Well. 2017. Here we are, a whole new year to achieve all those hunting goals I wanted to last year...
2016 had some highlights. Shot 2 turkeys in the spring season. Called in a monster tom for my Uncle 20 minutes after I filled my second tag. I also shot my first bear in September. And quite a few ducks before 2017 rang in. But I had some down points as well. I spent 15 days in the field trying to shoot a deer and failed to get the job done. I wasn't even being picky. Last year, my goal was to put the meat in the freezer. Nothing less nothing more. For all the time I spent, and the opportunities missed I am disappointed that I didn't get it done.
Part of the reason I am so disappointed with not shooting a deer, I have to admit, is that I started this blog. I don't have much of a following at this point, and while I do not and will not claim to be an expert, I also don't want the appearance of a guy who doesn't get it done in the field. That is a big part of why I have not been writing as much since October. At first, it was deer season and that was the priority. Then I extended that season by doing a Hail Mary short range weapon doe hunt. Then I didn't get it done even after all of that. Then it was duck season and I needed to play catch up.
Then one morning on my way to go hunting with Luke, my best friend since childhood, I lost control of my truck on some black ice and ended up spinning over to the opposite side of the interstate. It scared me. Kinda knocked the wind out of my sails a bit. The hunting had been kinda lousy, and it just didn't feel worth it to get out as much... I don't know. Some days, 4 AM comes too early. You know the roads might be bad. I could go, and would not regret it once I got there, or I could stay home and hang with my kids in a safe warm house... It's tough.
But then to ring in the New Year I went out hunting for a few hours on New Years Eve and killed a couple mallards and a goose. Then, the next day I limited on mallards, and shot another goose. Then the next day I shot 5 mallards and 3 geese. It was not a bad way to ring in the new year at all. There were so many ducks on the river that weekend that I would argue that it is what dreams are made of, if you are a waterfowl hunter that is.
We went out again last weekend and there were once again a ridiculous number of birds in the area. So many ducks and geese. And then I went and screwed it all up. Weather had caused there to be a lot of snow here in the treasure valley. And that snow sank me and my rig right into a ditch. We had to abandon my truck for a few days before we were able to safely recover it without spending $1000 on a tow truck... We should have been hunting the rest of the afternoon. But instead we were trying to solve the problem. Ultimately we didn't have the power we needed and the snow was coming down hard. For our safety we had to leave before enough snow fell that my Uncle might get his rig stuck. It wasn't until yesterday that we finally recovered my truck. With such a good start to the New Year I guess I was in for some worse luck.
Once the duck season ends I am going to focus my efforts on trying to shoot a wolf before the turkey season. We may try to do some snow goose hunting as well, as that season will go well into March here in Idaho. Once April arrives my efforts will be focused on turkey and shooting an early spring bear. I have been really pleased with the meat I harvested off the bear I shot in September and am hoping to do so again.
Beyond the goal of shooting a wolf, and another bear, new goals for this year in the hunting and fishing world for me are to fish for steelhead and salmon this year, as well as to just catch more fish in general. And of course since I didn't get the job done in 2016, I have got to fill my deer tag this year. It has been two years since I had venison in the freezer and that much really needs to change.
I will also be writing more coming up here. I have a lot of stories that I want to get down, and those stories are a big part of why I started this blog.
Stay Tuned. Good Luck Be Safe.
Hunting last Friday evening. Should have had a limit of mallards in the 1.5 hours I hunted... But I was too distracted by all the geese in the area and was hoping for a shot.
Guess it's not that bad if I can still smile after my truck gets stuck in a snow storm...
New Years Day hunt. 7 mallards. One goose.
Another cold day of hunting... Tanker, while he may not look enthusiastic in this photo had just hunted 3 days in frigid temperatures. He is a beast of a cold weather dog, and has more drive than I could ever hope for...
Duck and goose.
Dork breakfast sausage. Wild duck and local natural pork.