The Garden State

Most of my travels through NJ have involved Newark and the SE side of the state near NYC.  Since we crossed the Tappan Zee in the dark and drove into NW NJ late, the state's beauty and character were concealed from us until the following morning.
Did get to shut down at a motel next to Bella Italia Restaurant in Andover where we got to meet the kind of "Joysey" waitress you expect, as well as enjoy cardunes which are fried artichoke stems (very tasty alternative to french fries) - plus I got to sample the Flying Fish IPA.  Several times...
Next morning was crisp and the coolest we'd had in several days.  We made the short trip to the Flatbrook Roy WMA and I was frankly stunned by the beauty of the countryside and the habitat.

There were pheasant feathers at the parking area (put 'n take perhaps?), but Kali certainly acted like there might be something on the larger predator scale in the woods up the slope.

Plenty of rock walls on this WMA as well.  Makes one ponder the farms and homesteads that might once have occupied the river bottom a couple of centuries ago.

We'd been fishing along the way this trip, but hadn't secured our NJ fishing licenses, so we just walked along the river to look for trout.  Sure enough, came across a rather large pool and could see numerous 14"-18" trout swimming lazily through the shafts of sunlight that hit the water.  A couple of fly fishermen came along and we visited with them a while as they fished.  We kept trying to get them to move to where we were seeing fish because it's almost as much fun seeing fish caught as catching them, but guess they weren't interested in fly fishing advice from Texans.  We moved on...



If how much butter comes on your toast is a measure of a good restaurant, then we found a great one in Branchville, NJ.  Jumboland serves a HUGE breakfast with loads of butter - and a really tasty cherry-vanilla shake for dessert!
 

 Having hunted Kali's 47th state we moved on towards Delaware and even driving IHs and turnpikes were surprised by the beauty of NJ.  It's possible I might even return.

MA - CT - RI

The whole trip through VT was in balmy temperatures so it was nice to have some cooler weather as we returned to hunting with Kali and slapped some more flags on the rig.

Great WMA in MA, with plenty of food and cover, but also a lot of other hunters. 

Moved on to CT but after 15 minutes in the woods we were all covered with ticks! Spent more time picking ticks than hunting!
Passed right by the Avon Old Farms prep school where the Witkowski family was visiting Packy who's a basketball and guitar stud. Beautiful campus that turned down the opportunity to be a set for Harry Potter.

Moved on to the George Washington WMA in RI touted as the best grouse grounds in RI, but had to share it with horses and motorcyclists so not a high target area.

State number 46.

Vermont

Most people probably love Vermont in September and October when the leaves are colorful, but we actually prefer November when there are fewer leaves to block the views and definitely fewer leaf peepers to get in our way. Dang tourists.
Over the years I have hauled Christmas trees to SouTex from MT, ID, AZ, and NM, so since we were in a coniferous area decided to pop in on the Green Mountain National Forest to see if they were selling Christmas tree permits yet. Really friendly manager named Jeff said they didn't start until after Thanksgiving and was also worried any tree would be denuded by the time it got home. Convinced him it would be just fine so he dug the permits out of a file drawer and wrote me a special letter receipt in case we got pulled over. Add Jeff to the list of people who think we must be crazy traveling as far as we do for birds and tree.
Moved a grouse while hunting for a tree (of course) and then went by to see Texas Falls again, one of the few scenic places I've returned to in my travels.

Don't Mess With Texas. Took the opportunity to clean some trash out of the beautiful scenery. Water was fast and cold but it made for much better pictures. 

Found our tree further up Texas Falls Road, which just seemed appropriate.

Another benefit of November are apples along the road. Emil loves shaking the tree!

Also made a stop at the New England Maple Syrup museum so Emil could learn about the process and I could restock on syrup and spices ... another return  visit.
Craving lobster rolls we stopped in Lee, MA and ate at the Salmon Run Fish House where we had awesome hot rolls which I paired with a Whale Tale ale.  Scrumptious!

Rouge Matawin

Printed our access passes out at the Motel the next morning and we ventured into the Rouge Matawin Reservé Faunique. Birds weren't cooperative but we did get to wet a line.

You can see Emil's orange hat off in the brush.

My first Northern pike, about 25"!

Border crossing was easy for once.  CBP officer found our story entertaining and didn't even make us wash the mud off the truck!
Shut down in St. Albans VT where we found awesome pizza and calzones cooked by Tim from Greece. Also enjoyed the local 14th Star Brewing Valor Ale, great beer and good story. Check out their Web site.

Go Canadiens!

Quebec's Reserve Fauniques are like our national forests as far as access and activities, almost as beautiful as national parks, but you can hunt in them! Of course, there's a permitting process which involves a daily fee, but I don't mind that so much as it provides an opportunity to meet folks at the office, get some maps and intel, maybe tell Kali's story to another amazed person.
Except that the main office and park office were closed for the season! Which season I'm not sure because it was hunting season. It's remote location made finding even a computer where we could print passes online perhaps a two hours effort.
Stopped at the only store in Louvicourt and went in hoping someone at least spoke English. The young guy behind the counter did "leetle bit" and I was able to convey our dilemma with my petit Francais.
This amazingly nice guy took me upstairs to his home (I took my boots off because he took his shoes off )and let me use his laptop and printer at his kitchen table to purchase and print our passes. I loved on his dog and cat while we waited on the printer, noticed he had new baby stuff so we compared notes on fatherhood. Also talked some hockey - he's a big Montreal Canadiens fan.
Went back down to his store and against his protests bought some of his Canadiens gear as a form of thank you and in short order we were back at the forest hunting.
Kali scored a spruce grouse and then we stopped at a scenic spot, broke out the road kitchen and had a fabulous grouse and orzo lunch.

Thanks for the grouse rub Burf! And yes, the wood was too wet from a week of rain for a Real fire. 

Kali points grouse live and dead.

Yes, dogs have dreams

Just had to share this video from the other night.

Pretty sure that it's not a nightmare, but there was that time when we had the run-in with the cougar in Nevada.
I'd like to think it's about birds, but odds are it involves squirrels.

Un journée de la variété

Might as well get started with la Francais since I'm sitting in Quebec right now... But to get here we enjoyed an exciting last day in Ontario.
Started with a grinding 4WD route that played out despite what the map indicated. Didn't exactly have muddy water inside the truck but it was over the running boards and we had several load shifting experiences.
Finally located a promising area and discovered that Kali may be a little petite for the GoPro puppy cam, especially when crashing through forest for grouse.  Must be designed for Frisbee dogs.

No. Go. Pro.

Pretty. And tough on dogs lugging cameras and old men with broken feet. 

But worth it for a mouthful of feathers! 

Clear cuts for the timber industry eventually create prime grouse habitat. We found one area that was too recently harvested to attract birds yet but we sure saw some Christmas trees we'd be happy to haul home.

Brief stop for lunch in Timmins at an out of the way café overlooking the gold mine and where French and English are interchangeable.  But the strawberry rhubarb pie spoke loud and clear.

Decided to rest the puppy and wet a line in the creek that drains Pothole Lake. The brook trout were literally leaping out of the water and all over our tenkara flies.

Beautiful and feisty little fish. 

They are right over there Dad!

Kali loves sitting by streams and watching us fish. She doesn't care so much about smelling or even catching the fish but is fascinated about how they disappear into the water.
The big fish came out at sunset and I'm sad to admit that it got too dark for me to tie a knot on those tiny flies. But we did see some quality fish.
On to Quebec.
Let voyage se poursuit.

Cafe Mojo

Okay, so breakfast was so good at the West End we decided to return there and as luck would have it sat in the booth next to a local who also had a 14 year old Brittany,  totally understood why we would travel so far for the dog, and had hunting recommendations.  And he was spot on!
Not that there's a lot of people in Ontario, but the further you venture away from them the more wildlife you see. Duh...
He sent us on a route that actually had me worried about UPLNDR's fuel capacity between the distance and 4WD fuel burn but we moved a lot of birds, saw some pretty country, and very few humans.

Amazing how the years drop off when there's feathers involved.
"Give me back my spruce grouse Emil! "

Province #7 - Ontario

We were all ready to get after the grouse,  but especially Kali. Beef and bacon are fine,  but bird feathers are better...

Nobody leaves this room without me. 

We did score a great breakfast at the West End Donut Stop before we headed into the forest (bacon still a priority) and had to convince the locals we weren't moose hunters...who comes this far for partridge?
Moved a ruffed and spruce grouse on our first effort but the trees collected all of our pellets and the rain had Kali shivering so we moved on.
Stopped to play with Emil's new tenkara fly gear at Dam Creek  (fish are wet) with  no success but was a good shake out for him

You know why they're called "nots" right?

Rain subsided late afternoon, so we tried up Laughing Lake Rd and managed to move one more huge ruff but cover was so thick, not even a shot.

Dad, we're doing everything right and I'm all wet. Why won't these birds cooperate? 

Wet, tired, we retreated to the steak house for her reward.

Good day.

Mackinac Bridge and Ontario

The Mackinac Bridge at 26,273' long, 155' above the water and 552' tall connects lower Michigan with the UP. Fifth longest suspension

bridge in the world.
Crossed into Sault Ste. Marie, ONT and the RCMP were their typical friendly and efficient selves.
Found licenses, local smoked meats, and intel at the Trading Post, as well as weather forecast. Fortunately for grouse (or partridge up here) hunters,  the birds don't like rain any more than the hunters so we'll have a little down time for scouting and prep before the weather improves Sunday.  But every person we chatted with recommended a place for Kali to hunt.
Friendly...

Retired

UPLNDR has over 178,000 miles and we're not talking about trips to the mall and soccer games.  So don't complain much when minor mechanical issues crop up on these trips.  RF tire developed a wobble in MO and we searched for a matching tire which is really kinda my fault because I spend so much time and effort researching the perfect tires that serve the sand, snow, mesquite, mud, and roads the truck may encounter.
Did manage to find the ONE matching tire in Bay City, MI and some really friendly folks to put it on.

Also got the local intel on best breakfast at the Crossroads Inn where we had awesome blueberry pancakes and visited with a grandma who bakes cookies for Halloween instead of giving candy. She was worried about rain for the trick or treaters and likely had it. 

Stopped in Traverse City to visit with Steve Smith of Pointing Dog Journal who published Kali's eight-part adventure story and is one of her big fans. Sat in his office and talked dogs,  hunting,  books, dog collars, kids, teaching, hunting, folks we both know, places we've both been, hunting, politics and a lot about woodcock. Great guy and he's cutting back on his work load soon so hopefully we'll be spending some time together in the field. 

Then onward through the rain towards Canada. 

Nothing very Interestating

When you're headed for another country, start at the southern tip of your own,  and delay the start so you can say goodbye to your family early in the morning, you tend to use escape velocity to exit the immediate area which in travel parlance means interstate highways.
They pretty much suck but serve their purpose. After picking up Emil in Austin as well as a prototype version of our dog tracking collar (Laelaps  (R)) from Scott, we vectored NE but were fortunate to stop in Franklin at the Pioneer Cafe where we not only found awesome homemade burgers, but also Texas-made soda bearing my Dad's nickname and some favorite flavors.

Pretty much slogged our way through NETX and Arkansas before picking a random exit to stop for the night in Lonoke.
Pulled in to the Motel 6.5 (not making this up) and Jason told Emil "I won't charge you a pet fee if I get to meet her, " so I brought Kali in to the office where we saw quail hunting prints on every wall! Of course the no pet fees room didn't have towels or bathroom lights,  but that's just details - Kali's celebrity status is what matters.
Today found us powering through even more interstate in AR, MO, IL, IN, and MI as we monitored the terrible weather in Texas.  Sometime later I'll tell you about my new character that I'll get to portray in Marvel comics called the Umbrella - just amazing how it never rains where I happen to be.
 We shut down in Lansing at 1494.0 miles and "just tired." Found Guerrazis Italian for dinner where the bar tender just didn't know if they had any local beer,  but said today they had just gotten in "some Something Something Badass" on tap (really don't make this stuff up). Had to have one and finally found out it's Norm's Raggedy Ass Badass ale and is really good despite the weak introduction.
And now,  Kali has claimed over half of my bed,  but there's a good chance we'll be chasing grouse in Ontario by tomorrow,  so can't complain.

I used to jump on the bed of my choice in the old days,  but now I'm content taking whichever need I'm given. 

80:52

Adam and Philip trained as a team, worked as a team, had the right boat, equipment and strategy to be TWS Finishers, and with some extra prodding at the seawall they were.
The wind beat them down a bit on the crossing and they were forced to walk the boat along the barge canal shoreline like we did. They got back in to cross the canal and were struggling to make headway towards Seadrift.
So I walked along the sea wall and waded into the water so I could get in their heads and get them moving again.
Pointed out they only had 36 minutes to beat my time. This got them moving a little faster and then their families joined then along the seawall to cheer them for the final half mile.
They crossed the line at 80:52, beating my twenty-one year old family record by 14 minutes!
And raising $8,000 for Carry the Load!
Too early to discuss repeat trips, but if we did, there's already some things we know we could do better, stronger, and faster.
But it'll take a while before we give that much consideration...

 Thanks to everyone that contributed to the cause, whether with donations, encouragement, visits, or prayers. In a huge undertaking like this it takes more than logistics and planning. And every little bit helps.

Getting salty

Crossing the bay is only a few miles...Only.
Back in '94 we came steaming into the bay at 0900 Tuesday confident we would reach Seadrift in time for the awards ceremony.
The SSE wind at 20-25 mph had different ideas. Blew is to the northwest shoreline and defeated every attempt at paddling. We walked the boat the miles along the north shore before we could get enough quartering wind to get back in the boat. Didn't cross the finish line until 1806, nine hours later! With no Tracker technology back then Daphne, or captain, was pretty concerned.

The wind direction was a little more southerly and not as strong when Adam and Philip finally exited the Guadalupe River after over 170 miles!

Under the wooden bridge. Last opportunity for rock chunkin.

End of the river...

Into the bay. Looks calm, right?

Jammed up

The jams around Alligator Lake are legendary, made more so by the recent flood. Even in the daylight the team struggled with climbing over and around, finding the widest route, and staying strong.
Then of course their Tracker went down, so we knew they were somewhere along the jam route and moving slow, but little else.
As I waited I watched a group of three women captains whose team was long overdue. They had left the prior check point at 1900 the evening before and had gotten lost in Alligator Lake. Their Tracker showed them wandering around trying to find their way out, back tracking, and burning time and energy. They didn't get to the last check point, the salt water barrier until 0930, over fourteen hours!
Our guys stayed away from the lake but still struggled with the jams.
They finally paddled in late morning.
We removed all non essential items, filled the drinks, discussed a bit more bay strategy and got them underway on the final leg.

Final push off

If only all the jams were on the shore! But this does give a glimpse of the size logs and mass that accumulates.

Through the barrier, symbolic in name and function.