deer seaon is over/dustin' off the flyrod

[buzzmcmanus]

I've spent the last 3 days cleaning guns, waxing bow strings, washing clothes, sorting cartridges, etc... *My wife looked real happy last night. *I think she found her cat hidden underneath the big pile of camoflage that has occupied our spare bedroom since the middle of September. *I hit it hard this year; *3 trips to Ohio, 4 trips to west TN, and 3 backcountry hunts around Tellico. *You'd think I'd be ready for a relaxing weekend around home, however, I'm already mentally planning my spring fly fishing trips. *

I'm thinking next couple weekends doing some local trips around home, maybe hitting the Little River, Tremont, Twenty-mile creek, or Doublecamp Creek. *Sometime in the near future I want to hit the Hiwassee. *I've never fished a tailwater since I've been fly fishing, but I think I can handle this one.

Spring, next to deer season, my favorite time of the year. *Cherokee National Forest, HERE I COME. *Second weekend of April, camp along doublecamp creek, turkey hunt in the mornings, return to camp for lunch, fly fish the rest of the day. *I've got a nice little flock of birds that roost in the same area every year at this time. *It's all but a sure thing. *

Third weekend of April, camp up around the fish hatchery. *While hog hunting, I found some clear cuts that are all overgrown between the hatchery and Bald River. *I need to scout around this area some, it's appears to be full of turkeys. *Then I have to decide where to fish; Bald River, North River, Sycamore Creek, Tellico River. *Life is full of hard decisions.

Summer, high altitude brook trout.

September, I owe my wife a honeymoon. *She foolishly married me the weekend before deer season. *We're leaning real hard towards taking a fly fishing trip to Yellowstone (wife loves to fly fish). *Haven't figured out all the details, bought a couple books on fishing in Yellowstone and can't *figure out quite where we want to go. *I, naturally would like to tie this into an antelope hunt somewhere nearby, but that is not a priority.

Ain't life fun!?!

Buzz

BTW, I did shoot a decent 9 point in Nov. *I'll attach a picture if I can figure out how.

http://www.realtree.com/img/500/medium/2006_Buck.jpg

[David Knapp]

Man, do you ever work??? ;D

[buckeyetrouter]

hey buzz.......what part of Ohio do you hunt????? Done alot of deer huntiing around Jackson twsp......they have some type of nuke plant there, still waiting to see a 3 horn buck....


buckeyetrouter

[buzzmcmanus]

Plateau Angler, I try not too. It's not good for the soul. Actually, I'm sort of self employed. When I'm busy, I work alot. When it's slow, I take full advantage of it.

buckeyetrouter, I do most of my bowhunting on private property in Fairfield County, near the Licking County line (close to the flying J on 158). I muzzleloader hunt in the Wayne Nat. Forest in Perry County. Down close to Shawnee. It's funny you mention about hunting around the nuke plant. There's a limited entry hunt near Knoxville at the Oak Ridge Nuclear Facility (where they make "the bomb") that's one of the best hunts in TN. I've been drawn 2 out of the last 3 years for the Tower Shielding unit. I've seen some real monsters, but nothing in bow range. I'm holding out for one of the 3 eyed ones there.

[Byron Begley]

buzz_saw,

Nice Buck! I know the tenderloins aren't good to eat but don't throw them away. Our Springer Spaniels will eat them, heck they'll eat anything.

;D

Byron

[buzzmcmanus]

Byron, sorry, but your dogs are going to have to go hungery. The tenderloins didn't even make it into the fridge. They were eaten that day for lunch. DELICIOUS!!! ;D

[Vern]

Buzz-saw
I was a hugh Deer hunter. I have two nice 9pts hanging here in my home office, and a nice 8pt rack hanging in my hunting cabin in WVa. I use to kill 5-7 deer a year, mostly meat deer. But now i spend most my free time flyfishing and only killed two deer this year. You better carefull! you may turn out like me. As a 46yr old its hard to get up at 3:00 Am to climb a tree and sit for 5 or 6 hours and only see dinks alll day. Its a whole lot easier to cast a fly rod than pull back a 70# bow with arthritis in your shoulder. But I still take a trip home to my land in WVA to spend a week bowhunting. October in the foot hills of WVA allways reminds me of the John Denver song Almost Heaven WVa. Doesn't hurt that I own the highest point in the county. As a kid picking the hay bales that rolled down the steep hayfields, i never noticed what beauty the hills had. Every year we have a family get together on the 4th of july and sit on our high point and watch the fire works from 4 differant cities, the nearest on being 19 miles away and the most distant 35 miles.