The Hunting Times

Happy Turkey Day Everybody! As has been the custom for at least the past 36 years that I have been involved, the Seager Clan met up with the Davis Clan for deer hunting on Thanksgiving. This year, however, was a bit different - in as much as we actually did not even hunt.  Cuz Shane had back surgery, Dad and DC are just plain getting old, and it was wet and cold outside. We sat around the barn telling stories for 90 minutes, and then decided that it was time to break out the beer.  The whiskey soon followed.  And we called it quits at 10:30 so folks could go get ready for lunch.  Not a shot was fired, but we had an absolute blast. Dad, Nick and I then headed for the golf course at 3:40 pm.  Nick sat on 15, Dad blocked W on 17, and I was overwatch on Hole 5 to the S. About 5:20, two doe came out from the S and were about 400 yards E of me.  They worked their way between the ponds on 5 & 6, getting within 200 yards.  When they crested the h...

Kevin Reeve Kevin Reeve is the founder and director of onPoint Tactical ( http://www.onpointtactical.com/ ).  I have taken numerous classes from Kevin and consider him both very knowledgeable and a friend.  It is with that bias that I read his latest article, The Knife and I .  Not only did a learn quite a bit, making the post educational, but it was entertaining to boot.  I actually laughed out loud at this line: "If you know how many knives you have you don't have enough" I have applied that same philosophy to gun ownership, much to my wife's dismay.  My dad on the other hand - there ain't no way you know how many knives you have!  Winning... Go read the article here: http://files.constantcontact.com/b0fb3917001/9e416ee4-c973-4e4f-a336-d3e8aa75c129.pdf It's only six pages with pictures.  It won't take you ten minutes.  It will however inform you greatly. No promotional consideration has been paid by Kevin or onPoint Tactic...

There was a pretty good cloud cover this morning, so as the sun was coming up, it turned the Eastern horizon red from due North all the way to due South.  That's 180 degrees of sunrise.  It was spectacular.  And of course, pictures do not do it justice.  If I were any more handy with the iPhone, I might have been able to take a panoramic shot.  I'll put that on my To Do List. In the meantime, enjoy the sunrise... Sunrise, Tuesday, 02 NOV 2016, Co. Rd. 800W, Clinton County, Indiana

Got a call from Michael.  He wanted to know if I had time to help him drag, gut, and hang a deer.  I did.  So I drove over and gave him a hand with this nice buck...

So as I go to post today, I get this notice from Google, and I quote: European Union laws require you to give European Union visitors information about cookies used on your blog. In many cases, these laws also require you to obtain consent.  As a courtesy, we have added a notice on your blog to explain Google's use of certain Blogger and Google cookies, including use of Google Analytics and AdSense cookies.  You are responsible for confirming this notice actually works for your blog, and that it displays. If you employ other cookies, for example by adding third party features, this notice may not work for you.  Learn more  about this notice and your responsibilities. So for all you EU visitors (the ONE I know of, Dave), I do not use any cookies on my website. And you see that second paragraph?  I looked at my blog and I did not see said notice. Oh well, as far as I know, I am not violating any EU laws with this blog. There may be moral issues or social ...

Well we hit the golf course this morning.  It was 25 degrees, but the wind was not near as bad as the previous day.  And today we took Davey with us. Our plan was to push deer starting at 8:45 so that Kathy and Alex could get to church.  That never materialized, as a buck walked by at 40 yards.  Game over. It was a small one, rack wise - a 4-pt.  But it had a nice sized body.  And hey, they all eat about the same. We commandeered a golf cart for "hauling" it out.  We know, we're not right, but we work Smarter not Harder. A beautiful morning on the golf course! Didn't have to drag this bad boy more than 30 yards -  and then DROVE him back to the truck. A little cooler water and the carts looks as good as new.

Yes, the wind was blowing at 20+ mph.  Yes, it was 35 degrees outside.  Yes, it snowed, and sleeted, and rained.  And yes, I was out there in the woods, hunting deer. I went out alone as Nick was not feeling well.  I drove out to Marshall's and sat on the bottom ground, in hopes of getting out of the wind.  Vain hope.  I stood at the S end, near the road, until I thought it was CLOSE to legal light.  I check the time.  It was past legal light, but due to the fully overcast sky, it was still not light enough to shoot. I ended up staying for about an hour, before starting a very slow and methodical stalk to the N.  I took a deer trail and walked past 3 scrapes and countless rubs.  I took the following picture of the freshest scrape.  It was visited sometime between last night and me passing.  How do I know this?  It rained last night.  If the rain had hit those prints, they would be washed out, not crisp.  Trus...

The question asked around the house is, Do you really need another gun?  The answer is moot.  I got one, a Ruger Precision Rifle in .243 caliber.  Take a look: Today wasn't actually ideal for sighting in a rifle, but I made it happen.  The temperature was 50 degrees F when I ended the session.  The wind was blowing W to E at 6 mph.  I used 58 grain Hornady A-Max Superformance varmint loads to get on paper.  Then I shot for groupings all at 100 yards. 5-Shot groups at 100 yards The 58 gr gave me a 0.99" spread. Factory 80 gr bullets yielded 1.67" Fusion  95 gr bullets posted a 1.00" spread with two bullets in one hole. Krueger's handloads of 95 gr Sierra Match King bullets posted a 1.05" spread. **All measurements taken with a digital micrometer and measured center to center. Of note, I did not change my point of aim for any of the ammo tested.  As you can see below, Krueger's rounds shot left (purple circle). ...

We tried to do what we did yesterday, leave early and walk in to be set up before first light.  Well, the truck tires were low, so I pumped them all up.  Kathy had to drive so she could leave for church - so we're taking two vehicles.  Nick was not present, so I had Kathy text him.  I checked my phone and he texted at 5:48 am to say he was not feeling well and would not be going.  And so we bolted about 6:30 am. It was warmer this morning, 31 degrees, but there was more wind, so it felt colder.  Too cold in fact to not have a coat - like the ones Alex carried into the house, and then left Kathy's there.  We got out at the golf course and Kathy asked, Alex - where's my coat?  On the couch.  She ran back to get it. Alex set up at the East end in the bowl.  Kathy sat on the South.  I took Nick's spot from yesterday.  And we sat.  There was NOTHING moving.  Alex and I didn't even get to see any squirrels.  Kathy ...

First of all, a huge Thank You to all the Veterans, both past and present, for your service to this Great Nation!  And a Happy Veterans Day to you all. Today, Saturday, November 12, 2016 opened firearms season for deer in Indiana.  And this year, the rules have changed to allow for high powered rifles to be used for the first time for hunting deer in Indiana.  For the record, none of us used rifles, we stuck with our shotguns and I took my .458 SOCOM.  Not that we are opposed to the law, we just chose to stay with what's worked since we started. Kathy, Alex, Nick, and I headed for the golf course this morning at 6:15 and it was a crisp 25 degrees F.  There was frost everywhere.  The wind, however, was almost non-existent.  Nice! We sat for three hours.  I jumped two doe walking in and it was too dark to shoot.  They snorted as they ran off and spooked a fox.  Mr. Fox was in range, but the landowner does not want us shooting the...