This is from my hunting journal for this past weekend.
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Date: 9-11 Nov 2007
Time: Various – see below
Location: AEP land close to campground K
Party: Dylan and me (and tradgang dudes)
Weather: Between cool and cold - cloudy
Description:
Dylan and I arrived early Friday the 9th, introduced ourselves to those currently in camp and got set up. Charlie passed out some maps and some intel so Dylan and I decided to go do some scouting.
We drove the perimeter of our area and chose a couple of spots for further inspection. First, we parked along Hwy 2 and had a look at a promising trail. We found a beaver pond and a few rubs (including one very fresh one) along some well-used deer trails. We prowled around back there for a bit and mentally marked the place as an ambush possibility.
Later, we decided to have a look at the ridges and ponds and so forth east of the campground. We parked on an old haul road and found (after crunching through the thick brush) a decent trail along one of the ridges. Here, we saw loads of beaver sign and a few half-hearted rubs (only one looked to have been made this year). Further up the trail we started noticing some small scrapes. None looked particularly fresh but there were quite a few of them. We kept heading north until the scrapes died out and until the sun looked about ready to do the same. We chased a woodcock all the way up this trail (at least as far as we went). We must have kicked that poor bird up about ten times.
Heading back to the car, we returned to the much more accessible intersecting trail and found a number of very fresh rubs. Having gotten turned around a bit, we also found a nice creek crossing loaded with fresh tracks. To us, this looked like a better ambush possibility for the next day if the beaver pond didn't work out. Driving back to camp, we watched a doe take a nice relaxed stroll across the road.
That night, we had a ball back at the campfire meeting the other guys. The stories were great and we even convinced Charlie to share some of our frambled eggs and bacon – mmmm it goes down easy. We slept fitfully that night, but had an interesting time listening to beavers flapping in the water right next to our tent, muskrat trappers crunching through the weeds doing whatever muskrat trappers do, and rogue beagles snuffling through the campsite.
I was awake before my alarm went off Saturday morning at 0500. We had a quick breakfast (oatmeal and trail mix with coffee – yum) and hit the road.
Dylan and I made tracks back to the ambush site (east of the campground – someone was already parked back by the beaver pond). Dylan set up on the creek crossing and I set up down the trail from the rubs. Apparently we chose poorly. I saw what may possibly have been a squirrel moving about 100 mph about 80 yards east of me but no other game. I did hear what may have been a deer north of us (coming from the scraped up ridge I described above) but I never saw it. We cooked lunch in the field (cheesy brats over Sterno and wrapped in pita bread – weird but weirdly good).
I was about ready to get up and move somewhere else when I heard the blue jays making a ruckus on the scrape ridge to the north. I started calling a bit in hopes that some deer were heading down (and bugging the jays). Midway into a masterful rattling sequence, I hear leaves being kicked and a mighty tromping coming from the north. Hope flared briefly then I heard voices and soon saw a couple of guys heading out. I hear T.J. say “there's the road right down there”. They didn't even have the decency to kick up a herd of deer in front of them – hrmph!
After collecting ourselves and taking a trip into town (gotta make those calls home) we did a bit more road scouting (saw another couple of does out and about). We spotted some possibly worthwhile areas south of the swamp that runs south of 13 so we decided to park and try to walk the ridge on the far side.
Heading through the swamp, we found some strong sign so we decided to stop scouting and start setting up. We found a good spot at the junction of a number of trails and so we set up there. We waited and waited and waited. I was kept entertained by a number of mice dinking around in the leaves and by about a bajillion (roughly) birds swarming around all over the place. We head a splash which was either a deer falling in or a beaver doing what beavers do – my money is on the beaver.
We called it a night and returned to camp for more greasy eggs and bacon, more campfire hilarity and more loud beagles. The night was clear and cold (for those of us not staying in two story tents with central air and heating, anyway) and the doggies howled long and loud. It was cold enough that I decided to sleep with a hood on and every time I thought I was comfortable in my bag, I'd detect another major draft whistling down my back. Five o'clock couldn't come soon enough.
Before dawn, Dylan and I were back out by the beaver pond (off of Hwy 2) that we had scouted the first day. Things were pretty and the wind was perfect for the two spots we had chosen (Dylan was on the fresh rub and I was on a trail junction about sixty yards away from him). Around 8:00am I heard what sounded like deer coming up the trail so I got my act together and got ready to shoot.
Unfortunately about that time, Dylan got cold or hungry. He popped the top on his Sterno with a loud bong noise that practically rattled my teeth. We lurked out there until around 10:00 am and saw nothing so it was back to camp to tear down and do a little target shooting. The target shooting was a blast though the tearing down (in the light rain that had started) was not.
All in all, it was a great weekend and I'm ready for another like it.
Topic: Ohio trad camp - my perspective (Read 226 times)
