October Snow Beauty

We just started eating a locally grown watermelon, some of us eating more than others:

Then yesterday, after the morning turkey hunt and violin lesson and lunch, as Jay and Isabelle were leaving to go squirrel hunting (she shot two), Jay said “It is so cold for October.  This whole month has been cold.  There has been so little sun.”  While they were gone it started snowing–but nothing stuck.

Last night, as I got ready for bed, the infrequent car driving by the house had a deadened, dull sound that in this latitude is an aural indicator of snowfall.

And sure enough this morning we woke to

Looking towards the blueberries

Looking at the (formerly) tall perennials

The blueberries had to be shaken to remove the heavy, slightly ice-crusted snow;  many of the bushes still have leaves.

Walking up back, Hawthorne spent most of his time snuffing for voles in the snow-covered fallow field.  The sight of  the woods line and hedgerows of trees still in their metallic colors capped with snow  immediately reminded me of the highly crafted artwork or jewelry of finely colored metals worked by repousse and chased with silver.

Often, it is clear to me how artists gathered ideas for their creations from Creation.

The Turkey Trot

No, not the dance; I am referring to the 19 minute hunt Jay took less than an hour ago which resulted in him bringing home another 10+ pound hen turkey and busting up the rest of the flock for the morning’s hunt.

The evidence:

As you see, Hawthorne was quite taken with her.

Here is the goose girl’s goose:

And another:

It is not just her.  It is familial.

Goose, Turkey, Goose, Roller Derby

Jay shot one Canada goose during the early season.  October 1st was the first day of turkey season.  Jay shot a nice 10+ pound hen.

Then yesterday was the first day of the youth weekend goose season.   Isabelle, Hawthorne and Jay went up back  early and came home with one goose!  I ate the liver, heart and half the gizzard for lunch.  Hawthorne got the other half.

Angela and Linda came for lunch.  Then, after supper, we went to the Ithaca Women’s Flat Roller Derby final game of the season.  The Suffer Jets won.  (Check out the video of the Sept. game to see a little bit what it is like.) There were 800+ people at Cass park rink.  I did not see anyone I knew other than the ladies I came with.  Over 30 years in Ithaca and there is still a new demographic to be explored! The Ithaca College Pep band played.  What a hoot!

Yellowjacket Nest Removal

Some of you know we are licenced by the state as Nuisance Wildlife Control Operators.  woo-hoo.

Jay used this removal method on two nests last week–one in the blueberries and one by the garden, and on tow more today–one again near the garden and one in Hawthorne’s pen.

Use a shop vacuum.  Put a half gallon of water in it.  Use extension cord to get it right up to the nest entrance.  Position the nozzle just to one side of the nest edge to ensure that returning wasps and well as those coming out of the nest get sucked up the hose.

Let run 20+ minutes.

We, being us, could not just let the vacuum run.  No, we had to run up there every few minutes and mess with the nozzle and push a stick in the ground near the hole to stir things up, or stomp on the ground near by.  So we each got one sting.

When there are few coming and going, pour water down the hole, digging with a shovel to open the nest as you do so.  The nests are seven or more inches below ground.  Then try to collapse the nest site, shoveling dirt and jumping on the soil.  Pat everything down well.

News

1) As the last person chosen for the jury, I was an alternate.  So after hearing the whole case–a civil liability lawsuit–and all the instructions the judge gave the jury, I was excused about 4PM on Tuesday!  And I had my opinion about how to apportion liability all worked out with reasons, too.

2) Isabelle and I played our instruments at an Advent sing/Christmas story re-enactment last night.  She did really well playing Of the Father’s Love Begotten and Angels, From the Realms of Glory.

3)  On the way home at about 8:15PM, a spikehorn buck ran full tilt into the front driver light of our car, was scooped up and over the roof into a deep ditch. The home owner nearest our encounter was not very helpful, so I drove the three miles to Mom M’s and called the State Police, Jay and Daren.

4) The trooper, Jay and I trooped back to the site, where he dispatched the poor deer, whose back legs were nearly severed at the knee.  The poor beast was shivering fron being in a deep ditch with quite a bit of water.  And shock, no doubt.  No internal injuries so I am very thankful we were able to help it out of its misery as it would have lived many more miserable hours.

5) The car?  The hood will have to be replaced.  The driver’s side lights will have to be replaced.  And all the plastic covers, etc.  The roof is dented.  But nothing major.   So I did get a buck this year.  A very expensive one.

6)  The trooper was so young!  He was from my home area and a hunter himself.

Just for the Record

I saw three big bucks  while I was hunting during gun season. I got nary a shot.

A large 8-point snuck down out of a backyard, into a drive, as I was in a high tree stand 100 feet away with a natural buckthorn orchard between us.

One came down a steep bank into stream ravine following a doe and crossed the streambed onto a small honeysuckle filled flat.  I was over 100 yards away up on the bank  and back by a shed.  If I had immediately pulled my gun up I might have been able to get a shot off.  But I could hardly believe what I was seeing.

I watched the pair–the buck actually, for the doe just melded into the brush.  I was able to pick out the buck’s antlers intermittently for about five minutes.  They were never in a hurry.  I think they just crossed on their own and were not caught up in early stages of  the drive that was underway.

Twenty minutes later, the man hunting from a stand on the other side of the stream ravine from me fired twice.  I thought for sure  those two deer were the object of his shooting.  Turns out they were not–there had been 5-7 other deer pushed by the drive.  But those two ran out in the general confusion.

Five  to seven minutes after Bob in the tree shot, I saw another buck down on that flat piece of overgrown flat.  He was just moseying along in that thick huneysuckle.  He stood in it.  I could see his tail, his legs, his antlers, his head.  All behind thick stuff.  I could not take a shot that I thought had a good chance of hitting him.  While I was watching him, gun at the ready, Daren came up from behind, finishing the drive, wondering what I was watching.

He came over and said, “Well, there’s no deer there now”.  Bob had shot a spike horn buck. We walked around and over, and I asked Daren if maybe we should push that small piece of brushy ground down by the stream since I thought the buck was still there.

That did not happen.  Daren laughingly told me to go after it myself as he went to get his truck.

So I put three shell in the gun and walked down, picked up the fresh trail, the fresh scat, followed it around and about until suddenly, at the very tip of the area, something large jumped into the stream and crossed ahead of me up a very steep bank.

That buck had bedded down in all that brush.

Ah well.

The Horse Came in Handy

Saturday, while I was downtown doing errands waiting for Isaac to finish retaking two SAT exams, Jay was out in the cold hunting.  When he gave up he decided to take Isabelle down to ride Cherry.

As she was saddling the horse up, Jay glanced out the shed window and saw two deer out in the field where Isabelle would be riding.

So he walked back to the house for his truck,  gun and the walkie-talkies.  Then he snuck down south into A’s property , where we have permission to hunt, into the woods and around the deer to the southwest.

He then told Isabelle to ride Cherry out into the field, keeping to the north edge, and try to push the deer towards him.

She did so and discovered the entire back of the field was filled with deer; 12-15 of them.  The deer fanned out and ran in the general direction of Jay’s hiding place.

He saw them coming, and when they got near started yelling, trying to get the nearest ones to stop, to no avail.  Finally he took a running shot at a nice doe.

They used Cherry to drag the carcass to the truck.