Trad Gang
Main Boards => PowWow => Topic started by: evgb127 on October 30, 2024, 09:31:29 PM
-
Just curious about how the Shrew Haven gang made out this year. I saw on Facebook that there may have been a successful hunt. Perhaps Ray Lyon has some beans to spill? :goldtooth: I wish Ron was still here to tell some tales. :campfire:
-
:campfire: :coffee:
-
I was just about to post this years hunt. Hang tight folks.
-
First of all, we of course miss Ron. Fortunately, Ron’s son Bill has been in camp the last two years. More on that in a moment.
This year’s crew:
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
-
Sorry for jumping the gun Ray. I’ve been out of commission this season so I’m chomping at the bit to hear some good hunting stories. I can’t wait. :campfire:
-
Camp members standing left to right:
Myself, Kevin Marshall, Roger Norris, Tim Cosgrove and Bill LaClair.
Kneeling left, Greg Nicolaou and on right is Henry Bodnik.
-
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Henry brought a bottle of Blanton’s Gold from Germany. This is like bagging the proverbial 30 point buck. Blanton’s was one of Ron’s favorite bourbons in his final years. We toasted our departed friend and the memories of Shrewhaven.
-
And yes, there was great food as always including charcoal roasted leg of lamb and apple pies
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
-
The weather was unseasonably warm and hampered deer movements. We did take advantage of the weather to enjoy evening campfires
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
-
We love to shoot bows in camp. We had the new Scout long bows (50” and 52”) and the Tsunami 3 piece take down. I hunted with my new 52” Chameleon Scout and Tim hunted with his ‘pink’ 50” Scout (don’t make fun of this little dynamo it’s a fantastic shooter even at my 28.5” draw.
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
My Scout at about 30 yards
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
For a 52” bow it’s fast and well behaved!!
-
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Henry’s Tsunami
There’s always bows and arrows everywhere!!
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Roger goes to bed with face paint on-saves him time in the morning (I think he doesn’t want to spend money on new paint 😂)
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
But he loves ground hunting
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
-
The property we hunt is beautiful:
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
-
Helping Henry set up his stand site in the oaks
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Germany doesn’t allow bow hunting
-
Speaking of beauty, one of my favorite camp views, the Armstrong Creek:
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
This is part of a story……..
Good night Gang, gotta date with some back home buck’s early tomorrow morning. 😉
-
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
We should probably mark the corner of the cabinet where the Bears take a bite out. It seems like every year. Hard to tell what’s new and what’s not. If Ron was not the first one in camp, he would always ask ‘Did the Bears take a chunk out of the cabin corner again this year’.
Bears, wolves and coyotes roam the property. Greg heard wolves earlier in his stay and late in the week the coyotes were yipping at night. Typically these two species don’t mix. Bald Eagle’s were seen on one of the gut piles.
-
More about Bill LaClair. Bill has been in camp the last two years. Last year he just hung out and helped with tree stands and general camp work. Bill has participated in archery since he was younger, however like his father he is a lefty. So with some encouragement at the end of last years camp he practiced with his dad’s equipment this summer and came to camp ready to hunt. Unfortunately the weather didn’t cooperate for Bill and he needed to leave early to tend to his dog (which was Ron’s last dog Ruger). The weather turned cold the day after he left and the deer really started moving. Typically our high temperatures at camp are low 50’s and some year’s snow on the ground. Most of the time this year was in 60’s/low 70’s. The day after Bill left the high was 44 degrees! 30 degree swing in one day.
Anyway, Bill is enjoying learning about what camp traditions are like and where events had taken place that he had heard from his dad. Bill indicated that he wanted to continue to hunt the property for years to come
-
So, let’s get some deer!!!
As I mentioned, the weather was dry and warm. Roger camo painted his arms one night and hunted from the ground in a olive drab tee shirt. When we were down to the last three days, the temperature plummeted and deer were seen Wednesday morning and adjustments were made. I went from the oaks on the north side of Banana Ridge to my old faithful-The Tressel Stand. I had no more than been on stand for 45 minutes and Kevin texted he had a good arrow in one. Roger chimed in that he mmmmmmissssed one (hit a branch). A short time later I had a good doe broadside at close range and put a Kustom King Trailmaker through her. I waited for only 10-15 minutes as I wanted to line out the trail before dark set in. I heard a splash and when I got to the bank over looking the creek my doe was laying in the middle. It’s uphill through thick marsh grass and tag alder so………………
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Let’s wait to gut her until we float her 200 yards down the creek where an old trail angles down from the tressel.
Kevin had backed out of his stand waiting for reinforcements before trailing.
-
So after Kevin helped get my deer hung up, I worked on dinner while Roger, Tim and Kevin took up the trail of his deer. With a higher entry and no exit, blood was sparse at first. They made it about 40-50 yards and decided to back out. This is always a risky call because of the prevalence of bears, wolves and coyotes. Kevin and I took up the trail at first light the next morning and I was able to line out the trail in short order (ALWAYS easier in daylight). We found her at about 100-125 yards and if the guys had made it another 15 the night before they would have found her. The scavengers missed out and we soon had Kevin’s deer hanging…..
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
-
Kevin had seen a lot of deer moving around him on his one stand and Tim took a turn there. Sure enough he had a deer in range but shot high and slightly back with no blood. The night time wait was on but Tim didn’t fare so well. With two gut piles within a half mile of where Tim’s deer landed the coyotes had learned their lesson and we found half a carcass the next morning. Unfortunately Tim had literally walked out on o two track and passed within 30 yards of the deer.
-
We put a ribbon on a different year for sure. As mentioned Bill left early to take care of his dog. Greg had a developing root canal and left when Bill did. Roger had a birthday party for his granddaughter on Saturday. Henry had developed a terrible cough and runny nose. Kevin and I were facing another warmup with hanging deer. Therefore we decided to pull out Friday instead of Sunday.
Camp is certainly not the same without Ron’s presence. However, we’re glad his son has made the decision to be a part of the tradition and carry the torch forward.
-
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Ron helping build Lobo’s Lair
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
My last photo of Ron. He’s penning a note in my copy of our Shrewhaven coffee table book.
This post is for you Lobo. You loved Shrewhaven and telling the story here every year. You are missed.
-
Sorry to have waited so long to post....I came home for my granddaughters birthday party, and then hit the local rut running....between work and rut, I have not had a spare moment.
Camp was great, as always. Having Bill around makes for the retelling of some great Ron stories. We talk about him often...we truly miss him when we are all together in ShrewHaven.
Hunting was a struggle. Warm temperatures had me hunting in a T-shirt up on Banana Ridge. Deer movement was minimal until Wednesday/Thursday when the temperatures dropped. Then I had a frenzy of doe activity....and I choked. Shot over the back of a fat mature doe.
As usual, the food was great. Ray and Greg work hard to keep us fed.....I think this years awards go to Ray's cherry pie, and my wifes Shephards Pie :biglaugh:
More pictures later....rut is on.....gotta run...
-
Yes, Lori’s Shepard pie was outstanding!!
-
Thanks for the stories Ray and Roger! :campfire: :archer2:
-
Does Randy "Gus" Gustafson still hunt with the group? I use to visit his shop in Iron Mountain. Glad to see the deer camp is still going
-
Does Randy "Gus" Gustafson still hunt with the group? I use to visit his shop in Iron Mountain. Glad to see the deer camp is still going
Randy still comes out to camp for a gathering with the guys along with his wife and friend Kenny. Kenny and Randy watch over the camp for us while we’re gone and they also do maintenance work and getting the cabin ready for us and closing it up when we leave. The three of them are our dear local Yooper friends.
-
Thanks Ray and Roger :thumbsup: It's always good to hear about tales from Shrew Haven :campfire:
-
Thanks for posting this years hunt Ray. I always look forward to it. :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
-
Does Randy "Gus" Gustafson still hunt with the group? I use to visit his shop in Iron Mountain. Glad to see the deer camp is still going
Randy is one of the best guys I know. When my son pulled a bear tag in the UP, Randy made sure we had a place to hunt, bait was maintained, everything. I only wish we could visit more often. So fun and interesting to talk to.
-
The UP was HOT this year!
-
Wonderful, just wonderful. Thanks for sharing guys.
-
Glad Randy is still around and involved with the deer camp. I have a cabin in NE Wisconsin always enjoyed stopping in if I had a chance to get up there. I attended a shooting clinic he set up many years ago with Ron and G Fred Asbell. Please tell him Roger from Wisconsin says hi.
-
Thanks for the updates Ray and Roger! I always look forward to reading about your Shrew Haven adventures each year. Ron got me started shooting a Tim Meigs longbow more than 30 years ago. Lots of great memories of stopping in his Archery Shoppe in Potterville.
Chad
-
Chad, I spent a fair number of hours in that shop. A great place to go on a long lunch hour when I worked down State and stayed with our mutual friend. The Shoppe was a magical experience for traditional archery.
-
Always good to hear the yearly stories. Beautiful country. Thanks, Ray.
-
I look forward to these every year ....I sure do miss my chats with Ron , or as I called him,... Papa LaClair .
Ron would want you gents to keep on with the hunts, and we are all very Happy to see you are !
.....Thank you for taking us along . :campfire:
-
I am in awe. My father was my main hunting partner all my life. He has passed away as most of his friends his age. I am left as a solo hunter and I miss hunting camp life. You are blessed. Seeing your camp pictures and stories brought back memories. Those are great photos. Take care and God bless.