Everyone here has a passion for their ponds and pour time, effort and fortune into them but I was curious as to what other hobbies do people here have?

Hunting,raising a garden and just plain o living in the country

You mean hobbies that were put aside to complete and manage a pond system..:-))
I have my own wildlife refuge I spend a lot of time on, I fly Large scale RC helicopters professionally, I fish walleye tourneys semi-professionally, I'm a full-scale pilot and spend some time practicing aerobatics.. I do seem to have a bit of a green thumb-I think obtained from my mother-and I enjoy growing different trees (or the challenge of) growing trees from seed.
I consider my job working with fisheries as an actual job but in reality, it's a love for that that keeps me involved so technically, more of a hobby.

Cooking, teaching chess to kids, fishing. Enjoy reading & learning stuff new to me.

I enjoy most anything that gets me out of the house.

I did competitive tractor pulling for many years. I like an evening at the dirt track watching midget or sprint car races. I've got a vegetable garden and small fruit tree orchard. I enjoy an occasional horseback ride. I like to build things. I like to hunt the woods for morel mushrooms. I like to hunt the woods for meat.

But given the choice, I'd just as soon be fishing as doing anything else.

I guess I should of listed my other hobby. I drag race and try to raise a garden. You know there just is something about spending a $100 to raise $5 worth of tomato's.

Ha! I've been there, done that.

Those 20 dollar a pound tomatoes go good with our 50 dollar a pound fish...kinda like hunting
Dave

Upland bird hunting

Car and truck restoration keeps me from being idle when I'm not messing with the pond, remodeling a part of the house, hunting/fishing, o or hanging with my grand-daughter. I have completed a 67 Mustang an working on a 72 Chevy truck, and I have a 67 GTO in the waiting which I'll get started on a couple of years if all goes as planned with the truck. I also dabble in metal art... Horseshoes and such.

Hunting, Fishing, Golf, Wood Carving and Wood Turning, Training Labs and running in Hunt Test, Being Outdoors whether Shroom hunting etc.. Probably forgot to list a few others. Not sure how many more I can add to my list. Having this property will probably create a few more I am sure.

Golf two to three times a week plus play golf simulator, fishing the beach while camping on Padre island, weekly visiting a few of several favorite bars to connect with buddies and watch TV sports, buying stuff on Amazon, hunting, close family and pets. Oh yeah...I love to barbeque and smoke meats. I also waste a lot of time on Facebook. But that's retirement.

Hunting, fishing, and reloading for rifle, handgun, and shotguns. I do a lot of work on our property with food plots and land improvements, planted 1,500+ trees over the past several years. I enjoy working on and using my old dozers, excavators, tractors, etc for improvements in and around the pond, a member of several old tractor and equipment clubs. I also enjoy restoring old cars, trucks and equipment (1965 Mustang, 1979 Lincoln Town Car, WWII Clark Airborne Crawler, WWII LeTourneau pan scraper). We keep 20-25 beehives, cooking and smoking meats, gardening, growing mushrooms, travel, attending Pond Boss Conferences, gun shows, antiques, and military history. Thanks.

Bryan

+1 on that.
Plus, 6 grandkids, fishing, plus I spend way too much time riding and thinking about riding motorcycles. Have an “adventure” bike good for gravel roads and highway. Like long trips and camping off the bike.

Amazing how many of us restore old cars. I have done that for near 20 years. Too many to list in the past but still have 1969 Mustang Mach 1, 1933 All steel Ford Fordor sedan street rod (Bonnie and Clyde car",1972 VW super beetle,1966 big block El Camino,and even a restored 1978 Jeep CJ7. I did dirt track race for several years but got out of that.Wife and I bought a little motorhome and we love to travel and follow little league baseball.Just got back from Driving the oversea hiway all the way to Key West Florida. Couple years back we drove all the way to Williamsport,Pa. and spent the whole week at the Little League World Series. And of course we love stopping at any casino we come across...maybe more than we should. Bass fishing is a passion...did it professionaly for 15 years.

Here are a couple pictures of my drag race units. I have been around drag racing most of my life. I finally got the Mustang about 10 yrs ago and redid it. It was already a drag car. The Ranger I built myself from the ground up. They are not show cars by any means, just something to have a little fun with.

Bigpullerman, I used to drag race a 73 nova, but sold it in 2005 and bought a 2003 vette and mod it some. I have taken it to the track, but it's not the same as a good drag car, which I do miss. I also used to ride dirt bikes (motorcycle) but gave that up too. I didn't mind a broken bone now and then, but when I almost lost my left leg and fractured my lower back,hip and many ribs all at one time 10 years ago, I figured it was time to give it up. lol! I do like mushroom hunting in the spring. I like going to gun shows and collecting old guns, and I've started collecting a few old coins and civil war stuff. I also like to hunt for arrowheads when I get a chance.

My dad was stationed near Padre Island when I was born. He caught so many sea trout & redfish while wade fishing that he ended up getting a commercial license to supplement the family income.

Have been restoring wildlife habitat on our 100-acre place for almost 30 years. We have planted over 10,000 trees, put in prairies, added 3 ponds and over half a dozen wetlands. Wife raises lots of native plants from seed when not growing and selling vegetables at the farmers market. Have been restoring a Dodge M37 with my son, and building furniture with both my son and daughter for their homes. Have remodeled (moved walls, built post-and-beam covered porch all around house, installed hardwood and ceramic-tile floors, replaced all windows and doors - and added some extra windows and doors, installed new kitchen and bathroom). I also like driving my 09 Miata money pit with an engine swap and supercharger. Currently having a built trans swapped in to handle the new power unit. Hoping to build a new pond this year with the dozer and backhoe. Will try and do more when I retire although I move a lot slower than I once did.

I collect guns. Mainly Belgian made Browning semi auto 22's. I am addicted to those little rifles.

While I don't collect just one type or brand, I mostly like to collect 22s, because I like the small frame stuff. I probably have 20 or more from 1860s-1930s, besides my more modern ones.

I've never actually tried to collect anything but a lot more than a safe full of guns have followed me home over the years. And then, there are all of the full tackle boxes/rods and reels and a heckuva lot of hand loading stuff.

I enjoy skeet shooting with my kids (4 girls) ages 18, 17, and 11 year old twins. I workout as much as possible. Just built a crossfit gym in my shop which the kids do with me. The wife she watches LOL. She is very supportive just don't care todo it. Almost all of my time is with them doing some kind of sport or activity. We have used are pond for numerous things. WE have had a jet boat, jetskit, ice skated, skied across (pulled by a razor) 10 NAKED PEOPLE (adults) lol, 30-40 teenagers swimming. Im in to anything possible that's gets everyone off the couch.

Only picture I found of my 1965 Mustang. I had added two walls of pallet racking in the barn and had moved several items outside for the day.

Scott69, I saw your affinity for Belgium made Brownings, and chance you are a fellow member of the Browning Collectors Club? Thanks.

Bryan

Dug up a couple of pics to show off of my late-in-life discovered love (not my wife, although she does fit that description)...

Cool thread, by the way...we need more pics. I'd love to see some Belgium Brownings (coming from a someone who has is granddad's 12 ga stashed away).

Very very cool metal art!!

Bird huntin..


Motorcycle trip from Missouri to Prudhoe Bay AK and back. This pic taken on Atigun Pass on the Dalton


Camping in Colorado.


You don’t want me to get started on grandkid pics.. lol

I hunt a lot. I take kids turkey hunting. I fish all I can. I also hunt mushrooms. Years vary a lot. It has been several years since we had a good crop, but this year is shaping up ok.

This picture is from several years ago.



There are chanterelles, hawk’s wings and king boletes. This was a really good day.

Some pretty cool pictures of all the different hobbies. Of course our hobbies are just like taking care of our ponds in that we all have a passion for them.

No. I am not a member, but I do have a 22 short semi auto that was made in the Belgium custom shop that was offered to BCA members only. They only made 150 of them. I have thought about joining and just never have. I heard they have a pretty nice classified section, is that correct?

Sheesh!

My favorite hobby is meeting on Monday mornings with my counselor to determine which hobby projects need to get moved from my "To Do" list to my "To Don't" list.

Being ADD/ADHD, and retired, is wonderful. We never have time to get bored.

Hey Scott,

The BCA does have a large listing of classifieds. They have a nice banquet at the spring Wanamaker Gun Show in Tulsa, lots of nice Browning displays at the show too. I do have a nicely engraved Belgium SA22, my favorites are the Belgium Browning A5’s. Memories of walking along with my dad and his buddies with their A5’s pheasant hunting have stuck with me I guess. Thanks.

Bryan

I currently have 11 of the sa 22's. I have been looking hard to find a 1956 short. They had a 19 inch barrel for the first part of 1956 and have had a 22 inch barrel ever since for the 22 shorts. I got lucky and found #315. I doubt I'll ever see another one.

Love it, Ken!!! Hilarious!

Astronomy.

Probably the favorite thing I do is cook for the family and kids when they all come home for Holidays. Tonite is applewood smoked prime rib, grilled garden asparagus, and smoked jalapeno poppers and twice baked loaded potatoes.

roundy, how long do you leave that sized prime rib on the smoker? I have a smoker like yours and have cooked a lot of thigs overnight when sleeping. But I have not done a prime rib. My biggest concern is too much might be under cooked for my wifey, ha! not me but her. I dam near have to burn things for her lol.

TGW1 - It was about 15# and was medium rare in 4 hours at 250 degrees. If I need well done slices, I have my gas grill hot and ready when slicing and throw the well done ones on there for a few minutes. Bingo - Bango everyone is now happy. If you want pink slices be sure to start checking temps early in the cooking process. I do every 20 minutes about 3 hours in, take off at about 125 F for MR as it will continue to cook a little bit as you let it set before slicing.

Thank you Sir. I have wanted do try the Prime rib but gets pretty expensive if I screw it all up and nobody want to eat it lol. I think I will try it your way. It looks good.

A meat thermometer, patience, and a cooking temperature between 225-250 is almost foolproof.

Now that wud be pretty damn coo to look thrur

I am enjoying reloading....

6.8SPC and now .308 .

T how do you like the varget powder? In the .308

I have just started using it in the recently purchased rifle. From the initial ladder test it looks promising.