kids and cane poles

I purchased some cane poles for the kids the other day. We went back down to the creek today and did a little fishing. I even got in on the action and caught a nice bass. Lyla picked up the camera at the end and snapped a nice picture of the black belly whistling ducks flying over our neighbors house.

bass in the creek

Well its official, there are more than just shiners in the creek. I ordered a shimanno citica the other day and it came in the mail while i was at work yesterday. I spooled it up this morning to test it out. On the second cast I hooked a small bass. A couple casts later I hooked this nice 4 pounder. Now I need a small Jon Boat so I can explore the lakes.

turkey scout II

Johnny and I went scouting again on Monday. We took bikes this time and went much deeper into the swamp. The green swamp is much more beautiful than I had imagined. I could have wondered around in there all day. I can't believe I haven't been taking advantage of this place all these years when it is so close to home. We were very surprised by the six foot alligator we almost ran in to. We found a nice spot that is loaded with turkey tracks. We even saw a few turkeys. We got a little lost but finally got our bearings and found our way out. At the truck I found five ticks already embedded in my skin and removed them. Johnny had two. I guess his blood is not as sweet as mine, go figure. We don't have a permit for Saturday or Sunday but we will be there first thing Monday morning. 

shiners on the creek

Last week we moved to a new house. There is a creek next to the house that leads to larger phosphate pits. I wanted to take the kids down to the creek and see if we could catch anything. All of my fishing reels were stolen from our previous house but I have a few rods and some line so we tied up a make shift rig and headed out. We caught some shiners on bread balls and the kids had a blast. The next order of business is to get some reels and a jon boat to explore the pits and hopefully find some bass.

turkey scout

I have been turkey hunting once in my life about eight years ago and I did not shoot a turkey. I live about 20 mins from the green swamp and decided that it's about time I got in on the action. Johnny and I went out to get the lay of the land yesterday. It was more to just get our bearings than to actually scout. We found the check station and walked several miles out into the swamp. We didn't find any turkeys or what you would consider good turkey areas but it helped take away some of the intimidating factor of a 50k acre area. We have a much better idea of what we are up against. I don't expect a lot but it will be nice to add another hunting season to the year.

bonk!

Johnny shot this video on one of our last hunts.

final hunt

The end is here. Tomorrow is the last day of duck season and I have to work all day. This morning Jed and I went out for our last hunt. I have to work tonight so we kept it local and quick. We had three mallard hybrids come right into our spread. We splashed down a drake and a hen. We saw a few teal and black bellies but nothing in range. I ended the day by shooting a coot for birdie. It has been a great season. No complaints here. Can't wait till September.

the end is near

It was perfect duck hunting conditions this morning. Temps in the mid 40s, 10-15 mph winds, and super overcast. The birds decoyed better than they have all season long. I was able to shoot my limit a little after 9 am. Johnny has a scratched cornea and was having a lot of trouble focusing on the ducks but he still managed a couple of birds. Birdie retrieved seven of the eight ducks perfectly. If this is my last hunt it will be a great way to end the 2012/2013 season. However, I am still holding out hope for one more hunt on Saturday before work.