Another fall is upon us and it's time to hit the marshes, lakes and woods. As a fledgling outdoorsman, I knew I wanted to begin journaling my adventures this year. Both to keep a record of successes and failures based on conditions, but also to ensure appreciation for the experiences beyond just the scores and limits. You'll notice the tag-line finding the extraordinary in ordinary adventures. That's it for me....time spent in the woods or on the marsh is always time well-spent.
To be clear, I'm not a conservationist in the tradition of Muir or Leopold, nor can I write with the eloquence of Emerson or Thoreau. Rather, I'm a simple husband and a father and a hard-worker, and when I can, I choose to spend me time the woods. I watch the Outdoor Channel frequently, and while I enjoy watching highly successful hunts, it is rarely consistent with my experience. In fact, we often don't even share the same definition of success. Their definition of success: rack scores, full limits, and blood on the decoys. Mine: Fresh air, sunrises on the march, sunsets in the woods, memories with friends, and watching the will of the Father unfold before my eyes. That, more than anything else, is the spirit I would like to capture here.
Take today for example. Opening day of bow season in Wisconsin. 62 degrees and a calm NW wind. Couldn't ask for better conditions on an opening day in Outagamie County. I arrived at my tree under the cover of night and settled in for a morning sit. Temperatures were comfortable, mosquitoes were present but manageable, and the sky began to fade to gray. If you have never spent a morning in the woods, and guessed minute by minute when your eyes would begin seeing in color vs. black and white, you're missing one of God's gifts. Priceless.
Right at legal shooting time this morning, right as I'm beginning to be able to identify game, a small doe appears along the creek bottom I hunt. For the next five minutes, she meanders along the creek, turns my direction and walks directly under my stand, only to disappear behind me as quietly as she came. I am always amazed at how silent the woods are in early season, with no fallen leaves to crunch and no frost crackling underfoot. Later this season, I may take that shot to put some meet in the freezer, but for now, there is plenty of time to be patient and enjoy the show.
I did not see another deer today, but I did listen to an owl ring greetings to the morning. There may be no greater sound in the woods than the hoot of an owl...at least from my perspective. Later this morning, three raccoon siblings made their way down the creek bottom, playing all the way. They wrestled, they splashed, jumped and swam in what appeared to more about having fun that serving a function. Reminded me of my brother and I as young boys. Geese flew overheard, quite vocal about their presence, and my morning concluded with the soft knocking of a woodpecker whose feathers were painted in white, black and red (I'll need to look this one up).
Successful first day of the season...absolutely.
More to come with future posts, and I'll do my best to begin capturing images worth sharing as well.
Cheers.
Love it, looking forward to your posts. Hoping I can be a part of some of the stories this year too!
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