Believe!

Spendin’ …

Livin' large yakkin' the Ozarks last September ...

     Howdy y’all!  It sure was a busy year for me, and an expensive one at that!  I just got finished tallyin’-up all the road-trips I went on and realized how much I’d been spendin’!  Good Lord, for just the cost of my fuel alone, I was really thankful that gas prices were down.  I’ve been to Caddo Lake & back … twice … pullin’ a boat for a total of 1,100 miles; to the Ouachita Mountains and back … twice … for a total of 1,700 miles; and then went to the Ozarks and back for another 1,500 miles; and finally, to the Bowman Lodge for the NAWAC’s Annual Retreat for another 975 mile round-trip.  That comes to a total of 5,275 miles since May, which means spendin’ a minimum of 90 hours of time just drivin’ my truck.  Now, if I averaged about 15 miles per gallon, it means I must’ve been spent about $900 in fuel on just these 5 road-trips alone; and, that don’t even include all the extra crap I bought runnin’ in and outta gas stations!

     For example, here in Texas we got these huge super-stations named Buc-ee’s.  If you’ve ever passed one you’d definitely know, ‘cause everybody goes and their parkin’ lot is always full.  Goin’ in and outta one of these places is kinda like wanderin’ around a friggin’ “Y’all-Mart”.  Hell, all you need is a beverage or a bag of ice; but then, maybe a snack … or maybe some new road music, or, hmmm … maybe I’ll even get me one of them-there Yeti cups everyone’s been braggin’ about.  Before you know it, you end-up spendin’ almost $90.00, and that didn’t even include any friggin’ gas!  How in the Hell did that happen?  I don’t know, but I’d bought $75.00 worth of crap at that exact same Buc-ee’s the trip before!  I seem to remember that included more Texas road music CD’s and some t-shirts for my kids.  And then, there’s the Buc-ee’s Beaver Nuggets … OH, MY GOD!  My inner fat-kid is kept at bay unless it comes to Beaver Nuggets.  And if I really wanna binge, I’ll mix ‘em with a bag of Crunchy Cheetos.  Hey, don’t knock-it ‘til you try it, ‘cause it’s damn-near as good as a Lone Star Beer poured over a couple of scoops of Vanilla Blue Bell Ice Cream in a tall frosty mug!  The downfall of mixin’ Beaver Nuggets & Crunchy Cheetos (besides all the friggin’ calories) is gettin’ a mess of sticky nugget-shards and artificial cheese-dust on the black upholstery of my truck!  About the time that my sugar-high counter-balances the carb-crash is about the time I start to wonder, “Hmmm … I thought I’d just vacuumed them dang seats?”

     And then there’s road food.  I usually try to stick with somethin’ simple that I can eat while drivin’, such as a Whataburger with cheese & jalapenos.  This always seems to end-up drippin’ mustard down the front of my shirt or, of course, on my dang seats!  On this last trip to Oklahoma, I stopped at this place called Bigfoot’s Barbeque.  It was this ‘lil shack on the side of the road which had at least three big-rigs parked out front … so I figured the food just had to be good.  I walk in, and there’s this 7’ Chewbacca-lookin’ “Bigfoot” prop standin’ just past the entrance, and the TV was blarin’ on H2 with Giorgio Tsoukalos spoutin’-off about everything bein’ friggin’ “alien”.  So me bein’ the other weird Greek with effed-up hair, I sorta felt right at home … sat-right down and ordered me a full-rack of pork ribs with an ice-cold beer!  Actually, I wasn’t disappointed; that is … until I went to the men’s room to try and wash my hands.  The sink had tape across it, with a crude hand-written sign on the mirror that said, “Please use the sink in the Ladies Room” … and yes, I knocked first.  To my disappointment though, that sink looked backed-up as well.  As I paid, I reported this to the woman at the register, who quite frankly replied, “Yeah, I just saw that; but it kinda looked to me like someone had just gotten sick.”  I sh¡t you not, I won’t be goin’ back to that friggin’ place, no matter how good them dang ribs were!

Loggin' miles after my White River trip!

     Seriously, I estimated spendin’ at least another $100 per round-trip on food & drink while travelin’ … but that ain’t countin’ all the stuff you have to buy to eat while yer actually at yer destination!  I try to pre-cook the majority of all my meals a few days before and then freeze ‘em.  Blasphemy, you say?  Yeah, I like to grill-out myself, but there’s a big difference between grillin’ while chillin’ at Caddo Lake than there is while tryin’ to hunt in Area X.  Out there, your need to sustain is usually immediate, and then it’s back to business; I’d rather heat & eat than spend valuable time preppin’ & cookin’.  On top of that, it’s kinda hard to observe or watch yer dang back if you have to concentrate on cookin’.  I guesstimate I spent just under $150 on food for each week that I had spent in Area X … includin’ all the ice, water, coffee and Gatorade.  But then, there are your essentials, such as propane, batteries and back-up batteries for fans, flash-lights, etc., bug repellent, toiletries & hygiene products, specialty ammunition, clothes & gear.  If I added it all up here, I might as well start diggin’ a friggin’ hole, ‘cause my beautiful bride reads this blog as well, even though she won’t admit it …

     In retrospect, it’s been an expensive year for me so far … so I may wanna watch my spendin’.  That is, unless it’s spendin’ more quality time with my wife, our family or friends as opposed to spendin’ any more of our hard-earned money road-trippin’.  It is pretty-dang expensive doin’ all the things I do … and my beautiful bride has told me on numerous occasions that I am an expensive habit!  I really do love that woman, but the final nail in my coffin will most probably be the new Cabela’s that’s been built less than 5 miles from our place.  I just cain’t imagine what-all sorts of new stuff I might possibly find in there; however, I am sure of one thing … and that is that any future visits there will most definitely be supervised.  Come to think about it, I’d simply be better off usin’ all the friggin’ gear I’ve already got  … and concentratin’ on spendin’ more time on some local waters or somewhere out there in them closer woods.  Hmmm … both The Sam Houston National Forest as well as The Big Thicket are not that far of a drive, and both are rumored to possibly harbor wood apes.  Truth.  Right?  As a matter of fact, David "Big Sexy" Riojas and I are fixin' to head out shortly.  No tellin' what-all has been flushed outta them bottoms with all this dang rain.  Hopefully, I'll be able to report back shortly; but 'til then, y'all have a Happy New Year!  Be safe, take care … and y’all come back now, ya hear?

Happy Holidays, y'all!

Paintin' ...

New hanging tree-stand and ladder sections pre-painted ...

     Howdy-do!  Hope you & yours are all doin' fine in this wonderful summertime sunshine!  Yeah, it's been a month since my last post; but, on top of all the other activities and honey-do's I've got goin' on, I'm already gearin'-up for huntin' ... and I ain't talkin' 'bout deer.  Last fall, I had bought me a brand-spankin' new hangin' tree-stand and a 20' ladder to put me in a different perspective while I'm hangin' 'round out there in them woods!  But instead of scoutin' for deer, I'll be spendin' my summer lookin' for a different type of critter.  And as far as huntin' it goes, I got two choices; I can sit on the ground all camo'd-up in my new Browning Strutter huntin' chair, which is the up-close & personal approach.  Or ... I can sit 10' to 20' up in a tree and see a bunch more terrain.  The thing is, the Browning Strutter was aleady camouflaged, but my new tree-stand was not.  And most tree trunks are brown, tan and gray tones ... but that new ladder was a dark olive-drab.  Well, it pretty-much well stuck-out like a sore thumb against most trees.  Bein' a hunter ... I wanted a more natural look.  Read-on, and I might teach y'all a trick or two about paintin' ...

     Needin' a tree-stand that was light and packable, I chose the Summit Raptor RSX Eagle ... which is all-welded aluminum weighin' a mere 7.2 lbs. and sports a 21" wide x 28" deep durable platform.  Its foam-stuffed saddle-style seat is comfortable enough and was camouflaged in Realtree AP; however, the aluminum frame was not, which is one of the reasons for this post.  It, by the way, came powder-coated in a dark olive-drab.  The ladder that I purchased was the Millennium 20' Stick Climber, which weighed a total of 15 lbs. and consists of 5 stack-able 4' sections that nest together for easy transport.  Again, this also came in a dark olive-drab finish.  Hell, y'all ... I'd have paid extra for a camo finish, but that option was not offered for either product.  But, with a few colors of flat camo spray-paint and some fresh-picked foliage, I'm fixin' to show y'all how I rectified that minor dilemma!

Various twigs & sprigs to use as nature's stencils ...

     Y'all don't need to be artistic to pull this job off; if you can spray-paint ... you can camouflage.  It does not need to be a perfect, photographic design.  Remember, foliage ain't uniform ... and at a distance any tight patterns look like a "blob" anyways.  The main thing one needs to remember is to attempt to break-up your camouflage paint-job with shadows.  For this method, I prefer to paint startin' with the lighter colors first, and finish-up with darker colors and black.  It's good to be familiar with the trees in the area you are goin' to hunt; however, in my situation ... I'll have this tree-stand set-up in several different patches of woods.  I'd decided to camo my ladder to mimic a very basic bark pattern, but the tree-stand was a different issue.  Due to unfamiliar terrains, I wanted to try and simulate a medley of thicket, piney-woods and hardwoods.  To achieve this effect, I used nature as my stencil.  Walkin' our property, I collected various branches, sprigs and leaves to stencil with.  Most stencils use the interior space to spray-paint within; however, in the case of my stand I did the opposite; sprayin' over the different elements that I had collected.

The base-coat is basically a free-styled woodland camo ...

     As far as any tree-stand goes ... the only thing that really needs camouflagin' is the bottom, 'cause its what anything might see from the forest floor lookin' up.  I used various colors of camo paint to spot-spray in large areas, and then used my foliage stencils to break everything up.  I began paintin' in layers ... just a little at a time, which allowed both the tree-stand and my stencils to dry in-between coats.  I'll be huntin' in full camo (a Tru-Leaf Mossy Oak Break-Up suit) and the tree-stand's seat is already camo'ed in Realtree AP.  The final result is the bottom of my newly painted stand shown in the photo below.  The variations of all three patterns will help break-up any uniformity while helpin' me to blend-in to most heavy foliage.  In years past, I had been in bow huntin' situations in the Sam Houston National Forest where other hunters had walked right past me and even directly under my stand ... not noticing that I was even there!  Now, I'm not claimin' that this was due to any home-made camo paint job I'd had on my old ladder & Loc-On stand.  It could have actually been due to those particular hunter's poor observational skills; however, I'm sure the painted ladder & stand helped my old set-up to not stand-out as much ...

Well, it's ain't Mossy Oak or Realtree quality ... but it works!  At a distance lookin' up, this once uniform shape is broken-up.

My improvised junk-mail bark stencil!

     The harder part of this project was paintin' the ladder-sections.  Viewing most tree bark from any distance, the pattern is obviously vertical; however, the olive-drab ladder stuck-out due to bein' darker and monotone.  Actually, it was pretty-friggin' obvious at most any distance that somethin' was amiss!  Here was the trick that I used to give the illusion of bark: I took a junk-mail magazine cover and slightly wet the folded edge between the two staple points.  I then pinched-out about ¼" off of the middle of the folded spine.  When the folded cover was opened, I now had an irregular vertical stencil to simulate the indentations and creases in bark.  I used base-coats of gray and tan to spot-spray the ladder sections, and then used my junk-mail bark stencil to break-it up usin' those same two colors as well as dark brown and black.  If I'd had the time or wanted to get fancy, I could've used a large textured sponge to go back over everything in a light gray or dark brown to further give the illusion of natural bark.  I chose to only paint the front & sides of each ladder section, because the backs face the tree and are a non-issue.

The finished faux-bark treatment; these ladder sections may stand-out here, but blend well at a distance against a tree.

     Here's a quick comparison of what the painted ladder looks like against a tree.  The section of ladder on the right is actually the back-side of another section, to show y'all what the dark olive drab would've looked like if I hadn't bothered to do any paintin'.  Hopefully, next time I'll be able to post an update after one of my upcommin' trips ... showin' y'all what this finished project looks like deployed somewhere out there in them woods!  And hopefully, one of my buddies can take a few shots of me in full camo as I would appear in an actual huntin' situation.  But, before I could even think of usin' any of this freshly-painted gear out in the field, I had to thoroughly wash everything with a non-scented detergent.  I then left everything outside in the elements to acclimate.  To seal the deal, I'll give everything a good dousin' with a non-scent spray after it has set-out in the weather for a couple of weeks.  The last thing I need is to get busted by my prey due to everything reekin' of fresh spray-paint!  As long as my fat-ass doesn't fall asleep, take a dive or get knocked out-of a dang tree ... you'll get to see just how well this 'lil paintin' lesson pans-out.  Chuckle-chuckle, y'all ... I always use a safety harness & climbin' strap!  Until then, y'all stay hydrated and be cool runnin' 'round out there in them woods ...

Uncertainties ...

Parked in paradise, the Sloughstalker
was loaded-down & ready to launch!

     Howdy, y'all!  My beautiful bride & I just got back from another week on Caddo Lake with two other couples ... which has now officially become an annual event.  In Texas this time of year, folks will face quite a few uncertainties as far as the weather is concerned; and, we damn-sure got a taste of it once we arrived in Uncertain.  Sunday evenin' thru Tuesday it rained straight-line friggin' Chihuahuas, which pretty-much-well put a damper on our outdoor activities.  With the arrival of the last cold-front, we had opened the cabin windows and enjoyed the sound of rain for the next day or so.  Yes, if a tree falls in the woods you can definitely friggin' hear it; but, all you can do is just pucker & pray it don't land on you!  At the point of gettin' hammered with 60+ mph winds, we dodged the bullet as far as any tree damage was concerned.  We had plenty of food & adult beverages to keep us occupied 'til the rain slacked.  Our friends from Arkansas brought their new lab puppy, which kept us all entertained along with the assortment of "Bigfoot" related DVD's I snuck-in to the dissatisfaction of my wife.  Other than that it was good company and good times!

     I had planned on doin' some hog huntin' with my new Henry .45-70 one mornin' ... but the game warden put a damper on that.  It seems that even if you have a valid huntin' license as well as a public land permit, you still cain't hunt hogs in the Caddo Wildlife Management Area during turkey season.  Really?  I always thought that you could hunt feral hogs most anywhere in Texas 24-7, 365 with a valid huntin' license ... but obviously this is one of them uncertainties life throws at you!  Our host and longtime huntin' guide Billy Carter thought I was funnin' him when I asked that question.  He immediately called three different game wardens (who at that time did not answer their phones) and proceeded to tell me that he personally had not seen any wild turkeys in that WMA in over 20 years!  When the Caddo WMA's state wildlife biologist finally called him back, she confirmed that yes, this law was on the books.  Really?  Good Lord, wake-up sheeples ... this is our tax dollars at work! You'll never catch me protestin' our law enforcement officers for doin' their jobs, but I'll damn-sure pay more attention in the future to keep bullsh¡t laws like this from ever gettin' on the friggin' books.  I pay good money for my super-combo huntin' & fishin' license, as well as the extra for my public land permit.  I damn-sure ought to be able to use 'em ... especially to eradicate feral hogs!  To add insult to injury, baitin' hogs in the WMA is not allowed either.  Really?  Thank God I had access to plenty of ice-cold Lone Star Beer to calm my sudden onset of mini-man madness!

     Well, once the rain stopped, I felt the need to put the Sloughstalker through its paces and see where the fish were bitin'.  The water on Caddo was at least 2½' higher than it was when friend and fellow NAWAC investigator Travis Lawrence and I last fished it in late February.  Matter of fact, if you wanted to seriously catch bass ... you had better have gotten as far-up into them woods as you could possibly cast.  Bein' that the Sloughstalker weighs about 1,300 lbs. I really didn't feel the need to get stuck in the flooded forest, so we just got creative with our casts.  My buddy G-Man took that to a whole 'nother level, as I had to retrieve his lures from limbs on several occasions.  What hurt the most was that our buddy Tysquatch, who was fishin' the Spatterdock with an Iron Man kiddie pole had caught several slab crappie and some really nice bream.  And yes, alcohol was involved.  I'd honestly hafta say that more fish were caught off the Carter's dock than outta my boat on this trip.  But that didn't stop us from goin' sloughstalkin' ...

The calm after the storm out on Big Cypress ... rarely would I ever lay a
$150 rod & reel down like this; but, that day, I had a damn good reason!

     On Wednesday, I took G-Man out to fish on Big Cypress.  We were on the WMA shoreline directly across from Blair's Landing, where I had placed two of my game-cams a couple of years before.  We were trollin' a good 20-yards from the shoreline in a swift current.  I was castin' into thick cover along the shoreline when I caught movement about 20-yards into the woods.  A huge black shape rose from the forest floor and casually but silently walked away from us.  At first, I had thought that it was a black bear until I saw the hide; all I could see was its back, but this massive feral hog was pushin' the 400 lb. range!  It was solid black except for the tips of its hair, which had a reddish-brown tint.  I had a fishin' rod in my hand in which I immediately put down and grabbed my holstered Springfield XDm .40 cal. from under the console.  As the Veridian Green laser found its mark, the hog vanished behind a huge tree-fall before I could squeeze the trigger.  This all happened in a matter of seconds.  G-Man, lookin' through his binoculars asked me if this land was part of the WMA, in which I reluctantly answered yes.  I had observed, identified and reacted ... but thank God I was obviously not fast enough.  I may be a bit rowdy, but I ain't no outlaw; nor did I want to shuck-out the bucks for a needless fine.  Had I actually have been wearin' my sidearm, it may have been a different story; however, even though open-carry had just been passed, it was not put into play yet.  All things happen for a reason, I guess.

Headin' into Back Lake on our last afternoon for a 'lil sightseein' ...

     And speakin' of uncertainties, while the women went horseback ridin' I took G-Man and Tysquatch out to the area of our encounter to do a little scoutin' from the boat.  Since the water was up, I decided to take them to the backside of Horse Island and see how close we could get to Back Lake.  On our previous year's trip, the water was much too low and I could not get the Sloughstalker back there.  I hear-tell that our host had taken some folks from Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot out there a couple of months back, and I heard that their trip was not a pleasant one.  No spoiler alerts here; you'll either have to wait 'til the Caddo Lake episode airs this fall; or, if you happen to run into Matt Moneymaker anytime soon you could always just ask him.  It may be a sore subject, so be prepared ... 'cause I really don't think he was.  I done told y'all ... Texas winters ain't kind, especially in the friggin' swamp.  Been there, done that ... so, no hard feelin's Matt.  I don't know ya and I don't owe ya, but I'm gettin' a 'lil too old to be out sloughstalkin' in the brutal, wet-cold.  I seriously don't think anyone could've packed enough Baileys' & coffee for me to have sat through that ... so more power to ya!

Yuki's slumber ...

     We had all knocked-back quite a few beers that afternoon, so short of turnin' our swampscapade into a booze-cruise we headed back to Spatterdock for some grub.  After toppin'-off the oil and a quick re-fuel, we grabbed our fishin' gear and blasted-out to Turtle Shell for one more try at fishin'.  The water was glass, and the lily-pads were just startin' to breach.  We spooked some fish trollin' ... but they seemed to still be lip-locked from the cold-front.  The biggest bass I caught was only 2½ to 3 lbs., but accordin' to our host we had done better than most.  With the long, hard winter and now the over-abundance of spring rains, even the guides were havin' a hard time findin' the fish.  We ended our trip by catchin' more pan-fish that night on Spatterdock, and closed with a roarin' campfire back at The Gallery.  By that time, everyone was pretty-much-well tuckered-out and turned-in just after midnight.  As usual, our mornin' of departure was spent packin' and thinkin' of the uncertainties we faced for our trips home.  We said our good-bye's and departed.  The next time I hope to see my friends will be in September, for another trout trip in the Ozarks on the White River.  Uncertainties ... but if God's willin' and we all stay healthy & safe, that will be yet another adventure.  Y'all come back now, ya hear?

The gadgets & gizmo series ... the Henry H010 .45-70 and NEBO Tools’ iPROTEC LG170

Meet my new brush gun ... Henry!

     Howdy-do!  Hope everyone is enjoyin’ this awesome spring weather and gettin’ back to doin’ some more time in the grime.  I’ll be headin’ back to Caddo Lake shortly, as well as hittin’ The Big Thicket with my buddy big David Riojas hopefully sometime soon.  And speakin’ of big … a couple of months back I had decided that it was time for me to step-up the caliber of long-gun I use for runnin’ ‘round out there in them woods.  After renovatin’ my vintage 1952 Tula SKS, it seemed that those pointy ‘lil 7.62 by 39mm’s looked a bit minuscule.  Now don’t get me wrong, they can definitely drill a brick as well as pack a Helluva wallop!  But, considerin’ that there are much bigger critters out there than feral hogs, I thought I might need to even-up the odds in my favor just in-case …

     After doin’ lots of research, I chose the Henry H010 .45-70 … “Made in America, Or Not Made At All”.  Folks, let me tell y’all what; when I finally decided on gettin’ a Henry over the Marlin Guide Gun, I was not disappointed!  This gun was a perfect fit for me, and I felt much more comfortable holdin’ it … shoulderin’ it and crankin’ that lever than I did with the competition’s arm.  The Henry has a pistol-gripped American walnut stock with an extremely ergonomic rubber butt-plate which fit perfectly when shouldered.  The overall length of this long-gun ain’t really that long at all; at a mere 39”, it’s the perfect sized brush-gun for throwin’-down on somethin’ big, hairy and chargin’ in heavy cover.

     The Henry weighs only 7.08 lbs. unloaded, and holds 6 rounds … 5 in the tube and 1 chambered.  Matter of fact, the biggest hurdle for me was choosin’ Henry’s tube-feed over a loadin’ port.  Although awkward when I took it to the range for the first time, my buddy Tod Pinkerton suggested I get some of them Pachmayr Snap-Caps to practice my loadin’ skills on.  That was a big help, and I can now do it blindfolded.  Really!  My wife laughs, but I constantly practice sittin’ in my new Browning Strutter huntin’ chair while blindfolded on our livin’ room floor.  Hey, laugh if you may … but I can chamber a round and be fully loaded and ready to shoot in seconds.  The addition of an Uncle Mike’s neoprene butt-stock 6-shell holder helped; which, by-the-way does not slide out of position.  With good shot placement, I don’t reckon any animal could survive takin' a round of .45-70, but havin' another 11 rounds at the ready damn-sure boosts my comfort level!

The .45-70 round dwarfs most loads ...

     My Henry’s first day at the range was memorable; I was slightly unnerved due to the caliber, but even more-so due to my unfamiliarity with this particular gun.  The tactical crowd was already rockin’ & rollin’ … but as soon as Tod and I took our first shots, every head on that range turned to see just what in the Hell we were shootin’.  I had no problem shoulderin’ this beast, which was like unleashin’ the Hammer of Thor!  I went through an entire box of Remington 405 gr., but those loads rainbowed as far as I was concerned.  Tod turned me on to the Hornady FTX LEVERevolution he was usin’, which was only 325 gr. but seemed much-more accurate.  I was shootin’ open sights and did not have any tools to adjust the windage or aperture.  My shot placement was low and to the right, but I noticed immediate shot correction as soon as I fired the Hornady.  Tod had also let me shoot a couple of rounds of his Buffalo Bore 420 gr., but even after shootin’ almost 40 rounds total for the day … I wasn’t a bit sore, nor did my right shoulder bruise any the next mornin’.

A dab of day-glow green is
easier seen by older eyes!

     The Henry is equipped with an XS Ghost Ring rear sight, and a bladed sight on the end of its 18.43” barrel.  I painted the blade’s groove a fluorescent green so it’s easier for me to view.  Tod had a Bushnell TRS-25 Red Dot Sight mounted on his Marlin, and after watchin’ him shoot, I thought it might be a nice future addition for my Henry.  While my groupin’ that day was definitely nothin’ worth mentionin’ here; in my defense, I was firin’ a new gun with open-sights.  Tod was well-grouped within an inch, which sold me on the idea of gettin’ that Red Dot sooner than later.  But before I purchase one, I’ll have to find a Weaver 63B mount, which is what my Henry is tapped for.  I’m currently sittin’ on 6 boxes of the Hornady to help me become more proficient on the range.  I also picked up some Bufallo Bore 350 gr. JFN's, and the Grizzly .45-70 +P 350 gr. BCFP for out in the field.  No, I ain’t goin' to be huntin’ bear; but with these particular loads blastin’ outta my Henry, what doesn’t kill me ... better friggin’ run!

     Lately, the majority of my sloughstalkin’ has transpired at night, so for Christmas before last … my beautiful bride had bought me a Redline Select Titanium flashlight from NEBO Tools.  I liked it so much that I decided to pair the Hammer of Thor with the Green Lantern … so y’all check-out NEBO’s iPROTEC LG170!  This high-powered green light clamps onto the loadin’ tube of my Henry and is activated by pressin’ a sealed dual-mode pressure switch.  This awesome green light has four modes: High = 795 LUX for 8 hrs. at 240’, Medium = 330 LUX for 14 hrs. at 115’, Low = 75 LUX for 15 hrs. at 70’, or a high-powered tactical strobe = 330 LUX LED for 72 hrs. at 240’!  The NEBO iPROTEC is powered by three AAA batteries … is water resistant and the bulb’s life is rated for 110,000+ hours.  Check-out https://www.nebotools.com/ for more details.

iPROTEC mounted with the least amount of wire exposed ...

     As usual, I just cain’t seem to use any gear that’s fresh outta the dang-box, so I had to make a slight modification to my new green light.  Due to my decision on where to position the pressure-switch, the cord runnin’ to the light on my new NEBO was just way too friggin’ long.  The last thing I needed was to snag the cord while in the field.  Carefully dismantlin’ the back of the light, I noticed that the wires were simply soldered to a switch plate.  After measuring, I cut off the excess cord, spliced the wirin’ and then ended-up spendin’ an inordinate amount of friggin’ time tryin’ to re-solder them tiny-ass wires back on to that dang switch plate!  Well now ... it was simply insufferable tryin’ to solder those two friggin’ wires, which were less than a ¼” apart on a switch-plate that was smaller than the diameter of a nickel.  Short of havin’ a mini-man melt-down, the wires finally held and I was able to seal everything back up.  But the hassle and temporary rush of high blood-pressure was well worth the outcome.

     Again, I ain't hawkin' any of this stuff, but when I come across guns, gear, gadgets & gizmos that I think are field-worthy, I'll be sharin' ‘em with y'all right here.  To be quite honest, so far I’ve only tested this new combo by standin’ on my back porch at night.  In new moon conditions, I had shouldered my Henry and lit-up the back fence-line with the iPROTEC … testin’ all four of its modes.  We’re on just over an acre, and that brilliant green light makes everything stand-out.  The real test will happen out in the field at night in a real-live huntin’ situation.  Let’s just assume that if anything fails, whether it's poor aim, bad shot placement or a failed light ... I dang-sure won’t be able to blog about it!  But, I am very confident in this gear as well as my skills, enough to go up against any quarry I may encounter.  Hopefully, that’ll be real dang soon …

Castin' ...

The chopper filmin' overhead with
Senior Field Producer Joe James for
a new episode of Finding Bigfoot ...

     Howdy, y'all ... just got back from a 550+ mile round-trip to Caddo Lake with friend and fellow NAWAC investigator Travis Lawrence.  While Travis and I went there primarily to bass fish ... I was also there to meet with Senior Field Producer Joe James from Animal Planet’s Finding Bigfoot and show him around the swamp.  James’ job was not only to scout the area, but to set-up and organize everything for both the film crew and cast prior to their week of filmin’ for an upcomin’ Caddo Lake episode.  On Friday, James had hired a chopper to film aerials of the lake and surrounding woods.  We saw ‘em flyin’ about while Travis and I were spendin’ the majority of our time on the water dodgin' inclement weather and doin’ lots of castin' ...

     As Travis and I were fishin', we noticed a large group of pelicans feedin' on somethin'; well, if those birds had corralled the bait, I was sure that there were predator fish such as bass feedin' on 'em as well.  We cast around that general area for a while, but didn't have the luck that those pelicans were havin'! And speakin’ of castin', I had originally been contacted by another associate producer Nick Crow a few months prior, who had asked that my son and I appear on camera to tell of our account of exactly what we had witnessed in Smith’s Slough back in June of 2009.  I just don't think I fit the bill for "town hall" material; however, some of my fishin' & huntin' buddies may say otherwise!  While TC and I opted not to be filmed, I told them that I would be happy to show them around the lake and take them back into the area of Our Encounter .  Travis and I picked-up Joe at Johnson’s Ranch Friday afternoon.  We quickly headed to my buddy’s place in Cypress Village to unload our fishin’ gear and top-off the fuel in my boat for the ride in.  The weather was cold, overcast & drizzly … so I knew right off the bat that our trip would not be a comfortable one.

Well, this group of feedin' pelicans didn't seem to mind the chopper filmin' overheads for Finding Bigfoot, nor did they seem
to mind Travis and I tryin' to "potlick" on their fishin' spot!  Needless to say, they spanked us with their expert fishin' skills ...

     Joe James is a really cool guy, and he seemed to be in awe of our lengthy jaunt through the swamp.  After blastin’ down Big Cypress, I made the cut towards Carter Lake between Hell’s Half Acre and Horse Island.  The water was about 1½’ to 2’ low, so I kept us at a slower speed as we bumped stumps and submerged logs a few times.  After showin’ ‘em where we actually saw this animal, they both decided that they wanted to go onto the island and scout around.  I poled my 1,300 lb. + boat through the slough, but due to the shallow depth, we were still about 8’ shy of dry land.  I climbed into the almost boot-level water, and even though I was careful … ended-up gettin’ wet from the knees down!  I scavenged a few logs & branches to build a makeshift bridge from the bow of the boat to the shore so Travis & Joe wouldn’t endure the same cold, wet fate I had …

     Once on dry land, I took them to the place where TC and I camped back in March of 2010, and showed them where I had set two of my five game-cams until I was forced to remove them in September of 2013.  I also demonstrated that the flooded forest was actually traversable without sinkin’ up to one’s knees, as one would certainly do if they were to walk into the water of that slough.  I’m 220 lbs. and left no tracks, even though the animal that we had witnessed was obviously much bigger and heavier, though it seemed to have moved through the flooded timber with ease.  Travis found a 3’ length of wet 2” x 12” … and used it to smack the side of a large bald Cypress to produce a wood knock.  After a few moments of silence with no response, we moved on.

Travis with his first chain pickerel!

     After polin’ the boat back into a channel, I took them past Carter Lake and onto Big Cypress as it started to get dark.  As cold as it was, surprisingly the bats were out and danced through the beam of my GoLight as we motored into the darkness.  I picked a spot in Stumpy Slough to shut-down the boat, turn off the lights and drift while listenin’ to the barred-owls and discussin’ each other’s time in the grime in pursuit of these mystery animals.  Joe was obviously not inexperienced when it came to bein’ out in the field, and as far as I was concerned he had a dream-job … especially if you were at-all interested in searchin’ for apes all over the place!  As the weather turned south, it was decided that we get our new friend back to civilization.  He had to meet someone in Shreveport, and would endure a busy schedule of preppin’ for the upcomin’ week.  Travis and I enjoyed Joe’s company; hopefully, the three of us will all cross paths some time again …

     Travis and I fished most of the day Saturday, but did not hook-up with any of the double-digit bucket-mouths that I’d bragged about lurkin’ around the secluded Cypress of Caddo.  Even though we dodged & sat-out a couple of thunderstorms, we didn’t get skunked.  However, the few bass caught were small and the rest were lip-locked due to the bitter-cold weather.  Travis caught his first chain pickerel … which was the highlight of his trip as far as the fishin’ went.  One big highlight of the trip for me was gettin’ photos of some Canvasbacks … a hen and two drakes that Travis saw lite in a sea of giant salvinia.  Livin’ on the Gulf coast, these were the first Canvasbacks I’d seen in over 25 years, since my Mississippi flyway duck-huntin’ days with my father-in-law in northeastern Arkansas.

Travis watched as three Canvasbacks landed in a sea of giant salvinia.  I was amazed that I was able to get this shot ...

     Fishin’ ‘til dark, I decided to go ahead and trailer the boat on Saturday evenin’.  Once again, I ended-up wet from the knees down at the boat ramp!  Thank God we took it out, because another front came through that night and we both would’ve been much colder & wetter dealin’ with it on Sunday mornin’.  We packed-up our belongin’s … visited with our host and hit the road by 10:30 A.M. for lunch with my daughter & her boyfriend in "Naconowhere".  I got Travis back to his place and was finally home, un-hitched & unloaded by 6:00 P.M.  Incidentally, the temperature was a balmy 72° until the front came through about 9:00 P.M. at our place.  Caddo was hit with “iceswampocalypse” today, with snow, freezin’ rain and temps in the low 20’s.  My friend in Uncertain said that the roads are a mess, and everyone is hunkered-down.  Hopefully, the freeze will knock down some of that damn giant salvinia!

     As far as castin’ goes, I wish Joe James the best in his endeavors for findin’ credible witnesses for the show.  They’ll start filmin’ later this week, and I don’t envy anyone who’s doin’ any sloughstalkin’ out there in this mess!  Who knows, maybe the apes will be active and they might actually find somethin’; best of luck, y’all!  The next time I’ll be able to do any castin’ out there, I’ll hopefully fare better than we did this trip.  But I’m sure we’ll want to hit the swamp sometime soon, hopefully after everything is green & thick, and the swamp is alive with activity.  Until then, y’all stay warm and be safe runnin’ ‘round out there in them woods!

Missin' ...

     Howdy!  I know it’s been awhile, y’all ... but no, I ain’t missin’!  I’ve just been busier than a cat tryin’ to cover-it-up on concrete gettin’ ready for some upcomin’ excursions.  Due to this cold, wet winter weather … I’ve been gettin' a bit stir-crazy and need to get back out into them woods before I start havin’ a friggin’ come-undone!  After all that Preppin' ... I’ve finally finished the boat repairs and have culled my fishin’ & sloughstalkin’ gear for an upcomin’ trip to Caddo Lake.  A friend and I will not only be doin’ some bass fishin’, but we’ll be revisitin’ the area of Our Encounter with one of Animal Planet’s associate producers from the show, Finding Bigfoot.  Yeah, really.  Now, before anyone starts labelin’ me a friggin’ hypocrite, just gimme a chance to explain …

Late winter on Caddo Lake; the bass still bite, but nothin' gets green 'til at least April ...

     Back in early December, I’d received an e-mail from someone statin’ that he is an associate producer from Animal Planet, and is lookin’ for eyewitnesses for an upcomin’ Finding Bigfoot episode to be filmed at Caddo Lake.  At first, I thought someone was just funnin’ me; after all, I had just posted my rant “Exploitin’ …” a couple of weeks prior!  I thought to myself, hmmm … why in the Hell would someone want me of all people to be on their dang TV show?  I responded to him out of both curiosity and courtesy, and politely let them know that I was definitely not “town hall material” … nor did I want my 15-minutes, if y’all know what I mean.  After speakin’ with this person on the phone, he stated that they were lookin’ for legitimate witnesses to this animal in the Caddo Lake area.  Well, we fit the bill … but, did we really wanna be a part of what I had previously dubbed “surreality” TV?

     My son and I are both in a bit of a quandary about that.  After all, we get enough ridicule from family, friends & co-workers about havin’ witnessed this animal; so, why add fuel to the fire by bein’ on a program that’s lookin’ for an animal that’s not yet been proven to even exist?  Hell, we know what we saw … as in, close enough to know that it was a real animal.  The problem is, I’d much rather make a mark spendin’ time in the grime gettin’ some definitive proof, rather than havin’ folks tell us that they saw us on some dang TV program!  I have a few friends & associates who have appeared on different television programs, documentaries, radio shows and podcasts concernin’ this subject; however, I for one don’t feel the need to join in the fray …

A wall of Cypress on the glassy shore of Mossy Break ...

     While my son and I won’t be participatin’ in any of the actual filmin’ … I have agreed to take an associate producer out to the area where we saw this animal.  Of course, I told them that they picked the worst friggin’ time to film on Caddo, and that they really needed to be out there when everything was green, thick, alive & thrivin’!  The associate producer that I initially spoke with was very cordial, professional and understood our reluctance to appear on camera.  He then explained to me that unfortunately, they have no control as far as schedulin’ was concerned.  Even though this particular program is not really among my personal favorites, I ain’t the type of feller to be inhospitable; and, I offered to help them in their endeavors.  By the way ... that’s called southern hospitality!

     I ended-up sendin' the Animal Planet crew our photos and some audio files from the night that we’d spent out there one cold Spring Break, back in 2010.  I’ll be takin’ my friend and this other associate producer (who I have not yet spoken with or met) out to do some sloughstalkin’.  Durin’ the day I’ll give 'em the “nickel lake tour” and we'll hopefully spend some time in the grime!  At night we’ll run through Smith’s Slough between Horse Island and Hell’s Half Acre to see what-all we can scare-up.  Keep in mind, I ain’t part of the whoop or tree-knockin’ crowd.  This agenda, of course will all be weather permittin’ … ‘cause late February is not always kind (weather-wise, that is) in northeast Texas!  I’d hate to get them boys out there and get stuck in an approachin’ cold front, high-winds or a severe thunderstorm and come-up friggin’ missin’ …

     And, speakin’ of which, I’m really beginnin’ to miss my dang heat & skeeters right about now; this cold & wet has gotta get, no matter what that friggin’ groundhog sees!  Hmmm, wonder if one of them critters would make a good gumbo?  Anywho, I’ll be sure and give y’all an update after our trip, get lotsa pics and maybe even a double-digit bass or two.  Until then, y’all take care and c’mon back now, you hear?

Preppin' ...

     Howdy, y'all ... hope all of you and yours have had the safest & happiest of holidays!  I've not wasted any time around the house, 'cause I've been preppin' my gear for a grand New Year.  I'll be headin' back to Caddo Lake, The Big Thicket, the Ozarks and God only knows where else or what other sights I'll be blessed enough to see.  There's no time like the present to get your gear in order, 'cause before we know it spring will be upon us.  So, why worry about broken or failed gear just before a trip?  My hapless old ass has learned the hard way on many of occasions not to procrastinate when it comes to takin' care of my outdoor gear.  Always go prepared is the motto I (try to) live by, so preventative maintenance is a big part of preparedness.  I'd rather spend some quality time in the grime than bein' out there fixin' sh¡t, so this is why I've already started preppin' ...

A boat is just a floatin' friggin' hole to pour money into ...

     When it comes to my sloughstalkin' ... my boat is what I heavily rely on to get me where I need to get to and back, both safely and reliably.  But then, we all know that a boat is just a floatin' friggin' hole to pour money into ... and I was reminded of that fact just 2 weeks before Christmas.  I sure am glad that Mrs. Claus didn't balk on Santa's repair clause, 'cause not only did I hafta replace a $112.00 deep-cycle crankin' battery, but my $150.00 Guest on-board chargin' system was shot as well.  While I was switchin' stuff out, I cleaned all of the electrical contacts, changed fuses, changed-out the fuel, the fuel filter, plugs, etc. and plan to run it soon.  And if you love it, lube it!  Now, some of y'all need to keep your minds outta the dang gutter ... I was referrin' to the steering cable and wheel bearings.  I'd rather not deal with the consequences of neglect while I'm out and about.  Been there, done that!  I've launched on Caddo Lake with a frozen steerin' cable, as well as broke-down on the side of a highway with an axle snapped at the spindle.  And it seems that the farther away you are from home, the more expensive those repairs seem to get!

The new home away from home! My true test will be a wet spring in the swamp; and yes, there is a rain-fly!

     Now, let's talk about campin' gear.  My Cabela's one-man bivi has always been a great packable tent for hikin' ... but I felt the need for a comfortable base camp.  I'm now over 50, and sleepin' on the dang ground ain't gettin' any dang softer. I both enjoy and deserve some comfort in my old age, especially if I were to be out in them woods a week or so at a time.  Last year, I purchased a brand-spankin' new Ozark Trail 13' x 9' eight person tent, 2 cots and a 10' x 10' awning from "Y'allmart".  As simple as their online videos showed that this stuff is supposed to set-up, it's always a good idea to make a mock camp a few times before takin' everything out into the field.  God forbid you gotta set-up in the dark, durin' a thunderstorm or both ... and then somethin' ends-up missin' or possibly was broke to begin with!  I'd rather not spend a few days in a tent that leaks either, so I always field-test new campin' gear prior to me havin' to heavily rely on it.  Well, thank God I practice what I preach ... 'cause one of the main support poles on the tent was assembled bass-friggin'-ackwards and upside-friggin'-down, as well as bein' jammed together so tight, I thought I was goin' to break the dang thang 'fore I even got to use it.  Hell, it took me & my neighbors Milton & Farrell just to get them friggin' poles apart!

The rounded-side was inverted at the manufacturer ...
... note the damaged sleeve (center) that was jammed!

     I tell y'all what ... if I'd have found an "inspected by" sticker on that friggin' tent, I think I might've been arrested for makin' a terroristic-threat!  There was abso-friggin'-lutely no way in Hell that anyone had set that tent up prior to packagin' it.  After a lengthy re-assembly with tools I probably wouldn't have had out there in them woods, it actually set-up easy enough.  But then, I kinda noticed that the online video did not completely show the dis-assembly portion of said tent.  It shows how easy it is to collapse your tent ... but does not show anyone how to re-pack it.  Surprise!  I found out why ... it's pretty much well a 2 person job to get that 8 person tent back into its friggin' carry-bag.  The 10' x 10' instant gazebo was easy enough for one person to set-up and break-down, as long as you didn't attempt it in a brisk winter wind.  Re-packin' that damn thang was no picnic, either.  At least the new cots were a no-brainer and seemed comfortable enough, but I've made myself sleep in 'em a few times just to make sure.  Sleep deprivation after a full day of sloughstalkin' could lead to me makin' a costly mistake, as in gettin' myself or someone else hurt.  Again, this is why they call it preppin' ... so until next time, y'all take heed and take care!

Slough-scapin’ …

     Howdy do!  After havin' our encounter, one of the things that I began to do while bein’ out there in them woods was to photographically document our trips to Caddo Lake.  I am not by any means a professional photographer; as a matter of fact, I damn-near failed my photography classes when I was in art school!  But over the past several years I made a point to stop occasionally, no matter what I was doin’ durin’ my sloughstalkin' to record what-all I was seein’.  I have been truly blessed to witness my share of beautiful sunrises & sunsets while doin’ my time in the grime!  These pics are some of my favorites, are very candid and as best as I can describe, shots I’d simply categorize as slough-scapin’.  The beauty of the swamp has both captivated and mesmerized me since I was a child.  Doin' my time in the grime does have its perks, so I hope y’all will enjoy these!

One peacefully calm mornin' overlookin' Goose Prairie in early spring; a bit too early for topwaters ...

Dawn patrol; early one brisk spring mornin' in 2014 headin' towards Jackson Arm and the Caddo WMA.

Beyond this mirrored cove I would pole for hours through the Cypress knees and into the flooded forest ...

Another mirrored mornin' on Caddo ... headed towards "Old Folks Playground" and the Louisiana line.

Mossy Break lookin' toward Jackson Arm in late March; I used this pic when I created my blog's masthead.