(Photo of my camp wall – before someone stole the moose and deer antlers)
(The front door of sure-shot dave’s camp)
(Chessy’s deer camp from ’97)
(Chessy’s woodstove featuring both wet and dry wood)
(Inside shot of Chessy’s deer camp..looks pretty comfy)
(Photo of Trapper’s camp..looks nice!)
The term ‘Hunt camp’ is as open-ended as it comes and can mean different things to different people.
One person’s hunt camp might be a 4-man tent, while for someone else it could be a summer cottage transformed into a makeshift hunt camp when the leaves start to fall.
Other folks might be members of a private hunt club or an organized lodge, while some might even rent chalets, cabins or quinsy huts and call them a hunt camp. You might convert a fishing or trapping camp into a hunt camp in the fall and you know what, it doesn’t really matter.
Regardless of what four-walls become your hunt camp, tis the season to celebrate the sport we all know and love in your private little domain. Sharing the experience with friends and hunting companions will only served to enrich the experience.
Although it may come off sounding snooty, the hunt camp mentality is something only a true hunter has experienced and will ever really understand. Sorry to all animal rights people, environmentalists and other ‘non-hunters’ out there, you simply cannot comprehend and this post will, therefore, mean absolutely nothing to you.
My father called earlier to say he had just visited our hunt camp, and I had to know every detail!
What did it smell like inside? Any mice around? How about fresh deer tracks in the way in, were there any of those? Did the deer eat the apples I put out on Labour Day? Anyone been around? What is the firewood situation like?
It is a time of year when, like or not, many other things in our busy lives will take a backseat to this special place. We will dream about it at night and long for that glorious day when we first arrive.
After 31-years of this I know, all too well, the hunt camp experience is over in the blink of an eye..so enjoy your time this year to the fullest and for goodness sake, let it all soak in!
You just never know when it may be your last.
So, what does hunt camp mean to you? Please feel free to send in your camp photos by pm, and I’ll post them above!
Outdoorsguy
To me it is a family reunion hunting family , I see guys that I have not seen in a long time, actually 51 weeks to be exact. they come from other camps in the area stop in to see the Old boys, some years the old boys are not there, then we talk about the old boys and the deer they have shot and how they will be missed, some years the old boys are still around and they still talk about the same thing. the same thing happens every year ever hunter has there favorite spot to check out, when they get back they get grilled with all the usual questions and only those in a hunt camp will know. your right Jeff 7-10 days is not enough time to be in a camp, but in those short term stays in the woods are indeed magical and like you said only those that have experienced the “hunt camp will only know”. I hope the secret don’t get out because if it did the woods would be full of people….i think if they found out you truly could say “peace on earth and good will to all men and women “
So funny Chess, I think the tradition is the same no matter where the camp is located.
I love evenings with the ‘other gangs’ come in for dinner or drinks…and all those old stories you’ve heard a thousand times but enjoy as much as you did the first time they were told!
Outdoorsguy
For me this year is the first year I will be out with a tent, was somewhat a tradition to build the lean-to on first day out and call that home. Bringing the kids around kinda changes things until they are older. We have a 4 season tent which will be home for our 14 day hunt up in WMU 38 … should be interesting.
the breaking of normal life day to day, week to week routines.
the camaraderie of camp – everything from meal prep to stocking the woodpile to looking at maps and planning the next day’s hunt
it’s the hunting itself. everything from radio chatter to helping someone with their deer, navigating the land
and it’s seeing the land and animals. going places where people simply don’t normally go at all. the smell of the fall air, the leaves decomposing – i actually smelled that this morning and it instantly shot me back to somewhere in the deep woods!
it’s trying to put together all the excitement of seeing a deer or moose, channeling that and becoming one with your weapon to do something that pretty much needs to be done perfectly and instantly. non-hunters won’t get that and antis will hate the idea, but it’s a challenge to take an animal – never a given and definitely never taken for granted.
we always have a birthday to celebrate at camp, there’s a visit to neighbouring camps and their visits later in the week. ATV rides and plenty of walking.
for me, it’s trying to show my 2 boys something different each year whether it be building a fire in the middle of the bush or sitting down for a snack overlooking a valley. It’s trying to put them into a position or situation which imprint on their minds and appreciate for the rest of their lives. It’s never a push – just present it to them and see how they’ll eventually react.
I’ve found that it doesn’t take much for anyone to enjoy themselves in the woods b/c we’re historically tied with nature. It’s not the normal urbanite landscape and lifestyle. It’s far from MANMADE.
It seems new, but really, it always sits right below the surface yearning to come out and be experienced again 🙂
I can’t wait to get out 🙂
Sorry Keebler, I think got a squirrel in my pants reading that…hehe…great job conveying what it all means to you, I know I can relate!
Outdoorsguy
the family hunt camp i go to the first week has been around for approx. 40 years. i love looking at the pictures on the wall. some of the guys now gone are younger than i am in those pictures! there is of course a story to each picture that i know by heart but that i love hearing every year anyways. the numbers have dwindeled dramaticaly at this point with the passing of older people and the busy times we live in for the others. they have been hunting in this area for longer and my dad has shown me the sand pit were they used to pitch the tents and were the fire pit used to be etc… hunt camps are about tradition, everybody knows that this is the chair uncle ted used to sit in so he could look out the window onto the trail. the rain coat somebody else left the last time he was able to come up over 20 years ago.always wipe your feet at the door “NOT” the sound of laughter in the bunk room as another is pulled out of bed by who knows whom. the sounds of cedar crackling in the stove at 4:30 a.m. the little nap on the couch after lunch. the boys stopping in on sunday on the way to there hunt camp and listening to there stories from the year before. the first time my son came up we warned him what happens at the hunt camp stays at the hunt camp. but not because we do anything totaly crazy or insane but because mostly others would not get the sillyness or the pretence of our activities or jokes. so many other thinks pop to mind but i will end it with The hunt camp is a state of mind. when i was young i remember hearing some off the hunting stories and i tried placing myself in that camp in my dreams. now years later i have become a part of that history and i believe its my responsibility to keep it going for the next generations coming along.
McDan, I can remember being at my camp in the early 1980’s..as a young teen..with all the older men around. It was perhaps the most intiminating time of my life, yet
I believe the most character building as well. You learned the hardway how things were done and I was always the youngest…until recent years when some of my buddies
from back home joined our gang to provide new blood.
It is still as exciting as those early days..just not quite so intimidating anymore.
Outdoorsguy
Awesome stories guys. For me, never having been to a hunt camp, I can look forward to Friday with complete anticipation and an imagination that will never happen again, seeing as you go for the first time only once. These stories are helping me appreciate what a fantastic privilege it is to have a group of family members invite me in. And to enjoy every moment and just soak it in. I will be hunting with 4 of my cousins and one of their buddies (6 in all). I know all of them very well from as far back as I can remember, and we’ve been camping together since before we could walk. I’m going back to my home town, to the woods of my childhood and those of my ancestors. My mother and two of her older siblings were actually born in those woods in lumber camp that my grandparents worked (grandfather was a lumberjack, grandmother was a cook). I feel at home there like nowhere else. I feel connceted to the land and the earth. I know too, the elders which have their own hunt camps, will have us in their thoughts and will be wishing us all the luck in a succesful hunt. I think of the legends in our family and the countless animals they have taken, and I only hope that by the time I’m their age I can be half the hunter they are. I’m going home… to hunt!
GPG, I’m surprised it took you this long to go..but hey, better late than never!
Outdoorsguy
Hey Jeff dont post this but if they want action on there page them them to get with the act… your blog is still not even posted you have to look for it…. sorry but its one of those days…. tell the sun to get with it….
I just came back from our hunt camp last night, I went up with a buddy to put out some more bait at the trail cam and dropped in at the camp to check the propane and do a little inventory on supplies like toilet paper coffee and dish soap. Next weekend there will be about 15 of us up to have our fall work weekend. Birds will be open then so all the shotguns come up, and the rifles for the guys going moose hunting or just wanting to plink. It was really quiet there late yesterday afternoon, you could have heard a pin drop, but next weekend will be filled with stories and laughter and noise from 5:30 AM till about 10 PM.
We’ll be clearing trails, scouting, telling lies, drinking the odd beer and doing a bit of fishing too. We are right on a lake with a sandy beach and huge white pines, lovely place and very relaxing. It’s fun going up when it’s quiet but a lot more fun when it’s full of the joy of hunters getting prepared for THEIR season
Too bad I can’t post a picture of paradise
Ok, anyone with pics of their camp..please send to me in pm and I promise to post them above..IF the file size is not too large.
No naked men please…hehe
Outdoorsguy
why isn’t this showing up on the front page of the blog??
Sorry guys, I have no idea why the Blogs are not updating today..some sort of tech glitch I suppose.
Outdoorsguy
My condolences to anyone who has to hunt from under canvass.
I’ve seen all shapes and sizes and styles of hunt camps but I personally never had to suffer through making a portable homestead. I’ve always had the luxury of always having a bed off the ground, a shingled roof over head and some form of lighting. The only thing we done with out was electricity (until we could afford a generator), and running water. Bathing after 3 days was in a sauna.
Jeff, you’re bang on the money when you say that life in camp as a young lad was character building.
trapper .. your wrong… our camp is semi portable… its dry and comfy we have water and a hot shower every day im going to try to find pictures
we have hot running water on demand for showers at our camp, water heated by propane and every night we can take a shower, there was a time not that long ago Wednesday was shower night and it was done with a gravity feed shower.
At our moose camp we have both a shower and a sauna but when I first started there it was a sauna every night and then into the lake to rinse off, I still do that at least a couple of times but the shower sure is handy and nice on cold cold days
Wow Iggs..hot running water and showers. I guess that would replace the sight of all the guys having sponge baths throughout the week..and Im all for that!
Outdoorsguy
trap … before the kids … hunting was all about getting away from everything … spend too much of the year wrapped around possessions and technology, it’s nice to have some time away from it.
Although I have never hunted at a hunt camp, I have so many fond memories of my dear father preparing for the hunt every year and all the great stories when he came home. After a week in the woods without shaving, he would tickle my face (and that of my sister) with his beard. I will never forget that feeling.
Unfortunately, my father passed away before he could pass on any of his hunting knowledge to my 16-year old son — and before I could tell him how much I truly admire and respect the hunting tradition. It must be in the genes, because my son is following in his grandfather’s footsteps. He will be hunting for the first time this year — with his mother by his side.
I’ve been a soccer mom, a hockey mom, but I think the role I am proudest of is:
Hunting Mom
hi
all of these posts just have me right randy for hunting season! I can not WAIT to get out there. I’m actually sorting through my gear tonight, prepping maps and waypoints on my Rino and planning the time until I go.
Can you imagine the insanity if you won the lottery? I would be so gone from the urbanite lifestyle in a heartbeat from day 1 of whatever opened first until whatever closed last. Some think i’m nuts, but I would cherish every day and reap it. 🙂
@ Hunting Mom… Bravo, good for you.
We were the first in our family of hunters (4 generations) to allow women to join us at the hunt camp. My wife joined us at the hunting camp, she also traps and can skin a beaver as good as any. It was a bit akward for my dad at first. We all noticed he kept a civil tongue with a woman in the room. That all changed when his chauvenistic way suggested that she was there to wash dishes and she told him to go f*** himself. It turned out to be a great week in the woods although I’m sure he secretly wondered what was happening.
As for showers at camp, this is an essential service. We currently have a gravity shower system and it works great but have dreams of hot water on demand and a pressureized system just not sure yet how to deal with the freeze/thaw cycle.
Trapper, that story about yer wife made me laugh out loud…mine would do the same.
But alas..she isn’t interested in hunting..nor are any of the other wives, etc. So we’re stuck with one another for the week..no women around for milllllleesssss..
Outdoorsuy
Here’s one for you guys:
How many of you have been at camp; lying in bed listening to the sound of a mouse running around in the ceiling or on the floor..regardless of how much bait you put out, or the number of traps on the go, there always seems to be one mouse around!
Outdoorsguy
keeb how do you find those rinos? always wondered if the reporting feature would be handy
trap we’ve got a hot water tank on the side of the wood stove, pour cold water in one end, let it heat up and then put that in the bag or tank for the gravity shower … works great
Hunt camp for me is simple. Time to get away from the hustle and bustle of the rat race, and see great friends that share the same passion as I do. It’s the time when the *%&$^ crackberry gets put away for the week. It’s the time when nothing in the “real” world matters. Other than a 4:30 AM alarm clock, time doesn’t matter. Have you guys ever noticed how it seems that the time there flies by? We wait 50 some odd weeks for the season to open, and then in the blink of an eye it’s over. We are packing up camp, already counting down the days until the next year when we can do it all over again. I have great friends that come up from the US every year. We spend the week hunting, but also just hanging out at the camp doing whatever needs to be done to make it all work. There’s the daily chores, the firewood, getting water from a nearby house, etc. No one ever complains about having to do it. We just do it. It’s sitting by the wood stove after the day is done, recounting the many encounters with deer that we had that day, why we didn’t shoot, why we did and missed, or how that doe or buck ended up on the meat pole. To anyone who has never experienced hunt camp, it’s impossible to explain. My oldest son came with me last fall to spend a day in a tower blind. It was one of my proudest moments as a dad. He’s 5 now, and he can’t wait to come again this fall. He knows all the guys at camp, and sees them as part of his extended family. Any chance I get, I take my boys with me. Whether it’s just a quick run up to the camp to check trail cameras, or just a little tour on the ATV to check food plots. My boys will hopefully keep the camp going when I’m too old, or 6 feet under. Family bonds created at hunt camp are magical.
Check out sureshot-dave’s camp door photo posted above!
I included a pic of my camp wall…before someone broke-in last year and made off with pappy’s moose rack and another set of deer antlers!
Outdoorsguy
sure-shot dave, great work btw!
Outdoorsguy
Jeff, I can think of a lot of reasons why I haven’t gone hunting before, but none of them seem good enough anymore.
12 volt pump and a 5 gallon 110 volt hot water tank and genny your away to the races for a hot shower…. don’t forget a cap full of javex in 45 gallon bucket… trying to find pictures
We have 100 feet of copper pipe wrapped around the wood stove pipe. Enough water to do dishes, or fill a pot for a quick wash down. For a shower we have a 12 volt pump and outdoor shower. Just a big pot full of hot water. You gotta be quick, but it does the trick.
Hi Rob,
Not sure what you mean by the reporting feature? Let me know. Regardless, I absolutely LOVE my Rino.
As far as i’m concerned, it should be the only GPS unit carried in the bush b/c of hunter safety (ie. being able to see one another in the bush – well, not directly, but an icon representing where everyone is and how / where they are moving).
In fact, I’m making a point to sit down while I’m in the bush this year to get some hands on footage to showcase how it’s used.
If you hunt with anyone else, everyone should have them. Simply fantastic. Easy to use too!
@ Sure shot Dave. Does the water circulate itself back into the reservoir as it heats up ? I’ve contemplated installing one of these. What happens if the system does not have water in it ? (or do you just add that as one of the things you do when lighting the fire?)
@ Jeff, re mice running in cieling. Spent many a night as a young lad trying to get to sleep to no avail due to Uncle Howard snoring like a banshee and mice running in the cieling. We keep several mouse traps out and about but the best cure is 1) feed them outside with a constant supply of scraps 2) deploy a bucket style trap (the ones with the empty water bottle on an axle and 3″ of water in the bottom) and you’ll keep ahead of them. Keep the bucket trap outside near entrances. We average 3 mice a night with just one trap.
OK Trapper, we’ve caught mice accidentally in our garbage can, but this trap of yours sounds wayyy better. Did you mean an empty water bottle on an ‘angle’? Like one
of those 18 Liter spring water bottles, or simly a bucket?
I guess the idea is the mice fall to the bottom and land in the water? Why the angle though?
Outdoorsguy
Why is it there was always an uncle who snored like a bugger? I had one of those too..Uncle Alfie!
Outdoorsguy
Hi Sam 🙂
Iggy, I’m not sure about Sam…I think he’s like those mice, he kind of snuck in.
Outdoorsguy
peanut butter on the pail mouse trap, very effective
hahaha I’m an idiot I did not mean to post that, I enjoy reading this blog, just everyone ignore what i said.
Sam
Hey Sam, sorry about that..I actually thought it was spam..drop by anytime. You might learn something..or not, it depends on the day…hehe
Outdoorsguy
keep thats what I was talking about (being able to see each other on the gps), it works well enough in the bush at a distance?
5 gal pail with coat hanger run through a pop can with pb on it and a stick running from the ground to the coat hanger … few inches of water in the pail so they can’t touch bottom. We use that around the farm here … works great (although we use a prettier solution but same idea)
what we need is sound on this site so we can post recording of the snores … and a prize who wins .. pictures of camp set
Chessy, that would be terrific but I guess we’ll just have to use our imagination.
Outdoorsguy
jeff i made one of those pail traps for my place and they work great. all you need a pail, a wood dowel to span the top of the pail and empty plastic peanut butter jar. drill a hole in either end of the peanut butter jar and push wood dowel trough. put a couple of wood screws on either side to keep jar centered on wood dowel. place this on top of the pail and secure with wood screws on either side of wood dowel, but be certain dowel is able to rotate. we put peanut butter around on the jar and put a few inches of water in pail. for winter use we put windshield washer fluid in pail and it will not freeze. i found that if you put a little ramp up to the top of the pail it worked better but place the dowel and jar far enough away from it so they dont just sit on the ramp to nible on peanut butter.
Mcdan, that’s an awesome sounding trap!!
Outdoorsguy
Ah yes, it actually works very well. Not sure how many kms, but I know we’ve been within 2 km’s of each other and it’s worked. We’ve had around 10 different hunters all on the same hunt with their own icon. our radio chatter
is cut down significantly just from being able to see where a hunter is. we all subconsciously key our mike button every so often to update our position or you can ‘poll’ another hunter by selecting their icon and updating their location. I’ve done that a few times when someone has updated and I hear something near me. in fact, I shot a fawn and a doe back to back (barely had time to reload my 300 savage lever!) b/c my son wanted a snack so i looked at my gps and saw 1 hunter coming one way and the other near that person and heading our way too. told my son we’ll see if anything pushes towards us and they did 🙂
The radio sometimes gives us grief is someone is on the other side of a big hill, but i think that par for the course for any radio.
try to find an american version as it’s apparently 5 watts whereas the CDN version is 2 watts, thus providing a shorter distance.
radio is clear as well and it has limited texting options although maybe not a slick as current smart phones, the texting does have presets as well as ones you can preset. Some examples we have:
deer near me
dead deer!
hold spot
etc..
Hope that helps. The Rino is the one thing that if something happened to it, money in the bank or not, I would have a new one the next day. They are tough too. Can take a beating and keep working just fine.
@ Rob St Dennis. What’s this ‘solution’ you speak of ? We experimented with a variety of chemicals so as to prevent the smell when we’re away for awhile. Windshield washer antifreeze works great in the winter time to avoid freezing but we need something that will pickle the carcasses. Nothing worse that arriving at camp after a week of being away and finding 10 rotting mice in the water.
@ Jeff, I’m shocked you never heard of this. The team has provided an accurate description with various alterations. We simply use an empty water bottle with the lid on. Straighten out a peice of coat hanger, heat one end on the stove and shove it through one side of the plastic pail about 3″ from the top (A square pail works best), then through the lid on the water bottle continueing out the opposite end of the water bottle and out the other side of the bucket. Put a few inches of water in the bottom of the bucket and smear peanut butter on the bottle and there you have it.
The ‘stick’ leaning up to the coat hanger is simply a ramp for the mice. We’ve never needed that option.
Trapper, keep in mind I grew up in QC…this trap of yers must be an ON thing..QC’ers liked to do it the old fashioned way I suppose….one mouse at a time..hehe
Outdoorsguy
Wow, lots of respect for the outdoors column this week…front page on featured columnist list!
http://www.ottawasun.com/2011/09/14/bassin-for-big-bucks
Outdoorsguy
More camp pics posted above…keep them coming boys(& girls)!
Outdoorsguy
Keebler .. we use 5 watt vhf radios we have our own frequency.. its expensive up front cost have had the same radio for 12 years.. you can buy them on ebay for about 150 bucks give or take .. the model we use are motorola p1225 vhf 5 watt radio…
Chessy, with the powerful GMRS radios they have out today(US ones) is there really a need to have your own frequency anymore?
We have 5 watt Midland GMRS’s..set out to specific channel and sub-channel..and never had anyone bother us.
Plus that, they carry very well even over the mountains where we are.
Outdoorsguy
@ Jeff, Here’s the QC version….
Nous utilisons simplement une bouteille vide de l’eau avec le couvercle dessus. Redressez dehors un morceau de cintre de manteau, chauffez une extrémité sur le fourneau et poussez-la par un côté du seau en plastique environ le ″ 3 à partir du dessus (le seau carré d’A fonctionne mieux), puis par le couvercle sur la bouteille de l’eau continuant dehors l’extrémité opposée de la bouteille de l’eau et dehors l’autre côté du seau. Mettez quelques pouces de l’eau dans le fond du seau et enduisez le beurre d’arachide sur la bouteille et là vous l’avez.
Le bâton de `’ se penchant jusqu’au cintre de manteau est simplement une rampe pour les souris. Nous n’avons jamais eu besoin de cette option.
Man trapper, your French is better than mine!
Ok, so apparently the Francophone community are also aware of this trap, so I guess it was just me who didnt know about it.
Outdoorsguy
parlez vouz de ding dong, maybe trapper should log on to Le Droit!
your column in the paper today? if so I’ll buy a copy on the way up to the cottage right after work
Gone up alone for the weekend whoooo hoooooo
Got the cannon to do a little more shooting, can’t get enough of it
Iggs, the outdoors column sure is there this am. It’s actually featured on the front page online..among the featured columnists. We hit the big time now..hehe
They now how my column page with Bio and everything linked up…thanks to my pal – SUN staffer and the best bass fisherman I know(besides my wife)… Don Wilcox!!
Outdoorsguy
I thought those (gmrs) 5 watt radios were were banned in canada. ???
Chess, what does ‘banned’ really mean anyway?
From what I know after researching for a feature I wrote on GMRS radios(about 5 years ago) for QC’s French hunting & fishing mag….the CRTC does not allow more than, I think 2 watts, to be legally ‘sold’ in Canada…although at the time Canadian Tire had a 3 watt model on the market.
The CRTC watchdogs I spoke with were very surprised by that, and told me that would be ‘investigating’ Cantire’s sale of these products…I kept that in mind and followed-up about a year later. Guess what, Cantire was still selling the 3 watt GMRS’s!
I guess these things are not too heavily enforced!!
Outdoorsguy
Ok, I did some digging around in the Cantire website on GMRS radios. It seems these big stores are sneaky now about the Power Output on these units. They post only the effective range…ie 43 km’s..and the number of channels, etc..but nowhere could I find the power level.
One model (Motorola) I was able to research and found they were 2 watts(43 km) but the 45 km Cobra’s are not written anywhere what the wattage is..
Outdoorsguy
Trap, I meant what we have at the farm here isn’t so, ummm rustic. The wood isn’t a stick its a 1×2, etc
Washer fluid works well to keep from freezing, can try mixing pickling vinaegar in to keep the stink down (prob 50/50) … I;m not too picky here since it’s far enough from the house, just dump it out back every once in a while
Jeff, remember, the CRTC is a Gov. department, it takes a few years to get anything done! lol
I like the camp shots guys, nice!
GPG, tks for the kind words..and ‘touche’ on the friday/saturday thing. I’m pretty sure Ive got it together now..hehe
You hit the nail on the head with the CRTC!
Outdoorsguy
and 43 or 45 km is BS, it’s not even close and as far as I’m concerned, not honest advertising. No one uses them on a body of water that big and the only way they’ll work that far is on a body of water because it’s almost completely line of site, so don’t get your hopes up, in the bush your lucky to get 4 or 5 km, most times it’s 2 to 3
Ya ya I know, you were standing on top of Mount Everest and it worked, well there aren’t many mountains in this part of Ontario.
And for trapper, merde tabranac
Yes Iggs..the 45 km rating is totally erroneous..and isn’t worth ‘a pinch of coon sh*t’ like the oldman would say!
At least in the US you know what you’re getting…2 watt, 3 watt….etc.
Even my 5 watt model is lucky to travel 1 mile under mountainous terrain..which I still find pretty good actually.
Outdoorsguy
BTW Jeff, your new mug shot is looking sharp! Are you sure the bass tourny starts Sat…. and not Friday? hahaha
GPG wrote “BTW Jeff, your new mug shot is looking sharp!”
You must be referring to my custom-made shirt courtesy of Mossy Oak Apparel..hehe
Outdoorsguy
A quick and dirty way to get more power is just get an amateur licence … http://icomamerica.com/en/products/amateur/handheld/92ad/default.aspx is a great little rig I use … 5W vhf/uhf and mil std construction so even I can’t break it easy
the downside is the $500 price tag
ig ain’t that the truth. I have some motorola 56km radios … and they hardly work from one end of the farm to the other. Worst is … even if they are advertising best world propagation, 2W is a lot of power, and under the right conditions can go very very very far. This time of year, tropospheric ducting can push that signal as far as florida
Rob, does that set-up require your own tower? What would say the ‘effective’ range would be in a mountainous setting, for example?
Sounds interesting…
Outdoorsguy
well even level terrain if it has trees on it will cut those radios down to a km or two, and where do you hunt where there are no trees. We used to use old Motorola radios on the coast guard channel, they worked better but still not great, but they also were heavy and big.
Off to the cottage soon to put up the new Digital antenna so I can get some TV channels again, I’m thinking there won’t be any news at the huntcamp this fall because of the new Digital signal. We only turn it on at 6PM for the news but it is quite the tradition. All you hear at 5:59 is shhhhh ssshhhhhh sssshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
the news is on be quiet
Gone for the weekend at 3PM today after working 3 straight 6 day weeks, one week being a full 12 hour shift every day.
Burnt out, tired and ready for some R&R
Iggy, how can you expect to hunt properly being that burnt out?
The funny thing is, when you get to camp the adrenaline seems to take over and thank God sometimes..when you’re up at 3-4 AM!
Outdoorsguy
@ Trapper – We have a 55 gallon drum up on the 2nd level. The water flows down out the taps in the kitchen sinks, doesn’t really recirculate. It does warm up the water in the barrel a bit, but not enough to make it really warm.
Nice camp Chessy, the continuous windows are a nice touch! You don’t have to leave your breakfast table to harvest an animal, and with a little Tuck tape for the exit hole, you are good!
@ Sure Shot Dave. I see, so it’s a hot water on demand thing.
If the copper coil came out of the tank then back into the tank I bet it would circulate the water and heat the entire tank over time. Install a second line from the tank to your sink and you’ll have plenty of hot water.
Trap, in case you didn’t see my pm, you need to send your camp pic in a smaller file size..sorry man, ask Iggy about that.
Outdoorsguy
I’ll get some rest over this weekend and then next weekend I’m at the hunt camp (deer) for 3 days and two days later it’s off to the northwest, I do a lot of whinning about working long hours but I also get my share to unwind.
We used to shower from a barrel, gravity feed, and they stuck a flame under it to warm it, but it’s always a rush so everyone gets a shot at it and the water never really gets hot. Nothing like a real hot shower after a day in the field when it’s cold out.
-3 in Atikokan tonight, that’s where we fly out of, that’ll get the moose horny and moving
I sent some of our moose camp and deer camp but they never appeared
too big I guess
where do you check PM’s on here?
Iggy, every pic of yours except for one or two fishing shot were too large to upload. They were like 4-5 MB apiece. Man, you need to adjust the camera settings. Unless you plan or printing it or publishing in print, you dont need the file size to be that big.
Look at Chessy’s camp..nice small file…look at sure-shot dave’s camp…nice small file..
Outdoorsguy
Sorry Iggy if I sounded like I was lecturing..just promise that you’ll come back from hunting with some usable images!
Outdoorsguy
Iggy, don’t change the size of your pics! 🙂 Keep a full size res for the future in case you need it.
Check your email program as it should give an option to compress the files before sending the email.
I’m on a Mac so mine has original medium and small versions.
I wont try to compete with Keeb in this category!
Outdoorsguy
@Jeff nice small file…. you been talking to my wife….. iggy if you send them to me i can resize em…
if you want you can pm from the ohl. i now go by chessy seeing the ban on me was lifted
Jeff, they can talk through a repeater (if there is one near by, and generally speaking they are free to use) and realistically you can talk world wide if you want, you can generally hit a repeater inside 15-20km with little trouble … but you can talk simplex (one walkie to another) 4-5km in the bush … like all vhf/uhf radios you need line of sight to talk (doesn’t matter if it is frs/gmrs/commercial etc)
old fashioned cb radios are a bit nicer in the bush than frs/gmrs … but have more noise to deal with so there is that drawback
Thanks Rob, I’m going to talk to the guys this fall about it.
Outdoorsguy
Try this Ig.
Rather than start the email using the “new mail” option then attaching the photo…Go to the photo and hover over it. Right click and select ‘send to’ then select ‘mail recipient’. Outlook Express should then prompt you to either ‘leave the file it’s original size’ or ‘make it smaller” Select ‘make it smaller’ then follow the prompts to send the e-mail.
The day has finally arrived! I’m off first thing in the morning the great north! This last blog has really got me fired up about the hunt to come. I’ll take plenty of pictures and hopefully with a little luck they’ll include a big bull moose.
GPG, good luck and I hope you have a great time!
Get out there and start building those memories..and since I’m not going moose hunting this year, I will be living vicariously through you, and the others, who are going!
I’ll miss not being able to use my calls in the wild…guess I’ll have to stick to my calls on CHEZ 106..hehe
Have fun!
Outdoorsguy
jeff love your postings as well all from the other hunters i am very priveledged to have a herd of 10 to 16 deer seen every 2 to 3 days cross my camera area i also have 2 to 3 massive bucks in the area trout fishing this summer was incredible most of all our fish were caught between 6:30 am and 7:30 am none any larger than 8 lbs got to get back to work will post later thanks jeff
Thanks a lot Jeff I will be sure to do so !
well if my pics are too big, then shrink em 🙂 Sounds simple to me, but I’m no propeller head. Whatever. I’ll stop sending them, no big deal, two weeks and a day we pack the trailers for the long haul up north for moose, shot the new gun again yesterday although not really all that well. First we have a deer hunt camp work weekend though, then I start to pack seriously, washing clothes and really getting down to organizing everything
Hey Iggy, I want you to still send pics and I want to use them…trust me, I just havent figured out how to shrink them myself..I am far from a propeller head that’s for sure!
How many vehicles drive up to Atikokan??
Outdoorsguy
2 Toyota Tundras, one covered trailer, we put stuff in the back of both trucks, mine doesn’t have a cap so we cover it but it’s all stuff that doesn’t matter if it gets wet. Coolers and tree stands and things like that, the other truck has a cap. On the way home we put the moose in the back of my truck, quartered and in cheescloth, cool breeze all the way home. Paved road all the way to the float plane (last km is a good gravel rd) Should be a good trip, it usually is, and the guy that has to stop for a pee every half hour isn’t going this year so it could be a time record.
We pack food for lunches and supper so we eat on the fly
Sound good..and like most It’ll be an early start I’d assume? Thats one long friggin drive though..course you know how time goes on a trip like this..wont seem like more than a couple of hours..
Outdoorsguy
Up at 3 AM and arrive shortly after 10PM
Jeff, I was just flipping through your last column and I see a comment was posted then they cut off comments
quote
Diane Reese, Diane Reese 1 comment collapsed
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I must say that overall I am really impressed with this blog.It is possible to see that you’re enthusiastic about your writing.
A Like 3 days ago 0 Like
F Flag .
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you have to tell your Mom to stop this. It’s nice but flagrantly bias
hehe..hey Iggs, I told the wife that was one of my ‘groupies’..so just go with it..hehe..
I think for articles they generally cut off comments after 1 day, but I cant be sure..
Outdoorsguy
Ok, I finally managed to come-up with a new Post…sorry it took so long:
http://blogs.canoe.ca/outdoorsguy/hunting/hunter-fatally-mauled-in-idaho-bear-attack/
Outdoorsguy
counter reads 99 responses. Not sure if that is accurate or not, so adding this one to make an even 100.
Anyone else notice that none of the other Blogs here come close to 100 responses…..Bravo Jeff we’re proud to be your groupies.
tks Trapper, you do realize that #100 wins a prize?
Just kidding..but thanks anyway for the support!
Dont worry, we might be the most popular Blog for part of the year, but once hockey season starts, I do tend to take a backseat to my associates – the hockey scribes.
Also, in case you didn’t know..the Outdoors Guy’s popularity is a big part of the reason they brought back my Outdoors Column …and for THAT, I honestly should be handing out prizes to you guys..and girls.
Outdoorsguy
P.S. Hope you dont mind, when I describe the groupies to Mrs Outdoorsguy, they look a lot different than you, Trapper.
yes.. jeff groupies like trap dont go over well….. i wont tell you what i have coming to fish on tuesday and wednesday, at the ganaraska, it should be a stop for all people if they are in the area 🙂
Chessy, is that a ‘who’ is coming fishing or a ‘what’?
Outdoorsguy
who….. and lets just say its some of quebec finest and i don’t mean cops …… going to be intresting day fishing .. my son is exited lol
OK Chessy, you’ve piqued my curiosity now..are there actually going to be str*ppers down by the river?? Filming a movie or something??
Outdoorsguy
no they’re coming fishing ….. there is going to be 3 of them and one boyfriend, “they are paying there way through school. apparently he is not (thank god ) he is the fisherman and so is his girlfriend we will see … it is suposed to pour rain big time … …. i am afraid of this rain cause the river can be crowded enough, if you get my drift
did very well this summer trout fishin on the big rideau, charleston is going downhill unfortunate but impact on hatchlings and other species are causing a shift on the amout of eggs that actully hatch and mature we have also caught quite a quantity of foreign materials inside trout and bass worms(rubber) toothpicks even lures inside fish anyway it,s fall and the smell of gunpowder is everywhere talk to you later
well today they did not come.. they were afraid of the rain.. but the man fisherman came .. he ended up catching 25 chinook. though….