Colorado Elk Hunting

Following up on the roadless rule being upheld, Colorado created an excellent big game brochure. Obviously too late to plan a hunt for 2011 for eastern hunters. But as one of the few states with over the counter elk tags, it could be a great option for the do it yourself hunter.

Hope for Roadless Areas

Field and Stream reports that "On October 20th the U.S. Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule." This is great news for all average outdoorsmen everywhere. While the focus of the debate was extensively in the west, areas affected stretched from coast to coast. You can see a map of roadless areas here. I'd love to hunt elk out west and a public land do-it-yourself hunt is probably the only way I could ever make it happen. The idea that I could go there, put the miles in and have success, or at least a truly wild experience, gives me hope. Much more likely is an NE deer hunt. The way these guys track deer
has always been appealing. So thanks U.S. Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, for hope.

Ohio's Minnesota

Minnesota might well be the "land of 10,000 lakes" full of outdoor opportunities. But SE Ohio has it's own, albeit smaller version. Call it a "1,000 Lakes" and you wouldn't be too far off. It is the American Electric Power company public areas in Eastern and Southeastern Ohio.

All you need is a free lifetime permit and a valid hunting license to access nearly 90,000 acres of land. That's a lot to cover. Combined with Wayne National Forest and state lands nearby and there is abundant opportunity for the average outdoorsman. There's enough that if you work to get away from the roads you'll likely avoid most of the crowds, especially during the week. At least outside of deer gun season. Just make sure to check the most recent AEP maps before venturing out to make sure to don't venture on to private property. You won't likely see any moose. But you won't have to wear snow shoes either.


For more information, call American Electric Power at (740) 962-1205.

Buckeye Sportsman Radio

If you read much about outdoors in Ohio, you'll soon run into the author Dan Armitage. He's one of the best in the buckeye state, not just hook and bullet stuff, but all types of outdoor writing. But you might not have known that he also hosts a weekly outdoor radio show that is also available as a free podcast on his Buckeye Sportsman web site. It's a new favorite of mine and definitely worth a listen.

Dog House from Scrap Lumber

I had some scrap lumber around from a previous project that had been dismantled. My nieces needed a dog house for their dog Woody (not a hunting dog). Actually Woody needed the house much more than they did. He was crated during the day when they were not home, which was long hours on some days. Because I wasn't starting with fresh lumber I didn't use plans. That always makes is more interesting and adds time, but it really wasn't so bad.

What's Knee-High by the 4th of July?

If you know the answer to that question, you're probably from the midwest. It's corn of course. Legend has it that if the corn grows to knee-high by the July 4th the farmer will have a good season.

For the first time in many years, it's not true in a lot of places around our home in Springfield. Like across the street - see above or the background. But given the advances in farming lately, the knee-high rule has been literally a joke. In years with typical spring rainfall, shoulder-high by the fourth has been a better rule.

I'll be curious to see how this year's crop finishes.

Make Sure Your Dog is Hydrated

Field & Stream had a couple of recent blog post how to tell if your dog is dehydrated and keeping your dog hydrated during training. I can say that I have always been very conscious of keeping my canine athlete hydrated. It probably stems from my other passion, coaching soccer. Athletes of any kind need to stay hydrated. It's also critical to pull them out of the activity before they get to the point where it's an issue. This is especially true if in soccer you want to return that player to the game or if you're hunting and you want to continue. If you get to the point where they can't go, you've taken recovery from would would have been a "splash and go" to "we're-not-going-anytime-soon time frame," in my experience. That said, I've never had an issue with my GSP in Ohio. If I don't provide the water, she'll find it one way or another.