Turkeys and Trout

We've been really spoiled the past few years with turkey hunting success coming quickly and close experiences happening throughout the season. This year started with my Dad and my brother Jeff drawing out on a limited entry turkey hunt for Southern Utah. The whole idea of a limited entry turkey hunt is ridiculous and I wish Utah would rethink this. There are many options including an archery-only season, moving the youth hunt (which they should extend) and general season to earlier dates, creating an early season and a late-season to spread out hunting pressure. A lot of hunters believe that decisions by our game and fish come down to one thing: money. I'm not sure it's quite so cut and dry, but sometimes it definitely feels that way!

Anyway, the limited entry hunt was a total bust for us. We found areas with birds but failed to even lay eyes on a public land turkey.  It wasn't a complete waste of time though, we were able to chase some gobbles and I did slip in a few minutes on a small stream catching native Bonneville Cutthroat Trout.

The youth hunt (which is only one weekend) was pretty fun. We were back to hunting areas that we knew and were close to gobbling birds the first morning. Caden and I set up in what seemed like a good spot and actually called in another coyote (you can read about the first time this happened Here) but we didn't get an opportunity for a pic or a shot. Three different toms came within shooting distance, but always on the wrong side of the fence and on private property. So close! An early-season success would've been awesome for Cado who always seems to just miss out on hunting opportunities. 

There were lots of evenings spent trying to guess where the turkeys would roost, and lots of wrong guesses. The mornings available were few and far between with work and family stuff competing for my attention. There were other opportunities, including a group of jakes that came in while I was hunting alone (if only one of the boys would've been with me!) and another group of toms that came within 10 yards, but wouldn't cross the property line. 

With gobbles becoming almost non-existent and hunting the same old spots becoming a little boring, I decided to head to a new area for the last outing of the season. Atley had to work (which is a new, and super annoying issue) and Caden just wasn't interested in the last attempt. So I headed out alone in search of turkeys, or trout. The hunting bug must be wearing off since I packed my fly fishing gear on this trip too and was looking forward to trying out a couple of lakes in the area. 

I made the long drive and arrived just before last light. I hurried to unload the ATV to check out the areas that looked good on OnX in hopes of roosting a bird. Unfortunately, I didn't hear any birds. When I got back to the truck I discovered that my plans of chili for dinner were flawed since I didn't pack a can opener. It seems like I always forget something, although it isn't always something as important as this. I had granola bar dinner and a restless night with no clear plan of what to do in the morning.

The morning came without any sounds of turkeys to direct my efforts, so I found a finger ridge to set up on and do some blind calling to start the day. Hound hunters driving on every little road they could find interrupted the morning quiet and inspired me to change my focus from ghost birds to fishing. The first small lake had some fish in evidence, with small ones rising to a midge hatch, and a nice one that like to follow my flies but wouldn't take. But other than that, the fishing started out much like the turkey hunting had ended. I moved onto lake number two and almost immediately hooked into a nice Bonneville Cutthroat Trout. 

Too bad for him, I was in need of something to eat. With no other fish willing to play, I headed back to the truck for a fried trout lunch. Rainclouds and wind set in just as I was finishing up my delicious meal. With little to inspire me to stick it out, I decided to pack up camp and head home. On the way down the mountain I did luck into seeing a couple of bull elk. I'll be back to this area soon enough, without the distraction of turkey hunting, to do some fishing. All in all, it was a crazy busy season, and I'm looking forward to focusing on fishing this summer. 

Hope you're as lucky, 

Kidder

The Secret to Turkey Hunting

This morning, as I was laying in bed listening to a turkey gobbling in between the wind and thunder of a spring storm I was reflecting on the lessons learned this turkey season. The first one being that kids hate waking up early for anything, and turkey hunting is not an exception, but they also love taking little trips if you can work in a stop or two at McDonald's or something similar. The second is the need for a great hiding spot is more important than the desire to see everything from your seat and facemasks make a difference in your ability to blend in. Getting close to the roost is a dangerous game and sometimes the best tactic is to sit still, or even take a nap, rather than chase birds that aren't gobbling. But the secret? We'll get to that...

Caden didn't feel like getting up, so I headed out alone. Got set up in a spot where I've seen turkeys in seasons past, but that I hadn't really set up this season. The birds gobbled from the roost and the hens responded, but minutes after fly down it was over as the birds found each other for their morning hook up and went about their business. There was definitely a part of me that wanted to head home to get a little more sleep since it felt like the morning hunt was over before it began, but I keep hearing how mid-morning is when the birds disperse again and a Tom can be called in. Being patient does not come naturally to me, I want to get after it and make something happen, but I knew that it made no sense to start moving on a morning when there wasn't any gobbling or ways to know where the birds were. As the morning progressed and warmed I let my lack of sleep catch up to me and started to doze. Sleeping under a tree in the warm turkey woods is a wonderful thing. When I'd wake up for a moment I'd make a few light calls and listen until I fell back to sleep. 

Time passed much more quickly than I'd realized utilizing this method, and midmorning was in danger of ending unremarkably when I thought I heard something moving through the leaves nearby. I sat up a little and in a moment was only about 3 yards from a jake that had come in from the side to investigate the calling. Two other jakes followed him into the set-up, and I figured this was it, I was going to shoot a jake. I hesitated, trying to see which jake had the biggest beard (like it makes a difference!?!) when the tom came into view. The jakes were all off to my left side and extremely close, but the tom was checking out the decoy 10 yards in front of me. I held as still as I could until his head went behind a bush, then I reached down for my gun and got it into position before his head came back into view. Off went the safety and I made the shot on my first tom. A rush of excitement was only tainted by the wish that Caden had been there and had this opportunity. 

The walk back to the house was a sweet one, with a bird over my shoulder I answered the text from Deli asking if I was going to come home. Coming back heavy! I'm not sure how the tradition of getting a picture with your bird on the porch started, but I love it. Deli was nice enough to take some pictures for me. 

We tried to get out and replicate my success for Caden, but in the same set-up a couple of days later only a couple of hens showed up. We tried our best, getting up early and hunting late until the end of the very last day but it never came together. So the secret to turkey hunting? It's better to be lucky than good!

Hope you're as lucky, 

Kidder

The Way You Say It

The fishing itch has been creeping in on me again. So we planned our trip where I knew we could also do some fishing if the hunting would allow it. Hunting does allow for downtime if you let it, but usually, I can only focus on one thing and during the limited hunting season my focus has to be there. I've often said that I can't even have fishing gear with me because I might get distracted. 

The first canyon that we ventured up seemed to be overrun with OHV's to the point where the trees on either side of the main road were dusty. We tried a few spots and had a great tailgate hot dog roast (forgot the pan to cook in...) but it became obvious that this area was too crowded for what we wanted to do. So we made a late-night drive to another area where we've seen turkeys before and settled down to sleep for a couple of hours in the truck. The downside to the new canyon is that it isn't exactly a great one for fishing, but fishing can wait a little while longer.

Morning came quick and cold! Once we had our hunting clothes on and were mostly packed up we walked a few yards and made a call. We heard a faint gobble, so we moved toward a ridge to set up. Before we had walked the 80 yards to the ridge two hens fed their way towards us. Too bad they didn't have a tom (or jake) with them! This has been the story of Caden's hunt, all hens. 

The hens continued to feed past us so we moved towards the nearest cover to call and hope that our luck would change. Just before the sun crests the ridge is the coldest part of the day and I was sure feeling it! Or not feeling it in the case of my fingers... Caden seemed fine, so we toughed it out for a little while, watching deer feeding below us, when I caught a glimpse of something gray a couple hundred yards out. Immediately, I told Caden to pass me the gun and called one more time. The coyote came in a straight line right towards us and only stopped when it was about 15 yards away from us and 5 or so yards away from the decoy. I had a clear shot at its head so I took it and bagged my first coyote!

Coyote's get a bad rap and I'm not sure where I stand with it all. On the one hand, research says that you can't eliminate them, or even reduce their numbers through hunting or trapping. On the other, they kill turkeys and fawns and if we can knock their numbers down, even for the short term, at the right time of year we could help recruitment for these species. As far as I'm concerned right now, any hunt becomes a coyote hunt once you see one. Steven Rinella of MeatEater fame has said that if you pronounce it KIH-OAT-EE then you never shot one, but if you have you say KIH-OAT. So I guess I need to adjust the way I talk now. 

Hope you're as lucky,

Kidder

Lucky Little Punk

Growing up, turkey hunting was something that we saw on TV but not something that we did or thought about. In fact, it wasn't even a hunting show that we'd watch unless there was nothing else on. Fast forward about twenty years and turkey hunting has become one of my favorite hunts and one that I love sharing with my boys.

This year the turkeys seemed to be a little more scarce than in years past, but then Caden and I went out to scout one evening and the birds were everywhere. We saw hens, jakes, and toms in spots that we could access. Our confidence was almost as high as our excitement and the youth opener couldn't arrive soon enough. 

I've been talking to the boys about turkey hunting all winter, including pop quizzes on where they should aim, how to identify jakes/toms, and all the little decisions they would have to make in the moment. Trying to get them as prepared as possible to be successful, ethical hunters is always my goal so we went out to practice shooting. Time with the guns helps young hunters gain confidence and stay safe (and it's fun to shoot!). 

Headed up the hill just a little later than we were hoping to get there, but made it to the spot, got the decoy out and just barely got set up before some turkeys appeared on the hill across from us. One hen spooked and flew so we knew we didn't have much time before the others followed suit. Atley had the best angle on them so I said if you can see the one with the blue head go ahead and shoot it. He checked for a beard (because that's what we had been talking about doing in preparation for the hunt. Training!) and made a great shot! 

After looking at his bird and taking some quick pictures, Caden and I moved in the direction that the birds ran and caught up to them. Caden could've gotten a shot at the other tom, but couldn't figure out which one that was before they all took off. With a lot of morning left, we decided to move in the direction of a bird that was gobbling and try for a double before heading home. Despite our efforts, the birds continued to move away from us so we headed home to take care of Atley's bird. 

Despite what you might've heard, turkeys are delicious. We breasted out the bird to make some amazing nuggets and saved the legs/thighs for another meal. I honestly think this is the reason that the boys like turkey hunting so much! I just wish they were bigger...

It always makes me happy when my boys take me outdoors! With lots of time left to hunt, we were confident that Caden and I would be filling our tags soon. 

Hope you're as lucky, 

Kidder

Jumping Off

With our schools here in Utah shut down, I had to start working from home and trying to teach music remotely. It sucks. I know that there are lots of people going through a lot worse, and my perspective is a privileged one, but it's hard not to focus on what you're going through personally. I'm trying to be productive, getting my steps in, doing pushups, and working on finishing a room downstairs that will be for all my hobbies. I can't wait to tie flies, build rods, practice saxophone, and store all my stuff in a dedicated space. 

I've also set up trail cameras in the back yard and we're all excited to have the deer and elk back! The turkeys are teasing me with only a couple of weeks on until the opener, but I know they'll disappear before the hunt starts. Hopefully, the skunk will make himself scarce too!

The weather is warming up nicely and Del was getting the itch to get outside and have some fun. She just turned in her final project for her Bachelors Degree (spoiler: She passed!!). So we rode the 4-wheeler up to a good jumping-off point and took a hike 'shed hunting'. Although, if we didn't see any sheds we wouldn't have been surprised or too worried about it. A hike like this is always a great way to get out and have some fun, finding something is just a bonus. With Summer fast approaching I'm hoping this is just the first of many. It will help get us in shape and keep me from going crazy. The scrub oak was super thick, but we found some really nice openings with tons of elk sign. It will be interesting to see if they stick around all Summer. Maybe I've been going up too high to chase elk and would have just as much luck sticking close to home? We'll see. 

As usual, Del found what we were looking for long before I did when she spotted a nice little three-point deadhead. This would've been a cool buck in another year or so, but even 'as is' there was some cool mass and it was a good find. 

It's funny how getting the first find out of the way makes you look harder and have more hope in your search. I definitely started looking harder hoping to find something! What I didn't see was the black clouds building across our valley and they were over us really quickly. We took shelter under a juniper tree, but it didn't help too much. The rain and wind were cold, but it stepped up a notch when the rain turned to hail. One poncho between the two of us kept us relatively dry, but it didn't quite cover everything!

After the storm the sun came back out and temperatures rose back up to comfortable. If you don't like the weather in Utah just wait ten minutes! The sun melted the marble-sized hail and made for some really muddy trails. Slipping and sliding along! We both ended up taking a fall and carrying a little extra weight in the form of mud, plastered to our backsides. I did make one find, a little two-point shed, before we called it a day and headed back to the wheeler. The short ride home had one little adventure in store for us as we slid off the road! It was tense for a minute, until Del got off and let me try and get through the rough spots. Never a dull moment! 

I'm sure this is just the first of many adventures that we'll have this Spring/Summer and I can't wait. 

Hope you're as lucky, 

Kidder

A Bonus

Hopefully you and your loved ones are doing well in these crazy times. The world has changed in these few, short, weeks. We are more of a world-wide community than ever before and yet we're more isolated and alone too. Strange days. I've been trying to stay active, even going so far as to actually working on some projects around the house, but sometimes you just have to get out.

After finishing with my work for the day I headed out in spite of the weather being a little colder and a little more blustery than I'd like. Trying to be as responsible as possible, I stayed pretty close to home and made it a solo trip to maintain my social distancing. The plan was to walk downstream from where I usually park and then fish my way back to the truck. To help fight the temptation to stop and fish every spot on the way down I didn't rig up my rod right away. It worked great until I saw a rising fish that was too tempting. I'm yet to really figure out how to fish downstream with anything other than a streamer, so it didn't take long to spook the fish.

In an attempt to become a better fisherman, I've decided that this year I'm going to try and use a longer leader whenever possible. Twelve to fourteen feet long probably isn't that much for a lot of you, but I'm struggling to be accurate with it! Maybe I need to re-evaluate my leader construction...

I finished walking down to my target starting spot and quickly hooked into a fish that just as quickly came unbuttoned. It was only a minute later that a tiny brown came to hand and I started making my way upstream. The next fish to hand was the only rainbow I've ever caught on this stream! (Really weird, but I didn't take a picture!?!) I switched flies quickly whenever I came upon a rising fish, but most were caught on a prince nymph under an indicator. 

Despite the day being a little cold, the wind a little too high, the water a little low (with lots of moss), it still felt great just to get out for a couple of hours! The fish were just a bonus.

Hope you're as lucky,

Kidder

Back At It

While at a professional development conference for music teachers someone randomly said, "You sure fish a lot!" This wasn't someone that I knew all that well and the statement kinda surprised me. My response was, "It doesn't feel like it." or something to that effect which left me wondering what a "lot" was. 

 While at the conference I got to catch up a little with another guy that fishes a "lot" and some loose plans were made. I always enjoy fishing with Lane. He's a good fisherman and I always learn something from him. It's also interesting to watch someone who knows what they're doing and compare that to what I would do. It's also nice that he doesn't plan on coming home early, doesn't get pissy if the fish don't cooperate and doesn't steal flies from me. 

A couple of texts and the plans were finalized for the day after Valentines Day, and even though I went fishing with my Dad on Valentines I was really excited to hit another stream. I had lost almost all of my #18 Red Zebra Midges, so in the morning before heading out I made sure to tie a quick half dozen. I knew they might not work as well today, but if I didn't have them I'd regret it. After that it was out the door to meet Lane in an abandoned K-Mart parking lot. Not sketchy at all....

Not red, but you get the idea...

The drive was filled with talk about our jobs, places we have fished and some hunches that we're planning on checking out soon. We checked on a couple of different spots, but ended up at a spot that neither of us had fished in years. I decided to start with a fly that used to be a go-to for this stream, a gray scud. The first cast showed it was a good choice and several small fish came to hand at the first hole. Nothing huge, but a nice mix of brown and rainbow trout. 

Usually, there would be a pic of my hand holding a fish right here. Unfortunately, I've misplaced my waterproof camera and history has shown I can't be trusted to use my phone anywhere near water...

It took a minute, but Lane started finding some fish including a nice tiger trout that was a surprise. We didn't even know there were tigers in this stream. While Lane started pulling in fish one after another, I picked up a bunch of golf balls that littered the stream. I was a little surprised to find them, but I was even more surprised that no one else had picked them up. This is one of the most popular streams in the state and I know there are a lot of people who have stepped over all the trash. I know you might not be the problem, but you can be the solution. I'm going to put a bag in my vest and try to be better about picking up some trash each trip. Hopefully we can make a difference out there in the places we love.

We moved upstream, finding a few fish in each hole until we came up to a large run that looked awesome. Having not been here for so long, it was way different than before, but still great looking. Had trouble figuring out what the fish would take until I got a nice whitefish on a Frenchie. This was the first fish I've ever caught on this pattern, and one of the biggest whitefish I've caught on this stream. Too bad it was a fluke, no other fish fell for the Frenchie.

A few rising fish tempted Lane into switching flies to a dry, and he caught one bow on a Griffith's Gnat. Slow fishing that normally would've sent us upstream pretty quickly kept us there with the occasional rising fish, or a decent brown/whitefish on a nymph, but never the same fly twice...

Deciding to try a different spot, we headed for the truck. Lane stopped to fish a likely looking spot and managed to hook one more small bow on the dry fly even though he didn't see the take - he just heard a splash and set! I figured we were done at this point, but Lane said he knew of a spot nearby to try. Always up for one more cast we drove to a spot that Lane's Uncle had shown him, but it was a spot that he hadn't fished in about 15 years. During the walk in, Lane described the way it used to be. A smooth pool where a few spooky fish might be, but even if they were it would be a short game. What we found was a pool with a good run and some complicated currents.

It took a minute to figure out what they wanted, but once I tried on a #18 Red Zebra Midge and fished the middle of the water column it all came together. Several fish came to hand, including some nice browns. At one point it was obvious that they liked what I was serving better than Lane's flies so I lent him my rod and he quickly missed a few takes and landed a good fish. 

We finally called it a day when the sun starting going down and our hands started going numb. A great day on the water with great company. 

Hope you're as lucky,

Kidder

Invaluable

It can be hard to justify spending time away from home (family, projects, practicing, work...) and heading out fishing this time of year. Freezing temperatures make fishing difficult most days with iced guides, slippery access, and lathargic fish. Some spots are off the list entirely because of icy conditions or the danger involved. Ice fishing is an option, but it doesn't scratch the itch in the same way as getting out with the flyrod.

Cabin fever is a real thing around here, although I 'probably' wouldn't call in sick to work because of it...... Probably. So when we saw that daily temperatures were going to sneak above freezing for a couple days in a row Jeff and I made a plan to hit a stream.

The drive went by pretty quickly (listening to podcasts really helps) and Jeff was ready to go when I arrived. It didn't take long before we were following up on a lead for a great spot to fish. Lots of small rainbows were waiting for our wired San Juan Worms and Zebra Midges of different flavors. They helped to get the rust off and get the "first fish of the year" thing out of the way.

We decided to try another spot, although we really didn't know for sure where that was going to be. So we drove some likely access roads just to find private property and no trespassing signs. We did, however, manage to stumble on some great looking coyote hunting spots and we spotted a really nice buck. Of course, we didn't have the spotting scope so you'll just have to take my word for it. Eventually we ended up going back to the area I usually fish on this stream to end out the day.

With the sunlight disappearing and the temperatures dropping we weren't expecting much, but we still had hope of getting one more before calling it a day. We took turns casting to likely spots and managed to miss a few takes before I finally woke up and made good on the deal. A nice rainbow was more than I could've hoped for to end out my day.

A couple casts later Jeff pulled a nice cutthroat out of the same hole, but struggled to hold onto her for a picture.

As we made our way back to the truck I toyed with the idea of spending the night and hitting it again in the morning. The invite was definitely there and Jeff even tried to talk me into it a little bit, but responsibilities were weighing on me and I just couldn't do it. Time on the water is invaluable to me, especially at this time of year when the walls can start to close in, but responsibilities at home wouldn't wait and I was grateful for the day we just had.

Hope you're as lucky,

Kidder