philoshop

My Grandmother preferred that I shoot the young ones who didn't have to dig to stay alive. They were pretty tender, and it thinned the population. It would be interesting to try dry-aging. It wouldn't take much of a refrigerator to hang a few for a while.

I've eaten a lot of them, and the meat is very tasty. The meat tends to be pretty tough and needs to be marinaded and/or aged, but I think that's because they pretty much dig for a living and their muscles are well-toned. They eat the same stuff that cows and deer do so it's not diet, but they can move a heck of a lot of dirt pretty quickly when so motivated. As I recall, my grandmother used to gut and skin them and hang them in the root cellar for several days, similar to how you'd handle an old deer.

Best of luck to you! I'll keep my fingers crossed. Take your camera!

A lot of it is just about keeping 'open' fields open rather than letting them become copses of briers and such. One spot I hunt is planted and harvested by Amish and Mennonite farmers. As a general rule they wouldn't pay the state to work that land. The DEC guy I talked to many years ago said it was to keep some portions of the property more open for various wildlife. Cheaper than having the state do it as it costs them nothing to have someone else do it. The state also allows free firewood cutting in certain areas, but the regulations are extremely strenuous. For example, the firewood cannot be sold, it must be for personal use only, and if you trample a sapling while getting away from a mature falling tree you can be fined. You're not allowed to clear escape paths for the saw-man doing the felling. That's both dangerous and ignorant. I don't know any wood-burner who's ever participated in that particular firewood program. There is a lot of state land that could benefit from a bit of thinning with regard to mature trees, and there are a lot of people who could use the wood.

Interesting and funny story: My Dad is a retired Dentist who had an office in Newark for many years. He had someone in his chair one day when there was all of a sudden a loud hammering noise coming through the A/C system. It kind of jolted everyone in the office, but Dad stayed calm and didn't screw anything up. My Mom, the receptionist and a farm girl, went out to see what was going on and found a Pileated woodpecker hammering away at the stainless steel exhaust stack on the roof. That nutty bird came back for a couple of days before I put an owl decoy up there. Maybe he was training for the woodpecker triathlon or something? We still laugh about it.

Happy Birthday CCHC! Enjoy!

Fur trapping is damned hard physical work. I quit when I was in my early twenties, even though the prices were still decent. I chose roofing, siding and framing houses over trapping. That should say something.

As good a time as any to do a full renovation. Best of luck to all concerned.

An old-fashion ratchet type car jack will work also if there's a solid way to connect it to the stakes. Unfortunately it will probably break the trap chain, so another connection is likely necessary. Best of luck.

My brother's father-in-law is from Italy, 80-something years old. He still hangs various homemade meats and cheeses in his attic stairwell. I don't think he does the smoker thing, but when he brings out a special treat for a visitor it's always good.

I could easily change that quote to, "A firefighter doesn't train to stay in the house, that's not what firefighters are for."

I wouldn't want to drop it in the mud while squirrel hunting, but I'd definitely take it to the range for some casual plinking. "A ship in port is safe, but that's not what ships are made for". Don't remember who said that.

Very nice! And congratulations again!

I never knew how much work there was to do 'til I retired. And I'm not even married.

It's a necessary chore, it ain't supposed to be a career, Landtrac.

I'm absolutely a Stihl guy, especially when it comes to gas chain saws, but I know nothing about their electric offerings or what their replacement batteries cost. If the cost of battery replacement is more than the cost of a whole new tool, I think twice about the whole thing. Like I've said , my Dad has the Lowes electric model and loves it for puttering around his yard. He hasn't killed any batteries so far, and he's not exactly kind to them.

Paula, I'm just hoping they get the message. Don't bite that guy.

My Dad has a Lowes electric one and likes it around his yard. It's whatever the store brand at Lowes is, the blue one. When he comes to help on my lawn he uses my Stihl FS 55. It starts easily, always runs well, and swings some pretty heavy string for the nasty stuff if necessary. Even I can still start it, even though the chainsaws are becoming out-of-bounds for me. It all depends on how much use it's going to see. Those batteries aren't cheap.

I know what it looks like and how to avoid it, but every fall when I sort through the camo gear I end up with a small itchy patch somewhere on my arms or hands. The oil doesn't dissipate very quickly.

Pulled one out my leg on my upper thigh Sunday morning. Close to the heart, as they say. ;-] He was dead. Probably alcohol poisoning from the party on Saturday. Now I know.

All the best to you, Grampy! It's no fun gettin' old, but it sure beats the only alternative! Good day to you!

But the "head shops" will be banging Wooly's door down soon.

Just to note; that's Glenn Curtis. He also made the first controlled aircraft flight in history about six years after the Wright brothers went up and down along the beach. If you're ever in Hammondsport at the south end of Keuka lake, check out the Curtis Museum.

Like I said, I used to ride.

I have no problem with motorcycles, I rode them for years. But I've heard a dozen of them go past my house throughout this morning like jet fighters. Well over a hundred MPH I'd guess, given that I live here and have developed something of an ear for traffic. Even the trash haulers going 65 MPH back to NYC take a while to pass by. These things are like bugs passing by in two seconds. Are they stupid kids, or stupid adults? Or just people happy that winter is over? I'm well outside of 'town', but there are still houses lining the road. Any "crotch rocket" enthusiasts have an answer?