A Beneficial Cure To Cabin Fever!

Well here it is January, and the weather man is forecasting a real cold arctic front headed our way, and depending on where you live in the U.S., more than likely headed your way too.Now even though winter fishing is fun and can be very rewarding, even the most extreme die hard bass fishermen are getting tired of freezing and enduring the extremes of the harsh winter weather.

Now speaking for my self , I will probably retire to the homestead , to endure the harsher part of the winter ahead. I know that I will probably go stair crazy and suffer from cabin fever. But, there is a solution to cabin fever and stair crazy! I am not talking about becoming a couch potato or chasing the wife around the house, though that does give food for thought! ;-)

You can only watch so many fishing and hunting shows, before you multiply the effects of cabin fever. I get really bored watching fishing shows when I am stuck in the house and can't fish myself. So let me make a suggestion , that not only gives you something to pass the cold days ahead, but will benefit you more than going crazy!

We can all prepare our boat, rods and reels , and tackle and get ready for SPRING fishing! Yes , we can get ready for spring and at the same time, quite possibly avoid problems when we are able to hit the waterways again. I will briefly go over a few things and maybe you can think of a few to add to your list of things to do.

Tackle- lures and boxes

Inspect all lures and organize your boxes. Check lures for hooks that need replaced or maybe even sharpened. Check for loose bills on crank baits or cracks. Take an inventory of lures and make a list of those that need replaced or maybe even restocked. You may have lost your favorite shad rap or something. Cleaning and inspecting your tackle will take up most of the next cold front coming your way, and will ensure that Mr. Bass doesn't have the advantage over you next time out. Maybe even touch up some paint on some lures that are worn. Wipe out all your boxes and replace the boxes that are no longer good or broken.

Rods and reels

Check each rod and inspect each eye and see if they are loose or have grooves worn in the eyes, If so replace eyes or take them to a rod repair service center. I prefer to replace my own. Check the reel seats and look for cracks or anything that isn't right. Replace any rods that can,t be fixed. Take your reels and clean and lube them real good and respool them with new line. This ensures that you have the advantage over Mr. Bass, and a bad place or old line doesn,t give Mr. Bass the advantage.

Boat and trailer

Your boat and trailer should already be ready for Spring fishing if you did your pre winter maintenance. If not here are just a few pointers on the subject. Make sure lower unit is serviced. Check the fluid level in your power trim and tilt. Check your plug to see if it needs replaced and make sure you have a spare plug. A leaky plug can make a bad day, especially if your bilge isn,t working. You should check that too. Check out your wiring to make sure mice haven,t chewed and damaged the wiring. I know you don,t have any mice in your garage , but check anyways. Your trailer is pretty easy too. Just check out the wiring and bulbs and make sure all lights work.

Batteries

Last but not least check your cranking and trolling motor batteries for charge and have them check to ensure they are full capacity and have no dead cells. Faulty or weak batteries can ruin if not end your trip rather suddenly if they fail. Also check and replace all fuses and make sure you have several spares.

I am sure there are more things to check and inspect , to ensure that you have a safe, and uneventful outing. Feel free to comment if you have some ideas yourself. I love feed back. And one more thing, if you are really bored and you have all your gear and boat spring ready, go thru my archives here on "Kennys Great Outdoors" and you can fill any idle time you have left over before your next fishing trip. ;-) I am sure you can put some of my tips and articles to good use.

If you have an article or tip you would like to share with me and the readers here, then email me and I will post your article and or photos for all to enjoy. I challenge all the readers here on "Kennys Great Outdoors" to send me a fishing article, photos, fishing humor, I will be glad to post and share. Don,t be shy or stingy. You can send them to > kenny54@wildblue.net <

So until next time Keep your hooks wet, and get ready for Spring fishing , Which is right around the corner! See ya out there, and I am looking forward to hearing from you, send me all your articles and photos. Oh yeah , remember to enjoy the "Great Outdoors"

2009 @ Kenny's Great Outdoors

Welcome , once again to" Kenny's Great Outdoors" where bass fishing is the main topic , and as far as I am concerned the only worthy topic here on "Kenny's Great Outdoors. "

Now, some of you have probably noticed , I have taken an unannounced leave of absense from this blog since about mid December. Have had too much going on here to sit down and blog here lately. I have been sick, fishing, gigging, deer hunting , bow hunting, trapping, wood cutting, getting thru christmas, and then the new years. By the way "Happy New Year" and hope you all are getting by during these economic times of the bad recession our country is experiencing. But anyways, I am back to work , and I hope to be getting back into a routine with my blog work.

I am making plans on some changes, and am open to all and or any suggestions on changes being made here on the blog. I am not going to tell all as of yet but there are some definite changes in the works here. If you have a suggestion or two to help better or improve this outdoor blog send them to me by email or by comment on the blog.

I had a round with the flu, and I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy. It really sucked. My shoulder , with all these darned ole cold fronts has been giving me a fit, making it hard to fish or work. Somehow I seemed to have managed it anyways , and believe me , I pay for it dearly. I am so tired of taking pain pills. I can't , but will, wait till spring arrives. I just wanted you all to know , that I am still alive and kicking.

Oh yeah, I just wanted to clear something up here. The last post I made is not a letter from MY wife, it was a funny sent to me by a friend of mine and was misinterpreted by a few people. I am happily married and I don't have or plan to have any girlfriends. When I tell the wifey , that I am going fishing I am going fishing. She laughed at one of the comments on that post. I guess I should have made it clear that it was supposed to be a joke. My bad. I may be getting old, but I haven't lost my mind or my wife , YET!

So I guess that's all for now. I will be posting more regularly now that everything has settled down. Just keep on checking in or you can subscribe by email or subscribe however you like and you will be getting updates without having to come here. However, I do like you regular visitation of my blog and I also like your comments and feedback! So until next time, keep your hooks wet, ( not frozen) and enjoy the "Great Outdoors" See ya out there!

A Very Unsuccessful 10 Day Fishing Trip!

To my darling husband,

Before you return from your fishing trip, I just want to let you know about the small accident I had with the pickup truck when I turned into the driveway. Fortunately not too bad and I really didn't get hurt, so please don't worry too much about me. I was coming home from Wal-Mart, and when I turned into the driveway, I accidentally pushed down on the accelerator instead of the brake. The garage door is slightly bent but the pickup fortunately came to a halt when it bumped into your car.

I am really sorry, but I know with your kind-hearted personality you will forgive me. You know how much I love you and care for you my sweetheart. I am enclosing a picture for you.

I cannot wait to hold you in my arms again.

Your loving wife.
X0X0X0X0X0X0

BE SURE AND SCROLL PAST THE PICTURE








P.S . Your $@#&%^ girlfriend called!

Another Update For the 2008 Missouri Deer Seasons!

I am bringing you all up to date on the Missouri firearm harvest statistics for 2008. During the firearm portion of 2008 , a total of approximately, 200,679 deer were harvested. These numbers were down from last years harvest of 235,054. That's about 34,000 less than the 2007 firearm season.

I believe these numbers were down because of the cold and terribly windy front that came in on us, and lasted pretty much most of the season. I can't remember when it was as cold and windy, as it was this year.

During the muzzle loader season there where 10,254 deer harvested, which was the 4Th highest harvest in its 21 year history. The weather warmed up quite a bit and the wind was a lot less than during the firearm season. There seems to be a lot of hunters , that enjoy the thrill of the primitive one shot muzzle loaders of days gone by.

We still have one more season for muzzle loaders which starts December 13Th for one week and the harvest is for antlerless deers only.It looks as though it is going to be a cold and windy season also. Better dress warm you guys! Although by now most hunters will probably have lots of excuses to stay inside where it is warm. I , myself, will pass on this season as I have worn out my butt and my patience on 2 seasons now , a total of 18 days sitting like a statue and frozen about as stiff as a statue , I might add! ;-)

So there you have it! A pretty good harvest so far , considering the weather and everything. Oh yeah and by the way, Missouri still is reporting that CWD is still not in the 1.5 million deer herd as of yet. I don't know how accurate that statement is. But they have been testing harvested deer and so far so good. If you run across a sick acting deer , call the Missouri conservation department and report it. They want to know WHERE and WHEN. We can all do our part and help them to keep track of our herd here in Missouri. Just a simple phone call and its that easy.

So until next time, see ya out there, and good luck, hope you enjoy the "Great Outdoors!" Oh yeah, we have a winter advisory for tonight and tomorrow, but temperatures should be in the 40s and 50s by the weekend, so maybe that might make a difference for the last season of the 2008 deer harvest. Good luck you guys( and gals) although the gals probably have better sense, and stay warm, if you can.

Venison Jerky

2 lbs Sliced venison 1/8" thick

2 tbsp Soy sauce

1 tbsp Ground red pepper

1 cup whiskey

2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tbsp Salt

2 Cloves garlic, sliced

1 cup Water


Procedures


Slice the meat when it is lightly frozen.
The cuts should be long, thin and with the grain.
Cut across the grain if you want more tender, but more brittle jerky.
Trim off all of the fat. Marinate strips in a glass container overnight.

You may substitute 2 cups of red wine for the whiskey and water.

Pat dry and arrange pieces side by side on an oven roasting rack, with- out overlap.Cook at minimum heat (150°F) for 6 hours.
Leave oven door ajar to allow moisture to escape.
Meat should be dark. Dry and store jerky in a cool, airtight container.

Winter Bass Fishing Is Tough-But Can Be Rewarding!

Winter bass fishing can be the toughest fishing of any time of the year. Yes, even harder and tougher than the dog days of summer.
The biggest majority of bass fishermen will roll their eyes, and even make goofy faces when you mention bass fishing when it is COLD!
But there are those who will brave even the most extreme cold , because they know that the odds of catching a trophy bass are a lot better than most any other time of the year!

Probably the biggest reason for the accuracy of that last statement is the lack of fishing and boating pressure on the lakes and streams at this time of the year is practically zero! Despite what most fishermen believe , BASS do bite and require food even during this time of the year. Bass are not as active and have slowed down considerably, but they still feed.

Here are a few key points to be made about winter fishing!

1 Bass will , as a rule, be deeper than in normal months!

Though generally an accurate statement , is not always found to be true, as there is always an exception to every rule. But if not deeper will be very close to deeper water, like a point or a drop off , next to deep water .

2 Fish slower than normal with subtle or teasing like movements !

Jig n pigs, shaky head worms, tubes , spoons, or anything that you can sit right in front of the basses nose and tease him into striking your lure.

3 Winter normally has a lot of low pressure systems which can cause bass to feed heavily!

4 Make sure to watch you line closely and watch for movement , because the bite can be almost undetectable.

I usually watch the weather closely for a warm up or sunny days. 2 to 3 days in a row is super! I love to hit shallow points next to deep water, usually on the main lake points. I have great success from 10 to 20 feet deep points or flats next to deep water. Bass have a tendency to come shallow and feed on sunny days where the water can warm up a little faster , 2 or 3 degrees makes a big difference.

Bass have a tendency to gather up or school during the winter , which can make them hard to find. Keeping this in mind when you catch a good one stay with the locality of the bite and you will more than likely catch a few good ones, or even limit out, in one hole if the cover is right and you don't spook the fish. I have found that in rivers if you find a deep hole with lots of cover you will find a lot of fish too. This is about the same as on the lakes , more so than not.

Winter bass fishing is probably more a mental challenge , than anything else, as Mr. Bass does have to eat or perish. Keeping this in mind and slowing down our presentation is vitally important for a successful outing. I have had to fish so slow that it seemed like it took 10 minutes for one cast and retrieve.

I mainly use a jig n pig, and I fish it so slow that even the coldest and slowest bass in the lake can catch it and inhale it. In the winter bass very seldom hit a lure and run with it. They just suck it up of the bottom and you don't hardly feel anything. Your line just gets a mushy feeling. No telling how many bass inhale a lure and spit it out before a fisherman even realizes he has been bit, if he at all, realizes it.

Presentation is probably the most important thing about winter fishing.
Winter bass normally move slowly and will feed better on slow moving baits. When you think you are fishing slow, slow down even more. I sometimes let the bait sit for a minute or two and then not moving the bait forward, just shake it in place and that sometimes produces a bite. I can't stress this enough slow down, slow down, slow down!
This is more mental than anything and is harder and requires more patience than anything.You really have to concentrate hard and remember that you probably won't hardly feel the bite. Most of the time you just feel a mushy feeling and/ or see your line move. Reel in the slack and when you feel the fish set the hook!

As I stated earlier , I usually use a jig n pig , a shaky head worm , or a 1/2 oz spinner bait. I slow roll the spinner bait , bouncing it of the bottom , or rocks or logs. I like to put a grub or some other kind of trailer on the spinner bait to add bulk and add a little more action , which also offers Mr. Bass a bigger meal, so to speak.

Winter fishing is cold and very uncomfortable, but with gortex and thinsulate, staying warm is not very difficult, but can be costly. The cost is worth it , just to make the cold weather more tolerable. Mr. Bass can and will be caught , if you can dress warm and slow down your fishing techniques. Winter bass fishing can be very productive and more often than not , will produce bigger, quality bass, than in any other time of the year. Bass are not as aggressive and the odds of getting a bigger bass in the live well, is more in your favor at this time of the year.

I hope you have picked up some tips you can use, from this article. If you can mentally prepare yourself , dress warm, and slow down , slower than slow, you will catch bass in the winter time and more than likely catch that trophy bass that you have always dreamed of. As my grandpa always said, " You can't catch fish unless your fishing" A lure in the garage wont catch fish. A lure in the water will!

So until next time, stay dry, warm and slow down, for a successful winter bass fishing trip. See ya out there, good luck , and remember if you're fishing slow, slow down even more so that, slow ,cold ,bass can catch your lure and make your dreams come true!

Missouri Deer Season- Update

ANYONE CARE FOR VENISON PIZZA?


We aren't bass fishing today , we are still deer hunting! I just thought I would bring you up-to-date as of Wednesday the 19th. Saturday the 15th was opening day and mother nature showed no mercy on the deer hunters. There was a big turn out of hunters and as usual opening day not only was cold, but it snowed, sleeted and rained. The wind came from way before daylight in 50 mile an hour gusts and blew all day and most of Saturday night.

I thought I was too cool and a friend of mine and I got in my tent blind and had a heater in it too. It was still colder than a well diggers %#$ but we managed. Even the squirrels and turkeys didn't even come out where we were. We did see a small flock of turkeys about 2pm and they were laying down and not moving hardly at all.

Sunday was better , the temps were in the upper 40s which was 10 degrees warmer than the Saturday high of 38. Still pretty windy but seen several squirrels and another small flock of turkeys and 2 coveys of quail. That is a lot better than Saturday. Sunday evening about 4:45 pm a couple of big does came by and we busted one of them and the other doe , just disappeared. We never heard her run, it was as if she just vanished. The doe we scored was one of the biggest doe I have ever seen. Monday was my friends daughters birthday so we took a day off. He and his daughter went, saw 3 does, and a 3 point buck , but she is 12 and didn't want dad to shoot them. She said they were too pretty , so dad and daughter just watched them. She had a blast and was glad dad let them go!

Tuesday , I went by myself , Jerry had to go back to work and I messed up. Old whitey came up , as I was grunting and rattling. Of course he circled me and came up down wind. My blind is supposed to keep the scent in . I guess it did good , as the buck was about 15 steps from my blind on my blind side and snorted , he also waved the white flag at me as he quickly avoided my shot, which centered a big black oak just about as perfect as you could shoot. Oh well better luck next time!

Wednesday came and went just turkeys, squirrels, quail again, and a couple of wild hogs. I could have shot them both, but like the little girl , I just watched them feed on by. I didn't think I could manage a 300+ lb hog by myself, nor did I really feel like messing with it anyways.
My cousin killed 2 last year and my dad said they were good eating.

I probably will hunt everyday till the season closes , I still have 3 tags to fill and my friend has 2 tags to fill so we might get another chance at old whitey again, even though I would rather have doe to steak up as they are more tender . Old whitey might make some good summer sausage, cajun style. YUMMY! But that's another day and another story. I plan on bringing the Missouri deer season Up-to-date for you all when the season ends on the 25th , unless We get a big buck , If we do , we will try to get some pics , if we remember of course.

So until next time, keep your hooks wet , and your deer blinds heated!
;-) Stay dry and warm, hope to see ya out there and good luck to you all on your next "Great Outdoor" adventure!

Fishing Humor Revisited- A Walk on the Lite Side!

Special thanks goes out to Bill, Fred, and Steve, for the following fishing humor. If you have any fishing or hunting jokes, or wild game or camp cooking recipes submit them to me at kenny54@wildblue.net

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Ten common fishing terms explained?

Catch and Release - A conservation motion that happens most often right before the local Fish and Game officer pulls over a boat that has caught over it's limit.

Hook - (1) A curved piece of metal used to catch fish. (2) A clever advertisement to entice a fisherman to spend his live savings on a new rod and reel. (3) The punch administered by said fisherman's wife after he spends their life savings (see also, Right Hook, Left Hook).

Line - Something you give your co-workers when they ask on Monday how your fishing went the past weekend.

Lure - An object that is semi-enticing to fish, but will drive an angler into such a frenzy that he will charge his credit card to the limit before exiting the tackle shop.

Reel - A weighted object that causes a rod to sink quickly when dropped overboard.

Rod - An attractively painted length of fiberglass that keeps an angler from ever getting too close to a fish.

School - A grouping in which fish are taught to avoid your $29.99 lures and hold out for spam instead.

Tackle - What your last catch did to you as you reeled him in, but just before he wrestled free and jumped back overboard.

Tackle Box - A box shaped alarmingly like your comprehensive first aid kit. Only a tackle box contains many sharp objects, so that when you reach in the wrong box blindly to get a Band Aid, you soon find that you need more than one.

Test - (1) The amount of strength a fishing line affords an angler when fighting fish in a specific weight range. (2) A measure of your creativity in blaming "that darn line" for once again losing the fish.
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Catching many fish?

A fisherman returned to shore with a giant marlin that was bigger and heavier than he. On the way to the cleaning shed, he ran into a second fisherman who had a stringer with a dozen baby minnows. The second fisherman looked at the marlin, turned to the first fisherman and said, " Only caught one, eh?
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Catching the fish!

Jim had an awful day fishing on the lake, sitting in the blazing sun all day without catching a single one. On his way home, he stopped at the supermarket and ordered four catfish. He told the fish salesman, "Pick four large ones out and throw them at me, will you?"

"Why do you want me to throw them at you?"

"Because I want to tell my wife that I caught them."

"Okay, but I suggest that you take the orange roughy."

"But why?"

"Because your wife came in earlier today and said that if you came by, I should tell you to take orange roughy. She prefers that for supper tonight."
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Want to be healed?

Three guys were fishing in a lake one day, when an angel appeared in the boat.

When the three astonished men had settled down enough to speak, the first guy asked the angel humbly, "I've suffered from back pain ever since I took shrapnel in the Vietnam War ... Could you help me?"

"Of course," the angel said, and when he touched the man's back, the man felt relief for the first time in years.

The second guy who wore very thick glasses and had a hard time reading and driving. He asked if the angel could do anything about his poor eyesight. The angel smiled, removed the man's glasses and tossed them into the lake. When they hit the water, the man's eyes cleared and he could see everything distinctly.

When the angel turned to the third guy, the guy put his hands out defensively -- "Don't touch me!" he cried, "I'm on a disability pension."

The Fall In Missouri Makes Busy Times For The Outdoorsmen!

I have had several emails from my readers to my absense and lack of blog posts here on Kenny's Great Outdoors. There are a lot of factors contributing to this , and I will try to explain. I have been under the weather , so to speak with a pretty bad chest and head cold, accompanied by a reoccurring shoulder problem.

Colder weather has settled in here in Missouri and those aches and pains from past injuries tend to flair up. Our deer season is starting Saturday the 15th and I have been setting up my portable stands, and blinds for the big opening day event. I have a few friends coming down to hunt with me , so the preparation, is time consuming.

I have been doing quite a bit of gigging and fishing , and preparing for deer season, not to mention bow hunting when I can. WOW! Too much going on in the fall. And I guess I need to mention cutting more firewood in anticipation of a cold winter ahead, (my personal prediction) just a hunch I guess you could say.

The fishing at Truman has been slowed down some as several cold fronts have passed thru in the last two weeks and the old bucket mouths have developed a case of lock jaw. I have been twice since my last fishing post and managed to catch our limits but they ranged from 2-3 lbs , still not bad considering the weather changes. My luck always seems to include a cold front coming in the night before and shutting the BIG bite down. It makes fishing a lot of work but with decent results most of the time.

I have been noticing lots of bucks chasing does around on the lake shores and around home , while bowhunting and scouting out the terrain for the gun hunt. I believe there is going to be a good kill here in Missouri. With an estimated 1.4 + million deer in the state the predicted harvest is somewhere around 345+ thousand, thats about a 76% success rate for the hunters . That means about 3 out of 4 hunters will be successful. I somehow don't agree with the later statistic but thats what the Missouri Conservation predicts.

Some how it seems harder for me to kill a deer every year, But I do see several , I am just picky and careful of my shots, as I my shots to be a sure kill if possible, and safe. I don't risk a shot if another hunters safety is in question.

We are supposed to have temps in the low 30s Friday nite with mid to upper 40s Opening day which is Saturday the 15th. I dont think its gonna be bad , but it is supposed to be pretty windy. If thats the case , I will start off in my enclosed blind with a tent heater, HA! There is more than one way to skin a cat, so to speak. So to sum it all up , I have been so busy getting in all my fishing, gigging , bow hunting and preseason gun season preparation and trying to beat this upper chest and head cold! Thanks for all your concern and Keep checking in from time to time for more updates on the deer hunt, and the fishing.

If the weather warms up a little and stablizes , I will head to the lake again, there is still lots of good bass fishing before it gets real cold. Then I will move over to the Lake of the Ozarks and start my winter fishing approach. Will talk more on this approach later on in another post on winter fishing tactics soon to come.

So until next time , Keep your hooks wet, Your hunting blinds dry and warm, and try all to avoid those winter colds and flu. See ya out there. Good luck on your next hunting or fishing adventure. Remember to enjoy the "Great Outdoors!"

Roast Venison

4 lb Venison roast(elk,moose,deer, beef)
2 TB Flour
6 Cloves garlic (minced)
1 tbs pickling spices
3 tbs Brown sugar
1 tbs molasses
2 tspn Gouldens spicy brown mustard
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 lg Red Onion (sliced)
1 Can Stewed Tomatoes (14 oz can)

Marinade:

1/2 cup Vinegar
3 Cloves garlic (minced)
1 tbs Salt
1/2 cup Merlot wine
Cold water to cover meat

Let the meat stand at room temperature for 8
hours then marinade the venison over night in
the refrigerator. This opens the pores of the
meat when at room temp and when cooling will
draw in the marinade. Season with salt, roll
in flour and brown in hot skillet. Place in
crock-pot cooker and add remaining ingredients.
Cover and cook on low 10 to 12 hours. As I always
stated before I also add carrots and potatoes , makes
a fabulous crock pot meal.

Marinade: Mix ingredients together in a bowl
just large enough to cover venison with water.
No need to stir this marinade. Use for "red"
meats or game birds.