True Blue Sam the Travelin' Man

David aka True Blue Sam

You have to do better that this for Monday Morning!

Back To The Old Grind!

David aka True Blue Sam

From way back in 1928 comes You're The Cream In My Coffee, a happy song, and it's great for dancing. We have been busy with yard work all weekend and gave Brat the day off, but he will be back next week.

David aka True Blue Sam

David aka True Blue Sam

This is bush honeysuckle, one of the invasive plants eating the understories of Illinois timber. It is very shade tolerant, and it can get big. It will make your timber impenetrable if you ignore it for several years. It has a great weakness, though. It stays green after frost when all the other plants in a woods have gone dormant and shed their leaves. It also drinks up glyphosate herbicide and dies much more easily than some of the other invasive plants out there.

A 3 gallon backpack sprayer is the only equipment you need to go after this plant, and you will need to re-treat your woods every fall for several years to eradicate it. A mist blower is a more aggressive tool for applying herbicide, and it is well worth the money if you have an advanced bush honeysuckle infection in your woods.

We will be out spraying these plants in our woods the next couple weekends, nipping our problem in the bud. Killing this pest is one of the easier tasks a forest landowner should do, and it is always gratifying to kill unwanted vegetation.

David aka True Blue Sam

Some folks see miracles; some don't. I do. Today was a wet day and I had plenty of writing to do inside, but I had a call from a landowner who was insistent that she needed help with a timber sale. I usually take down information, and then do a recon later so I can offer good advice. The lady then came to my office so she could show me on a map where her land lies; then she wanted to go right then and have me look. Well, it wasn't raining that hard, and I enjoy walking in the rain, so I went. I made a big circle through her woods and needed to cross a creek, but the bank on the opposite side was too high, so I walked downstream looking for a place I could hop. I found this little girl on her back where she had fallen down the bank. I picked her up and she was still alive, but almost unresponsive. I placed her between the root swells of a big red oak for protection and she was still breathing when I left her. I don't know if she will recover or not, but at least she won't die on her back, and the rain tonight would have finished her off in that streambed. Take your blessings when God hands them to you, and be sure to offer thanks.

David aka True Blue Sam

The camera snapped this photo at 5A this morning, less than 25 yards from the shooting bench in the back of the barn. Now, if he will just show up during legal shooting hours...

David aka True Blue Sam

We had a total of fifteen targets submitted this month, and Bill's Bullseye Sights made a big showing. I shot with the ghost ring for the first time and am amazed at how well it works. I managed to connect the eyes on two ghosts, and it boosted me to an embarrassingly high score. There was plenty of good shooting by other entrants. Merle managed to touch both a bat and a ghost with one shot from his Browning Hi Power, boosting his score on that target to 100 points. Bill managed to connect the eyes on one of his ghosts, getting a nice score with the aid of his ghost ring sight.

Class 3; Rimfire Pistol, Iron Sights\ non-magnified red dot	Firearm	Distance	Score
David aka TBS	Ruger Mk III, Bill’s Bullseye Sight	25’	130
Billll	Mk I, Bill’s Bullseye Sight	25’	85
Susan aka Mrs. True Blue Sam	Mk III, Bushnell Red Dot	25’	65
Mike	S & W 617, iron	25’	50
Eli	Mk I, Bill’s Bullseye Sight	25’	45
Merle	Mk II, Red Dot	25’	40
Pattie Ann	Mk III, Red Dot	25’	35
Merle	Super Single Six, Iron, .22 Mag	25’	30

Class 4; Rimfire Pistol, Magnified optical sights
Merle	TC Contender, 2x	25’	40

Class 5; Centerfire Pistol, Iron Sights/Non magnified red dot	Firearm	Distance	Score
Merle	Browning Hi-Power 9mm	25’	100
Fred	Colt 1991.45 Auto	25’	55
Merle	S & W M625 .45 Auto	25’	45
Fred	Beretta 92FS 9mm	25’	30

Class 6: Centerfire pistol, Magnified optical sights
Merle	TC Contender 9mm 2x	25’	40

Class 7; Rimfire Rifle, Iron Sights/Non-magnified red dot	Firearm	Distance	Score
No entries

Class 8; Rimfire Rifle, Magnified optical sights (25 yds)	Firearm	Distance	Score
Billll	Marlin 795	25 yd	85

David aka True Blue Sam

Ruger is offering a .44 Magnum Carbine this week. It was built to commemorate 25 years of production, and to close out this model. This one has collector value, so don't expect a bargain this week. 100% of the proceeds of this auction will go to benefit the Light Foundation, and this carbine will sell mid-day, Wednesday, November 4, 2015. Click Here to read all about it and to place your bid.
$1726.44