Saturday AM/PM

Doe on cam after I left.

Hiking past the field-expediant cam.

Filipinos got their window replaced. Coffee about the same. I haven't mentioned the cinnamon rolls but they are pretty terrific.

Got in the tree and watched the woodline until a young spike materialized in the tall grass. I was hoping for a single doe with a buck following but instead got this lonesome youngster. I've been expecting more of this action, maybe a couple wandering young bucks a day banished by their moms and threatened by the bigger bucks, bopping around. Haven't seen them. The spike was the 6th deer total in eight days, most of them AM and PM days. He looked healthy and fat but had pitiful spikes.

At 9:30 I got down and went across the creek to sit and watch where I saw the buck last night. The morning light dramatically spotlights the grassy slope across the little streamlet. I moved the chair a few yards to a very advantageous spot. Move a couple of branches. Sat for a couple hours.

This evening I went back to the chair. A father and son were on top of the indian village, lake property owners looking around. Dad had some kind of deer rifle with him but they were as likely to get a shot at a buck as at Bigfoot. Two teenagers and a dog were on the west skyline at the powerline. I could hear crowd noises, maybe from Pine Cove in the woods. Nothing moving in the afternoon but squirrels chasing and whistling.

Came out in the impressionistic black and white dusk. Half mile hike. On the logging road I walked my face into a little spider who somehow has suspended herself in the middle of a wide space. Every day she has a few more yellow eggs glued to her back. I think I got clear without damaging her project.

Grinding hunting, day after day. I'm happy but beat. Fell off a tree step Monday in my soft rubber boots and have been limping along with a sprained toe for a week. Slowly working back into shape. The season was a week later than normal this year, not starting the first week of November but the second. They aren't digging up the scrapes anymore.

Last year I shot a nice deer on the 16th as he dug out an old scrape. Might be looking at the second rut for any action.

Two bucks each morning for coffee and a roll. 16 bucks so far to the Filipinos. They are having a nice deer season.