Anticipation

It's still above 90 degrees outside at 7:00 pm, and I'm swinging a bush ax.  In between wiping sweat out of my eyes, I think that I must be crazy. It's the middle of July, but already I have whitetail deer on my mind. I'm at one of my hunting spots, clearing a trail across a pond dam that had become overgrown with briers and saplings. This dam doubles as a bridge over the creek leading to my deer stand. Once the trail is cleared, I still have to walk up to the top of the ridge and check on the stand, and clear away some dead trees that are blocking the shooting lanes, not to mention trimming the limbs that have began to block my view out of the stand. The old ladder on the homemade stand needs to be replaced, thanks to the work of carpenter bees, but that's a project that will have to wait for another day. I've got a memory card in my pocket, and plan on swapping it out with the one that is in my trail camera close by. I can't wait to see if anything has been visiting the minerals I put out a few weeks ago, and my thoughts turn to cooler weather, changing leaves, and rutting bucks.

That was the scenario the other day as I began preparing for the 2015 deer season. Anticipation is a big part of hunting and fishing to me. I can remember many years where I couldn't sleep the night before opening day of deer or turkey seasons, or even when I had a fishing trip planned for the next morning. That seems to have changed a little as I've gotten older, and I'd like to think that it's just experience helping me to sleep now. I don't feel any less excitement about being outdoors now than I did twenty or more years ago as a child, however I do know now that it's better to sleep in the bed the night before so I don't fall asleep in the stand in the mornings!

One thing that I enjoy now is being able to use trail cameras to see what I would've normally missed by not being in the woods. I'm not sure that these have drastically changed the way I hunt, but they do tend to add fuel to the fire of excitement when a nice deer or big tom turkey shows up on camera. Over the last few years, they've also provided their share of surprises like the time a black bear passed through, or the occasional bobcat, fox, coyote, or raccoon. As I've suffered through the 90+ degree high temperatures these last few weeks, I can't help but think that soon fall will be here, bringing with it cooler weather, football, dove hunting, better trout fishing, and the beginning of our archery deer season. In the meantime, here are a few of the visitors that have shown up on the camera in the last few days. It won't be much longer and these bucks won't be so friendly with each other. I can't wait.

- Joseph

There are a few more pictures below the jump.

Trail Cam Pictures #2

Here are a few of the latest pictures from my trail camera. I'm glad to see the bucks are still using the mineral site, and it's neat to get to see pictures of the next generation of deer at this farm. Two of the bucks in these pictures were also in pictures that I posted previously on the blog - the 8 point buck was in the In Velvet post, and the one horned buck appeared in the first trail cam pictures post. I was glad these two were still around, and I was excited to see a new buck this time, a nice wide 7 pointer. He is making his first appearance on the blog in this post, but hopefully it won't be his last. It is interesting to me that although I got a lot of pictures at night, they were all does. All of my buck pictures lately have come during the day. Not that I'm complaining!

On with the pictures!

The 7 pointer making his first appearance

Doe and fawn

More pictures below!

In Velvet

One advantage I've recently found to having a trail camera is the chance to see bucks in velvet. This is something that I rarely got to see before, and almost never close up. I might happen to see a buck during the summer while driving down the road, or the very rare occasion when I would see one very early in bow season, but they soon lost their velvet and the majority of the deer season here in western NC the bucks are hard horned. Checking the trail camera the other day, I was excited to see a total of three velvet bucks visiting my mineral site. Two of these deer I shared pictures of in a previous post. The third buck only recently showed up, but I hope he sticks around!

He's going to be a nice 8 pt

I think that it is simply amazing the way that deer shed their antlers every winter, and then regrow them through the next spring and summer, with the velvet covering providing the antlers with a blood supply and nutrition for growth. All of this yearly growing and shedding antlers, all for the purpose of fighting during the rut for a chance to breed. The more I study nature and spend time in the woods, the more amazing it seems to me. These deer grow their antlers ultimately to have a chance to pass on their genes, but whatever the reason for growing them, whitetail deer antlers are impressive both for the way they look and grow, and the effect they have on us hunters.

Thanks for stopping by!

- Joseph

Trail Cam Pictures #1

I plan to occasionally post pictures to this blog from the trail cameras that my brother-in-law and I have set up at the two farms that we hunt on. This is not going to be a regular feature, but more of an occasional posting when something interesting or exciting shows up on our cameras. Right now we have two cameras out, both on mineral sites that we have established for deer. However, as the pictures will show, sometimes surprises show up!

I have only been using trail cameras since last Christmas, when I received one as a present. I know I'm coming late to the game as several people I know have been using these for years. I do enjoy getting to see what roams around in the woods when nobody is around, and it is exciting to see pictures of deer that will hopefully still be in the area when deer season comes. If you have never used one of these cameras, I would definitely recommend trying it out. Even if you're not a hunter or don't plan to use these as a scouting tool, I believe you will enjoy getting to see the different animals that are living in your neck of the woods.

Enough talking, on with the pictures!

Velvet buck

Lots more pictures below the jump!