I can honestly see myself retiring there. …Charleston continues to grow in the wrong direction in my opinion.
It would be nice to live somewhere quiet again.
“Another poon dream splintered on the rocks of reality.” --Peepod 07-25-2017
quote:
I can honestly see myself retiring there. ....Charleston continues to grow in the wrong direction in my opinion.It would be nice to live somewhere quiet again.
</font id=“quote”></blockquote id=“quote”>Yes, but those winters. And, I hear the shrimping sucks out there. On the bright side, I’ve never been out there and Pea probably hasn’t either so we’d be up for a road trip.
“Apathy is the Glove into Which Evil Slips It’s Hand”, but really, who cares?
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Originally posted by 23SailfishI can honestly see myself retiring there. …Charleston continues to grow in the wrong direction in my opinion.
It would be nice to live somewhere quiet again.
“Another poon dream splintered on the rocks of reality.” --Peepod 07-25-2017
Sail, you can find homesteads with major acreage pretty cheap, but like dfreedom stated… the winters.
I remember being in the dorm and the entire base would be “locked” down due to weather. They would even shut down the interstates when it got really bad. Everytime people (and myself) complain about our high heat and humidity I just think of the times I got frostbitten and could do basically Nothing outside. Most of the bigger farmers left during the winter for a summer home somewhere South.
Happy anniversary Ricky. Pics are great as usual. We live in a beautiful country.
That shot of the tetons is a bucket list visit for me. Thanks for sharing them.
1966 13’ Boston Whaler “Flatty”
2018 Sportsman Masters 207
www.eyestrikefishing.com #predatorsstriketheeye
Those are some great pictures and really nice deer and elk.
If I decide to go Elk hunting I might hit you up on where some of these pictures were taken. I’ve known a few guys that have shot elk and come back with kills half the size you are showing.
Now mule deer on the other hand… I have a buddy with inlaws in Colorado with some real mulies in their back yard.
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And another
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Elk hunt.haha
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Originally posted by smanElk hunt.haha
I guess I could have verified that all elk pics weren’t in Yellowstone. I still think that last herd was elsewhere but could be wrong.
First, Most, Biggest
Awesome pics, and looks like an awesome trip. Can you post your trip details in case others want to plan a trip like this?
If you move out west, I would also get a place in Phoenix to retreat to in the winter. That place is awesome in January.
“Wailord”
1979 17’ Montauk
90 Johnson
Wilderness Ride 115
Amazing!! Thanks for sharing the photos. Hopefully, will inspire others to go see more of the U.S.
I’m sure you use many, but what zoom lens are you using/ do you prefer for your wildlife shots? They’re pretty smooth and look great!
RickyBobby, what equipment are you using now mostly?
great pics, especially the ones of your beautiful wife…
The Morris Island Lighthouse www.savethelight.org
Glad you had a great trip! There is something very special and intriguing about that part of the country.
Me and the guys are looking at taking a trip out there next September/October to look at an elk hunt. First thing you need to do is apply for the tags. Deadline for that in Montana is in March of the year you want to hunt. I would put in for multiple species (elk, deer, sheep) and play the odds. It looks like most people it takes about two years to pull an out of state elk/moose tag from what I’ve read on forums. I think you can fast track that if you go straight trophy outfitter, but that will cost you 10k+. I don’t find the appeal of that. Sure, it would be great for someone else to do the work and you just show up and squeeze the trigger, but I’m that guy that would rather put the work in, bust my tail working at it, get a slightly above average bull, and be extremely proud of the story of it. I learned the value of a hard work hunt from my buddy, Duckcommander. I still miss him everyday, but I find myself asking “What would Eryc do” in hunting/fishing situations and it makes me smile. If I follow that line of advice, I’m usually successful and happy. There’s more value in the journey for me.
If you’re after elk specifically, also look at Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah. They all have elk, but it seems like you might have the best chance at a big bull in Montana. Tag prices and outfitters reflect this.
Great white, the first pictures of the elk in the fog are practically tame elk in the park, but the herd of elk in the last few pictures are all entirely wild. We were on a public road searching for moose/elk to take pictures when we saw those. That herd was on someone’s private ranch property. It felt like they weren’t very pressured as they paid no attention to us, but all the wildlife felt that way to me out west. I continually was able to get closer than 100 yards on all the wildlife, sometimes as close as 40-50 yards on deer…I can’t do that here in South Carolina. Our deer here are much more skittish.
[img]http://old.charlestonfishing.com/forum/uploaded/23sailfish/2016102011483
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Originally posted by Moral KioskAmazing!! Thanks for sharing the photos. Hopefully, will inspire others to go see more of the U.S.
I’m sure you use many, but what zoom lens are you using/ do you prefer for your wildlife shots? They’re pretty smooth and look great!
Due to weight and traveling I only took two lenses with me on this trip. I shoot Canon gear. I have the old school 7d body which has been very good to me and I took the 24-70mm 2.8L for my walking around lens. The telephoto is the 100-400 4.5-5.6L. I bought this one a few years back mainly for taking pictures of tails in the grass, but it has proved to be my favorite it seems. At 6.3, its as sharp as any other telephoto without going crazy big…at least its sharp enough for me not to want to buy anything else. 
You certainly don’t have to get a super expensive lens to get clean smooth pictures. People buy expensive lenses because they perform so much better in lower light conditions. At least that’s my experience.
Getting a clean smooth picture for me consists of this:
–Good lighting of course. Sunlight at your back wherever possible
–Lowest ISO you can handle (ISO will introduce noise)
–Reasonable F-stop. We all love depth of field, but sometimes less is more.
–Lenses with IS (Image stabilization). Your camera is almost always more stable than your hands, especially zoomed. I only turn off IS if using a tripod.
–Good filters. Its easy to go cheap. Don’t be that guy.
–Spending the time in post production to perfect pictures. I look at every image I plan on using and check the brightness, contrast, saturation, and sharpness. I also make sure my horizons are level. If a picture is “leaning” it ruins it for me. It has to be straight or I’ll see it every time and it bugs me.
The 24-7
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Originally posted by GeronimoAwesome pics, and looks like an awesome trip. Can you post your trip details in case others want to plan a trip like this?
We flew into Rapid City, South Dakota only because at the suggestions of some people here, we wanted to make a stop at Mount Rushmore while we were out that way. Rented a car knowing that we had a flight out of Butte two weeks later. This sounds complicated, but really wasn’t too bad. I don’t think I’ve ever done a one way plane ticket before. It worked out well for us. We stayed in six different places, a mix of hotels and VRBO cabins. I would recommend the cabin route; it makes you feel more immersed in the local scene.
From Rapid City, we did a day trip to see Wall Drug store, which is basically a tourist trap, but well worth the stop. Tons of interesting trinkets and gadgets, good food, corny picture opportunities. If you’re around, don’t miss it, but don’t spend more than four hours there. When we left Wall, we took the HWY 240 loop through the Badlands. This was an amazingly scenic drive full of wildlife. Saw rattlesnakes, antelope, coyotes, deer, you name it. The badlands were incredible. Spend a few hours there walking around. Its worthy of a day of exploration. Stay on the paved road or explore like we did. There’s about a twenty mile detour on a good dirt road called Sage Creek road. It’ll take you on the rim around the perimeter of the Badlands park. Its worth getting your car dirty for. Very few people take it.
Next day we went to Keystone and hit up Bear Country and Mount Rushmore. Bear Country is certainly worth the admission fee. Its like a drive through safari. You’ll see bears, wolves, reindeer, elk, deer, all sorts of big cats, wolverines, beavers, you name it, its there. And its on the way to Rushmo
quote:
Originally posted by 23SailfishIf you’re after elk specifically, also look at Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah. They all have elk, but it seems like you might have the best chance at a big bull in Montana. Tag prices and outfitters reflect this.
Great white, the first pictures of the elk in the fog are practically tame elk in the park, but the herd of elk in the last few pictures are all entirely wild. We were on a public road searching for moose/elk to take pictures when we saw those. That herd was on someone’s private ranch property. It felt like they weren’t very pressured as they paid no attention to us, but all the wildlife felt that way to me out west. I continually was able to get closer than 100 yards on all the wildlife, sometimes as close as 40-50 yards on deer…I can’t do that here in South Carolina. Our deer here are much more skittish.
“Another poon dream splintered on the rocks of reality.” --Peepod 07-25-2017
That’s amazing. I would have never guessed you would get anywhere near that close to big wild bull elk. What an awesome opportunity.
First, Most, Biggest
quote:
Originally posted by 23Sailfishquote:
Originally posted by GeronimoAwesome pics, and looks like an awesome trip. Can you post your trip details in case others want to plan a trip like this?
Next day we went to Keystone and hit up Bear Country and Mount Rushmore. Bear Country is certainly worth the admission fee. Its like a drive through safari. You’ll see bears, wolves, reindeer, elk, deer, all sorts of big cats, wolverines, beavers, you name it, its there.
Do they still have a Grizzly? I never realized just how huge they are. Years ago (25-30)they had one in a small pen at the back. This is the place that I found out a Bear has a better climbing gear than a cat. If you ever run from a bear, don’t think that climbing a tree will save you. I saw one hit a huge pine and was at the top in seconds. We are thinking of going back in a few years. We are going to include going as far North of Winnipeg as road and fuel will let us.
Did you catch any fish?
I don’t think he fishes anymore
quote:Brutal
Originally posted by PeaPodI don’t think he fishes anymore