http://www.excaliburcrossbow.com/phpBB2 ... =butterfly
Today ... I pulled away from some chores to bring out my Y25 Relayer for a few shots ..
Chose an elevated position on the deck behind my shop ..
Looking out over the beans coming up , and back towards my bush ... the beans should be a good draw , and I'm looking forward to opening day this season .
Still bang on at 30 yards !
Found time to take a walk on some trails to the West of my property ...and finally got some pic's of a hen turkey with her young ...
Another lone hen had a few chicks in the grass ... so I snapped a quick picture and backed off so as not to bother them .
Found some time to hook up with Greylag and crew , who arranged for some discounted wood from a farmer / sawmill friend ... we are using the wood for a wheel chair ramp / tree stand project that Wylie Harvey and I thought up ... ( Wylie is aka WalknTall on the forum and runs the ACA website )
Wood is piled , on the ridge at the back of my property ... waiting for the weather to cool , and the bugs to thin out , before we call a work party ! ...
Found some time to hook up with Pydpiper to scout for coyotes on a local farm ( Pyd had already ironed out the brunt of the pack ... we were just looking for a clever straggler ! ) ... Saw a beauty mature red fox , but too far for a shot with gun or camera ...
I did manage to get some cool pic's of Pydpiper's family on an outing earlier this spring ..
No money in the budget this year for a new dog , but I have kept my eyes and ears open , and have picked up a couple " free to a good home " prospects ...
Of course we still have Spike ... he's not going anywhere ... just likes to hang out with the other dogs ...
Picked up a 4 yr old female lab ( "Jade" )... she is a great dog ... laid back , and is never farther than 10 yards away while we are putting aroung with misc chores .... my wife and daughter are real found of her as well !
The latest addition is a 16 month old German Shorthair Pointer ... ( Axle ) ... I have to say , he is coming along , but he is the wildest stubborn male I have ever attempted to train ! ... He has a great personality , and is not bad with commands on leash , but off leash , he is like a bull in a china shop ... and runs wild , like he's trying to find his way to Germany !
I have many well placed long lines around the property , so he can be with my where ever I go , until I get him trained up ..
I put in a 50 foot run line from the shop , out to an old dead tree , north along my driveway ... gives him lots of opportunity to strech his legs while I'm giving him a break from training ( also no money in the budget for a dog kennel right now
)
I have used these run lines many times in past years ... on many differnt sized dogs ... they work great !
But he has already stretched out the two way shock absorber spring assembly ... twice !
So I picked up a bigger one from the TSC store .... seems to be holding out !
Only time will tell with this guy ... but Im pretty sure I will have him in shape for our October Pelee Island hunt ...
My two turkeys watch every day , when I'm training Axle in front of the barn ... the tom is always giving my the " angry eye " ..
But their attitude changes , when I've got food with me !
And of course ... what would a farm be without a batch of kittens !
Mom scoots under the barn door in time for the next feeding ...
By the way ... anybody want a free kitten !
Seems like every where I turn there is another project that needs attention ... the windows at the shop are wore out with rotten wood and flaking caulking ...
No money in the budget for new windows this year ... so $32 buck worth of trim wood and caulking fixed them up ... 2 down 4 to go ...just need a coat of paint and I can check another item off of my " to do list " .
I am really enjoying tinkering around the farm .... but I am most at ease when I " find time " to head into the field !
Stopped by the swamp where I got a picture of this monster , last season ..
Saw lots of bullfrogs ... all shapes and sizes .
Saw a younger snapper ... cruising the shallows , looking for his next meal opportunity ...
Of coruse ... lots of skunks and racoons this year as well ...
And a hen wood duck near dusk on the way home tonight ..
With a slow internet connection , I haven't been on the forum much lately ... hope to " find some more time " to scout and take pic's of some velvet bucks as we head into August ... and check in again soon !
Good luck to all that are wetting their lines fishing or honing their skills at the range !
