Yesterday's Weapons Forums

I hope the repetition of my seasonal events hasnt got you all yawning by now, so here I am again....
Ox hunting.

We now have a general "Open" season, so we have to hunt Ox ASAP, to beat everyone and his dog to them....LOL!
Only 16 are being allowed to be harvested this year, up from the previous 10.
"However" it is open to any and all Alaskan residents, so we get out early, and hunted with the rising tide, using our big bopat for transpo. This happened about 1 mile from our camp, at the Kiwalik lagoon, and we had them in sight for about a week.

Soooooooooo......before we shot, I very thourly discussed shot placement with the boys.
Winter Ox have quite a bit of wool, which, in sighting on them, puts the neck bones about mid neck.
Being Summer, they havent quite the wool grown, but still have the long hairs hanging, so the neck bones would appear to be "Higher" for sighting in on......well, we talked it over and decided that the Heart is still in the same area, and thats where we would place our shots.
Doug hit the heart and the Aorta on both his shots, and in 30 or so second, his was "Meat"
Doug had "First shot" as Jon and I had the last 2 taken home, so it was his "Turn"
He took the Ox that had all the Ladies in a group, and out of the 19 Ox attending, 5 were mature Bulls. The Big Bad Boy had the other 4 lingering on the fringes, as they were just waiting for him to sleep or turn away
The "Fringe" Bulls, as we call them wernt far off, and as you see they came up from the river to see what was happening.
Too bad for them!
After Doug's double shot, Jon (Who is and acts like hes 17) decided it was gonna be a neck/head shot as usual, with dim results.......
I shot 3rd, as I love watching the boys do a good job, and was rather happy with my results.
I made mine a heart shot as did Doug, and my results were a 10 second kill



If only the kid would have listened.......the first shot hit low, and busted the bulls jaw, and he ran into the herd for safety, but with his mouth hanging wide open, gushing blood, he was most definitly "Marked"
2 more shots to the neck had little effect, but with some taunting from his brother, and me spoooking the herd away from the wounded Bull, Jon put one behind the horn, and you can hear the bullet whine from richoche'n off the other sides horn..... Dropped him right there, though. Not as neat as we like, but the results were desirable. MEAT!

Jon

Doug and our camera woman, Mom.


Me (I'm the one with the Rifle....)



Butchering as a family, cept eldest daughter was feeling a plugged up head cold , and stayed in camp.



Intestines braided , to be made into sausage casings later.



Of course, I couldnt pass up the lonly ol' Caribou that wanderd by the next day, after morning coffee....


Fishing has been AWSOME! The Girls all work with mom, and greens, Geese, and cutting meats is getting to be a skill under all their belts


Smoked, dried, 1/2 dried...Mmmmmmmmmmmmm.......

This is one happy Agnes!

What more could a fellow want? a woman who out fishe's her guy, beautifull, and loving the hunting so much, she wakes me early and gass's the boat....

Hello there!
Wish I could watch those videos!! Thanks for the really neat text and photos. You are boring NOONE!! We needed a little update from the Great white North. Now THAT is hunting with the clan! I still could not stand the weather there, but I'm starting to get a feel for why you love your home so much.

looks great hailstone - you always get me thinking about food .........you are a lucky man , glad she has recovered from that bite

speaking of salmon - ive got a slab like that i need to fix for the trap guys i shoot with , preferably on the grill , any good ideas on how to fix it ?

was thinking wrapped in foil with butter & dill - little lemon ? that sound like it would work ? how long should i leave it on ?

im open to all ideas

Cork, How ya been???

A couple of theose Salmon were caught on the reels you sent last summer, and man, what a fight a 18lb silver can put up!!!! Never did enjoy a rod so much as this last month.
Tell that collage professor to log on! Let 'em see and go wander aloud how anybody makes a living in this world......., it all comes down to "Work" Were not alone in the Hunt, for sure, but I have my "Grounds" and others have theirs. Younger people arnt really filling in the gaps, as most want to slleeep at home at night, so I dont see many more generations living this way, though I cant count how many do, as theres still quite a few. Actually, there is a resurging interest , as economics and the crunch its bringing on is enlightening those who hunt in the stores to start hunting on the land again...the resources are out there, with no middle men.
Those 200-150 yard shots are a Mosins "Sweet spot"
I wouldnt exactly say Ox stand and take it, as we had them corner'd between a slope and a river/ lagoon. They stand off Wolves by standing their ground, and goring/stomping them, but it sure dont help with bullets. Fact is, the Ox had us "Made" when they herd the boat arrive, and we dismounted to keep them corner'd. They do run off when given the chance, and when I approched, and the boys swung tward the point, they had the chance to run and did. Fact is the wounded bull caught up in quite a spurt and thats whay he was at the tail of the herd, and Jon dropped him when he quit moving.

Mark, A-square, salmon is the fish of the Gods....

When I grill Salmon, thats it ; lemon, pepper, and some foil to keep it from falling apart or sticking to the grill.
Skin side up for the first few minutes with butter under it, then flip it while its still firm, and skin side down, untill its done.
There will be bubbly white oily/fat stuff that ooze's out of the meat, when its close to done, and then check it with a fork, A-square, to see if its cooked all through. Cant go wrong there Over cooked Salmon is dry, so keep an eye on it. We pulled a net twice today, on Imnachuck river, and filled a freezer (20 C/F) well, its getting filled, one layer added every few hours, so it will freeze proper.

Hailstone

I do the same as you but I have not tried the butter, I do however add Garlic salt (love Garlic salt). Will do the butter next time.

Yes Salmon is the fish of the Gods and I LOVE IT! It is getting hard to find wild in the stores around here. You can find the farmed but it does not taste or look right. Even my kids will notice the difference