That's a Wrap

It's been a busy two months since my last entry; interestingly enough it comes on the last day of the duck season (my previous entry was on opening day!)  I had big expectations this season as I finally became a shooting member of the River Valley Hunt Club this year.  Growing up hunting the river bottoms with my dad, I got the chance this year to have full rein over when and where I hunted, no need to accompany my dad as had been the case any time I wanted to hunt down at the club.

Our season was unlike any I've experienced in my lifetime with a fall flood that took second to the flood of '65.  This made things a bit tough going, and my dad and I were about the only two guys hardcore enough to deal with the fast moving, muddy, high-water for about the first month of the duck season.  We were literally hunting amongst tree tops the start of the year, but we stayed determined and through some hard work were getting our ducks.  

Autumn, our black lab, was also a new addition to our group.  She did a great job in her first hunting season and probably retrieved more birds in her first year than most dogs do in a lifetime of hunting!  Two trips to Canada for ducks and geese allowed well over 500 retrieves alone!  She progressed nicely and really started to figure out what her job in the hunt entailed. 

Sadly, another season is wrapped up, however it was a successful one considering the tough conditions we faced.  The duck calls will be put on the shelf, waders hung up and duck boats put away, and I'm now looking forward to a couple weeks of muzzleload hunting to try to get my buck for the year, and sooner than later some ice fishing.  After months of anticipation, my favorite time of year always seems to go by too fast, but I guess that's what makes the days on the water and in the field special.  The time with my family and friends doing the stuff I love makes it all worth while.

Five Canadian Sunrises

I always seem to forget about how great sunrises are until around this time of year (hunting season).  This is mainly because I'm usually never up for them unless I'm out fishing or in a hunting blind somewhere.  Sunsets seem to get all the attention, but the real deal is watching the world wake up around you.

I experienced five great Canadian sunrises this past week during my annual trip to Manitoba for duck and goose hunting with my Dad.  We had some good hunting despite the warm, blue-bird sky days.  The hunt is only part of the whole experience I guess.  Just being outside with good company would be enough, the birds are just a bonus.  The other big part of this trip was introducing our 10 1/2 month old black lab Autumn to her first "real" hunting situation.  I was a bit nervous about how she'd perform, but she actually exceeded my expectations the entire trip!

Months of getting new gear, HOURS and HOURS of getting it put together, and HOURS, SWEAT and MORE HOURS of designing and toiling over my new hunting trailer all came to a head the end of this September.  Five sunrises, one stuck in the mud truck and trailer, little sleep, too many tanks of gas, boxes upon boxes of shotshells, and 1,668 miles crammed inside my Suburban later, it was all worth watching the excitement and anticipation of that first retrieve on the face of my new hunting partner.  A great start to a dog's lifetime worth of countless retrieves and hunting trips to come - - - -

The Begining of the End??

I now find myself setting up a blog.  Cool right?  I always think this sort of stuff is great for a while, and then end up separating myself from the initial coolness of it.  Is this the beginning of the end?  Only time will tell.  Commence blogging.......