Well, the first snow of the year started this morning around 5am. I was up, Planning on a morning bow hunt for deer.
Ray & I headed out just before sunrise, snow already sticking to the grass.
My stand is on the edge of a pine grove, with old 60 ft tall pines forming a canopy over my area. Though the snow sifted down through, Most was caught in the tree tops. Off to my right or left, the snow came down heavy, quickly accumilating 2 inches.
A doe came in around 7:45. She seemed skittish, and was not a really big deer. By then, even the ground under the pines had snow covering everything.
She never presented a shot, and I am kinda glad.
That moment, a Moment that few people ever experiance was priceless. Only 5 yards away, I watched her moving around, apparently looking back into the field for the rest of the deer. That quiet moment, watching her nervously bounce from thicket to thicket, searching the landscape for, maybe a buck that was trailing her, lasted all of 10 minutes, while she took shelter in the pines.
Pepole ask why I hunt, so let this be the answer.
Cold clear mountain air, Snow falling, The smell of White pines filling the air.. A White Tail deer standing so close, you can hear it breathing as it moves around. Cardnials and Sparrows fluttering in the brush, a grund hog meandering by, Feeling the snow fl;akes melting as they land gently on my face, , These moments are the ones that fill my memories, and satisfy even more then the thrill of taking a nice buck.
Well, life is about changes.
I remain seperated from my husband, but i see in him a sincere effort to make the changes nessessary to reconcile our relationship.
Ray is the man on my photo page. we share a love for the outdoors, and when its good between us, its great. He is a good man, a gift from God just for me.
He has about 6 months of livin behind him now, free from drinking and drugs, rippin & runnin. He helps me in every way he can, and expects nothing in return for it.
I expect time will be the big test for him, and a year or two from now will be the answer to my questions.
my apolagies to those that wrote, hoping for romance. my desires to find friends that enjoy the outdoors was not intended as a dateing invatation. to the few that contacted me through yahoo, that profile closes in 1/2010 . unfortunatly again, you cant just turn it off, it has to expire.
There is that song, "Lifes a dance you learn as you go". Thats kinda like my life right now. I never thought i would find my husband involved in drugs, stealing from me, but it happens. I did say "for better or worse", and i reckon this is where the rubber meets the road. Sure, he has to make changes on his own, but I share a responsability and commitment to our relationship. I have to give him, and myself, time.
My life is good, thanks to the blessings that the Lord has given me. A nice home, a good business, family close to me, good health and few wants. So I reckon i will just keep learning this dance as i go through life.
Now, hunting. I can sum it up in a short. RAIN & WARM WEATHER. Yep, the entire rut has been wet, warm and deer are not moving. The past few weeks, deer passing my stand have been only a dream. I saw one buck, a 4 pointer, but had layed my bow down to pack up, had my sack in hand when he walked by less then 10 feet away. low light at the end of the day made a shot impossiable. it was quittin time for the day.
Ray saw the big buck, at least 12 points, but excitment ruled and the bow string hit his jacket causing the arrow to fall short.
Hopefully, with this cold front, deer will start moving again. Janurary brings back legal feeding, and colder days. Ray saw 3 doe this week, but it was so close to dark, he passed on the shot. seems they dont move till its cooler in late evening. we wont be out there again till the week end, as work takes the leading role.
shifting gears here, @ my 'stand for something' page. i live in small town America. WE have the Christmas parade, fall festival, county fairs, everything you expect in a sm,all mountain town. My attitude reflects that. So tell me. Why, do i read the local paper and see that some teen mom, at 17 years old, smothers her infant? Why does a man, rob a woman in a predomanant neighborhood, at gun point at 7am and no one see's anything? This world is going insane !!!
I took two more, one was the 3 pointer shown below, the other was a button buck. I had hit a nice 8 pointer earlier in the season but couldnt find him. on a recent hunt, we stumbled acrost him. unfortunatly the scavangers had started working on him, and he was way to spoiled to salvage anything but the antlers.
