Outdoor Writer

As you now know, that is also wrong. I'm surprised no one guessed Ted Nugent. -TONY

Thanks, Amanda. I googled him after replying to Keith and saw he's a nautralist and ecologist. I'll have Ellen pick up the book at the library when she returns the C.J. Box's Free Fire, which I'm now reading. -TONY

Did you actually take the official pre-certification test or just the practice versions?? -TONY

Never liked weaver mounts. I used the Leupold one piece base and it fits fine. Thanks for all the help. Glad you got it all worked out! Now kill something. -TONY

Not sure if you saw what I said in the thread about the party at my place, but I suggested folks bring something they either don't want or don't need so we can have a fun auction. The proceeds from such would go to CWT.com. -TONY

Keith, No, I haven't. Who is he and what's his expertise -- biologist or...???? Got a book title? Without even reading him, in a way he is probably right to a point. For example, if there is a unit where the drought has degraded the HABITAT, i.e. the food sources, supplying water to critters artificially, thus keeping more of them alive by quenching their thirst, probably degrades the habitat even more. So if and when the drought does end, the recovery of that habitat will take much longer. Hunting can somewhat control the over-population, but it has to include more than bulls and bucks. The Kaibab when hunting was shut down is a prime example of habitat destruction. Signs of the devastated habitat remained visible for decades after the huge die-off occurred. Many trees were denuded as high as the deer could reach while standing on their back legs. -TONY

Pasted below is a message I had posted on MM when a member there opined about the legality of it all. He didn't realize that clip was taken in NZ. **** Hunting from a helicopter is ILLEGAL in all states,and there's also a FEDERAL law that prohibits it. Need to read the blurb on that video -- the "kiwi-style hunting" part. It was shot in New Zealand, and it appears those are red deer. Two points: 1. Shooting critters from helicopters is PERFECTLY legal there. Also, there is no limit on the amount of non-native animals one may kill with NO LICENSES or tags required. 2. The New Zealand government regularly shoots thousands of non-indigenous animals -- including red deer, tahr and chamois -- that way in an effort to protect native habitat and species. They also POISON them. -TONY

Donnie, There are three major components to killing big-game. 1. Shot Placement 2. Shot Placement 3. Shot Placement Glad you've enjoyed the book. I tried to write it in a somewhat casual and easily readable manner yet still provide some solid information. -TONY

Over the course of the last two days, I've jumped over to the practice test page and have taken the test about 10 times. Although I've scored 90% or more each time without studying the course material, I've never yet hit 100% on the first try. Since one has to input their BD to begin, I'm guessing the selected questions become more difficult for us older folks. Maybe I'll try it today by making myself a 10-yr. old. -TONY

Lots of good guesses, but so far no one has grabbed the brass ring. And at that, I'm really surprised. The first line of that quote -- One does not hunt in order to kill; on the contrary, one kills in order to have hunted... -- has been often cited for the past 50 years throughout the hunting world. Someone did make a fairly good guess at the person's national origin, though. Soooo...here's the answer. -TONY Spanish philosopher Jose Ortega y Gasset Meditations on Hunting "Meditations on Hunting is the most quoted book in sporting literature. It is the finest work on the essence and ethics of hunting. Today when both hunting and fishing are often condemned, Meditations takes on an even greater significance. Ortega points out that life is a dynamic interchange between man and his surroundings. He explains that hunting is part of man's very nature, that "hunting is a universal and impassioned sport...it is the purest form of human happiness. The essence of hunting or fishing involves a complete code of ethics of the most distinguished design. The sportsman who accepts the sporting code of ethics keeps his commandments in the greatest solitude with no witnesses or audience other than the sharp peaks of the mountain, the stern oak, and the passing animal."

Right. That's what I meant. Otherwise you would have had it right on the first try. -TONY

That sounds ominously like you cheated. -TONY

Nope. Good tries, though. -TONY

Remember that adage: Be careful what you wish for. I heard the Navajos made Hillary an honorary tribal member. They bestowed the name Walking Eagle on her. One of the reporters covering the event asked the chief the significance of the name. The chief said it roughly translates into, "Bird so full of s*#t it can't fly." -TONY

A couple more Leopold quotes. -TONY A peculiar virtue in wildlife ethics is that the hunter ordinarily has no gallery to applaud or disapprove of his conduct. Whatever his acts, they are dictated by his own conscience, rather than by a mob of onlookers. It is difficult to exaggerate the importance of this fact Examine each question in terms of what is ethically and aesthetically right, as well as what is economically expedient.

Hillary. -TONY

Good show. 'Tis the man. Some consider ol' Aldo as the father of modern game management, and for the younger folks here who don't have a clue about him, pick up a copy Sand County Almanac at the library. -TONY

I have no idea if that was already in a thread here. It's a quote I have often referred to over the years, though, and posting it here reminded me of a LAST SHOT column I wrote in AZ HUNTER & ANGLER nearly 22 year ago on the very day my grandfather died. A copy of it went into the grave with him. It's reproduced below. He didn't know the person who wrote the quote above, but be sure to note that he held the same convictions about being ethical. -TONY A TRIBUTE TO POP At some point in nearly everyone's life, another person ultimately will influence one's behavior --- conduct, morals, principles, ethics, whatever. My life was no different. Early on, my grandfather, Luigi Migali, became that person. Everyone knew him as "Pop." Born in Sicily in 1891, Pop came to New Jersey as a teenager and worked construction jobs for most of his life. He battled through the Great Depression, saved enough money to build a house and eventually retired in the late 1950s. Although the hunting opportunities close to home were meager, Pop made the best of them. Each year he hunted for deer in the hardwoods and farm fields of upper New York State, and on Thanksgiving Day custom dictated that he and the other men in the family spend a cool, autumn morning searching for a few rabbits, squirrels or upland birds. The outings into the brightly-hued woods were only for grown-ups; I never went along with them. After learning how to shoot by sniping rats in a local dump, I eventually killed a spike buck on a hunt in New York State. I was 17 then and went with my cousin, who was also 17. Although I never hunted with my grandfather back then, I spent a lot of time with him; weekend family gatherings and Sunday dinners typified Italian traditions. Because I was the first and only grandson, Pop might have played favorites. I’m not sure, but I do know we were always close. Pop moved to Arizona with my parents in 1960, and my wife and I followed a few months later. At the time, he was already in his 70s. I had just turned 20. The hunting opportunities in our new home state excited us both. We immediately began a new relationship. In addition to being grandfather and grandson, we became hunting buddies. During the time we spent together, Pop taught me things my urban upbringing precluded. He showed me the fundamentals -- the proper way to sharpen a knife, pluck a bird, field dress a deer and other things kids who had spent their early years in the outdoors probably had learned before they were 14. I retained it all. But the philosophical things --- matters dealing with the moral or ethical side of hunting --- are what I remember most. Pop always told me, “Obey the law and do only what you feel is right. If there's a doubt, don't do it.” I’ve followed that advice for more than 35 years now. My two boys started to come along on our hunting trips before they were 10 years old. Their “Papa” taught them, as well. Sometimes they still acted contrary to what Pop felt was right. When that happened, he corrected them, usually with his favorite short and to the point reprimand --- "Shame on you." Like most youngsters growing up, my sons and daughter often shed tears as a result of a scolding or an insignificant hurt. Pop chided them with "Big boys (or girls) don't cry." That usually stemmed the flow of tears as it did for me throughout my childhood. For 15 years, Pop accompanied me on every hunting trip. We scattergunned for fast-flying doves and flushing quail, crawled through the sage for speedy pronghorns, climbed the foothills for the elusive javelina and stalked through the pines for the majestic elk. And yes, we hunted mule deer, too; Pop relished it. The North Kaibab usually produced venison for the freezer, so it became Pop's favorite hunting spot. I took him there whenever possible. In the early 1960s, Kaibab deer permits came easy. Later, however, after the drawing system went into effect, our hunting trips to the North Rim dwindled. If we failed to get a permit, Pop showed great disappointment. Pop rarely was sick. The years eventually took their toll, however. A strenuous day in the field often caused him to experience severe leg cramps in the middle of the night. I would then climb out of my toasty sleeping bag and rub the baseball-sized knots in his thighs until the pain subsided. It never discouraged him, though. He endured the hurts rather than miss the thing he cherished most. Despite the fact his physical ability lessened, his love for hunting persevered. While I spent my days stalking through the woods in search of good buck, Pop sat in one place for hours, waiting for a legal deer to show itself within range of his .30/06. Hoping to spook something toward him, I made a point of ending my day by circling toward his position. Sometimes it worked, and sometimes it didn't. I could always count on finding Pop where I had left him, usually leaning up against a tree or sitting on a stump, watching and waiting. He marveled at the fact that I covered many miles in a day's hunting. When my boys were a bit older, they often came along on dove hunts, and the oldest, Keith, even went with us on a Kaibab deer hunt when he was 8. Pop had sliced an apple and made Keith put a couple hunks in his jacket pocket so the smell might keep deer from scenting them. He warned the boy not to tell me because I had already told Pop I didn't think the smell of apples in the Arizona woods was any better than human scent. My son, now in his mid-20s, and I still chuckle about it years later. Due to family circumstances, Pop moved back to New Jersey in 1976, and quit hunting about four years ago. He then visited every summer, and if I had killed some game the previous fall, he went home with a box of meat. Yet, his heart remained in Arizona; he longed to return for good. Last July, he got his wish. His stay was brief. On October 12, 1985, three months after he returned to the place he loved most, my hunting partner made his last stalk. Without a doubt, he's probably watching me struggle through this column and saying, "Shame on you. Big boys don't cry." Pop was rarely wrong. He would be this time.

Nope. Good guess, tho. -TONY

The new HE site is pretty neat because you can take multiple practice tests and actually get graded. Each test is based on 75 randomly selected questions. So can can take several and rarely see the same 75 questions. Direct link to the Practice Test page. -TONY

Following the logical progression, I guess we should be recommending shotguns for Coues deer. -TONY

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Wonder if Jessica is housebroken? -TONY

Quite a lady, huh? Reminds me of a blind date I had in HS. -TONY

Hmmm. Guess that means I should cancel the mariachi band, huh? -TONY