I just received some news that an article I wrote last year was chosen as one of the magazine’s “best articles of the year.” The article was originally published in the June/July 2009 of National Bowhunter and was entitled “Arrows for Inclusion.”
The story covered an event at Impact Archery in Clovis, Calif. this past spring. Organized by Mike Hernandez and hosted by shop owner, Tim Burnett, the event brought together more than two dozen kids and young adults with special needs to teach them about archery.
Writing about the event was one of the most pleasurable experiences I’ve had with anything related to archery and journalism. It was an excellent event and I was honored to be a part of it. Thanks to everyone who helped with the day and a special thanks to all the participants; they made the event special.
To read the article, please click here
This shed dropped in a cool place
I’ve never sweated so hard in my life. The mile-plus scamper down more than 1000’ of elevation drop left me dripping like a broken spigot. But I had no choice. These were the first good-sized bucks I had seen moving in the daylight in several days and I had to go after them.
I was lucky to get away for a few extra days this trip and make a long weekend hunt. Because of work, I rarely get more than a weekend hunt during any California seasons. But last week, I left Wednesday after work and quickly dropped all my stuff when I pulled into camp.
Setting up could wait because I wanted to glass the last hour of daylight. Before darkness blacked out my binos, I picked up several deer. But only one was a buck and he was a long ways off. On my way back to camp, I sat up a couple trail cams on popular trails.
The first two days were very slow. I didn’t even see a deer out feeding during morning hunts. Midday temps were hovering close to 100 degrees and animals were bushed up early. The only deer I did see were a couple does and a nice buck that spooked out of a group of trees as I glassed a drainage. The deer quickly dropped into another thick group of trees and were gone. Read the rest of this entry »
Wil with a trophy axis
Another example of an excellent field photo
Wil Askew traveled west from his home in Oregon to hunt in Hawaii this past week. Here are a couple photos of some axis deer he took on the trip. Wil takes some of the best looking field photos I have ever seen and these are two prime examples.
It just shows if you take a few extra minutes, you can have a photo you’ll enjoy looking at for the rest of your life. Thanks for sending the photos Wil and congratulations on a cool hunt in spectacular setting.
Typical A-Zone Country Along Northern Coast
It may be 100 degrees outside, but archery deer season has arrived. This past weekend I hunted in Northern California with two of my buddies, Peter and Shawn, on a small tract of land near the coast. The hunting may have been slow, as we saw only a couple small bucks, but I had an excellent time this past weekend.
Most of my hunting is spent on my own–sleeping on the ground, eating freeze-dried dinners and hiking hard. This year on opening weekend, I ate elk burgers and backstrap off a Kansas whitetail, slept on a real bed and laughed with great friends. The trip was a nice change from the norm.
This coming weekend, I will be back on my own. I’m traveling back up to the northern coast and hope to find a few bucks this time. I hope this season is not as tough as last year where I spent more than 20 days in the field in California without drawing my bow. I came across a few small bucks within range but never had a shooter close. It was a very frustrating season.
Regardless of whether or not I’m shooting at animals, I still enjoy the time out there. If any of you are hunting this early season, let me know how you are doing. Send photos and stories to zwalton5@hotmail.com.
Needed Bigger Antlers
Posted on: July 9th, 2010 Silent Setup
My AlphaMax after getting the silent treatment
Even though season starts tomorrow for us along the coastal area of California, most of the country is still a few months away. So for them, and still some of us getting a late start to hunting season in the Golden State, it is important to make sure your setup is at top performance for hunting.
I would hope by know you have a least touched your bow. Far too often, guys pull their hunting bow out of the closet a few days before season, fling a couple arrows and take to the hills. You will be doing yourself a service if you take a few weeks ahead of opening day and make sure you are ready.
I’m not going to go into detail about setting up your hunting bow in this post, I’m just want to offer a little tip that I see so many people overlook before hunting season. After tuning and sighting in your bow, take a little time to make sure the bow not only functions well but is absolutely silent. Read the rest of this entry »
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