So, will there be a good mast crop this fall or not? People who enjoy watching wildlife, and some 200,000 hunters in Virginia who enjoy eating wildlife will be interested to find out. For hunters, the availability of mast has everything to do with their tactics. If there are lots of acorns, for example, deer for one will not travel as far because they don’t need to. They’ll fill their belies … [Read more...]
The “Wright” Stuff
There is Wright Bacon and there’s the rest of them. Wright Brand Bacon is the Rolex, Mercedes and Stradivarius of the bacon world. What makes Wright so good, and so pricey? For starters, a 90-year old recipe which involves curing hand selected pork bellies and slow smoking over real wood chips for a consistent and delicious flavor. This hickory smoked bacon is naturally smoked and cured with … [Read more...]
Roadside Chicory
I have become fascinated with all the beautiful weeds and wildflowers that grow literally on the sides of our roads. One I have noticed in recent weeks is a lovely bluish, purple flower that I believe is wild chicory, sometimes called a blue daisy, blue dandelion or horseweed. It has just recently bloomed and I see it in clusters. Like many other of these oft-ignored plant/weeds, it is quite … [Read more...]
Downtown Detail
My son and family were in for a visit his week. They went to see Jimmie’s mother-in-law in Richmond and picked up her car, which was in great need of a good washing inside and out. Jimmie asked if I knew of any good car-detailers in town and I did not. When I (rarely) wash my car, I take it through one of those machines. Jimmie checked on-line and found a company willing to come out to us and … [Read more...]
Life In a Tree Stand
It’s quiet up here, some 14 feet off the ground. Tree pegs allow a hunter to scale the tree and strap a metal stand on its trunk and then secure himself with a safety strap around his waist - just in case. It’s easy to fall asleep in a tree stand during this, the archery season for deer. This may be the most-quiet place on earth. It’s hard to find a quiet place these days. Homes are filled with … [Read more...]
Check Out the Chick for Stripers
The saltwater striper season is underway in both the Chesapeake Bay and its tidal tributaries. But in many cases, the tributaries are more productive than the Bay itself, especially the tidal Chickahominy. Stripers are most plentiful in the Chick and a trusty Ratt’l Trap will get the job done. While some stripers will be throw backs, there are good numbers of 22- to 24-inch fish. A falling tide … [Read more...]
A Place Called Water Dam
Some like to fish. Some could care less. I was born to fish. Some of my earliest recollections are of the old “Henry” comic strip. Henry was forever fishing and carrying stringers of big fish that he caught. I saw those cartoons and stared in envy. How I wanted to catch fish like those. I didn’t get much chance to fish until my family moved to Beckley, WV when I was about 5 years … [Read more...]
Hooray for Roku and Hulu
For six months, I have been weaned from Xfinity Cable TV. They were charging nearly $150 a month and that did not include Internet nor any of the premium channels. It was a rip-off in my opinion. So my daughter Laura helped us set up two “smart” TVs and switched us over to Roku. Roku includes networks like Hulu, Netflix, Spotify and especially the ACC Sports Network. Though we can get it, we … [Read more...]
The Real Blind Spot
Everybody knows about the “blind spot” in their car – the view from the back left rear where a car may be between the side rearview mirror and the actual view outside the car window to the left. Always look back and check is the rule of thumb. But there is another blind spot that may be even more dangerous and because of it, I came within inches of typing my last article. I was in Ruckersville … [Read more...]
My Lonely Bluebird
Every morning, he sits on the fence beside his old bird house. Occasionally, he flits over to the house, peeks inside, then flies back to the fence. He is my lonely bluebird. Last summer, he lost his partner. The male bird and his mate had selected the house several months before they started nesting in late March. I believe they had nested in the house the previous year. They raised their … [Read more...]
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