NEBRASKAland Magazine is dedicated to outstanding photography and informative writing with an engaging mix of articles and photos highlighting Nebraska’s outdoor activities, parklands, wildlife, history and people.
Issue link: http://mag.outdoornebraska.gov/i/831879
78 NEBRASKAland • JUNE 2017 Send contributions to: Portraits from the Past, NEBRASKAland Magazine, P.O. Box 30370, Lincoln, NE 68503-0370. Or e-mail to Tim.Reigert@Nebraska.gov. Photos should show people enjoying Nebraska outdoor activities, such as camping, boating, hunting or fishing, and must have been taken before 1980. We will give priority to unusual photos or activities. When possible, please include a story about the photograph and identify the people, places and approximate date it was taken. Text may be edited and photos adjusted for reproduction. All photos will be returned. This is a photo of a buck my grandfather, Herman Blankenau, shot in 1963. The boy in the picture is me. My grandpa hit this deer on a morning hunt along the Elkhorn River near West Point. After seeing the buck drop, he went to the spot but was surprised to discover the buck had somehow escaped. He returned to his home in Dodge and my father, uncle, and I accompanied him back to track after a trip to church (it was Sunday after all). After losing the blood trail, the group was gathered to discuss what to do next in the hopes of a recovery. At that point I saw the buck in some nearby brush, drew my cap pistol and opened fire at about two yards. The buck jumped to his feet and began to run when he was shot a second time – this time with mortal results. I was not yet four years old and it was the first deer I had ever seen. The buck scored 175 6 ⁄8" Boone and Crockett and, after 53 years, it remains the largest buck I have ever seen. Grandfather was a native German and WWI vet (for Germany). He grew up wanting to hunt but due to restrictions on hunting in Germany, never did. When Nebraska opened its first deer seasons, he was very excited and always cherished the opportunity to hunt. Sometimes we take things like that for granted. Thanks much. – Don Blankenau, Lincoln ▲ g 1 g a A th b to a a A g h b p T ru ti y e a th a w o N w o ▲ This photo was taken in 1953 near Talmadge, Nebraska, after a successful hunt. Pictured, left to right, is my father, Paul Grotrian; my uncle, Donald Grotrian; and my grandfather, Carl Grotrian. I still have the kerosene lantern that is in the photo and many memories of hunting with my dad up and down the creek banks of southeastern Nebraska. – Jim Grotrian, Plattsmouth ▲ This image was from a grouse hunt on the Peggy and Roy Spencer Ranch near Brewster. It was a nice, fall day in 1978. Pictured is Jon Welty and, myself, Charlie Sadler. Jon and I hunted many times over many years, and this was a really good one. – Charles Sadler, Lincoln ▲