Turkey Shoot Reviews

Well,  if you weren't there please know that we missed the heck out of you!  This year I am proud to report, being the 4th annual, was our best Turkey Shoot yet!  Recorded were over 80 attendees, countless shells shot, and round after round of pistol shootin, shotgun shootin, skeet shootin fun.  We were able to raise more money than years past for Vanderbilt Children's Hospital and we are so proud of that. 

We couldn't have asked for a more perfect day weatherwise.  Numerous door prizes were given to raffle ticket holders, turkeys were won along with picnic hams and country hams. 

We'd like to thank all of our sponsors, Turkey Shoot Hands, and all in attendance for making this year's Turkey Shoot the best yet. 

If you'd like to see some pictures of what our day consisted of please visit our Flickr page http://www.flickr.com/photos/53515660@N07/

 

Bow Hunting Tips

Here are a few tips from our resident bow hunter for those who may be new to bow hunting, those who may need a refresher course in bow hunting or those who just want to make others think they know what they're talkin about. 

1. Have your bow set up "for you."  Take it to a professional and make sure the bow fits the hunter.  If you live in our neck of the woods we have a fella we highly recommend. 
2. Begin practice shooting with your bow thirty days before hunting season opens.  Now this doesn't mean you can't hunt this year, just be sure to get in plenty of practice before you set out for the first time.
3. Choose your best flying arrow by shooting them all the first time you practice.  Use this arrow arrow to hunt with.
4. When practicing, it is better to shoot one arrow twelve times than to shoot twelve arrows twelve times.   The logic being that the muscles in training are allowed to rest whilst you retrieve your bow.
5. Practice using your broad heads and make sure they are sharp.
6. Make sure your can shoot your bow from a seated position.  It would be a little late to figure that out once you're in your tree stand.
7. When you are hunting from a tree stand and the deer in your sights is right underneath you be sure to first draw your bow back and then aim at the deer while pivoting at your hips.  Aiming your bow and then drawing back would be a costly mistake.
8. The first movement of a deer is down.  When they go to take off, the first motion is downward to gather momentum to jump and run so Aim High.
9. Bug spray is also an important tip... at least until the first freeze.  A deer is sure to see you swatting at skeeters in your stand so spray down before you go. 
10. Patience.  If you are fortunate enough to shoot a deer wait at least 30 minutes before tracking it.  That way the natural process of expiration has time to take place.

Good luck in all of your bow hunting expeditions.  If you have any questions for us please don't hesitate to ask.  And if you are in our area and need the number for Mack the Bow Man, shoot us an email and we'll get the information to you.

Can you spot the deer in this pic??

Ode to the Opening of Deer Season

Howdy doo all!  As you all well know, or should know, bow season opened in Tennessee this past Saturday, September 25th.  As we haven't heard report nor rumor of "Catfish Hunter" a.k.a. the biggest buck round here, being taken as of yet we do have a confirmation photo from a friend in Goodlettsville who harvested a nice ten point buck on Sunday! Way to go Mike! 

In celebration of all the venison that will hopefully be coming to a freezer near you or maybe in effort to make way in the freezer for this year's crop, I felt it necessary to share a delicious concoction to aid in the clearing of the meat.  This is a recipe that I came up with originally for venison tenderloin, which I highly recommend, or as you will see in the following ingredients, tenderized round steak.  We tend to have an abundance of round steak and minute steak, maybe cause we're gettin down to the nitty gritty in the freezer... literally.  Try this one out, we think you'll like it.  And leave a comment when you try it! 

Venison -N- Gravy

1 package venison tenderized round steak, minute steak, or tenderloin

Olive oil
1 Tablespoon fresh snipped thyme (or dried)
1 Tablespoon fresh snipped parsley (or dried)
1/2 Tablespoon oregano
4 cloves garlic, minced
Salt & pepper to taste
1 Tablespoon butter
1 onion, quartered

1 small can mushrooms, drained (or use fresh)

1/2 cup wine - what ever kind you have, I recommend white zinfandel

1/2 cup heavy cream

Now here's a tip, soak your venison in cold, lightly salted water for 20 minutes before using.  This takes most of the blood from the meat and removes the "game" taste if it's strong.  Pat the meat dry with a paper towel.  Lightly coat steaks with olive oil.  Combine herbs and garlic on a plate and dip each steak into herbs on both sides.  Heat a skillet on medium heat.  Place each steak onto skillet, pan searing on each side for 2 to 3 minutes.  Remove steaks from skillet and place on a plate to rest for a spell.

Back in the skillet, place butter, onions and mushrooms.  Brown for 2 minutes, turning once.  Add wine and bring to a boil to burn the alcohol out.  Let boil for a minute or two then stir in the cream.  When the gravy begins to bubble, lay the steaks back into the skillet.  Put a lid on the skillet and allow to cook for 6 or 7 minutes or at least until the biscuits are done cause you're going to need something to sop up that delicious gravy on your plate!

Enjoy, and we, the nice folks here at Sleepin' Bear, wish you and yourn a safe and exciting hunting season and we truly hope you bag the big one!  Send us a picture if you do!  We'll post it... we promise!

Here's a rundown tutorial of the recipe process. 

Want to be on our mailing list??

Yes.. we have a mailing list!  Don't worry... we're not going to sell your name and address to the highest bidder or mail a bunch of junk to you.  But when we have our Dove Hunt next year or maybe our Turkey Shoots we may come up with a reminder card to send to you if you want.   Hey and we do plan on having an Official Open House (the capital letters mean it's Official).

You can sign up now by clicking the email address below or later by using our email address by the 2010 Magazine cover to your right.  If you want a copy of our 2010 magazine just let us know in your email and we'll get one out to you directly.

Thanks for your interest!  Here's the link... sleepinbearlodgeandfarms@yahoo.com

Dang that's purty!

2010 Dove Hunt

Well folks, I am happy to report that this year's dove hunt at Sleepin' Bear Lodge and Farms was a great success!  Man what a great day we had.  Beautiful weather, good eatin, skeet shooting, oh and the dove hunting wasn't bad either!

Our hunters began their day by receiving a monogrammed Sleepin' Bear Carhartt winter coat when they checked in.  After registration, the hunters were invited to try their hand at one of our three skeet shooting stations.  I must say... their aim gets better every year!  Once the dinner bell rang we all headed to the new mess hall or banquet room.  It sure was nice to eat indoors this year cause it was hot!  The ribs and chicken that were smoked by the Gary's son Shaun were tenderlicious!  The side dishes were prepared with love and care by the ladies in the family... all except for the baked beans and corn on the cob which Shaun cooked.  I tell ya, you've never seen such an array of desserts, these ladies really know what they're doing!  Blackberry cobbler, pineapple cake, pecan pie, peach cobbler, white cake and chocolate chip cheesecake!  I sewanee, they should open up a bakery those gals!

Once the viddles were down it was on to the prizes, which there was no shortage of!  Every hunter went home with a prize.  Some went home with a new shotgun or rifle!  Our prizes are mostly donated to this event by our wonderful sponsors.  We couldn't do it without them!

When the bellies were full and the prizes were gone it was off to the fields for the hunters.  They boarded the tractor-pulled wagons and headed out for delivery to their hunting stations.  The afternoon was filled with sounds of shotguns here and there.  The dove count was good this year.  Almost all hunters bagged close to their limit of doves.

At the end of the day there were a lot of smiling faces coming in from the fields.  Birds being cleaned and left overs handed out.  We're proud that another successful year of the opening day of dove season is under our belts. 

The most important thing is that we raised money to help a very important cause.  The Ronald McDonald House of Nashville.  Never miss an opportunity to give back!

Hey Y'all!!

Well... here it is... the Sleepin' Bear Lodge and Farms' blog!  In an effort to get our name seriously out there... here's another attempt.  This blog will be dedicated to the happenings and just stuff going here on the farm.  We hope you can stop in from time to time to catch up on what we're doing and we're real glad you've taken an interest in what we've got our hands in to.  There's always something going on.

We're going to begin our journey with our 5th annual Dove Hunt held here on the farm.  We were even guests on Southern Woods and Waters on channel 5+ a couple of weeks back to help promote our event and cause.  You see, a generous part of our proceeds each year are donated to the Ronald McDonald House in our neighboring city of Nashville.  We think that giving back is one of the most important things you can do. 

Anyhow, the Dove Hunt is one dang good time with lots of friendly folk, good eatin, hunting and prizes galore!  We hope to have some pictures up in a day or two to show our friends. 

Hey.. we do have a website attached to the lodge and farms... http://www.sleepinbearlodgeandfarms.com/  pretty simple yet some have trouble finding it.  This blog is just a little extra touch on what we're up to. 

We thought you'd be interested. 

P.S. This blog is manned (or womanned) by Laurie Hulsey... Gary's daughter-in-law.  In case you were wondering.