Author: josh.koehler

For my third week of my sabbatical I spent most of my time in my tree stand. Hunting has always been a huge part of my life ever since I was in the third grade. There is something about being in nature perusing wild game that has had me hooked since I was a kid. Some of the animals that I hunt include Squirrel, Rabbit, Pheasant, Raccoon and by far my favorite is Whitetail Deer.

This year has been an abnormally odd season compared to past Bow seasons. I haven’t quite pin pointed the cause but I feel a lot must do with the weather. We have had a few cold fronts with Northeast winds that transitioned into warm fronts back to cold fronts with southwest winds. Because of this unusual weather pattern, the deer have not been moving like normal. I decided that due to the lack of movement I have seceded to take advantage of my time and finish up my book I am reading for my sabbatical.

The book is titled A look at Life from a Deer Stand by Steve Chapman. I figured what better way to read A look at Life from a Deer Stand than from a deer stand. I have really enjoyed this book because Steve shared some of his hunting stories and how they have impacted his life, the sacrifices that not only a hunter makes but also the family of the hunter makes and how being in the woods brings him closer to God. I can really relate to a lot of what Steve Chapman talks about because I have been able to experience a lot what he talks about. If you are an outdoorsman then I would recommend this book.

Usually, I am very particular on the buck that I harvest every year. I am very proud that the last four years I have taken a buck that were worthy of making the wall in my living room. I decided that this year I wasn’t going to focus so strongly on taking a wall hanger but harvesting a management buck. A management buck is one that doesn’t have the best genetics. A hunter chooses to do this to benefit the overall deer herd. The sacrifice is once you harvest that buck you cannot take another buck because Ohio is a one buck limit.

Last Thursday, I was lucky enough to be blessed with a great management buck. Honestly it really felt good knowing I did something that was going to benefit the overall herd and overall quality of deer in the years to come. This deer will also eat very well so I can see Jerky and snack sticks in the future.

Throughout my time with FD I have been fortunate enough to develop relationships with customers that extend beyond a business relationship. As a Select Producer I worked with Niedhard Minges Funeral Home in Cincinnati. One of their funeral directors is John Wiessmann. John and I have become good friends over the years. We both share common interest and hobbies like deer hunting, camping, sporting clays and the outdoors in general.

One of my hobbies that John began to take interest in is Taxidermy. Over the years I have mounted my own whitetail deer as well as close friends of mine. Last December, John contacted me to asked me if I would mount his deer and teach him how to do it. I quickly said yes and was very excited to pass this skill along. We both have had very busy schedules and have not been able to connect to complete the mount until now.

I have always enjoyed teaching someone something that they show great interest in and watch their skills develop. Some of my most fond memories as an at-need director was taking in mortuary school students that have never seen an embalming and train them on the process and the science behind it all. Over the weeks, I would watch their skills develop to the point they were embalming and I was just over seeing.

John came over on Thursday and we spent the day together mounting his deer. I am so grateful to have been able to spend this time with my friend and help him complete his whitetail deer mount! (The foam pieces and the pins in the images below are only there to keep everything in place while the glue dries. Once the glue is dried the pins and foam pieces will be removed.)

Week one started at a campground in southwestern Ohio called Stonelick State Park.

Stonelick is a campground that Whitney and I have been going to for over a year. A couple things that we love about this campground is that it is small for a state park, and it is very quiet and relaxing. There are acres of Hiking trains and public hunting open to Squirrel and Whitetail deer. There is also a lake that is open to fishing and kayaking.

Because of my love for this park I thought it would be a great opportunity to give back, so I decided to perform my volunteer work at the park while I stayed. State parks really struggle this time of year because their summer help returns to school and leaves them shorthanded. There is a lot on the to-do list before the winter months. I started out working with a gentleman named James. Some of our duties consisted of preparing the bathhouses and shower houses for the winter months as well as cleaning them.  We also picked up garbage on the hiking trails and around the campground, and ground down tree stumps with a stump grinder.

The next couple of days I worked with a gentleman named Mike. Mike was not a state employee but a Camper Host. Mike is a retired Machinist from Goshen, Ohio. His job is to complete task around the campground for a total of at least 20 hrs. a week. In return his camping is free for the entire season. This will be my retirement job one-day 😊. Mike and I spent most of our time cleaning up all the grindings from the stumps James and I had ground out the other days. It is amazing how many loads of wood chips come from one stump. Through our efforts there are still over 100 stumps left to grind thanks to emerald ash borer.

My time at stone lick was not all work. In the evenings I was able to spend time with Whitney, after she returned from work. I was also able to enjoy one of my hobbies, cooking over a fire.

This was a wonderful experience and I am very thankful to have been able to start my sabbatical at one of my favorite state parks.

This last picture was of our first trip to Stonelick in 2016.