Archery Camp Report - Part 2

Day 4 - The good news was no rain.  The bad news is temps reaching 70 again.   I decided to head back to the same area I sat Monday and Tuesday but this time move more up the mountain above where i was sitting previously.  I didn't see anything but one bear creeping through the fog and this was my first bear on stand this week.  About 11am i decided to go check out a patch of woods just down river from where my brother was sitting and as i was walking down the trail I saw something move int he woods to the left of me and here comes a black fur ball.  Great another bear.  He is coming on a crash course with me so at about 40 yards away I start to give him a piece of my mind and he just ignores me and keeps coming so I step down the road a bit and he walks right across the road gives me a look and into the woods on the other side.  Nice.  I got on the radio to let my brother know he was coming.  after about 15 minutes and no bear my brother decides to pack it in so he gets up and goes to pick up his scent cans and as he is doing so he looks over to his ground blind for some reason and the bear is walking within 10 feet of where he was sitting.  He gets on the radio to tell me what is going on and I talk him into getting his camera out and take some pictures so he sneaks over to his gear, pulls out his camera and starts following the bear and taking some video of it.  Before he knew it he was within 30 feet of the bear and figured he better back up some he got some great little video clips and it made for some good conversation.  That afternoon i thought about taking a dip in the river seeing it was 72 degrees but Bob and i headed out to hunt one of our old haunts instead.  As we were sneaking in I bumped a small spike out of the brush and up the hill he went.  He ran up by Bob but didn't offer a shot.  Bob did see two others heading up the hill as well.  About 20 minutes later bob sees a small 6 sneaking back down the hill but he doesn't come anywhere near me.  As i was packing up I got snorted by two that somehow snuck in behind me with out making a sound.

Day 5 - Well we could actually see the stars last night but by morning it was clouded over and the radar was showing some showers on their way and it was a hot one again.  I decided to head back to the spot I was working on Wednesday but up the mountain more to an old blind we have setup and hopefully I'd get a look at something.  About 8:30am I hear a noise and look to my left to see a nice little buck coming my way.  He steps down into the creek and up the bank and is standing behind some trees just 30 yards away.  Now the spot I am sitting in is pretty open to the front of me, but plenty of small trees to each side so as the buck start out across the flat he angles away a little bit and I don't dare move because of ho open it is.  The buck walks by me and starts up the hill to my right amongst those small trees to about 60 yards from me so now I can move so I pick up the "doe in a can" and give him a couple of bleats and he stops.  I hit him with a couple more and now he is running right down to me and about 30 yards out and comes to a dead stop.  Crap.  He hit my wind for sure.  He spins around and takes back off up the hill.  I get him stopped again and he just stand there looking down at me for about 10 minutes before finally moving off up the mountain.  Ray had a bear by him and Jimmy had 4 does and spike first thing in the mornign until a big bear scared them off.  Jimmy saw 3 mores bears that morning.  Bobby let a spike walk and later as he was checking out some brush bumped a nice buck with a doe.  This buck is one we are all too familiar with from last year so we where happy to hear he was alive.  We had him beat us on a couple of drivers on the last day of Muzzle loader last year so we've been waiting for him to show up.  That afternoon the wind was really blowing and I almost called it quits but it was my last night to hunt so I hit the thick brush along where Bob ran into Whitey in the AM.  about 5:30 i had two does walking in on me and I thought for sure i was closing the deal on my last night only for the wind to swirl again and the lead doe stopped dead let out one snort, spun around and was gone.  Well i can't say I didn't have my opportunities.

Day 6  - Today was the first day of extended season and seeing i decided not to spend the $56 to hunt just one day my plan was to just head out and take some pictures instead. It was also finally a day that felt right to hunt waking up to 33 degrees and clear skies.  I did sleep in because I needed it seeing I was fighting a cold.  About 9:30 I headed up the road and ran into Ray who was already out of his stand and talking with Jimmy on the radio.  Turns out Bobby had another encounter with Whitey and finally got a shot after calling it in with his "doe in the can" and unfortunately he hit a branch for a clean miss.  oops, I can't say miss because according to Bob he didn't miss it was the branches fault.  Whitey headed down river and about 30 minutes later he is walking right into Jimmy's ground blind.  Jimmy also gets a shot off but doesn't connect and ends up giving whitey a little something to think about.  This makes 5 times whitey has gotten away from us and I'm hoping his luck runs out soon.  Preferably opening day of Muzzle loader as he is walking by my stand.  Everyone was a little wiped out and disgusted and decided with the wind it was time to call it a camp, but young Jame who had just come into camp the night before headed out and up the mountain above camp.  He was gone long when we got a text message from him telling us to turn on a radio.  He spent the evening giving us play by play of all the bucks he was seeing chasing does and there the 5 of us sat in camp just complaining about not being in the woods.  What a way to end a week of hunting.  It was off to dinner and then up to my dads to watch the Penn State vs Michigan football game.  Go LIONS!

The End

Sunday we broke camp and I made the 3 and 1/2 hour ride home thinking about all the close calls and the good news of Whitey still being around.  I won't get back down until after Thanksgiving when Muzzle Loader season opens so I will be reliving last week until then.  Overall our group saw 12 bucks and only 2 were with does.  We had some success using the "Doe in the Can" calls as well.  We didn't see many does which was a little concerning.  We did see a total 11 bears and one bobcat.  Camp may have ended in unfilled tags but it was still a successful camp in my book.

Some additional pictures and Bear videos.

Depue Family Cemetery

Scratching post for a bear

Jimmy and Bobby after their encounter with Whitey.

Archery Deer Camp Report - Part 1

Our Camp

Well after an early morning visit to the local hardware store to purchase some new safety chains for my currently misplaced ones I was on the road and head to the Delaware water Gap in NJ for our annual week long Archery camp.  I was the only one from CT heading to camp as Busch Pilot and Cletus had other commitments and had to back out of the trip, but my NJ friends Ray and Jimmy where already in camp and waiting for me.  Our camp consists of 2 pop-up campers at Worthington State Forest campground which sits along the delaware River and on Old Mine Rod just 4 miles from Rt 80.  I pulled in about 1pm and Ray and Jimmy where chatting with Turkey John whom just happens to be a regular at the camp ground as he spends the week chasing turkeys.  On my way down through the gap I ran into a flock crossing the road so I made sure to give Turkey John their coordinates.

Part of the camp ritual is a trip into PA to visit a local Walmart and shop for our camp supplies from anything from cleaning supplies to dinner items.  We almost always walk out of there with way more than we need but all the leftover items that can be saved for Muzzle Loader camp in late November will get used up for certain.  On the way out to do our shopping we had the pleasure of watching a bobcat cross the road which now makes 7 sightings for me in this area.  What a wonderful site to see but I sure wish I had my camera with me but it was in my truck.  After unpacking and finishing setting up camp we were off to dinner at the Blairstown Inn which has also become somewhat of a tradition.  Nothing fancy, just a good old burger and a Yuengling. On the way back from dinner we watched a nice 8 pointer cross the road and stop log enough to give us a good look and it sure looked like he was saying "This is the last time you will see me" has he was headed way up the mountain.  We also saw the first black bear of camp.  Were were the only 3 in camp Sunday night with Bobby, My brother Steve, my dad and Bill schedule to be in for the mornign hunt.  Sleep on the first night is hard to come by but we did our best to get some rest because it is a long week.

This sign says it all

Day 1 - It was already 48 degrees at wake-up with a clear sky and full moon and temps scheduled to reach 70, which they did.  I met my brother and dad at the upper glen parking lot and we headed off to some ground blinds that we use often.  My brother setup in the same spot he has been sitting for the past couple Saturdays hoping for a shot a familiar 4 pointer while I headed over to a spot where my son shot is 8 pointer a few years back and dad headed up river to were they shot some deer last year.  I had fresh Turkey scratchings all over but no deer.  My dad had deer by him as he was walking in and then nothing the rest of the morning.  My brother did get to see his 4 pointer again but no shots.  Jimmy had a couple dear early on but no shots.  Ray didn't see anything but his son Raymond saw 10 down along the corn fields.  We left the woods around 1pm just soaked from sweat.  Raymond and Bobby went to jump shoot wood ducks in the creek while the rest of us hit the showers and got dinner going early.

My brother with his small pack.  :)

Day 2 - We had some serious rain and wind during the night and I thought we were losing the canopies for a minute but everything survived.  It was hot and muggy today and the bugs were out in full force and I was down to a long sleeve T Shirt by 7:30am.  Steve, Dad and I decided to hit the same stands as Monday.  I decided to move out a little farther in my deadfall to see down into that brush a little better so as I was setting up my new perch I saw a nice buck spook start working down into the brush.  I got all settled in and figured he would be hunkered down in the brush but he worked his way over to my dad but not shot.  About 8:30am I heard some noise behind me and saw a dear coming and wouldn't you know it he walked within 10 yards of where I was sitting yesterday.  He stopped and feed at the end of the deadfall I was sitting in and all I need was about 4 steps for a shot and all of a sudden a chipmunk gets all spunky and jumps up on the deadfall between the 6 point and I and the buck looked up and we were eye to eye.  Crap, this isn't going to end good.  He starred at me for bit, then gave me a little head wave, stomped and hoped away.  Dang chipmunk.  Close call for sure.  I didn't see anything the rest of the day.  My brother and Bill had that 4 pointer again and a doe but just couldn't get any shooting in.  Steve and I had to go take our mandatory bear hunter education class at 3pm so we headed out by noon and Bob was talking about chasing some ducks and working on his tan.  The weather we were having was NOT helping our hunting.

Bob and I with a couple of Wood Ducks.

Day 3 - We woke up to some heavy rain and after a quick check of the radar on the Motorola Droid it looked like it was going to lighten up so we got a late start but we hit the woods by 7am.  I decided to still hunt an area and use the wet ground to scout some areas and I bumped a doe walking in and could see another doe being followed by a small buck farther up in the woods.  I decided to work the first doe and set out at sneaking along and catching up to her which I did.  I was working parallel to her trying to get in front of her by using the little dips and hills in the hemlocks and just couldn't make up the distance I needed and eventually she turned and head straight away and then was no catching up to her so I decided to go check out where I saw the other two.  There was no sign at all around there.  I hunted untl about noon and then I had to go dry out.  Bob and I decided to jump shoot the creek for wood ducks that afternoon and I went 1 for 2 which isn't bad.  I did have to play retriever for one of Bob's ducks and wouldn't you know it landed in the thickest set of prickers you could find.  Even my dog would have said, no way am I going in there but I did anyway.

To be continued.

Archery Camp or Bust

I wait anxiously every year for the arrival of our annual week long archery hunt in New Jersey along the Delaware Water Gap and the time has come to pack up and hit the road.  The anticipation of deer camp builds with every phone call and email with camp members to finalize meal plans, arrival times as well as laying out some plans for where we are going to hunt.  My arrival at camp will mark the 33rd anniversary of my first camp experience when I was only 12 and it never gets old.  For many familiar faces and places may get old, but for me it breathes new life into my soul.  Uninterrupted time in the outdoors with friends and family, who could ask for more.  In the coming week we will spend time chasing whitetail deer, Eastern Turkeys and even some ducks as we lose ourselves in the greatest playground that mother nature offers up.  Every minute of every day is another opportunity to experience something new and to lose myself in the outdoors.  It doesn't make any difference to me if I am successful in my quests to harvest an animal or not as long as I have an opportunity to step outside.

Cell Phone Photos

One thing I am never without is a camera.  I prefer to tote along the Nikon D90 or the Canon Rebel but there are times that lugging around the big boys just isn't feasible and that is where the 5 megapixel camera on my Motorola droid comes in handy.  It takes up very little space and allows me to still take good quality pictures.  I have used my cell phone camera many times to take a shot of something that has caught my interest just as I'm sure many of you have.

Below are some of my favorites and I encourage you to share yours.

Early Morning at Race Rock, Long Island Sound

My first Penns Creek Brown Trout

Now that's how you get a deer out of the woods

View of the Delaware Water Gap from the top

Bluegill on the Fly Rod

The Thirteen Known Gods of Muzzleloading

This was posted on the CT Hunting-N-Shooting forum that I am a regular on and I just had to share it with everyone.  I'm sure Rick from Whitetail Woods would really appreciate this.  I don't know the origin of it but if someone does please share.

I have personal experience with  the Mizzfyre and Losdascru Gods and have witnessed visits from Gods Dubbuload and Dribaldzit to other shooters and it was difficult to keep my composure during their visits.

So how many of the thirteen gods have you encountered?