Blog Entries from the WeHuntSC.com blogging crew
Hey folks, my name is Sean Jeffries, and I'm glad to be a part of WeHuntSC.com! I want to thank Clint for giving me a chance to write for the site, and I'm looking forward to sharing my outdoor experiences with you. In this first entry I'm going to tell you a little bit about myself and what you can expect in my writings.
I'm 44 years old and live in Clover,SC. My wife and I have been married since 1998, and last year we had our first child on the day after Thanksgiving. We named our son Paul after the Apostle, whose writings I have always loved. I'm a computer programmer for a living, and have been with the same company since 1992, although our company name has changed a couple of times over the years due to various mergers and acquisitions.
I've been hunting deer since 1985, but got my start with birds and small game a few years before that first deer hunt. I grew up in a small neighborhood outside of Charlotte in what was then pretty far out in the country. My street bordered the Rea farm, and a few of us neighborhood boys used to sneak out into their fields and woods to shoot at birds with our BB guns. It was obvious from an early age that I was into guns and hunting, so my dad gave me a little H&R 20 gauge shotgun for my 13th birthday.
That gun sat in the closet for close to a year. It was mine, but we only went out and shot it a handful of times. Then, one September afternoon, the phone rang. On the other end was a friend whose back yard sat perpendicular to my own. He was my age, and of all of the kids in the neighborhood, the two of us were the ones that liked hunting more than just about anything else, and we had previously spent a lot of time together in the woods with our BB guns. This young fellow shared a name with a famed Scottish poet: Robert Burns.
When I answered the phone that day, Robert asked me if I wanted to go hunting. "Sure," I answered, "but I don't have any BBs." "No," said Robert. "With shotguns." I paused for a second, excited. "Let me ask my mom," I said.
Mom and I had a conversation which ended with her calling my dad to get his permission for me to go hunting with Robert. Dad gave it, and thus started my first real hunt. Robert and I hunted squirrles that day on a little seven acre tract of land that his father owned. I don't remember whether or not we got anything, but man, I was hooked.
My first deer hunt took place during my Christmas break from college in 1985. Robert and I went to a tract of land in Weddington, NC that he had permission to hunt on. We didn't see any deer that day, but I saw plenty of tracks, and I knew that this was something that I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I went back to college when the break ended, and Robert went on to start his own business selling tree stands. He's still in that business today, and in addition to my day job as a computer programmer, my passion is writing books about hunting.
In the mid-90s, I started a website called "Sean's Outdoor Almanac". There weren't many websites around in those days, and mine was one of the first personal hunting sites on the net. Over the years it morphed into a site called "Wingshooters.net", and on that site I have documented every one of my hunts going back to the year 2000.
I'm also a Christian, and you'll be hearing a lot about that in this blog. For many years now I've felt like my calling has been to minister to Sportsmen in one way or another. That calling has led me to begin writing a series of books that fall under the title of "Hunting for the Heart of God". The first book, Deer Hunter's Devotional, was published late last year just before my son was born. My two other books are secular in nature, but both deal with hunting.
In 2007, I went on my first safari to Africa. That safari was documented from start to finish in a book called Eight Days in Africa. My other book is a collection of stoies and essays on hunting, and is called Always Take Your Rifle. All three of my books are available in print and on all major eBook platforms. You can also order signed copies directly from my website at the Wingshooters Store.
In addition to the three books that I've already published, I'm currently working on the next two entries in the "Hunting for the Heart of God" series. The first is a novel called The Cabin, which is set in the world of the outdoors and deals with spiritual warfare. The second is another devotional entitled Daily Bread for Deer Hunters. From time to time I'll be posting excerpts from my books here in this blog.
The WeHuntSC.com is crew is happy to announce that published author, outdoor enthusiast, and fellow developer Sean Jeffries is going to be blogging with WeHuntSC.com! Sean is a fellow South Carolinian hunter who has been able to hunt in various places around the world. It?s not that often that you meet someone as diverse as Sean so we?re really looking forward to what he?s going to bring to the blog-o-sphere here on the site.
I won?t ?steal Sean?s thunder? telling you about his experiences, but I?m sure he?ll bring a lot to the site. Sean is a published author with several publications under his belt and if his blog entries are as good as his books then we?ll all be in for a treat! Sean is a man of Christian faith and his faith shows through in his life and manuscripts.
Join me in welcoming Sean to the site
Regards,
Clint
Just recently, the Lancaster County Ducks Unlimited had their 1st annual ?Green Wing? event which consisted of 57 kids.
We had four different educational staging locations, where the kids rotated through each one gaining not only valuable lessons but a ?butt? load of fun. We had DNR, who brought their Laser Gun Trailer and went over gun & boat safety and allowed some laser shooting. Lancaster Co. Soil & Water District, who provided land conservation tips and some ?wood crafts & painting? session. Oak Ridge Kennels of Monroe, NC came and brought two trained labs and allowed the kids to throw out the ?bumpers? or fake ducks, to retrieve for them and to catch a lot of water being shaken off by the dogs!
The last location was our ?Wrecking Crew? calling & decoy placement area.
We put out several different species of duck decoys in the water for a game called, name that duck. We also used full body Mallard & Goose decoys in the field, along with our ?lay out? blinds, which the kids loved getting in and covering up! My dad Daryl, would circle the spread of decoys and lay out blinds, flapping one of our goose flags, while I was calling. This really excited the kids and most of them remained motionless, until he said ok, ?Take ?em?! Even the girls came up quick looking for geese!
During one of my goose calling demos, I had a pair of geese come over and actually landed on the pond and started swimming towards our group. I was thinking, man how cool is that?
I used a RNT MVP duck call for a Competition calling demo, a Hobo World Championship duck call for a hunting demo, and a Tim Grounds Goose call for both Competition and Hunting scenarios.
The kids just loved blowing their lungs out on the calls and I?m sure their parents and grandparents haven?t forgiven me yet! Oh well, that?s how we roll!
After leaving our area, everyone had lunch which consisted of hamburgers, hotdogs, baked beans, chips, cookies and drinks. All the kids received t-shirt, and a gift bag to take with them, as they left the event.We handed out green duck calls to the boys and pink to the girls which were donated by Ducks Unlimited. Drew Winn of Winntuck Waterfowl, donated duck call lanyards for all the kids too. Ricky T. of Decoy Outdoors, donated t-shirts and stickers as well. Wehuntsc.com donated stickers, and as everyone knows you can?t have too many stickers. Love to put ?em on everything!
I would like to give a big ?shout out? to these people for this special event, it definitely put smiles on everyone?s faces.
Hal Crenshaw ? for the use of his land.
Robbie Boone- Lancaster Co. Ducks Unlimited Chairman and committee members.
Drew Winn of Winntuck Waterfowl Lanyards, Ricky T. of Decoy Outdoors ,Wehuntsc.com and Ducks Unlimited.
Good Calling & Hunting- Blake
I always enjoy seeing the deer mounts from the prior season so I figured I would follow up on my ?Wall Hanger? post.
Tucked away on a little road called Split Trail in Clover, South Carolina you?ll find Whitetail Taxidermy. Joe Spearman started taxidermy as a hobby years ago and now he has turned it into a full time passion. On the morning of October 16th, 2010 our paths crossed based on a referral from a buddy of mine. With this being my first experience of having a deer mounted I didn?t have a clue of where to take it, so I called my buddy for advice. After a short conversation, I think his words were ?I wouldn?t take it to anyone else?. With those words spoken in confidence I was sold and therefore I made the trip to Clover.
As I drove up that morning and made the turn onto Split Trail I didn?t find any big business signs or fancy buildings. I almost wondered if I had pulled into the right place. As I stepped out of my Dad?s truck it didn?t take long though to figure out that I was in the right place. I spotted several mounts hanging in the garage and immediately started to envision what my mount would look like. I didn?t get to meet Joe that morning because he was out hunting but looking at some of his work I was pumped.
When this process started I didn?t realize how much taxidermy had evolved and the numerous options that I had to choose from. I meet Joe back at his house in January and decided on a ?full sneak? mount. I was itching to see my deer (rack) again so Joe took me down to the shop behind his house and I soon realized as I gazed at the racks hanging that Joe had the confidence of numerous other hunters. As I talked to Joe that morning and realized his passion for what he does my excitement was raised to another level.
Fast forward to May 18, 2011. I received a call that morning that my deer was ready. It was like Christmas in May. I was really excited and made the trip that evening to pick it up. As I stepped from my car I had flashbacks to October 16th as I spotted my deer hanging in the garage. Joe did an awesome job. Joe and I talked for awhile and I continued to be impressed by his humbleness and passion. Although Whitetail Taxidermy may be settled off the beaten path with little flash it is not hidden from the world. Joe let me know that some of his clients have included Ken Cobb from Huntin' the World Southern Style, and NASCAR Crew Chiefs Greg Zipadelli and Drew Blickensdurfer. Pretty impressive Joe! Hopefully, I?ll be back!
I didn't realize until after I got my deer back home that I actually had found the sheds from this deer before. I found his 2007 matching sheds and based on conversations with Joe about his jawbone we figured this deer was about six and a half years old. The sheds that I found would've been his three and a half year old rack. I'm trying to figure out how to display his sheds now. Check out the video below of my son Riley and I goofing around with my "Wall Hanger". Riley loves the mount so you can guess where it's hanging in the house. Check out the video below.
I know there were some awesome bucks posted on WeHuntSC.com during the past season. Lets see your "Wall Hanger"!
The following blog is a guest blog submitted by Andy Belk...
After a year of discussing a hog hunt, my buddy Michael Rodgers of Latta,SC and I were finally able to put together a June hog hunt. Michael recently purchased a two man boat so we decided to turn the afternoon into a combo fish/hunt. The crappie cooperated with us catching a nice mess of crappie in less than two hours. Afterwards, we loaded the boat and headed to the stands. The videos tells the story of the hog hunt. Truly, a great day to be in the outdoors, a rare day when everything comes together.
Andy Belk
Thanks for the the submission Andy!
I recently met our 2011 Montana Decoy Turkey Competition winners to give them their prizes. As you are most likely aware, our site audience voted and Mark and William emerged as our winners. After the announcement we had to schedule and coordinate a meeting place to deliver the prizes. Since Mark and William hail from areas distant from each other we had to line it up for different days and it even was raining as Mark received his prizes. Nevertheless we still got it done, but we didn?t shoot much video? just pictures. It was definitely a good day for William Babb and Mark Cody when we met and they were all smiles as I got the prizes out of my car.
Below are the pictures and videos from the winners receiving their prizes.
Below is a video of the winners receiving their prizes
Thanks again to our sponsors and to everyone for participating in our 2011 Turkey Competitions! Without our sponsors and participants none of this would have been possible!
I just returned from a weeklong trip (where I didn?t have much connectivity) and one of the things I was interested in seeing when I returned home were the results from our 2011 SC Turkey Competitions. When I looked at our site metrics and checked the results from the competitions I saw a big surge from one city which correlated with a ton of votes for one of our entries in the Montana Decoy 2011 SC Turkey of the Year Competition! Then in our Montana Decoy Youth Turkey of the Year Competition we ended up having a pretty close finish.
So without making you read a long entry I?ll get to it! Our winner of the 2011 Montana Decoy Turkey of the Year Competition is Mark Cody from Chester SC! Mark obviously had some loyal voters because he won by a landslide with 458 votes with the nearest competitor only having 30. We saw big traffic spikes out of certain cities where Mark received votes.
Then in our 2011 Montana Decoy Youth Turkey of the Year Competition William Babb edged out Alex Carnes in a close race. William received 60 votes and Alex received 42. William hails from Marlboro County and the bird he won the competition with was the first gobbler he?s called up and harvested by himself.
Thanks to everyone for entering this year?s competitions. Without your entries and participation we wouldn?t be able to host these competitions on the site. And congratulations to Mark and William!
Now we?ve got to deliver the prizes to Mark and William so? when you read this?send me an email (clint.patterson(at)WeHuntSC.com) and we?ll work out the details!
See the results of the competitions