high plains outdoors

Walking back to the ranch headquarters after an afternoon mule deer hunt last week in northern New Mexico, I stopped to cast a backwards glance at the night sky and the outline of the Continental Divide, the summit of which lay about a half mile to my west.

Luke is off this coming week for New Mexico to hunt mule deer with his muzzleloader.

Each year, Luke makes the drive to northern NM around the village of Cuba to hunt with his friends, David and Regina Williams, owners of Hunters Supply Bullets. 

Hunting seasons are quickly approaching and it's time to give some thought to upcoming camp meals. In today's show, Luke walks us through the steps of preparing some mighty tasty Mexican Cornbread.

You probably won't find this recipe in a cookbook anywhere - it's one Luke has devised through trial and error. 

Archery whitetail season is just around the corner and Luke has had his new Gearhead Bow out in quest of camp meat! 

In today's show, Luke tells of a hunt earlier in the week for wild hogs with his buddy Jeff Rice on Jeff's Buck and Bass Ranch, near Lake Fork in eastern Texas.

Just this past week, Luke traveled up to Red River County, situated in the northeast corner of Texas, a few miles south of the Red River to the Rio Rojo Rancho www.riorojorancho.com, owned by his friends, Mike and Lori Ford.

Football fans might remember Mike's career as a star quarterback with SMU back in the 80s, and later, the NFL with Tampa Bay.

Join Luke this week for High Plains Outdoors.

He gives a recipe for wild pork gusiado that is easy to prepare.

Luke also talks a bit about an upcoming bow hunt for axis deer on his friend Mike Ford's Rio Rojo Ranch situated in Red River County near the Texas/Oklahoma border. 

In this week's High Plains Outdoors, Luke discusses the advances in compound bows since he first began shooting and hunting with one back a quarter-century ago.

Today's bows are much quieter, faster, lighter and easier to shoot than bows just a few years ago, thanks to advancements in technology. 

This week, Luke discusses catching giant blue catfish during the summer months (right now).

Traditionally, the big blues are caught during late fall and the winter months.

Lake Tawakoni guide Tony Pennebaker told Luke during a spring fishing trip that he felt confident that the big blues should go on a dependable bite in August, after they finish spawning and disperse widespread over the lake.

This week, Luke discusses the impact that social media has made on the way outdoor folks connect. Sites such as Facebook offer groups with like interests that vary from topics as diverse as night hunting for wild hogs to catching salmon in Alaska. Social media 'connects' those of us that love the outdoors in a way that was not possible before the internet.

In this week's High Plains Outdoors, Luke shares one of his favorite camp recipes that actually can be prepared at home before the camping trip.

Refried beans is something that is often taken for granted, something served at a Mexican restaurant as a side dish to enchiladas or fajitas. And they often taste like, well, just mashed beans.

But seasoned properly and cooked to the right consistency, refried beans become a bit more than a side dish. 

Take a listen as Luke explains how he makes ‘em!  

When I was a youngster, I remember my Dad using an old window weight tied on a piece of rope to determine the depth below our little 12-foot wooden boat. He had the rope marked in three-foot increments and simply lowered the weigh overboard and counted down until the weight hit bottom.

We did a lot of ‘trotlining’ and he always set his lines parallel to a creek channel. I remember spending hours bouncing that weight off bottom and marking trees that grew along the submerged creek channels.  Later the ‘flasher’ units became popular and fishermen bought them with relish.

In a recent show, Luke talked about the awesome fishing for channel catfish at Lake Tawakoni in northeast Texas.

Guide Tony Pennebaker and Luke enjoyed some action packed catfishing and Tony divulged some of his fish catching secrets that should help us all put fish in the boat. On this trip, Tony reached into his ice chest and handed Luke a pint jar that Luke's nicknamed, "Tony's lunch in a jar.”

I was well into my twenties before I set down to a platter of catfish fillets. I was raised eating catfish either fried whole or cut into ‘steaks’. My Dad probably didn’t even know what a ‘fillet’ was. Had he known, I’m positive he would have considered the practice of filleting a waste of good fish!

In past shows, Luke has talked about making ham from wild hog backstrap. Join him this week as he walks us through the process of sugar curing and smoking a bone-in, whole ham from a feral hog.

I am continually amazed at what I don’t know about the outdoors. Oh, I’ve spent a very active life I the woods and on the water, learning about the patterns of fish and wildlife. It’s now been almost six decades since I was a 10 year old tromping the backwoods of East Texas. As a long time outdoors writer, I have had the privilege of being schooled by some expert biologists and guys that make their living in the outdoors.  In my quest to learn more, I took the courses and became a Master Texas Naturalist several years ago.

Did you ever see a new, innovative product or way of doing something that made you stop and think, “WOW, why didn’t I think of this?” As a lifelong outdoors person, I have occasionally come across such products. One was a mirror blind several years ago that a company called Ghost Blind introduced me to. I actually used and tested one of the prototypes. The blinds are lightweight and easy to pack into the woods have become very popular and revolutionized the way many of us hunt from the ground.   

Many of us will be spending time at the lake this summer and in today's High Plains Outdoors, Luke shares a quick and easy and... TASTY recipe for breakfast or brunch.

Take a listen to today's show and you'll get the idea. It might just become a favorite weekend brunch around the house, as well.

A potential client once asked Capt. Mike Williams to describe hooking, and landing a big shark. Williams, who has spent a lifetime fishing and guiding anglers in the bays and Gulf around Galveston, answered: “It’s like standing on a street corner with a rod and reel and hooking a passing Harley Davidson going 80 miles an hour. I tell my new clients to anticipate the fish fight of their lives, then multiply their expectations by 10, and they will come close to understanding the sheer power of a big shark.

Through the years, I have been designated cook in camps from the wilds of Canada to south of the border. I absolutely love cooking outside and preparing meals that are simple and tasty. This past weekend while filming a cooking segment for my weekly outdoor show, I prepared a Dutch Kettle recipe that I learned years ago from the late Bob Hood, who wrote about the outdoors for almost a half-century. Bob was a great Dutch Kettle cook and taught me a recipe for quail that we used on many quail hunts.

Luke is about to head to the wilds of northern Saskatchewan to Iskwatikan Lake Lodge for five days of catching walleye, pike and lake trout.

In today's show, Luke explains how easy it is to coordinate the travel and details of actually 'getting there.’

Feel free to email Luke for more information through his website or visit the following two links for more information. 

This week, Luke recaps a couple of very enjoyable days earlier in the week that he spent with his friends, the Rices, at their Buck and Bass Ranch in east Texas.

Richard Rice traveled from Arizona and harvested a big wild boar and Luke connected with a small 'eater' hog, the backstraps from which he had on the smoker within an hour after the harvest.

The resulting pulled pork BBQ backstrap sandwiches made for an awesome lunch - from the woods to the dinner table in 3.5 hours!

Luke's guest for today's show is fishing guide Seth Vanover.  Seth guides on Lake Fork and Lake Of The Pines in eastern Texas for crappie, catfish and trophy largemouth bass. 

In today's show, Seth goes into detail explaining the subtleties of summer fishing for crappie using a jig and light tackle.    

In this week's show, Luke heads to Lake Tawakoni to catch a bunch of 'eater' size blue catfish weighing between two and 10 pounds with veteran catfish guide, Tony Pennebaker.

The dead of winter is prime time for catching numbers of  trophy size blues but now is the time to stock the freezer with good eating, smaller catfish.

In today’s show, Luke shares some catfishing catching tips from Pennebaker that will help your plan your trip.

More turkey talk this week on High Plains Outdoors! Luke enjoyed an exciting turkey hunt at Dale River Ranch with his friend and manager at the ranch, Randy Douglas. 

Luke had a gobbler sneak in behind him and open up gobbling, as loud as a gobbler can gobble, at a mere 15 feet. Well, click and listen to Luke tell the story. 

Luke talks about what's on the outdoor agenda this coming week.

First comes a turkey hunt early next week on the Dale River Ranch www.daleriverranch.com in Palo Pinto County, Texas with Luke’s friend, Randy Douglas, who manages the ranch.

Later in the week, Luke travels up to Lake Fork to participate in the Yantis Catfish Classic to join his friend, Jeff Rice, and rather than fish in a boat, the duo will go 'Old School’ and fish with cane poles in a creek on the upper end of the lake.

Many turkey hunters are at a loss as to how to use the thighs and drumsticks from the wild turkeys they harvest. Granted, these are the very toughest part of the bird but they can be made tender.

Tune in this week to learn how Luke transforms them into some of the very best fajitas imaginable!

Learn more about Luke by visiting www.catfishradio.org

This week, Luke tells about an exciting new adventure (for him) - CALLING WILD HOGS!

Luke used THE BULLET HP by Convergent Hunting Solutions to successfully call several wild hogs within camera range. One almost touched THE BULLET with its nose and all came within close rifle range.

Calling hogs, just like any other outdoor endeavor, doesn't work every time, but Luke is 3 for 3 in his early efforts.

This past week, Luke joined his friend Jeff Rice and some good friends on Jeff's Buck and Bass Ranch situated on the upper end of Lake Fork in northeast Texas and did some "old school" cane pole fishing in a creek that traverses the ranch.

The poles were set out and checked every couple of hours while the guys tossed downsized jigs and spinner baits for crappie, white and yellow bass.

A big fish fry back at camp wrapped up the festivities.

If you think calling wild hogs within rifle or bow range is not a 'doable' deal, better think again.

Glenn (hog caller) Guess, aka The Hog Zombie, called in this monster boar that actually charged Deryl Markgraf. On three other calling sessions, Guess and Markgraf had hogs come into the call and harvested five on this hunt.

This past week, Luke's newspaper column quoted some words from Robert Rourke, the famous outdoors writer, about sportsmen putting the fish and game they catch and kill to good use on the table.

One of Luke's readers replied to the column with an apology for not butchering and eating all the wild hogs he kills. Luke sent a reply explaining that wild hogs are not considered game animals, although they are excellent eating - even better than venison, in Luke's opinion.