hunting – Page 2 – Green Lake Chronicles

Action Camera Videos/hunting/product review

Gear Review: Wildgame Innovations Cloak Trail Camera

October 15, 2015 michaeloutdoorLeave a comment

I made a big push this year to try out a few different trail cameras to test out. Pending results I plan on buying a bunch of the best one in bulk for my properties in NY and our family’s outfitting business, Blue Walleye Outpost in Quebec, Canada. I already have a few of the older Wildgame Innovations models and have a neutral opinion on them. Trail cameras dramatically increase your chances on taking a nice animal and allow you to pattern appropriately. This year, I bought the new Wildgame Innovations Cloak, Wildgame innovations Razor 8x Lightsout and the Bushnell Trophy Cam 8mp. Earlier in the year, the Chronicles crew planted a few small food plots on one of our pieces of land in the Southern Tier of New York. I placed the Cloak camera on a small tree towards the top of an overgrown field, that overlooks our test plot.

I was somewhat skeptical of this camera’s placement, but was hoping to get intel on bucks running the edge of the field and or deer coming into the plot. Only after a few weeks, the results were awesome. The photo on the right is of a nice 9pt cruising the top of the field near the food plot. We have him in many other pictures, typically at night and alone. The cloak also captured some turkeys, bunch of other smaller bucks and two wily coyotes. Here are my thoughts on this camera:

Functionality: 5/5 stars. The cloak is extremely easy to set up and is compact to fit in tight spots. It’s made of a durable plastic material that is waterproof.

Setup: 5/5 stars. I am a little old school and prefer to not waste time messing around with different settings and shooting modes. I like it simple, quick and reliable. The Cloak is really easy to use. Put in the correct date/time and your’e basically done. There are a few different options, but it does not get confusing like other, more complex cameras. Set, point and shoot.

Camera quality: 3.8/5 stars. The 4 megapixel lens is nothing to get to jacked up about, but the quality of the images are far better than $100-200 cameras that were available years ago. My dad always said that you get what you pay for and if you are expecting superior images, then you will be disappointed. The pictures are good and there will have no issues determining the size and quality of the animals that get captured.

Features: 4/5 stars. The cloak offers a fast one second trigger speed, 50-ft detection range, 18-LED infrared flash bulbs and up to 30 second capture video clips. If you want something fancy, then you will not fall in love with these features. As I mentioned above, they are perfect for me and other hunters who want a simple option.

Price: 4.5/5 stars. The cloak is not to expensive and competes with cameras above $100. They retail for about $69.99 and can be found at almost any outdoor shop. If you are looking to buy a handful of the same camera’s, the Cloak won’t break the bank and will give you a solid product.

Battery: 3.8/5 stars. Wildgame promotes this camera as one to take up to 10,000 pictures on a full battery. I don’t have 10,000 pictures yet, but I have changed the batteries once about 3.5 months after I put it up. This summer has been extremely hot and I know that can affect the power output, but be prepared to check camera often and change batteries accordingly.

Overall I rate this camera 4.38 stars. I like it and plan on buying more. Super simple, easy to set up and the trigger speed captures some great pictures. It gets the job done for what I need. I would definitely recommenced this camera if you want to spend under 100 bucks and get something reliable. If you have any questions about this post, please contact me at greenlakechronicles@gmail.com. Be sure to check out our Facebook and Instagram pages for great pictures. Thanks for reading.

-Michael

Fall/hunting

Do You Remember Your First Time?

October 14, 2015 michaeloutdoorLeave a comment

I have had the privilege of being raised in a family that shares a passion for the outdoors. My father is one of the best deer hunters I have ever met and he raised me to respect firearms and value outdoor recreation. As I became more experienced, I wanted to share my passion with folks within my social circle. I chose to attend SUNY Oswego in North Central New York, because it was an excellent location for outdoor activities and the education wasn’t too bad either! I met my best buddies up there and recruited them to join me in the woods or on the river. Many of them never really hunted before or cast out a line. Almost ten years later (since my freshman year) a few of my recruits are now avid outdoorsmen and continue to strengthen their skills afield.

One of the most special and memorable hunts I have ever been on was one that I was a spectator to my good buddy Dave taking his first deer. We were hunting the difficult Adirondack Mountain State Forests, where you may not see anything for years, but when you do it would most likely be a buck. It was late October/early November and the Chronicles Crew (with other affiliates) were on our annual “dack” hunting trip. This was always a fun time together, since many of us were coming from different parts of the country and got to reunite while hunting. The year before, I hunted with Dave on a mountain ridge that overlooked a nice gully pinch point. We planned on hunting the same spot the following year. Dave and I split up for the first few hours, hunting about 500 yards from each other and planned on meeting up somewhere in the middle to eat breakfast. Coincidentally, we hooked up on the exact ridge where we hunted the year before. At that time, we did not have GPS so it was ironic we found the exact same spot as the last year. We discussed our morning hunt and schemed for the remainder of the day. As we were choking down some cliff granola bars, Dave get’s quiet and tell me to “shut up, shut up.” I had my back turned from the downside of the hill, facing Dave. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a deer walking parallel to us on a string to his Tinks Scent Bomb hanging in a tree about 50 yards down. I kept asking, “what do you see, what is it?” I was locked still, watching the whole thing happen from Dave’s perspective. Then he slowly raised his rifle (shaking profusely), takes a deep breath and BANG. Keep in mind, I never saw this deer and had to wait, for what felt like hours, to see what would happen. We both get up and look down hill to a 7pt laying dead. SUCCESS! Dave had just taken his first whitetail ever and I was there to experience the whole thing. Dave was one of my original outdoor recruits from college and now was a proven deer hunter.

This hunt still remains in my top five best memories afield. The video above is Dave recalling the hunt. I posted it years ago on my former blog, so please disregard the URL at the end.

I would love to hear about your stories about the first animal you took in your hunting career. Please feel free to post a picture and a short summary on our Facebook visitors page. Looking forward to reading about your first time!

Michael

Fall/Fishing/hunting

Browns Campground-Altmar, NY

October 13, 2015 michaeloutdoorLeave a comment

This past weekend, the Chronicles crew ventured west to Pulaski, NY eager to get a fat Chinnok on the line on the Oswego and Salmon river. Fishing was tough, we only hooked up a few times and were not able to cross the deep parts of the Oswego river to our hot spot by the dam. The water levels were high and extremely dangerous. The salmon river was chalk full of people, but we were able to land a few fresh Chinook salmon.

The Green Lake Chronicles Crew has been making this annual trip since October 2010. We pitch our tents at Brown’s Campground located in Altmar, NY right off route 13. Browns campground is owned by Sonja Brown and operated by Pete and Monica Garner. Monica is Sonja’s daughter and has grown up watching thousands of fishermen/women enjoy the Salmon river bounty. We always arrive late, find a vacant tent site and set up shop. Even at 2AM, the campground is full of excited fishermen/women prepping their equipment for the morning outing. The scenery is amazing, located nearly on the Salmon river and the stars are as bright as LED light-bulbs. The owners are extremely welcoming and unbelievably gracious. They have a main office with a tackle shop, RV electric hook up, salmon cleaning station and bathhouse (showers and toilets included). Pricing is extremely reasonable, being dependent on length of stay, amount of people in your party and choice of camper unit or tent. What differentiates this campground from it’s competitors, is the private access to the nostalgic salmon river and the hospitable staff. Hands down some of the best people I have ever met. Campers are able to walk a short distance from their tent/camper to the lush salmon fishing grounds with their private access point. Browns also offers a fish smoking service with immediate turnaround. Catch your fish one night, surrender it to the “fillet master,” and come back the next day within 24 hours to collect a tasty smoked salmon treat.

Not only is the fishing fantastic at Browns, but there is a slew of public hunting land available nearby to chase whitetails. One of the best trips to date was October 2010. We slammed the salmon in Oswego and on the salmon river access point at Browns Campground and I shot a nice 7pt buck with my Mathews. Cast and blast can be a fun weekend for those who are looking to break up their Salmon fishing itinerary.

I plan on making a trip to Browns every year and will eventually bring my future kids along for the adventure. Monica and Pete and great people and will give you a warm welcome every time. Many of their campers are regulars dating back 20+ years. If you plan on making a trip to Salmon country, I strongly urge you check out Browns. For booking information, please contact Monica at brownscampground12@yahoo.com. If you have any questions, please contact me at greenlakechronicles@gmail.com. Thanks for reading!

Michael

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Category: hunting