Afraid Of The Dark?

Sound of the phone ringing, "Hello", Hey Mike this is Trieger (the guy we raccoon hunted with in November). "Hey man what's up,?", I answered back. Just wanted to know if you wanted to get Jacob out for a coon hunt this weekend? "Heck ya, man just let me know when and where."

That was all it took to get Jacob my youngest boy who is 10, out for his first night coon hunt with dogs! After I hung up the phone I asked Jake if he wanted to run with the dogs on Friday night and chase raccoons? The first word out of his mouth was "Awesome!" I took that as a yes! I got with my boss and took Friday night off of work so I could take Jake out for the most excitement any 10 year old boy should be allowed to have after dark!

Friday night came with a cold nip in the air. It was sunny for the day but the temps were only around 40 degrees and with clear skies it was supposed to drop down near 20 by the middle of the night. With a chilly forecast, we took extra layers to stay warm in case we needed them. I got Mikey, Jake and the camera gear ready to roll and we headed over to meet Doug McDonald and Mike Trieger over at Doug's house.

When we arrived, Doug and Mike had the blue tic hounds already loaded into the dog box on Mike's truck. Before we left Mike showed us some photos of past hunts he had success on along with a few of his animal mounts from some previous trapping he had done. That got Jake fired up and ready to hit the woods! By now the sun had set and it was dark! Time to hit the road!

Michael & Jake In The Dark

Jake was wide eyed with excitement and had a 100 questions to go along with his enthusiasm. Mike and Doug answered all of Jake's questions throughout the night with no hesitation. They made this hunt all about him having fun! We got to our first destination and got the dogs out of the box and ready to roll! Jake was anxious to see what was about to happen, when the dogs started off and began to sound off, all Jake could say was "Man that is cool!"

The dogs began to head off and crisscross the field near the woods we were heading to, after a few minutes we had to coax them towards the wood lot. After that it was game on! The dogs quickly treed a coon and we were off to see what was awaiting us. Jake was asking if he could shoot the coon if we found one, I told him that he was going to shoot all of them if we found any. We got to the tree where the dogs were and found them to be jumping up the side of the tree like their feet were on hot coals! After about 10 minutes of looking and shinning lights we found out that it was a den tree. The coon had made it's way into the hole where a limb had once been only to leave us looking and searching for the elusive ring tail!

We took the dogs back near the area where we first started which had a creek flowing through a drainage ditch. We had heard a coon chattering when we first walked near the area, so Doug and Mike turned the dogs loose near the water and within minutes they had another coon treed! As we approached we could see the dark silhouette in the tree due to the bright nearly full moon shining down on us. As soon as they lit the tree up the coon couldn't hide, he was in plain sight!

I got the .17 HMR Ruger rifle ready for him and turned on the illuminated cross hair scope so he could get a perfect bead on the little bandit! Once Doug had pulled the dogs back from the tree it only took a few seconds for us to hear, CRACK! The .17 sounded off and it was a near miss! Jake got up next to a small tree to steady his aim and with a flick of the bolt he had another round loaded and ready to go, CRACK! A solid hit and the coon came tumbling down to the ground! A smile came to his 10 year old face and with that thud of the coon hitting the ground came a round of high fives to the young hunter! He looked at me and said, "Now what?" I told him, "Now you have to pick it up and carry it back to the truck!" He loaded up his coon and carried it back out to the truck! Mike and Doug loaded up the dogs and we headed to the next stop.

We hit the next field and woodlot we were going to hunt and the dogs hit the ground running. It only took about 2 minutes and we heard the certainty barking of the dogs on a treed coon. We made our way to the edge of the woodlot where they had the varmint up a tree, all we could see was water and lots of it! Doug and Mike started out into the water and I could tell it was deep. There was no way that Jake's boots were going to be tall enough to keep the water out. It was almost over the boots of Doug and Mike. I handed the rifle to Mikey and told him that I would stay with Jake and he could go in and shoot the coon.

Just as Michael was walking into the water we heard the flapping of wings. All of a sudden in the darkness came a huge bird at our heads! Just as it got within a few yards of us it honked! It was a goose that was perched in a tree that got spooked off! When it flew over our heads in the darkness it was about 10 feet in the air! The tree the coon was in was about 50 yards off of the field down into the woods so I could see where they were shinning the light into the trees. I rolled the camera and caught the action on tape from a safe and dry distance! Right after the shot rang out and as the coon hit the water with a loud splash, we heard more wing beats coming our way! Only this time it was a huge turkey flying out of the trees to a safer and a less noisy area for the night! Once the guys made their way out of the water, the dogs were loaded up one more time to head to the last stop of the evening.

Michael With Two of The Coons

By now it was well past midnight and the moon was high in the sky. We arrived at the last hunting spot of the night and got the dogs ready for the walk across the field to the woodlot. About halfway across the wheat field we noticed something black and round walking through the field to our left. Thinking it might be a coon out wondering for a late night snack, Doug turned his spotlight on to check it out. First thing we all saw was a white racing stripe down the critter's backside! We immediately changed our direction and took the long way to the woodlot, which meant that we had to cross a deep ditch to get to the woods. The little stink bomb had our way to the foot bridge cut off!

Once the dogs were turned loose it didn't take long again for them to run a coon up a tree. We arrived at the tree with the dogs barking and jumping about to find a nice coon perched on a limb. Once the lights brightened up the treetops, Jake took careful aim and brought down his second coon of the evening. Doug asked if we wanted to see if we could tree one more for the evening for Jake and who was I to argue? Mike took the critter that Jake had just shot out to the edge of the woods at the wheat field so we could pick it up later. The dogs were again sent on their way to chase another unsuspecting bandit.

The last chase kind of threw us off somewhat. We arrived at the tree to see the dogs jumping around with all kinds of energy. Doug and Mike shinned their lights into the treetops and after about 10 - 15 minutes of looking there was no coon to be found. What Mike noticed was some freshly broken branches which he said meant that the coon either jumped to the ground and gave the dogs the slip or it may have jumped to another tree and took off.

Jake With Two of His Three Bandits Of The Evening

They pulled the dogs off of the tree and we began what we thought was our walk out, when one of the dogs began to bark loudly at a tree about 10 feet away just as we began to head out. Doug turned the dog loose and it locked onto that tree hard! Jake said maybe there is a coon up there! They threw the lights on and sure enough that coon jumped trees and was up there waiting on Jake to take his last coon of the evening! CRACK! Down it came with a loud thud! That round of high fives came again and we grabbed the two coons that were just taken and headed back to the truck.

The Four Critters

With the coons and dogs all loaded up, we headed back to where we started the evening. We got the dogs put in their kennels and the coons back into the garage when Jake asked, "Are we going to skin the coons?" Mike and Doug looked at him and asked, "Do you want to skin them?" I'm thinking to myself, "Does he want to skin them? Is his name Jake?" Of course he said yes! Mike gave Jake a course on how to skin a coon, then he let Jake take his turn at skinning a coon out, while I sat and watched the process. That is how Jake finished up his first night coon hunt! For a ten year old boy, who is afraid of the dark at times, he sure did have fun running around in the woods in the dark all night! I think he looks at the dark in a different light now!

The Boys And Their Coons

I would like to thank Doug McDonald and Mike Trieger for not only taking the time to invite us out, but to make sure that a 10 year old boy had the time of his life! They also took the time to show him how to skin out the animals after they spent 5 hours with us running through the woods! How many guys do you know would sit in a garage for an hour at 2 in the morning helping to teach a youngster how to skin an animal? That is what makes these two outdoors men so special! If everyone of us outdoors men would take the time to spend with our young and up and coming hunters, we would never run out of hunters! Thanks again Doug and Mike for a tremendous evening!

Coyote Hunt, Or Was Something Hunting Us?

We finally made plans to hit the woods with the AR for a little coyote hunt this past weekend. I got with our Pro Staff Member Chico Lopez to see if he wanted to ride along and spend a day in the woods chasing the devil dogs. I picked him up around 1:30am and headed north, after a 2 and a half hour drive we arrived at our northern Michigan destination around 4am! After a little sleep we got our gear ready and hit the woods. As we were getting ready to take to the field, I noticed a beautiful bald eagle flying over a clearing next to the lake. I thought to myself, this is a good sign of things to come or so we thought! To read the rest of the story Click Here!

A Day At The Range With Jake!

Well today was pretty windy and we decided not to do a coyote hunt, instead Jake and I headed to the rifle range to do a little shooting. Jake wanted to take his Marlin .22 out along with my Ruger .17 HMR which he had never shot before, I decided to take out the new toy! The Bushmaster AR-15 I recently purchased was itching to be shot for the first time, not to mention the fact that I had just put a new set of eyes on it from Leupold!

Me With The New AR-15!

Jake got busy with the .22 as soon as we got there. Take a look at his shooting prowess in the video below!

He next got busy on the Ruger .17 HMR that we set up for night hunting coyotes! He took right to that little popper! The .17's are a real nice smooth shooting rifle for youngsters to get the feel of a rifle that can take game other than just a squirrel. They have enough power to put down a coyote if the shot is placed in the right spot and there isn't any recoil to speak of, which makes them a very nice rifle to hit the field with for those younger hunters.

Jake Taking Aim

With The Ruger .17 HMR

After Jake finished up with the two smaller caliber rifles, it was time to get out the AR and try to set up the scope for future coyote and varmint hunts. I started on the 25 yard range and made a few adjustments to get it on center and then moved to the 50 yard range. It didn't take long to aquire the bull at 50, so we moved on to the 100 yard range to tweak it in. I was amazed at how loud the AR barked, but the bite was minor with very little recoil. In the video below is the first shot I took with the new firearm. Excuse the moving video below, it was shot by Jake my 10 year old son.

After I got it zeroed at 100 yards, it was Jake's turn to give it a whirl! He was eager to get behind the stock of this one! I know what your probably thinking right now, "How in the world would anyone let a ten year old shoot a gun like that!" Well let me tell you something, I have watched this young lad shoot for over four years now and he is safer with firearms than most adults I know! He has shot a .30-.30 deer rifle at the range with no problem, so a .223 should be a piece of cake for him. I only put one round in the firearm at a time just for safety reasons.

Jake Getting Ready!

Below you can see Jake taking aim and squeezing off a round on the AR. These firearms are really no different than that of his .22 Marlin that he was shooting in the video earlier except for the size of the cartridge. They are both semi-automatic firearms that shoot only one round with a single pull of the trigger. As I said before he is very aware of being safe, watch Jake lay his finger on the side of the frame and then acquire the target before he puts his finger in the trigger well. After shooting he immediately throws the safety on! This is what taking a youngester to the range and teaching them safe firearm handling will do! When you take the curiosity out of it, they respect and learn how to safely handle a firearm.

I will say that before he shot the firearm he was excited about shooting it, he mentioned the look of it like most people do but once he was finished shooting today it wasn't a big deal anymore! He told me that it was just like any other firearm we had. If you take the curiosity out of it, they will respect them and learn how to safely use them, just like he did today with the AR!

Jake Getting Ready To Shoot!

I did more than just take Jake to shoot today, we spent quality time today at the range bonding with each other. After shooting the AR today he was no longer interested in the "Cool" looking firearm, instead he was asking questions about how to zero in the scope and how math was used to figure out the minutes of angle and yardage. The allure of the AR was not an issue any longer, it was now just another firearm we have to take to the field or to the range. It was an important lesson for him to learn today, maybe you too have learned something about the AR today by reading this blog. I hope that you don't judge a firearm by the way it looks, by its color, or because it was patterned after a military style firearm. If you have any questions about these new sport rifles feel free to stop by our web site and email me. I will be more than happy to discuss any questions you might have about them! Now get to the range and start practicing for the upcoming season!

Arkansas Duck Hunt Wrap Up

Well the girls took Arkansas by storm! According to UNJ Staffer Nancy Jo Adams, her and a few other friends managed to take a few ducks and have a whole lot of fun along the way. Below is her last video update of her trip. Be sure to stop by Nancy Jo's Blog to see all the photos and read about all the excitement!

Day One of an Arkansas Late Season Waterfowl Hunt

Up North Journal Staffer Nancy Jo Adams and a few friends hit the state of Arkansas for a little late season waterfowl action. Below is a recap of day one in the field!

Arkansas Duck Hunt Preview

UNJ Staffer Nancy Jo Adams along with 6 other ladies are taking Arkansas by storm. They have a weekend waterfowl hunt planned and below she gives the details of the upcoming hunt. Stay Tuned!

First Ice Fishing Trip!

Well that time of year has arrived, what is it you ask? It is that time of year where you have finished up deer season, waterfowl season has ended and you are patiently waiting for the first good ice of the winter so you can get out and do some hard water fishing! That time has arrived here in Michigan!

Today fellow Up North Journal Pro Staff member Tim Ford called at 8am to give me the weather report and coax me into heading outdoors to hit the ice for the first time. In all reality I really didn't feel like getting out of bed, but I remembered a discussion I had previously with another UNJ staff member last week. That discussion was about us being fortunate enough to have the freedom to get out to hunt or fish while our soldiers fought and died in a foreign land for our freedom to be able to get out and do the things we love!

So I quit whinning about how cold it was and rolled out of bed and made the trip to the lake with my oldest son Mikey. He didn't want to get up either, but I made him! We arrived at the lake at the same time Tim and his kids arrived, so we loaded up the sleds and made our way to the frozen lake surface to spend a little time jigging for frozen fish sticks!

I only had about two hours to spend on the ice so we got busy quick. Mikey and Tim popped some holes and I got my rod ready. While Tim was getting his kids set up, Mikey told me he was going to break out the secret weapon today since we were on a limited time schedule. He broke out the seldom seen "Ice Dance"! I have heard about this secret tactic but I have never witnessed it until today! Mikey assured me that this always works and I was eager to see the dance live and in person. I was fortunate enough to have my camera phone to record the seldom seen event, take a look at the video!

The Elusive Ice Dance

I had my doubts about this crazy tactic actually working, but to my amazement and wonder Mikey actually caught a fish less than two minutes after performing the ritual dance! Fortunately I was rolling video on that event also!

Proof That The Ice Dance Works!

You can see my utter amazement that this crazy stunt actually worked and brought the fish to the hole!

My Amazement Of Seeing The Ice Dance Work!

I wasn't about to perform the ice dance around my fishing hole for fear that I might actually break through with my luck! I decided that I would just fish the old fashioned way and fore go the embarrassment. I did manage to pull a small panfish through the ice before leaving, which turned out to be my only catch of the day but atleast I put one on the ice.

My Big Catch Of The Day!

Tim's daughter and oldest son got cold so he ran them back to the truck to warm up. Mikey and I stayed on the ice for another 45 minutes to try and help Tim's other son Collin try to pull a catch through the frozen ice. As hard as we tried, we couldn't coax one of those little buggers to take the bait. Collin even resorted to doing the "Ice Dance" after watching Mikey give him a few lessons on the correct technique, but even that didnt' work! Actually after Collin did his dance it began to snow, so I think instead of the Ice Dance he did the Snow Dance!

Collin Trying To Put The Whammy On A Fish!

All in all we didn't tear them up by no means, but we sure did have some fun with the kids on the ice and it sure did feel good to get outside and do something, even if it was just a crazy little dance! Glad I made the decision to roll out of bed this morning and join the crew on the ice!

Remember that even a bad day outside is something our troops fighting for our freedoms would love to be a part of instead of being in some of the situations that they are in everyday! Thank and support our Armed Service People who are protecting us and our freedoms! Now go get outside!