Trail cameras

I love, love, love trail cameras!  

We took a quick trip up to the property to check the pictures on the trail cameras.  We found out that the sensitivity on the first camera was set too high so we had over 2,000 pictures of the tree branches moving in the wind but we did get several pictures of our little bear from that camera and while we were hiking we found a paw print from the little guy (or gal) near the camera

It was really a bit of luck finding that print...it was hidden under a Lilly leaf at the edge of the bog. I almost stepped right on the track but caught myself just in time.  It's hard to see the full print in this photo because I only had my phone with me; but the print, claws to the back of the pad, was just slightly shorter than my husband's hand (pinkie side). 

My favorite trail camera photos so far this year came from the other end of the property (opposite the bear's hangout). We had several shots of a coyote chasing a turkey back and forth across a small meadow over a 20 minute period. As far as we can tell the turkey escaped. There were also several shots of a bull moose in velvet. I really hope that the big buy decides to stick around so that we can capture photos of his antlers as they grow.  We also have a few bucks in velvet that we are watching grow; four point minimum, no does, here so fingers crossed that at least a few are hunt-able. 

I love that the trail cameras really bring the mountain to life. We hiked for two hours and did not see any animals, only signs that they had been there. When the weather gets better I hope to camp out on the property near the game trails so we can track (spot and stalk) some of the animals to get a better feel for where they go and what paths they are using. 

Seedlings

One of the problems that we run into with the family's mountain top property is that as soon as the cold hits and the snow starts falling the deer start moving down the mountain for the winter.  We have been trying to come up with some ideas to keep them around longer so that we have good movement for the majority of deer season.  The next few years are going to be trial and error as we try to see what the deer like and what will survive on the property.  This year we are going to plant a variety of vegetables to start our trail.  One of the largest problems that we face is a lack of irrigation; this is just a wooded property there is no well for us to pull from.  We do, however, have a small creek and a little pond on one corner.  Also the ground seems to stay pretty moist through most of the year so we may have some luck. 

This afternoon I planted hundreds of seeds into little peat moss pots our garage is overflowing with boxes of vegetable starts;

We are going to grow the plants here for as long as we possibly can, then when they are just about out of room we will take them up to the property and plant the peat moss pots in the ground on the property with lots of water.  Hopefully they will be established enough by that point that they will survive a slight drought in August and be all ready for the fall.  If all goes well our deer will have access to pumpkins, melons, corn, cabbage and sunflowers as autumn comes.  I am new to gardening and planting vegetables so I'm not entirely sure which plants will survive the summer.  Getting the property transformed into a deer haven will take a lot of work over the next few years but we couldn't be more excited.  It will be fun learning what works, what doesn't and getting to know the mountain better.

Small moments

In this fast-paced, technology filled world it's so easy to get swept away and miss out on the important things in life.  The joy in this world is not heading up a major company, or getting top scores in a video game; it's in the small moments with your family.  These past few weeks have been super busy for our family between work, school, extra-curricular activities and other obligations.  So last night we declared a family night.  Everyone was home for a dinner as a family (no technology allowed) followed by a movie night.  All of that was nice and it helped us reconnect after a busy few weeks, but the best moment was after the movie when the end credits were rolling. 

Our young son was putting in his best effort to stall bedtime and found a sucker in his father.  He curled up with him on the couch and started telling a story...of course it was a hunting story because this five-year-old boy knows his audience and is a master at stalling bedtime (it's his superhero power)!  Thirty minutes into the story my husband realized that he was being used to get out of bed and the real fun began.  Out came the tickle monster and the two boys erupted in a fit of laughter together.  The image of those two running around the living room laughing and playing will live in my memory forever.  Especially the look on my husband's face when he caught on to the game and my son's face when he realized that he had been caught stalling.  I could have put my foot down ended the hunting story and gotten my son into bed on time, but I'm honestly glad that I didn't.  I sat back to see how long my son could carry on the charade and in return I received a special treat in that fun family moment.  Sure my son managed to stay up an hour and a half past his bedtime and he's a little cranky today, but the memory made last night is well worth a fussy kid for a day.

It's so easy to follow the clock, stick with our routines and fall into the trap of electronics and never-ending work.   I worry sometimes that families are becoming less of a priority and are falling victim to technology and outside commitments.  I'm going to keep last night at the forefront of my mind and do my best to make sure that we unplug for a day and just reconnect as a family as often as possible so that we don't lose sight of what is most important...the sheer joy in small moments with family.

Trail Cameras

This year will be our first year hunting on the family's new property.  So we are starting from the very beginning and trying to figure out the perfect place to hunt.  About two weeks ago we hiked the property and saw quite a bit of deer and elk sign.  We made our best guess on hunting spots and placed four trail cameras around the property.  After only one day we had several deer images, giving us faith in our initial choices.

We have let the property sit for almost two weeks now.  I can't wait to go hiking this weekend and collect our memory cards from the trail cameras.

If you haven't used trail cameras before I would highly recommend them.  Two years ago we placed trail cameras on a friend's property.  He thought that he only had a few deer and an occasional moose passing through because he didn't see much wildlife when he was hiking around, we bet him otherwise.  Within the first few weeks we had photos of hundreds of deer and at least 8-9 different bears with only two cameras.  If you place the right cameras in the right areas your property will come alive.  On top of that you can find out their patterns and it will help you know what time you need to be in your stand so that you are not scaring deer out as your packing in.

Where should you place a camera?  It will take a bit of guess work at first, but placing a camera is no different from choosing a tree stand location.  Look for deer sign (trails, bedding areas, tree rubs, scat, prints...) then place the camera a little off the trail and position your lenses so that it will get a wide view of the spot you've chosen. 

A quick note...bears (at least the ones we've encountered) seem to be very curious about the trail cameras.  We've had several cameras pulled out of their trees by bears:

So I strongly recommend looking for a camera with an outer-housing that will allow you to chain it to the tree.  Use a light chain and lock, the bungee cords we used at first were not strong enough.  Once you've secured your camera to the tree, give it some time then enjoy your photos.  You never know...you might capture some amazing moments.

Off Season

"Why on earth are you starting a hunting blog at the very end of the season?"  It's true hunting season is pretty much over in our area.  Which makes it the perfect time to start a hunting blog.  During season I would much rather be sitting in my tree stand or jump shooting ducks as opposed to sitting in the computer room.  So now that my hunting opportunities are dwindling I have time to commit to designing this page and getting things started.  However, as most hunters know just because season is over the work is not over.  We have plenty of hunting related projects planned that will keep us busy enough until September 1st.  As my husband keeps reminding everyone, that's only 111 days to prepare.  So what's on the list for the hunting property?

*Improve the road into the property
*Set up game cameras
*Plan out tree stand locations
*Move game cameras
*Plant food plots
*Set up camping spot

I'll keep you posted as we work on our projects.  We have lots of other fun things planned throughout the summer (hopefully some archery tournaments and camping!) that I'll share as well.  I don't know about you, but it always seems like a long wait between seasons.  Hopefully all of our projects and summer adventures will help pass the time.  Stay busy and get outdoors!