Caping my Deer

I am not an expert taxidermist by any means and Clay Goldman of Mogollon Taxidermy would probably second that and even have some stories for you about me, but one tip I have for you guys is to start your caping with the mouth facing upward and work from the front gums back.  If you do that first then when you come from the inside of the mouth the cape simply falls off right at the end of your job.  I used to use a surgeon scalpel for caping but have found I love the grip on the Havalon Piranta knife with the 60 xt scalpel blades.  The Piranta is great for getting around the pedicles and doing the detail work as well as all types of skinning.  I buy the replacement blades from the Outdoorsmans and one blade can easily handle caping one head if not more.  Be careful though because the blades are extremely sharp.

Mont Bell Gear

I have been attempting to lighten my whole gear setup and have found some great stuff from Mont Bell. I love the Thermawrap Jacket, Alpine Down Vest, the Merino Wool Highneck shirt and leggings. I used this on my recent mule deer hunt in Colorado. The temps in the morning was in the low teens and warmed up into the high 50's during the day.  These garments worked great and were incredibly lightweight and very warm.  My layers of clothing for the hunt were Mont Bell Merino Wool shirt and tights, Cabelas Hunt Tech shirt, Montbell Thermawrap Jacket and Montbell Alpine Down Vest.  I can't believe how light yet warm these garments are.  Can you believe that the vest and the jacket combined in their stuff sacks only weigh 1.4 lbs or 22.6 ounces!!

Janis Putelis (L) and Jay Scott (R) pictured wearing Mont Bell gear.

MONT BELL US ALPINE DOWN VEST

High quality 800 fill power hypoallergenic goose down
30-denier Ballistic rip-stop nylon shell
30-denier Ballistic nylon taffeta lining
Compresses :φ6.1" x 8.2" (stuff sack included)
I have it in the color black
Weight (size large) 11.9 oz in the included stuff sack
Fill Weight:3.8 oz.
Box Construction eliminates cold spots, while encouraging the down to loft
Standard DWR treatment
Zippered hand warmer pockets
Micro-fleece lined collar
Internal zippered mesh pocket
Stuff sack included

Here I am wearing the Mont Bell Alpine Down Vest.  It only weighs 11.9 oz!

MONT BELL HIGHNECK SHIRT AND TIGHTS
Sorry no picture of me in tights!

100% SUPER MERINO Wool
High thermal performance
Supreme comfort
Natural antibacterial properties
Static electricity resistant
Simple to care for
The color I have is black in size large
Weight (size med):7.4 oz.

MONT BELL U.L. THERMAWRAP JACKET

Pictured in Size Large Thermawrap Jacket.  It only weighs 10.7 oz!

I love my Thermawrap Jacket!
15-denier Ballistic Airlight calendered nylon shell & lining
Exceloft synthetic insulation, 50g/m2
Micro-fleece lined collar
Hand warmer pockets
Weight (size large):10.7 oz in the included stuff sack

Video of Jays Mule Deer Hunt

Photos of CO Mule Deer

Here are some more photos of my Colorado Buck.  I scored the buck this morning and it has a typical mainframe of 189 5/8 and has 4 6/8 inches of extras, making the gross score 194 3/8 inches.  He has 38 4/8 inches of mass and has an inside spread of 19 4/8.  His cheater on the right side is 3 4/8 inches long.  I want to thank Steve Whinnery of Whinnery Ranch Outfitters and Carla, Helen, Corey and Payson Whinnery for their awesome hospitality.  Janis Putelis joined me for the hunt and did a great job on the photos and video of the hunt.  We had a great time glassing and hunting! I also want to thank my wife Jeanne for helping find a rental car in Flagstaff at 6:00 AM on Sunday morning. Glenn and Cyndi Hall for helping transport me to and from car mechanic to rental car company.  Enjoy!

Gear used on the hunt:
I will be featuring some of these products on future posts.
Montbell UL Thermawrap Jacket
Montbell Alpine Down Vest
Montbell Merino Wool Highneck shirt and tights
Smartwool socks
Cabelas Dry Plus Pants
Cabelas Hunt Tech Shirt
Swarovski Optics
Doctor Optics
Havalon Piranta Knives
Knives of Alaska
Montbell U.L. Super Stretch Down Hugger #1 Long
Wilderness Athlete-Hy Altitude Advantage, Berry Gels, Mountain Berry bar, Chocolate Almond Crunch Bar
Outdoorsmans Pack System

2009 Colorado Mule Deer

I just got in from a long drive home. I was blessed again with a very nice buck and a great hunt in Colorado!  I will post more pics and video soon. 

Levi Ulmer's Giant Bull

My friend, Levi Ulmer harvested this awesome bull a few weeks ago.  The bull green scored 378 and is an absolute monster.  Levi's nickname is "The Tackdriver".  He was assisted by his cousin Zack on the hunt.  Levi is the youngest son of Tammy and Randy Ulmer.  Levi already has an impressive collection of animals and is a great kid.  I have had the pleasure of hunting with Levi and his brother Jake and they are fun to be around.  Levi has also been known to whip me in a spelling contest at the age of 10.  Not bad when his competition is a college graduate!

A Tribute to a Legend

MARVIN ROBBINS A TURKEY HUNTING LEGEND

Marvin Robbins recently left this life to join his heavenly Father. Marvin was a blessing to all who crossed his path, he was a Godly man, a family man and great role model to tons of people both young and old. He was a hunter and had a special love for Turkey Hunting. He taught many turkey hunting seminars and made a point to help and teach as many kids as he could. There will never be greater ambassador for the sport of hunting! I was proud to call him my friend! His website is http://www.timberlinecalls.com/.  I will post the information on the memorial services:

Viewing:

Wed. - 10/28

5:00 - 8:00pm

Hansons Mortuary

8314 N. 7th street

Phoenix

Service:

Thursday -10/29

2:00pm

Bethany Bible Church

6060 N. 7th Ave

Phoenix

These photos are of Marvin and his dear friend Joe Slaton from CA last spring turkey season.

I found some footage of Marvin that I thought his friends would enjoy.  Marvin was one of those guys that you meet that are one in a million.  He had a humbleness about him that made him approachable by all.  He will be missed by many but we will be reunited with him someday soon!

Mont Bell U.L. Thermawrap Jacket

Mont Bell U.L. Thermawrap Jacket

I used the U.L. Thermawrap Jacket by Mont Bell on our most recent Coues deer hunt. I found the jacket to be extremely comfortable to wear and it is extremely lightweight. The specs on the Mont Bell website say 8.8 oz for a medium but I was wearing a size large. The color of the jacket I have is gun metal. The temperatures were in the low 50’s in the mornings and I would put the jacket on once I got to my desired glassing point. The jacket did seem to really block the wind and keep me warm. I will get some more use of this jacket and pants next week on my Colorado Mule Deer hunt so I will keep you informed. My initial impression was amazing comfort and warmth for such a lightweight piece. It also comes with a handy little stuff sack that is roughly 10X4 inches (see photo).  This jacket retails for $145.00.
Features of the jacket:

• 15-denier Ballistic Airlight calendered nylon shell and lining
• Exceloft synthetic insulation, 50g/m2
• Hand Warmer Pockets
• 
  
  Micro-fleece lined collar
  
  
  
• Hand warmer pockets
• Weight (size med):8.8 oz

 Link to U.L.Thermawrap jacket page 

About Ballistic airlight

Darr Colburn's Coues Deer Hunt

Darr's 2009 AZ Coues

Here are the photos from the AZ coues hunt this weekend in Southern Arizona.  Darr shot a nice 4x3 and Jimmy, my cousin, had a great time even though he didn't harvest a buck.    Darr's buck scores 101 inches and has a real nice frame.  He is 15 inches wide and has decent point length.  I was able to capture the hunt on video (coming soon).  Darr and I had watched this buck for several seasons and Darr decided to let the buck grow last year when he had a tag but as it turned out the buck actually did not grow at all and seemed to be a great buck to harvest.  He shot the deer using his .257 Weatherby Rifle with a Swarovski 4X16 TDS scope and a 115 grain ballistic tip bullet.  The gear used on this hunt was critical to our success.  I will specifically cover the gear in another post but some of the items we used on the hunt were Wilderness Athlete (energy gels, bars, focus and energy drink, hydrate and recover drink), Kowa 32X82 Binoculars, Outdoorsmans Pack System, Cabelas Hunt tech series shirts, Carhartt Double knee pants, Mont Bell Thermawrap jacket, Sitka gear vest, Swarovski Optics, and Havalon Piranta knives.

Jim always has a smile on his face!