Up North Journal Youth Stories

Hunters Safety

2010-07-23T10:51:00.000-07:00

During this past week I have been taking hunters safety at a local conservation club.
Day 1, Monday:
The first day of hunters safety. The intructer's introduced themselves and they started things off with the 3 cardinal rules of firearm safety. They stressed these rules over the next four days of class. They also stressed that a safety is a mechanical device that can fail and that most firearm accidents happen in the home.

Day 2, Tuesday:
Today we got to shoot the guns. There was three gun choices... 4 10, 20 gauge, and a 12 gauge. I chose to shoot the 20 gauge. The bullets were bird shot so it didn't kick much. I was the first one to shoot of the day. I was a little high on the paper target but I blasted the clay pigeon haha. After the shooting we went around to the other side of the building and did "field activities" the first was safetly getting in and out of a duck boat with firearms. The next was crossing a fence with firearms, both were done with partners. Then we went to the treestand one and it was wearing a harness and treestand safety. The last was walking side by side with firearms. I forgot what we did after being outside....

Day 3, Wednesday:
Wednesday was probably my favorite day, the CO came and talked for over an hour and a first aid instructer came and taught us about hunter safety, there was also a quick lesson on handguns. After that we all went outside while one of the instructers gutted a sheep. And once the hide was off he said that their almost identical (sheep and deer). It was also very lovely when he snapped the legs and head off. Haha. There was a lot of younger kids in my class and they all had their hands over their mouths.

Day 4, Thursday:
The final day and day of the test, a quick lesson on muzzleloaders and videos on hunting accidents. Then we took the test, it was 50 questions and took me about 10 minutes. After everyone was finished the instructer went over the questions, I only got two wrong. So I passed and got my hunters saftey licsense. Nobody in the class failed and 17 people got 100%. Afterwards my Dad took me to get ice cream yum.

By: Mindy

My new bow

2010-04-06T14:18:00.000-07:00

I recently got a new bow and it's the PSE bow madness XS and I am soo excited to shoot it. Once we get it all set up I can test it out and get ready for this fall! Before the XS i had a Bowtech Diamond Edge and I really loved it. But soon I was going to outgrow it. My draw length is 27 or 27 1/2 inches and the Diamond Edge goes up to i think 28". But like i said earlier, I am super excited to shoot my new bow!

My Up North Hunting Trip

2009-12-27T22:57:00.000-08:00

By: Mackenzie Adams

On our way up to the lodge we were talking about the lodge and where we were hunting. Then Mikey said,” There it is!” So of course since I hadn’t been here since I was four years old I said, “There’s what?” Then dad said, “There’s the dirt road that leads to the lodge!” Then we turned onto the dirt road and then I knew we hit the county, that’s when I thought that this weekend was going to be great. When we got up ahead the road there were those trees that are very tall and only have the green bristles at the tops of the trees. Then there was an empty field, wait it is not an empty field it has deer in it and there was about eight deer we saw on the way to the lodge. There is also a pretty big lake and a small pond we have a great view from the window in the living room slash dining room.

The Lodge

The lodge is huge it is a two story and when you walk in the front door there is a hallway and on the end on your right is the room we were staying in, there is a sink, bunk bed and a full bed. I am staying in the bottom bunk while dad and Mikey sleep in the full bed. When you go out the hallway and go straight that is the living room. It has a long table and chairs and two small tables and chairs. There is also a flat screen TV, four couches, a rocking chair, three padded rocking chairs, and there is a fire place. Next to the living room is a kitchen. There is also a storage room where we store everything. Last but not least is up stairs it has wooden stairs going up and there is two rooms and one room leads to a secret room that leads to the storage room. There is also a small wooden door that leads to the attic. Then next to the cabin is John’s house.

Now it is the fun part we go hunting. We put on all of our hunting gear then we sprayed down with Dead Down Wind sent eliminator and we started to head out. We got to Mikey’s spot and dropped him off and we got to our spot and on the way to Mikey’s spot and ours there were tons of deer tracks. There were so many I couldn’t count them all. We got to our stand and climbed up into it. It took about two or three hours until we saw the first deer and it was a huge buck. Then another huge one came out behind the other buck and they were very curious about something and just ran off before they got close enough to shoot. About thirty minutes after that, three deer came out of the back field and we couldn’t tell what they were. They finally came close enough to tell what they were and there was a doe and two of this year’s fawns. Right after they came there was six does that just all came out of the back field at once. They got about fifty yards away from us and something spooked them off too. After that there was this spike that came and ate and ate and ate those clovers. He comes when we get there and before we left, he left. Before we left there is a trail on the left side of the middle field. On that trail was a big buck and he would not move so we had to wait and wait and it got so dark it was hard to see him so we just left. We walked over to Mikey’s stand and we talked to him earlier on a walkie talkie and he said that he shot a deer. Since it was a pass through shot we went out and tried to look for it, but there wasn’t a lot of blood spots we could look at to find the doe, so we had to wait till the morning.

Waiting For Deer

The next day dad and I went out and we barely saw anything. There was a big buck came very close to our blind. Dad almost shot him but since his bow was so cold that it creaked and the buck heard it and ran away. Then about thirty to forty-five minutes after that the little spike came through and there he was eating clovers again. When he left there was a doe that came out and did not get close enough to shoot. That is all we saw that morning. We came back and Mikey was still sleeping when we walked in and we woke him up and Mikey, dad, John, and I went to look for his doe and all we found was one drop of blood. We never found the deer. John said he should find it within a week from the birds. After we went out to look for the deer we came back and ate lunch.

Little Spike Looking For Clover

Then we went out for an afternoon hunt when we got out there and we walked into the field to get into our stand. There was a buck under our blind and five does in the left field and when they saw us they all ran away. We got up into the stand and then spike came back out again to eat those clovers. After about thirty to forty-five minutes until we saw the next deer it was a buck and then he must have sensed something because all the sudden he just ran away. Then here comes spike again to eat those clovers. When he was eating a doe came out in the back and just started to circle around and went away and when spike ran off we left. We picked up Mikey and we saw a flash light shin on the ground and dad went to go get him and Mikey thought we were going to leave him there; how funny!

Still Waiting For Deer

The next morning we did not go out so after we woke up we ate breakfast and watched some football after we ate lunch we went out for and afternoon hunt. It took about two to three hours until we saw the first few deer. There was the spike again and three does. Then after that it got to where they wouldn’t come out then there were four does. There were two yearlings and the mom to the yearlings and then there was a year and a half old doe; last year’s fawn. She was right there to where I could get a clean shot at her. So dad told me to stand up so I stood up and he was standing up too. He had my bow in his hand so my arms wouldn’t get tired. When the doe wasn’t looking I took the bow, clipped on my release and dad said, “When you’re ready let it fly!” I couldn’t see the deer so I had to take a step up really quietly. I could see where I was going to shoot and it was a good thing I didn’t shoot or I would have hit her in the stomach. She moved and then moved back and I shot her and I heard the arrow go into her. Dad was watching her and he saw her fall and he said, “You got her!” Then I said, “Really, oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!” I was shaking so bad. We went out to go get pictures and video. We saw where I shot and I shot kind of high. My dad thinks I hit an artery and her diaphragm and cut off her breathing when I hit it. After we took pictures Papa field dressed it for me. Then we took it back to the cabin and hung her on the deer pole. When the ladder hit the pole Mikey said that when he heard it he knew someone got a deer. Then Mikey came out and watched us clean her out. Mikey was videotaping dad and I talking about my deer kill. Then we went inside and it was already two hours after I shot the doe.

My First Deer And I Got It With A Bow!

I called everyone that I basically knew. Everyone was so excited. Then we got too tired to stay up so we went to bed. In the morning we stayed in and around nine-thirty we went out and we were butchering my deer. We also saved the hide from the deer to get it tanned and we are also saving the skull so I can get the skull boiled. Mikey is going to boil the skull for me. For the deer hide a taxidermist named Bill is tanning the hide for me.

Now It Is Dad's Turn

Well after we butchered my deer we went out for an afternoon hunt. We went out and even though I already shot a deer I want to go hang out in the stand with dad and hopefully watch him shoot a deer with his bow. Well like we always do we saw spike there again feeding his way through the winding fields. Then when he got close enough to see his spikes he turned back then I just happened to look back at the trail and I saw something small and white. When it came closer we could see the black on it and it was really a skunk. He was such a funny little skunk. He saw that spike and he went over to him and was just following him around. He also spooked off a pretty big doe. After he did that we got a call from the radio from Mikey and the first thing I heard was “DEAD DOE DOWN!” Then dad said, “Awesome you got one!” Then Mikey said, “YES!” Then dad said, “we will be over in about an hour. We waited that hour and we did not see anything. We left and went to Mikey and he was on the ground flashing his light we went and found him and went to his deer. Then it was a perfect timing John came with his four-wheeler and we put it on the back of his four-wheeler and over to dad’s truck. We took video and pictures before Mikey field dressed it. When he did, he hit the gut sack and it stunk so bad. When he popped it you could hear the air coming out of it. Then when he got the guts out we put it on the back of dad’s truck and took it to the cabin. When we got there we hung it on the deer pole and cleaned it out and then went inside. We were eating dinner and doing the pod cast at the same time. Then we just went to bed because we got so sick.

Mikey's First Deer With A Bow

The next morning we did not go out because we were to sick and Mikey butchered his deer. When he was done we just packed up and left. We went to this zoo like place on the way home that had a bear that I wanted to see but he was tucked up in his pen. Then we got something to drink and a snack for the road. When we got home we unloaded and settled in. We ate dinner and talked about the weekend. That was my birthday hunting trip and my first deer. Best birthday ever!

If you would like to see the whole hunt on video you can view it on Episode 5 of Beyond The Wild at: http://www.upnorthjournal.com/

Wow, What and opening weekend at deer camp

2009-11-16T14:03:00.000-08:00

First Day: November 12:
My Dad woke me up early, around 7:30am if I remember correctly. We got all the rest of our things packed and loaded up in the truck for deer camp. We left soon after. We got up to deer camp around 11:30am. The first thing my Dad and I did was say hi to Jack and Sandy (Mom and Dad of hunting buddy Ned) who's house we were staying at and went out and hung treestands on places we call "The Trail Of Terror" and "The Leaning Tree." All went well. Then we set up a blind on some private property. So Thursday afternoon my Dad and I loaded up and went out to hunt the Trail of Terror. My Dad put some "doe in heat" pee (from Mikes Magic) and we got up in the tree stands. It was pretty quiet for a while, we were hitting the grunt calls and doe bleats and the deer seemed to be pretty still. Then at dusk we heard a deer. My Dad told me to stand up. I did. And here comes this huge bodied buck walking on the trail of pee my Dad set up. You could hear him sniffing. He moved pretty slowly, I was getting buck fever, only my right leg was shaking though! But my heart was pounding!!!! I was standing for about 10 minutes and he wouldn't come into range, and it was getting pretty dark out. At last the buck started to walk away, but my Dad called him back with a bleat. He still never came into range. All the sudden something spooked him and he did 3 or 4 bounds. And came back. I finally decided it was to dark to shoot so I turned my bow light off and sat down. But that buck did not want to leave! He kept sniffing that doe pee my Dad put out. At last we heard him walk away. He was a 6 point. We were stuck in the tree in the dark because of Mikes Magic! So my Dad and I started to get down from the stand when he realized he forgot his flashlight at the house, so we were walking through the woods and through the field in the darkness. I decided while we were walking in the field to put my hand in front of my face so I wouldn't get hit with little trees that were in the field. When I moved my hand away from my face I got hit with a little tree in the face.
So that day was a wrap and we waited for the next.

Day 2 (MORNING): November 13:
My Dad and I got up at 5:15am to get out in the woods. We had breakfast and headed out. We were in our stands and situated by 6:30am. It was a pretty quiet morning and I was cold so we had decided to start heading in around 9:00am. WRONG CHOICE!!!!! So I was halfway down the ladder and my Dad was standing in the tree stand bending over so he was practically mooning the woods... only his pants were on when this doe comes walking out about 15 yards in front of us, broadside. She stood there and stared at us for 15 minutes. And neither of us moved an inch. At last she walked away. So after that I wanted to stay out so I climbed back up and not 10 minutes later a 4 point walks out. I stood up so I was ready to shoot only he came on the opposite side of the tree I was on. He stared at my Dad and I for a while and bounded away. We think he got spooked by my Dad moving. And then not 10 minutes after that a mature doe walked in the woods. I saw her first so I stood up. My Dad didn't see her until I said something. The sad part is she never walked onto the trail, she stayed in the woods. After those three deer we didn't see anything so we went in around 10:00am or 10:30am I think.

Day 2: Middle of the Day:
My Dad and I decided to go to this place called "The Pit." Its a spot where we can safely shoot guns. So what my Dad had me do first was shoot the .30-.30. It was the biggest gun I have shot. I shot it and I loved it. I wanted to keep shooting it after I shot about 10 rounds out of it but we were running out of ammo. My Dad then shot his Tikka T3 300 Short Mag. And then he let me shoot his .380 pistol a Ruger LCP . I shot it once and I didn't like it. There is so little weight to that gun there was nothing to absorb the recoil. Then my Dad shot his .454 Raging Bull handgun. He was sighting it in at 100 yards. That thing shook the whole truck. Then I shot my 20 gauge with slugs. I didn't like it. It came off my shoulder. But that also could have been my fault for not placing it correctly on my shoulder. I shot a few more rounds out of the .30-.30 again at an empty bottle of bleach someone left out at 100 yards. The first shot was good. The second shot practically blew the thing up. It split in half. And after that we had to leave to go back to hunt

Day 2 (AFTERNOON) November 13:
My Dad and I headed out to the trail of terror. He put more pee out. (I know by this time I am making it sound like my Dad peed everywhere) We got up in the tree stands and it was actually a pretty peaceful night. Not a sound from a deer, only squirrels and a partridge. But around the sunset I'm not sure what time, a young doe came in behind us. She never came close enough for a shot but I don't think I would have, she was pretty small. Nothing really came out after that.
By the time we got back the other 2 people that were coming up (Ned and his son Mitch) to deer camp had just gotten there. So all six of us at deer camp ate and went to bed. My Dad and I were going to be the only ones getting up for hunting in the morning though.

Day 3 (MORNING) November 14:
My Dad and I got up at 5:15am again and did our same routine as Friday. We got out in the stands around 6:30am again and sat quietly. The morning was very quiet for deer, we only saw squirrels. There was NO activity! My Dad even put pee out to. But hey, that's hunting. I had fun though. We decided to let the Trail of Terror sit that night to settle down for Ned and Mitch to hunt it opening morning. The rest of the day we watched football.

Day 4 (MORNING AND OPENING DAY!!!!!!) November 15:
My Dad and I were set up in the Field of Fear which is right by the trail of terror. Only we were in a blind. Not a tree stand, Ned and Mitch were in the Tree stands. The mornin was still but around 8:20am my Dad and I were moving around and the sunlight was on us when my Dad looked out and saw a buck. Now I don't have a doe license for gun season. This buck was big to. Probably a 2 year old. His rack wasn't massive or anything but it was atleast a 6 point. For some reason, I can't remember why my Dad was holding the gun. So when my Dad spotted it he handed me the gun but the buck was already trotting away. It's depressing though because I had the gun cocked and ready. (It wasn't really depressing though that was just a figure of speech) So I was lively and awake after that! I wanted to see more!!!!!! But we didn't see anymore, when we came out Ned and Mitch hadn't seen any deer either. The whole morning we only heard 51 shots (I was counting) way down from last year, we had that many shots the first morning last year!

Day 4 (AFTERNOON OPENING DAY!!!!!!) November 15:
My Dad, Ned, Mitch, and I all went out around 2:00pm that day. My Dad and I got situated and were waiting and waiting and waiting. But nothing came out all night. Not a deer. Not a sound. There isn't much about this night to say. Ned and Mitch didn't see anything either.

Day 5: (MORNING: FINAL DAY AT DEER CAMP) November:
My Dad, Ned, Mitch, and I all got up at 5:15am and got ready for our final hunt at deer camp 2009. Once we got out to our blind bright and early we waited for a while. Around 7:30am I took my Dad's binoculars and was scanning for deer. Something caught my eye. A doe. She was pretty to. About 50 yards away. I kept saying that I wished I had my doe license. But she kept looking behind her. My Dad and I were hoping it was a buck following her. But it wasn't. It was 2 babies and another Mama. we watched them for a while and once they walked away I told my Dad I was glad I didn't have my doe license because I would have shot that doe and have felt awful because the babies and the other mama were waiting in the bushes behind her so we couldn't see them. One of the babies would have been without a mama. That would make me feel terrible. After that happened we didn't see anything the rest of the morning. She sure was a pretty doe though. Ned and Mitch didn't see anything again.

WRAPUP:
So overall I am okay that I got stuck in a tree because of Mikes Magic and that I was stuck on a ladder because of a doe and that I didn't shoot anything because that is hunting. I had so much fun.
And a big thank you to Jack and Sandy for taking care of us at deer camp and a thank you to my Dad for taking me up and thank you to Mikes magic for the extra bottle of pee. Wow that stuff works....
BY: MINDY
November 16 2009

My Youth Weekend Hunt (Back in September a little late)

2009-10-28T17:13:00.000-07:00

Day 1
For the youth weekend hunt my Dad and I went out to our normal hunting spot, where we would hunt in the normal season. My Dad had gotten our treestands set up a few days earlier i think, i can't remember. Well for the first night we went out and got in our stands. (For my hunts my Dad puts a treestand above mine so he can videotape and helo me if I need it.) It was actually pretty warm out. I had to take my sweater off because I got so hot. I was hunting with a crossbow. I was pretty excited. I like shooting that crossbow. So I had the crossbow in my lap and was waiting and waiting and being patient. My Dad said every once in a while that he heard deer. I couldn't hear anything but I believed my Dad and patiently sat and listened. My Dad was right, I started hearing things to. Unfortunetly no deer came in that night. I wanted to go in a little early that night so my Dad and I headed in. Sadly, we kicked up a deer. And by the sound of it, it was a mature buck. It was Snorting and Wheezing at us. Although it was in the swamp. I would have never had a shot at it. That and the crossbow was no longer loaded. But that sure was an adrenaline rush! I had never heard a deer do that before!

Day 2
Day two started out pretty much the same way, only it wasn't as warm, I had my sweater on this time. I was still using a crossbow for the hunt. So when my Dad and I got out the second day it was evening again. After sitting a few minutes a heard signs of deer activity, although they were distant that sure was promising! So my Dad and I didn't hear much for the rest of the night except chipmunks and a few squirrels. And again, we went in earlier than we should have, but that was my choice. My Dad and I were cautious as we approached the swamp. But we didn't run into any deer.

I may not have shot anything, but thats okay, I enjoy spending time with my Dad and in the Woods.

BY: MINDY
10-28-09

Shooting some crossbows

2009-08-21T18:17:00.000-07:00

Sometime in July (i haven't posted for a while) my dad, and Mike had a crossbows test at my house. it was a lot of fun to be able to shoot the crossbows.
The first one i shot was an Excaliber. When I shot it was very loud. I liked, but didn't love it. It was very vibratey and so the small kick was harder than i expected. The Excaliber was rather hard to pull back so my Dad did.
The second crossbow I shot was a PSE Sidewinder. Which happened to be my favorite. If this makes sense. It shot more like a rock and was quieter than the Excaliber. Which I liked alot. The Sidewinder was probably the hardest to pull back so my Dad did.
The third and final crossbow I shot was a ten point Titan is the easiest to pull back but was my least favortite to shoot. when I shot it the pully thing to pull it back hit my collar bone and it hurt so I couldn't concentrate on the noise or how it shot.

But now I have declared the PSE to be my favorite and i am asking my Dad for one because I liked it so much.

By: MINDY!!!!!
August 21st 2009

A Hunter's Dream

2009-06-17T15:13:00.001-07:00

Okay, i absolutly love to write and so I decided to write a poem about hunting. It is not very long but I thought I might as well post it.

A Hunters Dream

As day breaks the hunter stalks silently through the forest.

The deer perks his ears up and the turkey gobbles in caution.

The hunter moves in as the deer turns broadside.

This is a hunter's dream.

By: Mindy

My First Turkey Hunt

2009-05-21T19:17:00.000-07:00

Last weekend my Dad took me turkey hunting for the first time. I used my Tri-Star semi-auto 20 gauge. My dad also asked this guy who goes my the name of Mac to call for us. (Cause he is really good at calling) And my dad forgot his thermacell so I was getting eaten by mosquitoes
As soon as we walked out into the woods we heard toms gobbling. We knew that this was going to be a good hunt. My Dad, Mac, and I got our selves positioned off a two track. My Dad and I had our backs to one tree and Mac had his back on another. He started purring and clucking and we immediately got gobbles back. Once the toms got silent so did Mac. Within a half an hour we saw a turkey on the two track. It was a hen; she got within 20 yards of me. Perfect if she was a he. I watched he walk into the woods and then she popped back up behind us in the woods. Later on my Dad saw 3 turkeys coming down the two track from the opposite way. I turned around to get positioned and they went into the woods. Then while I was facing that way a big tom came out of the woods 20 yards away and went back in. So I missed him!!!!!!!! Then he came back out about 40 or 60 yards away.

Next Day

Mack, my Dad and I were in a blind this time and my Dad remembered his thermacell. Well I don’t know what it was but the toms just weren’t talking today. We heard two across the road but those were to far away to call in. Mack tried a few different call today but none seemed to work. Not a turkey came in sight! It was a good hunt and I wish I got something but hey, that’s hunting!!!!!

Just want to say Thanks to Mack for calling.

And I guess I’ll say thanks to my Dad for taking me out… (haha)

By: Mindy

5-18-09

Squirrel Hunting

2009-03-04T08:57:00.000-08:00

By: Mindy

My Dad took me squirrel hunting. I had a lot of fun. Even though my fingers just about froze off my hands, they would hurt when I would touch something!
Well anyways, we walked out into the woods, stopping every now and then to listen for squirrels. When we got to the part of the trail where we turn off and go into the woods we had to cross a swamp. Well, the swamp was frozen and it was cool because you could see underneath the first layer of ice to the second layer and you could see the spots where the deer broke through the ice. It was pretty neat.
When my Dad and I finally crossed the swamp we went to where we were going to hunt and we sat for a while. The squirrels were talking a whole lot. But I hadn’t seen anything so far. Neither had my Dad.
After a while my Dad and I started to walk back. NO SQUIRRELS. When we got back to our truck/SUV my fingers hurt to touch stuff, so I was having trouble putting away my .22!
After we were driving my Dad and I spotted a dumped deer carcass.  My Dad turned down this one little road that was more like a path to get to a lake and we saw 6 more carcasses. 4 in which still had the heads on them. Those 4 were definitely poached. They were does and by judging on how large the heads were, the looked young. So that was very sad. I hate it when people poach. After we turned off that road/path my dad spotted yet another deer carcass!  It is all so sad when you see a carcass and it has the hide and the head with it. So overall there was 8 deer carcasses within 100 yards of each other and within 3 minutes of each other.
So no squirrels for me.  But that’s okay with me because I love hunting.

BY: MINDY

65 Roses Round-Up

2009-02-17T07:58:00.001-08:00

By: Mindy

On Sunday (2-8-09) I went to my first shooting competition for charity (Cystic Fibrosis) at Compass Outdoors. The object was to get 65 points throughout a series of targets with paper roses on them. When I got there my Dad and I were the last ones to shoot because of how late we got there. When we got there one of the kids (age 15) was in the lead with 2 rounds of 3 arrows each. Which is like really good considering the higher points are less than I inch around. My Dad finished up in 4 rounds of 3 arrows and a penalty shot. Which is awesome. And I finished in 6 rounds of 3 arrows. Which my Dad said is better than half the adults that shot. I thought I did well considering that I did not have my glasses and I was missing fletching on one of my arrows.

So I competed in my first competition and I probably scored somewhere in the middle of everybody. My dad of course ahead of me.

But I had fun and it was for a good cause.
Oh and I was the only girl shooting in the competition! There was only 3 kids shooting and I was one of them.

Date Written:
2-9-09

By: Mindy

Wrapping up an Excellent Season

2008-12-22T12:00:00.001-08:00

By: Mindy 

Tick Tock Tick Tock. Waiting for hunting season seemed endless. I practiced and practiced preparing for my autumn bow hunt. I shot my bow in my back yard for what seemed forever when my arms got tired. All my practicing paid off after I started hitting the bulls eye.
Over the summer I decided not to gun hunt when rut rolled around. But I didn’t know that everything would change. During my bow hunt up north the day before opening day of gun season…and rut. My Dad’s friend convinced me to go hunting with a gun. So the next morning, dark and early, I got up to prepare for my first gun hunt. And that gun hunt turned into a month of gun hunting. At first I used my 20 gauge while my Dad used his 300 short mag (up north of course). And then when we came back from our weekend hunt up north I used my 20 gauge and my Dad used his .50 caliber muzzleloader. But then I decided I wanted to use a bigger gun so my dad and I kind of switched, I would use his .50 cal. And he would use my 20 gauge in case I shot at something and there was another deer or as a back up shot if it started to run into thick woods. But unfortunately not a bullet came out of the .50 cal muzzleloader, 300 short mag, or my 20 gauge. Not even an arrow out of my bow.
I think that this was an excellent first season. I saw 1 doe, but she was out of range. On my up north hunt my Dad pointed out a dew claw mark that was six inches long and four inched wide. (Big Boy in the woods )
When I first began my hunting season I thought only about getting a deer. But that’s not always what hunting is about. Hunting is about enjoying nature and having fun. Even if you don’t see anything. Hunting isn’t just about shooting animals.
I love hunting and I don’t think I will stop hunting.
So this is the end to a great season. I guess I will wait until next year to see if I get anything down.
I want to thank my Dad for getting me hooked on hunting!
Hunting Rocks!!!!!!!
By: Mindy
December 21st, 2008

My Deer Camp HUNTING Stories

2008-11-26T08:33:00.001-08:00

November 14th, 2008
Early Morning
I wake up at 5:30 in the morning and eat breakfast, toast and orange juice. (YUM)
After I ate my breakfast, I got on my camouflage and I got my bow and arrows out. My Dad and I headed out at about 6:15 am. It was pitch black out and drizzling. My Dad took me out to the wooden blind about 250 yards back and I opened up the windows and sat down. My Dad and I heard and saw nothing. So at about 10:00 we headed in and ate lunch.

November 14th, 2008
Afternoon
I headed out at about 2:00 and my Dad and I set up and watched for deer.
At dusk we heard something and my Dad told me to stand up, it was a partridge (or a quail). My Dad said I could shoot it. I was about to draw back but it walked away to fast.
We heard and saw nothing.

Late night November 14th, 2008
After dinner my Dad’s friend convinced me to go gun hunting. I felt confident after that.

Opening Day 2008
Again we heard and saw nothing. But this time my Dad and I were in a large pop up blind and in a new location.
Suddenly, closely, a gun went off and we thought that it was my Dad’s friend’s son that shot the gun but when we got back to the house nothing was there. My Dad and I were on private property so it was quiet on our side of the road. On the other side is public property so there are a lot more hunters over there. Oh! But where I was hunting, another partridge and 2 does.

Opening Day (Night)
We set up in the pop up and sat and sat and… sat. Nothing. All the sudden…BANG! A gun went off, across the road.
My Dad and I still saw nothing that night.

When we went back to the house my Dad’s friend and his son were sitting there and were like ‘Keep your stuff on, we have to go drag out So and So’s deer’ I took off my stuff and put on lighter stuff. My Dad, his friend, his friend’s son, his friend’s nephew, and me went out to drag out my Dad’s friend’s son’s deer out of the woods. We got there and a 3-point was lying on the ground, gutted out but there. We tied it and walked back.

By: Mindy
November 20th, 2008

Then and Now

2008-10-30T04:26:00.000-07:00

Wow, since June/July, so much has changed! Such as my grouping, posture, bow weight, and my cams.

In June or July when I first shot my bow I could barely pull it back, now I am at 35 pounds. My bow is easy to pull back. My weight has changed a lot since June.

My posture has changed also. Months ago I used to lean my back far back and I shot that way, not a very good posture. Now, I still lean back a little bit but not as much as I did. A better posture means that you shoot better to! Changing my posture has helped my grouping of arrows a lot.

My grouping has changed so much since June. In June I was still on the target but not necessarily kill shots. Now I have a tight group and they are kill shots! So I am happy about that. My Dad says that if you can wrap your hand around them and they are kill shots then you are a great shot.

My cams have suffered a little bit recently, uh… I kinda dropped my bow once or twice or three times. My most recent drop was so bad that my Dad had to file down my cams. OOPS! I am surprised my bow isn’t broken yet!

Conclusion:
I really appreciate everything my Dad does for me. Without his love of the outdoors, I would never experience any of the best and worst things in nature. My Dad is one of my heroes and one of my favorite people to walk the earth. I really love my Daddy. I just want to thank him for everything he has ever done for me.

By: Mindy

My First Hunt - By Mindy

2008-10-06T06:00:00.000-07:00

My First Hunt

My first hunt was amazing.
My Dad and I left around 5:30pm (October 4th, 2008) and we got in the woods soon after. About 10 seconds after we set up the blind we heard deer stomping around in the swamp about 20 yards away. We weren’t even in the blind yet! My Dad told me to get my arrow in my bow.

When we got inside the blind it was quiet for a while, a few chipmunk and squirrel noises but nothing extravagant. Then we heard something walking through the woods, my Dad told me to hook up so if it were deer they wouldn’t hear my release click. But as the noises grew louder, we saw two idiots walking through the woods, one was in a green vest and one was in a blue vest. At first I thought they had messed up my hunt. My Dad got out and said, “Hey you guys, you’re messing up a hunt!” They replied by saying, “Oh sorry man.” They obviously didn’t care, but after that they were quieter then they were before. Before they were talking real loud and cracking sticks, now they were talking quieter and walking quieter.

After things settled down we heard noises here and there but nothing came out.
Around 7:30, it was dark out so we headed in. As soon as we zipped up the blind door and started walking away, we heard deer stomping around in the swamp, but still, we kept on walking.

But as my first hunt I thought it was awesome because sometimes you don’t have as much activity as my Dad and I did.

That was October 4th, and today is October 5th, in about 2 hours, I am going out again.

By: Mindy

Mindy knows that when we hunt on public land, things like that can happen. The land is for everyone to use. While the two gentlemen who walked up on us interupted our hunt and walked right into the location the deer funnel from the swamp to our blind, they did turn around and leave without a fuss. I have a feeling they were looking for gun hunting locations and saw the heavy traffic area as a potential location. Hopefully, they'll respect our stands and blinds already set up for archery and gun season...we'll see. Even with the interuption, Mindy and I had a wonderful time watching the squirels and birds and listening for deer. I was a pretty proud dad sitting there watching my little girl, dressed in camo, and holding her bow waiting for deer. (even if her arrow wraps are pink...lethal pink with those broadheads! :-) ) ...and her's was the only bow we had with us because it's her hunt.

-Dad

My Dream

2008-06-22T17:13:00.000-07:00

Hey! Lets Win this. The thrill of her life (Fiction. So Far)

1:
Whisk! The arrow flies, the target falls over. The powerful bow shot the arrow right where the heart would be placed. The young girl smiled and looked over at her Father. He smiled to. The young girl’s Father cranked up the poundage to 35. She shot it. Heart shot on the target. The girl was ready for deer season.

2:
77 shots later at 35 pounds deer season for bow hunting began. The young girl’s birthday was approaching soon. She wanted to hunt on her birthday. It was 1 week away. She thought that it would be an awesome birthday present. The first hunt went slowly. Perfect. But seriously, the girl never wanted the morning hunt to end.
A few hours into the hunt a young buck came in, but it was to small to shoot, it only had 2 points. It looked like less than a year, or maybe a little over a year.
After a little while a nice 6-point came in but it was to far away and wouldn’t come any closer. A few minutes later it started raining, thunder and lighting came in. Deer came sprinting across to find shelter. The young girl didn’t realize that the deer were actually behind her tree stand. The deer were too quiet. They didn’t even rustle the leaves fallen on the ground. The young girl was with her Father. He signaled for her to start packing up her things. The Father came and undid her safety harness and the girl climbed down. In the truck on the way home the Father spoke, “So… Sport, did you have fun?”, “Of course. I saw a nice 6-point but it was to far away.” The girl said. “That’s pretty cool huh?”
“Yeah.”

3:
The very next day the girl pulled out her bow and started practicing. Her Dad supervised. Dead center, heart.

4:
The next hunt was her birthday.
Early in the morning she woke up and got ready to hunt. Her Dad was ready in a matter of 5 minutes. When they got out into the woods they immediately spooked deer. Once they settled into their tree stands. The sun silently rose over the horizon revealing a strong shadow. 11 points on the top of the wispy silhouette. A grin arose on the girls face. The silhouette grew closer. 12 yards in front of the girl. She slowly drew back her bow. She looked through the peep sight and narrowed in on the heart. Her cold finger reached out in front of the release. She took a deep breath. Her finger barely touching the release put more pressure on it. The camouflage arrow quietly left the bow. In less than a second the arrow hit the deer and went into the heart. The deer dropped. Bagged. The girl’s grin grew bigger although it didn’t seem possible. A few minutes later the hunters went out to look at the girl’s deer. She poked it to make sure it was expired. It was. She sat down behind it and held the head up. Her Father took photos. They later dragged the deer out of the woods. Blood dripped everywhere from where it was gutted out.

5:
At home the girl’s Mother was ecstatic. Her older sister was called from college. She to was ecstatic.

6:
Months later the deer head was mounted on the wall. Staring and reminding people of the awesome birthday present.

Extra:
This girl had a dream. To get a deer. Determination and inspiration inspired the girl to keep moving forward. That girl was me, Mindy.

I would like to dedicate this short story to my Daddy because he believes in me and inspires me to keep moving forward.
I am moving forward and pursuing in my dreams.

Thank You Daddy, I love you!
By:Mindy

Turkey Huntin'

2008-06-19T11:34:00.000-07:00

I LOVE going hunting with my Dad, I have SO much fun.
Every Saturday morning I go turkey hunting with my Dad.

Day 1
I woke up at 5:30, the sun was already rising, my Dad met his friend at our spot down a dirt road where we deer hunt. We approached cautiously, awaiting any sudden movement. Just KIDDING!
We went out into the woods and my Dad’s friend went maybe 100-200 yards away into deeper woods. My Dad started calling, then I did to. Nothing. So about an hour later we got out and went “scouting” I guess you can call it. We searched for the perfect spot near by. We called and heard nothing so we got into the truck and drove down some dirt roads the opposite direction from the deer spot. We finally found a spot and it was TURKEY CENTRAL! We immediately heard gobbling so my Dad and his friend, and his friends son got out their guns and walked to the edge of the field. A hen was standing there, saw us, and took off. So we walked around the field and we saw a HUGE tom track. And then we decided, this was the place to hunt.

Day 2 Week 2
We went out into the field, set up our blinds and started calling. 3 or 4 turkey’s gobbled back. We called them out to the edge of the field but we couldn’t see them because the were still in the woods.
An hour later we called again, all the turkey sounded normal, then we heard the big boy, his gobble was very deep.
A half hour later we heard nothing. Then we saw a guy walking in the middle of the field! He didn’t care that our truck was sitting there! He kept on walking! So we got out of the blind and ended the day’s hunt.

Day 3 Week 3
We got out around 5:30 am. It was windy out but we sat out there until 9:30ish. We saw a couple of rabbits, a big fat racoon. We also heard something that sounded like it might have been two turkeys gobblin’ and then there was a niose like two racoons or foxes fighting. But no turkey near. Oh well, I was out for the experience, not just because I wanted my Dad to get a turkey, but to enjoy nature.

By: Mindy

Can't Fire Release

2008-06-19T11:31:00.000-07:00

Another Story by: Mindy

Two Saturdays ago I got a new bow and I also got a device called “Can’t Fire Release.”
What it does is it builds up your muscles so you can get either a heavier weight or to get better at pulling back your weight easier.
So I started working with this.
The Saturday I got my bow. The guy that set it up at Gander Mountain put my bow at 27 pounds. When I went to shoot it I couldn’t pull it back so the guy put it at 26 pounds and I could pull it back easily.
The following Monday (2 days later) my Dad put it at 27 pound and I could pull it back. Right now it is still at 27pounds, but I am almost ready for 28 or 29 pounds.
But I started using the Can’t Fire release and it worked! I am still using it and it will help me with heavier poundage and help me pulling back the bow easier.
I used the device on Sunday and I think it helped me a lot when I started pulling the bow back.
I like it because I can get to a higher poundage and I can get up there quicker.

My Choice

2008-05-05T05:22:00.000-07:00

MY Choice

I made a decision not to shoot. I thought, I can’t do this, I’m afraid. And I truly was.

A few months ago at the end March, my Dad took my sister and I to the shooting range along with his friend and his kids. We went there to practice for turkey season.

My Dad had recently bought us a new gun; to be exact it is a Tristar Semi-Auto 20-gauge. Brand new. I was so excited that my Dad had gotten that for us, I was ready to practice for turkey season.

When we got to the range I let my Dad shoot first. So he did. He said he loved it. My sister shot next, then the pressure was on, I didn’t want to shoot.
I sat down on the bench table thing that held the gun up, and my Dad handed me the gun. I said, “I can’t see over the gun.” But really I was stalling. My Dad put a bag of something under the barrel and said that I could shoot when I was ready. But I was never ready, I handed my Dad the gun and said, “I can’t, I’m sorry.”
I was upset because I felt like I had to, I felt that my Dad would be disappointed in me if I didn’t, then the pressure worsened.

But my Dad wasn’t disappointed in me, no Dad should be upset with their child if that child doesn’t want to shoot the gun.

I had decided on my own that I was going to wait to shoot that gun until next turkey season. That’s right, I decided on my own. For now I am practicing with my bow to go deer hunting in the fall so I am still target shooting!

So to anybody out there that feels like they have to shoot a gun in order to please somebody, when really, they don’t want to, they shouldn’t be afraid to say, “No” or “I’m not ready.” But never should anybody feel like they’re forced to.
I made a choice not to shoot, nobody was mad at me and nobody was disappointed. It was MY CHOICE. ☺

By : Mindy

Note from "Dad" - I can't tell you how proud it made me that my daughter was comfortable and strong enough in our relationship that she could make a decision like that. Even if she decides that she never wants to shoot I know she loves spending time in the woods with her dad and I couldn't ask for anything that makes me happier! Mindy, You Rock. I'll always be there to support you.

Bear Tracks

2008-03-23T10:30:00.000-07:00

Bear Tracks

My family and I were camping up north at Harrisville State Park. I really love going up there, and just camping, the only thing that bugs me are the bugs themselves, they always get into our trailer-camper and stay on the ceiling, and I HATE BUGS! So anyways, my mom, dad, my sister, and I were looking at the activities that were scheduled for that day, there was one that said, Bear Scouting, so my dad and I went to it. There the presenter brought a fawns hoof, a bear foot, bear crud, and I think she brought a beehive. The lady told us a lot of information like, when a doe leaves her fawn in the morning to look for food, the bears come and eat the fawn! She also told us that at the campground, there have been sightings of bears in the dumpsters! After we were told all the information, the lady took us out in the woods to look for old dens that the bears had hibernated in, and she had some people look for bear poop. All the people ever found was skunk crud. I had fun and I think that my dad did to, and I guess we learned something too.

By Mindy

"The Call"

2008-02-18T18:46:00.001-08:00

The Call

He he! I laughed at something my sister had said when my moms cell phone rang.
“SHHHHHHHHH” she said, “ Hello?? Oh, hi.” It was my dad. Then I heard my mom say WOW! Then she handed the phone to me, hello? “ Hi Sport, my dad said. (Sport is my nickname) Guess what?”
“What?” I replied.
“ I got a 9- Point this morning!”
“NO!”
“Yes!”
“ I don’t believe you!”
So since I didn’t believe my dad, he had to have one of his buddy’s that he was talking to tell me the truth. “ Mindy, your Dad, really did get a 9-Point!” His friend said. So I was like “Okay” My dad then came back on the phone and said, “Do you believe me now?” “Uhuh” Then I gave the phone back to my mom. She was really happy for him and she actually said that my dad should get it mounted because he was never going to get another deer again! My sister and I were laughing and so was my dad, even though my mom denies ever saying it! And so that was the call!

Info
Day: November 15, 2007(opening day in Michigan)
Time: 9:00 AM
Gun Type: Tikka T3 300 WSM
Location: North of Hale
Points: 9!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Excitement level: 9.5!
Weather: Cold & Windy

By: Mindy

My First Duck Hunt

2008-02-09T21:04:00.000-08:00

It was September 15th, 5:30 am in the morning about 52 degrees out side. I was shaking with excitement as I was getting all of our stuff in the boat wondering to myself if I would have any luck. It felt like it was forever until we finally got in the truck to head to the lake. When we got to the boat launch there was no one there, we backed the boat into the freezing cold water. I could here motors running out on the lake as my dad parked the truck.
The wind off the lake was waking me up, I was getting pumped! As dad got in the boat I threw the tie off rope into the boat. I jumped into the boat and was ready to push off, we started the motor and we took off to the other end of the lake. As we putted across the lake we saw close to 2,000 seagulls!!! The spot we were setting up on was a little point, a perfect little spot to tuck up into in behind a downed tree. I don’t know why but I felt like I was a fish.

BOOM!!!.....Splash, "yes"

The point was a spot were the ducks bolt around it and catch you off guard, watching the sun come up was a cool sight to see with birds flying across it. The first ducks that we saw were across the lake, but then we had some coming towards us. They turned to the left and went to the cove behind us. I finally called two ducks in to our decoy spread!!! They were pintails but I could not get a shot off because the decoys were to the right of us. Then one flew from the right to the left! BOOM!!!.....Splash, "yes" I shouted with joy! I was so happy my first duck hunt and first duck. My dad was so proud of me, we went out to get it and I picked it up and raised it above my head. This will be one thing I will remember for the rest of my life!

By: Mike Adams

High Jump!

2008-01-28T08:49:00.000-08:00

In late October, my dad took me out hunting with him. I was so happy because I love going out in the woods with him. Just enjoying nature and smelling the fresh air and seeing what’s around me! I had my own stand almost directly across from my dads tree, but one of the best parts of sitting up there was that when I looked down there were beautiful purple flowers and they looked like they were glistening when the sun hit them. I just couldn’t resist, I had to take a picture of them with my camera.
Then a little while after that, 2 doe came running in from the swamp, and I watched them, and they came across a log and they jumped it. I didn’t know that deer could jump that high. I was really excited because the older doe was huge!!!!!!! Then I realized that it was doe with her older fawn. The fawn didn’t have her spots, but I could tell that she was quite young. The older doe looked around and came back to her fawn and then they bounded out of our sight.
Later on when the sun was setting I was playing my Nintendo DS Lite. I didn’t realize that my dad was trying to get my attention, it took him a couple of times of whistling before he got my attention. So I looked up and there were 10-15 turkeys just casually walking through the woods. I thought wow! So I got out my camera and tried to take a picture, but something spooked them and they ran off.
So I never got a picture of those turkeys, but I sure had a great experience, but that’s no surprise, I always have good experiences when I go out in the woods with my dad!
By: Mindy

The Catch Of The Day!

2008-01-28T08:43:00.000-08:00

On one of my past fishing trips a few years back, in a small inland lake around southern Michigan, I was fishing with my Grandpa and Grandma on their pontoon boat. I was having a lot of fun fishing off their boat because pontoon boats are so big and I didn’t have to worry about hooking someone. Well anyways nobody had caught anything yet so we decided to head to a new spot, so we did.
At the new spot my sister had gotten some small nibbles, but caught nothing. So on one cast, I felt a tug. I told my Grandpa and when he came over my rod had started bending quite far, and I had a rather small rod. So then my Grandpa said, “Its just weeds” he probably thought that because the “Thing” wasn’t fighting back. So as I reeled it in it gave another small tug. Then my Grandpa was like, “It’s a fish! No… its weeds! It’s a fish! No! It’s weeds! What is it??”
So as I was reeling it in, it went under the boat, that’s when my Grandpa finally realized that it was a fish!
It finally happened, I reeled it all the way in. And it was far by the biggest fish I had ever caught or seen!!! It was 18 inches long, probably about 6 pounds or so, and was a bass!! My Grandma wanted to take a picture of it with me, but since I was little, I didn’t want to hold it. So my Grandpa had to hold it for me. After a couple of pictures we threw the fish back into the lake and I was so happy that I had caught the fish!
After that we moved the pontoon boat to a new location and my sister caught a few small fish and so did my Grandpa. But no one caught a fish as big as mine! Which is why my fish was declared the catch of the day!
I have never caught a fish as big since. So that’s probably why I still remember that very day. I also might remember because my Grandparents had the picture on their fridge for a while. But I will never forget my catch of the day.
BY: MINDY!!!!