I Just Shot a Freaking Elk!

Just as dad stepped out of the cabin into the glow of the headlights of Bub’s waiting truck, Sissy caught sight of the first few snowflakes falling. While it is far from out of the ordinary to see snow in late October at over 9000 feet of elevation, the crew had been at the cabinContinue reading “I Just Shot a Freaking Elk!”

Why I Hunt

When she was about 11 years old, my youngest cousin Sydney innocently asked me one of the most poignant, thought provoking, and downright puzzling questions I’ve ever been asked. To put it in perspective just how remarkable that question was, she is now getting ready to graduate high school and I still do not feelContinue reading “Why I Hunt”

Taking the Old Man Turkey Hunting

This spring I got the opportunity to flip the script on my dad and teach him a thing or two about hunting. My dad taught me just about everything I know about deer hunting, but he never really got as into turkey hunting and has never actually harvested a bird. Independently of him I tookContinue reading “Taking the Old Man Turkey Hunting”

Hunt the Hens

Gobblers aren’t gobbling? Or they’re gobbling just a little (primarily on the roost) but they’re clearly locked up with a hen? Either way, they simply aren’t buying what you’re selling. Even the most experienced hunters and expert callers will admit that it is extremely difficult to pull a gobbler away from a hen he’s alreadyContinue reading “Hunt the Hens”

Finding Jesus in the Field

Trace Adkins released a song in 2020 titled ‘Mind on Fishin’, a rather lighthearted ditty about skipping church to hit the lake and wet a line. It’s a fun, quirky song that also opens up the opportunity for conversation about which is really the greater detriment; skipping a Sunday service to enjoy His creation orContinue reading “Finding Jesus in the Field”

(Don’t Fear) The Reaper

A Blue Oyster Cult classic, a prescription for more cowbell, and of course, the hottest topic at hand in the hunting community in light of the growing popularity of this method of hunting turkeys. With the Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission recently outlawing reaping/fanning on public land in the state (among other regulation changes) theContinue reading “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper”

The Last Feather Falls

KA-BOOOOM                 The blast of a shotgun reverberated across the otherwise quiet marsh in the still evening air. With just about 10 minutes of legal shooting light remaining and just one green head shy of his limit, Wayne shouldered his Mossberg and connected a number two with the mallard as it passed overhead. Even forContinue reading “The Last Feather Falls”