First Ice & First Timers

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• Shappell DX3000 Ice Shanty


• Fin-bore III 8” Hand Auger


• Schooley’s Spring Bobber Poles


• Coleman Perfectflow Stove


• Medalist Silvermax Silkweight Base Layers


• Medalist Silvermax Max Packable Waterproof Pants


• Medalist Silvermax Stalker Jacket


• Medalist Silvermax Watchman’s Cap


• Lacrosse Alpha Burly Boots

With winter’s somewhat early arrival, it seems like I’ve been waiting a long time for safe ice in these parts of the state.  Thankfully, last week’s deep freeze has provided plenty!  My good friend, Chad,  has been wanting to take his son Skylar out for his first ice fishing trip, and despite the strong winds and driving snow last weekend, we were all too eager to stay home.

Skylar and Chad were all smiles on their first ice fishing trip.

Not wanting to miss a second of the Steelers playoff game that night (and we were glad we didn’t… what a game!), we opted for a short trip to a small private lake near my house.  We came close to getting the truck stuck on the way there, but my stellar driving skills kept us from being stranded.  Once we arrived, the ice was 7-8” thick, with about 18” of snow on top.  Skylar had a hard time maneuvering in the deep snow, but wasn’t about to let that stop him as he excitedly stumbled onto the ice.  After a bit of shoveling, we had the holes drilled and the shanty in place.

Skylar did the catching, Chad did the unhooking.

With the cold temperatures and deep snow, we decided to leave the tip-ups in the bucket and stick to jigging.  After baiting the hooks and explaining the basic workings of a spring bobber pole, we were fishing.  The bite was slow at first, but as the afternoon wore on, the fish began to cooperate.  Skylar was the first to score and hauled a fat bluegill through the ice.  His patented “4 turns off the bottom” technique seemed to do the trick and he had a second gill on the floor before either Chad or I had a nibble.

Skylar and Chad proudly show off their first gills through the ice.

In between fish, Skylar kept us entertained with a variety of questions and comments, including, “Let’s put the waxworms in the fire” and “How come you guys aren’t catching any fish?”
Skylar’s constant taunting prompted us to concentrate a little harder, and we finally redeemed ourselves with a couple of bluegill of our own.  After all, we couldn’t go home until everyone had caught a fish.

Although it wasn’t one of my best days from a numbers standpoint, it was great to introduce some new ice fishermen to the sport.  Nothing beats the enthusiasm that youngsters have during their first experiences afield.  It even reminded me of my first ice fishing trip when I was seven years old.  Of course, that was back when I was still wide-eyed and every trip outside held the promise of a new adventure.   I guess some things never change.  Good luck to all of the hardwater anglers!

My Trapping Season

By Kevin McCloskey, Venago County, Pennsylvania
My name is Kevin McCloskey, and I started trapping for the first time [again] last season. My son Michael’s friend Cameron and his dad Chris have been trapping for years and Michael wanted to start.  I wish I had taken more photos from last season, but this year I did better.

From left to right - Chris, his son Cameron, my son Michael and me. 2007-08 trapping season total: 41-coon, 5 –coyote, 3-red fox, 3-grey fox, 3-beaver, and 7-muskrats

We had a lot of fun on the trap line, and I had an opportunity to share some things with my son that some people will never see in their lifetime.
One morning while running a small line up by Tionesta, we had the pleasure of seeing not one, but two bobcats. In all my years in the woods I have only seen one. That alone is a thrill, but to see two at once and be able to share it with my son is something we will never forget.

Bobcat tracks

We had a lot of fun on that small line, but there was so much woods and so little time.  We spent a week there and only caught one coyote.

We started our regular line around home and caught a nice coon on our first set. Good start.

My son and I run a small line in the mornings before he goes to school. We then meet Chris and his son in the evening and run about a 50 mile line.
One afternoon after meeting them, my friend Chris (who is kind of a jokester), said get the coon out of my trap box.   Much to my surprise, it’s a live baby coon.  The coon was too small to harvest, so he brought it to show me and the boys.  Nice guy… maybe next year!!

This is a nice grey fox in one of my best coon culverts.

Some days all you get for your efforts is some tracks at your sets to show that the animals are still smarter than you.  Other days you get to share memories with your son that will last forever….like the morning we found this in one set.

What a surprise… an adult female fisher, what a mud ball she was.  Most people will never see one, but we have caught and released 4 this year.

It has been a fun filled season so far. We are trapping beaver this year and have caught two so far.

This is Chris with a 40# beaver, but the best was in the next set.

It doesn’t look big with me, but when we had the boys hold it up

This one goes 50# ….   What a haul. How many kids go to school and can say they helped catch a fifty pound beaver over the weekend.

Now we are not hard core trappers out to catch everything we can. We are trying to pass along some of what we know to our sons and hope they will enjoy it and maybe pass it along to their children.

New Year’s Day brought us one more surprise on the beaver line.

Yes…. It’s an otter… 21 miles from the clarion river, as the crow flies.  We never saw any sign that otters were in the area, but there he was at 8:00 in the morning.  We called the game warden and he said to hold tight and he’d be right there. He [Rodney Bimber] showed up about 20 minutes later.

He managed to get a catch pole on him and we released it from the trap.  It was caught in a 330, in front of the hind legs.  Although we set all our traps for beaver and try to avoid otters, sometimes things just happen.

Unfortunately, this catch would end on a sad note.  The trap had broken its back and the otter had no use of its back legs. The game warden had to put it down. The otter was an adult male and weighed 23#.

This has been a great season so far.  There have been a lot of surprises and good times, and as my son says “it’s good father/son bonding time”

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Thanks for the great story and photos Kevin.  You can send us your hunting or fishing story and if we use it on our web site we will send you a Pennsylvania Sportsmen Portal T-Shirt. The Pennsylvania Sportsmen Portal is all about folks who hunt and fish in PA and we love to feature our site visitors. Only criteria is, you must be a Pennsylvania resident. Stories can be from out of state adventures also, but we are really looking for stories that feature hunting and fishing in PA.  Click Here For More Information.

I Forgave Dad

By Lori Poole
It was Thanksgiving Day and Dad was talking about hunting again!  He was passing around his video camera telling everyone about this Big Buck he saw for the last couple of weeks.  I was intrigued, so I watched the video.  As I watched the video I just wasn’t sure how big the buck was.  It didn’t seem as big as he described.  The whole night that is all he talked about to everyone. We were not on very good speaking terms since he had taken my 5 year old son, Will, hunting against my orders.  He had told me about the new mentor program implemented by the Game Commission where you could take a child hunting at any age under supervision. I hadn’t heard of it and wasn’t sure he had made it up.  Nevertheless I said Will was not ready to see a deer die.  I knew he had been working with Will practicing with the crossbow and teaching him where to place the shot on a deer.  But I still didn’t think Will was ready to see a deer die.  I thought it might traumatize him.  I didn’t start hunting until I was 12 years old and felt he should be, too.  One day Will came home from Poppy’s (my Dad) and said he almost got a shot at a buck.  I asked more questions.  He said he had been hunting with Poppy three different times. He said he was wearing a harness and the tree stand had rails on all four sides.  This did not make a difference.  I was still mad.  I called him and he admitted to everything but it didn’t make me feel any better. So we hadn’t talked much since.

When I answered the phone that morning he told me he had just seen a 10 point that he had showed me on video twice before.  My Dad had already gotten a real nice 8-point in archery season so he had been trying to video my Uncle Pablo shooting that buck in the morning.  They both saw the big bruiser at 150 yards about 9:00 a.m.  He went behind some brush and never came out.  My Dad climbed down from his tree stand and did a little drive in hopes to push him past my Uncle.  Only three doe came out.  We don’t shoot doe in buck season even though you are permitted in Chester County.

When he got to the stand he told Uncle Pablo that he would go up to the house and push down.  When he was 200 yards from Uncle Pablo he saw the monster’s rack down through the woods.   My Dad thought the buck might not go past Uncle Pablo as he didn’t in the morning.  He got on the phone and called his oldest son, Vernon.  Vernon works a second shift job so he didn’t get an answer.  His second call was to his good buddy, Herb.  He said he couldn’t leave work because of it being the first day of buck season and they were short handed.  I guess I was his last hope.  I hadn’t hunted in 15 years.  Dad told me to go get a license and pick up my brother Victor from his job and be here by 3:30.

When we arrived Dad had all my clothes laid out and my shotgun on the pool table in the basement.  Victor and I got dressed in some old musty smelly hunting clothes that were as old as my Dad.  Dad sent Victor down in the valley with Uncle Pablo.  He had been on stand since 5:30 a.m. with nothing to eat or drink.  Dad said he was dressed like it was archery season so I knew he was cold and hungry.  He called up to the house and told Dad to send Victor down with a bottle of water.  We gave Victor a half hour to get set up.  Just before we left the basement the sky got black and it started to sleet and rain.  This was something Dad hadn’t planned on but it was perfect for stalking a big buck.  Dad was videoing and trying to keep the camera dry and I was trying to keep my scope dry with a glove over it.  As we snuck through the woods, you could hear the sleet on the leaves.  It sounded like bacon cooking in a hot frying pan.  As we neared the spot where Dad had last seen the buck, I slowed down.  I could just see the rack moving in the two foot undergrowth.  Dad said to crawl to the next tree about 20 yards closer and slide up the tree and smoke him before he makes his escape.  I think he expected me to chase that monster to my Uncle or to my brother.  When I slid up the tree, he had just decided to leave his bed.  I’m not sure if it was my perfume or just time to go eat.  When he stood up I still could only see his massive rack and neck so I dropped down and imagined where the vital area would be, I didn’t want him to get away.  I didn’t want to loose the only shot I was going to have and I didn’t want to take a head shot and blow off that massive rack.  Dad was still videoing as the monster started to move.  I squeezed off a shot.  He dropped like a sky diver with no parachute.  Dad turned the camera, still recording, and said “nice shot”.  It made me feel great.  Victor called five minutes after he heard the shot.  He told him it was over and I had just gotten my first monster.

I think I’ll go back into retirement until my son Will starts to hunt or since I have a license now, I might take Will with Dad second archery season after Christmas.  Who knows?  Things change.  This is how I forgave my dad.

Gross Score: 153 6/8
Date of Kill: 12/1/08
Outside Spread: 21 1/2

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Thanks for the great story and photos Lori. You can send us your hunting or fishing story and if we use it on our web site we will send you a Pennsylvania Sportsmen Portal T-Shirt. The Pennsylvania Sportsmen Portal is all about folks who hunt and fish in PA and we love to feature our site visitors. Only criteria is, you must be a Pennsylvania resident. Stories can be from out of state adventures also, but we are really looking for stories that feature hunting and fishing in PA. Click Here For More Information.

Tag Soup

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• Remington 7600 30-06


• 180gr. Nosler Partition Bullets


• Thompson Center .50 Hawken


• 230 gr. Powerbelt Bullets


• Leupold Katmai 8x32 Binoculars


• Moultrie Game Spy I40 Trail Camera


• Moultrie Game Spy D40 Trail Camera


• Loggy Bayou Transformer Safety System


• Big Dog Treestands


• Summit Viper SS Treestand


• Medalist Silvermax Silkweight Base Layers


• Medalist Silvermax Cheyenne Pants


• Medalist Silvermax Stalker Jacket


• Medalist Silvermax Watchman’s Cap


• Lacrosse Alpha Burly Boots

After a long and somewhat grueling deer season, I’ve been licking my wounds and taking stock of the situation.  In a lot of ways, I took a pretty good beating from the local herd.  I had a serious case of the flu and couldn’t hunt during most of rifle season, and the sprinting herds during muzzleloader season were too fast for my Hawken.  But, as I’ve come to accept after many tough seasons, that’s deer hunting in PA.  I took a doe with my bow, so my freezer isn’t completely empty, but I was never able to catch up with any of the big bucks I’d patterned in September.

Dale Sherman took this nice 8-point on the opening day of rifle season.

The famous droptine 10-point was killed by Jon Weaver during the second week of rifle season.

Jess Stewart dropped the heavy-bodied “Great 8” as he was chasing does on the opening day of rifle season.

Kickers seemed to be starving in the photo from the second week of rifle season, but thankfully, was harvested by a youth hunter on my neighbor’s property before the season’s close.

Unlike me, a lot of local hunters scored on some really nice bucks this year.  I hate to admit it, but several of them were deer that I’d been trying to keep tabs on myself.  I’m sure you’ll all recognize most of the photos from my archery season scouting.  I’d like to offer up congratulations to these folks on some great bucks!

Despite all of the nice bucks that were harvested, I believe several of the big boys made it through the hunting seasons and are still safely tucked away in their winter hideouts.  The lack of harvest reports from the local hunters in a few key areas gives me confidence that a few of these studs will be around to pursue next year.  And I’m guessing they’ll be absolute giants!

A couple of bucks that survived the hunting seasons.


One nice buck turned up on our trail cameras, but the majority of the post-season photos have been little guys and large groups of does.  With the heavy snow cover and lack of acorns, most of the deer I’ve seen recently have been feeding in corn fields.  They’re very skittish this time of year and rarely stand long enough to catch them on camera.

These bucks were on trails heading toward a large corn field.

Even though tag soup can be hard to swallow, I can’t really complain about my season.  I was able to spend quite a bit of time in the field and I gained a lot of knowledge that I didn’t have last year.  I passed on several legal bucks in archery and rifle season that I felt needed more time to grow, and I’m excited to see what they’ll be sporting for antlers next year.

It won’t be long before I’ll be able to start shed hunting and slip into some of the thickets I wouldn’t dare set foot in during the season.  Hopefully I’ll be able to find a few sets of antlers that prove some of the big boys are still on their feet.  I think I will.  I believe.  The way I look at it, tough seasons only make future success that much sweeter.

Getting Rid of the Rust

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• Hoyt CyberTec Bow


• Carbon Express Terminator Select Arrows


• Copper John Deadnuts Pro Sight


• Trophy Taker Pronghorn Rest


• Scott Little Bitty Goose Release


• Bushnell Yardage Pro


• Leupold Katmai 8x32 Binoculars


• Medalist Silvermax™ Huntgear Rack Embroidered Patch Cap

A lot of archers don’t do much shooting during the winter months.  Outside ranges can be bitter cold, and the indoor 20-yard “dot leagues” most clubs offer this time of year, although great for improving your shooting, can be very monotonous.  Indoor 3D target ranges are few and far between, but can provide an exciting way to keep the dust from collecting on your archery equipment.  As luck would have it, a brand new range just opened in northwest PA in December, and I couldn’t wait to round up a few friends and check it out.

The indoor range at Archery World

Archery World is a 16,000 square-foot facility in Venus, PA that houses 3D ranges set up for both hunter class and pro/open class distances.  Shooting at targets along the back wall will send your arrow well over 50 yards, and if you’re aiming from corner to corner, you’re looking at closer to 60 yards.  Since my friends and I still had our sights set for hunting arrows, we stuck to the shorter distances.  After a humbling first round of targets, I was glad we did.

Andy and Allen Hogue take aim down range.

Sunday was the final day of a two-day random draw tournament, and owner Denny Knight told us he had over 140 shooters on the range throughout the weekend.  Several archers were also shooting rounds for the winter leagues that are held at Archery World.  Denny told us he has shooting events planned for every weekend in February, and one of them will be an indoor/outdoor event for the diehards who don’t mind the cold weather.

A look behind the range

As expected, our group’s shooting was a little rusty, but no one sent any arrows into the dirt or the back wall.  However, it’s nice to know that some of the region’s top shooters were on hand to offer advice on technique and equipment if necessary.  We all had a great time and are planning a return visit soon.  I can’t think of a better way to get dialed in for those wary gobblers this spring.

AJ Johnson and I are set to kill some foam.

I’ve shot at a number of indoor archery ranges, and I can honestly say that Archery World surpasses them all.  The shooting platform, which can accommodate up to 100 shooters, is raised slightly above the target field and gives you a great view downrange.  The lighting is also excellent, as well as the permanent bow racks behind every shooting station.  The range layout is very challenging and includes trees and mixed terrain with hills and slopes that can partially conceal the target kill zones.  There also a nice lounge area behind the range with tables and chairs, shelves for bow cases, and a big screen TV playing episodes of the latest hunting shows.

For anyone who is looking to do some indoor 3D shooting in northwest PA, I’d strongly recommend a visit to Archery World.  They’re located 3 miles west of Fryburg along Route 157 and you can’t miss the giant sign out front.  For shooting schedules or more information, feel free to call Denny at (814) 354-7363 or visit their website at www.Route157ArcheryWorld.com

Spring Lane Hunt Club Hosts First Annual PSP Retreat

For many months I struggled to come up with an event that would serve to entertain all our field staff members and moderators, who all have a wide variety of outdoor interests. After considering many different ideas, it was decided that a pheasant hunt would be a lot of fun and something that everyone would enjoy. Now all we had to do was find the best pheasant hunting operation available. As with all things at the Pennsylvania Sportsmen Portal, we don't cut corners and doing everything to the best of our ability, and this event was no different. This lead us straight to SPRING LANE HUNT CLUB.

Upon arriving at Spring Lane I was greeted by this pheasant below trying to dry himself off in the field while is was pouring down rain. I knew this must be a good sign! I pulled into the farm and was greeted by J.D. Kelly's mother with a warm welcome. It was kind of funny as she took a long hard look at me in my shorts and flip flops and said, "I hope you brought some other clothes for hunting because I don't think we have anything that will fit you." I assured her that I did, but when I travel, I like to be comfortable.

I knew it was going to be a great time when I was greeted by this guy when pulling in for the first time at Spring Lane Hunt Club

A pheasant hunt was something new for me and it was more important for me personally to find an operation that would not only provide a great experience, but cater to some of our unique needs. The entire field staff would be coming in on Friday night to take care of some PSP business, so we would all need a place to stay. All I can really say about the accomodations is they were absoutely perfect. In fact, we all commented that they were almost too nice for our rag tag group of guys and gal! They have two different houses that we stayed in with everything we needed. The description on their website does it much more justice than I can.

"We have two Beautiful Limestone houses located on our Continental ground in Arch Springs, only 3 miles from our Hunting fields. The Manor House offers 5 bedrooms, 3 queen beds, 1twin bed, and 1 queen sofa/bed. This house was built in 1805 and has been completely restored with 4 1/2 baths, laundry, Central Air, and full kitchen.

The Mill House, built in 1799, offers 3 bedrooms with 1 queen bed, 2 twin beds, and 1 full bed. This house also offers 2 full baths, laundry, and full kitchen.

These houses offer a perfect place for you and your hunting guests to stay while enjoying a couple days of fine wingshooting."

Manor House

Mill House

One thing I do know from going on several out of state guided trips is that some operations will promise you the world just to get you to book and then not be able to deliver. This certainly wasn't the case with J.D. Kelly, the owner of Spring Lane Hunt Club as he delivered on everything he promised and then some. After visiting and interviewing many different pheasant hunting operations the decision was easy. J.D. was eager and excited to host this event and take care of our every need as well as provide the best location, habitat and shear number of birds of any operation we spoke too and visited.

J.D. Kelly, owner of Spring Lane Hunt Club , takes myself, Don Ott and Frank Litavish for a tour of his farm. I was a little concerned about falling out the back, but J.D. promised he would let me know when I need to hang on!

J.D. who worked and guided in South Dakota for years, couldn't stress enough about the habitat that they work so hard to provide for their birds. With over 600 acres on the farm, it is all managed with the birds in mind. The farm itself couldn't be located in a more picturesque part of central Pennsylvania, located between two mountain sides and farm land as far as the eye can see.

After arriving at the farm on Friday afternoon, J.D. took us on a tour and showed us where we would be hunting the next day. I was overwhelmed by the beauty and amount of land that we would be hunting with a wide variety of habitat and food sources. I think the only thing that could have made it better was a hunt in the prime of autumn when the leaves are so colorful. I can only imagine how those mountainsides light up with fall colors.

After a good night's sleep at the Manor House and Mill House we were ready to meet our forum moderators and have a great day hunting. Everyone arrived at the farm by 6:45 am so we could get started with the hunt between 7:00 am and 7:30 am. J.D.'s family and staff provided a wonderful breakfast and really went out of their way to make everyone feel welcome. After a brief introduction with some words of safety in the field from J.D., we were split in our groups and ready to hunt.

Field Staff and Moderators early in the morning before the hunt.

I had the good fortune of hunting with Teresa Patterson, Kyle Schwabenbuaer and J.D. Kelly was our guide. Sounds like a great group, but a lot of pressure on me hunting with the owner and two seasoned shotgunners. I haven't hunted for small game or pheasants in over 20 years so needless to say, I was a bit concerned if I would be able to hit anything.

Me, Teresa Patterson, Kyle Schwabenbauer and J.D. Kelly after a great morning spent with good people and great friends.

I grew up hunting with rabbit dogs my entire childhood, mostly beagles, and have never had the opportunity to hunt with bird dogs. I now know why some of you are obsessed with your bird dogs. These dogs were amazing and a beautiful thing to watch! I think I could have spent the day just watching the dogs work and not even shooting anything, it was that impressive.

Kyle and Teresa got on the board first and I had not yet been tested, but my time would soon come. Within a few yards from where Teresa scored on her first bird, I got my chance and fortunately was able to take my first bird. I now felt a sense of relief that I was still capable of shooting after all those years. Well to make a long story short, near the end of the hunt I was 5 for 5 and really feeling quite cocky. It is amazing how one goes from being so humble to really feeling like something special. I am sure Teresa and Kyle could elaborate more. Each hunter was allowed 5 birds and I said to J.D., "Well that is it for me" and I was ready to hang it up for the day and just walk along, but J.D. said, "Why don't you just finish out this stretch," so I, not being one to go against the hosts wishes, complied.

At this point and time J.D. decided to get in my head and I know Teresa and Kyle were more than ready for me to miss one, and you guessed it, the sixth one that went out was a clean miss on a very easy shot. That is what you get for getting to cocky and obnoxious!

End of the day photo with all the guides, PSP field staff and moderators

The entire event was an absolute blast and I can't think of a more appropriate way to spend the day with all the field staff and moderators from the PSP.

If you couldn't already tell, I can't say enough about J.D. Kelly and Spring Lane Hunt Club. On the way home my cousin Mike asked me how I would rate the day and I didn't hesitate to say, "It was a 10, out of the ballpark homerun," and that is all thanks to J.D. and his staff. Whether you are looking for a company outing, a romantic weekend getaway with the Mrs, or some time with friends, I would highly recommend Spring Lane Hunt Club!

You can visit the Spring Lane Hunt Club website at www.SpringLaneHuntClub.com for more information on their operation and hunts.

Percival McKinnon Alberta Whitetail Outfitters

• Date: November 22-29, 2008
• Location: Alberta, Canada
• Species: Whitetail

Note: You can read my feature article about my trip to Canada with my father to hunt with Percival-McKinnon Alberta Whitetail Outfitters by clicking here. In November 2008, I had the opportunity to hunt with Percival-McKinnon Outfitters in Alberta, Canada. I have had the pleasure of knowing Dale McKinnon and his wife Debra for several years after a successful bear hunt with them and we have always stayed in touch. So when the opportunity presented itself to go hunt with Dale, I jumped. If his whitetail operation was run as professionally and efficiently as his bear operation, this was going to be the hunt of a lifetime. Below is a small video clip that will give you an idea of the lodge, caliber of deer, how hard the guides work and just the kind of operation that Dale McKinnon is running. You will be able to see Dale and his operation featured on our TV show coming October 2009. Stay tuned for more details.

LODGE The lodge is absolutely breathtaking and at the same time relaxing with a cozy fireplace, comfortable beds and meals that are out of this world. With a log cabin interior and giant Canadian Whitetails hanging on the walls, it isn’t hard to see why that first night at the lodge is hard to sleep with visions of giant bucks running through your head.

STANDS On this trip I would be taking my father because I knew that this was going to be the opportunity of a lifetime to harvest a monster buck. From the beginning we had some unique requests, including setting stands that my father and I could hunt together. The stands were all very comfortable tripods, set in locations that have not been hunted and were recently scouted by Dale's guides. When I say recently scouted, the day before is usually when they set up a stand always insuring that there is deer activity in the area.

DEER Percival-McKinnon has a 150 inch minimum on their deer and they run around a 75% success rate. The success rate would run closer to 100% but many of Dale’s clients are repeat customers coming back year after year who are searching for that once in a lifetime 175 class buck and bigger. Being from Pennsylvania, the size of the bodies on these deer are amazing. In many cases you are talking about 300 lb deer, with racks that have great mass and character.

GUIDES All of the guides that I have ever had with Dale McKinnon have be a pleasure to be around all week and most importantly, they work their tails off. After dropping you off at your stand in the morning they spend the rest of the day scouting for giant bucks. On a six day hunt, we hunted 4 different stand locations missing two opportunites at two giant whitetails. If they get on a big buck, they don't hesitate to move you.

Cameraman Don Ott, Me, Carl Say and our guide Ryley Hunter

Dale also has a fantastic bear hunting operation and his website is www.albertabear.com . I would also like to personally thank Dale and Debra for doing so much and going out of their way to make this a hunt of a lifetime for my father.

If you are looking for a very realistic chance at 150 and much bigger, beautiful lodge, great guides and fantastic hospitality, I would highly recommend Percival-McKinnon Alberta Whitetail Outfitters.

For more information on hunting with Percival-McKinnon Alberta Whitetail Outfitters contact them at:

DALE & DEBRA MCKINNON P.O. Box 600 Lac La Biche, Alberta, Canada T0A 2C0 Ph: 780-623-3040 Fax: 780-623-3040 e-mail: dalemck@telusplanet.net

Dale is also attending the Eastern Sports and Outdoor Show in Harrisburg, where you can meet him personally and talk about his operation.