23 Mar Birds, Deer and FunJohn It was a pleasant surprise to talk to you this last week. This is a short note to follow up on some of the hunt and habitat we discussed.
I must say that I have not experienced the poor conditions reported by others this year and especially last. I wouldn't want to sound like I am bragging because I am talking about bird points and contacts, not bagged... (The 157 mph winds in January 05 Ks. were, uh, challenging.)
We saw excellent numbers of Pheasant in [locations deleted]. This year I realized what part of the leasing program entails. Last year I scratched my head upon visiting some of the units. This year it was obvious why those pieces were held last year. Crop rotation: Fantastic bird numbers.
I did get a point on the largest rooster I've seen. I am new to the Upland Game game (not Dove) but I suspected the rooster was large and even commented to my wife as to the heft. Then I asked her to take a photo, just for documentation. Making a comparison the tail feathers were on the order of 27 inches. I showed the pics to some more experienced friends and they were disappointed to learn I had cleaned it, discarded the package and eaten it with a nice brown sugar and wine vinegar sauce over rice and yellow bell pepper... Apparently it should have been mounted. And, apparently, I'll never see one like that again. Maybe. Maybe not, the critics haven't seen the MAHA leases...
I also had the pleasure of seeing my nephew take his first wild rooster. Admittedly, I had to encourage him a bit (Shoot! Shoot!, It's a rooster, shoot!!) but he did get it over a staunch point and a textbook back. We also got to see both dogs on point on separate roosters simultaneously. Regardless of the shots, that alone will make a trip.
On the lease south of [location deleted] I jumped up the biggest mule deer I've seen. It might help to get a graphic on that by realizing I grew up in NW New Mexico and I know what a big Muley looks like. (The first one I ever killed was eight points.) I don't hunt deer anymore so you can believe me, this was a big boy. Very big rack, thick base, very very long tines and real grizzley around the muzzle. He was with a doe and a smaller buck. Sorry, the camera was sitting on the dashboard...
In the three areas that I saw quail last year I saw none this year. None.
I may need to redirect my quail hunting to the treed area in [location deleted]. It look promising but I was working with a young Pointer and didn't go down and in. It looked like it would have a million Pheasant on the fields to the east and south of the tree line. The uppermost fields in the [location deleted] had been mowed. That may have been detrimental to the quail. The pheasant were across the road in the WIHA. Just north east of the field was a large field of cut milo that had lots of pheasant. A little rain this coming year and that field will be out of this world this fall. (Shhhhh.)
I'm still learning the system and just realized how huge the web site is. I guess this should help next year as I prefer to chase the quail. I've got a couple of solid dogs that can handle the Blues in NM so I am really looking forward to putting them on some tight sitting Bobwhites. I'll make a point of checking the forecasts this spring and fall now that I am aware of the resource.
That's why we call it hunting. We'll buff up and be ready for next fall!
Thanks for the great job you guys do on getting so much fantastic habitat. I'd be willing to pay a little more if you guys could do something about getting some timely rainfall....
One last thing. I noticed elsewhere on the MAHA site an article about underhanded dealings by anti-hunting groups. Let the membership know that if they are holding the DU or QU or the RMEF Credit Cards that were issued by MBNA that MBNA was bought out by Bank of America. The CEO of MBNA was a big time Quail chaser thus the enthusiastic support from them. Now with BofA they are donating money to HSUS. That's right, the Humane Society of the United States. This is the same organization that has as it's goal the out-lawing of owning pets! They are actively and openly using lobbying and legislation to curtail hunting. Of course if they are against pet ownership they will do their damndest to stop hunting. Please help get the word out. Using that card is cutting our collective throats. Find another way to donate to your conservation organiziation.
Thanks, Eddie (2nd year member, 3rd year Uplander) ( I attached some pics.)
2) BB on the last Bobwhite we've seen in Kansas
3) Charming B&B we can't seem to get reservations for.
4) Maxie on a Skid-Stop-Point. Rooster. [missing this one] 5) Long tail, big spurs, delicious. Taxidermist? What taxidermist?
6) Go ahead, laugh. It gets funnier every time I look at it! (My mother's "Desktop Background") [I agree it is funny, very funny! We will keep them all guessing about this picture]
Thanks Eddie, it is always better to work with those that enjoy more of the hunt than just bird numbers.
21 Mar Report CardWe certainly appreciate those members that take the time to send in their feedback and especially those that allow us to post it to the update page and all the more so when someone takes the effort to hand write their letters.
Sending in feedback for our in-house use and not for the update page happens about twice a week. That information is shared by the two Jo(h)ns and is incorporated into our decision making. In the case of Brandon's or Rex's letters below their value is not limited to "bragging rights" for the staff it will show what hunt quality value points others have found in their membership. Each describes how there is a lot more to hunting than the hunt.
From all the feedback we receive by snail mail, email, member to staff telephone calls and the handful of members we call for feedback across all hunting disciplines each year the feedback is far more positive than negative. However, we do not pretend that all things are perfect at all times. Areas requiring more attention are lease sign posting (more to come on this topic); first year upland bird member expectations of hunt quality compared to effort and overall first year member jump start.
Have a read of Brandon's letter.
Jon, John, & Shaun, Enclosed you will find a check for my membership renewal to MAHA. This completes my first year with the association and it has surpassed any expectations I had. I have to admit I was somewhat hesitant in joining the association when I was told a three person team manages hundreds of hunters over several hundred thousand acres spanning across three states. But you pull it off. Not only do you pull it off, but the association runs as smoothly and efficiently as any I have ever seen or ever heard of. Most of us at one point or another, have been in a hunting lease with the number of members ranging anywhere from 15 - 50. We all know what kind of headaches these hunting leases are capable of producing. I could not possibly imagine 700 - 800 members.
It is at this point I would like to give all of you my sincerest appreciation and thanks for all of your hard work, perseverance, dedication, and love for the outdoors that makes all of this possible. Y'all are the ones logging thousands of miles scouting properties, negotiating with landowners, securing the best pieces of property for every day people like us to hunt. I don't know how often you are told "thank you" for all that you do, but I'll bet it isn't near enough.
As I stated previously, this was my first year with MAHA. It has been a year of several firsts for me. In the spring, my great friends Jacob and Alex introduced me to turkey hunting. We were all successful and I was even fortunate enough to harvest one with my bow (thanks to some fantastic calling from my more experienced friends). Needless to say I am hooked and I am anticipating this coming spring. Then came fall bow season in [location deleted]. Ahh...[location deleted]! [It] was everything I had heard about and then some (again primarily because we had prime properties to hunt on thanks to you and your hard work). I was again fortunate enough to take a very respectable buck. Not a monster. I know they get a lot bigger in [location deleted], but he was plenty big enough for me. My first P&Y whitetail. Would you believe that in 20+ years of hunting in [home state deleted], for the first time ever I actually passed up shots on deer. Opportunities do not present themselves down south like they do up in the midwest. My first midwest hunt will never be forgotten,
Then there are the friendships I have been able to establish once again. Having recently finished school, I have not had much time for hunting. It has been wonderful to catch up on old times and make new memories with my friends jacob and Alex. They too were successful this fall, each taking beautiful P&Y animals. I will never, ever forget the smile on either of their faces upon recovering their deer.
Just recently you admitted my father to the association. I cannot express how much I am looking forward to making up lost time with him as we continue our hunting travels together once again. His love for the outdoors has continued in me. I can only hope I can now help him achieve success in the midwest, as he has done for me for so many years.
Again, thank you all for all of your hard work, your long hours and countless phone calls are appreciated. This association is successful because of your tireless effort and your dedication to the great outdoors. I look forward to being a part of this association for many years to come and I would like to thank you for allowing me to be part of it. Thank you so much for all that you do, please keep up the great work.
With sincerest appreciation, Brandon [last name deleted]
Thank you Brandon for all the reminders of what is as or more important than the harvest.
Another Hunt Another Report CardMAHA Office staff, I am writing in regards to my fall firearms trips to [location deleted]. Lets start with the [location deleted] opener. First of all, I finally got to meet the owner of our club after 4 years, and as it turned out, I met up with Jon twice in a week. We got our first choice in [location deleted] where I killed a 160 class buck last year. My brother Dan, and my son Austin and I were very excited in anticipation of opening morning. Austin had a case of buck fever when a large racked buck with stickers came by chasing a doe first thing. His shot missed, and he was bummed. We never saw another trophy class buck in three days, and we all filled our tags on the last day of our hunt with some smaller buck., we also thinned out the doe population a little. We donated the 5 deer to the local butcher who in turn has a local church with people in need.
We also had the camp shared with another familiar club member who frequently sends in pics of him and his family, [name deleted]. Their group was excited the night before opening day, not only for the hunt, but his son had a state playoff football game on Fri night. Although the game did not end well, their hunt was successful as well taking a nice buck. It was good to see a father spending some quality time with his children.
On to [location deleted] for the firearm opener it was. Little did we know that a major blizzard was going to hit on the second day. When we got there the day before season, we were setting stands in 65 degree weather, then on the opener, the rains set in and the temps started to fall.
Before we left, I had set some pretty lofty goals of trying to wait out for a Boone and Crocket class buck. I passed on three bucks in the 140’s, one on the first day in the rain, and two more during the blizzard. The weather put a complete halt to most of the deer movement, however after the snow quit, and the winds quit blowing, the deer started to move again. It was on my last day when I decided to take a medium sized 8pt. and a doe.
I had two friends along who are not in the club, they hunted the WIHA (public land) in the area and did quite well also. All three of us filled our buck tags, and doe tags. As you can tell by the pics, the deer were frozen solid when we loaded them up for the ride home. I had the camper, atv, and all the deer loaded on the f350. (Ford should be interested in using this pic for their advertising campaign) Needless to say, we got a lot of looks during our 12 hour drive home to [home state deleted].
We had super time despite the weather, and can’t wait for turkey season this spring. A great big thank you goes out to Shaun, Jon, and John for all your hard work to make this club run so smooth.
Sincerely and God Bless, Rex
Thanks Rex. It appears you and your family always have a great hunt. Thanks for the doe pictures, we always want to see more of that. Good luck to come.
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