Kahuna Rendezvous 2014!

Just Brother Jas and I this year or our annual bow hunting/camping trip in honor of our departed friend and hunting mentor, Kenny "Kahuna" Koepsel. Buckhorn State Park in Necedah, WI - on the shores of Castle Rock Lake. That bow hunting time of the year. No - no pics of deer. Alas, the WI DNR in their infinite wisdom designated this park (as well as much of the state) as "bucks only" with a bow. First time I've ever hunted when I couldn't shoot a doe. Ohhh I probably wouldn't have hit anything anyway. But this trip is never about just deer hunting - it's about being in Nature. Ate like we were at a 5-star restaurant and survived a low of 13 degrees one night. And yeah - we're in a tent. Warm in the tent (really). It's getting out from under the covers that's the tricky part.

And for those of our brethren who were missed during our rendezvous, a poem...

"To Those Who Have Come and Gone"

by Jeffrey James Ircink

 

That well-worn path you trod,

amongst the smells of cedar and pine, of breakfast and coffee, of leather and canvas,

Earth and Fire – your presence still lingers.

The cool air rings of your gestures and musings – your essence.

We tipped our glasses to men – those who have conversed like we – about past sojourns and of Nature – all that which binds them.

This – is our solace.

The wind and water, the flutter and hoot – all the sounds of the forest do not break

your deafening silence.

Someday we too will be talked about.

To those who have come and gone,

We would rather you did not leave.

 

 

 



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gIRLS will be gIRLS.

Cheerily blow the bugle horn
In the cool green woods of morn;
Loose the hounds and let them go,
Wax the cord and bend the bow.

- from The Witchery of Archery, by Maurice Thompson

Grace showing her sister, Gwyneth (my goddaughter) how to shoot the bow! My Christmas gift to Grace. Gwyneth got the Barbie video. The bow, most likely, will belong to Gwyneth in less than a week.

Gwyneth has sprinkles of Maria, smatterings of Donovan, and she is the apple of her godfather's eye. I AM NINO JEFF!

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Greetings from Necedah, WI!

 

Fall bowhunt! Brother Jas & I. No deer pictures, sadly. That being said, we've seen deer on every drive but haven't had shots. Honestly, getting a shot and/or getting a deer is icing on the cake. The joy - for us - is to be out in the Nature that God created and enjoying each other's company. As we make drives and sit in the woods we've traversed for over 30 years, the memories of "those good ole days" come flooding back. So many guys, drives, deer, stump shooting & laughs. To those who are no longer with us (Kenny "the Kahuna", Donny) and to those who couldn't be with us, including our immediate hunting group:   Dave, Bruce, Cousin Gerry, Uncle Fran, Gary & Dad, we thought of you often and smiled.

Click on READ MORE! for the rest of the pics.

Me talking with my hands.

Mol & Zol.

Brother Jas & Zol.

 

Though we saw deer on every drive (which is pretty decent with just two guys), our tags were not filled. Not even a shot. What's important is we were there in fellowship - two brothers... with bows in hand, in Nature, along with every man who couldn't be there with us.

Today we honored our lifelong friend & hunting mentor, Kenny "Big Kahuna" Koepsel, who passed away last November. Brother Jas & I chose a "sacred spot" - known only to us and our fellow hunters - buried an arrow in Kenny's honor, burned a smudge stick made of Russian sage from my garden & blessed the site, read a Walt Whitman poem, spread some of Ken's ashes and toasted the life of the Big Kahuna with some port. The plan is to place something more permanent there at some point. We wanted all our guys there but we'll revisit this place with the other hunters when they're able and repeat the ceremony.

It was an emotional moment for both of us. Our group of hunters learned much from Kenny, "our leader", as my father referred to him. From this day forward, an arrow will be placed in this spot for all our fallen hunters. It's the right thing to do.

I struggle readjusting to "civilization" upon returning from the bush. This occasion is no different.
 

Brother Jas, Kenny & me. Mid to late 1990's.

 

Brother Jas early morning stump shooting.

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Ken Koepsel: In Memorium.

Wonderful memorial ceremony at Buck Rub Outfitters in Pewaukee today for our dear friend and mentor, Kenny "Kahuna" Koepsel, who passed away this past November at the age of 84. Thanks to Scott Antczak - winner of 3 Indoor Worlds, 2 Traditional Worlds and 1 open World Championship (all in the Recurve Unaided Division) - who organized the tribute...a beautiful afternoon of speakers, eats, fiddle music and camaraderie. Also thanks to Gregory Kazmierski, owner of Buck Rub and WI Natural Resources board member, for hosting the event, as well as everyone who attended.

Pictured left to right: me, Uncle Fran Ircink, Shelley (one of Ken's daughters) & Mike Silber (tall guy), Brother Jason and Cousin Gerry Kraus.

I asked Scott if I could say a few words as he wanted someone to talk who knew Kenny well. It was emotional but I held my own and made it through my speech. Shelley brought me some of Ken's ashes as I requested. Our immediate group of hunters will distribute them during our own memorial for Ken sometime this next year.

You can visit my other blog links on Kenny - my tribute in words and pics, and our 3rd Annual Kahuna Rendezvous!

The Kahuna will live in our hearts forever....

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My brother's testimony before the Wisconsin DNR.

You can reference the previous blog post for background information on my brother's testimony. I could not have written a better speech.

The Brotherhood of the Arrow
A fraternity of archers bound by the legacy of Kenny Koepsel

We, The Brotherhood of the Arrow, stand opposed to the amendment of Section 9 Chapter 29.08 and the creation of Section 10 Chapter 29.08 of ACT 168. We hope that the addition of this amendment to AB 311, after the public session of AB 311, was simply an oversight on the part of our trusted Representatives and not intentional. We feel that the policy of "closed till open" has worked and forcing the DNR and the NRB to accommodate this new policy of "opened till closed" was not a wise decision. After all, 36 of 54 State Parks already have some hunting as a result of the "closed till open" policy under the recommendation of those qualified to do so. Many, if not all, with little public opposition. Now, by treating the parks as a whole instead of individually, the law has created an issue between hunters and non-hunters. An issue that could have been avoided by sticking with the old policy. If it was the intention of legislatures, as some have publicly stated, to create more opportunity for small game and waterfowl hunting, we wish they would have done so under the old law to avoid public outcry. If more deer hunting was wanted then this could have also been added with the input of the people that manage the parks on a daily basis. We are not opposed to hunting in state parks; we are just opposed to the way it was handled.

The Brotherhood of the Arrow is a fraternity of archers bonded by the legacy of Kenny Koepsel. It is upon his encouragement before his recent passing that we are here.

Buckhorn State Park is only open to archery deer hunting. It has been this way since its beginning. The park is a peninsula jutting out into the Castle Rock Flowage. At one point in the history of the peninsula before it became a State Park it is said that during the gun deer season the locals lined up on Hwy G and pushed the entire peninsula south to the flowage. The flowage was ice. The ensuing carnage that occurred is believed to be the main reason why the park was open to archery only. The Wisconsin Bowhunters Association also lobbied for an archery only season and I suspect that Necedah being at one time The Bowhunting Capital of the World played a part in it.

The park grew immensely after Joe Stecker- Kochanski took over as park manager. Acquiring lands north and east of the original park boundaries, these lands were also set aside as archery only. Joe thought that since these power company lands were originally open to gun deer hunting it should stay that way. He didn't want to people to lose hunting areas. One year later he had it back open for gun hunting. The original park remained as archery deer only. Joe could have changed that, he didn't, probably for the same reason. It is a place for archers. Lands were also acquired north of the Buckhorn Bridge and became known as the Yellow River Wildlife Area. This area is open to archery deer, gun deer, small game, turkey and waterfowl hunting. Joe also had the park opened to a limited number of turkey permits and the Buckhorn Wildlife Area offers archery, small game and waterfowl hunting.

We feel that gun deer hunting would destroy the quality archery deer hunt that has existed at the Buckhorn for 40 years. We fear that history would repeat itself if guns are allowed back on the peninsula to hunt deer. Bowhunters have kept deer numbers in check throughout the years along with the Learn To Hunt Weekend. Our plea to you is, in the spirit of tradition and the fact that there are few places unique to archery only, that the park remain as is. We ask that all state park areas in the original boundaries including the parcels west of 19th street and south of hwy G remain as archery deer only. Therefore the suggested season opening would not have to be October 15 and could remain the traditional September start. The point of Act 168 is to gain not to lose. Archers would lose 30 days of hunting in a park that has had no conflict of interest in 40 years. If small game and waterfowl hunting are to be permitted they could open October 15.

The wildlife areas along with the park areas West of Hwy G and North of 31st street currently offer 3831 acres of small game, waterfowl and trapping opportunities and 3390 acres of gun deer hunting. The addition of the 1200 acres West of Hwy G and North of 31st street would bring the total for small game and trapping to 5031 acres.

We hope you can see that the Buckhorn Peninsula already has ample hunting and trapping opportunities. Opportunities that exist without any implementation of the new Act 168. Opportunities that exist through the diligence of knowledgeable people that knew what was best for the park they managed.

Please consider continuing this great tradition of archery at Buckhorn State Park for the archers of today and those yet to be.

The Brotherhood of the Arrow.

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My brother...the activist.

Brother Jason is headed to Madison tomorrow to speak at the Wisconsin Natural Resources Board hearing on Assembly Bill 311 (later becoming Act 168), often referred to as the "Sporting Heritage Bill". The bill, introduced by Representative Jim Steineke (R-Kaukana), establishes a bipartisan sporting recruitment and retention task force, creates incentives to hunt, fish and trap, among other things.

I'm very proud of my brother, whose passion for the outdoors is matched by his tenacity to try to right a wrong. He'll be speaking for our group of hunters - The Brotherhood of the Arrow, "a fraternity of archers bound by the legacy of Kenny 'Kahuna' Koepsel" - our dear friend and leader who passed away in November. You can read about Kahuna here - we lost a good man.

I'm not going to get into any more specifics of the bill - it's already been passed (taking effect January 1, 2013) and you can read it later (you know, like what Nancy Pelosi stated regarding the Obamacare bill). The DNR is making its recommendations for implementation, as the DNR finds a number of issues with the bill. Of the 2,000 letters, phone calls and emails from concerned citizens (hunters and non-hunters), only 85 were in favor of passage.

Here's my main grievance:

After Bill 311 was introduced, a public hearing was held. The outcry was overwhelming. Shortly after that - 9 days later - Congressman Jeffrey Mursau (R-Crivitz) introduced an amendment to Bill 311 (Amendment 4/AB 311) that read, "...hunting, fishing, and trapping in state parks;...". No public hearing was held after Mursau added this and the bill was eventually signed by Governor Scott Walker.

Basically, this means that public park hunting land that was once reserved for archers may now be open to gun hunters. Mursau did what many politicians do - slip bits of verbiage that no one knows about into on-going legislation and that's that.

And the nail in the coffin is that the Buckhorn State Park in Necedah where we've hunted for decades is most effected by Act 168. 3,831 additional acres will now be available to gun hunters of the 6,990 total acreage. But hey, according to bill co-sponsor Representative Al Ott (R-Forest Junction), it's all in a day's work.

"I suppose you want to throw stones at us." Ott went on to state that sometimes the Legislature does not do enough homework upfront and that this was one of those times.

Which makes it all the more easier to just pass shit without the public knowing about it, right, Alvin? Aside from the fact that you could already gun hunt in certain areas of 36 of the 54 state parks (rough figures) and this piece of legislation just opened up a can of worms. Why add more? This is not a condemnation of methods to improve Wisconsin's hunting heritage nor of gun hunters. It IS a condemnation of the sneaky tactics ALL politicians utilize to get their names attached to legislation. If you held one hearing on a bill and changes are made to said bill, you can hold another hearing outlining the changes. It's very simple.

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Fair thee well, Kahuna.

 

The "Kahuna" under the light of a Coleman lantern.

 
 

Our dear friend, Kenny Koepsel - The "Kahuna", for he organized and lead us on our bowhunting trips - has passed peacefully on to that great hunting ground in the sky. Kenny lost his battle with leukemia a week ago tomorrow after having just celebrated his 84th birthday on Saturday. If he looks familiar to you, Kenny bartended at Ray & Dot's - "The Legion" (Ray was his brother) since the late 1950's (retiring in the late 1990's) - a Greendale watering hole known well by the Ircink family, extended family and many of Kenny's hunting buddies. My father began hunting with Ken when Dad was 15 and those who hunted with the Kahuna have shared decades of wonderful moments with him. He was a husband, father, grandfather, a teacher, an outdoorsman, a hunter and unselfish every step of the way. I, like so many others, learned much from Kenny and loved him deeply. Thank God I was lucky to see him in perfect spirits just three weeks ago.

 

We - the guys in our immediate group of bow hunters - were all asked to write a few words about Kenny (by his three daughters). My words are what follows:

"Farewell, my friend,

my beautiful friend,

farewell.

You take the high road,

I’ll take the low road,

and we’ll meet again…”

 

– from Dennis Wilson’s “Farewell My Friend”, 1977

 

I had just shot my first deer the fall of my senior year in high school. The hunters gathered around to hear my story and give chase. Enter the Kahuna – who quickly settled me down (as well as the anxious bow hunters) and set into motion a plan to track and surround the deer so it wouldn’t venture too far into the woods. Once a small group of hunters had encircled the deer – it hadn’t run more than a hundred yards or so – they were to wait for Kenny’s command to move in. I took up my position and Kenny walked up, kneeling down beside me. He started asking me questions – where did I think I hit the deer, how far a shot was it, was it doe or a buck. Then he put his hand on my shoulder and gently said, “I want you to know the deer is not suffering, Jeffrey. We’ll just give it a few minutes and see what happens, OK?” A tender moment…which gave me more insight into the man behind “the Kahuna”.

Over the years I’ve learned much about hunting from my father, brother, Uncle Fran, Cousin Gerry, Dave, Bruce, Gary, Rick, other hunters in our party – and, of course, Kenny. My time with him was spent not only pursuing deer with bow and arrow – we laughed, joked, broke bread, swapped stories, talked about life and my interests outside of hunting. Once we got back to the actual hunt, Kenny switched into “Kahuna-mode”, receiving the respect which he was so deserving of. For above all, Kenny was a teacher. A taskmaster when it came to the hunt, but one of the kindest, gentlest souls I’ve ever met and unselfish to the core. I have the deepest respect for many of the men I hunt with and I am fortunate to know many great men. But the mold was broken with Kenny. Though he has passed from this life, in truth – Kenny will always be with us. From the smell of the earth beneath our feet, to the sound of an arrow whizzing through the air, or the cry of a hunter as a deer is spotted, Though he will not be seen – Kenny’s presence will be felt. The camaraderie we share during future hunts – and within our daily lives – will continue and most certainly reflect Ken’s lasting influence. On Thanksgiving Day, as I was saying goodbye to my family, my father – a man of few words – yelled after me, “Say a prayer for Kenny.” And, of course, I did.

“…I am not to speak to you, I am to think of you when I sit alone or wake at night alone,

I am to wait, I do not doubt I am to meet you again,

I am to see to it that I do not lose you.”

– excerpt from Walt Whitman’s “To A Stranger”, Leaves of Grass

What an honor it has been to be your friend and share so many moments in Nature with you, Kenny. I wish you Godspeed. You have my deepest admiration and love. May every arrow I launch fly true, and be in your memory, Kahuna.

Love, Jeffrey

(Above:  Brother Jason, Ken and me. Mid 1990's.) For more picture of Kenny and the men who loved him dearly, click on READ MORE!

Mauston Bow Hunt - 2006. Left to right: Kenny, Bill Dudi, Bill Prouka, Greg Pilot, Cousin Gerry Kraus, Brother Jason, Dad in foreground.

 

Mauston Bow Hunt 2006. Dad & Kenny.

Mauston Bow Hunt. December 1985. Left to right: Gary Schmidt (kneeling), me, Cousin Gerry Krause, Kenny, Jason, Big Jerry Graham, Uncle Fran Ircink.

Mauston Bow Hunt - 1988. Left to right: Daryl (Kenny's brother-in-law), Kenny, Ken's grandson Andy, Dave Hranicka, Dad.

Mauston Bow Hunt. Ken with Brother Jas. 1990, plus or minus?

The Kahuna telling a bowhunt story at the Rendevous camping trip in Mauston, October 2010.

Rendevous camping trip in Mauston, October 2010. Uncle Fran and Kenny.

Rendevous camping trip in Mauston, October 2010. Kenny and Uncle Fran.

Rendevous camping trip in Mauston, October 2010. Kenny's van. If you know Kenny, need I say more? ;)

Rendevous camping trip in Mauston, October 2010. Dad and Kenny.

Rendevous camping trip in Mauston, October 2011. Left to right: Kenny, Ted Witorek & wife, Bill Dudi, Dad and Brother Jas.

 

Rendevous camping trip in Mauston, October 2011. Brother Jason and Kenny.

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