Elk Field Judging-Watch Him Grow!-score updated

There are going to be three years of trailcam photos of this particular bull.  They were sent to me by a friend.  I am not disclosing the unit or my friends name at his request.  This is a really cool segment to see how one bull can change in 3 years but still keep the general theme of his antlers.  What does he score in 2009, 2010, and 2011?  How old do you think he is? 

6.12..2009

HERE HE IS IN 2010 (SEE BELOW)

HERE HE IS SO FAR IN 2011(SEE BELOW)

WHAT DOES HE SCORE IN 2011?  WHAT WILL HE BE IN 2012?
THANKS TO MY FRIEND THIS IS A NEAT PROGRESSION OF PHOTOS!  I HOPE YOU BAG HIM THIS YEAR!

HERE IS MY GUESSTIMATE AS HE SITS:  left side 53,29,18,16,18,18,9+5"extra=166; right side 53,29,14,15,18,18,9+5"extra=161 166+161=327+35 inside spread=362 GROSS
The ranges on my facebook page on this bull was 360-430.  I think he is 7 years old (COMPLETE GUESS).  I think he scored 315-320 in 2009, 342-348 in 2010.  Who knows it is all a guess unitl they are on the ground.

Desert Bighorn Sheep Field Judging 1

CLICK HERE TO SEE A NEW POST ON FIELD JUDGING SHEEP

Ram on the right

Ram on the right

 These are all pics of the same Desert Bighorn Sheep.  What does this Desert Ram score?  How old is he?
SCORE AND PICS UPDATED OF RAM

There were several guys on my facebook page that got really close with the score of this ram. I just added a bunch of pics(see below) with the text of the score on them.  I was fortunate to take lots of photos and video of this ram.  He was harvested by Kary Bloomgren in 2009.  The game and fish score was 167 4/8 and aged him at 7. (seems the G&F always comes in 1-1.5 inches smaller) I heard that he officially scored 169 net.  I heard that he grossed right at 170.  For the record I never saw the official score so dont quote me on the official.  Left side-32 1/8, base 14 4/8: right side 35 3/8, bases 14 3/8 (dont know the other quarter measurements).  congrats to Kary the hunter.

I forgot to mention that Glenn Hall had nicknamed this ram "the rattlesnake ram" during scouting in 2009 for his hunt.  I find that doing this sort of thing helps my field judging ability.  I will be posting another soon.

CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE DESESRT BIGHORN SHEEP FIELD JUDGING POSTS

Boot care by Lowa

I had some issues last fall with my boots becoming wet in conditions that I felt did not warrant it.  I felt I had always taken care of my boots by rinsing them whenever possible and applying a few coats of Nikwax paste.  So when I still had wet boots, I went on a search for a better way.  I came across Lowa's boot care page on their website and I believe it's the simplest explanation of what it takes to really get the most out of our expensive footwear.  Check out this link for great boot care tips:  http://www.lowaboots.com/leathercare/

Wallow Fire Burn Severity Map

click on map or here for more larger map
Looking at it on the map puts this fire in perspective for the size!

Eagle River Trip Report 7.05.11

We floated the Eagle yesterday and the water was at 3200 cfs!  It was more of a rafting trip than fishing trip but Jeanne managed to relocate a few as we zipped by.  Very tough conditions but it was time to put some blisters on my dishpan hands.  The river has completely changed in lots of areas from the high water and there are several big trees that are displaced throughout the river.

North Carolina Fishing Adventure

I was in North Carolina for a wedding recently and was invited to go offshore with my wife's younger cousins and our brother in law.  The 3am forecast was looking bad and because I am a land lover, our cousin Rob took pity and canceled the early start.  We had almost made other plans when the wind laid and the seas calmed.  We got the call and were on the water by noon.  We found bait fast and ran just 5 miles to Rob's first spot and immediately started getting bites.  I love fishing the ocean because you just never know what you'll catch and sometimes you feel like the fish might actually pull YOU in the water.  Big thanks to Rob and Laura Orr, Cameron Mitchell and Uncle Robin.  You guys all ROCK!

Here are a few pictures of our adventure.

Our Captain and 1st mate, Rob and Laura Orr.

Bait ball-Menhaden

Cameron made a good throw and got all the bait we'd need for the day.

Cameron putting the screws to the 1st Cobia of the day.

Nice Cobia Cameron!



Cameron showing off his gaffing skills.




No Soft-Hackles here.



Capt. Rob gets em' up quickly.

Family and fishing.

As we would bring up the bigger bottom fish, a school of smaller jacks would follow them up.  The next time it happened we were ready with the fly and everyone got a rod bent.



These jacks look small, but they were quite the tuggers on the 9wt.



I got into an all out slug fest with this Amberjack.

Our trusty vessel, the Jones Brothers 26' Cape Fisherman.

Final tally:  2 Cobia, 3 Grouper, 8 Black Bass, a pile of small jacks, 2 released Amberjacks, and a whole lotta fun!