20.05.12

I read an article recently in the Arizona Hunters Connection booklet that states it best concerning taking care of your harvested game animal in the field. The booklet states it very simply, “Field dress, skin, hang and clean, clean, clean your animal as soon as possible.” Oh, how true that is. This goes for all game animals. It means the difference in poor tasting meat rather than ending up with quality table fare. I've heard from hunters who told me different but I'm thinking that is because they may not want to take the time to do it properly. It means you aren't wasting even a bite of that precious meat. It IS a time consumer, but well worth it when you can end up enjoying delicious, mouth watering meat while appreciating all the time and effort it took to get it there. Once you've made sure your downed animal is dead, attach your tag and take pictures, then get busy. When you're done with the field dressing, get back to camp and get your animal hung, both to drain blood collected in the cavity and to skin and clean your animal. Be sure to include a meat saw and at least a couple of extra sharp knives in your hunting gear. When you're done skinning, clean all hair and debris from the animal — it's a good idea to pick hair off one strand at a time when necessary and wash down the entire carcass. Another handy tool to have along is a clean garden sprayer for spraying cleaning water inside and out of the carcass. Cut away any of the meat contaminated by a shot — bloodshot meat ruins quickly and the rest of your meat can easily become tainted upon contact. After the meat is clean, let it air dry — clean towels can help with the drying — and wrap it in game bags to keep away flies and other insects. Keep your animal shaded (use a tarp if necessary) so the air can circulate and help keep the meat cool. If you keep the liver and heart once they're cooled, be sure you have freezer bags for storage. • US Anglers Choice: The 4th USAC Champion goes to Joe & Joey Mayerchik with a five bass limit that weighed 14.83 while second place went to the hard-to-beat team of John Turner/Jim Waits. Third place went to Ted Hook/Rick Stewart with the biggest bass of the tournament that weighed 6.43. Hook and Stewart have supported the USAC series by donating the trophies for each event which is a great donation. Their support is appreciated. Thanks to Linda at Fisher's Landing for opening the restaurant at 5:30 a.m. for signups, breakfast and the draw. The next tournament for Yuma anglers out of Fisher's Landing is March 17. For complete results visit US Anglers Choice at www.usanglerschoice.net or call Jim Sleight at 619-447-0244.

Source: Yuma Sun