#64

I finally decided to get a crossbow. I had been seeing so many deer by the house the extension of hunting archery season was a no brainer. Had been seeing a nice 9 pt and a maybe bigger 10 pt on trail camera for the entire summer. Caught a glimpse of both of them last time I was home, but really didn't expect to see him during shooting hours. Low and behold here he came strolling by Saturday night about 6:30pm. 25yards quartering away shot was just too tempting. There might be one buck bigger hanging around, probably should wait it is awful early. Next think I know, Whamo! Off he goes 65yards, barreling through the nastiest briar patch known to man. 2hrs later and scratched and poked all to hell having to hack my way in with a machete, I managed to drag him back up the house. Pretty nice buck, healthy and big bodied. I had just camo netted my blind thicker that day and it worked better than I thought and he was clueless. Plenty of fresh venison for jerky and such, going to drop the skull to be cleaned and the hide into buckskin. Can't wait.

Oh Canada

Tawny drove up to Markham Ontario to visit for our birthdays. She got to meet all my new friends I've meet since I've been here. They gave her a fit at the border asking all kind of odd questions, I guess if had a burka or was Chinese it would have been fine, but we couldn't have those damn Americans coming up and spending money. Anyway she got to go up to Kirkfield 2 hrs north to my buddy Biffs trailer and the campground. I went up there before and had a great time playing the harp with the guitar players around the campfire. So I thought she would love it. It's like one big family up there and had another campfire jam session, with Joe on guitar and me on harp and dulcimer, which they had never seen or heard before. Cool cultural integration, who would of thought. Plus Tauwny brought a case of "Not your Fathers Rootbeer" and some venison jerky. The jerky and 6% rootbeer that is beer, but tastes just like rootbeer disappeared fast. What a fun time and a bunch of nice people. She really got a kick out of Enos and has Inuit wife Mary from Newfoundland. Enos talks really fast with thick accent which got harder and harder to understand as the night went on. Rootbeer I'd guess. Learning all the Canadian stuff too Eh, like poteen 50 different kinds of fries with brown gravy on top.Or 50$ cases of Coors light, known as "Toofour"And of course Eh after everything,Eh. Oh yeah now I'm rooting for the Blue Jays and learning hockey. Oh Canada

 

Trail cams and Weddings

Recently my niece got married at Brown County State Park. A beautiful ceremony on a steamy September Day. All the brothers were there which is always good. We laughed, sweated and danced. My trailcam set up under my treestand has been producing some interesting photos. From some nice bucks to our cat nose with our semitame deer "Baby". She is the perfect live decoy. She also had twins this year. Archery season comes in a couple weeks and want to try out my new crossbow. Tawny and I  are still reeling from Bub's passing the house just ain't the same. I keep forgetting I don't a skillet cleaner anymore. Anyway this is last picture of Bub. R.I.P my friend

Bub dog

My best pal Bub dog died today. I consider myself fortunate to have had a long and fun life with him. He traveled all over the US with me until about 6 months ago when it was just too hard. He touched a lot of people and will be sorely missed. I was glad to have been home the last 5 days to spend our final time together. Even took him on one last ride on the Ranger checking trail cams. There is one empty bed that will never filled and a couch that is now open

. Goodbye my dear friend. I Love you.

Spring has sprung

What a spring. First off the only other company in the world that does what we do, bought us out. So a lot of head chopping and reorganizing is going on, but so far I've been spared. With that our Cincinnati  job is on hold so it was off to Elko, Nv for me. While I was gone a big flood came and destroyed the dock, so now I got to reconfigure that project again. Elko was nice as always, went down to the Hastings cutoff on the California trail, and picked up the big rock on side of the trail. Went I think of all the pioneers on the trail that looked at that same rock I just had to take it home. Got some projects done also. Made a new leather shirt, and a serape out of an antique Hudson Bay blanket I got at the Otway auction. Traded some venison summer sausage for an elk antler that I made a shifter knob for the Ranger, and eagle knife, and put the rest on the fence with the rest of the antlers. Even got see my first wild horses, Got home just in time for turkey season. I played with the same tom for 4 days where I shot at that one last year. Pretty sure it was the same bird, only smarter. He made a real chump out of me, even on the last day when he did everything a turkey isn't supposed to do. Be silent, cross a creek, up a vertical bank and then crawl under a barbed wire fence. We I spotted him staring at me 25yds away the jig was up. Garden's planted and just hanging in Indy in limbo until I get my next assignment. Plus a 5' rattlesnake skin that I mounted on old Otway covered bridge board