Gold Mine

I feel fortunate to live within a community that exists large in part to the presence of a major university.  Moreover, thanks to Penn State's vast tracts of public land open to hunting,  we have been able to enjoy several days afield in relative solitude with plenty of game to keep us company.  Over the weekend we hunted a new area of university land and were richly rewarded with a sack full of cottontail rabbits. It seemed that every time Daisy's nose hit the ground, she'd pick up a fresh scent.  She was the champion of the day, as was Spencer who bagged half the rabbits with some quick shooting.  Every bunny Daisy scented she brought around at least once for an opportunity; it was the most fun we've had hunting rabbits in a long time, and the grounds were ideal—not too thick and frustrating, but enough to give us a challenge. The rabbits were wily and tried to fool us at every turn. We missed a few shots too, but having four hunters was ideal. We were able to keep them boxed in, but some still managed to slip through and around us a few times. One sometimes overlooks that prey animals are highly intelligent creatures who are experts at escaping danger.  They just couldn't escape Daisy's nose.

Another exciting discovery was the presence of turkeys. We flushed a total of three, and probably scattered a bigger flock. Unfortunately, turkey wasn't open on Saturday due to a new opening day for bear season. But, we all agreed that it was great thing that this year Fall Turkey season will reopen on Thanksgiving. We vowed to return on Thursday morning for a chance to bag a bird for the afternoon table.  That wasn't the end of the story. We also spotted deer—including a fine buck that had been enjoying some berries when Daisy tore into a thicket after a rabbit. The buck exploded out of his afternoon haunt and dashed away much to our enjoyment. He was at least a six-pointer, and he looked to be close to his prime. A fine specimen of a deer. Tonight, I returned to set up a secondary stand for upcoming deer season and spotted three more deer. A local bear hunter and I crossed paths at dusk, and he gave me some great inside information in regards to bucks in the area.

Thanksgiving weekend is upon us, and I can't help but revel in the crossing of fall small game and deer season.  Consecutive days of hunting small game before the big one (deer season) makes this time of year truly golden.