Outdoorsman Thread

[Old Hunter]

Cottonmouth, Copperhead, Eastern Diamondbacks, and Canebrake rattlers all share the woods and swamps here in eastern NC. You just pay good attention where you step and where you sit (applies to Fire ants and Poison Ivey too). I see them but have never been bit (so far) and intend to keep it that way. OH

[Old Hunter]

Hit the Trent River for Shad this afternoon, as typical lately there were no Shad in the Trent today - but I did catch a 19” Striper on a LMB lure to avoid the stank. Had to throw it back as they are not legal to keep in the Neuse River or its tributaries - effective this Sunday it would be a nice keeper size on the Roanoke River. OH

[djknife13]

All our snakes are people friendly as far as venom is concerned. It's too cold for most venomous critters up here. Our stars are in full view with no night lights anywhere around here. It's even bright to walk on a clear night when the noon isn't giving any light. On a dark cloud covered night, you can't see you're hand in front of your face and that used to freak out my city dwelling nephews when they came out to visit at night. We live in a pretty dense wooded area with brush filling in under the trees, and a friend from the Southwestern plains said he got claustrophobic up here. I told him that when we visited him at his farm, I felt like everyone from 20 miles around was watching me. ____Dave......nice fish OH

[Steve Warden]

Hit the Trent River for Shad this afternoon, as typical lately there were no Shad in the Trent today - but I did catch a 19” Striper on a LMB lure to avoid the stank. Had to throw it back as they are not legal to keep in the Neuse River or its tributaries - effective this Sunday it would be a nice keeper size on the Roanoke River. OH

Niiiiiiiice!
I remember my uncle catching stripers up in Maine.
Good eatin'!

[RobesonsRme.com]

The house from under which the snakes were removed is, most likely, in serious violation of city codes re' electrical wires.

Charlie Noyes
(Raised by an electrician)

[treefarmer]

Two good stories there Philip! Congrats! If ya get a chance some time, show us that cart. Looks like it's a pretty cool toy! Do the dogs get to ride in that one with you sometimes?

Responding to Tom's question concerning the "cart". The cart is an old Club Car 48 volt golf cart. It has a bit of a lift to accommodate the bigger tires on the front and also longer spring shackles on the rear for the same reason. It was a beautiful burgundy red when we bought it but ended up olive drab color.

How it used to look, those grands are now 14 and 15.

How it looks today

Two different gun racks and some big time bright lights make this an ideal ride around the place. Most of the time it does pretty well in the woods and fields, most of the time:

Needed a little pull to get out of this slick spot.

We have a trailer that I use to haul the lawn mower that the cart will fit on when we take it to the lease property.

Cart on trailer with dog investigating

Tom the both dogs love to ride:

Big dog in the deer woods

[TPK]

Great pictures Philip! Thanks for posting!
Now that's a really cool ride my friend! And I bet the grads & those dogs enjoy it as much as you & Miss Joy!
Wouldn't mind having one of those bad boys!

[Old Hunter]

Nice, purpose built rig you’ve got there Phil - looks like it will get ‘er done! OH

[big monk]

Congrats on the deer harvest Phillip ,lots of good eats there -- I had some venison andouiile sausage made this year and have really enjoyed it. I also ate my first ""wild hog sausage"" a few weeks back and it was outstanding ( don't know what the guy seasoned with,but sho' was good**)

That cart looks like just the thing to ramble around the property and help keep you hunting, as the birthdays keep adding on -- my 4-wheeler is what gets me in & out of the woods,now days, so I can still enjoy the hunts & outdoors with minimum wear & tear on this ol' body** --- have a great day, my friends,Monk

PS____ Phillip, I know you process your own and wanted to pass along a seasoning mix company, that a friend told me about, You may have already found or used the folks ??? I was just surprised at the selection they have ( wish I could try them all !!! )

https://www.conyeagerspice.com/fresh-sa ... easonings/

[treefarmer]

big monk, I'm not familiar with that company. We've been using A.C. Leggs Old Plantation Sausage seasoning. Miss Joy's dad used it at his meat processing plant when we were first married back in 1966, been using it ever since. Leggs has a large variety of seasonings for processed meats, we use the #10 blend which is available at the local Piggly Wiggly.
Today was the last day of M/L season. Went over to the lease around 5pm and sat till dark, the wind was wrong but sometimes you can get away with it, not tonight. As my old buddy Wendell Hodges used to say, "At least we don't have to clean one tonight!" Wendell R.I.P.
As I locked the gate tonight I wondered how many more times I would get to open and close this gate? Been going into the lease on this road for way over 20 years.
Had a pretty good season, killed a doe and a 5 point on the lease and two 8 points on our farm. Thank you, Lord.
Here is my best friend with his 1st deer (he started late in life):

Wendell R. Hodges (1938-2018) Notice the date on the old photo 1-1-'97, a good way to start a new year!

Here's the gate on the road we've used for a long time:

Closing down deer season at the lease for another year.

Treefarmer

[garddogg56]

A good read TF We all wonder that

[treefarmer]

For folks that don't quite understand all the hoopla about deer huntin', this is part of what it's all about:

Boneless venison chops ready for packaging and vaccuming. Nothing but pure, wonderful, wild meat! No bone, no sinew, no silver skin, just good healthy red meat, all cut and trimmed with a knife. No offence intended to any vegans who might see this.

Treefarmer

[Steve Warden]

For folks that don't quite understand all the hoopla about deer huntin', this is part of what it's all about:001.JPG
Treefarmer

Lookin' good!
How do you cook 'em up?
Would they grill well, not having very much fat at all?
Or better in a stew?

[treefarmer]

Steve, there is only one piece better than these and it is the tenderloin which is the filet mignon on a deer. These are boneless loin chops, the big muscle of the T-bone on a beef. They can be grilled, they can be seared in a very hot skillet of peanut oil for a very short time, they can be wrapped in bacon and broiled, etc.....but they can't be cooked very long! Definitely not stew meat and concerning the fat issue, we find that venison fat for some unknown reason just doesn't please our palate, it seems to become rancid if left on the meat.
The picture is of 4 back straps, from two deer, trimmed of anything that would tend to be tough, etc.
As we work up some other pieces I'll try and show a picture or two of how we process the deer.
Treefarmer

[Steve Warden]

Man, fire up the grill, toss on a few chunks of oak...
I'm there!

Gettin' hungry and it's still three hours 'til lunch!

[bighomer]

Just came by. Momma and daddy maybe they'll have a baby.

[Doc B]

For folks that don't quite understand all the hoopla about deer huntin', this is part of what it's all about:001.JPG
Treefarmer

Lookin' good!
How do you cook 'em up?
Would they grill well, not having very much fat at all?
Or better in a stew?

The backstrap, shown...is the equivalent of a ribeye steak. It is the large muscle that runs along either side of the spine. Like TF and you have said...it is very lean. In addition to TF methods, I enjoy chicken fried with cream gravy. It keeps it moist. I posted a picture, on the 14th of February, in this thread.
Stew meat would usually come from the lesser cuts and miscellaneous smaller muscles or cubed pieces from shoulder / rump cuts.
A lot of good meat there, TF!!!

[Steve Warden]

Doc, being up here in the North, I read your post as, "I enjoy chicken, fried, with cream gravy." I'm thinkin', "What the heck does chicken have to do with deer steaks?"
Then my West Virginia blood (Dad's side), along with in-laws from Kentucky and points South, kicked in, and I realized/remembered what "chicken fried" means!

[Doc B]

Doc, being up here in the North, I read your post as, "I enjoy chicken, fried, with cream gravy." I'm thinkin', "What the heck does chicken have to do with deer steaks?"
Then my West Virginia blood (Dad's side), along with in-laws from Kentucky and points South, kicked in, and I realized/remembered what "chicken fried" means!

Of course you can chicken-fry a tennis shoe, cover it in cream gravy...and it will taste good.

[treefarmer]

Just came by. Momma and daddy maybe they'll have a baby.

That's a fine buck!
Not by any means an expert but I'd say that is a young deer. See how his body in the last picture looks like a race horse, an old buck will have more of a pronounced gut, heavier deeper body than this one. With that much of a rack now he should be a humdinger in another year or two. He'd be a shooter around here, nobody lets 'em walk around here. If I feed him, food plot and corn, etc. all year and wait for him to grow into a big boy someone else would shoot him if he crosses on to another property. Unless a person or group can control a large tract of land it usually doesn't do much good to let a legal buck walk. We tried an 8 point rule on the lease years ago and it didn't do anything but frustrate a few members and give others next to the lease a chance at a well fed buck. Our lease is rather small, 340 acres, surrounded by other smaller farms and people with different ideas than growing antlers. Our farm is only 80 acres and a buck ain't going to stay on such a small piece of dirt all the time.
Just a ramblin' comment on your fine young buck, bighomer. Thanks for sharing the pictures!
Treefarmer

[bighomer]

Farmer I think you are on the money about him being a youngster. I was a little surprised that he still had his antlers as several weeks ago one had already shed or maybe just lost one. . Anyway as you noted he'll be a hoss in a few years if he lives. Glad you enjoyed the photos.

[treefarmer]

During our late M/L season I chose to hunt of the lease property for now what was a pretty lame reason. I have a decent Knight muzzledloader that is capable of 200 yard shots, according to the paperwork and online reports. I'm probably not going to shoot that far anymore even with my .243! All that said, the lease has very limited visibility, the longest shot would be about 85 yards at this stag of timber growth and storm damage. So earlier I posted about my episode at the clay pit when I killed a small buck on the lease on Tuesday the 25th. Wednesday evening we usually go to church and Thursday I processed a deer taken a week or so earlier, I was too tired to go to the woods that afternoon. So here is what walked by my stand that Thursday afternoon. This is about 150 yards from our house, he is about 50 yards from my stand. I should have been there. Maybe he'll be there next season.

Treefarmer

[garddogg56]

He'll be bigger next year TF.

[TPK]

During our late M/L season I chose to hunt of the lease property for now what was a pretty lame reason. I have a decent Knight muzzledloader that is capable of 200 yard shots, according to the paperwork and online reports. I'm probably not going to shoot that far anymore even with my .243! All that said, the lease has very limited visibility, the longest shot would be about 85 yards at this stag of timber growth and storm damage. So earlier I posted about my episode at the clay pit when I killed a small buck on the lease on Tuesday the 25th. Wednesday evening we usually go to church and Thursday I processed a deer taken a week or so earlier, I was too tired to go to the woods that afternoon. So here is what walked by my stand that Thursday afternoon. This is about 150 yards from our house, he is about 50 yards from my stand. I should have been there. Maybe he'll be there next season.WGI_0001.JPG
Treefarmer

That was close to the end of season right? Next year you'll know he is around TF.

[big monk]

Almost turkey season here in South Carolina -- I don't hunt em', but have some stop by my deer feeder for lunch,some days -- have a great day,my friends,Monk**