I didn't even know if I could find a recipe for this, but I was determined to see if it could be done.
I found a few recipes via the internet that weren't exactly what I wanted, so I took a little from one and added it to another. The result was so tasty that even my wife and older daughter were impressed with it!
Ingredients:
1 large onion
1 venison roast or 6 venison steaks
3 strips of bacon
1 bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce
1. Cut the venison into 1 inch cubes and throw it in the crock pot.
2, Cut up the onion distribute it over the venison.
3. Cut up the bacon and distribute it over the onions.
4. Add water or beef broth or apple juice deep enough to cover the meat.
5. Turn the crock pot on high, cover, and allow it to cook for six hours.
6. Remove the meat and onions from the water and shred the meat with a fork.
7. Pour the water out of the crock pot and place the meat back in the pot.
8. Add the barbecue sauce to the meat, turn the crock pot on warm and serve on a bun.
I fixed more than we could eat in one sitting, so I have divided up the left-overs and froze them for a quick and easy meal in the near future. This really turned out well and will be one of my stand-by recipes for the future.
I found a few recipes via the internet that weren't exactly what I wanted, so I took a little from one and added it to another. The result was so tasty that even my wife and older daughter were impressed with it!
Ingredients:
1 large onion
1 venison roast or 6 venison steaks
3 strips of bacon
1 bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce
1. Cut the venison into 1 inch cubes and throw it in the crock pot.
2, Cut up the onion distribute it over the venison.
3. Cut up the bacon and distribute it over the onions.
4. Add water or beef broth or apple juice deep enough to cover the meat.
5. Turn the crock pot on high, cover, and allow it to cook for six hours.
6. Remove the meat and onions from the water and shred the meat with a fork.
7. Pour the water out of the crock pot and place the meat back in the pot.
8. Add the barbecue sauce to the meat, turn the crock pot on warm and serve on a bun.
I fixed more than we could eat in one sitting, so I have divided up the left-overs and froze them for a quick and easy meal in the near future. This really turned out well and will be one of my stand-by recipes for the future.
Monday, September 12, 2011
The 2011 Dove Season Has Finally Arrived!
Dove Season has the most enviable placement among all the hunting seasons in Texas and Oklahoma as it is the first hunting season of the Fall. Hunters across the area wait in anticipation of being able to once again go afield and have an outdoor adventure. This year it seemed as though dove season would never arrive with the merciless +100 degree days and no rain in sight, but after much preparation and patience September 1 did arrive.
My first morning of dove season found me on my lease in a wheat field that was across the road from, what looked to be, the best dove field in the county (also part of my lease). Why didn't I hunt across the road you ask? Well, last year I did hunt what appeared to be the best field, but the crowds were terrible and there was a near altercation that I would rather not go into. This year I wanted more space so I planned to intercept the doves coming and going into the primary field from my secondary location and it turned out nicely. I had more than enough room and could enjoy myself with plenty of birds to go around.
It is always a humbling experience the first morning of dove season. You discover just how "out of practice" you really are. Your gun can only hold three shells per the federal regulations governing migratory bird harvest, so when a dove flies over and you empty your gun "BAM, BAM, BAM" and then the dove continues to fly by unscathed you realize "seriously, I need to practice more!" Although as the morning went on I began to find my rhythm. I made some really great shots bringing down 7 birds. I had only taken a half day vacation from work, so I had to call it quits by 9:30 AM.
Thursday night was also great. I returned to the same location by 6:30 PM and the birds were already moving. I shot two while I was placing my decoys! Everything was coming together as the birds were flying by in range and my shooting had vastly improved from the morning. I was able to get the second half of my limit (8 more birds) bringing my total for the day to the 15 bird limit.
Friday evening I returned to my new "favorite spot" as soon as I could arrive after work. There were two other hunters North of me along a tree row and I noticed that the one of the hunters nearest me wasn't doing so well. He had a mojo decoy, but it was set up really close to his position and he was focusing his gaze to the East, but the doves were coming from the North West. Multiple times, groups of birds flew over him and directly to me. He didn't see them until I was unloading my 870 Remington pump into the sky and doves were raining down. I thought about approaching him and giving him a few friendly suggestions, but he looked grumpy and I don't like giving advice to armed grumpy fellas. The final straw was when he decided to pick up his spent shotgun shells and at that precise moment the biggest group of dove that evening flew directly over his position. I had time to watch them approach me so I picked out the lead bird as it drew close. After bringing down the first bird I and was able to pick up a second before the group passed. I walked out to get my birds and I could see him throwing his gear into his pickup to leave looking even more aggravated. He didn't even wave when he drove out!
I spent the rest of the weekend with my family, but did sneak in one brief Labor Day morning hunt. Things had gone downhill with the cold front blowing in. I only saw a handful of dove and my outings since have also not been productive either. Still, I have three nice freezer bags of dove awaiting their date with a grill in the future. Hopefully the hunting will pick-up again in a few weeks. If not, there is always Deer season come October 1!
My first morning of dove season found me on my lease in a wheat field that was across the road from, what looked to be, the best dove field in the county (also part of my lease). Why didn't I hunt across the road you ask? Well, last year I did hunt what appeared to be the best field, but the crowds were terrible and there was a near altercation that I would rather not go into. This year I wanted more space so I planned to intercept the doves coming and going into the primary field from my secondary location and it turned out nicely. I had more than enough room and could enjoy myself with plenty of birds to go around.
It is always a humbling experience the first morning of dove season. You discover just how "out of practice" you really are. Your gun can only hold three shells per the federal regulations governing migratory bird harvest, so when a dove flies over and you empty your gun "BAM, BAM, BAM" and then the dove continues to fly by unscathed you realize "seriously, I need to practice more!" Although as the morning went on I began to find my rhythm. I made some really great shots bringing down 7 birds. I had only taken a half day vacation from work, so I had to call it quits by 9:30 AM.
Thursday night was also great. I returned to the same location by 6:30 PM and the birds were already moving. I shot two while I was placing my decoys! Everything was coming together as the birds were flying by in range and my shooting had vastly improved from the morning. I was able to get the second half of my limit (8 more birds) bringing my total for the day to the 15 bird limit.
Friday evening I returned to my new "favorite spot" as soon as I could arrive after work. There were two other hunters North of me along a tree row and I noticed that the one of the hunters nearest me wasn't doing so well. He had a mojo decoy, but it was set up really close to his position and he was focusing his gaze to the East, but the doves were coming from the North West. Multiple times, groups of birds flew over him and directly to me. He didn't see them until I was unloading my 870 Remington pump into the sky and doves were raining down. I thought about approaching him and giving him a few friendly suggestions, but he looked grumpy and I don't like giving advice to armed grumpy fellas. The final straw was when he decided to pick up his spent shotgun shells and at that precise moment the biggest group of dove that evening flew directly over his position. I had time to watch them approach me so I picked out the lead bird as it drew close. After bringing down the first bird I and was able to pick up a second before the group passed. I walked out to get my birds and I could see him throwing his gear into his pickup to leave looking even more aggravated. He didn't even wave when he drove out!
I spent the rest of the weekend with my family, but did sneak in one brief Labor Day morning hunt. Things had gone downhill with the cold front blowing in. I only saw a handful of dove and my outings since have also not been productive either. Still, I have three nice freezer bags of dove awaiting their date with a grill in the future. Hopefully the hunting will pick-up again in a few weeks. If not, there is always Deer season come October 1!
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Searching For The Perfect Salmon Recipe
The older I get, the more I have realized that hunting and fishing is not only about the actual taking of the fish & game animals with rods, guns and bows. In fact, that is only half of the process. It is also about the cooking and consumption of the fish & game animals that completes this cycle. Without the latter, the former loses its meaning in my opinion. So with this in mind, I have been searching for a recipe that is worthy of the wonderful Sockeye Salmon I recently caught in Alaska.
2. In a small bowl, mix the spice rub ingredients together thoroughly.
3. Apply the spice rub to the salmon.
4. Place cedar plank on grill to preheat for 3-5 minutes. Turn plank over and place salmon fillet on plank (skin side down). Cook for 12-15 minutes (no turning necessary). Remove from grill and enjoy!
I scoured the internet and my own cookbooks to come up with the perfect method of preparation that balances simplicity with elegance. After testing out a few fillets, I think I have found my favorite and I wanted to share. This recipe only requires a few ingredients, but delivers a phenomenal result. Bon Appetite!
Grilled Cedar Plank Salmon with Spice Rub
Ingredients:
Salmon fillet (best fresh caught from Alaska if possible)
Cedar Plank
Spice Rub
- 1 TBS brown sugar
- 1 TSP coarse salt
- 2 TSP ancho chili powder
- 1 TSP ground cumin
-1/2 TSP black pepper
Instructions:
1. Soak the cedar plank in water for about an hour and preheat grill to 350 degrees prior to cooking.
2. In a small bowl, mix the spice rub ingredients together thoroughly.
3. Apply the spice rub to the salmon.
4. Place cedar plank on grill to preheat for 3-5 minutes. Turn plank over and place salmon fillet on plank (skin side down). Cook for 12-15 minutes (no turning necessary). Remove from grill and enjoy!
This recipe is simple and delivers a spicy crust for your delicious salmon!
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