Happy Holidays!

Garcia Mitchell 300

Just wanted to flash my newly acquired pride & joy... The Garcia Mitchell 300 spinning reel. This is a NICE piece! I started looking into vintage reels after realizing most of the inexpensive reels nowadays are mostly made of plastic and look more like pieces of a UFO crash than something that would land dinner.

I like an all purpose reel. Something I can use for panfish, all the way up to nice size channel. I have always been a fan of the Zebco 33, so I was looking for something similar in size and capability.

One afternoon Curtis called me and said he received a boxed, mint condition Garcia Mitchell 300 on accident after he had ordered his Berkley. He showed me how nice it was the next time I was at his house and I fell in love. The mechanics of the GM300 are sound. Time doesn't seem to effect the craftsmanship of this old timer. Both cringing at the fact we knew he needed to send this beauty back to the rightful owner just lead to his search for a replacement.

Well... Curtis is a good man and somehow managed to find 2 reels for a good price. Guess who got one of those?! Thanks Curt, I owe you one. Cheers!

Read all about these classics:
Mitchell Fishing Reel Museum
Mitchell Homepage
Abu Garcia on Wikipedia
Abu Garcia Homepage

Mountain Lions in Kansas!

The KDWP finally has what they consider to be official proof that Mountain Lions do exist is Kansas. I guess it was photographed by a hunter in his tree stand northwest of WaKeeney. You can read the full article by clicking here.

Grouse Creek

If you enjoy paddling and have never been to Grouse Creek, you should probably check it out. The public section, located within the Kaw Wildlife Area near Ark City is 4 1/2 miles of nice water, minimal portages, beautiful scenery and good fishing.

A hotspot for local floaters, you will most likely pass a couple people enjoying the cool water on a hot summer day. There are 4 access points available, which allow for short, medium or day length trips. This is a creek that is suitable for Canoes, Rafts, Tubes and Kayaks.

I have been out there several times and most of the portages are in between the 2nd and 3rd bridges where there are larger rocks in the shallow water. For the most part, the creek is consistently a smooth ride.

After passing the last bridge the creek gets a lot deeper, which might slow you down(not recommended for tube-type craft), this is because of the confluence with the Arkansas River. I'd say a casual float will take somewhere between 3-5 hours to course.

Distances:
Silverdale Boat Ramp to 2nd Bridge = 1.5 miles
2nd Bridge to 3rd Bridge = 1.25 miles
3rd Bridge to Lower Grouse Creek = 1.75 miles


Need directions? Click Here

Some things I've learned...

Well, we've been posting for a few months now and during this time I have learned some things about our blogging platform and thought I'd share them with our readers...

1. The search bar in the upper left corner does not seem to work too great. I'd say it works some of the time, but most of my searches do not seem to yield results, even when I know there should be working keywords for the search engine to find. Oh well... Please fix this google!

2. Our Konzascope! photos get automatically re-sized to a width of 1600 pixels, which can drastically cut down on the quality of the image. If I can find a free image host that won't delete or re-size images, eventually I plan on including links to our high-res photos for our readers to download.

3. Our categories are somewhat in a dazed state. Basically, categories = labels, which are tags on our posts. I have tried to keep Konza Life easy to read and well organized, trying to avoid too many links that our readers will get lost in. But... Unfortunately there are only so many things I can do at the moment to organize our posts. I imagine a category list with sub-categories, so that readers could click Rivers for an example and have a list of rivers we've covered in posts appear. The only way I know how to do this so far, would be to create a tag for each place we discuss, which would lead to our category list constantly getting longer and more unorganized. So... Until I figure out a better way or google decides to add subs as a label option, the categories might not be of much use.

Overall, I am very happy with our blog and hope that our readers are as well. Our goal has been to create a Kansas blog that we as outdoor enthusiasts would like to read. With time, I think we will achieve this.

Thanks for stopping by!

Konza Prairie in Konzascope!

I really enjoy making panoramic photos. I remember someone, maybe Curtis, long ago lining up small 4x6 photos on a table and thinking how cool it was. Well, with digital technology, now the process of creating panoramas is as easy as snapping a line of pictures and stitching them together with software. The result being 'almost' seamless.

I'm sure most people out there have taken photos of scenic vistas, only to be disappointed after seeing the developed results, remembering how much more epic it actually was being there. Maybe not, but I know throughout my years of travel, to me this has happened over and over again.

I hope that with our Konzascope! panoramas, viewers will be able to get a much better visualization of the places we visit and speak about than what a normal aspect photo could provide.

Kansas is full of beautiful country and the only way to truly experience the grandeur of this state is to be a part of it. Getting out in rural Kansas is sure to open your senses to this beauty I describe. Until then, enjoy.


Konza Prairie Overlook off Highway K-177 (south of Manhattan)

Berkley 420!

I bought this beautiful reel on Ebay last week and thought I'd show it off. It's brand new and around 40 - 50 years old... wait a sec, allow me to clarify. It WAS brand new half a century ago but it's been in the box and hasn't been on a rod, ever. It still has the original line on it which is well past its use-by date!

I haven't decided whether to actually fish with it or keep it cozy and safe in it's nice little box. I have two other slightly (cough) less pristine 420's so I'm thinking the latter.

Fish Heads

Eat them up, yum!

What do you do with a flathead's head when you've finished carving up the carcass? If you were me or Derek you'd spike that one-eyed bugger on a fence post and allow people the opportunity to ooh and awe/and or/cringe at it as they drive by. This one's on 296th road just north of the town of Silverdale, the home of many huge, sawed pieces of flat limestone.

Serious.

Cats!

Why do people keep dropping off kittens/cats in my yard?

This adorable little cutie has been here for a couple of weeks now and he/she is the most headstrong, assertive kitten I've ever seen. Of course, the other cats hate it and give him tons of grief.

Anyone out there need a kitten?

Indian Stuff

A couple of knives D and I discovered in a plowed field in Cowley county. The knife on the top shows a lot of use and abuse on the cutting edge, and the lower one appears to have been broken in half at some time in the past. We found a nice little point too, and I'm certain D will post a picture of it in good time.

Lizard Lips Grill and Deli

MmmmmMMMmmmMMmmmmm......

Good food made with all the love some mother could give it.

C'mon in!

Cat Crazed!

The Mayor of Big Sandy

Now that's a nice stringer!

How bout some gar fishin?

Fish Fry

.............................YUM!

Copperhead

We were down on Grouse Creek looking for a place to clean a fish when Derek spotted this beautiful little critter. After it crawled under a rock near the spot we had chosen we decided to find a different place.

Wrought Iron Bridge Company

"The Wrought Iron Bridge Company was a bridge fabrication and construction company based in Canton, Ohio. It specialized, as the name would suggest, in the fabrication of iron truss bridges and was a prolific bridge builder in the late 19th century. It was one of the 28 firms consolidated by JP Morgan into the American Bridge Company in 1900."
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Found this marquee photo on Flickr

Walnut River Bridge (Butler County, Kansas)

Son, that's a big fish!

A nice flathead D and I caught at Grouse Creek last weekend on a 3/4 lb drum. We measured the length at around 40 inches but didn't weigh it, we guessed around 30 - 35 lbs.

Fall River in Konzascope!

No folks, this isn't How the West Was Won, but it might be How the Midwest Was Won! Kansas is going widescreen via KonzaScope! Enjoy, haha!




Mossy Ford - Access Point


Twin Falls - Access Point


Good looking stretch of Fall river


Fall River Dam

Otter was flowing around 2.5' at 80 CFS'ish this weekend. Didn't catch the lake levels, but still low for a fun run at Twins Falls or Mossy Ford.

Stayed tuned for more KoNzAsCoPe! panoramic goodies coming soon!

Bobcat

Derek and I were floating a small creek in Butler county last week when a movement on the bank caught my eye. " Derek!" I whispered urgently, "Bobcat!" He whispered back, "Camera!" The bag containing the camera was behind the seat of my kayak and I fumbled around inside feeling for it, never taking my eye off the cat. As I groped around the bobcat made a continuous low growling sound and followed us walking along the bank. I finally got the camera in my hands and managed to snap a few quick pictures . It was early morning and the bright light in the field behind the cat made it difficult to get a good shot, but I did capture a few decent ones before it wandered into the field.

Elk River Hiking Trail

Found these old photos from a few years ago. Not the best quality, but thought I'd share them anyhow.

Chase Channel Cat

There's just nothing like fishing next to a campfire. The warm fire, cool breeze and good conversation is rivaled only with the sound of a rod flying off the rock! That's what happened just minutes before landing this healthy 7.5lb channel cat out at Chase State Fishing Lake.

The Evening Sky Map - 7/09

Keep track of the heavens with Skymaps.com free 2-page monthly guide to the night sky suitable for all sky watchers including newcomers to Astronomy.

Salted Chicken Liver

Some years ago I got tired of throwing liver away.

You go fishing, take two or three tubs of liver out of the freezer, come home with 1 1/2 tubs of thawed liver, then what do you do? You can stick it back in the freezer, except refreezing it screws up the texture, and the next time you thaw it out it's runny and a hook won't stay in it.

So I would throw it away.

Then one day I had a bright idea. (one of my better ideas in some time) Why not try salting it?

So I did. And it works great.

The salt attracts fish, and after a few months in the salt the liver is tougher and stays on the hook better. You don't have to keep it frozen as it will keep for several years stored at room temperature.


Here's how you do it:


Buy chicken liver. There's a grocery a few blocks away where I get mine, usually approaching the "sell by" date, marked down to half price or less. If it already smells nasty, no worries. The salt will preserve it.

For every 3 tubs of chicken liver you'll need 1 lb of salt. (I use 3 for a dollar generic table salt from the dollar store)

Dump 3 tubs of liver into a big bowl.


































In one of the empty liver containers, add about 1/4 inch salt, then add several pieces of liver, and then add another 1/4 inch of salt. (you can get creative at this point, adding oil, garlic, vanilla, anise oil or whatever your heart desires)























Repeat until the tub is almost full, then top with salt. Make sure there's a 1/4 to 1/2 inch space at the top to prevent the lid from coming off as the liver ripens.

I use a magic marker to write the date on the lid, then store them in the corner of my garage sitting on the floor. I have 6 or 8 tubs that have been there for more than 2 years and it's still good. It has a slightly nasty smell, but not nearly so close to vomit inducing as rotten liver is.






















Two year old salted liver



You'll notice there's some small scraps of liver and blood left over in the bowl. I add this to another container, throw in some salt and add a few rocks and then freeze it. It makes an excellent "chum bomb" to throw still frozen into the water where you're fishing.

You can use this process for other baits beside liver, I've done it with shrimp, minnows, and cut bait.

Happy salting!

Nightcrawlers!

Ever get tired of paying waaaaay too much money for
crappy little half dead nightcrawlers? If you have them
in your yard or neighborhood it's easy to collect enough
in one night to last the entire fishing season.

Interested?

I thought you might be, please read on!

First, you must determine if you have crawlers in your
yard. They're only active after dark, but you can look
for signs during the day. Ever feel lumpy soil beneath
your feet when you walk through your yard, or see
funny-looking little piles of soil with small sticks or leaves
sticking out of them? If you do, then you probably have
nightcrawlers.
























The best time to collect them is early in the season,
shortly after the ground thaws in the late winter. They
remain active into June, but it becomes more difficult
to find them after the weather turns off hot and dry.
March/April/May is the best time here on the Konza.

The only thing you really need is a good LED headlamp
with red LED's. I payed eight or nine dollars for this
one at a local store several years ago, and it's an
indispensable piece of equipment.


















It uses three triple A batteries that last for an amazingly
long time, usually hundreds of hours, or pretty
much the entire fishing season.

Of course you can use a flashlight, (I did for years)
but that ties up one hand when you need both. And,
the LED headlamp has red LED's that the worms can't
detect when you shine it on them. They'll suck back
into their hole in a second if a regular flashlight beam
hits them.

The best time to search for them is after a rain, when
the ground is wet and soggy. Wait till about an hour
after the sun goes down, then don your headlamp and
grab a bucket. Approach the area on your hands and
knees, as it can be difficult to see them and damn near
impossible to reach them if you're standing upright.
Move slowly, and don't make any moves that will jar the
soil as this will cause the worms to back down their holes.
If you do, don't worry, the worms will come back out in
a few minutes; move a few feet away and resume hunting.
When you spot one, calmly reach down and grasp it firmly
where the body is anchored to the soil, and pull firmly but
gently.

It may take a few seconds but the worm will soon tire

and slide out of its hole. Professional worm collectors

strap a can of sawdust to their leg to coat their fingers
to give them better traction; I prefer to wipe my hands
on my pants occasionally to remove the mucous from my
fingers.

If you've never picked up nightcrawlers before, don't get
discouraged if you break some in half or if many of them
get away. It requires a little time to become efficient and
you'll get there in a matter of minutes.

Don't worry about depleting the population, it can't be done.
I have robins nesting in my yard that eat thousands of them
every year, not to mention the box turtles that rise before
the sun to eat their fill. After ten years of picking up
crawlers, I have more now than ever.

I usually catch two or three hundred worms to last me
throughout the fishing season. I keep my worms in the
fridge in a six-pack cooler, and it has its own revered spot
on the bottom shelf.






















Make sure your fridge doesn't get below freezing or you'll soon
wind up with a terrifically horrid smelling mess! For the
bedding, I've found the best thing to use is leaves.
I rake them up off the ground in the fall and dry them in the sun on
my driveway, then grind them on the concrete with my hands
until they're ground into small pieces. Before adding the leaves
to the cooler, I wet them just enough so that you can't squeeze
any water out of them. I collect enough leaves to change the
bedding four or five times throughout the summer, and when
changing the bedding I discard any weak looking or dead worms.
If dead worms remain in the cooler for very long it'll kill the rest
of them in a matter of weeks.


Any questions?

Hit the comments and I'll be happy to help you out.