Early season fishing: Little Miami

Brookville Tailwater Fishing Report

          The past month showed us some very interesting weather to say the least. The temperatures have been at ridiculous lows. Since the first of January I have gotten over to Brookville maybe five times. The flows have been good; no super high or super low water. Water temperatures have been on the lower side, but manageable. The air temperatures have been crazy low though. There have been a couple times where I was fishing in negative degree wind chills. Nothing like clean out the icy guides after every ten casts! Not the best fishing experiences, but I had to get out. I would have to sit in the car every hour so I could just feel my hands enough to set the hook. Call me crazy but there's nothing better than fishing, no matter the conditions.

Safari Club International Convention 2014

        I just got home late last night from the Safari Club International Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada. Can't say I was particularly crazy about Vegas but the show was awesome.

      This is one of the largest hunting and sporting shows in the country, if not the world. Attendance was somewhere around 25,000 people. The show was held in the Mandalay Convention center and took up both convention floors. As a whole, the show is pretty overwhelming.

February Back Room Sale

     Annual Back Room Sale

     We began our annual "Back Room Sale" on February 1st.  Everything in the back room is 30% off the original price.  Items in the back include Barbour, Filson,Woolrich and Patagonia.  The sale lasts two weeks.  All sales are final.  No Returns or Exchanges.

If you did not receive notification of the annual Back Room Sale, please send us your name and e-mail address and we will include you in the future.
shop@BestGear.com

The fruits of my labor...

    I was taught early, a big part of being a hunter was also learning to cook or at least be associated with someone who could cook. Wild game meals have always been an important part of my hunting experience.

    This was a great dinner for a bitter cold evening.

      This is a Pheasant vegetable soup I threw together tonight. I made some soup stock a few nights ago from a left over pheasant dinner.  Tonight I just added some vegetables, beans, tomatoes and some pre-cooked pheasant breast. Then just let it simmer for a while. I added some chili powder, garlic, and S&P. You can use just about any ingredients that sound good. I paired it with some hearty Sourdough bread from the new Breadsmith store which just opened on Michigan Avenue near the square. (Hyde Park Breadsmith Location)

       Wild game meals don't have to be complicated or appeal only to a few purists. Just have fun with it.

-Luke

Upland Hunting 1/22/14- Rye's First Hunt

   My dad and I took advantage of the "Snow day" yesterday and headed down to Shags Run to bird hunt for a bit. We left about 12:30 so the sun was starting to come out and we were both looking forward to the day.

Rye getting ready to hunt

First Hunt of 2014

     I spent the first day of 2014 doing one of the things I love most. I spent the morning bird hunting with my dad and a few relatives. In addition, I was quite excited to get my new puppy, Rye, out to expose to quail for the first time. I picked up this little English Setter from Billy Gerwin (Shags Run Farm and Hunt club) back at the beginning of December. She has been such a sweetheart and the training is going well. She has definitely become my little buddy.

"Rye"

Click "Read more" for more pictures from the day.