No deer, but interesting hunt!

[lightsoutcalls]

  I got in my stand at "gray light" Saturday morning.  This is the first time I have sat in this stand in a big pine tree with 2 shooting lanes in the shape of a "V".  On one side I have a mineral lick that has been out since July.  On the other side I dug a posthole and filled with corn for feral hogs... not touched in a month.  Behind my stand is an opening about 25 yards square with thick scrub woods all around.  There are game trails going through the scrub in all directions.  It was just under 50 degrees with 60% chance of rain predicted.
   After about an hour of daylight, I glanced over my right shoulder to see what I thought was a house cat coming out of weeds about 18" high.  As it cleared the weeds into the opening, I noticed the black tips on its ears and the stubby tail.  I had never seen a bobcat in the wide open like this before.  I watched it walk up under a big cedar in front of me, watching ahead with senses alert.  If I had known for sure that they were in season, I might have put an arrow through it, as the landowner raises chickens and goats.  It was within 15 yards when I glanced back to the edge of the woods.  Out of the grass comes another smaller bobcat, and another, and another and finally another.  I realized this was a momma and 4 half grown bobkittens.  The kittens were bigger than a cottontail rabbit for size comparison.  One ran about 10 feet up a small pine tree about 30 yards in front of me and sat on a limb watching its litter mates run around like they had been cooped up for a week with nothing but mountain dew to drink.  Eventually the other 3 kittens ran up the pine tree in spirals like squirrels often do.  I got my old digital camera out and tried to get some pictures, but the zoom is only 4 power and they didn't turn out. 
   Within another half hour, I heard what I hoped was a semi truck going over a bridge, although I don't know of any bridges in the area.  I heard it again later and noticed the clouds were hanging awfully low on the mountain about 1/2 mile in front of me.  A few minutes later I noticed a flash of light in the clouds and heard the "truck on the bridge" a bit louder.  I told myself if the lightning kept up, I was getting down.  It did and I did.  I took the ladies that own the land some deer meat from the doe I had killed on opening morning on their land.  I headed back to pull a trail camera out and put some more corn out on a spot I hoped to take my dad in a couple of weeks.  It started raining... in 48 degree weather... brrr.  As I poured out corn, I noticed out of the corner of my eye something hitting the ground.  It was hailing pea sized hail.  Earlier in the week it got up to 80 for 2 days in a row.   
   I drove about an hour and a half to get to the other piece of private property I have access to north of my house.  I walked down the small ravine to where I had a camera set up over another pile of corn.  There was no trace of corn and lots of freshly turned leaves, sticks and dirt.  I checked the camera card and found that in 6 days I had 480 pictures!   I took my laptop into the woods with me, so I stopped and checked the pics.  Some of the pics had as many as 6 deer at a time feeding on the corn.  There were 3 mature doe, a doe fawn and a buck fawn (no spots) that had little furry nubs between his ears.  There were also pics of a young 6 point by himself.
   I put out some more corn and cleared some low limbs for a shooting lane.  I built a small brush blind where I decided to set dad up for the muzzle loader hunt in a couple of weeks.  I think he will have a good chance at getting a deer.  Since we can take doe and there were so many coming in, I may just sit there with him rather than taking a chance of sitting elsewhere and shooting and spooking them before he gets a shot.  Maybe we can pull off a two-fer. 

[flintlock]

Cool deal on the cats, we don't have them where I hunt.   Sounds like the new spot is auto-deer the next time you get out.

[lightsoutcalls]

Yeah, Dad has had both knees replaced, both shoulders replaced, back surgery and a quadruple bypass.  He gets winded after about 100 yards on level ground.  We never know how many more hunts we have with them, so I'm trying to do all I can to get another successful hunt in when I have the chance.  I took my laptop over Saturday evening to show him the pics while some of their friends were over playing cards and having dinner.  Everybody was ooing and ahhing.  Dad commented to them "he takes care of me."  I can't tell you what that meant for me to hear.
About 3 years ago I took him for his first muzzleloader hunt on his brother's property.  I shot a 10 point.  About 30 minutes later while I'm dressing my deer out I heard him shoot (about 300 yards away).  He killed an older 8 point... his first deer in almost 50 years.  We got a two-fer then.  I'm thinking this time we'll try it side by side.

[tomstopper]

Good luck to the both of you and cherish every moment you have with your dad.

[redarrow]

Good luck to the both of you and cherish every moment you have with your dad.

Amen Brother.

[outdoors]

GOD BLESS  and   

[stone road turkey calls]

Wow! wish you could have takein the cat, yea go side by side with your dad, thanks for the post.

[FANMAN]

That was indeed time well spent in the woods,Wishing you and your Dad the best of luck this fall.

[lightsoutcalls]

Wow! wish you could have takein the cat, yea go side by side with your dad, thanks for the post.

I'm thinking that stand would be a great place to sit with either the 10/22 or the AR. I may have to spend a day there during modern gun deer season.  The longest shots I could see would be 35 yards due to thick brush.  I think the .223 with a well placed round would take a deer down in that kind of range.  I know it would take the cat down.

[GobbleNut]

Neat experience with the cats!  That would have been cool to see, for sure.  Good luck with getting your father a deer, too.

[Turkey Beard]

Good day in the woods for sure. Neat about the bobcat/kittens. I got to watch a family of otters in the creek one time; special place in my heart because my last name is Otterness...