BilletHead

Looks like she wears the overalls in that there family.

Yes but you don't want to buy from kinfolk. A gift boat from kinfolk is OK though!

Last time I seen it had made it to a shelf. Probably covered up with something by now :). BilletHead

I have heard Kent speak of Mike Ross. That and it would take Charlie three hours before he could find the story in the store somewhere. He has the story in the store like he has everything else. We have been in there and if I could not find something I would ask. Charlie says oh yes I have what you are looking for we just have to find it . BilletHead

Neat part one Drew, I was wondering where you were as you went silent. Now we know, BilletHead

Kent is a friend of ours. Not sure it is his pattern originally but he sure made it famous, BilletHead.

Good one Basfis, You beat me to the punch. Maybe he is too busy cleaning starlings?

Look close I think I see a banded bird in there. Tie soft hackles and make a small fortune . I heard if a bird hops don't eat it. If it walks eat it ? Let us know Wrench, BilletHead

A wok in the snow, Eighteen degrees in a blizzard. That means time to rock the wok . At times it would work up steam it was a whiteout of sorts while cooking, Cleared up enough now and again to see what I was doing, We have satisfied our appetites in BilletHeadVille, BilletHead

I seen some suckers and a goggleye . BilletHead

Pretty neat Griz! I am now mad at you though for showing my top secret spot . I recognized two of those rocks and one lay down and the shoreline. Think I also seen one of my snagged flies too, BilletHead

Interesting Tho1mas. Never heard of that. Maybe I should grow a head of hair instead of shaving the noggin ? . Hair today, gone tomorrow, BilletHead

Well I like Ham sammiches but think you are safe. Tho1mas, When you have the good luck charm gray headed retriever with you something good will happen. Just hope I did not overdo it and use too much of her luck. I am still getting flack about this today. She had her chance yesterday morning. :). We are both waiting for a duck band. Someday maybe that will happen, BilletHead

Fun time for sure. I may of not caught as many as the fish counting multi species number crunchers but I did it with my fly rod . I did draw the line when they dropped below the park and started drowning worms ! Ha. That was not the reason I left good company I needed to get home and scout for the next mornings hunt for Mrs. BilletHead, BilletHead

Sorry we missed you Laker67, Would of been nice to meet you. We were definitely the most noisy ones on the creek. Laughing and carrying on. What few people we seen were pretty quiet. You all were probably saying to yourselves this is why we avoid the park during the summer. Crazy people , BilletHead

Glad you have this yearly installment of gardening going. I figured you had three foot long tomato saplings growing in your basement distillery still greenhouse by now BilletHead

You might change your mind Ham if I make to jig fest 2018 and make you goose flying fajitas. BilletHead

Good times with good guys! Thanks for the invite men. Ready for more. Dang Folly did you have to move so far? BilletHead

Got to keep her sharp it is along time until next season. Three days left and i think we are done. The Gray retriever can fish too, net hers and mine too. Good things to come once warm weather hits! BilletHead

Mrs. BilletHead says I need to be buying lottery tickets, The pond we hunted this morning is the same little pond we hunted the last two days of duck season. I like this little place, small compact and easy to hunt. We have some pretty high numbers of geese still hanging around and just like the ducks they like this place. I did some drive byes last few days just watching. Was sure wishing duck was still open as there are wads of pintails there. Geese too out the wazoo and a bunch of specklebellies. I knew there was many birds actually roosting here too but until this morning I had no idea just many. So this morning turned off the main road and across the ditch towards the pond where my headlights hit the water and all the birds. As I did this the Mrs. opened her window and we seen the mass of birds lift off the water. A cloud of pintails first followed by the specks and canadas. Loud and noisy. In the edge of my beams we seen six swans which began to get noisy and did not want to leave until I opened the tailgate to get out blinds and decoys. We sat up pretty quick and I got the truck hidden. I had great aspirations of wads of specks coming back but knew it probably was not going to happen but did know the canadas would be, maybe not the group from this pond but there are so many here now there would be others. First thing we got to see was ducks, lots of ducks. Mallards and pintails but many more pintails and they landed right in front of us in the goose decoys. A pair just a few feet from our feet. Sprigs looked a foot long on the drakes. While we admired them a single goose set up from afar and sailed right in. i told Pat lets let it land and it did maybe ten feet in front of us. I whispered take him. She said no you shoot the first one. Neither one of us wanted to scare off the ducks and ruin the show. I had had enough and opened the blind doors and sat up. Ducks flushed and the goose flapped wings and then just sat there and gave me that Aflack look so I shot him in the face. We both laughed and I got up, stepped into the water took a few more steps and she rolled over feet wiggling and then I seen it. ANOTHER BAND . I said hey Pat it is banded. All I cold hear was "Are you kidding me?" . Nope and I wanted you to take the first shot. She says that will not happen again. This makes four she has witnessed me take in the last part of this season. Back to the hunt it was ducks in and out with many geese moving in the distance. The next three birds were all singles. The fourth one was pretty funny actually. I had got up and walked to the other side of the pond as the South wind blew one to the bank. While I was waiting I decided to take a walk to a much larger irrigation lake where many birds we seen land. This wad was drawing birds from our spread. So I went over and got them up and out of there. As i was walking back this single came over heading for Pat. I could hear her calling it by mouth without a call. Bird made one pass and circled and set wings. Then two shots with no bird leaving. What a deal and by the time i got back there I got to retrieve both birds. Got back set down and a half hour or so more birds flying. Fifteen passed and i called , they turned and started loosing altitude. I said you shoot one and I will too which we did. Done and out of there by nine thirty, My prize and our prizes. Reported band. Large canada goose, too young to fly when banded in 2017, female. Banded near Wallingford, Emmet County Iowa, BilletHead

Fried pheasant, Ok we have a young friend who's grandparents used to be neighbors with the BilletHead's. His name is Avery and we basically watched him grow up as he visited his grandparents on the farm. He graduated from KU with some type of outdoor degree or what ever you call it. For two years now he works on some type of ranch in Kansas. At this ranch they have wild pheasants plus raise supplemental pheasants to release for hunting. Avery has a couple dogs and guides hunters there also. Well he lost his grandpa last Spring and when his grandmother moved he helped and brought us some pheasant. Like six packages worth cleaned and vacuum sealed. We thawed three and the Mrs. sliced them up and coated with a batter which is crispy when fried up. She also cut some potatoes in half. Some olive oil and onto a baking sheet cut face down at 350. As she was frying the bird I was ordered to pull and flip the half taters. Cover each with sharp cheddar, bacon bits and green onion slices and back into oven. Pheasant done, taters done and some wing sauce on the side. Darn fine Saturday dining, BilletHead

Moturkey, Boat trailer kayak trailer build. just another idea for you, BilletHead

Thanks Boobie, I hope you get to go out and it snows on you. Shoot some for me. We are getting tired here and will not go after the snows, BilletHead

Quite a name for a hunt, I have been watching this pond for a few days. Lots of Canada geese using it. Just loafing around but a dozen or so have actually been roosting there. Was really not sure where the masses using the pond were roosting but that did not matter. Just sit up and wait and see what happens. I could of done this solo the last three days. Sure enough we got there at dark thirty and scared off the little flock that roost there. We had some light cloud cover but were able to see the super blood blue moon eclipse as we set up for the hunt. Glad to have the gray headed retriever with me. I am hunting less and less by myself. Getting too hard to fight it alone and the hurt is getting worse. We have a good system going and Pat knows the drill. Did not even have to put collar on as she is conditioned now . We sat there in the dark waiting for daybreak like we have so many times together reflecting on everything in our lives. I tried to get a decent picture of the set up, We could hear geese in the distance on other waters. Big South west wind made the sound from that direction sound like it was just yards away. Most of the birds we seen came from the direct North of us. I usually have a good handle of where birds would be coming from in this area but I have no idea where the birds were from or roosting. Most of the birds that flew over were going over high and going to a field a mile from us to feed before loafing on area ponds like this one. Literally hundreds were going to the field swarming and landing. I called at one of the closer groups that flew by and three broke out wings set and dropping fast. The Mrs. was to my left and birds came from right setting into the stiff wind. We were talking quietly making a plan. I told her to take the lead bird and I would work on the other two several feet behind the first. The planned LZ would be close, real close and we were shooting #2s. Shoot them in the face is our motto on hunts like this. I let her bird hit the water and called the shot. And shoot we did with three on the water one of my birds needed a finish shot as it swam to the opposite bank trying to hide. I did the retrieving today and walked to the other side for bird one. As I lifted it up and turned it around I spied jewelry. Hollered across the pond it was banded, in response i heard "are you kidding me?" . Nope as I gave her a big grin! Walking back I told her there is a chance the others could be banded. Sure she said. I walked back and picked up my second bird that had floated to the bank. Guess what? Another band . I say hey this one has a band too. Her response was not a nice word . Not really a real bad word but one out of form from the Mrs. Should of had the shock collar on and lit her up! HA ha. So by now her bird had hit the bank. A real big bird, no band of course. My two were smaller and I told her lesser and most likely part of the EPP Eastern prairie population like the one I shot ten days ago. We were ten miles from where I shot the one ten days before. We hunkered down again and had a few more groups fly by some setting wings but picking back up to head to field with other birds. Soon a group off field heading our way passing over without even a serous look. I called some as they passed but not much but after the pass I let them have it with all I could muster. I figure what the heck if they are not coming in and going on it doesn't matter and then they turned, the whole wad. I guestumated over thirty birds. They were pretty high with wings set they dropped fast. I said I am going to shoot one and you two. That is just what happened and just like that we were done. I am blessed and the feel like the most fortunate man in the world. Even got Pat to hole up the banded birds Got home and went to plucking and cleaning then singed the bare skin. Some of you guys may knot know we save the skin and what fat from inside the bird that is clean. Render the fat for cooking. This bunch of birds were the nicest we have got this season. Head shots and broken wings. One pellet into one breast half. Took off the skin and breast halves then went inside to remove fat from inside around the gizzard. I hauled off the carcasses behind the house as the Mrs. started the final clean and when I got back there was a pile of stuff to render in the next day or two, Finally everything cleaned and in fridge. Got on the computer and to report band. Both birds were from near Churchill Manitoba. Both banded on same day 8-5-2015 hatched in 2014 or earlier. Male and female . BilletHead

Here is the rare gray headed retriever giving me the stink eye this morning as were waiting for geese and I was conversing with you guys on here. As I was laughing she was asking what I was up to . She reads and knows what I am posting and so far I have avoided the collar and doghouse! She did good today on this hunt and I will post in awhile. She deserves an extra biscuit tonight ! BilletHead