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08/05/15
We had a south east Indiana all blue hunt tonight. Donnie Walston brought Bimbo, a Rambo bred male with big horn on him, Brent Miller brought a pup out of his Boone dog and I threw my eight month old Jazz right in the mix. We all decided to hunt about 3/4 mile stretch of Laughery Creek with woods and cornfields. We had a great plan as we parked vehicle at each end and we would just tree coons hand over fist. From one end to the other.

First cut loose Bimbo struck and Jazz joined in seconds later. They were only 30 yards away and pushed it right towards the hills about 70 yards away. When I say hills I am talking elevation change quick. Like 300 feet in 100
Yards. Jazz and Bo ran about half way up a located. Jazz has treed with another dog only one time in her life and she set it up. She still has never covered another dogs tree. Tonight was no different. She set up a tree and Bimbo covered her. When we got it they were treed on a sixteen inch maple and the only flat spot was on the uphill side and about two share feet. Bimbo was up hill and Jazz was on the wood. I can tell you Jazz was not sure about getting knocked off and dropping five feet so it was tight and she was blowing a little. I won't tolerate that and they got it worked out. Found the coon and slid back down to the road. And I mean on your butt grabbing saplings to brake sliding for about 100 feet.

We walked them back towards the creek and cut em towards the cornfield. Now the plan will come together! Jazz got struck and Bimbo opened at 205 in the corn. They worked that track out of the corn pretty slick. With all those trees along the creek you would think a coon would just run out of the corn and grab one but noooo. Back to the hills they went. When they hit the bluffs they split Bo went left handed and back towards where we treed the first one. Jazz kept pushing up a wet weather drain. I lost hearing of her when she topped out at 534 yards. Bo was swinging back our way and Donnie and I walked a drive way that side hills up to a hunting cabin. Not sure if Bo got treed or not and you will soon understand why. Donnie and I split up at the cabin. Bimbo was straight out the ridge in front of us Jazz had topped out. I started up to pick up signal and listen for her. When I got up higher I picked her up. Treed 563 yards back on Laughery where it had swung back around the end of the ridge I was on. When I got to the top she was treed. I was unsure how long she had been treed but I had lost signal for twenty minutes.

Going up the ridge had me sweating and as I stood there listening to her I knew getting to her nearly required rappelling gear and the walk back out was going to be brutal. She was still 415 yards away. I marked the spot on top
Of the ridge on the Alpha and hit a deer trail or it may have been a mountain goat path. It was steep and south west facing slope with briars and pawpaw trees. I side hilled it down to her which took about 25 minutes. She was singing the whole time.

Once I arrived at the tree it was triple truck chinkapin oak and each truck was about twenty four inches. I stopped back and hit the squaller and two sets of eyes lit up. I decided that the chances of me ever being in this part of the world again were pretty slim and rolled one out to Jazz. It was a medium sized boar coon.

Now the walk out. The bluff was like walking into a fish trap coming down. The briars and saplings pushed aside easily. Coming out was a fight all the way up and out. It took me a good while to get out of there. Brent sent me a text and asked if I needed a ride. I told him I did t know how he was going to do that. I had just come the nearest road when I walked in. Short of a helicopter or a kayak, I wasn't riding anywhere. I made it out sweat soaked and briar tore. Hit the top walked down a gradual slop about 150 yards and then slide down the last part to the road.

I am fairly certain Jazz worked that track out of the cornfield up and over the ridge. She was opening when I lost track of her and checking the garmin on the way in she cut that drive right at a gulley with a culvert.

It was rough night and the dog work was not perfect. The first tree there was some shifting around by Bimbo and Jazz. Bimbo covered Jazz and she moved about twenty yards. Don't know if there was coon in the original tree or not. It was so steep we didn't mess with trying to find it. Couldn't ask for anything more on the second drop except an easier walk. Jazz got through the country, worked a tough track and was treed solid for at least 35 - 45 minutes. The blowing on the first tree by Jazz was not good. Again to steep to take care of it at the time. I'll keep an eye on that for sure. I did let Bimbo get on the tree with her while I was there and just reassured her and no problem. Just thinking that it was tight and steep. I saw her get bumped off once and she dropped six feet.

Next time my bear hunting buddies from WV are up I'll take them hunting here. I never walked to bear tree as steep and doing as where I was tonight.
The work continues. Thanks for reading along and keeping up with me and Jazz.

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Last edited by Rowdy on 08-06-2015 at 06:45 AM

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What part of WV are your bear hunting buddies from? I have a lot of bear hunting buddies in the area from when I used to bear hunt. I have really enjoyed following this thread.

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Hey Chris. We hunt Barbour County. Have a blast out there. Thanks for reading and stay in touch.

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It's raining here this morning so I played around with Google earth. Something a little different to show you other than pictures of a dog on a tree.


After looking at this picture, I realize I could have crossed the creek and walked the bottom out to the end of Harding Road. In the words of Homer Simpson "Doooooh!"

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This shot shows how steep that ridge was and reinforces how dumb I was to climb out of there!

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IF I DIDN'T LOVE IT I'D QUIT IS EXACTLY RIGHT. I ASKED MYSELF QUIETLY SEVERAL TIMES LAST NIGHT, WHY AM I OUT HERE DOING THIS? THE ONLY REASONABLE EXPLANATION THAT I CAN EVER COME UP WITH TO MAKE MYSELF FEEL BETTER IS THAT COONHUNTING AND HOUNDS IS LIKE A DISEASE WITH NO CURE. WITH THAT BEING SAID WE JUST HAD A NICE STEADY RAIN AND SOME COOLER TEMPERATURES FOR TONIGHT, SO I WILL MORE THAN LIKELY GIVE BIMBO A CHANCE TO REDEEM HIMSELF FOR THE UNACCEPTABLE PERFORMANCE LAST NIGHT. THE GOOGLE IMAGES DO NO JUSTICE FOR THE TERRAIN WE WALKED LAST NIGHT, AND I GOT OFF MUCH EASIER THAN CHRIS. NORMALLY BIMBO USUALLY GETS COUNTRY AND I AM THE ONE GETTING GUTTED. IF THERE WAS EVER A NIGHT FOR THAT NOT TO HAPPEN IT WAS LAST NIGHT. THOSE KIND OF TORTUREOUS WALKS DON'T FEEL NEAR AS BAD WHEN YOUR GOING TO AN 8 MONTH OLD THAT'S BEEN TREED FOR 45 MINUTES UNDER A COON. JAZZ IS A FINE YOUNG HOUND WELL ON HER WAY TO BEING A TOP SHELF HOUND.

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Sitting on the tailgate listening to Jazz work a track. She struck it down in a creek bed at 290. She is earning it. It's rough where she is at right now. She's been working this track about 15 minutes and moved it a couple hundred yards through a briar thicket. Just got some locates. We'll see if she nails it.

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We are hunting in a place called "The Fox Pen" twenty years ago they used to run fox in here. The perimeter fence is still up but in bad repair. She located down in a ditch near the fence. Probably trying to get through. She took it on now.

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Last edited by Rowdy on 08-07-2015 at 05:08 AM

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I quit typing when Jazz hit the tree. I was wrong about where she was running that track. She was not all the way down in the creek when she had a loss. She worked it out quickly swung back down to the creek and absolutely slammed into tree mode. The cooler weather had her in high gear and she was really chopping it down. I let her tree about 15 minutes. When I got to her she was bellied up on a walnut tree with muscadine vines going up into it. I knew she had it. I stepped back out into a mowed path in the grown up field and found the coon in the very top of the tree. I loved her up all the way to the truck and called it a night. Short but the work was solid. She hunted out good, struck a track, and moved it through some rough stuff and treed hard. Keeping it fun.

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06/07/15

I hunted with Ken Cone tonight and we had a really nice hunt. We treed five coons tonight and I was home by midnight. These Indiana coons just can't wait to come down and listen to hound music as they have been stirring even before dark our corn is right and the wild cherry trees are full. Ken brought a nice five year old walker dog. He calls him Sparky. Now for the details.

The first drop we cut them into a good size wood lot with a corn field right across the road. We turned em loose and BANG they were struck within 30 feet. Jazz opened first and was working through thick brush towards the corn. Sparky went the other way and treed. Jazz kept working and crossed the road into the corn. Ken was shining his trees when Jazz crossed the road again and loaded up. Sparky and Jazz split about fifty yards apart. Ken couldn't find Sparky's coon. We found Jazz's pretty quick. We took the dogs in deeper and recast. Sparky went north and Jazz went south. Sparky set up another tree and settled in pretty quick. Jazz had circled back and was on the same tree a short distance away. I went and got her and gave a pretty stern tongue lashing and we went to help Ken find his coon. We found it when Ken yanked on a vine.

We led them further east down a trail and cut em back in. Dang if Jazz didn't go back a third time to her original tree. I hooked her up and did a quick and concise adjustment and got back to Ken. Sparky had treed again and we didn't find it. We led them in deeper to the east, mainly for Jazz benefit. She must have known things would get pretty western if she went back again and she went east.
Jazz struck and Sparky joined her. They took the track across a bean field and Jazz located. Sparky joined her and Jazz hushed. Sparky settled
Into a rhythmic chop. The Garmin was showing Jazz there but not treeing. We walked the 275 into them Sparky on the tree and Jazz wanting to move on. She was caught in a quandary. Should she move on or tree with Sparky? Now this will probably set wrong with some but my feeling is this. If a dog sets up a tree they dang well better be confident, tough whatever you want to call it and stick with it or blow out of there and get gone. I caught her up and tied her back. We stepped out into a pasture and found the coon. I went back in untied her and put her on the tree. I petted her and reassured her that Sparky was not the Boogey Man. She treed well and knew it was there. She just does not want to tree with another dog. I don't see this as big problem but will have to be consistent on how I handle it. If she sets it up she stays. If she doesn't but leaves, she better be hustling to find a track that she can tree. We leashed em up and relocated.
The next drop was a cornfield with a fence row trees to the north and a nice woods to the west. We cut em along the fence row and Jazz struck first. Sparky joined in and immediately located and treed. Jazz swung out into the corn and bought the track out closer to us. She hit the fencerow a d gave out big locate and treed. I handled Jazz and we saw her coon walking in. Sparky was treed 100 yards west and Ken went on to him. We found Sparky's coon.

We ended the hunt on a high note.

This picture is for Steve Banston and Misty River Mr. Jack. Hope it cools off for you down with soon.

Tiped on my thmart fone. Lol!

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That sounds like a great hunt and wish I would have been there. When my phone dinged with your post last night I was setting in the truck watching the men jack hammer concrete and I saw your 68 degrees and glanced at my truck and it said it was 83, and that was after midnight. Thought about taking a picture and texting it to ya but thought you might rub it in even more so I changed my mind. Cant wait until yaw behind deep in snow and Mr. Jack and me take a picture of our hunt in short sleeves! Pay backs coming!

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Steve, we are far enough south that we don't get hammered most years. If we do it is in late Jan and February. We usually have to deal with ice. I would take snow over that.

Think I'll bring a tent down to the Bogue Chitto and squat on the Bankston property this coming February. LOL!

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We have been enjoying some tremendous August weather. Day time highs in the low 80s and night temps low 60/ high 50s. I have not hunted this much in the summer for years. Jazz keeps me excited and early alarm clocks don't bother me much these days after a good night of hunting. Tomorrow will mark Jazz being nine months old. Like I have said before and not trying to make you sick of hearing it but this pup is the most impressive I have ever hunted from any breed. Maybe I just need to get out more, I don't know. I am pretty skeptical of my own dogs and expect excellence and accept they are not perfect. I have said it before but it bears repeating, all the credit for this pups ability goes to the breeders that made the soup.


A couple of hunts to update you on:
08-11-15
Met Ken again for hunt. As Ken said, not the best hunt but I've been on worse. Jazz started out trying to tree a lay up or den. She was beating around and we had to get Ken's dog that had gotten out of pocket towards a busy road.
When we got back, Jazz had popped smoke and got out of there about 400 yards north. When we pulled down the lane she was with my buddy Brent and his pup Trip. They were acting like puppies playing around. I wanted to hunt her with a pup just to see what she would do. Pup and a pup act like pups. I sent her on and Ken put Sparky in the corn. Within 2 minutes and 100 yards Jazz and Sparky struck a track and were freed with a coon. Jazz should have already had that coon treed.
We praised them and pulled them off. Since Jazz was going back to trees last time out, I cut her 20 feet from the tree. I always train my dogs on "DONE". That is it for that tree. Jazz needed some tough love. I got on her harder than I ever have. After several minutes and her trying to get back to the tree she got it and went on. On a good note: She treed like a Champ WITH Sparky on the maple on that red hot coon.
After sending her on, she struck a track at 159 yards. Sparky joined her and treed. Jazz moved down the holler and slammed a tree about 70 yards away. It was a huge Red oak with vines. Brent pulled the vines and I got a quick peak at set of eyes!
The positives: after some training Jazz went on, split and had a coon. It is frustrating and I think we all would rather not have to train but that is just part of it. I have seen several talented young dogs that were never polished that were mediocre until they died. Not happening here.
I'll update last nights hunt in the next post.

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When I talk about the soup, this pedigree is what I am talking about. I played no part. I am just the beneficiary of other people's hard work.
08-12-15
One of the areas that needs to be polished with Jazz is firing out when cut loose. Tonight I chose a location that was ideal. I drove back is spot that is open hay field. The field is a ridge that falls off into oak woods and creeks. At the back of the field is a cornfield and the corn is just right. The whole field is about 1500 yards deep and 700 yards wide. I parked about 1/4 of the way back and dropped the tailgate and cut Jazz loose.
She wasted no time getting gone. As I watched the Garmin she was 250 out working the timberline to the east. She worked around to the north where the corn was and struck a track at 663. I checked my watch and she had been gone for 4:50. Jazz worked down a finger ridge and located and settled into a hard chop. I checked the Garmin and she was 970 from where I cut her. I let her tree for a full five minutes before I walked to her. 15 minutes later I found her on a 30 inch poplar. I have found she trees harder on the bigger trees in open woods and it was sweet music dining through the hills surrounding Long Branch Creek. I did not spot the coon but feel confident she had him. The huge tree was impossible to shine completely.
I gathered up Jazz with a good bit of praise and said "DONE", turned away from the tree five steps and cut her loose. She flew back to the tree. I leashed her, repeated the command DONE, induced some reinforcement, turned and cut her at five steps. Next time I heard her she was at 175 with a track struck working down a ravine towards Long Branch Creek.
Jazz moved the track down to the creek and located and located and located. I knew she was trying to work it out but decided to get closer. When I got to the bottom I found her with her head in the air locating off of elevated scent. She picked a tree and started treeing with no encouragement from me. Right or wrong, this is where it ends. No banging around is allowed. She had plenty of time to work it out. Now is the time to commit and stick. Of course the tree she picked was a dead vine choked Osage that was about twenty feet tall. I found the coon in a poplar directly above the Osage. It would have drawn minus in a hunt but what do you do? I don't figure she will be reading the rule book she is just freeing coons. There were some small vines going up but I have my doubts that coon climes the pencil sized vines. ???
I pulled Jazz off and walked back UP to the field and cut her loose. She was fired up and split the dark towards the corn. She struck at 259 yards and worked in the corn for three minutes and got quiet. After 1:00 she located 150 deeper and treed hard. As made my way to her I could see two coons sitting up when I came out of the corn 100 yards away. I liked this. After she pushed them out of the corn she shut up and poured on the heat. She was treed under the coins but was not hitting it hard. When I got there I saw why. The big walnut was right in the middle on a multiflora rose bush. She was freeing and trying push her way into the tree.
These are the nights that keep a houndsman in the woods.
Thanks for reading and sharing our journey.

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Last edited by Rowdy on 08-13-2015 at 04:30 PM

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Please forgive the typos. Most of these are typed from my iPhone. Dang autocorrect turns treeing into freeing and coons into coins.

Like a smart alleck kid, thinks it knows everything! Haha

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I think I've freed more coins on face book than I ever have treed coons! lol

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For Jazz being only 1 day short of 9 months, you have done a great job of raising this pup.

if you had to guess, in all of the trees that she has made whether the past 30 nights of hunting, or all of her trees in her life............how many times has she had the coon and how many times has she backed? I know backing is close if not zero.

I hope you continue to keep this thread going, cause I check it everyday for Jazz's report from the night before. haha


hey when you get a chance send me a video of her treed when she's "rolling the coal out" I wanna hear her at her full


thanks buddy! take care!!

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Mike I know the feeling! I edit a lot of it but that is a royal pain. From now on it is what it is unless my OCD gets the best me.

Nick, She really likes to have coon. Just flat treed to be treed never. She has missed but could find a coon sitting up within 50 yards or so. I can always tell when she is guessing and when she thinks she nailed it.

Backing to me means going to another dogs tree becau it seems like a better option than finishing or finding her own track. The answer to that is zero. Typically, when I cut her with another dog they leave together but you can watch the Alpha as the she peels off in her own direction. Unless she hits the track with another dog, she won't even back a track. The tree I mentioned above was a WHAM BAM and both dogs treed this is the first time she has ever treed with another dog like that. She ran a track last week with DWALSTONS Bimbo dog but he covered her.
She has never treed a possum. The other night when Ke , Brent and I were walking into the the split tree we walked right past one sitting in a bush where she ran the track.
This is the kind of blow I read on message boards and think it all Bologna but this pup is the real deal, not for sale and has backed it up with some good work in front of reputable hound men. She has also looked like a pup that needs to be polished and honed. I'm just excited about her and hope to share my training techniques with anyone that needs them through these updates.

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I am only going to address this one time and I hate to even do that.

I have received a couple of PM from anonymous or fictitious users with no name, contact info etc. Accusing me of blowing this out of proportion, bragging or flat lying.
I apologize if it appears that I am bragging. That is not my intention with this thread. If you look back I began this thread the first day I brought Jazz home. I wanted to post progress on this pup for fun. Something for me to look back on and review for training purposes and to share with friends. People, myself included get excited about their dogs and sometimes that enthusiasm is mistaken for bragging.
I have stated several times that I take no credit for any natural ability that Jazz has. I have never owned any of her ancestors and don't know the people that have on a personal basis. The only thing I take credit for is raising this pup, hunting as much as working family man can and pouring 35years of hunting and training tree dogs, retrievers and police K9s into this pup.
One person asked what I base my evaluations of performance on because they don't remember ever seeing my name on a world hunt title. I base my evaluations on making grand nite or nite champs out of 4 of the 8 coonhound breeds, several original mountain curs. I have been fortunate enough to be associated with some of the most reputable people in our sport and call them friends. This has enabled me to guide/judge/or observe performances of the sports top dogs on the biggest stages where $50,000 trucks were on the line to world hunt titles. I have lived blessed life.
To address the lying. I have nothing to gain or lose or friends in the bluetick breed to lie for. I have done my level best to keep this thread on the absolute straight and narrow telling the good and the bad.
So,'for anyone who has a notion to create fictitious account and fill my in box with jealousy induced cowardice no name PMs. Save it. You won't be invited here to hunt as I have nothing to prove to you or anyone else. Furthermore, I will continue to write and document the progress of this pup because the people who are responsible for her breeding deserve to know it and I want to do it. If you do t want to see it dont read it.
For those of you who have encouraged me to keep writing thank you and please forgive my rant.

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quote:

---

Originally posted by Rowdy
I am only going to address this one time and I hate to even do that.

I have received a couple of PM from anonymous or fictitious users with no name, contact info etc. Accusing me of blowing this out of proportion, bragging or flat lying.
I apologize if it appears that I am bragging. That is not my intention with this thread. If you look back I began this thread the first day I brought Jazz home. I wanted to post progress on this pup for fun. Something for me to look back on and review for training purposes and to share with friends. People, myself included get excited about their dogs and sometimes that enthusiasm is mistaken for bragging.
I have stated several times that I take no credit for any natural ability that Jazz has. I have never owned any of her ancestors and don't know the people that have on a personal basis. The only thing I take credit for is raising this pup, hunting as much as working family man can and pouring 35years of hunting and training tree dogs, retrievers and police K9s into this pup.
One person asked what I base my evaluations of performance on because they don't remember ever seeing my name on a world hunt title. I base my evaluations on making grand nite or nite champs out of 4 of the 8 coonhound breeds, several original mountain curs. I have been fortunate enough to be associated with some of the most reputable people in our sport and call them friends. This has enabled me to guide/judge/or observe performances of the sports top dogs on the biggest stages where $50,000 trucks were on the line to world hunt titles. I have lived blessed life.
To address the lying. I have nothing to gain or lose or friends in the bluetick breed to lie for. I have done my level best to keep this thread on the absolute straight and narrow telling the good and the bad.
So,'for anyone who has a notion to create fictitious account and fill my in box with jealousy induced cowardice no name PMs. Save it. You won't be invited here to hunt as I have nothing to prove to you or anyone else. Furthermore, I will continue to write and document the progress of this pup because the people who are responsible for her breeding deserve to know it and I want to do it. If you do t want to see it dont read it.
For those of you who have encouraged me to keep writing thank you and please forgive my rant.

---

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Chris I wouldn't worry about those losers that's sending those cowardly messages, probably somebody up there you know that's just jealous and to tight and lazy to buy a well bred pup and put the amount of effort into one that it takes to have a good one. This world is full of losers like that. I have never met you but I can tell every word you type is genuine and you love that hound and hunting her, keep on keeping on, I enjoy every story.

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Let's get back to hunting.

08-14-15
Jazz turned 9 months old today so We hit the woods. We had some special
company as my 15 year old daughter Kora came with us. Kora has always been my best hunting companion and has travelled all over the Midwest hunting with dad. It makes me happy to have her company and the fact that she still wants to hang with dad at 15 makes me proud.

We cut Jazz from the tailgate and she got gone pretty quick. She swung around us and was working north on A hillside above South Fork Creek. She got to 356 and close to nut jobs house so I drove down the gravel road and rounded her up.

Took her back close to where I cut her first. This time she left in a hurry up Long Branch Creek a feeder creek to South Fork. All our creeks are limestone creeks and this is hill country we are hunting tonight. I watched the Garmin as Jazz spun the dial. At 578 she struck. She was using her mouth about right and I could tell it was pretty good track. She was working up the creek and the holler is steep on both sides. Although I have never checked I would say it is about 450 feet to the top.
At 987 Jazz located and treed. Kora and I got in the taco (Tacoma) and drove right below her. When we parked she was 215 away and up. When we got to the tree Jazz was on a thirty inch red oak. I found the coon and took a short video. In the. Ideo I said 800'and some but checked the Garmin and we were a bit farther.

After petting and. done command I took a few steps and cut her back towards the creek below. Dang if this little hard head didn't want to try me out again tonight. I would never let her get back on that tree. I repeated the command done and recast. I was forceful each time. On the seventh time I said done and she lowered her head and sulked back to me. I released her again and she tried to get back. This time she met a little electric barrier. First time I put the juice to her ever and she didn't think much of it. Before you have a coming apart about shocking her around the tree, know that I shocked her before she got to the tree and after I knew she understood she wasn't supposed to go back. Now the problem is on recast she wouldn't go at all. This is pretty normal for a first timer. So, I leashed her and walker her all the way down to the creek and recast. She didn't fire out but she left up the creek.
After about 90 yards she kicked it in. At 290 she struck. I told Kora this was an old track. It was 11:30 and I have seen coons moving before dark. She cold trailed the track to 560 and I lost hearing due to a sharp bend in the creek and a steep hillside between us. We hoofed it on in. On the way in I lost Garming reception. I got past the geography that was cutting us off and Jazz popped back on the screen at 663 and tracking away from the creek in the hills. The Garmin showed her heading out of Long Branch drain towards some corn fields. That coon as best I could figure had left before dark from the creek to go get a roasting ear or two. She was close to a road and we could just hear her. I checked the Garmin and we were 726 to the truck of flat creek bottom walking and nearing 700 yards of uphill to a dog that was trailing. Back to the truck we went. On the way back we heard her load up on a tree and we beat feet to the truck. When I got to the truck I snapped a photo of the Garmin as I had cut her 50 feet from the truck on this recast.

Guess next time I better be careful what I wish for. She put some distance between us.
When we got around on top, Jazz was locked in and treeing hard about 215 from the road towards Long Branch Creek. If she did tree when we heard her in the bottom she had been treed for about thirty five minutes when we pulled up. We started in to her and flat got stopped by a grown up pasture choked with black berry briars that were 3/4 of an inch thick. I mashed my way in and found the coon sitting up when I was still fifty yards away. Jazz was right under him pounding away. I finally got in to her and I don't know how she got on the tree. She was treeing on the only wood she could get to and it was a small spot. I leashed her praised her and started out of that mess. Kora right with me the whole way.

Even though her not casting off trees can be frustrating, I am pleased that once she goes, she goes looking for a coon to tree. We will get the recast down with repetition and consistency. We got plenty of time so patience will be the key.
Thanks for reading.

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Chris Powell
Houndsman XP Podcast

Last edited by Rowdy on 08-15-2015 at 06:40 AM

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Registered: Aug 2003
Location: SE indiana
Posts: 941

This is a picture of Kora and her 2014 West Virginia bear. She can start pups, walk most men to death, shoot, and drive the rig off the
Mountain and won't bum a chew from you.

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Chris Powell
Houndsman XP Podcast

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Registered: Aug 2003
Location: SE indiana
Posts: 941

08-15-15
My great friend and plott enthusiast Rich Emery drove down to hunt last night. We had a great time. We treed coons in the woods, on the tailgate and made fun of our buddies that weren't there. He talked me into buying a new light from light builder Hoop Franklin at Dakota lights. Check them out at Tater' Hunting Supply on FB. Hoop is from the TN mountains so if you call him don't expect to be able to understand a thing he says. He and I go way back and I really think we have the record for the number of times we have drawn out together on casts. It doesn't matter if we drive to Hickory TN, Flora Il or Holmesville OH. We drear each other. Talk about interesting. When you have hunted with some one that much, you know their dog as well as they do and they know yours. I won't brag in case Hoop reads this. He might get offended if I told you the only time he beat me was when I withdrew due to extreme heat. LOL.
Last nights hunt included five different drops, casting from the tailgate and recasting from the first tree when possible. Rich brought down a young inexperienced young plott. She has big motor and a distinct mouth. I was hoping for a tag along pest that caused Jazz to take a leadership role and tree coons regardless. Clone as Rich calls her, was not the tag along pest I had hoped for but she provided plenty of distractions and covered enough to test Jazz.
Important details:
First drop we cut them from the road into the corn. This drop was mediocre at best. There was lot of running around and not much production. Clone and Jazz finally split up and Jazz struck and put a tree at the end of her track. When we got there, clone was there. I really think Jazz just missed it. I should have been able to find the coon.
Second drop was a cast from the tailgate down a lane between cornfields towards a 15 acre patch of woods. Jazz went straight down the lane to 380 yards and straight back. She doesn't have the experience to know she has to run the edge. After sending her back she figured it out and treed one on the edge. I petted her up good and gave her the coon. The corn in that field was demolished.
Third drop, jazz and clone were sent down a field lane again between cornfields about 300 yards from a coon highway between the field and a pasture fence row. Both dogs fired out and Clone opened up joined by Jazz. Jazz da the track a loop into the field and slammed a tree in the fence row. She had the coon. I praised her and cut her from the tree. She took off and never looked back! Happy happy happy. She struck again at about 260 and treed after about. 200 yards race. She had the coon.
Fourth drop- this should have been a slam dunk but Jazz made it complicated by getting bogged down on a cornfield race. She was trying to follow the track in each row rather than picking up her head and running the edge. After 25 minutes she figured it out and slashed the edges and came up with a tree. It was a mess and couldn't find the coon.
Fifth drop- was the most outstanding work of the night. We cut Jazz along another cornfield. She struck at 360 to the east and worked the track south. The track was over 1/4 mile in old briar choked pasture woods. She put the coon up in the last tree in the woods. She was not treeing hard and was bawl mouth in tree. She was pooped. I gave her the coon as a confidence builder and called it a night.

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Chris Powell
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Looks like Jazz is really doing good. Looks like she is going to be one of the better kind. I wish you the best with her.

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