Jerky meat

[Kurt]

We have our share of road head hunters here too. They snipe a big white tail buck and cut off what they need for a cape and leave the rest lay.
One morning during bow season I was sitting in brush and saw a big buck walking down a draw about 200 yards away and he bedded down on the hill side in some deep grass where all was showing was his rack from where I was.
Watching him for an hour to let him to settle down I started a low crawl to make my way to him up sun and got with in 60 yards when I saw a slow moving truck and stop on the road a couple hundred yards off and a rifle barrel came out of the window and the guy shot the buck. When I stood up he threw gravel getting out of there. I called the DNR and they came out to investigate and they told me I could tag him if I want.
And a lot of spot lighting goes on here too. One cant blame a land owner you turning hunters away.

Kurt

[Don McDowell]

Kurt we saved enough bigguns for you and your crew for next year. So don't forget to send those applications in next spring.

[Kurt]

Looking forward to it Don.

Save a little jerky for a sample taste at Alliance

[Don McDowell]

I best send you some when it's done... there's noway 15lbs of jerky will last from now till the next Alliance shoot.

[Kurt]

Sounds like this place I dont know how the Kids find out I made some Buff Jerky. When 10 start to dig in I have to fight to get one slab for myself
Try this once on your next batch after putting your favorite spices on. Give it a coat of honey and put it in the low heat slow smoker.

Kurt

[Don McDowell]

Oh my, that might be just the thing. I've got a 3 gallon pail full of honey in the cellar... I tested a couple pieces in the microwave , it may be a touch on the salty side.. that honey might be just the ticket to off set that a little.

[Dan O]

With todays GPS units there is no excuse for not knowing where you are. I bought a Garmin (montana) model and have a state landowner chip loaded in it. It will give you the name of the land owner plus show the boundry lines, Heck I even found my house in town.....nothing is private anymore.

As for the slob hunters I think one of the causes is the TV shows on cable anymore, it's all about Trophy size and nothing about sportsmanship and woods craft. The size of the rack is the only important thing and nothing else. Also on many of the shows they make a marginal hit then let the animals sit over night and by the next morning I'm sure most of the meat is spoiled as in many cases the animal is stiff as a board. But they don't give a crap about the meat just the antlers, pretty dam sad. The only 2 shows that reflect a positive light in my opinion is Eastmans and On your own adventures. Both are made by either Wyo or Mt residents. The others are a for profit bunch of crap shows to get the trophy at any cost type of show. Again just my opinion.

I do hunt private land but feel like I'm imposing even after being invited because of all the crap the landowner has had to endure with the slob hunters. I feel more comfortable on public land so as to not impose on the private landowner. I seen the stuff they have to go through from a hunters stand point but also from a law enforcement officers stand point. So when they get upset and close things down I often wonder how it took so long for them to do it. And I don't blame them a bit. As for the landowners that still let people on to hunt with out a fee, THANK YOU!!! You are becoming a rare breed.

[Kurt]

Hunting here in north west Illinois is getting to be big business. Cooperations from Chicago are buying up farms that are heavily wooded and make boarding rooms in the barns and corn cribs and charge a thousand to two or more and bring on hunters that have no regards to fence line boundary's or think where there shot gun slug travels.
I hunt next to a place like this and had to get behind a big Oak log when I heard slugs buzzing over my head. I hang up a Orange vest in the clear so it can be seen from there location and it makes no difference to those knot heads.
Now I just hunt in my back yard anymore.

Kurt

[Kodiak]

I concur with what Dan and Kurt said. I try to visit western states each fall, health allowing, and also notice what the landowners go thru. Some may even camp-out on their own land to make sure trespassers are refused entry. Some Out-of-state tag holders have gotting brazen, as they will park out of view from the ranch houses, along the Co. road etc. and hop over the fence. The landowner may not know where they are until he hears a shot.

Yes indeed, landowners that work hard for all they have, that still allow a few of us a place to hunt and visit for a few days are to be praised. My thanks to them all.

[pete]

Thanks for the kind words Don.

Dan; I don't have a GPS but am thinking of getting one. Sometimes and I say sometimes it is tough to know whether or not you've walked off one ranch on to another what with all the cross fences. I've even had ranchers have a hard time telling me where the lines are. Usually it's something like "It runs a mile east then jogs over about 2 miles then shoots out another mile east for 3/4 mile and back 1 mile....." But there is no excuse for these guys that drive to other places or stop along the road and go in.
I'm getting to the point I hate asking anymore because so many land owners are either annoyed by the process or they're leasing or both.
I like Eastmans and particularly the On your Own shows too.

[Dan O]

Pete,
I agree with you it is hard to spot the property lines. A friend of mine who is a retired game warden was in such a position last year. He had a A9 Elk tag with was legal only on private property. He shot a cow Elk while he was on the ranch he had permission to be on. The Elk he shot was not on the other side of a fence as there was No fence to show a boundry line BUT the Elk was over on BLM land. In the end he paid a fine and admitted he was wrong once he knew where the line was. The F&G warden who investigated it had to use a GPS that shows property lines to estanblish that the Elk was on public land. His was an honest mistake and once he learned he was wrong he stood up and admitted it. This is why I went the extra cost and bought the GPS with topo lines and landowner info.
Dan

[mdeland]

We don't have fence lines in Alaska but do have to watch out for national parks and Indian land. Usually they are bordered by rivers but not always. Jeff King noted Iditarod musher got busted a couple of years ago for shooting a moose barely inside McKinley Park . It was so close I'm not sure anyone knew for sure if it was a legal shoot or not. He had a whale of a time defending himself though. I think he did wind up having to pay a fine but I'm sure his lawyer bills far outstripped what he wound up paying the state.
Occasionally we will get some real crack pot hunters who try to hunt like they do back home for deer and the ethics ( if they can be called that) they use are quite amazing. Like busting in on you while it is evident you are on a stalk and try to get to the game before you do, almost always resulting in a spooked animal that gets away.
That happened to my son-in-law this year. He and his friend had found a spike bull and were near close enough to get a shot when some knucklehead sees them from the road, screeches to a stop, jumps out of his car with his rifle and literally runs down the gully between them that the spike bull was in. Of course the bull heard the dope and flushed out the end before Scott and Chris could get a clear bead on him.
They confronted the guy and he say,"I was just hoping one of us would get him clearly admitting he had seen both Chris and and Scott making the stalk! Scotts thinking ," who invited you "? Neither of them could believe this guy as he seemed to think he had done nothing in the least unethical or improper ! Amazing ! MD

[mdeland]

OH, I forgot to say that I'm sure the state was using a GPS to make their case and the fact that they did not have a slam dunk case means the kill site was with in feet of being outside of the Park line and therefore a legal kill. MD

[bobw]

Oh my, that might be just the thing. I've got a 3 gallon pail full of honey in the cellar... I tested a couple pieces in the microwave , it may be a touch on the salty side.. that honey might be just the ticket to off set that a little.

Don did your mix any honey in with your marinade? I normally grind my jerky meat and mix in the cure(salt and seasonings dry) let sit covered in the frig for 3 days before stuffing it in the jerky shooter and shooting it out on the dehydrator trays. 4.5 5 hrs leaves it about right and some batches I take to extra dry status. It don't taste like candy and a piece will last quite awhile. Last years antelope was shot with the 110 for some reason it turned out kinda sweet shoot maybe it was just my imagination . bobw

[Don McDowell]

Bob no I didn't do the honey thing this time. This cure I have on hand has a bit of a sugar in it. I dehydrated part of it, and smoked the other half, used some of Dave Cooks acorn hulls, and some cherry and apple wood chunks, man that smoked stuff has a good flavor to it.
This stuff I used , you cut the strips with the grain of the meat, then shake the cure on, pack it tight in a bowl and refrigerate for 24 hrs.