Photos From The Field

Took a few photos while working last week on the road.  Emjoy!

Next Batch of Trail Canera Photos From Texas

I count 13.  Looks like several does this year had twins and have retained them loosing very few.

The velvet is sloughing off!



"I'm tired of growing these antlers, I think I'll just lay here and look at the ladies." 

I guess we know which is the dominant buck of these two?

This must be a very special deer.



LOTS of bacon!



Here is "Kickers" right side!

 

Here is "Kickers" left side!

 



The Golden Hog!



Camera Season Is Here!

We placed our game cameras out on our lease in Abilene, Texas in late July.  Here are a few photos from the first batch.

"Big Eight"

Mothers are always setting us straight no matter how old we get!  That is a BIG doe!

Five fawns in one photo.  Lot more this year than last year during the record drought.

She must have dosed off and rolled into some cactus?  OUCH!

Probably one of the few Dirt Devels ever captured with a game camera.

A 12 point on the left.  PLEASE come by my bow stand in October!

A mature, heavy 10 point!

Here comes "Kicker" to see whats going on?

"Someone say breakfast time?  I'm in!"

 

Bass Pro Shop Land & Wildlife Expo!

We wrapped up in Nashville at the Quality Deer Management Association's National Convention and the Bass Pro Shop Land & Wildlife Expo.  Talked to a lot of people about fish and wildlife management and enjoyed hanging out with old friends and making new ones.  Surprisingly the shows biggest draw was the Turtleman and Friends from the TV show Call of the Wildlman, as their booth was packed the whole show with parents and children wanting to get shirts, autographs and listen to some banjo music.  Also on hand were RJ and Jay Paul Molinere from the TV show Swamp People and professional hunters Tom Miranda and Jerry Martin.  Unfortunately the show was so busy for us we didn't have time to sit in on any of the management seminars, but we heard most of them were very good.  We want to thank everyone for stopping by and hope we answered all your questions. 



Scott Brown, Steve Lopez and Grady Hathaway waiting for the show to begin!

Very nice display!

Looks out of place, but folks seemed to enjoy talking about how it works and to tell us when and where they saw one work.  Even had the Chief of Fisheries from Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency stop by an check the boat out to see if we did a good job setting it up.

Steve talking shop with some passers by!

Good friend and Editor/Publisher of Wildlife Trends Journal Andy Whitaker with his Communicator of the Year Award given to him by the Quality Deer Management Association at this year's National Convention.  Congratulations Andy!  I guess now you will be expecting even better articles from us writers?



Steve Lopez with a couple members of the Turtleman gang from the TV show Call of the Wildman.

Scott hanging with the Turtleman after getting his autograph for his nephew, who religiously watches the show and when I'm at his house he requires I watch it with him!!

Jinkam Jones periodically shows up whenever Allen Deese from The Wildlife Group is in town.  Here Jinkam decides to weigh himself or check the scale's accuracy!  Jinkam is always ready for action, especially now that he has his new helmet.

Photos From The Mississippi Wildlife Extravaganza

I wrapped up the Mississippi Wildlife Extravaganza today and got home this evening.  It was a great show, met a lot of people and had a lot of fun!  Talked to a lot of folks and hopefully answered all their fish and wildlife questions.  Almost three days of laughing with Andy Whitaker from Wildlife Trends Journal and Allen Deese from The Wildlife Group.  Here are a few photos from the weekend.

This was Andy and Allen's booth I worked.  Even inside we are amongst the trees!

This was part of the Driven TV display accross the isle.

Who knows maybe this yacht will someday be needed as a shocker boat?

They held the 2012 Mississippi Big Buck contest.  Lots of Bone!

This ground blind is cool, but weighs 600 lbs.  Even in West Texas you don't have to worry about the wind blowing it away.

This was a taxidermist's display.  Lots of cool mounts from all over the world.

Scotty Brown with the whole Driven TV crew!

Although a big TV star and videographer, Pat Reeve still takes care of the cleaning!  He can't wait for hunting season to start so he can put the vacum away and grab the rifle and bow.

Hitting The Road Doing Shows!

The first two weekends in August, Southern Sportsman Aquatics & Land Management will be hitting the road doing a few shows and hopefully seeing and meeting you! 

• Friday August 3 - 5 Scott will be hanging out at the Wildlife Trends Journal booth in Jackson Mississippi at the Mississippi Wildlife Extravaganza: http://www.mswildlife.org/events/ms_wildlife_extravaganza.php.  Scott is a photographer and contributing writer for the journal, so please come by to ask questions about fish and wildlife management or just say Hello!

• Thursday August 9 - 11 Scott, Steve and Grady will be in Nashville, Tennessee for the Bass Pro Shops Land & Wildlife Expo: http://landandwildlifeexpo.com/ and the Quality Deer Management Association's (QDMA) National Convention: http://www.qdma.com/corporate/national-convention.  We will have the shocker boat set up across from the Celebrity Autograph booth (our booth # 1901).  Please come buy and check out a real shocker boat, ask questions or just stop by to say Hello!  We hope to see you there!

Outdoors Show Tip of the Week

We will be providing an outdoor related tip of the week at outdoorsshow.com.  Tips range from fish and wildlife management to hunting and fishing tips we have found to be very successful.  This weeks tip is for successful catfishing.  Last week's for ridding your property of destructive beavers.  We hope you enjoy them and they start some good conversations on the message board.  Please share your tips with us on the weekly topics, as we are always looking to improve what we do!

Spring Trip Ends

Had a great trip East and returned last week.  Got lots of work done, met with a new client near York, South Carolina.  Saw a baby deer less than a day old in the woods at one of our properties in Central Florida.  I am so sorry to say I did not have the camera and I didn't want to get close enough for a cell phone picture.  The little guy (or girl) was wobbling around until it found a few blades of grass taller than the rest and plopped down to hide.  I got back to Texas and did some aquatic vegetation treatments at Holly Lake Ranch in East Texas with our fish and wildlife technician - Grady.  The mild winter has put us behind before we even started this year on weed treating. 

I was so busy I only got to turkey hunt Georgia one day. I did hear plenty of gobbling at Ochwalkee Creek Plantation, but I wasn't speaking their language, as I didn't see one that morning.

One of our tasks on this last trip was to collect and stock Seminole Killifish into lake Conlin in St Cloud, Florida.  The lake is in need of a forage base for bass, so we are trying something new.  The water chemistry and habitat is what these fish like, so hopefully they will take and repopulate.

We did have one of our Georgia clients report a 1 lbs 1 oz redear sunfish caught from his lake we manage.  That will earn Doe Run Plantation a Southern Sportsman Aquatics & Land Lunker Award issued to landowners that catch or harvest exceptional deer and fish from their property.

Wildlife Trends

I have been asked to write articles and provide a Management Calendar with good friend Dave Edwards for the fish and wildlife management publication Wildlife Trends.  This 11-year-old publication is targeted to land owners and managers wanting to learn from an expert panel how to manage fish and wildlife and the habitats associated with them.  Please check them out on the web at:  http://www.wildlifetrends.com/ to view some sample articles and a list of staff writers.  Even if you don't do your own lake and land management you can stay informed on what and how your management company or staff should be doing it.

Hunt Life Tip of the Week 3/26/12

We have been asked by Hunt Life to provide The Outdoors Tip of the Week relating to hunting, fishing, dog training and fish and wildlife management to help you be a better outdoorsman and/or lake and land manager.  Hunt Life Pro Staffers will post this weekly segment at: huntlife.com on Sunday or Monday.  The tip will also be posted on the Hunt Life Face Book page.  There is opportunity for you to add to it, or ask the experts questions the tip may provoke.  These are designed to be short, informative, get you thinking and allow you to ask more in depth questions relating to the topic.  Some tips will have accompanying photos, which this one does of a little Brown Dog as he grows up.  This first week's tip was provided by Scotty Brown and it deals with picking a retriever puppy from the litter.  

Spring 2012 News Letter

The Spring 2012 edition of the Southern Sportsman Aqutics & Land Management News Letter is now posted on our web site.  To view it and previous editions visit: http://southernsportsmanaquaticsandland.com/quarterly_news_letters

Check Out the Company Portfolio!

Click logo on right to veiw the Southern Sportsman Aquatics & Land Management portfolio.

What's Been Going On?

February was very slow doing mostly tax stuff, equipment maintenance and ordering supplies for the upcoming year.  But some big events did happen in February. 

I was named a Texas DU District Chairman in North Dallas and nearby area.  I will continue to be a Committee Member with the Allen Chapter, although it is not in my district.  Allen DU had a great Sportsman Night Out fund raising event in February and I was lucky enough to win the Grand prize drawing!  Not sure the comittee will allow me to buy any more raffle tickets, as the Browns (Josh too)have done very well at DU and NWTF events with raffle tickets.

I was also named to the Hunt Life Radio and Web Pro Staff.  I will be blogging on a regular basis at huntlife.com about work and outdoor adventures I take in the woods or on the water.  We will also be producing the sindicated Hunt Life Minute with good friend Dave Edwards, which is a minute segement/tip related to hunting, fishing, dog training and fish and wildlife management. Check the local radio stations in your area for aring times or check them out on the web at huntlife.com.

And lastly, I was invited to start writing articles for the Wildlife Trends.  The bi-monthly publication contains articles related to fish and wildlife management targeting land owners and bilogists/managers.  It was an honor to be asked to write for them in 2012.  I will be doing articles and producing half of the Managamenet Calendar in the back of each issue.  You can check out past issues and some articles at: wildlifetrends.com

The last couple weeks I was in the field and did manage to get a few wildlife photos - Enjoy!

Some deer in Central Fl;orida taking a mid day nap!

One buck is already growing new antlers while
the other doesn't want to give his up from last year

Mr and Mrs Stork waiting on the stork to deliver babies!

Baby Anhingas.  Not much keeping them from falling into the lake.

Spring turkey season is almost here!

Steve Lopez holds a couple of bass we sampled
on the Middle St Johns River florida

Wow did the last five weeks go by fast!  It started out with the great Outdoors Show Christmas Extraveganza back in mid December.  Approximately 450 people showed up and we enjoyed talking to all of them.  The Duck Hounds enjoyed being petted by everyone and the beef ribs they got to chew on at hunt camp.After some Georgia deer hunting, Christmas qand New Years is was back to work for two weeks in Florida, and now we are performing the routine maintenance on boats, motors, trailers, etc.

We are excited to announce The Big Winter Texas Hunter Feeder Sale!  If you need deer or fish feeders, please see the flier and contact us to place your order.  These will be the lowest prices of the year!

Outdoors Show Christmas Extravaganza!

Join us, this Saturday December 17th, from 7 AM to 2 PM for the Outdoors Show Extravaganza, held at Nimnicht Chevorlet, in Jacksonville, Florida.  Besides broadcasting the Outdoors Show Radio live, there will be raffles and fine smoked foods to eat, vendors who are sponsors of the show and the Outdoors Show staff including Kevin, Jeff and Kirk.  Admission is free!  Steve and I will be there with the shocker boat set up on display answering questions about lake and land management and raffling off a fish attractor and wood duck box, along with giving away a few camo tees, hats and coozies.  During the show we are offering all Texas Hunter and Sweeney brand fish and game feeders at 5% off!  I will also have the Duck Hounds there waiting to be petted or retrieve a dummy by anyone that will throw for them.  We hope to see you there!

Happy Holidays!

Everyone here at Southern Sportsman Aquatics & Land Management would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy, Safe and Prosperous New Year in 2012!  We are headed towards our 5th anniversary in March and would like to thank everyone from clients, friends, associates and family for helping us grow the business the past five years.  We have been pleasantly surprised at our success, and look forward to continue growing and meeting new people the next five years.  Our clients are the best, constantly promoting us and having their friends and associates call on us to perform lake and land work on their properties.  We look forward to working for you all again next year and the many new clients signed up that we start working for this coming spring.  Happy Holidays!

Thanksgiving Weekend at the Deer Lease With the Browns!

Now that the Allen High football season tragically ended last weekend coming up a yard short of the end zone on the final drive in the playoff game at Cowboy’s Stadium, my son and I spent three days deer hunting at our Abilene, Texas lease.

First afternoon I got to my ground blind about 2:00 PM saw a few deer about 50-80 yards away and none going by the feeder.  This was the first time I had seen deer, that didn’t swing by the feeder, but I didn’t think anything of it.  Around 4:00 a flock of red-winged black birds invaded the feeder, well over 100.  They would land and then all jump up and leave for a few minutes and come back.  I noticed about 5 yards to the left of the feeder the birds were appearing to lift a “stick” up off the ground when they flew.  I got my binoculars out and after further review I realized I wasn’t the only one hunting the feeder, it was a rattle snake.  He was hiding in a depression, coiled up with just his head out of the depression facing the feeder.  This went on until dark (6:00) and with binoculars at 16 yards it was like Wild Kingdom “in your face!”  I could see him lunge, tongue going in and out and he even yawned twice. He never caught anything though.  Unfortunately I did not have my big camera and didn’t get any pictures.  I am not sure but maybe the deer could smell or sense he was there and that’s why I saw 5 deer that afternoon and they all kept their distance.  Also had a Yote (coyote) barking (at what, I couldn’t figure out) about 80 yards up the hill from me for about 5 minutes off and on.

On Saturday afternoon the wind was 40-plus mph out of north and temperatures were dropping.  I dropped Josh off at 2:45 and headed to my stand about 10 min drive away and another 10 minute walk from there.  At 3:45 I barely heard a shot in his direction (3/4 of a mile away) and about 45 seconds later got a text that said “It was the big one!”  Well the Big One is about a 150 inch class we had seen around, and the day prior I believe we saw him crossing the road as we drove to the stands within 100 yards of Josh’s stand.  The next text is “lots of blood at site, but no blood trail.”  I said OK, don’t push him I will be back over in 15 minutes and we can start from there.  Now I have deer already in bow range and I have to shoo them away and I jump two more big body deer as I walk up out of the gulch to the truck.  Before I got too the truck another text, “I found him, he is big, but not the Big One – hurry up.”  Although he has a broken main beam (which a lot of our deer already have due to this year's drought) he is a 10-point, palmated on one side, with a kicker off one brow tine.  The taxidermist can add the end of the broken side per Josh's request.  I went through almost 1,000 trail camera photos last night and could not find one picture of this deer prior to breaking it off.  In fact he hadn’t been in any photos until a few days prior to meeting Josh and his 270 rifle.  I wanted to be sure the repair is as close to the real deal as we can get, as many of our deer have crab claws at the end, but to no avail, this buck due to the rut had just moved into the area.  For those who do not know Josh, he never gets excited about anything, but he was excited Saturday afternoon and even smiled for a few pictures.  This is his first buck after taking 4 does between ages of 12 and 17 that he got all on his own without sitting by Dad (after his first deer he told me I was holding him back those first two years!)Looks like you can be a high school kid, get straight A’s, play football, be in the band and still live the Hunt Life!

Here is the deer a couple days prior at a feeder photographed by a trail camera.  He is easy to spot in the thousands of trail camera photos we have from this year, as he has a double throat patch apposed to the traditional single.

Josh Brown with his first buck - awfully nice one!

Dad helps but the hunter needs to do most of the work.

Josh and I the next morning, now the real work begins processing the meat.

I got this doe two weeks prior with my bow, now looking for a big buck!