Other then hitting a lottery, or $ome $uch mega-windfall, my dreams are fairly modest. I've learned that if I dream within my means, it's surprising how many dreams come true. That doesn't mean I don't believe in folks dreaming big, I do believe in it. Just keep it in perspective, and remember that perspective must be adjusted as circumstances change and years go by. Sometimes it can be adjusted up-scale, other times it must by needs take a different direction. Thankfully, that doesn't always mean down scale, just perhaps another path.

For the purposes of these pages, my dreams will be limited to my hunting plans, maybe sprinkled with a memory or so. I think, before I get into that, I should introduce my hunting buddies as they're names are bound to crop up. It's a small cadre at any rate. I must say right at the git-go, my wife, Rose is my Top Buddy and, although she doesn't hunt, she has more to do with my plans coming to pass than anyone else. Period! That being said, here's the rest of the core group:

Randy - My main traveling buddy. Met him three years ago (in 1997 that was) on first day of turkey season. About that meeting he says, "This old fart walks up to me, greets me, and wants to know if he can ask a question. I should have just turned and walked away." I've convinced myself he's kidding --- most of the time --- I think. Anyway, I tell him I'm the one who should have kept my mouth shut and just gone on to my car. In truth it has turned out to be a great association for us both, and who'da thunk it at the time. He is an industrial engineer in real life and through his contacts I've got to hunt in some places I never would have on my own. He is also the one who got me traveling to other places for hunts. We can't afford much in the way of travel but we do go "abroad" in NC and down to SC. Not like the big boys in the slick magazines but not bad for average folk. He's half my age but we hunt and fish well together. He keeps me hard charging in my progressing years, and I keep him from hard charging right off the face of the earth. He was with me when I harvested my first Whitetail with a bow, see four pointer on Home Page. It was a long time coming, even though I started late in life. Randy has harvested plenty with a bow, but he was so happy for me I thought he was literally going to beat me to death. I wonder --- no, I'm sure, that was happiness. A great friend and hunting partner to have along any old time, any old place.

Jabo - A good neighbor and dear friend, who also happens to know where the deer live in this part of NC. He is an American Indian and damned proud of it. He is also my "trusted guide", and I'm damned lucky to know him. We hit it off right from the start, when we first met after us moving next door to his place. I hadn't known him much more than a week when he told me not to worry, he'd show me some places to hunt in my new location. He is a heck of a deer hunter and seems to know, or sense what they will do at times. Also, like with all of my close hunting partners , he and I seem to sense where the other is and how we'll react a large portion of the time. An intangible that makes for valuable hunting and fishing buddies. Of course we all miscue now and then, or zig when we should have zagged, but that just adds to the good times and treasured stories. Jabo showed Randy and I the way to hunt a tidal marsh most effectively. Done on sunny, but cold and windy days. This worthwhile method garnered my first home area deer here in NC and my first ever score on any season's last day. Last day of a season had always been a fruitless bugaboo for me. He'll do at any time, and that's for sure.

Note: (Italics in this paragraph were used for name substitutions to protect the innocent. Haw!!!) Of course there are peripheral buddies that we hunt with at times. Friends of ours and occasional friends of friends, etc. People like Stony, a great bowman, and a quiet man with a good sense of humor who owns a shop that does aluminum welding and has a great reputation for the best dog boxes around. He also owns a fine Chocolate Lab retriever, Ginger, that is a real love. Stony's brother-in-law, Cale, a real kick. Slim, a large "Coastie" (USCG) career man, and his Black Lab, Chessie. Two Of Jabo's many brothers, Luck and Moses, quiet men who can remain on stand for hours on end. Antonio (a state lawman of some kind) and Sonny (another great neighbor), waterfowl hunters who are both bigger than houses. (Where the devil are guys like that when I need to drag a deer out? Poor Randy and Jabo catch the brunt of that action.) Various others from time to time, and in different combinations. As is so often the case in groups like this, we all have a real knack for good natured harassment of each other that adds to the enjoyment of the experience. My  brother-in-law, Larry fits in here somewhere. We never got to hunt together much but we talk and exchange stories a bunch. He is the luckiest hunter I've ever known. (He knows his stuff too, but I don't tell him that) We did get to make a few turkey hunts in ME and NH and enjoyed them immensely.

These are the current associates, if you will, but over the years there have been many in my life . There are a couple who were as close and influential as Randy and Jabo. At the risk of boring anyone, I feel compelled to list them - after all, these are my pages. One I'm still in touch with, mostly by computer, the other not. Let's take them in that order.
 
 

Bob - In my opinion, quite possibly the best hunter I've ever known personally. A truly gentle and caring man, though I think he'd be shocked to realize he's that. He runs a small bow shop and 3D range in Maine, and taught me most of what I know about bows that wasn't self-taught. He and another mutual friend, since deceased (enjoy up there, Eddy. Some day I'll tell folks of our great hunts and my Maine turkey. We miss you ,old friend.) were instrumental in getting me back into hunting after a many years layoff. What a hunting partner Bob makes! He still accompanies me on some hunts, as I do him, in our mind's eye. The related tales are an added pleasure. We may yet get to actually share some more hunts, either here, or there, or somewhere. You never know, Bob, after all, I did finally plant those fruit trees I'd been putting off doing all my life. They're doing pretty good too.

Andy - My original hunting partner and long time friend and cohort. We were Staff NCOs together in the USMC and we hunted Camp Pendleton, CA with a dedication unparalleled. I called him a Cajun from Texas. He was crazy like the proverbial fox. What fun we had, building stories I still tell. My one regret in hunting partners is that Andy and I had a falling out, all my fault, over my reaction to a promise he made to my ex-wife. In retrospect, I know he, and most likely I (were the rolls reversed) could have handled it no differently. He retired a little before me, went back to TX and joined the sheriff force. At three different times when I, at least, thought I was making my last run to a hospital, I sorely regretted not finding time to repair this rift. Yet, I still have not. We do such stupid things, don't we? Once I saw in a fishing club publication were he, or his first son (same name) had won a pair of waders in a drawing. The address was there and I was going to write. The magazine got misplaced before I got around to it. Haven't been able to find him on the computer yet, but I'm still learning that trick too. Sorry, old friend, where ever you are.

Planned/Possible Hunts
Turkey - Our first planned hunt of 1999 is a combination turkey hunt, scouting trip for fall whitetail and pig, and catfishing excursion to SC. However, in the preparing of these pages the time to depart has snuck up on me, so it looks like this may turn into more of a report then a plan. That'll work though. It's Randy and me against the tides, and the turkeys, etc. There was some special preparation in fabricating a rack in Stony's shop to carry my canoe above Randy's trusty jon boat. Not to be used "down the road", only on the water. Tried it on the local river and it worked like a champ. We'll see, and hopefully get some pictures down there on the big river. Now it's time to go.

Well, we went , we saw, but we did not conquer. However, that is not so unusual and also, as hunters like to say, "that's why they call it hunting." We did have a very enjoyable and safe trip, good scouting results for pigs, and so-so fishing. I did find a turkey feather, and we saw one gobbler that someone else bagged. The highlights of the trip were all the pig sign we saw and two close encounters with those who made some of the sign. One day I kicked up three medium size sows with six to nine young of various sizes, probably thirty pounds and under. Later, when Randy and I rejoined, we ran into two of the youngsters again. Randy used some effective, impromptu oral pig sounds and called them to within a few yards of us. The first morning we were able to hunt turkey, we had a three hundred or so pound boar come to within twenty five yards of us. He stayed around for five or ten minutes while Randy "talked" to him. He tried his darnedest to get our scent. They are notorious for less then great eyesight, but sport magnificent sniffers. The wind shifted slightly in his favor and he busted out of there big time. Unfortunately it was too dim for good pictures of that impressive rascal. I also caught a couple respectable catfish. It just wasn't Randy's turn this time, though he did catch a small bass. Too much wind for good fishing. We saw more alligators then the law allows. Seemed like everywhere we looked we'd see one or two, from little two footers up to eight or more feet in length, skinny and fat, young and old. Definitely not a place to take a swim, planned or otherwise. Of course it goes without saying, when we go to hunt pig we will see turkey most likely. This time they wouldn't even converse with us though. Even though the tides in that area can produce up to nine foot plus drops and rises, they were such at this particular time that we didn't have to use the canoe and/or special rack. However, we know it will work when and if the need arises. Unless one of those alligators mistakes the canoe for one of it's long lost lovers, or a gravy boat. Next!

Whitetail Deer: This is a bigger category and will, of course, involve different areas. Perhaps even some local areas that require special planning.

Mattamuskeet Area, NC - I think that's Indian for Mattock of the Mosquitoes. Just kidding - but it could be. It's the largest natural lake in NC. The lake and surrounding area are located in the Northeast part of the state, just inland from the egress to NC's fabled and famous Outer Banks. It is also a big agricultural and commercial fishing area. Used to be and still is to some extent a waterfowling mecca. The lake is a huge wintering grounds for Canada Geese. Many years ago, when you could still take the migrating Canadas, I got my first and only one there. Kind of got put off on hunting them after I found out they mate for life, a personal thing. I love to watch them though. I got fired up by Frankie Lane's rendition of "Cry of the Wild Goose" when I was a kid and have stayed fascinated by them ever since. Can't see or hear them flying over without stopping whatever I'm doing to look. Even the many local ones who have taken up year around residence in NC set my heart and mind soaring with them as they fly from waterways to ponds to golf courses. Back to Mattamuskeet, as might be expected in an agricultural area there are a lot of deer and a great deal of crop predation and the local biologists are only too well aware of the need to control the Whitetail population there. Randy, Jabo, and I went up there for a stay over, one day hunt last year. Randy and I had scouted it earlier and did our work well it seems, as each of the three of us took our limit of two deer. As the biologists like, those were all un-antlered. Too many hunters going to that area refuse to put aside their desire to take bucks and therefore don't help in the control plans as much as they could. During our scouting trip, Randy and I got in one of the best evenings of bass fishing with artificials I've ever enjoyed. We probably will try that again this year if time permits. See Projects page for possible scouting plans or trip reports. We definitely plan a hunting trip or two to the area of Mattamuskeet, Pungo, or the Alligator River which all pretty well fall into this general area designation. More as things firm up, here or under Scouting.

South Carolina: At least one trip to SC is planned for the archery season, and hopefully one with black powder. Perhaps they will be combined, and of course it will include pigs with the Whitetail. This is the same area described under Turkey earlier. Actually it is a part of SC so close to Ga that, if we could afford to, we would have licenses and tags for that state also. Sometimes we actually stay in Ga while there. Gonna/Gotta say one thing about that kind of situation, but I promise not to get up on my soap box too bad. I was under the same situation in the Main/NH area and years ago in CA/NV. I know all states take in good revenue for better works in their Wildlife and Game Departments with non-resident licenses and tags, and I bless them for the work they do. However, I feel they'd stand to make more in the long run if the fees were lower so more folks could afford it. Of course opponents to this say that would increase hunter pressure too much. I don't believe that for a minute. In all states, ours included, a large percentage of the locals feel it's good to keep the "out-of-staters" out. Come on! All it does is keep the average income folks out. We all are USA residents and all of us should be able to make use of all it's lands that are available. Those available are shrinking bad enough, as we all know. Well, just a personal feeling, I know, there are no easy answers to costs of fees. Returning to the SC trips, there's one very important piece of equipment we take and use to stomp those tidal areas. I didn't mention them before but they are almost indispensable as far as we are concerned and have turned out to be helpful locally as well. It is foot gear that one big name waterfowling catalog sells at a substantial price and calls "Bog Boots". They look some what like the head of a tennis racket, and are hard plastic grids. I 'd seen them in the catalog but figured they'd bought up an over stock of children's cheap snowshoes, and put a fancy name and price on them. I dismissed them as just a gimmick. Meanwhile, Randy had seen them and ordered a pair to try. We both tried them last fall and, believe me, they are no toy. With a pair of these on, you will come as close to walking on water as us mortals will ever get. Recalling my original opinion I ordered out a pair of much less expensive plastic snowshoes and cut the back extension off. They work too, but if you can swing it and hunt swampy areas, opt for the more costly ones. They have little niceties like better traction, shape, and a very serviceable nylon carry bag and strap, to help contain the mud. In either case, like with AMEX, don't go to the swamps and tidal areas anywhere without them. If you get nothing else out of these pages, you got that, by doggies. Now that you've got my final opinion, I'll tell you that the "Bog Boots" came from Herter's Waterfowling and Outdoor Specialists. The plastic snowshoes you can get most anywhere in snow country, but I got mine out of Gary Olen's Sportsman's Guide catalog. See Life & Times page, Hot List, Web Sites 3 & 4 respectively for links, or click above but please come back.. More on this planned hunt as it takes definite shape. When on our trips, we most often camp out at some nearby RV site that allows tents.

Note: Animations on this site are by the generosity of The Clip Art Connection and The Garden Helper. Two very interesting sites indeed. Link to them from my Life & Times page, Hot List, Web Site 5 & 6 respectively, or click above but please come back.. You won't be disappointed by visiting them (or me, I hope). The Garden Helper happens to be a real garden site too.

Also, for a bucketful of information and resources regarding website authoring, click on Web Site 7 there, or here for a link to Bells 'N Whistles. Described as, "Animations and Graphics For Your Website."

Here is our Boat/Canoe Rig. It goes smooth as silk on the water, as long as you tie the canoe down so it doesn't shift. The canoe and racks come down for safe storage in the boat before heading down the road.

This is (perhaps) another dream but it is the first sneak-peek of what I envision as my self-designed logo for this website. It may become more than that if I can get the colors the way I want them and the lettering sharper. For now I offer it up to your eye-balling as my effort to further promote my website premise. You may click on it for a larger image, if you care to. Whatcha think?