Pygmy

Out the door soon to head north...Two Buck Bob and I are meeting Otto at the launch ramp at Skaneateles around seven thirtyish..

All my AK caribou hunting was for the Mulchatna herd back in it's heyday, in the 1990's...That was some hunting....Did a supercub drop in 1999 out of Dillingham, some where north of Koliganek... Limit was two at the time and we were seeing 500-1000 head per day...Everybody got two nice bulls, and we could have killed several Booners if we were patient enough, but you can only watch so many of those big bastards walk by until you shoot one or two.. We had 13 grizzly sightings on that trip, although some were probably repeats...Nothing higher than 3 feet tall for a meat pole, so we cut brush and piled the meat bags on it to keep them off the ground for ventilation and covered them with a tarp to keep the rain off them... Had bears within a few hundred yards of the meat, but they never homed in it.. Four hunters in two tents, and then we lost one tent in a storm, and had to sleep four guys in one tent with two sleeping bags and two pads for five days while we were weathered in waiting for our pickup.....What an adventure !!

Yeah, how could I forget the border was closed...Screwed up my annual gobbler trip to Ontario this spring.. I never had any problems flying with handguns, either, to Alaska, or the western US....

Yes, I must admit that all of the Alaskan grizzlies I encountered ran like hell when they saw or winded me...They tend to have respect for humans because they are hunted up there... Still, I'd hate to depend on a spray can to save my ass in an emergency if I could have a firearm instead... Did you drive up ? taking firearms through semi socialist Canada further complicates things..If I had to drive up, I might consider bear spray myself, although I'd probably ship firearms to my air transporter or whomever I was hunting with.. Whatever works for you, My Friend....<<grin>>...

None, we seen very little sign as well. That's a GOOD thing, especially when you have meat hanging....I did not see any firearms in the pictures....Did you take something for the unthinkable( but very possible) bear defense, or did you trust pepper spray or pure faith ?. When I was up there I saw quite a few grizzlies, but never had any issue with them...However I never went anywhere without a rifle or shotgun within reach...If I had been bowhunting I would have been packing a heavy caliber handgun or a compact shotgun...We always had a tent gun ( shotgun loaded with 00 Buck) in the tent, and usually a couple of us had a handgun under our pillow..

Awesome hunt, My friend...Brings back fond memories of my five DIY Alaska hunts...There is no place quite like Alaska...It even has it's own smell... Any encounters with Ol Leroy ( grizz)...??.....

Pike are wonderful, as long as you know how to trim out the Y bones....Back in the glory days of Seneca Lake, I ate many of them...The bone free parts were excellent fried, and I would can the strips loaded with y bones in pint jars..The canning softened the bones and they made great fish patties....

Everyone's taste differs....To me, moose is good but boring...I always suspected that the reason many people prefer moose is because it is the closest venison in flavor and texture to beef.. Elk has it's own flavor..I like it very much, but it it is not my favorite... Mule deer is not rated as one of the better venisons, but some of the best meat I ever had was from a mature mule deer buck that I shot in an early high country hunt above treeline in Colorado....He was grass fed, since there was no sage that high...

I also have never had any venison that is better than fat caribou taken in August or early September...I have heard that Sitka Blacktail is the best, but never had the privelege to sample it.... IMHO, , caribou beats elk, moose, mule deer or whitetail, as long as it is taken pre-rut... I have never tried rutting caribou. but I have heard that dogs won't even eat it...

That picture illustrates what I refer to as " caribou bloat"....They hit the ground and then instantly INFLATE ...Hehehe....

DANDY bull, and I have killed 13 of them plus been present when many more were killed...Congrats !!!

Fine, as long as you don't count on me for more than a doe and a scrub buck..That's usually what I shoot..

Traditional perennial...I will work up a different strip next year for my wheat/oats or whatever and plan to maintain the clover by mowing...

I'm planning to plant appx 3 acres to winter wheat and clover within a couple of weeks...I turned the plot over and have kept it worked up by discing once a week... I will be broadcasting the seed within a seeder mounted on an ATV...How much seed should I apply per acre ?

PM sent...

PM on the way..

Three guys fishing..Three hours...Caught exactly ONE six inch perch.... There must be some fish on that end of the lake, but we sure could not find them..... We did however, run into a couple of friends up there who had a cooler full of nice lakers.. Next time I try for perch I'll probably be going back to Skaneateles....

Handsome Howie and I are going to give the south end of Cayuga a try for perch this morning...Strictly an exploratory venture because neither one of us has ever fished that lake any further south than Taughhannock..

I'm going to the town clerk..I have been doing that the last few years anyway, because she was a hot blonde...And I really think she wanted me.....Hehehehe... She's been replaced by a fat, dumpy chick, but hey, any port in a storm !!

Which is a GOOD thing, because one tenderloin from a bull elk will feed four hungry hunters...

Sorry, I'm having an off day....I think I may have an infected ovary or something...

If that deer dressed 100 pounds it must have had a REALLY big ass !!.... Kinda like The Kardashian of the deer world..

Not that interested in useless fatty frontal adornments.... Now if there happened to be a few pairs of un-washed , well worn panties available....

The heartbreak of psoriasis.........

Happy Birthday, Larry.. !! I didn't start feeling old until I turned 60, so you've got another good year..<<grin>>....