Thursday, December 19, 2013

Kentuckian Larry Mangin takes a massive buck in Ekron, Kentucky this past gun season. I was visiting from Alaska when Larry got this massive buck. I am originally from Brandenburg, Kentucky and had hunted with Larry while growing up.
This buck had 26 typical points and has been scored  208 7/8 by Boone and Crocket standards and weighed approx. 215 lbs.. Larry plans to have it mounted and was thrilled to have taken such a massive buck. Contributed by Scotty Lamkin who resides in Bald Mountain, Alaska
www.scottysalaska.blogspot.com

Saturday, April 2, 2011

John Metcalf's 2010 9 Pointer



Nice 9 pointer from Marion County killed by John Metcalf. This is a beautiful mount.




Youth Weekend Turkey 2011

It's off to a rough start for us. The turkeys just haven't moved in yet. Last season, it was literally two days before the start of Youth.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Two Weeks to Youth Turkey


Two more weeks until Youth Turkey 2011. I'm fired up to get little E out there for turkey #3.


Kentucky Conservation Coalition Newsletter for March

http://fw.ky.gov/pdf/newsletter0311.pdf

Pretty slow month for the newsletter. Maybe you'll find something interesting.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Fish and Wildlife Commission Notes

FRANKFORT, Ky. – The Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Commission at its quarterly meeting March 4 proposed bear season occur one week earlier than in past years and recommended deer zone changes for two counties.

The Commission proposed to the General Assembly that bear season be one week sooner on Dec. 10 and 11, 2011. Winter weather plagued the first two seasons. Moving the season forward one week could improve hunter opportunity. The Commission also recommended making it illegal to take bears from dens.

It also recommended changing Rowan county to Zone 3 and Lee County to Zone 4.

Monday, March 7, 2011

Versus Best Month of Viewership

NEW YORK, N.Y. (March 3, 2011)—VERSUS has seen tremendous increases for its weekend outdoor programming in February 2011, achieving the network’s best month since November 2009 among average viewers and Men 25-54. Collectively, Saturday and Sunday programs are up over 35-percent from the same time period last year. Since the beginning of 2011, VERSUS weekend telecasts are performing amazingly well with average viewership up 25-percent and Men 25-54 (up 11-percent) from the same time period last year.

February’s performance highs were spurred by the weekend of February 12-13, which achieved the most-watched weekend among average viewers (up 34-percent from the 2011 average-to-date) and across all key male demos, including Men 18-34 (up 28-percent), Men 18-49 (up 36-percent) and Men 25-54 (up 47-percent). On Saturday, February 12, City Limits Fishing with Mike Iaconelli, now in its fourth season on the network, was VERSUS’ most-watched program of the day pulling in 280,000 viewers, up 85-percent from the prior four-week average. Then on Sunday, February 13, Bill Dance Outdoors was the most-watched program of the day averaging 351,000 viewers, up 81-percent from the prior four-week average.

VERSUS, part of the NBC Sports Group, prides itself on super-serving passionate sports fans across all platforms (VERSUS.com, VERSUS on Demand and VERSUS HD). Now in more than 75 million homes, the network is the cable television home of the National Hockey League (NHL), IZOD IndyCar Series, Tour de France and Professional Bull Riders (PBR). VERSUS also airs NASCAR, NBA, UFC, college football and college basketball programming. The network is home to the best outdoor programming on television and airs original programs not available anywhere else. VERSUS is distributed via cable systems and satellite operators throughout the United States.

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Elk Lottery 2011 and Notes

You have until April 30th to get your elk lottery chance.

Don't forget that your hunting liscense just expired. Get a new one now. The Sportsman's Liscence is $95 and includes everything for the year. Get that tax return $ out.

Countdown to Turkey 2011


The countdown is on. Youth Turkey is less than a month away now...........Here we come gobblers.


Here is the 2011 Turkey and Squirrel Guide Link: Drag your mouse right below this line.....

Monday, February 21, 2011

Kentucky Conservation Coalition Newsletter February

http://fw.ky.gov/pdf/newsletter0211.pdf

Check out page 7. There's a nice article on the elk transfer to Missouri.

Drag your mouse above the writing for the link.

Blog List

Well, I guess somebody reads b/c this article has us as #26 of the top 50 deer hunting blogs. Nice. Thanks!

http://www.engineeringdegreeonline.org/bringing-home-a-buck-the-top-50-deer-hunting-blogs

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Breaking Down the Elk Lottery

The deadline to apply for Kentucky's Elk Lottery this year is April 30th. This year's elk lottery adds some choices and some strategy based on what you want to hunt. Last year, approximately 45,000 people applied for Kentucky's elk lottery from all over the United States and even other countries. I've been saying for the past few years that Kentucky desperately needed to break down the lottery into cow and bull permits. This year they've done that plus have broken it down by weapon.

Here's the run down:
You can apply for 2 of the 4 choices:

Archery Cow
Firearm Cow
Firearm Bull
Archery Bull

Season Dates and Notes:

Archery-only, bull only (no crossbows during this period except youth or exemptions): Sept 17 – 30

Firearms bull week 1: Oct 1 – 7

Firearms bull week 2 : Oct 8 – 14

Either sex archery and crossbow: Oct 15 – 16; Nov 12 – Dec 9; Dec 24 - 31

Either sex archery only: Oct 22 – Nov 11; Jan 1 - 16

Firearms cow week 1: Dec 10 – 16

Firearms cow week 2: Dec 17 – 23

Youth-only Paul Van Booven WMA hunt
Sept. 24-26 (Bull or cow)

Please note: A firearms hunter may only hunt during the 7 day season for which he is drawn. He may NOT continue hunting with a bow or crossbow outside of that week.

An archery or crossbow hunter may NOT hunt during the 4 firearms weeks.

A cow archery/crossbow hunter may not hunt during the 1st 2 weeks of the season in Sept.

Special youth hunt information.

Youth have an additional option. From what I can understand from the reading, youth are still only able to apply for 2 choices with one of those being the Youth Tag.

The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources opened one of the state’s best places to hunt elk for a special youth-only hunt. Five youth hunters have the opportunity to gun hunt in a 2,300-acre area normally reserved for bow hunting only. The site of the hunt, Paul Van Booven Wildlife Management Area in Breathitt County, was one of the original elk release sites.

Youth hunters must apply for the Youth WMA Elk Lottery online only via the Web site of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. It costs $10 to apply. The drawing is open to Kentucky residents and non-residents.

When you apply online, the youth hunt option does not appear immediately. You must enter a valid birth date for this option to appear.

Currently, youth-only quota hunt drawing is open to any applicant who will be less than 16 years old by the first day of the hunt. All youth hunters should have the size, strength and maturity to safely handle and shoot a firearm, bow or crossbow. An adult must accompany any youth firearms elk hunter and be in the position to take immediate control of the gun.

Youth hunters may also apply for the general elk hunt by paying an additional $10 application fee online at https://fw.ky.gov/license/olpsintro.aspx.



MORE ELK LOTTERY BREAKDOWN TO COME LATER................

Friday, January 28, 2011

Elk Lottery 2011


OK, the elk lottery is 100% different for 2011 and will require some strategy. If you want a cow for some meat, you have a much better chance for draw this year. You can buy your lottery chance on-line from now to April 30th. More to come later on my strategy. I'm ready.

KY Conservation Coalition Newsletter for January

http://fw.ky.gov/pdf/newsletter0111.pdf

Kentucky Conservation Coalition Newsletter.........Good stuff. If you can't see the link, drag your mouse right above this sentence. There's a great article on Kentucky first two successful bear hunt on page 4.

Saturday, January 22, 2011

NWTF National Convention In Nashville


Mark your calandars. Here's a list of the celebrity autograph sessions at the National Wild Turkey Federation National Convention in Nashville, TN February 18th through the 20th.

Friday, February 18
Team Primos Session - 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Will Primos, Jimmy Primos, Primos Hunting Team

Hunting Legends Session - 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Michael Waddell, Brenda Valentine, Ray Eye, Harold Knight, David Hale

Saturday, February 19
Mossy Oak Session - 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Toxey Haas, Cuz Strickland, Trent Cole, Mark and Terry Drury

Hunting and Country Music Celebrities Session - 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Lee Lakosky, Tiffany Lakosky, Craig Morgan, Chuck Wicks

Sunday, February 20
Turkey Hunting Legends Session - 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Michael Waddell, Eddie Salter, Alex Rutledge, Steve Stoltz

*The dates and times of each autograph session are set, however celebrity autograph signers are subject to change.

Monday, January 17, 2011

My Hunting Year In Review


Well, the 2010 hunting seasons officially came to an end tonight. It's been a pretty good year although it could've been a whole lot better.

Ethan killed a big gobbler in the spring. I worked a ton of birds and never got a good shot.

In July, I went to the Daytona Beach area and bass fished one of the premier bass spots in the US catching absolutely ZERO. Mostly because....I am the worst fisherman on the planet. Also, in July the QDM convention was in Louisville and it was interesting and a lot of fun. I videoed two bucks during the month that I thought would both score near B&C and decided then to only hunt those bucks.

September and October were probably the two worst deer hunting months I've ever experienced. November however, was pretty crazy. Ethan scored on a nice 8 pointer hunting with my dad. Late in the month, I figured out why I haven't seen my two big bucks, fining them locked together dead about 100 yards from the stand. I hunted quite a bit late with some close incounters with some nice bucks but no success.

2011 starts with some coyote hunting in the next month and then on to Turkey 2011 and fingers crossed for an elk draw. Here's hoping for a productive and fun 2011 hunting season for everyone in the Bluegrass.

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Last Two Days


Last two days of Deer 2010-2011. If you're going, good luck. After Monday, it's time to start thinking about the picture.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

GLACIER GLOVE from Glacier Outdoor


I got my new Glacier Gloves in the mail this week and they are pretty awesome. I love the way they feel and the Realtree AP HD Camo pattern. After Tuesday night in the snow, I love the fact they are water proof because my hands were so miserable that I couldn't feel my release. The Patented touchrite technolody makes squeezing the trigger easy. My favorite feature is that they are long enough to fit up under the sleeve of my jacket and not let any snow or water slip in.

Hunters don’t just rely on their instincts; they also rely on their gear. Glacier Outdoor, a Nevada-based outdoor outlet, understands how important gear is to a hunter because the owners grew up perfecting the art of hunting. Everything they produce is crafted by their experiences, understanding, and love of outdoor adventure.

Their most recent hunting glove, the Aleutian Hunting Glove, is no different. In fact, it’s a culmination of what they’ve learned about hunting gear over the years. The glove provides unparalleled dexterity and warmth, and is in Realtree AP HD, an attribute that allows its owner to blend in with increased efficiency. It’s also waterproof and contains both a neoprene and fleece lining.

Hunters rely on their gear, and the Aleutian Hunting Glove won’t let them down.
http://www.glacieroutdoor.com/products_hunting.php

WWW.GLACIEROUTDOOR.COM

OR CALL 800-728-8235

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Deer 2010-11 Winding Down..........

Only 1 more week of Deer Season 2010-11. I still have a couple of big boys out there. I have to give it at least 2 more shots. I'm going to try to hunt the snow this week. Good luck to everybody who gets out. Crunch time. After this week, it's time to shoot some yotes and look forward to spring turkey 2011.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Big Boys Still Out There

Got out tonight for the first time in a long while. Should have gotten a shot at a doe while I was hunting on the ground. When she went behind the tree and gave me a chance to draw she was inside 15 feet. Not yards, feet. Had a really big 9 that got within 50 but no closer. Story of my season.

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Kentucky Telecheck Review

Elk---509 total elk killed. 198 of 200 bulls and 311 Cows. 170 of that 509 being killed in Knott County.

Deer---108,162. 54% bucks. That ratio is not good. 7642 button bucks. That's not good at all.

Turkey---Fall 4378 with almost 70% of those being hens.

Turkey---Spring 36,097.... 287 bearded hens.

Bear---2! First two ever.

Bobcat----1,044. 816 of those hunted, not trapped. Highest Co. was Graves with 31.

Thursday, December 30, 2010

Youth Weekend January 1st and 2nd

The Free Youth Hunting Weekend is set for this New Year's weekend January 1st and January 2nd.

Sunday, December 26, 2010

Kentucky Shipping Elk to Missouri


I guess we learned today why Kentucky hasn't increased our elk permit allotment over the past two years. According to the Courier Journal, Kentucky will trap 200 elk in Bell County and transport them three months later to Missouri. I'm going to assume this has been in the works for some time now. I'm also going to assume this will not be the last shipment to Missouri. With the addition of Missouri, the eastern US will now have elk populations in Kentucky, Tenn, Pennsylvania, and, West Virginia. According to the article, the RMEF will be donating over $300,000 to fund Missouri's elk resoration.

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

F&W Bear Hunt Press Release

Smith, Dixon Record Successful State Black Bear Hunts

Dec 22, 2010

FRANKFORT, Ky – Danny Smith of Phelps, Ky. carved his name into Kentucky’s hunting annals Saturday, Dec. 18, when he claimed the state’s first legally harvested black bear in the modern era.

Smith took the 265-pound male bear in Pike County about five hours into his hunt. He owned the state’s record for the largest bear for about a day, until Billy Joe Dixon, of Cumberland, took a 280-pound male on the second day.

Smith, a lifetime Pike County resident and long-time coyote and deer hunter, was hunting coyotes last Friday when he came across “a lot of bear sign in the snow near a stand of Autumn Olive”. That prompted him to go buy his bear hunting license.

He hit the woods Saturday morning just after his Highway Department shift ended, but failed to find more bear sign. So he moved to an area where he had previously seen bear activity and picked up a fresh trail.

He followed it for more than a mile around a mountain top. When the track he was following approached the location where he had first found the track, he backed off and began watching the area.

He used binoculars to scour the area and finally spotted the bear about 240 yards away. He made the shot just before 2 p.m. with his Savage .270 rifle.

“I’ve hunted a lot of coyotes and deer, but this bear season is the best thing Kentucky could have,” said Smith. “This is the first time I have ever hunted them, but I am hooked for life.”

Kentucky’s first black bear season last year was tough on bear hunters after a winter storm dumped nearly two-feet of snow across Pike, Harlan and Letcher counties and kept the hunters off the mountains. They were the only three counties open to bear hunting, and no bears were taken in that first season.

Dixon, 35, a lifetime resident of Cumberland, took the only other bear claimed this season Sunday about noon on the Harlan County mine property where he works.

He was already familiar with bear activity on the property. Like Smith, he took advantage of the fresh snowfall to track the bear.

He found a track crossing the road as he was climbing the mountain, followed the track, and then caught a glimpse of the bear heading down the mountain. He hurried down the mountain, set up in an area where he suspected the bear might show up, and soon made a 50-yard shot with his .308 rifle.

Then he tied the present with the past. He called upon his 84-year-old grandfather, Bill Dixon, of Hiram, to help him skin his trophy. That’s when he learned that his grandfather, while a young boy, was also present when another bear was taken on Pine Mountain, long before the days of regulated bear hunting in Kentucky.

“Bears are good opportunity for Kentucky,” said Dixon. “For those who don’t work in the mines, there’s not a lot to do. With our elk, deer and now bear, we have some real tourism opportunities.”

“Some people are simply not comfortable walking the mountains in snow-covered conditions to hunt bears,” said Steven Dobey, bear program coordinator for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. “For those willing to get out, however, the snow played a positive role in their ability to go into the record books.”

Kentucky’s initial bear seasons have been held in December in order to gauge hunter participation and success rates, while concentrating the harvest on male bears. Most female bears in Kentucky enter dens by mid-November.

“This year’s hunt shows that mature bears can be harvested late in the season,” said Dobey. “Likewise, beginning with a late-season hunt allows us the maneuverability to move the season earlier in future years.”

Saturday, December 18, 2010

Kentucky's 1st Bear!

One bear was checked in today which makes it bear #1 in Kentucky's modern bear hunting history. It was a male killed on private property in Pike County with a modern firearm. That's all we know now. More to come.

Update-bear #2 was killed in Harlan on private property with a modern firearm.