Seems as though nature got the best of us this year. I had a very young and small yearling walk right under my stand during early archery season so I let him go. Now I regret that decision as we got neither deer, nor turkey, goose nor duck nor any other game at all this year.
Our hope is that we will better prepare our property early on in the Spring next year to hopefully drive the game into the land and provide forage and fodder for them to stay so we can harvest fresh meat again next Autumn.
Showing posts with label Article. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Article. Show all posts
Sunday, December 01, 2013
Sunday, September 01, 2013
Bridges and Benches
The Family Get-together this past year came and went rather quietly due to scheduling issues around Dad's latest open-heart surgery. Even though he was opened up twice in the same day, his recovery was inconceivably quick and as a result, he was able to spend the day with us after all. Consequently, August passed without much more ado and September arrived before we were even aware.
Our final projects of the year involved rebuilding the bridge over the creek behind the deck and building a sitting bench behind the deck facing what will eventually become the ash cemetery. The only hitch however was my desire to do these two building projects the same way they were done in the pioneer days, using wedge and sledge.
The task involved the use of three 8 foot oak logs for long lasting support and digging out the banks on either side so that the log beams, once laid, in parallel fashion would reveal a level top-line for the cross bars to rest upon.
Next, each cross bar, measuring 5 feet in length, was scored lengthwise with an axe head or wedge. Then, we continued to work the wedges up and down the score line, hammering deeper and deeper with the hand maul until the log split apart right down the middle.
Finally, in order of thickest to thinnest, we worked from the middle out and nailed the cross bar halves directly into the 8 foot beams using 6 inch barn nails. This, of course did not come about without mishap.
Our niece Malissa's boyfriend Brian came out from Michigan to get work so we could bring Missy and the kids out with us. He happened to be with us on this day building our bridge when, while digging out the end holes for the 8 foot beams, and attempting to pry out a large rock that was in the way, Rob slipped off the beam and his shovel handle flew right into Brian's face causing a pretty severe contusion under his left eye.
This caused us much concern for a bit, but we are well stocked with first-aide gear and Mom, with her nursing experience patched him up pretty quickly and so well that he didn't even require stitches. Merely a butterfly was all that became necessary and soon we were back to work.
At last, with the bridge complete, we turned our attention to making the log benches we've been planning. And so, using the same technique, we built the bench on the path to the bridge that back-faces the ash cemetery. We will be placing the other bench below the cabin down by the creek for use when we put in our horseshoe pits and boxes next Spring.
Our final projects of the year involved rebuilding the bridge over the creek behind the deck and building a sitting bench behind the deck facing what will eventually become the ash cemetery. The only hitch however was my desire to do these two building projects the same way they were done in the pioneer days, using wedge and sledge.The task involved the use of three 8 foot oak logs for long lasting support and digging out the banks on either side so that the log beams, once laid, in parallel fashion would reveal a level top-line for the cross bars to rest upon.
Next, each cross bar, measuring 5 feet in length, was scored lengthwise with an axe head or wedge. Then, we continued to work the wedges up and down the score line, hammering deeper and deeper with the hand maul until the log split apart right down the middle.
Finally, in order of thickest to thinnest, we worked from the middle out and nailed the cross bar halves directly into the 8 foot beams using 6 inch barn nails. This, of course did not come about without mishap.
Our niece Malissa's boyfriend Brian came out from Michigan to get work so we could bring Missy and the kids out with us. He happened to be with us on this day building our bridge when, while digging out the end holes for the 8 foot beams, and attempting to pry out a large rock that was in the way, Rob slipped off the beam and his shovel handle flew right into Brian's face causing a pretty severe contusion under his left eye.
This caused us much concern for a bit, but we are well stocked with first-aide gear and Mom, with her nursing experience patched him up pretty quickly and so well that he didn't even require stitches. Merely a butterfly was all that became necessary and soon we were back to work.At last, with the bridge complete, we turned our attention to making the log benches we've been planning. And so, using the same technique, we built the bench on the path to the bridge that back-faces the ash cemetery. We will be placing the other bench below the cabin down by the creek for use when we put in our horseshoe pits and boxes next Spring.
Saturday, July 06, 2013
Skeeters and Flies and Bears. Oh My!
July brought us more fun in the form of mosquitoes and black flies. Never-the-less, work progressed on our camp expansion project. When we arrived at the start of the first weekend, we were surprised to discover a clear set of very large bear tracks right through the front yard of camp near the log piles. Obviously, this was the creature that was our mysterious bird feeder marauder which we had discovered on previous weekends up north.
After doing some fishing and cutting up yet more logs for our piles and doing some re-stacking, we finished the week-end out with some more grounds clearing and mowing. The camp is starting to look ship-shape as the navy types are wont to say!
After doing some fishing and cutting up yet more logs for our piles and doing some re-stacking, we finished the week-end out with some more grounds clearing and mowing. The camp is starting to look ship-shape as the navy types are wont to say!
Saturday, June 01, 2013
Of Boxes, Tree-zebos and Flaming ATVs
June opened with an interesting weekend which permitted us to finish our Outhouse box in shingle and paint and to build, paint and hang five little bat boxes in hopes of luring the little night critters away from the exposed corners of our cabin and into their own little lairs.
For the outhouse, we chose a barn red to color the outside and keep it in fine fashion with the rest of the structures on our property. The bat boxes were built from kits bought on the internet and each was painted a different color; Blue, Red, Yellow, Green and Purple.
As the month wore on winds and weather caused a tree to blow down across our deck and smash the gazebo right down as if to fold it in half. Shortly after we started clean up of that mess we decided to see if we could start the ATVs for a quick run and in the process of firing up the Polaris, caught it on fire which gave us quite a scare. We actually used a sort of bucket brigade from the creek to get the fire out. This was beginning to feel like a harbinger for the remainder of our year.Saturday, May 25, 2013
Spring Projects Have Begun
We began our new Spring projects to clear out space for an orchard, expand our main grounds and build a new outhouse. We also have plans for a few other projects including a bridge rebuild and some rustic benches. But first, a little fishing and a little fun! Rob, John and I went down to the river falls to do a little fishing. It was a truly magnificent morning even though the fish were failing to participate. Dave and the ladies stayed up at the camp to look after Marley and do some hold-over school work.
After awhile, we began the outhouse build. It would be a 4ft by 6ft structure to include space for our home-made wooden compost toilet with a shelf overhead and room in front for our portable shower system so clean-up would be so much more comfortable. By the close of the week-end, we had the structure built and the plastic and sheeting on. Finally, we had the roof attached and ready for shingle. We used the old door from the old tower John built as our door and Rob cut out a moon and drilled some stars in the shape of the big dipper to cap it all off.
The birds are back, and boy are the colors amazing! we have some really beautiful red birds and blue birds to compliment our usual woodpeckers, flickers, grosbeaks, chickadees, finches, hummingbirds and the occasional oriole. I can't wait for warmer temps and more wildlife variations.
After awhile, we began the outhouse build. It would be a 4ft by 6ft structure to include space for our home-made wooden compost toilet with a shelf overhead and room in front for our portable shower system so clean-up would be so much more comfortable. By the close of the week-end, we had the structure built and the plastic and sheeting on. Finally, we had the roof attached and ready for shingle. We used the old door from the old tower John built as our door and Rob cut out a moon and drilled some stars in the shape of the big dipper to cap it all off.
The birds are back, and boy are the colors amazing! we have some really beautiful red birds and blue birds to compliment our usual woodpeckers, flickers, grosbeaks, chickadees, finches, hummingbirds and the occasional oriole. I can't wait for warmer temps and more wildlife variations.
Friday, April 05, 2013
Four Men and a Moo
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| Robinson Park Waterfall |
After one brief stop for supplies (mmm, doughnuts!), we made our way without a hitch to end of Ed's road facing Pine Hill Trail and the unknown depths of the snow-laden path beyond. Without hesitation, John throws her into 4-wheel low and right on down the road we went. It turns out, we had little to concern ourselves with as the deepest part was a mere 6-inches or so. Then it was quickly build a fire to take the chill off the 23-degree night air and a doughnut and some coffee later we were in our bunks attempting a little sleep before the morning.
Saturday came in rainy and gloomy and looking anything but promising to us. So we decided to feed and water Marley, lock up the cabin so she'd be safe and warm and head into town for breakfast at what is still (Yay!) Amy's. After breakfast we decided to check out Robinson Park and the river level as well as see how things were melting up. The melt-water over the cliffs made for a lovely little waterfall (see photo right) and Rob was particularly delighted as he had never been to the park or the quarry before.
By the time we arrived back at the cabin, the skies had cleared up and the day had warmed significantly. So Dave and John decided to break out the 4-wheelers and pretty soon we were all having a blast turning doughnuts in the snow and making rooster tails (check out our mini movie below). What great fun! Even Marley was getting into it by chasing balls and even swimming in some of the melting pools. We topped the evening off with our first barbecue of the season of Brats and Beans. Mmm, good!
All in all, 'though we had to cut it a little short so we could be back downtown in time for what turned out to be a fantastic Easter dinner at Mom's, it was a fabulous weekend and a great start to our 2013 camping season. Please continue to keep an eye on our blog as we continue to improve our land and post our progress a we go.
Monday, December 03, 2012
2012 Hunt Report
Well folks, the hunt seasons this year were both fun and frustrating. For the first time in many years, Minnesota opened up the Fall Turkey hunt without a lottery. Many of you who know me well will now realize how excited I was for that! I've been trying without success to get a turkey license for many years. Last year we had so many turkeys in the area, I could call them up from my cabin porch with just a few chirp and gobble noises I can make without the need for any hardware assistance. Well, as it turns out, after getting my turkey license and my waterfowl, HIP cert. and sand hill crane license and a new ground blind I was ready for the hunt. Unfortunately, the birds had migrated to the top of the hill outside the hollow this year and I had no access to them. Nor could I call them down no matter how hard I tried. And even though John and I tried several WMA parcels, there was nary a big bird to be seen. And so my bird-less hunting streak continues.
John and I went through the archery season dry, but not without some incredibly exciting sights! On opening weekend, I happened to notice about a half dozen or so does being herded along by a small 4-pointer and at the same time, John saw a 4-pointer come out trailing a doe in the meadow. Then, just as his little herd begins to grow in size with a couple more, the 2 groups met down by my little seasonal pond at the foot of the meadow. So John and I started making our deer calls, and the more we called, the randier they got until they were practically jumping all over each other out there! But they stayed just out of bow range. Then, all of a sudden, out steps this majestic 10-pointer with a good 2-3 foot neck strutting across the field in a slow manner as though he owned the place, which well he might! I didn't catch a glimpse of him but John did and here I relate his tale. He watched that beautiful creature cross below the pond and over toward the corner of the property before he remembered he was here to hunt! Well, needless to say, once he got his bow up and shot off, he was so twisted around in his stand that the shot went wide and we haven't seen that big fellow since.
But such are many of the stories we had this year. We could see them, but they were just out of our range. When in range, we could hear them, but not lay on eyes enough to bring our sites (or scopes) to bear and bring home our quarry. Tom again joined us for the hunt during rifle season and what a blast we had! Just us three brothers, in our cabin in the woods, hunting for meat for our families back home. At last, in the final weekend of the firearms season, John brought down a little doe which eventually yielded about 20 pounds of ground meat, 33 pounds of homemade sausage and the straps, loins and liver.
Now it's on this last point that I want to address you hunters out there. Do you process your own or do you take it in and have someone do it for you? There is certainly nothing wrong with letting someone else take on the burden of the butchery and grinding of the meat, especially if it is someone you know and can trust and who doesn't gouge you in the wallet. But let me once make a small case for the idea of processing the meat yourself. First, you know where every piece of that meat came from. Second, you control the percentage of cut to grind, and the mixed in meats as well, such as pork or lamb. Also, if you are making sausage there is another benefit. Many butcheries use a standard venison seasoning for all of the sausage and only give you the shapes and sizes that match your favorite store-bought links. So the venison brats and Italian sausages taste the same except that the butcher added a little cayenne to the Italian to heat it up a little. And they all taste the same as the summer sausage except that that one is smoked. The only thing that really stands out is the breakfast sausage, and that's because of the excess about of sage the butcher puts in.
Do yourself a favor next year and try this. Buy yourself some Backwoods sausage seasoning in your favorite flavors and make sure to buy enough pork shoulder and pork fat to give your ground sausage meat a 25-30% pork to 70-75% venison mixture. Follow the recipes on the seasoning packets to the letter with the following exceptions:
John and I went through the archery season dry, but not without some incredibly exciting sights! On opening weekend, I happened to notice about a half dozen or so does being herded along by a small 4-pointer and at the same time, John saw a 4-pointer come out trailing a doe in the meadow. Then, just as his little herd begins to grow in size with a couple more, the 2 groups met down by my little seasonal pond at the foot of the meadow. So John and I started making our deer calls, and the more we called, the randier they got until they were practically jumping all over each other out there! But they stayed just out of bow range. Then, all of a sudden, out steps this majestic 10-pointer with a good 2-3 foot neck strutting across the field in a slow manner as though he owned the place, which well he might! I didn't catch a glimpse of him but John did and here I relate his tale. He watched that beautiful creature cross below the pond and over toward the corner of the property before he remembered he was here to hunt! Well, needless to say, once he got his bow up and shot off, he was so twisted around in his stand that the shot went wide and we haven't seen that big fellow since.
But such are many of the stories we had this year. We could see them, but they were just out of our range. When in range, we could hear them, but not lay on eyes enough to bring our sites (or scopes) to bear and bring home our quarry. Tom again joined us for the hunt during rifle season and what a blast we had! Just us three brothers, in our cabin in the woods, hunting for meat for our families back home. At last, in the final weekend of the firearms season, John brought down a little doe which eventually yielded about 20 pounds of ground meat, 33 pounds of homemade sausage and the straps, loins and liver.
Now it's on this last point that I want to address you hunters out there. Do you process your own or do you take it in and have someone do it for you? There is certainly nothing wrong with letting someone else take on the burden of the butchery and grinding of the meat, especially if it is someone you know and can trust and who doesn't gouge you in the wallet. But let me once make a small case for the idea of processing the meat yourself. First, you know where every piece of that meat came from. Second, you control the percentage of cut to grind, and the mixed in meats as well, such as pork or lamb. Also, if you are making sausage there is another benefit. Many butcheries use a standard venison seasoning for all of the sausage and only give you the shapes and sizes that match your favorite store-bought links. So the venison brats and Italian sausages taste the same except that the butcher added a little cayenne to the Italian to heat it up a little. And they all taste the same as the summer sausage except that that one is smoked. The only thing that really stands out is the breakfast sausage, and that's because of the excess about of sage the butcher puts in.
Do yourself a favor next year and try this. Buy yourself some Backwoods sausage seasoning in your favorite flavors and make sure to buy enough pork shoulder and pork fat to give your ground sausage meat a 25-30% pork to 70-75% venison mixture. Follow the recipes on the seasoning packets to the letter with the following exceptions:
- for the Bratwurst, use your favorite beer instead of water and add about 1-2 tablespoons of coarse ground black pepper for every 5 pounds to the mix. You won't regret it.
- You can also add a 2 cups of cheese for every 5 lbs ( or as much as you like) to make Cheddar Wurst.
- Use a mixture of 1/2 water and 1/2 red wine in the Italian and always buy the sweet recipe. If you want it hot, just add cayenne to taste.
- Buy only the sage breakfast sausage and add your own favorite syrup (Maple, Honey, Blueberry, etc.) to the mixture to taste.
- And don't forget to get fresh apple wood, mesquite, oak or hickory chips for your smoker. Nothing ruins the flavor of your meat faster than old or mildewy wood chips!
- Also, don't do this alone! You hunted in a party, so process in a party as well and get all hands on to help. you'll have a great time extending your hunt into the processing phase, and you'll bring some really tasty, quality meats to your holiday tables.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
New Beginning
“AT LAST”! Its official…there’s a new Covey in the family. After all the hard back breaking work of cleaning up the camp, we had a beautiful wedding outside at Woodpecker Hollow. On August 11, 2012, David and April were united in holy matrimony with their loved ones looking on. Everyone had a nice meal, and tents were set up for those who decided to stay for the weekend. Music was also played all through the day, thanks to DJ brother Dan. Thank you everyone for making our day unforgettable.
David & April Covey
Monday, May 07, 2012
Interior Walls
John got right into supervisor mode and Dave and I just threw in as directed. Pretty soon we had the cabin emptied and contents covered and the truck and trailer unloaded and set up inside the cabin. We began almost immediately and soon had the entire downstairs sheeted. Then we moved upstairs and did as much of the loft as we could reach. Finally we put John's homemade scaffold together and finished the vaulted area. Then cam the mud and sanding. By this time, we had worked for a couple of days straight and were already beginning to feel the effects of our effort. It took us 3 days to finish the mud and sanding stage and finally, paint. The colors chosen were "Soft Sage" for the ceilings and "Antique White" for the walls.
Friday, March 30, 2012
Looking forward to the weekend......
Hopefully, this will be the weekend the guys install the solar panels on the cabin. So far the weather forecast looks fairly promising. Another of our projects involves "cleaning up" scraps of this and that, tossed aside from previous projects. Possibly this may be something that April and I can start working on.
We are also planning to clear a real nice area not far from the cabin that will be dedicated to our loyal, loving four-legged friends. I recently lost my beautiful Sheltie companion of fourteen years - Sheila Nicole. She loved going up to camp with the family,even though, unlike Marley, she preferred the cabin to the woods and water holes. She will be the first of our beloved pets to rest forever near "the cabin at Woodpecker Hollow."
Monday, March 26, 2012
And the work continues..........
Harvey, John, David, April and I spent the weekend up north working on the cabin. Saturday the guys wired the cabin in preparation for solar power. Not fully understanding how it works, the only way I know how to describe it is that we now have “electric” by way of a car type battery through the use of an inverter. Is this correct guys? Ok, stop your laughing……I did my best to explain it. I am completely in awe of what the guys did! After getting it set up, we went out to “celebrate” another project done on our cabin………and an awesome project it was to say the least. When we returned back at the cabin we turned on the inside overhead light with the use of a remote, as we drove up to the cabin. It was the most weirdest, wonderful thing in the whole world……….to see a light come on inside the cabin that has only been lit by propane ..…….and that was turned on by remote control yet!!!
April and I did our best to help out by sweeping, washing some stuff, straightening things out and getting rid of junk, handing things to the guys, carry stuff and trying our best to help where needed.
The solar panels have been ordered and should be in some time this coming week. Hopefully the weather will cooperate and the guys will be able to install them next weekend. I couldn’t ask for a better way to celebrate my 70th birthday.
Mo Vorp
Monday, February 20, 2012
2012 - New Year - Big Plans
Well, it's late February of 2012 and we finally managed to get up north to check out the cabin and all of the other camp sites our family has up there. It's been a pretty rough winter with most of us coming down with at least once or twice a cold or flu, so it's nice when a 40 degree weekend comes along and neither John nor Marley nor I are sick. So, we headed up north to check things out, take down John's new portable deer stand and let Marley run for awhile.
The days were beautiful, if still a little chilly and the skies were that brilliant cobalt blue you see in early Spring (even though that season is yet upon us). We did a long hike over to our neighbor's property -- who is gracious enough to let us hunt there when he is not up himself -- to take down John's stand and to look for sign of that big buck that both he and Tom saw last year but failed to bag. Since it looks as though that old guy got away again, I am ever hopeful for an early archery shot at him this year!
Marley has well defined her territory and always comes when we call her, so I am feeling very comfortable leaving her off-leash when up at camp now. She still doesn't like it though when we leave her in the cabin, to go into town for supplies or a breakfast. John and I are working on a device to take an aerial photo of our camp using a digital camera and a couple of helium-filled balloons. I'll post the picture once we are successful.
We're trying to lay down all of the work we have ahead of us as we have big plans for the property this year. David has finally proposed to April and they want to get married up at camp, so we need to fix the road, at least do a partial finish of the cabin, put in some sort of a decent power and septic systems, as well as some sort of water casement. So, busy, busy busy!
The days were beautiful, if still a little chilly and the skies were that brilliant cobalt blue you see in early Spring (even though that season is yet upon us). We did a long hike over to our neighbor's property -- who is gracious enough to let us hunt there when he is not up himself -- to take down John's stand and to look for sign of that big buck that both he and Tom saw last year but failed to bag. Since it looks as though that old guy got away again, I am ever hopeful for an early archery shot at him this year!
Marley has well defined her territory and always comes when we call her, so I am feeling very comfortable leaving her off-leash when up at camp now. She still doesn't like it though when we leave her in the cabin, to go into town for supplies or a breakfast. John and I are working on a device to take an aerial photo of our camp using a digital camera and a couple of helium-filled balloons. I'll post the picture once we are successful.
We're trying to lay down all of the work we have ahead of us as we have big plans for the property this year. David has finally proposed to April and they want to get married up at camp, so we need to fix the road, at least do a partial finish of the cabin, put in some sort of a decent power and septic systems, as well as some sort of water casement. So, busy, busy busy!
Friday, November 25, 2011
2011 Hunt Report
Well, the season came and the season went and this year I failed to bag my deer. It didn't help that I was only using a bow to hunt and that I basically saw very little deer this year. We did manage to get a look at and even do some hunting over in the Nemaji State Forest area, but no luck there, either.
Both John and Tom managed to bag deer though and between them we processed 2 bucks and a doe. No too bad a haul. We are averaging roughly 3 deer per year off of our 20 acres, so that's not too bad, I think.
We did build a couple of brand new stands this year and managed to clear all of our major trails so next year will be a lot easier moving around. I'm thinking of trying to do a little fowl seeding to bring up the numbers of grouse and pheasants on the property. We have plenty of squirrels and not a few rabbits, so I'm not too worried about them. The turkeys in the area are basically not being hunted so their numbers are growing significantly. I'm hoping to draw that turkey lottery ticket so I can take a chance on one of these majestic birds.
Anyway, not much more to report. Hopefully, we'll have a better year next year!
Both John and Tom managed to bag deer though and between them we processed 2 bucks and a doe. No too bad a haul. We are averaging roughly 3 deer per year off of our 20 acres, so that's not too bad, I think.
We did build a couple of brand new stands this year and managed to clear all of our major trails so next year will be a lot easier moving around. I'm thinking of trying to do a little fowl seeding to bring up the numbers of grouse and pheasants on the property. We have plenty of squirrels and not a few rabbits, so I'm not too worried about them. The turkeys in the area are basically not being hunted so their numbers are growing significantly. I'm hoping to draw that turkey lottery ticket so I can take a chance on one of these majestic birds.
Anyway, not much more to report. Hopefully, we'll have a better year next year!
Monday, March 14, 2011
Checking In
Well, here it is the middle of March in Minnesota and there is still quite a bit of snow on the ground. But, the days are getting longer, the sun is getting warmer and soon, it'll be Spring again!
John and I trekked up to camp last month and spent the night when temps got down to around 4°. But, even though it was mighty cold outside, our woodstove kept us snug and warm inside. It was quite difficult cutting through the hard snow just to get back in, but John's jeep made short work of it and once in, we were, afterward able to come and go as we pleased.
This past weekend, we again made a run up, just to see how things looked and to site-in our new Bear Charge bows (see picture left) which we had purchased with our tax refunds. And, as with the previous week, there appeared to be no human disturbance in the area at all, and everything was just as quiet as you can imagine. We had one smallish tree-fall that had to be moved off the road, but otherwise, there were no further issues.
The bows perform magnificently! I found I couldn't miss my target once I got used to using a site with a bow. John still needs to do a mite of adjusting on his to account for his eyes, but otherwise, they are spot on. I can't wait to put mine to use on turkey, deer, whatever!
Lastly, when we were up during the last weekend of the hunt last year, we had lost the canopy from our gazebo. Well, I ordered a new red one and it is ready to install at camp, once the weather gets a little more into the rainy season and less the snowy one.
John and I trekked up to camp last month and spent the night when temps got down to around 4°. But, even though it was mighty cold outside, our woodstove kept us snug and warm inside. It was quite difficult cutting through the hard snow just to get back in, but John's jeep made short work of it and once in, we were, afterward able to come and go as we pleased.This past weekend, we again made a run up, just to see how things looked and to site-in our new Bear Charge bows (see picture left) which we had purchased with our tax refunds. And, as with the previous week, there appeared to be no human disturbance in the area at all, and everything was just as quiet as you can imagine. We had one smallish tree-fall that had to be moved off the road, but otherwise, there were no further issues.
The bows perform magnificently! I found I couldn't miss my target once I got used to using a site with a bow. John still needs to do a mite of adjusting on his to account for his eyes, but otherwise, they are spot on. I can't wait to put mine to use on turkey, deer, whatever!
Lastly, when we were up during the last weekend of the hunt last year, we had lost the canopy from our gazebo. Well, I ordered a new red one and it is ready to install at camp, once the weather gets a little more into the rainy season and less the snowy one.
Tuesday, January 04, 2011
Happy 7th New Year!
Happy New Year Folks! Nothing much to report as of now. Mostly just to let you know that today marks the 7th anniversary of our ownership of the property! This is most exciting to us, as you might image, and we are really looking forward to ramping up for the Spring runs. What with all the work we have to do around camp and of course fishing and camping and trail riding, it sure looks to be a busy Spring and Summer for us.
A question has already risen about the Summer Get-Together and Yes! We are going to try to put this on as an annual event, so mark your calendars, family and friends! We are looking at potentially trying again for the second week in August -- the weekend of the 13th and 14th -- and I promise, we will get the road fixed long before then and will have many more activities to do, as well. And hopefully, even more sleeping space.
A question has already risen about the Summer Get-Together and Yes! We are going to try to put this on as an annual event, so mark your calendars, family and friends! We are looking at potentially trying again for the second week in August -- the weekend of the 13th and 14th -- and I promise, we will get the road fixed long before then and will have many more activities to do, as well. And hopefully, even more sleeping space.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Fall Hunt - 2010
Well, the hunt did not go as well as we had hoped. The first wee was OK, not being to very cold or having too bad a weather situation, but it seemed like the neighbors, who were camped right on the State Park Line were shooting every thing that came up out of there and we hardly saw a thing. I let a little wee one go and never even saw another all season. John shot a smallish button buck which we turned into some really tasty ground meat and sausage, and on the last day, Tom pulled off a nice shot and got a spike.
W are planning to try some differant stuff this coming year which should put us back on track, including starting out in archery season which puts us there long before the neighbors and should give us a fighting chance and some Spring and Summer plantings that hopefully will create a draw for the deer across our property from a different direction from the State Park and make it fair for all concerned.
W are planning to try some differant stuff this coming year which should put us back on track, including starting out in archery season which puts us there long before the neighbors and should give us a fighting chance and some Spring and Summer plantings that hopefully will create a draw for the deer across our property from a different direction from the State Park and make it fair for all concerned.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Family Get Together
As noted in my previous posts, there was much work to do. Rob and Vicki came out early last week to both settle in and get started on some of the tasks. Rob and John did some major clearing around what is now being called the camping area, or camp grounds. This is the area directly to the south-west of the cabin, in amongst the trees of what might be called the side yard. Rob also stabilized ans built on to his 10x16 platform creating a small front porch for it, as well as a real nice step for the side door. Later on, due to weather issues, we were forced to also add a big 18x20 tarp over it to protect it from the rain and wind.Rob, John and I finished the 10-foot section of the Pavilion Deck and mounted the Gazebo irons and roof to it. John had to welt it in a couple of places where it had broken. Then we set about putting up a somewhat sturdy, if not very pretty guardrail around it finish it off, at least for this year. Rob then set about assembling the 10-foot picnic tables which he later painted in a nice green. He also painted the smaller picnic table and the front door. Rob also built a ridiculously sturdy little coffee table that I may just keep as a firepit table or something. John continued to work on the roads as much as the weather would allow and he also welded the futon bed up that I brought with me when I arrived. Mom, Vicki and I, when I wasn't mowing, made further preparations for the upcoming party event.
Mom hung her curtains which look fantastic! They have a real nice deer print on them. Mom and Vicki also organized the cabin and picnic areas and Mom bought a nice canopy for to cooking area to protect from the rain. Dan came up later in the week and he and John worked on the signs for the party. We ended up having to hold all of the cars at midway down the Pine Hill Trail and had to go out with Our 4x4s to ferry folks in. This was due to the rains that simply wouldn't stay away and left us with nearly car-sized, foot deep puddles to wade through for most of the road back to the driveway.
The Party was a blast! We had a fireside bar-be-que on Friday night with cake and beverages and music. The Helseths were represented in fine style by Mom-Irene, Donna, Deanna and Al Kunitz and their daughters. Speaking of whom, Emily came with her new husband Keith Miller. Thanks guys! Also my kids came and Dad and Ma and Janell were there. Of course, along with my turning 50 this year, Ma turned 73 on that following day and so we carried the festivities on into that Saturday with Bar-be-que ribs and chicken, cold salads and fruit. We finished off the day with another bonfire and some wind-down time as most of the party goers had gone by that evening.
Unfortunately, due to the limited number of beds we have and the rough camp grounds and the weather we were having, many of our folks had to stay in hotels for the night. Next time, we expect to have a bunk house completed, along with smoother campgrounds, more tarps to cover tents and a better road down which to travel. Also on the docket, a Finnish Sauna and possibly, a 8-10 person Spa. But first, a well.
Monday, August 02, 2010
Building the new Pavilion Deck
Well, we are at last in the process of rebuilding the gazebo. Actually, as you can see by the title, we have taken to calling it the Pavilion Deck, or simply just Deck. This is due to the fact that the "gazebo" portion is only going to be a small part of the deck itself and will more resemble a rectangular pavilion than a polygonal gazebo. On the first weekend of July, I began digging 9 of the overall 11 3-foot holes that would be used to hold the poles for the deck. The first row of these I managed to get cemented in by the end of my stay.Two weeks later, John, Mom and I went back up north and while Mom started working on cleaning the cabin and measuring the windows for the new curtains she is making, John and I finished leveling and cementing in the remaining poles. Then we laid on our outer frame rails and the inner cross rails and made ready to receive the primary joists (see first image). We, John and I also added a project to our weekend to slightly move, widen and deepen the firepit. Now, in its new location, it is more visible and accessible to the front of the cabin, while remaining a safe enough distance from it. Also, it is now roughly five feet across, 1 foot deep and is surrounded by 1 ring of stones. This will allow us to have some really lovely bonfires this Summer.
Another two weeks has gone by and this time Dad joins the three of us and helps John and I finish the lower (or main) deck. John and I had also built a rather sturdy set of steps to front the deck and provide easy access to the platform. We installed joist hangers and used pressure-treated wood to create the structure. We used 16-foot deck boards to clad the deck with and built a special joist setup so we count wrap the entire deck in mitered decking boards to give it that "picture-frame" look.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Preparing for Summer
Not much to report from the property up north this Spring. In April, John purchased a Camp Shower Tent for our Zodi Camp Shower unit and set it up next to the cabin, on the unused tiles from the Gazebo, which we took down to make room for clearing the front and side yards around the cabin. He even built a little sidewalk to get to it from the Cabin porch.We also, by request of brother Rob, built a 10x16 platform for under his big tent that he is bringing with him this year. We are planning a big get-together reunion of family and friends to celebrate my 50th birthday. So we are working madly, to get the camp ready for the big weekend. While my birthday is on Friday, August 13th, and yes we will be partying a little that night, we are having the big party day on Saturday, the 14th.
We have also begun work on the new Gazebo, which will be a rather large affair measuring 16 foot square on the main landing, roughly 3 feet off the ground, and having a step up to a 10 foot square situated on and hanging over the corner of the bigger platform. To this square, we will rebuild and recover the metal gazebo structure that we have stored away. Eventually, there will be a roughly 5-foot staircase off its back side that leads right down to the trail that goes over our little creek bridge.
Finally, we have 2 big 10-foot picnic tables to construct, and trails and clearings to mow to get ready for the big weekend. Much to do! Much to do!
Saturday, November 14, 2009
The 2009 Hunt
Sorry guys! I did it to you again! I keep letting the posts trail off after awhile. I promise I will endeavor to do better in the future.
Anyway, on to the hunt. November came in quite beautifully, if a bit chilly. We had, sometime in the months previous, picked up a Zodi Camp Shower unit, so we felt we were pretty much better prepared for a week-long stay in the cabin, so long as we had a way to keep ourselves clean. Opening day looked full of promise. We -- Dad (Harve, Sr), John, Tom and I -- had spent the previous night settling into the cabin, having had a great meal and told many bad jokes and old stories and generally preparing, with great anticipation for the upcoming day.
Morning came far too early, but we were up and into all business mode as we donned our gear, packed our lunch cans, loaded our guns and capped off our hats with trail lights. Tom and Dad had the furthest to walk, so they left fist, followed closely by John, who decided to hunt neighbor Jeff Jarosz' place, as he had given us permission to do the night before. He and his wife were dealing with some health issues that, as he explained, would prevent his coming up for the hunt this year. I followed last making sure to turn down the lights and creep very quietly and very carefully to my perch. Given all of the gear with which we were encumbered, I think we did a pretty good job of settling in without really making much noise.
Quietly and patiently we sat, calmly waiting for the break of dawn. We could here the early morning critters awakening. We even saw shapes moving about, but it was just too dark to make out anything. Suddenly, just as the sun is getting ready to pop up over the eastern horizon, to light the sky, down the lane come a crashing, squeaking, rumbling noise of a big 4x4 as our western neighbors came bumbling in to their property. Then, of course they whack-crashed through the brush and bramble as they left their truck, having made sure to very loudly slam its doors, to stumble out to the stands, which they made certain to rattle quite a bit before climbing into them!
Not a very auspicious start to the hunt! Any way, later on that afternoon, we got a visit from a couple of very cute DNR officials (hey ladies!) who were checking on a flyover report that said we were baiting. We showed them that we had recently been clear-cut and what looked like corn from the air was really sawdust shavings from the lumberjack's blades. That was our Saturday, pretty much in a nutshell.
Sunday, however told a different tale. Again we crept quietly out to our respective perches. Again we suffered the noisy intrusion of our lower neighbors' entrance into the area. but an hour or so after full light John spots a beautiful 3/5 spike and shoots it as it is running away from him and drops it on the first shot! His first deer, a buck and running away! A guy couldn't ask for much better. So I got down out of my stand and helped him haul it back to camp. By then Dad had come in so the three of us, dressed it out and hung it.
Later on that afternoon, I was sitting in my perch when I heard a crashing coming from the north part of the property, right along the line. At first, I couldn't see anything. Just then, a tree seemed to move. Then I saw that it was a deer walking cautiously up the border. His nose was in the air and he was being extremely careful about each step. Practically, in slow-motion, I raised my rifle and peered through the scope. I laid the cross-hairs right on his left-front shoulder, took a slow, steady breath and squeezed the trigger. I had heard many stories about the first deer. Buck fever. Nervous reloading. Freezing up and watching it walk right on by. But I experienced none of that. Rather, I felt calm and focused on the task at hand. And that little button buck dropped like a stone, dead in its tracks. My very first deer. At 49. I was elated. Oh, and he tasted good, too!
Tom would go on to close out the week collecting 2 more, one right on top of the other within a 1 minute period of time. So with a harvest of four, 1 doe, 2 buttons and a spike, we had a great hunt for 2009.
Anyway, on to the hunt. November came in quite beautifully, if a bit chilly. We had, sometime in the months previous, picked up a Zodi Camp Shower unit, so we felt we were pretty much better prepared for a week-long stay in the cabin, so long as we had a way to keep ourselves clean. Opening day looked full of promise. We -- Dad (Harve, Sr), John, Tom and I -- had spent the previous night settling into the cabin, having had a great meal and told many bad jokes and old stories and generally preparing, with great anticipation for the upcoming day.
Morning came far too early, but we were up and into all business mode as we donned our gear, packed our lunch cans, loaded our guns and capped off our hats with trail lights. Tom and Dad had the furthest to walk, so they left fist, followed closely by John, who decided to hunt neighbor Jeff Jarosz' place, as he had given us permission to do the night before. He and his wife were dealing with some health issues that, as he explained, would prevent his coming up for the hunt this year. I followed last making sure to turn down the lights and creep very quietly and very carefully to my perch. Given all of the gear with which we were encumbered, I think we did a pretty good job of settling in without really making much noise.
Quietly and patiently we sat, calmly waiting for the break of dawn. We could here the early morning critters awakening. We even saw shapes moving about, but it was just too dark to make out anything. Suddenly, just as the sun is getting ready to pop up over the eastern horizon, to light the sky, down the lane come a crashing, squeaking, rumbling noise of a big 4x4 as our western neighbors came bumbling in to their property. Then, of course they whack-crashed through the brush and bramble as they left their truck, having made sure to very loudly slam its doors, to stumble out to the stands, which they made certain to rattle quite a bit before climbing into them!
Not a very auspicious start to the hunt! Any way, later on that afternoon, we got a visit from a couple of very cute DNR officials (hey ladies!) who were checking on a flyover report that said we were baiting. We showed them that we had recently been clear-cut and what looked like corn from the air was really sawdust shavings from the lumberjack's blades. That was our Saturday, pretty much in a nutshell.
Sunday, however told a different tale. Again we crept quietly out to our respective perches. Again we suffered the noisy intrusion of our lower neighbors' entrance into the area. but an hour or so after full light John spots a beautiful 3/5 spike and shoots it as it is running away from him and drops it on the first shot! His first deer, a buck and running away! A guy couldn't ask for much better. So I got down out of my stand and helped him haul it back to camp. By then Dad had come in so the three of us, dressed it out and hung it.
Later on that afternoon, I was sitting in my perch when I heard a crashing coming from the north part of the property, right along the line. At first, I couldn't see anything. Just then, a tree seemed to move. Then I saw that it was a deer walking cautiously up the border. His nose was in the air and he was being extremely careful about each step. Practically, in slow-motion, I raised my rifle and peered through the scope. I laid the cross-hairs right on his left-front shoulder, took a slow, steady breath and squeezed the trigger. I had heard many stories about the first deer. Buck fever. Nervous reloading. Freezing up and watching it walk right on by. But I experienced none of that. Rather, I felt calm and focused on the task at hand. And that little button buck dropped like a stone, dead in its tracks. My very first deer. At 49. I was elated. Oh, and he tasted good, too!
Tom would go on to close out the week collecting 2 more, one right on top of the other within a 1 minute period of time. So with a harvest of four, 1 doe, 2 buttons and a spike, we had a great hunt for 2009.
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