Conference vmsnet::hunting$note:hunting

    Well, I saw a nice healthy buck last week....in the ZK parking lot!
    No kidding.  I almost drove off the road I was so surprised.
    
    Mark,
    

    Saw a live big doe in the median strip before the RT 20W exit off RT
    495S last week. She must have found her way out and across as no sign
    of road kill that night.
    
    I've had a nice turkey hen in my garden and blueberry Fields for the
    past 2 weeks. I been as close as 8'. I snuck up while she was
    preoccupied either admiring herself or conversing with her reflection
    in my sliding glass doors. Judging by the droppings she'd left behind,
    this seems to be part of her early morming activity. Anyone ever see a
    turkey in the looking glass early in the morning ?
    
    Bob  

    
    
        I have a doe with a little one that have been hanging around the
    house for the last month, i put out an apple lick block and a salt
    block, which they have visited on numerous occaasions.
    
        one night last week i was cutting down a tree in my back yard, i
    was up about 30 feet with the climbing spikes and widger belt on using 
    the chainsaw when i shut off the saw to climb over to the other tree
    trunk, i looked out towards the back of my lot and there was the doe 
    standing there looking at me in the tree. i'd like to know what was
    going thru her mind at that time.
    
    
        Well it looks as tho its going to be a good year, I just talked to
    my mom, she is taking the firearm safety (hunter ed) course, she wants
    to hunt this year, actually she wants to bowhunt more than gunhunt. it
    will be nice having her out there hunting, altho with her eagle eyes
    the deer are gonna be in trouble.
    
    
                  Lee
      who is definatly looking forward to hunting season this year!!!!
    
    

    I haven't had the time to go out scouting yet, but my buddy has been
    seeing quite a few deer in Ky where I hunt.  He called a few days ago
    breathing heavy, I thought he wanted to talk to my wife, but it turned
    out that he was watching two nice bucks within 100 yards of his house.
    
    
    I'm glad bow season is approaching, I have alot of stuff on my mind
    that I would be more than happy to replace with thoughts of the woods!
    
    Wess

    
    Since there is no elk sightings note I'll put this here!
    
     On the way back form Steamboat springs this week we saw 9 elk feeding
    next to hiway 24 about 1/4 mile west of twin rocks road! 1 spike bull
    in velvet and 8 cows or last years calfs, none of the calfs looked like
    they were from this year, if they were they grow fast!
    
    Dave
    

    Went on _vacation_ the last couple weeks down in S.E. Colorado to help
    my brother harvest wheat.  My mother, who lives down there too, has 
    been having trouble with the jack rabbits eating her plants.  I saw
    a rabbit hop around the corner of the shop so I went and loaded up my
    44 mag and went huntin'.  I rounded the corner of the barn
    and---whoa!--(funny how your mind will play tricks for a second or
    two sometimes).  Same color, but--big!  The rabbit had grown? 
    Jackalopes?  No, two mule deer standing about 100 ft. from me.  A big
    buck and a big doe, and here I am with my 44 mag.  Well, they say
    the sign of a real hunter is when he knows _not_ to take the shot.
    Well I guess I qualify.  Even though I grew up in the area, I'd
    never seen deer in that part of the state before.  I watched them 
    go hop-t-hopping across the field towards the creek.

    fred();

Do the 80 or so head of elk I saw yesterday count?  There were about that
many grazing early yesterday morning on highway 96 (Colorado) between
McKenzie Junction and San Isabel.  I found out later in the day that the
land these elk were on is the Mountain Meadows ranch, which is one of the
CDOW's wildlife ranching operations.  I also learned that for just a
mere $4500 you can get a guided hunt on this place.  Success rate is
100%, and they know of at least two bulls in the area that will qualify
for B&C.  Sounds good, but not that good.

I also saw a couple of mule deer does in the same general area.

Jerry

    Jerry,
    
    It is amazing to me how much those "guided hunts" cost!  I'm sure those
    south Texas Deer hunts are in the same category.
    
    Saw a nice buck in velvet walking along the interstate on the way home
    on Saturday.  He already had a nice rack, velvet sure makes them look
    big.
    
    
    Wess

    On my way to MRO this mroning the radio announcer for the traffic
    report said that a herd of deer were stopping traffic at the
    intersection of rt 495 and 290. I was at RT117 but didn't see them when
    I reached  that exit. Anyone see the "herd" ?

had to cross a drainage in my climb of Avalanche Peak
Glacier Park, last week. Five yards into the dense stuff
I run up on a doe. Literally two paces away. She looks
and then eats. Ignores me!

My wife hands me my 35mm from the backpack. I have a 
nice deer portrait to go in the scrapbook.

    Saw 4 does on the way to work this morning.  They were in a soybean
    field right at the edge of town.  About 200yards from a Gas station.
    
    
    It's getting closer.....
    
    
    Wess

    
    Seems that the deer I mentioned in .6 that I thought were mulies moving
    down out of the mountains were actually whitetails moving in from 
    Kansas.  The whitetail population is spreading westward.  
    
    Spotted an antelope herd down in S.E. Colorado two weekends ago also. 
    There has been a small herd in the area for several years.  Looks like
    it is growing.  Nice.

    fred()

    Went on a little hiking trip last weekend.  Went up Lewis Creek Trail
    which has a trailhead a couple miles west of Wetmore, Co. (west of 
    Pueblo).  Spotted a nice doe hop-t-hopping through the trees.  Stopped
    about 150 yd. out and stood and watched me go by.  Won't be that tame
    come hunting season.
    fred():

    
    
      I have been keeping an eye on a couple bucks at a friends farm all
    summer, one was a nice 8 point he became another car/deer stat about 3 
    weeks ago.
    
       The other buck a nice high racked 4 point is hanging in my shop
    right now:-( another stat:-(  the only good point it wasnt me that
    hit him, I had enough brains to stop to let them cross.
    
      I stopped at the farm at 6 am this morning to check on glens mom to
    see if she wanted any stuff out of the garden, i dropped off a couple 
    dozen toms & cukes for her to can.
    
      hopped in the truck, pulled out on lake road and went about 200 yrds
    and a doe and twins walk out of the hay field, then another doe with a
    single fawn come out then the 4 pt, i was stopped they are all standing
    there, i see headlights coming up the road as the car breaks over the 
    top of the little rise i was flashing the headlights like a mad man.
    
       This (dont know what to call them) other car never even slowed down,
    I sorta leaned over the seat, figuring that having a deer launched thru
    my windshield wouldnt be a good thing.  there was a loud bang and when
    i looked up i could see one of the adult deer trying to run out thru
    the hayfield, it went about 40 yrds and collapsed.
    
        The vehicle that hit the deer took off, and i couldnt get a plate 
    number. so i pulled off the road and got out of the truck and walked
    over to the deer and as i got close enough to see him i could see the 
    fork on his right antler, I was not a very happy person.
    
      I walked back to the truck to go back to Glens to call the sheriff's
    but when i got to the truck the sheriffs dispatcher was already calling 
    the sheriffs car about the deer, they stated the deer was still alive,
    which it wasnt.
    
      the sheriff finally showed up and i explained what happened and i
    asked if there were any needy famillies in the area that need the
    venison, he said he doesnt have a list, he said if you want the deer
    i will fil out a tag for you. 
    
       I said well this isnt the way i wanted to get him but I dont want
    him to go to waste either. so the sheriff gave me a tag and i took him
    home. I guess my afternoon is already planned.
    
       Well now i guess i have to start looking for another buck to get
    patterned for the early bow season. this was not a good way to start 
    the day.
    
                 Lee