A Family Vacation Outside Of The Midwest

Sunday September 11th 2016

Vacation has finally arrived! My wife and I along with our two children have ventured outside of the midwestern states for our first vacation in five long years.  Upon leaving Missouri, we headed east to Tennessee and our first stop was in St. Louis after having made a wrong turn (My wife was reading the turn by turn directions from the GPS one her phone.)  We made the best of the situation and stopped to get gas and eat lunch before making a u-turn and heading back in the right direction.  The next stop we made was a gas station somewhere along the way.  

When we finally arrived in Nashville we ate at Martin's Bar-B-Que Joint.  The food there was amazing.  If you are ever in the Nashville Tennessee area I suggest you stop in and give them a try.  Being the adventurous person that I am I always have to try anything spicy and the Devil's Nectar BBQ Sauce lived up to its name without a doubt.  If you have any sinus problems, this sauce is sure to clear them right up.

Devil's Nectar BBQ Sauce

From there we drove over to the Grand O'le Opry  to take some photos.  We arrived too late to tour the inside of the building, but it was still worth checking out.  Our kiddos were rather impressed by the size of the two guitars that were in front of the building.

Giant Acoustic Guitar At Grand Ole Opry

Giant Electric Guitar At Grand Ole Opry

After taking a few photos at the Opry, we headed on to our final destination for the day....Chattanooga Tennessee where we spent the night before continuing our adventure.  In all we drove about 700 miles on our first day and spent many hours in the car.  Our children were surprisingly well behaved during this journey and by well behaved I mean they somehow managed to make the first leg of our journey without harming each other.

This trip is pretty much a round trip outdoor adventure vacation with new stops planned for each day. I guess this means that our children have a few more opportunities to get on each others nerves while we make another long trip in the car.

I will keep you posted on our vacation as it progresses.

- Any day in the outdoors is a good day

Staying Safe In The Stand

As a hunter the thrill of being in the outdoors in pursuit of a big game animal is one of the things we live for.  We seldom take the time to think about what might happen if we fall from our tree stand, but our safety while in the stand should be our top priority.

Throughout the years many hunters have been seriously injured and some have even died as a result of falling from their perch in a tree.

There are some easy ways to ensure that you stay safe while hunting from a tree stand.
Some of these include:

• Always wear your body harness.  Be sure that you are attached to the tree from the moment you begin your ascent until the time you have both feet planted safely back on the ground.
• Never sleep in your tree stand.
• Always carry your cellphone with you in case something should go wrong.  (A smart phone with a signal can help you to stay awake by occupying your time until you hear that monster buck.)
• Carry an  with you in order to get the attention of other people in the area should the need arise.
• Always make sure that your tree stand has been assembled correctly and that it is fastened securely in the tree.
• Always maintain a three point stance.  (Make sure that you have two hands and one foot or two feet and one hand in a secure position with each move you make.)
• Learn how to properly re-enter your stand if you do happen to fall out while wearing your harness.  (Should you find yourself in the unfortunate position of hanging from a tree in your body harness, you must act quickly to make your way back into the stand.  Hanging in a harness can have serious consequences as the longer you remain there, the more likely it is that blood pooling will occur.)
• If you are using a stationary tree stand, be sure you learn how to properly install it.
• If you are using a climbing stand, be sure you learn how to operate it correctly and safely.
• Always make sure that at least one person knows where you will be hunting and what time you expect to return from your hunt.  (It is a good idea to have that person give you a call if they haven't heard from you by the time you are expected to return just to make sure everything is ok.)
• Make sure to check your tree stand and body harness for any damage before each use.

Most (if not all) tree stand manufacturers include a body harness in the package with their stands.  If your stand doesn't include a harness or if yours needs replaced, you can purchase one

Tree stand safety is no accident!

- Any day in the outdoors is a good day