Kosydor Adventures

JACKSON COUNTY, Ill. - What started out as a fun filled afternoon of 4-wheeling through the Shawnee National Forest, ended abruptly when the teens crashed into a frozen pond. The sun was setting on Super Bowl Sunday when Ron Kosydor’s 15 year old son smashed through the ice into waist deep water.

“The first thing I asked him was if he was all right? Then are you guys wet? How many of you are wet? Are any of the 4-wheelers able to run and get out of the water,” Kosydor said.

One of the other boys called his parents for help too. And they called 911.

Ambulances and Sheriff’s Deputies from Jackson County responded. They found the boys at the far end of a trail along the Big Muddy River, in an area known as Horse Shoe Pond.

“It’s not really a pond. But when the river backs up, it fills in a low lying area. And there is lots of weeds out there. And it was snow covered. That was part of the problem, they couldn’t really tell it was ice,” Kosydor said.

The boys, ages 15, 16, and 17 were all shaking from the cold and their soaking wet cloths they were wearing, by the time family members arrived on the scene.

“They were real glad to see the warm trucks. And I told them leave the 4-wheeler, get out of the water. We can come back for it,” Kosydor said.

His son’s 4-wheeler is going to need a major overhaul before being able to run again. But Ron is just happy his son is safe, and so are his friends.

“If they would have went off into some deep water, it could have been a fatal situation,” Kosydor said.

None of the boys required hospital treatment for exposure. It’s a chilling reminder to us all, that no matter how thick the ice may look. It still may not be safe to play on, or ride on.

We set up our StealthCam in the backyard. We added some meat scraps from deer season butcher time and also a dead duck was hung on the log. Quite interesting to see what showed up. A picture is worth a 1,000 words is true– check it out!

Coons, Cats, and Owls so far. We kinda like the StealthCam!

Here he is;

Jackson County Armadillo

Found dead on road near Rattlesnake Ferry, deep in the Shawnee National Forest

I don’t think anyone has found a cure for this affliction that affects all of us.

There he stood the Boner Buck.  Or maybe the Booner Buck.  This was not your 3-4 year old Buck with a nice set of bones.  This was the 6-7 year old mature white-tail buck with massive amounts of bone on his head.  I estimated him to be a 200 points + buck as I looked down my sights right before I pulled the trigger.  There he stood,  broad-side with head turned straight on at me.  The classic buck pose. What really is wild, is that this huge white-tail deer was standing less than a 1/4 mile from my house.  Yet, we had been driving to the next county to deer hunt the previous weeks.  Here stood my Boone & Crockett right almost in my back yard.  I missed him clean.  It was an easy shot.  Must of shot between his legs. We looked and searched and looked some more was the bad news.  The good news is when driving home tonight we spotted the Booner Buck. He was standing next to the road getting ready to trot towards my back yard again and not a scratch on him.  I remember an old VHS Movie I had titled The Grey Ghosts and was all about Big Buck hunting.  I have finally realized why those Big Bucks earned the title of the Grey Ghosts.  They just appear out of nowhere and it seems like you just shoot right through them. This Buck may be the largest I have ever seen in Southern Illinois.  And I have chased more than one Big One in years past.

Nothing like hanging at the lake with friends and family.  A little spilled barbecue sauce and some potato salad sure makes for a fun day.

Top Deck is Katy Kosydor, Eli Snodgrass, and Zachary Kosydor

You just never know what you might find in the big forest.  Sunday afternoon, October 18,  we discovered a trail along a bluff just a few minutes ride from Hayes Canyon Horse Campground.  The trail signs said #493.  Andrea and I had not ridden this trail before and decided to see where it went.  We ended up high on a ridge overlooking a valley and came across this sign.

The trees have begun their fall colors transformation.  The trail riding should get more scenic as winter approaches.

Last weekend found us riding the East side of Hayes Canyon along Hayes Creek and we happened upon this sign along the trail.  My horse named “Whiskey” even had to stop and take a look at this spot.

Whiskey stood still long enough along a very beautiful spot in the trail.  This trail winded along a waterfall type of creek with large boulders and jagged mossy covered rocks.  The water was rushing down the creek and it was so nice that I even stopped to mark this spot on the trail with my GPS.

Snickers and Andrea……I used to ride this horse and really like him.  I kind of claim to own this horse.  This was the first time Andrea rode long legged Snickers and I just knew she would fall in love with him.  Snickers is an awesome trail horse.

I started horseback riding the Lusk Creek Wilderness area around 23 years ago.  This area is one of those hidden jewels located in northern Pope County near Eddyville, IL situated deep in the Shawnee National Forest.  I always seem to go back there, almost like some old Indian Spirit is calling me back.  The area is known for its sheer rock walls that rise to 100 feet above the creek in places. One area at a hairpin turn in the creek is named Indian Kitchen because of evidence that humans used this areas thousands of years ago. The cliffs at Indian Kitchen are particularly impressive and one of the most scenic, breath-taking spots in the Lusk Creek Nature Preserve area. The trail leading from the parking area to Indian Kitchen is 3.5 miles long round trip, and is almost entirely flat until the final 1/4 mile as you descend into the canyon. There are numerous other very cool spots and is best enjoyed from the back of a good horse.  Check out the pictures and you decide.  Secret Canyon is another area that must be visited.  Take your favorite riding buddies with you when you go.  Our favorite horse campgrounds nearby are the Hayes Canyon Campground and Bear Branch Horse Resort.  You can even find a great steak restaurant close by and hang out at the Shawnee Lounge on weekends to sing some karaoke in downtown Eddyville.

Here is a couple of my favorite riding buddies!  We stopped at the tie-up spot in Secret Canyon for some lunch and exploring fun of the nearby cave and its cave paintings.

Modern Day Cave Painting above.

The trail boss and myself enjoying our favorite lunch rock at Secret Canyon.

Wildfire has two blue eyes and has been in the family for many years.  We raised him from a baby. He is a registered American Paint Horse.  He loves to ride Indian Kitchen Natural Area.  His ancestors no doubt roamed the area in the distant past.

We came upon this really big rock on the trail that screamed photo session.  We all had to pose on the rock for a photo or two.

Andrea and Zachary on Paco.  This horse is a quarter horse and was saved from the slaughter house by Andrea.  She nursed this horse back to health and Paco has become one of her favorites.  Paco will run the barrels, chase a cow and is an excellent sure footed trail horse.  We call this type of horse bomb-proof due to the fact that Zachary is sitting on the back of him and not even a bomb will spook this horse.

Katy is aboard Snickers.  This horse is a registered American Quarter Horse and is the newest addition to our collection of family pets.  Snickers was bred and raised by a good friend of the family, Joe Dixon of Pomona, IL.  Andrea was the first person to touch Snickers when he was foaled and she named him on the spot.  It took several years of bugging Joe and lots of money to get this one bought from Joe.  We trained Snickers with some help of our horse trainer friend, Barry Harris of Highland, IL.  This is another one of those bomb-proof horses or Katy would NOT be aboard him.  Snickers is over 16 hands and is quite tall for a quarter horse.  One of my favorites here. I will be aboard Snickers on my next trip out west trail riding in Colorado or the Bitteroot Wilderness Area in Idaho.

Andrea and Paco.  A picture is worth a thousand words.  Background is Secret Canyon rock formations and cave.

Relaxing at Jackson Hole on a perfect Sunday afternoon after a hard days ride.

Oh my GOD! I have never seen anything like this in my 48 years of walking this earth. Beautiful Southern Illinois gone straight to hell. This was a weather unknown and the weather guys are labeling it an “Inland Hurricane”. I watched for over 1/2 an hour as the winds tore down and around 13 corridor directly east of Carbondale. The roof lifted off the building we took shelter in as the women huddled under their desks sobbing, crying and praying. This is the second roof we have lost this year at the HiWay 13 Shopping Center where our business is located. This is really beginning to suck. Anyway no friends or family were hurt, thank goodness. The unknown of our children at nearby schools was tough and we heard rumors that a local school had lost roofs also….when picking up Zachary later that afternoon we found out the rumor was true and the new high tech Carterville School had indeed lost the gym roof……

The sound of chain saws was a normal waking experience for several weeks afterwards.  Months later there is still blue tarps covering numerous roofs in the area.  We lost our dock priveleges at the houseboat docks on Crab Orchard Lake due to damage to the docks by the high winds.

Watch out—Dylan will unleash his fury on the local highways in just a couple of weeks. Rumor is that he will be unveiling a cherry red jeep that he has been customizing the last several months. I hope his girlfriend sees this old photo below. LOL