A Day In The Woods

                It was an early start for Chuck and me.  He drove north to our house, and by 6:00 we were headed west toward Jo Daviess County.  We were in the woods and sitting by 8:00.  On the hike in, Chuck spotted a white tailed deer slowly walking up the hollow toward us.  With the wind blowing up through the hills, the four to six point buck could not smell us, and as a result, he literally walked within just a few yards of us.  He glanced our way a few times, but as we stood frozen and with no scent to warn him, he registered zero fear; rightfully so, as we were there to hunt bushy-tailed squirrels.  I made the “meep” sound of a bleating doe, as he was about to go over the ridge to freeze him, and then after a few seconds, whistled at him like a buck in warning and he lifted his tail and bounded out of sight.

Chuck and I sat a couple of hundred feet apart, as the sun came up over the top of the ridge behind us.  Slowly it began to warm up, but a hat and gloves were still necessary.  With the rising sun came an increase in the wind as well, however, and so you had to hunker down to ward off the chill.  We scanned the treetops and ground for any movement.  The only animal of note was a pileated woodpecker as it called, and flew from tree to tree along the ridge.  They truly are a big sized bird, and it’s a unique opportunity to see them in our area of Northern Illinois.

After a little less than an hour, we worked our way down into the hollow, and up over another ridge that was rimmed by exposed limestone.  We hunkered down, as a flock of turkeys moved through the ensuing valley below us.  Again, the scenery was great, and the chance to simply sit was relaxing, but there just weren’t any squirrels to be seen or heard.  Time stood still, and then Chuck and I rose, and side stepped our way down into the valley, and to the border of the property we were hunting.  We decided to sit once more to see if there would be any activity in this section as it began to near noontime.  Later, Chuck said he began to doze at about that time, and I was tempted, but I finally heard a squirrel barking.  Unfortunately as I looked up the hillside, from where the sound came from, I was looking directly into the sun and could not locate it specifically.  I stood and began to slowly work my way up the steep incline.  Chuck saw me move, and began to walk in the same direction; flanking me by a hundred feet or so.  As we neared the top, we motioned to each other as to the direction we were going to move, when I heard what sounded like a couple of bounding leaps in the leaves up ahead.  We walked in that direction and circled a couple of trees, when Chuck finally saw the gray squirrel I had been hearing.  It dodged among some brambles, and then went out onto a branch on my side, presenting me with an open lane.  I took the shot, and brought it down.  

Chuck and I talked a bit, and then I cleaned it, and bagged it.  Sometime soon I’ll make a meal from it.  The thought of the dark meat wrapped in bacon, and then cooked in a slow cooker with some cream of mushroom soup and sour cream made my mouth water.  As I mentioned this to Chuck, and that I would like to serve it over a bed of wild rice, he said, “You had me at bacon.”  That was pretty funny.

Scouting

"Maiden Hair" Ferns Going Dormant

We tried one more area on a beautiful and slightly open ridge surrounded by red and white oaks, but it was to no avail.  The squirrels, other than the one that I shot, simply were holed up and not coming out.  Perhaps it was the bright sun.  Perhaps it was the wind.  No matter; it was great to get out, enjoy the autumn season, talk as we drove country roads through the small towns of classic Americana, and spend a day in the woods.

See you along The Way…