Pond Excavation & Build

Red_Alert said:
hmmm

They're better than domesticated around here. Could be their diet.
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Same in this area. The breast meat is much more moist than a domestic turkey. btw...I attack those legs. Those tendons fall right out. Also...great pix. Keep them coming.
 
dikowt dowg said:
Same in this area. The breast meat is much more moist than a domestic turkey. btw...I attack those legs. Those tendons fall right out. Also...great pix. Keep them coming.
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I do a lot of nature photography. Sunrise/Sunset Moonrise/Moonset are some of my favorites.

This coyote is in the very field I'm putting the pond in now. That's the view out my living room and dining room windows, hence me putting the pond in that spot. After about 15 minutes of milling around over there he finally figured out I was watching him out the window. LOL
At 11 weeks my lab pup doesn't go out by himself at night.

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Red_Alert said:
I do a lot of nature photography. Sunrise/Sunset Moonrise/Moonset are some of my favorites.

This coyote is in the very field I'm putting the pond in now. That's the view out my living room and dining room windows, hence me putting the pond in that spot. After about 15 minutes of milling around over there he finally figured out I was watching him out the window. LOL
At 11 weeks my lab pup doesn't go out by himself at night.

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Take the shot!!
 
Everyone bitches about coyotes, but they keep a lot of pests away, just with their scent alone.

I got one that frequents our shit now and then...
yote.jpg

get him on the game cam every so often...
 
Fish said:
Take the shot!!
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I leave that clean up to my boy and his friends. He has a digital coyote call and decoy that has a squirrel tail that swings around. They'll drop 2 or 3 at a time some evenings.

There's an abundance of coyotes around here since there's no longer any money to be made off their pelts. 30 years ago it was worth it.
 
beardown07 said:
Everyone bitches about coyotes, but they keep a lot of pests away, just with their scent alone.

I got one that frequents our shit now and then...
View attachment 76160

get him on the game cam every so often...
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Yeah, that coyote in my pic was rootin' out a mouse, mole, or some other little critter over there. He was pouncing and digging for every bit of 10 minutes.
 
Peter Gozintite said:
Wild turkeys that i have eaten have been oily as hell, not good eating. Had some in Utah.
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I've eaten a lot of wild turkey. If you pluck it, throw it in the oven and cook it like a butterball, it's not gonna taste good.
 
Red_Alert said:
And so it begins!!

Not sure if this qualifies as a DIY, but I'm having a 3 acre pond dug. I will be helping my buddy a little in driving the skid loader and dump truck moving dirt around to my west pasture and to some neighbors who want some of this (black gold) dirt. There will be a side dumper coming down in a few days so I'll have to learn to drive that beast. No, I'm not driving the scraper. I'll leave that to the pro.
We dug a pilot hole initially just to see where the water table is (6 ft). The black dirt goes down 8 ft before it starts transitioning to a sand/soil mix. Not sure how deep yet to hit pure sand.
The depth will be 20 ft in it's deepest spots.
There will be a walk-out sand beach for swimming on one edge. A nice covered dock in another spot. The rest will just be shoreline.
I'm having another well installed out there to keep the pond at berm level and to also supply water to a few camping pads so friends/family can come out to party hard and have a place to crash.
Looks to be a 5 - 6 week project before pond completion and I can get it stocked with crappie, bass, bluegill, and catfish.

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8/10 wood bang.

not the dog.. but seems like its going to be nice
 
Peter Gozintite said:
Wild turkeys that i have eaten have been oily as hell, not good eating. Had some in Utah.
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I find any wild fowl to be quite foul tasting.

Duck and goose especially so. The meat has the same texture and tastes as calf liver.

I don't like yard raised chickens either....or the nasty eggs they lay. (it has shit all over it!)

I like store bought dairy, produce and proteins, thank you very much!
 
Bayou Tiger said:
I find any wild fowl to be quite foul tasting.

Duck and goose especially so. The meat has the same texture and tastes as calf liver.

I don't like yard raised chickens either....or the nasty eggs they lay. (it has shit all over it!)

I like store bought dairy, produce and proteins, thank you very much!
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Dove and pheasant is awesome.
 
Bayou Tiger said:
I like Quail. Doves are pretty good too. That's really the only two exceptions. hahaha


Well that and Robins but don't tell anyone you heard it from me!
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Just tell ‘em you meant Red Robin
 
Bayou Tiger said:
I like Quail. Doves are pretty good too. That's really the only two exceptions. hahaha


Well that and Robins but don't tell anyone you heard it from me!
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There’s not enough wild quail around here to hunt anymore. It’s good, but it’s always farm raised when I get it. Big fan of pickled quail eggs too
 
We put one in 2020. Went from this...
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To
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Probably a half acre, range in depth from 15 feet to 2-3 feet. It was always a low spot in the pasture that held water and has a high clay content. When we were digging, the hoe cut through the moist area and water started pouring out of the wall like a firehose. If I didn't know any better you'd think we hit a water line.

Due to the pre-dig moisture content, there was enough of a bog to host some crayfish and frogs, but I'm delighted to know that all the fish in the pond are there because of me. Once the sediment settled a bit, year one, I started by catching minnow in a local stream. Released a few dozen which multiplied rapidly to create an additional food source. I also bought and release five grass carp to help with the grass control.

Year two, with a stable food source of minnow, crayfish and tadpoles, we added bass and brim. They will take some grow time, but I've been noticing the brim bedding along the edges, so they too are multiplying.

I like to walk the pond at night and see all the night creatures. Have two turtles, two diamondback water snakes and had two plain belly water snakes but I think a hawk ate one (I watched that happen, swooped down, snagged a snake, and slurped it down like spaghetti). I've enjoyed watching mergansers, woods ducks and kingfisher that visit along with the occasional heron.
 
Parka said:
Such a cool project, I'm already thinking about the landscaping! Is it still going as planned?
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Yeah.
Most of the digging is done. The diesel pump's been removed and it's filling up about 6" a day.

Got a side dumper coming in today to start hauling the dirt away. It's all been bought.
Calling the fish hatchery today to get that scheduled.
Next up will be getting a well pump installed, a wind/solar hybrid system to power the well, camping pads, and guest house.
Getting some vegetation around it to prevent erosion.
Then finally getting a dock installed when I know where the water level will be.

I'll post some pics later.
 
Red_Alert said:
Yeah.
Most of the digging is done. The diesel pump's been removed and it's filling up about 6" a day.

Got a side dumper coming in today to start hauling the dirt away. It's all been bought.
Calling the fish hatchery today to get that scheduled.
Next up will be getting a well pump installed, a wind/solar hybrid system to power the well, camping pads, and guest house.
Getting some vegetation around it to prevent erosion.
Then finally getting a dock installed when I know where the water level will be.

I'll post some pics later.
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That thing going to be big enough to water ski?
 
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