# Opening day of Muzzle loader season.



## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Now this was a lot more like a late fall hunting season should be. At 7:00 AM it was 27F very little wind and the sun came up bright. 

I was headed for my front yard deer blind and my setter was barking her fool head off inside thre barn so I stopped and listened to her a bit thinking I should go talk to her. Then I hear the ***** fighting or squabbling with each other down by the creek in the back. So I step back in the house grab my single six with the Mag cylinder and head to my blind behind the barn where I have seen the ***** before.
Since they mess with my bees I take every opportunity to take care of the problem. They never showed up back there this morning, maybe some other day.

Along about 8:05 AM a steady stream of does and possiably anterless bucks went by up a drain from the creek to the pond. I lost count at 18, that is almost the total count of deer sighted during rhe 15 day fire arm season total. People who think a deer can sneek thru the woods shold just set in the woods on a frosty morning when the leaves are frozen. just a couple of deer will sound like a army on the march.

Time to grab a sandwich and go back and take a nap in the sun shine.


 Al


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## RonM (Jan 6, 2008)

I love napping in a deer blind , in the warm sun..


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## krackin (Nov 2, 2014)

Yup the sunny nap. Love it.


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## Bret (Oct 3, 2003)

I like to fall asleep when I get strapped in to let the woods settle down. When I start to wake up, I try to figure out, where I am before I open my eyes. When I hear twigs snapping and leaves rustling, I come to full alert. I Enjoy being in the woods with you all.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Woke up from my nap to Kare talking on the radio about a spike buck that crossed the front yard. sort of hoped it would come my way and go back down the drain to the creek.
Lacking 4 siteings of seeing more deer to day than all of fire arm season altogether.

On nice fall days I never did have a problem finding a comportable spot by a tree I could lean against.

My sister gave me a Brittiany pup for my birthday back in 1978. She was a good pup and just seemed to know how to act in all sorts of cases. We would go out hunting and stop by a tree and set down and have a cheese sandwich with onions which she liked and her share of an apple. Then lay her head in my lap and snooze for a hour or so with me.


. Al


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

if your having **** problems , traps work 24/7 the dog proofs have gotten very reasonable for cost and set very fast and target ***** well you get the occasional possum or feral cat but mostly ****.
even if you get all your **** there will always be more moving in, in their absence


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Useing traps near the bee hives works and I catch lots of pussoms and ***** as well as a couple skunks.
But I don't like leaving traps set all the time and having to go check them every day to let cats loose.

But seeing them in the woods and having my single six is fun and I know a family that will take them and dress them also. Know another family that we dress them for same as the wood chucks we give them.

 Al


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

you can set and leave set for a few days , then when your tired fo checking set all the traps off , when your ready to check again just reset saves the work of driving and pulling stakes.

feral cats are worse than ***** , wouldn't let them go. not sure how MI is but WI they fall under all other mammals not specifically mentioned 

 Unprotected species include: European starling, English (House) sparrow, coturnix quail, chukar partridge, opossum, porcupine, skunk, weasel, and all other wild mammals not specifically mentioned in the hunting, trapping, and migratory game bird regulations


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Maybe you can set and leave traps for a few days but I will not do that. I do not want some thing in a trap to suffer till I decide it is time to check the trap. Even a **** that is a royal pain in the kister and P isses my bees off so they are cranky.

I'll just shoot them when I see them and have my single six with me and donate them to a needy family. 

 Al


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

No we have to check every day but if I have 24 traps out and need to go away for the weekend on my last check before I need to go I snap them all they are no longer set but left in place. significantly reducing the work of setting again , just re-bait and set takes less than a minute per DP 

the problem being if you see one there are probably 10+ there

they are still fine to eat after a night in **** cuffs , if they are near your bees you can likely get to a lot of the bee locations by tractor , just go for a drive dispatch and toss them in the bucket or wagon set the locations that are easy to check unless the harder to check location is getting hit.

have you tried **** calling , I havn't tried it but it looks like a blast , use your coyote rig with **** calls some guys with dense den trees can get them during the day others do it at night , at night they are supposed to be more aggressive


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

The thing is I am deer hunting and don't want to be going around checking traps every day. I don't know about ten being in the area all I've seen was 3. 

Today I got number 30 possum for 2017 appered to be a nice young female. Will finish dressing it tomorrow when I come in for lunch. I field dressed it tonight and removed the glands.

People will enjoy it with some yams.

*LOUISIANA 'POSSUM AND YAMS*

1 med. possum
6 med. yams

Season well with salt, black pepper and cayenne. Add 2 tablespoons vinegar and 1 cup water. Cover and place in refrigerator overnight. When ready to cook, place in pot with 1 quart water. Simmer about 1 1/2 hours. Remove from pot and place in a shallow baking dish. Slice yams lengthwise. Place yams around 'possum. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons sugar on yams. Pour 1 cup of liquid from pot over 'possum. (Remove excess fat first.) Bake in moderate oven (300 degrees F.) until yams are done and 'possum is tender.



 Al


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## RonM (Jan 6, 2008)

Never ate possum ,always thought it would be too greasy..Dont tell me it tastes like chicken..


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

I remove a lot of fat when I skin it. Also you can stew it a little first and that gets rid of more fat before putting it in ther pot with the Yams and/or frying it.


. Al


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

same thing with **** you remove a lot of fat , then parboil to get more off 

it doesn't taste like chicken I would say more like turkey


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

85% of these recipes came from my own cook book, my mom's or one of my two grand mom's. A few came from friends along the way from work and other places.

Online Recipe Book


Now back to my Muzzle loading hiunting. Saw nearly more deer opening day than all thru fire arm season lacked 4 of tieing.

Hasn't been all that good of conditions, extreame high winds Monday but the day time high temp was in the 40'sF range and climbing, I had to go take care of leaves Monday afternoon and the home owner asked me to go get a box blade he had bought so I didn't hunt Monday afternoon.


Tuesday morning winds were still on the horriable side with gust still hitting 40 MPH, news said half the state was with out power from Mondays wind. Temps fell thru out the day, was 57F at midnight and only 31F at noon. Wednesday was still windy but I went out in the morning saw nothing except ONE squirrel all morning. Afternoon a couple squirrels.

Thursday I Didn't bother going out as I had a 11:00 appointment, Went X mas shopping after that for/with Kare for grand kids. Bought my self a Birthday Presant how ever. 

Think it is going to be nice come spring and summer and the car shows start again. By then I will have learned how to use it I think.

Wind again today is bad, wind chill is 11F. glad I could get out of the wind but my fingers still got cold and even now after being in the house a hour and a half they still 
hurt.
All this wind has the deer as nervous as a whore in church.

 Al


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## big rockpile (Feb 24, 2003)

Our Muzzleloading Season don't start until last of the month but I doubt I go. I've got a 54Cal. Hawkins that is great for Hunting with Patch and Ball.

Possum to me is better than ****.

big rockpile


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Another cold windy morning.
16F and a wind chill of 6F. Predicting 4 inches of snow today.


 Al


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Tomorrow is the last day of the season so if nothing changes I will need this recipe.

*Deer tag soup.*


*One 8 quart pot, 

4 quarts of water

One sliced and diced deer tag 

2 bay leaves 

One sprig of time

One tbs of salt

2 pinches of black pepper


One pound of browned burger

2 russet potatoes

1 yellow onion diced

2 turnips quartered

4 carrots cut into 2 inch chunks 

6 stalks of celery cut in 1/4 inch chunks


Combine every thing in the pot and set the heat to low and cook for 8 hours at a simmer
*

Has been a cold season with lots of wind. tmps have ran 10F below normal and the wind chills have been in the single digits many a morning.

 Al


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