-
- Species
- Whitetails
- Big Game
- Small Game
- Birds
- Special Methods
- Bow Hunting
-
- Species
- Bass
- Trout
- More Freshwater
- Saltwater
- Special Methods
- Fly Fishing
Bill Heavey: Son of a Beech
Recent Comments
- Clay Cooper on Discussion Topic: No-Tolerance Policy Extends Off Campus (24)
- Clay Cooper on Discussion Topic: No-Tolerance Policy Extends Off Campus (24)
- deadeyedick on Whitetail Deer and Deer Hunting Headlines: 11/12 - 11/19 (34)
- Robert Ewing on Discussion Topic: No-Tolerance Policy Extends Off Campus (24)
- Moishe on Discussion Topic: No-Tolerance Policy Extends Off Campus (24)
Categories
- Big Game Hunting (10)
- Bird Hunting (2)
- Bow Hunting (61)
- Deer Hunting (161)
- Hunting (81)
- Small Game (1)
Recent Posts
- Whitetail Deer and Deer Hunting Headlines: 11/12 - 11/19
- 200 Reasons To Get Back In Your Treestand
- More Details on the Sad Story of the Biggest Eight-Point Buck Ever Killed
- Hurteau: Help Me Score This Buck
- Is This Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin Buck the New World Record Typical Whitetail?
- Fining Poachers Based On Boone and Crockett Scores
- Weekly Rut Report
- To Pee or Not To Pee Off Your Treestand?
- Bestul: Massive Main-Frame Eight Point from Park Rapids, Minnesota
- Wisconsin Hunters Debate 16-Day Deer Season PLUS More Whitetail Headlines
Archives
Syndicate
Whitetail 365
in your Inbox
March 10, 2008
Bill Heavey: Son of a Beech
I’ve nearly had about three heart attacks in the past weeks. The cause: beech leaves. The 3- to 6-inch long leaves of Fagus grandifolia, which grows in fertile woods in the eastern U.S., turn ivory-yellow when dry and have a maddening tendency to curl in tightly upon themselves. Such a leaf, standing perpendicular among the leaves of the forest floor, looks exactly like an antler tine. The guy treading the woods in search of antlers or any part of an antler is at the mercy of these nasty little guys.
This week’s tip: If you use a CamelBak or other backpack with a bladder, be extremely careful about how you stow sheds. Nature designed antlers to puncture. That’s really all I care to share at this time about that one.
I found two 5-pointers yesterday, both left sides, on the same hill where I found two 5-pointers last year. The bigger of the two was in the same exact spot – give or take 10 feet – of where I found a big one last year. I raced home, compared the two antlers, and confirmed to the extent that I can say they are both from the same deer. This year’s is just like last year’s, down to the wave in certain tines, only a little bigger around, with slightly longer tines, and the G4 that was part of a crab claw last year is now an independent tine.
The pleasure this find gave me, of confirming the survival and something of the habits of a buck I have yet to see, is enormous. And very hard to explain.
ADVERTISEMENT
Today on Field & Stream
Visit Our Sister Sites at Bonnier Corporation
| Enthusiast | Kiteboarding | QUAD | SKI | Skiing | Scuba Diving | Sport Diver | TransWorld Ride BMX | TransWorld Business | TransWorld Motocross | TransWorld SKATEboarding, | TransWorld SNOWboarding | TransWorld SURF | WakeBoarding | WaterSki | Warren Miller Entertainment | WindSurfing |
|---|---|
| Travel | Caribbean Travel & Life | Destination Weddings & Honeymoon | Islands | Meeting Traveler | Resorts & Great Hotels |
| Lifestyle & Shelter | Florida Travel & Life | Garden Design | Home Ft. Lauderdale | Home Miami |
| Luxury | SNOW | Spa |
| Marine | Boating Life | Cruising World | Fly Fishing in Salt Waters | Power Cruising | Marlin | Motor Boating | Sailing World | Salt Water Sportsman | Sport Fishing | Yachting | NewBoats.com | UsedBoats.com | YachtBroker.com |
| Outdoor | Field & Stream | Outdoor Life | SHOT Business |
| Parenting | Babytalk | Parenting |
| Science | Popular Science | Science Illustrated |
| Saveur | Saveur |
| Working Mother Media | Working Mother |
| Entertainment / Events | World Entertainment Services | World Sports & Marketing |
FieldandStream.com is part of the Bonnier Outdoor Group Network
Copyright © 2009 Bonnier Corp. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
Comments (35)
Hey! i just read bill heavey's book. It's alot of fun i highly suggest it! p.s bill when will my check arrive?
Post a Comment
Where are you Bill???????
I'm sorry to announce Bill is dead. The excessive days since his last post are too excessive! His funeral was repportedly held at the Mount Lebanon cemetery near Pittsburgh. Bill, I’m sorry to see you pass, but Mt. Lebo was a great and terrible adversary of the Fox Chapel soccer team when I attended high school and I am only partially sad to see you go!Not really, for crying out loud Bill let's have a post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Just returned from an AA hike (Antlers Anonymous) where I was out looking for mushrooms and some relaxation. I had walked a mile with nothing to show for my efforts when I entered a south-facing open field in the woodlot. Right out in the middle of this small field was a 4-point shed, shining and white as a bone. This was my first shed find and I was fired up! Before I picked it up, I backed up to admire it from another angle and stepped on second, smaller 3-point shed no more than 15-feet away from the first one. This smaller shed was slightly gnawed on (by rodents) but precious none-the-less. Both are right-handers, so my mission is to find the matching left-hand sides.Anyone else had any luck?
Ditto Scott. What's wrong Bill, Dave Petzal got your tongue?
AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!It's been 42 days and I'm going into Heavey Withdrawl!!!!!!This is worse than quitting cigarettes or heroine.Please Bill, post another Blog topic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Son or a Beech, reminds me of a joke.A beech tree and a birch tree grow next to each other in the forest. One day a seedling pops out of the forest floor. The two trees argue with each other whether the seedling is a son of a beech or a son of a birch. There argument goes on and on. Son of Beech, Son of Birch. One day a woodpecker happens by and the trees ask him to settle their disagreement - is the seedling a Son of a Beech or a Son of a Birch. So the woodpecker does what woodpeckers do best and he pecks the seedling. The trees anxiously await his verdict. The woodpecker says "I can't say whether it's a Son of a Beech or Son of a Birch, but I can say that's the finest piece of ash I ever stuck my pecker in"
Finding sheds from the same deer is always neat. It is amazing how close to the same spot you will find sheds from the same deer year after year. This really is amazing to me in our area, where there is millions of acres of public ground for the game to roam. It really goes to show how a buck has a home area, and if all his needs are met he stays in it.
Don,We had one-third of the boys in our school missing on the first day of North Dakota deer rifle season.Nate
Trae B., here in Michigan the schools close on the opening day of deer season.(rifle).hang in there.Don
Comment to Trae B.That really is a bunch of bulls^#*. You should move to West Virgina. They are going to teach hunting there.Nate
Don,I don't think I could killed him if I wanted to. I've known it for 8 years.MPN
MPN <<<< Them porkys make for some verry good eats.Donyo, BILL H., take 5, we dont need for you to go belly up on us.
All i do during that class (it is called BTE in alabama) is go to this website. that would probably explain my C in there from lack of work turned in. hmmmmm........
I had computer aps last semester Nate and always came on here till the school blocked all the good websites.My school blocked fiels and stream because it discussed guns.aint that some s***.
Never mind they're all right. The snow is melting do to the sun being out. Quick stop driving you're all making the ozone layer go away. THE SNOW IS MELTING AND THE TEMP IS RISING! NOOOOOOOOOOMPN
Someone explain how global warming caused 5 feet of snow in my drive way. Global Warming is overrated.MPN
It's approaching the Ides of March. Do I continue hiking about the woods and hedgerows with my head down muttering "beech leaves...beech leaves...beech leaves?Or do I stand at the edge of the lake, staring at the slushy cap of ice and wish I was Superman with the laser eye thingy jacking up the water temperature?Spooling new line on a freshly oiled reel may be on option. I could practice cast hitting the snowmen in the backyard.Beware snowman, beware the Ides of March!
Right now i am in Business Computer Applications All I have left with the outdoors is talking with people who also love the outdoors. But for the record, the cold still sucks.Nate
Welcome to weather in the midwest.Just be patient, the calender always wins.
Mark,I'm with you all the way. I'm in North Dakota and back in LATE FEBRUARY we got a record low of NEGATIVE 33 DEGREES!! But the global warming people will still find something to complain about.Nate
Can some please turn the supposed "global warming" up a little.We have been close to or below zero every night for the last two weeks.We still have a fair amount of snow on the ground in northern lower Michigan,for now we'll have to strap on snowshoes and look for Elk antlers.
With stag handles, of course.
After the fourth heart attack you're entitled to a free set of steak knives.
And Bill, quit getting heart attacks..You have a largely unknown following out here that never have any reason to let you know how much you are admired.. And think you are the best to come down the pike in many a year.
Glad to know everybody doesn't have to kill something just because they can. Used to be everybody knew you never killed porkys, cause when you got lost, or stuck in the back country, they were the only critter you could kill, without anything but a stick! They were the original survival kit! So save the porkys! But let's not hold hands and hug 'em.....
Trae B,Never thought about giving a salt block to the porcupine, I'll have to try it. Wonder if that will keep him from going to the side of my street to eat the road salt. Always think he's gonna get hit even though there is not much car traffic down here.MPN
MPN you should put em a salt block out there but not to close to a deer stand because they'll bust you...trust me.And ive had a green snake that has lived in out garden for about two years he's a good ol' snake you can hold him,we do have to find him though every time before we till.
White Pine,I was home schooled.MPN
MPN,Well if I were you I would feed him something so it would stop eating your trees. But it must be pretty cool gaining the trust of that porcupine and to still know it after 8 years. By the way you spelled probably wrong. He he heWhite Pine
White Pine,Well my friend I have not shot him because I have no reason to. I enjoy watching him during deer season and when I go for my walks on the off season. He actually doesn't mind my presence anymore. Many times I've gotten fairly close to him while he is on the ground.To answer the tree question, yes he does chew on the bark of my trees but only during winter. And some of the trees die and some do not. I don't see it as a major problem. But many people do shoot them for that reason alone. I have known him for 8 years and yes it is the same one. He has a white vertical line on his head. So I've got attached to him and probaly couldn't kill him if I wanted to.MPN
MPN,If you don't mind my asking why haven't you shot the porcupine yet, it would make a nice mount.And doesn't destroy your trees?White Pine
Just about 2 weeks ago I went for a walk through my property (a 3 hour walk) and found only one 4 point antler, but the cool thing was a porcupine whom I call Mr. Dan (he's lived on my land for about 8 years) was chewing away at it. So the whole top of the antler is gnawed on. He must have been getting the salt from the antler. But in my 68 years never have I seen that before.MPN
Much to my dismay, no sheds, yet! The only thing I'm finding is dead limbs, trash (not mine, but I still pick it up), old farm equipment and yesterday, feral piglets! All but two escaped! Both perfect to grill whole!Maybe next week!I'm not too worried about antlers poking holes in a water bladder, but the locust thorns, in grand abundance, are working on my ATV tires!Bubba
No need to explain. I understand perfectly.
Hey! i just read bill heavey's book. It's alot of fun i highly suggest it! p.s bill when will my check arrive?
Post a Comment