Snowshoes For Late Season Hunting

It has taken me awhile to finally follow through on one of my ideas. Typically it doesn't take me nearly so long although this time I didn't want to have to buy several pairs in order to get it right the first time. So I asked my fellow bloggers for their expertise and wisdom. Fortunately I did get some very good information from The Maine Outdoorsman who has done a lot of snowshoeing. After several e-mails back and forth and more on line research I have chosen a company with over 100 years experience in the snowshoe manufacturing business. Tubbs Snowshoes and their Frontier model in 25" for my late season waterfowl hunting.

For years I have trudged through deep snow carrying big bags of goose decoys, and exhausting myself in doing so. Thinking to myself that by the second or third day it'll be so much easier because I'll have created a path and won't be breaking through the snow with each step. Until then it's like taking 2 steps for each step you do take. It it also referred to as "post holing" cause it's like stepping in post holes. It requires a lot of balance and can be quite tiring. Your quads ache from catching yourself with a heavy load as you breathe deeper and remind yourself to take it slowly and pace yourself. It's only 200 yards your going, yet carrying 30 to 50 pounds in a foot or more of snow it seems like a lot further. As I'm walking I continue to look around and ask myself if there isn't a better place to set up that is closer, unfortunately the answer is usually no.

So, even though for the time being most of the snow where I hunt has melted, I know that we still have several months of winter ahead of us still. There is a White Fronted and Snow Goose special hunt that starts in February and ends March 10. It takes place in Klamath County only and is a damage hunt. Since the inception of this hunt began, two years there has been a large amount of snow at that time. Last year it was un huntable until about three days before it closed due to the fact we had so much snow. There was no place for the geese to land except for where the ranchers and farmers were feeding their livestck or on the Klamath River. The geese wanted little green alfalfa shoots and didn't want to hang out on the snow. So I know better than to think that we're out of the woods just yet. In the meantime, I will be getting accustom to my new Tubbs Frontier Snowshoes and look forward to reviewing them in late February or early March.

I am also having some custom work done to one of my large Cabela's decoy bags for this type of hunting. I will let you know how that works out too and with any luck get most of the bugs figured out next week. I will spend the last few days of the 2008/09 season looking at the wide open spaces of Klamath County goose hunting. The forecast calls for some weather in the form of light rain and snow. I hope the weatherman is right. Otherwise I don't think the geese will feel the need to move around very much. A little storm is all I need, Uh umm, I did say little.

Women's Hunting Journal Integrity For The Hunt