If I have to process one more piece of meat, I may become a vegetarian.
Texas was a hoot, as it always is. The incredible country, the people, and the fun of spending quality time with family all combined to make for one heck of a great trip. Even the road trip there and back was a blast (if you enjoy long, long drives, crossing the desert southwest is truly a treat).
Hunting exotics with Shane (Borderbandit Outfitters) is also a pleasure, and as I mentioned in an earlier post, we did pretty well. The weather conspired again to make the hunt a little more challenging than it sometimes is, but that’s never a bad thing. My brother and I still came out with a total of four axis does (two each), two oryx, and a little pig for the roaster. We both shot well, and spent a lot of time on some beautiful properties. Unfortunately, I didn’t really get many pictures. My brother has some video, and if he’s able to get it on disk for me, I’ll edit it and get it online. Besides that, you can go back to previous years’ hunt stories and use your imaginations.
But with every pleasure comes pain. At some point, the inevitable truth is that I had to get back to work. I also had to unpack the truck, clean and stow gear, and grind about 40 pounds of meat. Now I generally enjoy processing the meat that I harvest. I get a sense of completion, and a feeling of self-sufficiency when I convert a once-living animal into nice packets of steaks, roasts, and ground meat or sausage. But it is work, and when that work comes at the tail end of a 1600 mile drive… well, it kinda wears on you.
So there’s that. There’s also my real job, which took a sort of ugly turn while I was gone. Looks like this consultant is going to be back on the market at the end of next week. Not a prospect I savor, considering the current job market. I have some possibilities, and hope to make something happen quickly. I can’t really afford another extended vacation like last year.
While I was gone, it looks like I missed a lot of cool stuff too. Another Hog Blog reader, Will Sitch sent me an email about his first successful hog hunt. He has his own blog, so instead of reprinting his story here, I’ll just send you over there to check it out if you’re so inclined. Congrats Will!
I’ve got a ton of press releases, but I haven’t had a chance to sort through them all. This one stood out to me, though, and it’s worth a visit if you’re a gadget head or just looking for a creatively written website. HuntGeek.com offers iPhone apps for hunters, including one that calculates the legal shoot time for your area, and another that allows you to store hunting data (sign, trails, etc.) for GPS access. Just the place for the high-tech rednecks out there.
As I sort through stuff and get back on track after the trip, I’ve got a lot more to tell ya!
Bryan
skipper
Sounds like an action-packed trip. And I completely understand that, after awhile, meat-processing starts to wear on ya. I love it, but it can be a labor of love at times.
And I hope the job hunting goes well. In this economy, none of us are ever safe when it comes to employment.
I’m going to have to tell my bro about the Iphone apps. He’s always raving about that thing, and I think the GPS hunting app sounds pretty cool…..if he ever had service.