Deer Hunting

The rifle deer season started on Saturday and we've started out with two nice buck. Still looking to get a doe to fill the freezer.

I got this 7-point, with a 19 inch spread, on Sunday after I passed up on a smaller 6-point.

Matt got this 8-point this morning.

Coyotes

I was checking more of my game cameras today and found some daytime pictures of a coyote. I have seen a large increase in the number of game camera sightings of coyotes this year but since they are nocturnal hunters I rarely get daytime photos of them. These photos were taken 30 yards from my deer stand and maybe I'll see it again while I'm in the deer stand.

Game Camera Photos

I was checking some of the game cameras today and along with lots of deer and coyote pictures I found these:

This black bear, and possibly a second bear, were photographed multiple times on different cameras on the morning of November 20th, the first day rifle bear season. Maybe they were looking for a good hiding place until the season was over.

Turkeys playing Follow the Leader.

Bullfrog

With the local ditches and streams running high from the overnight rain I decided to check the pond at our cabin for any issues. We've had a warmer than normal fall this year but the last thing I expected to find in mid-November was a large bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) sunning itself at the edge of the pond.

The Rut

The whitetail deer mating season, known as the rut, is in full swing. This is my favorite time to photograph the bucks since they only have one thing on their minds. I found this buck chasing a doe and not paying any attention to me.

Bobcat

For this evening's wildlife drive I decided to park my truck on the road to our cabin to see if any big bucks would cross the road. No bucks but shortly after sunset this Bobcat walked within 5 feet of my truck. After posing for some pictures the Bobcat walked into the grass stalking a meal. By now it was getting too dark for a good photo of the Bobcat jumping at least 6 feet and missing its meal. I watched this Bobcat for another 10 minutes as it walked the road to our cabin.

Frost

After a warmer than normal October the temperatures have abruptly shifted to an unwelcome colder than normal. This morning's temperatures were in the low 20's and there was still a coating of frost on this thistle at noon.

Apples and Deer

Colder weather and a brief snow storm moved into our neighborhood this morning and prompted us to look for some apples to make a pie. As we approached an apple tree behind our barn we found this deer and two more bedded down next to the apple tree waiting for some apples to fall.

The deer seemed reluctant to leave their comfortable beds and the tasty apples.

The deer quickly reviewed their options on this apple tree and decided to look for another apple tree.

Fall Turkey Hunting

This past Saturday was cold, windy, rainy and the starting day of the fall turkey hunting season. We found a large flock of turkeys on Saturday but weren't able to get close enough to get one. I went out scouting deer this morning and drove within 20 yards of this flock, but didn't have my shotgun. It's still early in turkey season.