Field & Stream

[OntarioHunter]

Buckshot mud tires on our hunting rigs down south. My dad only ran them during hunting season. I remember how loud they hummed driving down the road and how much me and my brother loved it.

We called those recaps "sawdust" tires because the shot up texture was created by throwing walnut shell fragments in the mix before the rubber was cast and cooked. The noise those tires made when they came apart was always exciting. I think they were finally outlawed.

 

[OntarioHunter]

My grandpa always had a big stack of field and stream, outdoor life, and guns & ammo in his office. I always enjoyed sitting in there with him and listening to his stories while flipping through the pages. I was always intrigued by his stories of when he lived in Montana, New Mexico, South Dakota. They were always the most exciting ones to hear as a kid.

A lot of my childhood was spent riding around in a 1985 single cab f150 listening to static filled AM radio and going to various spots to hunt. Those were definitely some of the most memory filled parts of my life and I really wish I could relive them again.

The half ton springs in those old F-150s were barely strong enough to carry the tools needed to keep them running. Only thing more prone to break down was British sports car. Had one of those too.

 

[OntarioHunter]

Before trucks had V-8 engines this is what most trailers were pulled with...

View attachment 165028

A Rambler. They actually made a tough engine ... if you could pour oil in it fast enough to keep it running. I think AMC used cotton balls for the main seals. I saw almost an entire family killed in one just like that when I was coming home from work in summer of '71. Bad Rock firehall on old Hwy 2 south of C Falls. The crosses aren't there anymore.

 

[OntarioHunter]

Bet there are a ton of members here that don't know anything about single cab pickups. Or towing four horse trailers up and down icy mountain roads. Or packing elk without a Mystery Ranch or equivalent. Crappy orange sweatshirts from Sportsman's Surplus in Missoula. (Montana thing) I miss the old days. mtmuley

I still have my dad's WWII ammo packboard for hauling out elk quarters. Works great for that but those shoulder webbing straps were a killer.

I was always a Bob Ward & Sons kinda guy. Situated at the infamous 5-way f*<@k up intersection. You could get into the parking lot but never out again.

 

[Nick87]

Hes gotta have a cousin in Wisconsin goes by the name staysharp.

 

[mtmuley]

I still have my dad's WWII ammo packboard for hauling out elk quarters. Works great for that but those shoulder webbing straps were a killer.

I was always a Bob Ward & Sons kinda guy. Situated at the infamous 5-way f*<@k up intersection. You could get into the parking lot but never out again.

Malfunction Junction. Remember it well. mtmuley

 

[Cheesehead]

This is turning out to be a great thread.

We had a family friend who was a doctor and avid hunter. Every year or so he’d clear out the waiting room magazines and I’d get a bunch of last year’s Field and Stream and Outdoor Life. I wore those out, dreaming of finally getting a 22 and terrorizing the local squirrels. No matter where we drove, I’d always have one of those with me or else one of those big Cabelas annual hunting classic catalogs or a Shooter’s Bible.
I always enjoyed Patrick McManus, Jim Carmichel, Tom McGuane, Bill Heavey, David Petzal.

 

[Trial153]

My favorite stories as kid were of the Adirondack deer camps and of northwoods deer tracking in the snow. Seemed like that was the pinnacle of deer hunting at the time.

 

[Nick87]

My favorite stories as kid were of the Adirondack deer camps and of northwoods deer tracking in the snow. Seemed like that was the pinnacle of deer hunting at the time.

Dont remember if it was in field and streame or not but I loved reading about larry Benoit tracking big woods bucks.

 

[Trial153]

Dony remember if it was in field and streamer not but I loved reading about larry Benoit tracking big woods bucks.

I remember meeting Larry and Shane one winter when I was running Hounds near Jackman. At the time it was one of the highlights of my young life.
I think the cover with larry on it was sports afield, either way same ilk and he has graced the pages of all the classic sporting magazines

 

[MarvB]

Read it anytime/every time I could get my hands on one as a kid. Explored the world in my own mind lol.

...unrelated but had an interesting thing happen to me a few weeks ago (speaking of blasts from the past). One of our neighbors is quite the character, late late 70s and an avid outdoorsman that worked for both Leupold and Federal Cartridge throughout his life. We were talking about the “good old days” (I’m the “kid” to him at 61) and he brought up F&S (he wrote for them on occasion) and The American Sportsman tv show, which I used to watch religiously (Curt Gowdy, Phil Harris, Bing Crosby, Grits Gresham, and the rest). Next day he brings over a buddy to introduce to me- Tom Gresham, Grits son. He was also quite a character in his own right and shared some pretty interesting stories about the AS show and even Chuck Yeager (RIP) who used to hunt him them. Was a holiday treat for me!

 

[Trial153]

Anyone remember The Road to Tinkhamtown?

 

[MarvB]

Anyone remember The Road to Tinkhamtown?

I think I was 10 when that came out...

https://www.fieldandstream.com/arti...ited-manuscript-corey-fords-road-tinkhamtown/

 

[geetar]

Dont remember if it was in field and streame or not but I loved reading about larry Benoit tracking big woods bucks.

Dont remember if it was in field and streame or not but I loved reading about larry Benoit tracking big woods bucks.

I think the most well known versions of those Benoit stories were Bryce M. Towsley’s books on the Benoit family hunting style. I believe they were titled “ Big bucks the Benoit way “ or something like that. There may have been magazine articles as well.

 

[OleRedbeard]

Anyone remember The Road to Tinkhamtown?

That story still gets me every single time I read it. One of the best.

 

[OleRedbeard]

I miss my old dusty piles of F&S and Outdoor Life. Back when they had good stories like some of the ones talked about above that left you with something to think about and made you years later dig around to find the issue and read it again.
These days its about half ads and the rest is made up the same filler stuff you will find in most others ranging from "affordable" 3000 dollar rifles to the newest 2500 dollar set of electronics. Here and there however a couple times a year they still have a few good old fashioned outdoor stories that aren't promoting the newest and coolest and are simply telling a good tale.

 

[Trial153]

Way before Bryces books were even thought about Larry graced the cover of Sports Afield, causing quite the stir.
Larry wrote his own book with the help of Peter Miller " How to Bag the biggest buck of your life ". I searched long and hard for an orginal copy. In 1998 I happen upon one tucked away in a book store in Ancram NY. I paid the ungodly sum of 120 dollars. Years later a second printing took place.

The Benoit's and the big woods if Maine became iconic to New England deer hunters, and rightly so. The success larry and his sons had in the shadows near the golden road cemeted their status as the best deer hunters in North America

 

[rafterp]

Lots of good memories in this thread! Like most everyone else posting, I grew up reading those 3, but mainly Sports Afield. I'd flip to the back to read Gene Hill. We were bird hunters, but more of the blue collar variety. I'd read those stories and dream of fine English doubles...hunting somewhere it was possible to shoot grouse...having my own brace of gun dogs. I also loved reading the humorous stories of Patrick McManus. I always enjoyed how he made fun of his own lack of skill whether it be hunting or fishing!

 

[Trial153]

Lots of good memories in this thread! Like most everyone else posting, I grew up reading those 3, but mainly Sports Afield. I'd flip to the back to read Gene Hill. We were bird hunters, but more of the blue collar variety. I'd read those stories and dream of fine English doubles...hunting somewhere it was possible to shoot grouse...having my own brace of gun dogs. I also loved reading the humorous stories of Patrick McManus. I always enjoyed how he made fun of his own lack of skill whether it be hunting or fishing!

Gene Hill works are classics

 

[Southern Elk]

My son has really taken an interest in everything outdoors lately. I thought I would get him a subscription to Outdoor Life. I go to their website and see this message. The same message is on the Field and Stream website.