I wanted to write something profound for a New Year's blog -- something appropriate for the old year going out and the new coming in. I could have written about the past year, but frankly, with all the terrorist activity, and demonstrations and plane crashes, I figured that wouldn't be on a positive note. And by the way, my glass is half full. I'm not a pessimist by nature. And then I thought I'd write about how great it would be for a new year that wouldn't have all the negatives, where we'd really make progress with the world's problems. Well.....maybe. Then I thought I'd write about my New Year's resolutions, which almost never are adhered to after a week or three. So, I figured it would be safe to write about happy times, back when I was a kid and I had no worries other than catching a bigger fish than my buddies, or head-shooting a squirrel out of a tall oak.

My last blog described an elk hunt with General Chuck Yeager where he gave me his rifle. In order to keep the blog from becoming too lengthy, I omitted a profound incident that deserves to be told.

I'm no stranger to elk hunts. I began hunting elk back in my 20's, and my interest and passion for hunting them grew to the point where they became my primary focus. I hunted elk everywhere I could, during blistering hot early fall days to bitterly cold subzero days. Because I was a full-time staff writer for Outdoor Life magazine, time was not an issue. I hunted nonstop, continually taking up the challenge in different states and different mountain ranges. I couldn't hunt elk enough.

There are still some hunters today who believe that does should never be targeted, no matter the circumstances. That attitude is centered on the notion that the more does, the more breeding animals, and therefore more bucks later on. That was the prevailing attitude when I was a teenager. It was considered a cardinal sin to shoot a doe. Biologists held town meetings to explain new wildlife management practices.

Many of you know that I like to cook. No, actually I love to cook. And some of you know that I published Amazing Venison Recipes, a collection of more than 200 venison recipes. That book was published exactly 20 years ago and sold upwards of 100,000 copies. During that time, many folks asked me what my all-time favorite venison recipes are. Many also asked if I was going to do another cookbook on fish, upland game, small game, etc.

Many folks believe that elk hunting is the toughest of all hunts in North America, when considering the more common species. To be sure, mountain goat and sheep hunting can be grueling, but elk, in my opinion, get the gold medal for being most challenging, day in and day out.

A few years ago, while having dinner with famous bowhunter Chuck Adams, who is arguably the best known bowhunter alive today, we chatted about venison. We compared notes from the animals we'd taken on many continents. In this case, venison is defined as the flesh of a hooved wild animal, which would include all the African antelope, moose, caribou, deer, elk, etc. I asked Chuck what his all-time favorite venison is, and I was astounded when he said Sitka blacktail deer. Amazing, because that's my all-time favorite as well.

I hesitate to make this photo public because I need to get to the U.S. Patent Office with this new invention. I'm talking about a nifty procedure to get rid of snow. I call it the Go Back and Forth method with your vehicle. But I really don't have time to work with the Patent people, so I'll tell my friends on my blog.

Ok, so you have some really nasty, gamey venison to cook.  It's not inedible, just strong.  Do you toss it, feed it to the dogs, or make a valiant effort to at least cook it and hope for the best?

NOW I know why I was so compelled to cut and split all this firewood last spring, summer, and fall. This image shows less than half of my wood supply. This is one of the earliest, heaviest snowfalls we've ever had. Twenty inches. Who knows what's yet to come? Winter hasn't officially started yet.

With deer season upon us in most of the country, lucky hunters will have fine venison meals forthcoming. How about our pet canines? They can share in the bounty too, and you don't have to feed them edible meat. Here's a nifty trick to not only get rid of the inedible scraps, but make your dogs happy little campers as well. It's healthy for them too, providing plenty of necessary fat and protein.

I'm sitting here outside in my man-cave, next to my wood pile, which is my favorite spot to hang out, weather allowing of course. Blogging isn't new to me. I quit writing them in 2006 while working for Outdoor Life Magazine, when my final blog caused a bit of a stir.