Herb and Wine Baked Salmon Steaks

by Outdoors International

Serves: 4
Course: Main
Cooking Method: Bake
Preparation Time: 30 mins to 1 hour

Ingredients:
-680g pack frozen salmon steaks, defrosted
-2 x 15ml spoons oil
-30g fish herb selection pack
-125ml dry white wine

Method:
Place each salmon steak on a separate piece of foil brushed with oil.

Divide the herb pack evenly between the four steaks then sprinkle over 2 large spoons of wine and wrap up to form a parcel.

Cook the salmon as per pack instructions (or at 180C for approx 30 minutes).

Remove herbs and serve immediately with new potatoes and green beans.

Dove Hunting Tips

by Cory Glauner

September is right around the corner and that means dove hunting all across the country will be opening. Be sure to spend a little bit of time scouting just prior to opening day to find roosts, feeding fields and waterholes. Places that are holding doves late in August should still produce birds in early September. Another thing to scout for is flyways that the doves are using consistently to travel between roost, feed and waterholes.

Water Holes
Early and late in the day, I make sure that I am sitting at a water hole. One key thing to remember is that doves decoy just like waterfowl do, and full body style dove decoys seem to work the best…. use a lot of them. Once your decoys are out it’s as simple as wearing camouflage and waiting. If you’ve done your homework and you’re sitting a waterhole that the doves are using the doves will come. *By the way, early in the season I prefer to shoot trap/skeet load.

Tree & Field Edges
If you can find a field edge with some trees that the doves are using as a roost, you’ve hit jackpot! I’ve had situations here in Idaho when I’ve had my limit within minutes. A good roost on the edge of a field is one of my favorite places to dove hunt. As with most hunting, scouting can pay huge dividends once you start actually hunting.

That’s pretty much it. Doves are fairly simple and straight forward to hunt, but they are one of the most challenging birds to shoot. They fly erratically and they are fast. They can embarrass the best of shooters. After a few days of dove hunting, shooting for other game birds will seem easy. They’re a great way to start the season.

We have good dove hunting here in the states, but if you really want to experience some incredible dove hunting you need to plan a trip to Mexico or Argentina. The dove hunting at either of these places will blow your mind!

Glassing Properly is the Key to Success

by Outdoors International

You can’t kill what you can’t see. Period. It’s not going to happen. Let’s take a look at my personal battery of Big Game Hunting optics and tripods and why I choose them.

Swarovski optics are number one on my list for binoculars. From freezing rain and snow, to blowing sand and 115 degree heat, these fantastic optics have continued to perform flawlessly for me over the years. The model I use for my “handheld” pair is the Crooked Horn Bino Harness system which keeps the binoculars firmly against my chest without any of the neck pain and swinging around associated with neck straps.

The 8 power binoculars allow me to hand hold them steadier than 10′s or 12′s yet still offer me a great field of view. My 8′s are my first step in my glassing and are used to initially sweep and look over an area I intend to glass before setting up the big optics to really dissect my glassing area. I never hike up to a glassing location and sit down before thoroughly covering the area with the 8′s first.

After glassing the area with my handhelds I will set up for my second step to slowly take the area apart with my tripod and big glass. For my tripod mounted pair I rely on the Swarovski 15×56 SLC binoculars. The big 15′s have an amazing field of view, razor sharp clarity from edge to edge, and are packaged up in a sleek lightweight design that allows you to pack them anywhere without being too cumbersome. I attach these binoculars to a Bogen 3001 BD Tripod with a Bogen 3130 fluid pan head attachment. This particular tripod is heavier to pack than some other models but the extra weight pays off immensely by adding stability when glassing in windy conditions. The fluid pan head is smooth as silk and allows for slow precise movements when glassing. This setup is my bread and butter system for all of my hunts and is far and away the finest combination of optics and tripod I have ever used. I use this setup to locate 90% or more of the trophy game we harvest on our western hunts.

Zeiss is my number one choice when it comes to spotting scopes. Why? After glassing with all the top spotting scope brands Zeiss scopes have far and away the biggest field of view of any brand of spotting scope I have tried to date. Zeiss scopes really stand out from the competition in this area and also have the razor sharp clarity and durability I demand in my hunting optics. My model of choice is the Zeiss 20×60 power Diascope 85 T* FL. I also mount this scope on the scope on my Bogen tripod setup.

My spotting scope only comes out as my third step after I have spotted something that is a bit out of reach of my binoculars and needs a closer look. I also rely on my spotting scope to make careful and detailed evaluations of trophy game. My Zeiss spotting scope really allows me to see trophy detail up close and allows you to field judge game at long distances without any fear of getting too close and spooking anything. The farther you can stay away from game when scouting, the better.

Trouble in the Gulf Part 3: Regaining Paradise

As you read this, the first of perhaps 10 million waterfowl that
winter in Louisiana’s coastal wetlands are flying south. Each year,
fewer acres of marsh and barrier-island habitat await them. This
ye

Visit link:
Trouble in the Gulf Part 3: Regaining Paradise

Color Phase Black Bears in Idaho

It’s almost time to start bear hunting here in Idaho. We can bait here so I always set a few up even though I prefer to spot and stalk with my bow. Here’s a little run down of our bait/trail camera experience a few years ago.

In the spring of 2007, we purchased trail cameras for our bear baits. We were surprised not only with the number of bears he had, but also with the color phases and the quality of the bears. After the season was over, we compiled the pictures and did a conservative count of the individual bears (some bears hit the bait over and over again even on the same day, so we tried not to count those bears more than once). Here are the numbers that we came up with:

We had at least 37 different bears hitting the six baits that had trail cameras on them and 81% of those bears were color phase!.

• 56% Chocolate
• 19% Black *Most of our black bears have chocolate around their shoulders. We have very few coal-black bears.
• 14% Blonde
• 11% Red and Cinnamon

Here are a few of the pictures we got that season:

by Cory Glauner

Moose permit auctions raise $61K in NH, Vt.

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) _ Ten people will pay between $4,151 and
$8,600 to bag a moose in New Hampshire or Vermont next fall.

See the original post:
Moose permit auctions raise $61K in NH, Vt.

Lion hunting proposed in Custer State Park

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) _ A first-ever hunting season within
Custer State Park is proposed as part of the 2011 hunting season on
mountain lions in the Black Hills.

Read the original post:
Lion hunting proposed in Custer State Park

3 Nebraska anglers have records certified

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) – Three state records for eastern Nebraska
fishermen have been certified.

Read this article:
3 Nebraska anglers have records certified

Feds reopen fishing in Gulf off Florida Panhandle

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. (AP) – A federal fishing ban was lifted
Tuesday in more than 5,000 square miles in the Gulf of Mexico along
the Florida Panhandle, giving hope to a region largely dependent on

Visit link:
Feds reopen fishing in Gulf off Florida Panhandle

Bow hunters might help with Sioux Falls deer

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) – Sioux Falls leaders are considering
allowing bow hunters to help thin deer that are causing problems in
the northeast part of the city.

Visit link:
Bow hunters might help with Sioux Falls deer

Trouble in the Gulf Part 2: A Vanishing Paradise

This is Part Two in a three-part series on the loss of
Louisiana’s coastal wetlands and the effect of this loss on
waterfowl and other species that migrate to or through the region
from the Upper Midw

Excerpt from:
Trouble in the Gulf Part 2: A Vanishing Paradise

Why You Need a Webmaster for Your Outdoor Business

By guest author: Cory Glauner of WebDog Services

As a business owner in the Outdoor Industry, you have a million different things to do. You don’t have time to learn everything you need to know about maintaining and promoting your website. You need to stick to what makes you money, and that’s where a webmaster comes in.

Webmasters specialize in the upkeep, updating, and other elements of keeping your website maintained once it is built and published. Your site isn’t going to take care of itself, so you need someone to take care of it for you; odds are that once your art business takes off, you will want to spend more time creating and marketing your art.

Think of it like this: if you had a traditional business, you’d hire someone to clean the building at the end of the day or on a weekly basis, wouldn’t you? Well then, why wouldn’t you hire someone to clean up your website and keep it in working order so you don’t have to worry about it? It just makes sense.

A webmaster will be able to handle all those pesky little tasks that you don’t have time for, including:

• Updates
• Changing information
• Adding information
• Controlling users, if you have a registration/login section
• Fixing problems and glitches
• Other upkeep related to having a website
• Search engine optimization (SEO)
• Social media

If this isn’t enough to sell you on hiring one of the many qualified webmasters to help with your website, you’ll surely change your mind the first time that the site crashes and you’re left high and dry. In order to have a successful business, it needs to be fully operational at all times. That’s why you need a webmaster.

The going rate for a good webmaster is $45-$100+ an hour. Most will prorate in 15-minute increments. Additionally, some actually prefer to be paid on a per-project basis. You can also find more affordable services by getting a full service company to help build, maintain, and market your website. You’ll pay them one flat rate for all services, which should save you some money and allow you to budget. However, even though business start-up is costly, you should always put quality above cost when it comes to your website.

Your webmaster needs to be very familiar with languages like HTML, XHTML, CSS, JavaScript and Ajax. Another key part in a webmaster’s job description is to learn and manage a proper database. Optimizing for search engines is also important. With the current boom in information technology, more and more people are relying on search engines and the internet in general. A webmaster’s job requires several skills, and he bears a great responsibility in maintaining the smooth flow of internet operations.

Some webmasters are also social media experts: be careful though because ALL webmasters consider themselves experts in this area.

A true expert can:

• Manage and market your blog, customize your social networking profiles (Twitter, Facebook, Digg, Flickr, etc.), and create unique videos and widgets that demand the consumer’s attention.

For someone new to social media, it can be easy to unknowingly break the rules of a community, causing serious damage to your brand. Social media experts understand the etiquette required of each platform, and they know how to leverage these tools to your maximum advantage. I suggest learning from an expert for a period of time and eventually taking it over yourself.

No one can represent you to your audience like you can and people will begin to get a feel for you and your personality, which is very important, especially for an artist.

Other Considerations When Choosing a Webmaster:

• If a webmaster wants to register your domains in his or her name, run. Run fast.
• The cheapest solution is not always the best solution. If I need a heart surgeon, I’m not going with the cheapest doctor; I’m going with the best one.
• Free and/or cheap hosting is usually a red flag.
• I.T. professionals are not necessarily web designers. They may be able to build a complicated website that does everything you wanted it to do and more, but will you know how to use it, and just as importantly, will it look good?
• Ask them if they follow Google Webmaster Guidelines. The answer should be “yes”.
• If they promise you top rankings in search engines, they’re blowing smoke. No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.
• Be wary of SEO firms and web consultants or agencies that send you unsolicited proposals.
• Be careful if a company is secretive or won’t clearly explain what they do.
• Avoid SEOs that talk about the power of “free-for-all” links, and schemes to get your site listed in search engines.

In summary, your webmaster should be your partner and, in many instances become, a friend. They should be brainstorming with you on new ideas and technologies and be truly invested in the success of your website and online marketing. Not all sites are winners, no matter to how much quality work goes into them, but a good webmaster will do his best to help you come out looking good and ahead of the pack.

By: Cory Glauner
Webmaster, Hunting and Fishing Consultant and B&B Pro Staffer

WebDog Services provides all webmaster services for BullsandBeavers.com

Remedy for a Skunk Sprayed Dog

So how many of you has had your hunting dog sprayed by a skunk? The first few times I tried to wash my poor stinking pup in tomato juice. That doesn’t work. The second time I put my dog in the kennel and just let it wear off. Finally, a few years later I met a guy who knew a skunk remedy and it works like a dream. The other day, I was reading another hunting blog and came across the exact same recipe so here it is, and trust me it works.

Instead, a compound can be made using simple household ingredients. Here are the ingredients you will need to get rid of skunk spray smell on your dog:

• ½ cup 3% hydrogen peroxide (a fresh bottle is the most effective)
• 1 cup baking soda
• 1 ounce of dishwashing soap (about 1/8 cup)
• Vinegar (white or cider)
• Water
• Gloves

Mix the peroxide and baking soda into a paste with gloved hands. You should see a foamy chemical reaction which will release oxygen that will break down the skunk spray. Blend in an ounce of dish soap; you should see a smooth and runny consistency. The dish soap helps dissolve the skunk oil. This mixture is massaged into the dog’s coat, avoiding the eyes. Leave the mixture on for 10 to 30 minutes. If you have a large dog or a dog with long fur, you may wish to double or triple the recipe to ensure full coverage.

Rinse the dog’s fur with a mixture of vinegar and water. The vinegar will help to neutralize the remaining odor. The entire process can be repeated, but the second rinse should be completed using plain water. This should eliminate much of the odor that your dog carries, and the ingredients can be safely stowed in your hunting supplies so you are prepared when the black and white critter strikes.

Tips:
Do not let your dog lie on his bed or climb on furniture until the oil has been neutralized. The skunk oils will transfer to the fabric, effectively ruining anything it touches.

It is best to clean only the area that is affected. The skunk oil can be spread easily, escalating the problem.
Wash the dog immediately, before the oil dries to the fur.

The peroxide mixture cannot be made ahead of time or kept for another time. It must be fresh to be effective.

Judge orders wolves back on Endangered Species List, ending hunting

from IdahoStatesman.com

A federal judge ruled Thursday against the Obama administration and returned wolves in the Rocky Mountains to the Endangered Species List.

That means that hunting seasons in Idaho and Montana will not be allowed to continue.

U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy said leaving wolves listed as endangered in Wyoming while delisting them in Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington and northern Utah violates the Endangered Species Act.

“The Endangered Species Act does not allow the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to list only part of a “species” as endangered, or to protect a listed distinct population segment only in part as the Final Rule here does,” Malloy wrote. Idaho’s wolf hunting season could have begun as soon as Aug. 30.

The Idaho Fish and Game Commissioners were slated to set wolf hunting quotas and finalize rules at their Aug. 16 meeting in Idaho Falls. Hunters killed 134 wolves in Idaho and 72 in Montana in 2009 and early this year.

Wolf advocates say that the current population is not big enough to ensure that long term genetic health of the population. Their attorney told the judge they believe 2,000 to 5,000 wolves may be necessary.

But Molloy did not rule on the issue.

“Because the Rule does not comply with the ESA, it is unnecessary to resolve all of the issues raised by the parties.” Idaho had 835 wolves at the end of 2009 and the region, including Montana, Wyoming, eastern Washington, eastern Oregon and northern Utah, had an estimated population of 1,706. Since then new pups have joined the packs and before hunting the overall population had been growing at a rate of about 20 percent annually.

How Legal Was The Introduction Of Canadian Wolves Into The Northern Rockies?

Stephen King would be hard pressed to come up with a story more suspenseful than the Western Wolf Recovery Project. If the TRUE story is ever written it will be filled with lies, deceit, secrecy, collusion, theft, threats, human endangerment and government failure – all with a touch of international flavor. And that plot thickened on May 16, 2010, in Bozeman, MT, when former Chief of National Wildlife Refuge Operations, Jim Beers, spoke to a crowd of about 300 on the topic of the “Criminal Activities Associated With The Introduction, Protection, And Spread Of Wolves In The Lower 48 States”…

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