Well I was hoping to sneak out of work early to go deer hunting tonight. We have a huge storm sitting on us right now and the deer should be moving.

Unfortunately It was 5:15 before I could leave work which left me exactly 25 minutes until the end of shooting light. Not enough time for deer hunting but just enough to get into my favorite predator spot for a quick call.

I settled in behind my rifle and let out a series of cottontail distress aimed at the swamp in from of me. I called on and off for 5 minutes before I saw a coyote heading away from me 40 yards away in the thick swamp brush. It was the big dog I’ve been after for a while and damned if he didn’t beat me again.

I continued my calling sequence and after 5 more minutes a second coyote showed itself and came trotting out of the swamp 30 yards to my left stopping behind a big maple tree.

Some patience and gentle coaxing lured the coyote to 20 yards where she presented a clean head shot. I settled the crosshairs between her eyes and I watched as she dropped like a bag of rocks.

Less than 20 minutes on stand and I had 2 coyotes show up within 50 yards and had one over my shoulder on my way to the car. Goes to show that keeping your gear in your car and taking advantage of every calling opportunity can sure pay off.

Looking forward to really getting into the swing of predators soon.

Shoot straight.

Opie

Well it that time of year when the leaves start falling and that action heats up. I’ve already seen some great rut activity and am looking forward to prime time.

Got some pretty nice things planned for this season so stay tuned!

The river was a little high, an while we caught fish it was not gang busters. We caught fish on top water but the best bite was deep. I guess the fish thought it was too hot as well.

We had a great evening! Getting outside and exploring is always better then being inside and comfortable. We determined this section should be fished more, and had a couple good laughs, that were mostly at my expense! Most of all we were outside enjoying this beautiful state we live in.

Get outside and explore,

PT

I had grandiose plans for the weekend of spending all day on the stream chasing spring steelhead and having fun relaxing. Turns out Mother Nature had other plans and dumped a whole pile of rain on us this week causing the rivers to all blow out. And to top it all off it’s snowing, blowing and cold today. Go figure.

I’m pretty bummed out because PT snuck out fishing on Tuesday an absolutely slayed the steelhead which puts me seriously behind in the FLG Steelhead challenge.

The run is hot and heavy right now and there is still some time left so I might have a chance at redemption once the rivers come down.

I sure hope that’s the case or PT isn’t going to let me live down the defeat.

At least one of the boys is out there getting it done. Nice work PT.

Tight lines,

Opie

So what to do when the sun is shinning and warming up? I took my chocolate lab Georgia to chase some bunnies. She is getting a little older and honestly is a horrible rabbit dog, I tried to tell her to stick to ducks and pheasants, but when she sees a gun come out she will not be left behind.

We had a wonderful walk and a expected saw zero bunnies. The funny thing is I didn’t care and neither did she. It was wonderful to get outside, but I would have much rather been on the river playing with some fresh steelhead. Spending time with my dog and just slowing down is good for the soul.

Tight lines,

Pt

The temperature this morning was 5 degrees with a windchill in the negative numbers and I had the day off of work. I couldn’t think of anything I’d rather do then to spend the day chasing predators.

I was on my second set on a new piece of land just after noon overlooking a swamp and creek.

After starting out with some rodent sounds I switched to a raspy cottontail on a different hand call. As I scanned the swamp I caught movement out of the corner of my eye…CLOSE! I turned my head in time to see a big boar coon barreling towards me at 20 yards. I quickly dropped my call and before I could get him in the crosshairs he had turned 180 degrees and ran behind some brush. I resumed calling and instantly he charged again. When he reached 15 yards he stopped, I pulled the trigger to a loud click… I had forgot to chamber a round. He again returned where he came from as I loaded my gun. As I resumed calling he charged once more and at 20 yards my 40 grain bullet found its mark between his eyes.

I continued calling and noticed another set of eyes peaking out from behind a tree. After a few minutes another big coon showed himself and a second bullet found its mark.

They weren’t the coyotes that I was hoping for on that set but it sure made for an exciting time.

That’s why I love predator hunting. You just never quite know what you’re going to get.

Shoot straight!

Opie

Been having a blast up north predator hunting. Had a few coyotes in so far but no luck getting em in the dirt. Ready to keep on trucking tomorrow and get some fur in the truck.

I am happy to say that my skunk has been lift as the river rewarded my hard work with this beauty on my second cast! My new Mystic switch rod was amazing.

We ended up landing four nice steelhead, and a couple of trout!

It was an amazing day on the river with a great friend.

See you on the river!

PT

Well it’s that time of the season when you have to start working a little harder to avoid eating a tag sandwich. Tex and I just finished brushing in two sweet ground blinds in prime late season spots. Hopefully this property still has a monster hanging around! Stay tuned…This could be good!

Opie

Out sitting in the ground blind with Tex trying to whack a monster buck with the smokestick and paint this fresh snow red.

Opie