Grouse Hollow Journal for November 22, 2012 by Greg Koelker

Grouse Hollow Journal for November 22, 2012 by Greg Koelker

Deer Hunting Eve!  The holidays have arrived.  I celebrated with a cup of
coffee and a walk with Scout.  The ground was frosted and the air biting,
but not too much.  I was thinking, "Perfect."  That is perfect for opening
morning, tomorrow.  I kept thinking, "Tomorrow at this time, oh boy."
I'll be in place at The Bench, a hundred and a half acres of thickly
wooded hillside surrounding a long rolling field deep in the Grant River
valley.  I don't know what crops were planted there this year, but I hear
tell that there are plenty of deer.  Brother-in-law Bill, who farms the
land we hunt on, declared basically that "brown is down" this year,
because on one 300-acre bean field, there were literally no soybeans along
the edges as much as 30 to 40 yards in - the crime mostly attributed to a
large herd of hungry whitetails.  Anyway, down the road from the house, I
spotted a deer silhouetted against a picked cornfield.  Ironically, there
is a crooked red "No Hunting" sign set in the fence line by the road in
what would have been in the foreground of the scene - if I had a camera
with me.  (I'll remember the camera next time to guarantee that I never
ever see that exact scene again.)  It stood frozen, watching Scout and I
pass on down to the neighbor's.  On the way back, it was still watching
us, and then it chose to exit, tail high, trotting up into the woods.

For the last couple weeks, Jake Sikora (who rides down to Stoddard with me
in the morning) and I have been noticing a pickup up this big valley,
probably someone bow hunting.  This morning when I went by, there was no
pickup, but there was a deer standing right were the truck usually has
been.   I saw a couple of deer just outside of Stoddard in a cornfield
too.  (I hope I haven't used up my quota of seeing deer for the week just
yet!)

Anyway, when I get home from work today (Friday), El and I will load the
Ranger with the clothes, guns, and boxes of food and gear she has been
accumulating this week.  In years past, when the boys were little, I would
load the pickup and then put a sheet of plywood over the pile for the boys
to ride on in the back.  They would dress warm, bring along their Walkmans
and games and such, and crawl into sleeping bags for the ride down.  We
had a blow up "boot" between the cab and the topper, so we would have the
back slider window open to give them some heat.   I remember more than
once, closing the window after scolding them to quit fighting and arguing
and wrestling and complaining about what the other was doing or saying.
When we got to the home place, after hugs and "Hi Grammas and Grampas," we
would unload military style with everyone carrying stuff in.  After we
started staying at Barb and Chuck's, it was the same.  Once after
surveying the rows and piles of hunting stuff on their huge kitchen floor,
Chuck complained, "Well, didn't you throw in the kitchen sink?"  After we
remodeled the kitchen, I saved the huge steel sink to take down for the
deer hunt; we never had room, but it would have been funny.

Anyway, I suppose I'd better get this off and get some papers corrected,
so until next time, get out.  Here's hoping you and yours have a warm and
family filled Thanksgiving and deer hunt - and the Packers keep winning.
Enjoy.