Well.... I headed up to Javie camp early Saturday Morning completing the 2 hour drive just as the sunrise was painting the desert with a warm glow..... I set up my new penthouse blind at the only water I could find during my scouting trip and waited for action
Birds would flock into the tank 100 or so at a time
they would drink for a bit then with a whirr of wings they would seek shelter in the trees and bushes around the tank
They looked like Christmas ornaments there were so many of them ...... Ahhh Christmas in the desert
After sitting for hours and seeing literally thousands of birds coming and going your mind starts to drift.... I was dreaming I was sitting in a blind looking over a waterhole in the heart of Africa when I heard the unmistakable sound of approaching footsteps...... and what should appear but a herd of Cape Buffalo.... "Black Death"
Now things are getting interesting.... Ok so maybe it was a herd of range cattle wanting to play Peekaboo
Kind of shows you how effective the blind was though.... These cattle won't normally let you get within 80 yards of em without spooking off..... After seeing the number of lion tracks in this area I can't say as I blame them for being skittish..... The rest of the day was uneventful except for a covey of qual that was too far out for a decent pic....... I broke the blind down after sunset and loaded everything into the truck and headed up the road to find a spot to spend the night...... I quickly set up my Kelty Backpack tent boiled some water and had some sweet and sour chicken..... I love backpack meals and I can boil water with the best of em... After a fairly good nights sleep (those backpack sleeping pads aren't near as cushy as when I was younger)The coyotes howling signaled the coming sunrise and I woke up to a breakfast of Pop Tarts..... It doesn't get any better than this.......... I headed out under one of the brightest full moons I'd ever seen and soon was at the edge of the Prickly pear flats where Mike and Mickey had killed their "Pig" (singular) last year...... I stood and listened as the sun crested the mountains to the east and the desert once again came alive...... about half an hour after sunrise I heard the unmistakeable sound of a Javie munching on Prickly pear and I slowly made my way towards him...... I was about 20 yards away from the munching Peccary but couldn't see him over the 3' high prickly pear.... I settled in to wait for him to make a mistake.... I could now hear some more pigs feeding as well..... about 15 minutes later I heard voices..... Man, I thought, I've been out in the desert too long... The pigs are talking to me.... But a few minutes later two quail humters crested the ridge to my right and strolled down into the pear flats.... I watched as 5 pig butts scurried over the ridge to my left.... The two Quail hunters were having a great morning strolling and talking...... As they passed 20 yards from me I learned that the one hunters brother was a great guy when he didn't have a beer in his hand... The other hunter was talking about how their newborn never slept for more than 4 hours and was so cute when he woke up..... Stretching and opening his eyes and smiling....Kinda warmed the cockles of your heart.....I decided to head up high and topped out on a far ridge about an hour later.... As I was climbing my stomach started a funny rumbling and by the time I hit the top Montezuma was extracting his full revenge.... For what, I have no Idea...... I left a trail a blind man could follow as I made my way the mile or so back to the truck..... I was experiencing the start of flu symptoms when I got back and decided to bail out and head home..... I broke camp quickly and took a parting look around and one last picture in the long shadows
and headed out for home........ I love bowhunting every outing is an adventure with lessons learned.... I believe that when it is our time to go what we take with us is our memories and what we leave behind is the memories we've given others.... Life is a treasure for sure..... Terry
Topic: Team Javie '06 (Read 4265 times)
