ISOutdoors | October 2015

October 2015

ISOutdoors enjoying the outdoors and sharing it with you

August 2015

PLANTINT TIME

101

KNOW YOUR ETHICAL SHOOTING RANGE TEACHING YOUNGSTERS THINK FOOD; FIND BUCKS

TO FLYFISH

Photo courtesty of www.orvis.com

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October 2015

CONTENT know your ethIcal ShootIng range SIdehookerS: once the rage among anglerS

COLUMNS

thInk food; fInd buckS

hItchhIker

baSS fIShIng bIg game canIne care deStInatIon natIon fIeld teSt publisher Brock RAY

The Electro Mundo Gruppe 202 1st Avenue East Oneonta, AL 35121 205-625-5473 reproduction, in whole or part, retransmission, redirection or linked display is prohibited without written permission from the publisher

The Electro Mundo Gruppe

fly fIShIng ShootIng wongShootIng what’S new collectIbleS featured outfItter

THE ADVENTURE

This month we are writing about one of my favorite fish of them all. It’s the exotic rooster fish. But first, let me tell you something about this awesome fish. It has a dorsal fin that kinda looks like the tail feathers of a rooster thus giving it the name rooster fish. This unique fish is a member of the jack family and fights as hard as they all do. Not like its family the yellow tail and amber jack, the rooster doesn’t make good table fare. It’s just a great fighting game fish that should always be released for the next guy to enjoy. This odd looking fish is found from the southern Baja to Ecuador where it almost always hugs the shore line from a few feet to 500 yards out. Their food consists of bait fish, mainly mullet and sardines, but I think their favorite is the lady fish. The rooster prefers water temperatures of 80 F and higher, at least the monsters do. The average fish caught is about 10 to 35 lbs.

Anything over 50 lbs is a real trophy. The world record right now is 114 lbs from The Baja Mexico. Fishing for these beauties you can surf cast, casting lures that resembles a bait fish into the waves or using live bait like a sardine casting out and letting it free swim. Another way is fly fishing from the beach. I have a good friend named Gary Graham who I think is the best at this there is. He walks for hours looking for the prey and when he sees them slashing water eating bait fish he casts to them with his fly and he is very successful. The other way is from a boat (the best boat being a panga because it’s lower to the water) trolling live bait. I like to use lady fish when we can find them. The way to do this is hook your bait fish in front of the eyes (always with a circle hook - my favorite is the Eagle Claw L 2004 M 9/0) throw a bait out on each side of the boat and troll about 2 knots an hour. When you feel the bait start shaking and moving fast, get ready. The bait will see the rooster coming and will try to get away. When you feel the line going out zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz wait 9 seconds. Then put on the drag and hang on. The fight has started.

Charles (my son) and I are always looking for giant rooster fish. We heard that they were seeing some at East Cape. They were really big animals because a lot of people don’t fish for them. But anyway, we wanted to see because they are such a rare looking fish it makes them good show material. We decided to call a good friend of ours Gary of Rancho Leonero to ask what’s up.

He said yes, the big boys are here.

That’s all we needed. We were on our way. Rancho Leonero is one of our favorite places to stay and fish.

It’s not a hotel. It’s a real fishing camp. The place sits in the mouth of the sea. It has no stores and no tourists, just fishermen getting away from it all. The food is all home cooked. Everything there is

better than great. All the people have smiles on their faces and are really happy to see you. When you arrive you’re a stranger and when you leave you are family. Anyway, we got there. It’s not far from Cabo (about 45 min) or La Paz (1 hour 30 min.) The next day we went out with our favorite guide the famous Santos looking for the monster. We put on 2 lady fish and started trolling. All of a sudden my bait fish started going crazy. Then zzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. I set the drag and the fight was on.

I asked Charles and Santos if they could see what it was. No one knew, but it was kicking my butt. What was this monster of a fish? Then we knew as it came shooting out the water. It was a big marlin. That

wasn’t in the plan, but fun and right off the shore. We hooked on our baits and started again. In about an hour the same started again zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz so I put the drag on. About 1 hour 50 minutes later I had my dream rooster weighing about 120 lbs.

We were sure it was the new world record, but his life meant more to me than my name another time in the record book. If you’d like to watch this video go to www.asobonline.com or would like to fish in Mexico I can help. Write me at thegriz@asobonline.com. Charles and I would be happy to hear from you. Check out our gear at www.

TheGrizGear.com and follow our adventures on facebook, instagram and twitter!

Keep a tight line and if you’re not going eat it, don’t kill it.

UNTIL THE NEXT ADVENTURE WITH THE GRIZ!

know your ethica

The biggest problem facing the future of bowhunting in the South (as well as the rest of the country) is not whether or not there will there be a place to hunt in year 2100, or if there will be plenty of game.

The chronic problem that has plagued archery hunting since its revival in the 1960s animals that are wounded and crippled —

continues to raise its ugly head today.

al Shooting range

by Brock Ray

In the South, the sport of archery hunting has never been more popular. While growth in bowhunting participation is not as fast as it was 10 years ago, ongoing recruitment of new faces in the sport continues at a pace that exceeds the national average. It

has never been easier for a newcomer to bowhunting to obtain reliable equipment and shooting instructions.

When you are in a treestand and the opportunity to arrow an animal such as a whitetail buck presents itself, several things influence the outcome.

ISOutdoors

First, your equipment must be in top operating condition and properly tuned.

You would beamazed to know how many bowhunters have trouble switching from shooting the field points with which they practice to shooting hunting broadheads.

Despite considerable information instructing archers how to paper tune broadheads, and the many archery shops that will do it for a nominal fee, a shocking number of bowhunters accept the fact that there will be a little “fishtailing” in their broadhead arrow flight. www.isoutdoors.com

Manage Your Emotions Emotions are another factor. When the day comes that an approaching whitetail does not make my heart pound hard, I will give up bowhunting. That is why I practice shooting my bow so much. Archery is a sport of repetition. We shoot, and shoot, and shoot, so that when it comes time to take an animal’s life, we are mechanically sound. With experience,managing your emotions becomes easier, but for novice and intermediate-level bowhunters, it is a component of the sport that must be addressed.

ISOutdoors There is nothing more important to ethical bowhunting than for archers to know their shooting limits. It is one thing to stand back 30 to 40 yards punching the “10 ring� on a 3-D target eight or nine times out of 10, and another to hit a moving, living animal at those same ranges. Generally speaking, for nearly all intermediatelevel bowhunters, anything over a 20yard shot is not recommended. Novices need to limit their shots to half that distance.

Granted, a novice or a somewhat experienced bowhunter may have all of the confidence in the world that he can slice a broadhead through the lungs of a buck at 40 yards but, in reality, he has yet to prove this is an ethical shot. An www.isoutdoors.com

ethical shot occurs when you release an arrow at an animal and you are certain that arrow will humanely kill it.

Keep The Odds In Mind The farther an arrow must fly before striking an animal,the greater the odds something might occur that will diminish your chance for a clean kill. Since a considerable portion of Southern bowhunting occurs where there is dense understory,the odds of an unseen twig deflecting the flight of an arrow substantially increase the farther the arrow has to go to make its way to the target. Also, the greater the distance,the greater the odds that you will misjudge the distance between you and the animal.

ISOutdoors practicing in your backyard. But when an eight-point buck is ambling about in heavy cover 30 or 40 yards from your treestand, your heart is pumping like a steam engine in your throat, and your arms are operating remarkably independent of your brain.

Suddenly, it isn’t so easy anymore.

Being an experienced bowhunter, I know about these problems from having made these two key mistakes more than once.

Sure, every archer knows an arrow needs a clear path to accomplish its job. Also, unless an archer is shooting flatter than 90% of the country’s bowhunters, he needs to have the right pin on the kill zone. Easy, right? Yes—when you are www.isoutdoors.com

It is my belief that any archer reading this column places being an ethical bowhunter before the act of killing an animal. If this were not true, you would be using a rifle and a high-intensity light to take a buck out of season. However, it is easy to compromise one’s ethics when you are in a treestand and want to arrow an animal so badly that you push beyond your abilities as a bowhunter.

If you closely restrict your bowhunting shots to within your known killing range, you increase your chances for success and decrease your chances of making a regrettable mistake.

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Pre-planning your shots is one of the best ways to ensure you do not make the mistake of shooting too far. One thing I have found that works very well when placing a novice bowhunter in a treestand is to mark off distances in the circumference of the treestand at the range of 10 to 15 yards, taking into account the height of the treestand, which also influences the distance of the shot. I mark off the distance by putting strips of bright orange surveyor tape, or even toilet paper, at that range www.isoutdoors.com

around the tree. Insofar as there is little drop between 10 to 20 yards, this is a safe approach for most beginning and intermediate bowhunters.

Naturally, every bowhunter who ascends a treestand does so in anticipation of arrowing a whitetail buck.

However,restrain from pushing your shots beyond your established range.

This ensures you will be shooting at your very best,and as ethically as possible.

Side

e-Hookers; Once The Rage Among Anglers

by Don Kirk

ISOutdoors

Old-time lure makers were as peer driven as are their modern counterparts. If you look at the lines of lures made from one large company to another in the 1920s, you find many similarities. Everyone made at least one lure that mimicked a mouse. Everyone made a frog imitator.

Additionally, everyone made at least one of the so-called side-hook baits. While some of those were made for surface fishing, most were not and were called “underwater” minnows.

Today most collectors call these lures www.isoutdoors.com

“sidehookers,” in reference to their unique design, which included a trailing hook located on the rear of the bait, and one to two treble hooks located on the flanks, or sides of the lure. Those with one treble hook on each flank are called three-hookers, and those with twin attachments on their flanks are called five-hookers. While rare, there were even a few of these hooked baits made with twin treble-hook arrangements on their belly, for a total of seven treble hooks, or a porcupine-like total of 21 barbed points.

The Origin Of The Species While it is clouded in controversy, James Heddon, founder of the famed Heddon

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ISOutdoors lure-making empire, is credited with making the first wooden fishing lure.

Starting in the early 1880s, he is believed to have whittled a series of prototype frogs. By the early 1900s he had founded a company that made a bait called the Underwater Expert, which had three treble hooks—one on the tail, and one on each side. Over the next 50 years, the Dowagiac, Michigan-based company made no fewer than four dozen variations of lures that had side-hook style arrangements.

In those days lure making from wood lacked the sophisticated diving bill technology that enables modern lure makers to easily design baits that can be cranked 10 to 15 feet beneath the surface. Making surface or “top water” plugs from wood was easy, as the primary construction material naturally floated.

In order to get the so-called side-hook underwater minnows to depths where bass, walleye, and pike lurked, early lure makers like Heddon drilled small holes www.isoutdoors.com

the size of a pencil eraserin the belly of these baits, then filled those holes with lead. Two was the usual number drilled, but three and four belly weights were not uncommon. Some baits, such as the Heddon Artistic Minnow, had an external weight that could be removed to make it a surface bait.

It did not take long for the success of James Heddon’s side- hooker lures to attract a bevy of imitators, if for no other reason than probably 80% of the old-time lure makers were located within 100 miles of each other along the Great Lakes. In 1908, Adolph Arntz introduced the Michigan Life Like, a side-hook lure with a flexible, sectional tail. In 1904 J.C. Holzworth introduced his own Expert Minnow.

Pflueger, which dated back to the late 1800s as a maker of metal and hard rubber lures, wasted little time in joining the side-hook rage. In fact, there is considerable evidence that the company’s five-hook Wizard Wooden Minnow, which dates back to 1902, was actually the first of the side-hookers.

Pflueger made no fewer than two dozen different side-hookers.

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ISOutdoors Shakespeare, another pioneer of early fishing tackle, located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, actually did use the sidehook arrangement on its all-aluminum Revolution Minnow as early as 1897.

The company was making wooden sidehookers on its vaunted Rhodes Minnow in 1902. By the time this style of lures fell from grace in the eyes of anglers, Shakespeare had marketed almost five dozen different side-hook lures.

of a wide variety of tackle, from rods and reels to lures and nets, made almost a dozen different side-hook lures. Introduced in 1918, the famous Moonlight Dreadnought side-hooker today is one of the most prized of all old baits. Moonlight, which later became PawPaw Bait Company, made almost a dozen side-hook underwater minnows.

PawPaw later only made one.

Of course not all side-hook baits hailed from Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio. The Charmer Bait Company of Springfield, Missouri, began marketing its barberpole-looking side-hookers in 1912.

Winchester, a company best known for its firearms manufacturing, but which has also made everything from rollerskates to sausage grinders, also made fishing tackle. The Connecticutbased company made several side-hook baits, which are highly collectible today.

South Bend, one of the very few companies from that era that is still in business today, began marketing side-hook baits in 1910 under the Worden name. Between then and the mid-1950s, this Indiana-based maker www.isoutdoors.com

Creek Chub, which formed in 1906, was a latecomer to the world of side-hook lures, making only two, the models 1800 and 1900, and then only for a few years.

Their Pikie Minnow had a decent medal diving lip that is used even today. Of

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ISOutdoors the hundreds of millions of baits made

by Creek Chub—more than 80 million pikies were made—only a few thousand of these side-hook Pikie Minnows were ever made and sold.

The Difference In Design Because of the nature of the underwater minnow, which was basically designed for trolling in deep water such as the Great Lakes, the vast majority of these baits were sold in the North. In 15 years of lure chasing in the South, I have found perhaps 75to100 of these baits in “the field,” i.e. in old tackle boxes. Most of these were brought to the South by snowbirds migrating here to retire.

However, there was one application for side-hooker lures that old-timers, especially in Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi, are found of recounting.

It was called jigger-pole fishing. Archie Philips, host of a popular TV show, told me about it, and I have talked to other older men familiar with it. Using a 10-to12-foot-long cane pole, the fisherman would attachfour to five feet of line to it, then tie on a five-hooker.

The lure was dropped beside a stump, and danced like an old wind-up jigger to entice strikes. These old-timers liked the side-hooker lures because if a bass launched to strike, it nearly always impaled itself somewhere.

Side-hook lures are almost always old, usually 70 to 80 years old, and rarely less than 50 years old. They are all interesting, as they were made when lure makers took great pride in the materials and workmanship of their wares. Their value? When I first began collecting and going to lure meets, you could find decent, well-worn side hookers for $5to$10. However, today even beatenup side-hookers are worth $30to$50, and nice ones that are fairly common fetch $100to$300. Truly rare ones bring $1,000to$3,000, and the rarest ten times that amount.

Think Food;

Find Bucks

by Don Kirk

Knowing where bucks will grab a meal is a big deal.

by Brock Ray

ISOutdoors

This is the time of year when the blood temperatureof many Southern whitetail hunters rises. We’ve spent halfof the summer practice shooting our bows and scanning fieldsat dusk for glimpses of what will be our quarries when thehunting season opens. How consistent our opportunities are to spotthese animals after hunting season opens depends on howmuch we know about their food sources.

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Whitetail movement is affected by several factors,including their needs to procreate and to feed. During the early part of the whitetail hunting season,rutting activity has only a limited impact on both maleand female whitetail. In some areas of the South, ruttingactivity begins as soon as midNovember, while in otherregions of the South it occurs up to two or three months later.

Rutting activity significantly alters the behavior ofbucks and, to a lesser degree, does. Prior to the crescendo ofbreeding activity, bucks make scrapes and rubs and joust fordominance among themselves. When this is not at theforefront, these animals concentrate on feeding. For does,finding and tending sources of food is foremost.

Southern whitetail live in two general types of habitat, which differ by the sources of food utilized. The first is woodland-style habitat of heavily forested pine and hardwood, such asthe many national forests along the Southern AppalachianMountains or

coastal and Deep South timberlands.

The secondis farmland, where grain crops such as corn and soybean aregrown. These can be mixed, but usually one source is moredominant than the other. In predominantly forested areas ofthe South, naturally occurring foods such as acorns,honeysuckle vines, and pecans are staples of the whitetail diet.

In areas with hardwood mast (nuts), whitetail hunters ply their trade where these ediblesare found. The South is coveredwith hardwood mast trees, such as white, red, scarlet, post, live, water, andother oak trees, as well as www.isoutdoors.com

ISOutdoors pecans, buckeyes, and beechnuts.Rich in protein and fats, hardwood mast is the cornerstone ofthe whitetail food platform. “Failures,” to which poor to nonexistent crops of hardwood mast are referred, greatlyinfluence whitetail behavior during the hunting season.

Hard vs. Soft Mast In The Woods Hardwood mast is not the only food source of whitetail.During the early part of the season, soft mast is animportant part of the whitetail diet.

Soft mast includesberries, persimmons, mushrooms and the sugary leaves ofdogwood or sugar maple.

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Whitetail rely upon soft mast food sources beforehardwood mast is produced and during hardwood mast failures.High in energy-delivering carbohydrates, soft mast does notprovide the nutrients found in hard mast, and whitetail need those nutrients to survive long winters. Knowing where there soft mastfood sources are found is a help in locating bucks.

Some of the favorite soft mast items in the Southinclude persimmons, especially after the first frosts, wildgrapes, hedgeapples, and apples, which are often available tothese animals around abandoned, old homesteads.

Whitetailhave a bit of a “sweet tooth,” as well as a desire forsomething different in their daily diet. Keep an eye out forsoft mast feeding stations. They are an overlooked ace-in-the-hole when nothing else seems to work during the earlydays of the hunting season.

Whitetail hunting in areas with natural foods requires acertain degree of woodsmanship. When scouting, you must beable to determine where and upon what whitetail are feeding.In most instances, the state Department

of Natural Resourcesor a U.S. Forest Service wildlife biologist can give you accurateinformation as to what foods are found in the area you want to hunt.

White oaks, the leader in the hardwood mast “race” inthe South, are notorious for boom and bust productivity.Drought, too much rain, and late spring frosts greatlyinfluence the relative abundance of white oak acorn crops.

InDixie, bumper crops of white oak acorns sometimes occur forup to three consecutive seasons, as do mast failures. Whenthere are plenty of white oak acorns in the woods, thewhitetail are not motivated to roam about looking for food.

However, when these fingertipsized edibles are notplentiful, whitetail move considerably more in order to satisfy theirhunger.

This presents a problem for sportsmen.

Heavy white oakacorn production provides whitetail an ample supply of food,so they don’t have to wander far for food; thus, opportunitiesfor taking these big bucks outside areas of great white oakacorn production are rare.

Poor white oak acorn productionforces

whitetail to move about and compete for the availablemast; however, these deer are usually in poor health. Thekey, then, is locating areas of high acorn production, forbucks are most likely to feed in those areas.

Hunting in heavily forested areas where whitetail dependlargely, if not solely, on natural sources of food is a stepto good hunting.The downside of such hunting is that theseareas have fluctuating herd populations and fewer deer persquare mile than in areas with mixed habitat or muchagriculture. www.isoutdoors.com

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Field Crops For Bigger Bucks Those areas of the South where widespread, large-scaleagriculture occurs offer a completely different style ofwhitetail hunting. Here these animals not only have a steadysupply of food that keeps their numbers per square mile high,but they also achieve greater body weight and antler growth.Additionally, scouting out their movement patterns is usuallyeasier here than it is in areas dominated by heavily forestedterrain. www.isoutdoors.com

Even the most highly developed Southern agriculturallands, such as the rice plantations of Arkansas, boast aremarkable percentage of woodland habitat around them. Many woodlandsare found at the bottom of less productive farmlands or hillyterrain.

Even where these are not especially common, woodedcovers are found along creeks, irrigation ditches, fencerows, and other places that provide whitetail with escapecover, daytime bedding sites, and

ISOutdoors concealed travel routes.

Glassing fields at dusk is one of my favorite ways toscout out where whitetail feed and how they travel in this kindof countryside. This provides the opportunity to see thecaliber of whitetail there, as well as where they enter thefield. Set up a treestand at their entry spot. Whitetail arecreatures of habit that travel the same routes every morningand evening.

how they are hunted in heavily forested andagricultural areas. Food plots became popular almost 20 yearsago, when landowners began to lease their land to hunters.Whitetail hunters preferred to establish food plots, because they could hunt in acontrolled environment.

Common food plots in Georgiainclude soybeans and corn. In Texas, especially in the dry,western portion of the state, food plots composed of nativeand nonnative plants resistant to droughtare common.

Food plot usage today is considerably morerefined. Now supplements, additives, and nutrients toenhance reproductive success and antler growth are widelyavailable and used. According to a Farmer’s Co-op owner insouthern Alabama, the increasing number of food plots hascaused his establishment to boom.

Food Plots; The Best Of Both Worlds Food plots designed to attract, hold and sustainwhitetail between fall and spring have significantly affectedwhitetail and www.isoutdoors.com

Food plots offer an advantage to Southern whitetailhunters. There are usually many trees with good shootingangles around food plots, which are essential for bowhunters, and wind patternsin food plot areas can be learned in order to enhance arrow accuracy.

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ISOutdoors Landowners can manipulate food plots to their greatesthunting advantage. How and where food plots are located isnot nearly as important to whitetail as they are to hunters.For deer, food plots are merely where desirable, much-needed food isavailable. For hunters, food plots lure in, hold and, ifdone correctly, position these animals for killing.

although this is often the case.Some of the most effective plots I have hunted in the Southwere designed with long “fingers� 50 to 100 feet wide andflanked by tall trees. By strategically planning food plots,hunters can lay them out so they provide the flexibilityneeded to accommodate the wind, but are still large enough totill and sustain season-long feeding.

There is some debate as to what size food plotsshould be to be effective. Most food plot seed providers andwildlife biologists recommend sowing sites that are 2 to 4acres in size. Smaller plots do not sustain whitetailas well as larger plots, because the whitetail can overbrowse thearea to the point that it is no longer useful or effective.

Small food plots are attractive to Southern whitetailhunters who do not have or want the option of putting inlarger food plots. In fact, it is possible for sportsmen tocarry in the 5 to 10 pounds of seed needed to establish an 80-by-40-footplot on public hunting land. Such food plots can be sownaboveground or with hand tools, under soil that has beenworked.

These have little long-lasting value to the localwhitetail herd, but such man-made feeding sites often providean edge in terms of attracting animals within a preestablished shooting strategy.

Larger food plots also allow traditional tilling andseeding of the soil, which enhances growth by more than 50-percent. Above-ground sowing of food plots works well in manyinstances, but it is never as effective as plowing and planting.

Food plots do not have to be created in a neatrectangular or square form, www.isoutdoors.com

Early season whitetail hunting success will improvegreatly if hunters take the snacking habits of these animalsinto consideration when planning food plots and locatingbrowse areas.

OUTFITTER PROFILE

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Fully Guided Ba ABOUT All the conveniences of home in a wilderness setting.

Guided hunts will access the hunting permit by vehicle or on horseback (for an additional fee). 7 day packages include arrival and departure days and 5 full days of hunting. These guided hunts are available on a limited basis. 7 Day packages include Guide, Lodging in our comfortable base camp, Meals, Transportation to the hunting area from camp, and game packing. Meals are served homestyle with hearty helpings of good energy for the days hunt. Your guide will take care of you in the field as well as taking care of packing your game to the main camp where we can take it to the processor

or taxidermist if you choose. These hunts are conducted on my Forest permit area. This area holds a good population of resident elk and is adjacent to Trophy Unit (GMU) 61. We hunt in a manner that they stay in the area and are not blown out. If you are able to draw a deer tag you should consider concentrating on hunting the Trophy Bucks that frequent this area. A combination hunt is available if you would like to hunt Elk and Mule Deer.

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Make Tracks Not Sound as you quietly move through the woods to that primo hunting spot keeping your presence a secret from both man and beast alike. In fact the SUPPRESSOR VLE is so quiet, some folks tell us that the “click” from turning the key is the loudest part of the ride.

The SUPPRESSOR VLE has a midget-racing/hotrod inspired heritage and that means it’s super-tight.

No detail has been overlooked in engineering this game-changing, crossover electric.

Bowhunter Cameron Mitchell got behind the wheel of the SUPPRESSOR VLE to quickly and quietly get up close and personal with the 150” Alabama whitetail that would end up becoming his largest bow kill to date.

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GUN PROFILE

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A beautiful level of finish.

We could not place the RMEF name on this Browning X-Bolt if it was not the real deal. You can be sure it is! Every aspect is perfectly configured and ready to go -- just add your choice of a quality scope and a quality sling. We realize that you may not be interested in this rifle if you are not a member of the RMEF. On the other hand, if you are new to elk hunting and buy this rifle you will instantly have the confidence that it is a perfectly configured setup. One that you can have total confidence in.

The Special Hunter features a fine low-luster bluing on the barrel and receiver with a satin-finished Walnut stock. It also bears the logo of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation on the grip cap. This is a tribute to the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation -- and a percentage of sales from this rifle goes to help support habitat, range, health and studies of elk throughout the United States. This is a worthy cause, supported by worthy firearms and true hunters.

Excellent dimensions all around.

The RMEF X-Bolt Special Hunter features a raised cheekpiece comb which you can see in the profile above. Why a raised comb? This helps to direct recoil into the shoulder area and gets the shooter’s line-ofsight lined quickly with the scope. It is a feature that seasoned hunters look for in a high-powered rifle.

All the best X-Bolt features too.

Top tang safety, detachable Rotary magazine, X-Lock scope mounting, Bolt Unlock Button, Infex Technology Recoil Pad, target type recessed muzzle Crown . . . this rifle has everything that has made the X-Bolt famous and more.

X-Bolt Feather Trigger™ For precise shooting in the field or off the bench, there’s absolutely no substitute for a good, predictable trigger. The X-Bolt’s new three-lever Feather Trigger provides a clean, crisp pull with no take-up or creep and minimal overtravel. The trigger is screw adjustable from 3 to 5 lbs. and factory pre-set at approximately

3 1/2 lbs. An alloy trigger housing contains the hard chromed steel components that are highly polished on all critical contact surfaces. Precise engagement angles mean the X-Bolt Feather Trigger feels light and right and stays that way through many thousands of rounds. Unlike competitors’ triggers with secondary fingerpiece levers, the Feather Trigger is designed right, from the very start.

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F I S H I N G

The Must Know Bass Rigs

by Roger Lee Brown, “The Bass Coach” Many of today’s anglers seem to have the enthusiasm to get themselves all psychedup for that big day of fishing, only to find themselves coming in at the end of the day with only one or two bass caught. They will spend the day, usually casting, re-rigging, running, loosing lures, etc., but most of all getting frustrated because the fish aren’t cooperating. Sound familiar?I sure know this feeling, and I’m sure that any angler reading this article has had the www.isoutdoors.com

same feeling at some point and time.

Now, don’t feel bad if this does happen to you, because you are definitely not alone—there are probably millions of other anglers out there that this same problem happens to. But there are a few “tricks of the trade” that you can use to help remedy this problem.... at least they workfor me and many of my former bass angling students and charter clients that I have taught in the past.

I found that on certain days when the bass don’t seem to cooperate, I usually

will put my action baits away and pull out one of the “last resort rigs,” which are the: 1.

2.

3.

Texas Rig Carolina Rig Floating Rig

These three rigs are probably the most successful patterns for catching bass (largemouth, smallmouth, and spotted bass) that an angler can use just about anywhere and at anytime. Now some anglers may ask, “Why would I use all three of these rigs?” and the answer is really quite simple: It’s like using tools of the trade! A carpenter wouldn’t use a hammer to back out a screw, nor would he or she use a screwdriver to pound nails (Well, at least most of them wouldn’t!) The same goes with bass fishing—an angler should have the right toolsofthe trade to do a specific job!

The Texas Rig The Texas Rig was the first “plastic bait” rig that was used by most of the anglers when the sport of bass fishing really got started more than 25 years ago! It is a simple rig to set up, and has produced

more bass catches than any other artificial bait ever used, even today!

To rig a Texas Rig you will need line, a hook, and a sinker... that’s it! First, you put your sinker (usually a bullet-shaped slip sinker) onto the line, with the smaller point of the weight going on first or “facing up.” Then tie your hook (usually an off-set worm hook) to the end of the line after you put on the weight. Now you are ready for your plastic bait to be put on the hook. (I always refer to artificial baits because I haven’t used live bait in many years.) www.isoutdoors.com

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This type of rig can be fished (or presented) just about anywhere you will find bass. It has certain advantages and disadvantages over the other two rigs that we will talk about, and I will give a few examples after we rig up the Carolina Rig and the Floating Rig.

The Carolina Rig With the Carolina Rig you’ll need line (main reel line), a barrel swivel, about 6 feet of leader line, a weight, glass or brass bead or rattle chamber, and a hook. I know this seems like a lot of stuff, but the results are incredible!

First, take your leader line (usually the same line that is on your reel already, www.isoutdoors.com

but I would suggest at least a 2-pound test less than your main line, in case of a break-off. Most of the time by using a lighter leader line, when it breaks it will break off at the leader line, thus saving the other hardware on the rig.) Tie one end of it to one end of the barrel swivel and then put it aside for a moment. Then take your main line from your reel and first put on the weight (usually anywhere from a 1/2 oz. up to a 1 oz. bullet or egg sinker.) After the weight is on your main line, follow it with a rattle (rattle chamber, glass or brass bead), and then tie the end of the main line to the other end of the barrel swivel that you just put aside.

After you tie to the swivel, tie your hook at the other end of the leader line, giving you a 2- to a 4-foot leader.

Now, you’re ready for the bait!

The Floating Rig Sometimes, when all else fails, the floating rig can and will produce bass.It’s quite simple to rig and the results can be devastating! You will need a smallbarrel swivel and a hook for this rig. First, take about 3 feet off your main line for a

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leader line. Tie one end of your leader line to one end of the barrel swivel, then tie the other end of the barrel swivel to the main reel line. With this rig, you leave off the weight completely. Then, finally, you tie the hook (preferably a light wire worm hook), allowing only about a onefoot leader for the leader line. The reason

for no weight and a light wire hook is to allow as much buoyancy as possible.

This rig is designed mostly for use with floating worms and buoyant plastic artificial baits.

Where To Use What Now, let’s say that you were to fish around rip-rap (rock areas) around dams, levees etc. You probably wouldn’t use a Texas Rig, unless you put the lightest weight possible on it to keep it from getting wedged in the rocks. Nor would you use a Carolina Rig, because the heavier weight (1/2 oz. to 1oz.) would most likely get hung up. So the rig that makes the most sense would be the floating rig. This rig will allow a slow presentation over the rock areas, and any bass that may be around the rocks will come up after it. Also, this kind of rig is better for use around branches, lily pads, thick surface vegetation, etc.

Now let’s say that we are working a downward slope from about 3 to 20 feet in depth. The most sensible rig to use would be the Carolina Rig, because it will stay in contact with the bottom contour

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and, the deeper you work it, giving it line from your reel, the better a bottom presentation you can get. A Texas Rig can be used for this also, but the deeper you go with it, the more it will lift off of the bottom. Let’s say that you were going to work some pockets around a bulrush field. To accurately cast into the pockets, a Texas Rig would be the most preferred becausethe weight of it will let you make more accurate casts. A floating rig could

also be recommended for this type of area.

In thick, sloppy grass and vegetation areas, all three would work, but the Carolina Rig has produced more quality bass in areas like that than the other two rigs. Don’t worry about getting weeds on the Carolina Rig! Just give it a try, then clean the weeds off of the rig and keep casting into those thick areas.

Remember to hold on! www.isoutdoors.com

These rigs can be used anywhere and under just about any circumstances.

Remember this; most bass tournaments have paid out more money to fishermen using these rigs than any other types of artificial baits ever used! So if you’re not using all three of these rigs, give them a try. I promise, the results can be devastating!

If you have any questions regarding this article, please feel free to e-mail me atrlbrown@capital.net, or please feel free to visit my web sites at www.capital.net/~rlbrown and www.fishing-boating.com/basscoach.

Or just give me a call at: (518) 597-4240 Until next time, take care & God bless!

“The Bass Coach”.... Roger Lee Brown

fine-tuning for

tAkIng A BuCk

by Bob Foulkrod Fine-tuning your hunting so that you have an opportunity to kill a mature buck is not as difficult as many whitetail hunters might think. Virtually all of my fining-tuning suggestions are very common-sense ideas that are not only easy to do, but are also habit-forming. In a sense, it is a system that will enable you to take more and bigger bucks this season and in the seasons to come.

Fine-tuning is a percentage game. Unless you know where a buck has been hogtied and awaits you to deliver the “coup de grace,” no whitetail hunter has a 100% chance of taking a buck. On the other hand, if you go into the woods reeking of cigar smoke, day’s-old perspiration, gasoline, or bacon and eggs, and you do not play the wind or, for that matter, bother to conceal yourself at all, your odds of killing even a fawn plummet to virtually zero. And the chances of

taking a mature whitetail buck become astronomically lower!

The first thing I tell whitetail hunters coming to my bowhunting school is to imagine you are vying with a person who is in the woods to kill you. It is a life-or-death struggle in which the wiser, shrewder, more cunning opponent wins the contest. Your opponent has three primary assets—his keen hearing, sight, and olfactory, or smelling,abilities. Well, in real life, you may be the killer, but it is the whitetail that has those three assets.

Keep It Quiet It is difficult to avoid all the things that make noise which the sensitive ears of a whitetail can pick up, but you can try. First, choose clothing that does not make noise when your arm brushes against a limb or the side of your body.

Coarse fabrics, such as those used by

waterfowlers, have no business in a treestand when you are hunting whitetail.

Instead, you should choose fleece or wool.

Each of these fabrics produces limited noise when it comes into contact with other objects.

bushings between the moving parts. If you cannot make your treestand quiet, get another one. On a personal note, I find it interesting that this is the one item on which most whitetail hunters seem to try to save money.

Your treestand should also be quiet.

Before hunting,make sure you have gotten rid of all the squeaks and other noises it can make. If you need to, take your treestand apart and put Teflon

Hide In Plain Sight When hunting from a treestand, if you are not fortunate enough to be in a tree that has lots of limbs above and below you, cut a few limbs to attach both to

and above your treestand. Unless there are limbs around you to break it up, your human outline is easily spotted when you are in a treestand. Adding a few limbs here and there does wonders to prevent your suspicious quarry from spotting you. Concealment has been

made easier by the makers of camouflage.

The key is matching what you wear to the surroundings in which you are hunting.

Make Your Scent Disappear Fooling the eyes and ears of a buck are the easy parts—fooling the ever-probing nose of this animal is quite another matter. This is where fine-tuning begins to take on its true meaning.

What I am about to share with you runs contrary to what many whitetail hunting experts have espoused for years, but it is information that I truly believe can significantly influence your whitetail hunting success, if you follow it.

I wear one-piece rubber boots that extend all the way up to my knees.

Big deal, right? So do you and every other serious whitetail hunter in the world. We do it to prevent leaving our human scent. And, as we have all been told so many times, leather soles leech our human scent to the ground.

On this point I agree—however, have you smelled your rubber boots lately?

Take a big whiff of them—smell like rubber, don’t they? Well, with half of the

whitetail hunters in the world wearing rubber boots, what do you suppose a three-year-old whitetail associates that rubber smell with? Before entering the woods, I spray my boots with coon urine.

It is the only scent I use,and I use it only to mask the rubber smell that emanates from my boots.

There are other things which we, as whitetail hunters,often do that negate our efforts—take urinating while in the treestand, for example. For years, I have carried a urine bottle for when nature calls, so I do not have to relieve myself right off the side of my treestand. “So what,” you say. “These days all whitetail hunters do that.” However, one day it occurred tome Most of us spend so much time on the that not only was urine job or around people that we forget extremely odorous but also, after urinating, the how the natural world works odor is on our hands and, if we urinate facing into the wind, these objectionable scent The next thing I want to do is ask you molecules are allover our bodies. to closely examine how hard you work at controlling the inevitable odor your You can only go so far in removing body produces, as well as the odor of your human odor. You can use scent-free equipment. Equipment odor is an area soaps that retard the growth of odormany whitetail hunters fail to take seriously producing bacteria on the skin, but body enough. It dawned on me a few years ago, odor cannot be totally eliminated. Avoid while I was pulling my bow up from the making the mistake of relying on one of ground to my treestand. I accidentally got those activated charcoal suits. If you think a whiff of my pull rope—it smelled terrible! they work, put one on and fart in it. Works Then it occurred to me that I had used this well, eh? same rope for 10 seasons, and not once Most of us spend so much time on the had I washed it. Today, I use a fresh rope on job or around people that we forget how each of my hunts. the natural world works. It takes most

bowhunters three days in a hunting camp before they start picking up on the sounds and signals around them.

However, if you recognize the fact you need to listen, and make a conscious effort to do so, you can pick up nature’s messages, even on the opening day of the season.

Learning to be alert to the sounds of the woods is not difficult, but it does take a conscious effort. Always remember that hunting is a serious business, and that it is your opportunity to be the predator genetically encoded in you. Fine-tune your equipment and how you hunt, and your odds of taking a buck will increase.

i h

ebraska is one of se eral prairie states where big bucks abound

ins hi i

by Bob Foulkrod

Recognition of the great trophy whitetail hunting available in the high plains states has grown greatly in recent decades. What I refer to as the high plains states includes all or portions of North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming, Colorado, Montana, and Idaho.

Over the years I have hunted them all— with bow, rifle, and muzzleloader.

For easterners, such as myself, it is dramatically different hunting than in, say, Georgia or New York. This is big

country with big bucks—quite a magical combination. One of my favorite, classic high plains state whitetail hunts occurred a few years back, when I hunted with Brad Thayer, a lifelong Nebraska farmer/rancher who also has a passion for going afield to bowhunt with a recurve. On the drive north along state route 29 to Harrison, he said that it was a good 30 degrees warmer than usual for November 7th. The unseasonably warm weather negated the need for the majority of the gear I had shipped to the Thayer ranch.

Located in the hill country between the headwaters of the Nebraska and White rivers, Thayer’s ranch has one large creek that bisects it. Most of the crop farming occurs along the creek’s watered bottoms.

The hills over these low-lying areas are forested in ponderosa pine and scrub oaks.

This is where the bucks bed during the day, overlooking the bottomland fields that they slip into around sundown to forage.

Thayer works hard to insure that highquality whitetail hunting is available on his property. Aside from planting corn in the middle of his lands to attract and keep the deer during the winter, Thayer also places out big, round bales of hay for supplemental winter forage. As we traveled the property, Thayer explained the warm weather had really curbed buck movement, which was usually fairly brisk at this time of year, right before the peak of the rut. He noted that the most consistent whitetail travel was along a game trail leading from high-ground daytime bedding areas in the big timbers down into the bottomlands.

Although it was only the first week in November, the northwestern corner of

Nebraska had already received its first big snow of the season. This area is known for its bitterly cold winter weather: consecutive days of subzero temperature stretch into weeks here, and days when winds of more than 40 miles an hour blast from the northwest are common. But hunters are willing to ignore the weather, since this area of Nebraska is a consistent producer of big whitetail bucks. Whitetail find abundant food here, largely thanks to the agricultural efforts of landowners who generously share with these animals.

Genetically, these area deer are well disposed to become trophies, as they are what wildlife biologists refer to as the Dakota whitetail, a very large-growing deer equal in size to the Northern whitetail of Wisconsin. Found from Nebraska and Wyoming in the south, northward through Saskatchewan and Alberta, these animals have slightly lighter-colored winter coats than other whitetail, and grow heavy, wide-spread antlers.

Thayer’s property has produced more than a few 150 to 160 Boone & Crockett (B&C) class bucks, and doubtless such animals roam where I hunted. During my nine-day hunt, I glassed several animals in the 120 to

140 B&C class, and can say with confidence that, if you book a hunt there, you have an excellent chance of getting a crack at such a trophy buck. Thayer does not take more than two to four hunters at any time, and limits the number of hunts he will book there to eight per season. This ensures that everyone has the highest quality hunt and a legitimate opportunity to take the caliber of animal they visit Nebraska to get.

passed. The wood plank structure was surrounded by large, rolled hay bales.

Looking a third time at the abandoned old ranch house, I was thunderstruck by inspiration. Since the whitetail on the property frequently moved very close to the old ranch house, and obviously were accustomed to its presence, why not employ this structure as a bowhunting blind?

Working On Inspiration During our tour Thayer pointed to an old ranch house dating back to the early 1900s, around which whitetail often

Thayer grinned when I recommended that we consider the old house as a hunting setup. Within minutes he pulled his truck up in front, and we explored

the abandoned dwelling. The house that I saw the black-eyed buck. Trotting had windows facing in every direction, briskly, the animal moved quickly to reach although it was impossible to see out of the does, obviously more than a little all of them at once. After inspecting it, curious to find out if any of them might be we decided that the corner of the house receptive to breeding overtures. Spotting facing the creek bottoms was the best the animals out the window located to my option. The corner of the room had two left, I had a perfect quartering away shot— windows that were close enough that you then the animal turned. could see out in two directions without moving. There was only one M concerns about co otes were problem—although the whitetail passing by these windows were well founded as the animals had accustomed to the window de oured most of the pound openings, the light-colored walls whitetail of the structure’s interior clearly silhouetted my human form and would alert these animals to my presence.

I moved to the other window. From that angle, I had a not-so-perfect quartering I was in the old house again the next toward me shot. During my seminars and morning, then again at evening as the at my bowhunting school, one thing I strive setting sun brightly lit the western to convey is the importance of making sky. Without warning, a group of does quartering away or forward shots—the arrived, returning to feeding areas in goal being to shoot so your arrow exits at the bottomland crop fields from their an angle at the leg on the opposite side. daytime bedding spots high in the hilltops.

Such an arrow path places the broadhead Reaching the hale bales stacked near smack in the middle of the lungs and often the house, these hungry does stopped takes the heart, as well. Another thing I talk to browse before moving on to the main about during my school and seminars is course of alfalfa and milo. It was then controlling your emotions.

Living With Your Mistakes Having said that, I made two mistakes.

The first was not controlling my emotions, so that I could make a good judgment call on my shot. There he was—a big buck—a buck that makes you heave and sweat like going to your first dance with that little brown-eyed girl in your English class. I put the pin on his chest—he was

my stomach was not hurting as badly as the buck’s, it was certainly knotted. Just like you, I strive to make the cleanest kills possible. And, just like you, I make mistakes – and gut shooting any whitetail nauseates me.

The broadhead missed the lungs and heart, exiting short of the buck’s hind leg. Its path had mortally wounded the buck, but in the liver and the guts. Typical of incorrectly arrowed whitetail, the big buck leaped upward, bowing its body in reaction to the pain. When its hooves hit the ground, the animal raced away. While

The next day we found my buck—what was left of it. My concerns about coyotes were well founded, as the animals had devoured most of the 250-pound whitetail.

About all I salvaged was the horns. Looking at the horns, I was pleased with their size.

Seizing them, I examined them closely.

Having picked them up meant I had to tag

There was no use trailing the buck. I knew we had to let it lie down and die. Pushing it, even in two to three hours, would probably would ha e tagged it as it was m result in getting the fault did not control m emotions animal up and sending it so far away that it would and think m shot through never be found. On the other hand, I knew there mine. I released the arrow as smoothly as was coyotes in the area—how many I a 1958 Buick hitting overdrive. I saw the could only guess at. Returning to the ranch arrow hit. It was dead on—dead on the house where Thayer’s hunters stay during chest, not at an angle. I instantly knew I their hunts here, I endured a sleepless had made a mistake. night.

the animal, or least what little of it was left.

Even if it had been a small buck, I would have tagged it, as it was my fault I did not control my emotions and think my shot through. Being an ethical hunter is not always fun, a case in point checking in the 25 pounds that were left of my buck.

After a day of scouting, the rifle season opened. There I was.

Oh yeah, you are a bowhunter. That is a story I won’t bore you with (hee,hee‌).

If you are interested in making a bowhunting trip to Nebraska for whitetail, you have to apply in advance for a tag. The best hunting for nonresidents is found on private farmland, and a growing number of farmers and ranchers here offer hunts. I plan to return to hunt with Brad Thayer this fall. He

has a great operation, and his bucks are big and sturdy. For more information, call or write Brad Thayer; 522 West hat Creek Road; Harrison, NE 69346; phone 308-6682121.

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Heatstroke Drs. Foster & Smith, Inc. Marty Smith, DVM

Heatstroke occurs when normal body mechanisms cannot keep the body’s temperature in a safe range. Animals do not haveefficient cooling systems (like humans, who sweat) and get overheated easily. A dog with moderate heatstroke (bodytemperature from 104º to 106ºF) can recover within an hour if given prompt first aid and veterinary care (normal bodytemperature is 100102.5°F). Severe heatstroke (body temperature over 106ºF) can be deadly and immediate veterinaryassistance is needed.

Signs A dog suffering from heatstroke will display several signs: Rapid panting Bright red tongue Red or pale gums Thick, sticky saliva www.isoutdoors.com

Depression Weakness Dizziness Vomiting, sometimes with blood Diarrhea Shock Coma What You Should Do Remove the dog from the hot area immediately. Prior to taking him to your veterinarian, lower his temperature by wetting himthoroughly with

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cool water (for very small dogs, use lukewarm water), then increase air movement around him with a fan.

CAUTION: Using very cold water can actually be counterproductive. Cooling too quickly and especially allowing his bodytemperature to become too low can cause other life-threatening medical conditions.) The rectal temperature should be checkedevery five minutes.

Once the body temperature is 103ºF, the cooling measures should be stopped and the dog should be driedthoroughly and covered so he does not continue to lose heat. Even if the dog appears to be recovering, take him to yourveterinarian as soon as possible. He should still be examined since he may be dehydrated

or have other complications.

Allow free access to water or a children’s rehydrating solution if the dog can drink on his own. Do not try to forcefeed coldwater; the dog may inhale it or choke.

What Your Veterinarian Will Do Your veterinarian will lower your dog’s body temperature to a safe range (if you have not already) and continually monitorhis temperature. Your dog will be given fluids, and possibly oxygen.

He will be monitored for shock, respiratory distress,kidney failure, heart abnormalities, and other complications, and treated accordingly. Blood samples may be taken before andduring the treatment. The clotting time of the blood will be monitored, since clotting problems are a common complication.

Aftercare Dogs with moderate heatstroke often recover without complicating health problems.

Severe heatstroke can cause organdamage that might need

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ongoing care, such as a special diet prescribed by your veterinarian. Dogs who suffer from heatstrokeonce increase their risk for getting it again and steps must be taken to prevent it on hot, humid days.

Prevention Any pet that cannot cool himself off is at risk for heatstroke. Following these guidelines can help prevent serious problems.Keep pets with predisposing conditions—like heart disease, obesity, older age, or breathing problems—cool and in theshade. Even normal activity for those pets can be harmful.

Provide access to water at all times.Do not leave your pet in a hot parked car,

even if you’re in the shade or will only be gone a short time. Thetemperature inside a parked car can quickly reach up to140 degrees.Make sure outside dogs have access to shade.

On a hot day, restrict exercise and don’t take your dog jogging with you. Too much exercise when the weather is veryhot can be dangerous.Do not muzzle your dog.Avoid places like the beach, and especially concrete or asphalt areas where heat is reflected and there is no access toshade.Wetting down your dog with cool water or allowing him to swim can help maintain a normal body temperature.

Move your dog to a cool area of the house. Air conditioning is one of the best ways to keep a dog cool, but is notalways dependable. To provide a cooler environment, freeze water in soda bottles, or place ice and a small amount ofwater in several resealable food storage bags, then wrap them in a towel or tube sock. Place them on the floor for thedog.