Bucks of November

While some Samanians were surfing epic waist high peelers on Friday after Thanksgiving, I switched up quivers and headed out for an afternoon session in the tree stand in pursuit of a whitetail buck. With a light NW wind at the perfect angle and daylight fading, I saw this buck sneaking around the backside of the thick swale behind my stand to investigate the grunt calls that I had been making all afternoon. He was slowly working his way along the edge of the field and stopped within 30 yards of me. BOOOOOOOM! Victory never tasted so good. Another epic self absorbed mid-western adventurer mission accomplished.

Mike Sispera

Greensky Bluegrass at "The Livery" in Benton Harbor

Crew, click the title bar to see The Livery's webpage. Specializing in hand forged micro brews and great music. Anyone up for seeing Greensky play there on Wednesday night? We are heading down to K-zoo after that but it would be cool to rally with the team down there for a Greensky show. I haven't seen them since last year at New Year's Eve, and seeing them at a small venue is by far an experience not easily replicated.

New ziplines at Boyne resorts among what's noteworthy at Michigan ski resorts

Our very own samainiac Richard Wren is making headlines these days! Pioneering the new zip line at Boyne Highlands and Boyne Mountain. Who said skiing and snowboarding is the only thing to do at Boyne these days. Click on the title bar to read the whole article.

HARBOR SPRINGS -- Think soaring up a mountain on a chairlift is a thrill? How about flying from the top of a black diamond into a snow-coated valley on a zipline? The activity is among the newest adrenaline-inducing activities at Michigan ski resorts this winter.
Ziplines are being installed at Boyne Mountain in Boyne Falls and Boyne Highlands in Harbor Springs. And when completed sometime around the December holidays, the lines will take 10 to 12 guests at a time soaring through trees and across open valleys in five sections of about 200 to 500 feet each.
The journey takes about two hours to complete. And for a new, closer-to-the-ground winter adventure, there's horseback riding, being extended through winter at Boyne Highlands across many acres of trails dedicated exclusively to horses and riders.
Across the state, resort visitors will find a growing number of non-ski and snowboarding fun as well as improvements to snowmaking, terrain parks, lodging, lesson programs and more this winter.

Snow GUNS!

Well team here are some shots from last week showing how soon we will be rockin! Don't worry about that nice weather this weekend. I can feel old man winter just waiting show up in town. I can't wait for those early December mackin surf sessions and powder dumps. It really is one of the best times of year! Hope to see all of you out in white fluffy wonderful stuff very soon.

The Drifter

Hey Crew,

Marc Hoeksema and Marty Karish are showing Rob Machado's new movie "The Drifter" at Marc's gallery tomorrow night (Thursday 7:30pm). Some of us are also meeting at Fricano's Pizza Tavern around 6pm for some zaa on the Eastside GH. Marco's gallery is tucked deep into the warehouses of the Eastside so if you need some directions shoot me an email or phone call. Super shakas for all! See you tomorrow!

Hunting Season

Here are just few shots from friends on the search in the northern Great Lakes last weekend. They are hunting for something unique and special that only happens around this time of year. It's hard to explain why someone would drive hours to find a wave when they could surf at home, but it's kind of like a secret we have that no one around us quite seems to notice or care about. Everyone in life is searching for a kind of perfection which most of the time eludes them. But, for us, occasionally we escape and find that little gem where one would least expect it. I guess that is the reason we search where no one else would bother to look. The hope that somewhere out there is a little slice of perfection waiting to be found. Nice work boys!

Hunting Waves

I hope all of you are enjoying the full brunt of the wave season. If there is one thing I have learned over these years of looking for surf in far, but local places, is that the search and the score are what makes living here in the Great Lakes such a special thing. Set-ups are extremely fickle and difficult to line up. But, when everything comes together, and you look around at nuances that go unnoticed by the casual observer, the true magic appears. The Gales of November will fire up some of those fickle little gems and they will show their glory. So pick up a detailed map and head out searching, the worst you will find is another sloppy beach break, but you just might find something you will never forget.

The Search, Chilled

I had some awesome waves up north this weekend, and this video helped me get in the right state of mind to go searching. Although the cold came a bit early this year, it just means we are having more waves to surf. So get out there hogs and live the dream!

Also, check out this guys website. His article in Surfers' Journal this month was fantastic.

www.yazzyphoto.com

Lake Superior This Weekend

All time shot. One day I will pull into one of those freshwater beauties. I surfed mushers all weekend, but nothing like that. This shot fuels my desire to make it up to Superior before the season is over.

A Little Teaser

For those of us who love that beautiful frozen H20 that will soon be falling from the sky, here is a little teaser of a cool video released last year. Pray for snow!