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 cabin…
Dead Heads and Hot Rods
Recently while implementing some timber stand improvement by way of hack and squirt for a customer, I stumbled upon one of a deer hunter’s least favorite things: A dead head. A nice one at that. A solid main frame eight pointer that was just starting a G4 tine on the left side and sporting an…
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 feel…
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 took…
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 already…
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 or…
Preseason for Duck Hunters
When it comes to hunting I’ve always said that if there’s a season for it, chances are I hunt it. This is especially true in the fall during duck season. Generally a 60 day season (more if you include early teal season) in Missouri, there is always plenty of opportunity to get out in the…
Little Jack’s First Hunt
Matty Thornton was an avid hunter and outdoorsman, having been enamored with the sport for as long as he could remember. As is the case for a great many people like Matty, he was introduced to the wonderful world of hunting by his father. It was a tradition that reached as far back as the…
(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) the…
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 for…
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The Hunting Lodge 