I like this time of year best myself. For alot of reasons, the crisp mornings & comfortable days, the clear chilly nights, the change of the leaves. Its just a special time of year, specially if you enjoy being in the woods with nature.
The squirrels are busy burying nuts & acorns in the hopes they can dig them up in colder weather to come, the chipmonks are scurrying around the falling leaves feasting on the goodies which God drops from the tree's in abundance this time of year. All of nature seems to come alive in preperation for winter &, for me anyway its a wonderful thing to behold.
Deer season too, cant forget about that.
Most of the things I love about the fall are easily seen from a treestand while waiting for my own fall harvest. Our season for bow opened Sept 15th & in 3 weeks or so since then all the things I'v mentioned have come my way, somehow dissapating many months worth of stress so effortlessly I dont even notice it happening.
Last week I had a small hawk land within 4' of my stand. It came from behind & I honestly believe he was of a mind to land on me till he got a closer look. I cant say I know what he was other than he was pigeon sized & mostly grey with a brownish neck & head. He perched with me for 10 minutes at best, both of us looking at one another with wonder.
I saw alot of things, yup, just no deer I felt like taking. Sure there were some, mostly fawns & a few smaller does but nothing I felt like putting in the freezer if you understand.
Well, today felt special. I got in early & the boss wasn't there yet, no work assignments on the bench, so I forgot his cell number & donned the cammo to become one with nature & leave my world for a bit, just for a bit as I had to go to a parents nite thing at the school.
Got out there about 2 in the afternoon & settled in to watch the nut gathering & such. Bout 45 minutes give or take & I see a nice juicy doe coming my way. She, like me only moments before, seems overwhelmed by all the activity around her. Looking this way & that at the scurrying critters making such a ruckus all around her as she moves silently on her way down the trail. My tree is set back on an inside corner where 2 trails come together & as she aproached she passed thru a shooting lane I cleared in June just for this shot. I didn't take it tho, not sure why but I didnt even raise my bow. She got to the corner, & if she goes right, shes gone, fine by me, the way I see it if its my day to take a deer, so be it, if not, tommorows another day.
Well, she took a left. Came down the trail towards another lane I cleared & as I raise my bow she stopped, puts her nose to the ground & starts pawin around lookin for acorns. I relaxed as she fed to within 20' of my stand & turned broadside. In one motion I drew my bow & released an arrow. She jumped at the shot & ran about 10 yards, stopped & looked at where she was just standing, took 3 steps back towards me & laid down & died. Now, you may think I'm crazy, my wife does & she's certainly qualified to comment on my sometimes slightly aberant behavior & thoughts, but I believe God gave me that deer. Believe it with my heart & soul, he gave me that deer in appreciation of my apreciation of his creation.
Too many people live their lives in apreciation of mans creations & never take the time to see the most wonderful thing what was ever created, nature. Lemme see Einsteine build a bee hive. Lemme see Henry Ford build a squirrel or a tree. Lemme see Bill Gates program a Salmon that can live a life in the sea & find its way back up a river to a creek to the same stream in which it first came out of its egg.
Dunno where I'm going with this but will say I am awestruck by the perfectness of nature & bewildered by the blindness of most people.
Sorry to get so wordy, God bless you all & may you enjoy his gift of life as much as I do.
