Bolt Hole Report, November 7, 2010No Encounters

After cutting off one end of the blanket and sewing it to the other end to make the blanket longer (a Native American explanation of Daylight Savings Time), I went to bed last night with a crystal clear sky. It was still crystal clear at 2 AM EST...and at 3 AM EST. As can surmise, I did not have a good nights rest.

The alarm was set for 6 AM and that's when I got out of bed, stoked the fire, and brewed a pot of coffee. It was just 26 degrees outside and everything was covered in frost. The small frog pond off the front porch had a skim coating of ice on its surface. I was slow to get my hunting clothes on and even slower to get my a$$ out the door, but get out there I did--at 7 AM; well after the "new" sunrise hour of 6:45.

Walking on the frosted leaves was like walking on cornflakes and with almost no breeze blowing, seemed twice as noisy. I noted white rime frost bursting forth from dead, sodden branches elevated above ground. Only those less than six inches in diameter seemed to have lost enough heat during the night to have their water content freeze. And only those branches elevated so as to allow air to circulate freely and completely around them had frozen ribbons of white eminating from them. The ground and branches/tree trunks lying on the ground had not frozen.

I slowly made my way back to the first shelf behind my property on state land to the same place I sat yesterday morning. Again I hung out my three scent bombs and waited.

Only one of the Downy Woodpeckers was working the trees this morning, but even it disappeared around 9 AM. Obviously it was operating on an inner clock keyed to circadian rhythms and paid no heed to the time pieces of man's invention.

As I sat, I could see single strands of spider silk stretching between trees and branches. Obviously not a web-like structure, these were probably used as a mode of transportation. Either the spider would "kite" through the air by emitting a strand of silk until it was long enough to capture a breeze and carry the spider, or the spider would anchor one end to a branch and then swing from the other until a breeze brought it into contact with another branch or tree. Either way, the woods seemed to be filled with them. Much like yesterday's frozen water droplets, the silk strands between me and the sun glittered in sunlight and flickered as the slightest breeze would pluck them like a guitar string.

By 10 AM the sun (the sky was still crystal clear) had stirred the air and a steady breeze was blowing. Since the air had not warmed much (it only got up to 34 degrees at the cabin) that breeze felt mighty chilly. I hunkered down and scanned the surrounding forest. Not seeing a deer, I waited some more.

As things warmed up (slightly) I noticed numerous moths flitting just above ground level. The small (about 3/4 to 1 inch across) off white insects were trying to fly against the ever increasing breeze. They would make a little headway against the still air close to the ground only to be blown backwards if they lofted themselves too high. Occasionally, I would see one darting behind a tree or a fallen log and make some good distance that way only to be blown back to its starting point when it ventured around or above its protective obstacle.

I took out my lunch, ate, and waited some more.

To make a long story a little briefer: as Sergeant Schults of Hogan's Heroes was fond of saying, "I saw nothing."

And so my time hunting in NY ends with a whimper and not a bang.

I'll be packing up tomorrow morning and heading back to PA sometime after lunch.

Oh, rain is in the forecast for Monday afternoon and night and Tuesday morning.

It's bow season down in PA. Has been for a couple of weeks now.

Bolt Hole Report, November 6, 2010Close Encounters

Hallelujah! The rain finally stopped last night but the promised snow flurries never arrived. Still, I had to get out into the woods if I had any hope of seeing a deer.

It was a chilly 30 degrees under cloudy skies with no breeze as I walked out into the woods at 7:30 this morning. Every branch had a string of frozen droplets hanging from its underside. I made my way up to a beech covered shelf behind the Bolt Hole and hung up three scent bombs along a trail that ran north-south. At the time the tiniest of breezes moved east to west. I parked myself in a cluster of hemlocks at the north end of the trail where the shelf rose to a new level an prepared to wait.

And wait some more. All I saw for the first few hours were a pair of Downy Woodpeckers who were intent upon examining every tree within 50 yards of me. Every time they would swoop down to start their climb on a new tree, the flash of white would draw my attention. For at least an hour they tantalized me with the thought that that white just might be a flick of a deer's tail. No such luck.

The sun peeked through the clouds around 10 AM and those little frozen droplets suddenly became a myriad of crystal prisms. A few positioned at just the right angle, even glinted with gold and red and blue of the rainbow. But the sun also brought some tiny amount of warmth; just enough to begin to melt those droplets which then fell, completing their journey to the forest floor. The warmth also caused some of the beech leaves which had held out against the wind and rain to finally give it up and become detached from their branches and head downward. Another distraction.

Finally, as the sun established itself more firmly in the sky, the hillside began to warm and the wind shifted 180 degrees. It also rattled those beech leaves still clinging to the trees adding yet another distraction. And, while the sun may have warmed the surface, the breeze cooled everything else--including me. By 11:30, having seen nothing but the woodpeckers and growing more chilled by the minute, I was ready to head back to the cabin for some lunch. I picked up my scent bombs and slowly made my way southward as silently as I could.

I was pretty much convinced there wasn't a deer with in half a mile.

Off the shelf and about 200 yards into my walk, I stooped to move a branch lying on the trail and there was a brief crash off to my left. I looked up in time to see the flash of a white tail as it bounded behind some hemlocks just 30 yards away. A second deer, an obvious buck--a HUGE buck--moved across a gap in the hemlocks before I could shoulder my rifle and click the safety off. I turned to the next gap in the trees...but the buck, which had seemed destined for that opening..never got there. It must have made a 90 degree turn and headed straight away from me using the hemlocks as a shield.

The oddest thing about this encounter was the total silence after the initial bolt by the first deer. I never heard a foot-fall from either deer as they made their escape. I tried to find out if they had been bedded down on the other side of the hemlocks, but could find no sign of that. It's possible that this was a case of two deer which just happened to be trying to cross the trail I was on and, because I things were so quiet with the wet leaves and gurgling nearby brook, we just never heard each other approaching.

Anyway, after waiting 15 minutes to see if they might return (unlikely--and even if they did, there was still the thick stand of young hemlocks nearby through which they could move with me being none the wiser) I returned to the cabin for lunch and a warm-up. Then it was back out for a totally uneventful afternoon. I didn't even have the Downy Woodpeckers to entertain me.

Bolt Hole Report, November 4, 2010

I drove back to the Bolt Hole on Wednesday morning with the radio tuned to Glen Beck and learned that I hit 1.000 with my votes on Tuesday. I had known the results for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, US Congressman, and State Representative, but the US Senate contest was a close one and hadn't been called when I hit the sack Tuesday night. I heard nothing on the local radio station when I left and hadn't gone on line before hitting the road, so when, in the midst of a riff on which Democratic Senators and Congressman were not reelected/elected they Beck mentioned that Joe Sestak had not been elected to the Senate, I knew that I had gone 5-for-5. I'm sure the folks in the surrounding cars were wondering why I was shouting "YES!!" and pumping my fist in the air. Hey, at least I wasn't honking the horn. Sheesh!

******

Getting back to the Bolt Hole, I stowed my gear, had lunch, and got dressed to go out into the woods. I opted to simply sit for the afternoon. It was comfortably cool, and sunny with a light breeze barely swaying the topmost boughs of the fir trees. I was sitting near a sizable creek and the gurgling rush of the water was incredibly soothing. I came t-h-i-s close to falling asleep.

Didn't see any deer, however, before I made my way back to the cabin at sunset. Then the weather changed for the worse.

*sigh* Rain, rain, rain! That was today's weather, tonight's weather and tomorrow's weather prediction. So far they've been correct on the first 24 of the 36 hours. Worse is that they are also predicting rain/snow showers for Friday night! Might not get clear skies--or at least no precipitation--until Saturday.

On one hand, I'm glad it's not snow! With 0.75 inches of rain, that could equal 9 inches of snow. On the other hand, I would have liked to gotten into the woods a little more but the weather has been terrible so far. At my age, I'm not going to go sit in the freakin' FALL rain! (I might do so if I'm out fishing in July or August when it's warm, but in October and November? No way!)

I intend to stay continue hunting around the Bolt Hole (weather permitting) until Monday. Then it will be time to drain the pipes, batten the hatches and head back to PA.

Jury Duty

Speaking of important duties as a citizen....

A little over a week ago I got a jury summons for the Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving. That duty will take me over to the county courthouse in Wellsboro...if I am required. As in many locations, one calls in the night before to find out whether or not he/she must report. (That Monday and Tuesday are the two-day bear season here in PA. Bear hunting is usually a group affair and I'm more of a loner so it doesn't bother me to miss any time.)

I've had jury duty several times in New Jersey and sat on two juries while being rejected for--or not called for--several others. I take this seriously for several reasons: First, the persons participating in any trial deserve persons on the jury who will do a fair job, and I believe I do/will; Second, should I ever be in the position of standing before the bar, I would want people who want to be there as opposed to those who couldn't come up with a good excuse; Third, it is one of those "duty" things with me and fits right up there with casting my vote and paying my fair share of taxes. (I may not like what they spend my taxes on, but I realize that someone has to pay for defense and the other things the federal government is supposed to do. Problem is it's also doing an awful lot it should never be doing.)

Anyway, I'll make my call Monday evening before Thanksgiving and if they have need of people I'll be there bright and early...right after I've grabbed breakfast at Mickey D's.

Election Day, 2010

I left the Bolt Hole early this morning and headed south to the Aerie for the sole purpose of casting my vote for senator, congressman, governor and lieutenant governor. The only other "choice" on the ballot was the uncontested race for state representative. When I got to the polling site at noon, I was number 137--a far cry from the numbers that turned out in 2008. (Terry had been there much earlier in the morning as number 27.)

I drove 220 miles to cast that vote. And I'll drive another 220 tomorrow to return to the Bolt Hole.

I hope everyone out there got out to vote today. If you didn't vote, then you've got no right to complain during the next two years. By then, hopefully, you'll have learned your lesson and will be informed enough to make a wise decision in the voting booth.

******

If you look at elections in other nations, there seems to be a much larger turnout than here int he USA. Much of that has to do with the "National Holiday" atmosphere on election day in many other countries. Here, we strive to make casting a ballot easy in many ways. You can register at the DMV. There are states that allow early voting--days early. There are liberal policies with regards to absentee ballots. And few states bother to ask for any sort of ID when it comes to voting. They certainly ask for far less than needed to purchase tobacco or alcohol. Yet we seem to get less than 50% turnout of the living, breathing, eligible voters. (Speaking of which, we need to get the registration books in order. There are folks who have moved or who have died, who are kept on the books in their old site far too long.)

We, as a nation, have taken this most important right/responsibility for granted. I wold like to see Election Day become a true national holiday. This should be a day on which all businesses, all retail outlets, schools, all non-essential services, close from 8 AM until 8 PM (or when ever the polls close). We need to emphasize the importance of voting. Our entire focus--individually, locally and nationally--should be upon casting a vote. If you want to stay home on this day, fine, do so. You won't be forced to vote any more than you are now. And knock off those early voting dates. All votes (other than absentee ballots--the rules for which need to be tightened) need to be cast on Election Day. That's what it's called, for crying out loud.

******

While we're at it, let's reduce the number of National Holidays to just four: Memorial Day, the 4th of July, Election Day and Thanksgiving. And treat each one the same way: shut down everything except essential services (and make sure they are truly essential--police, fire, medical).

College Football: Week 10 Polls and Opponents

We are down to just five undefeated teams, and by next Sunday there will be at least one less. #4 TCU (9-0) and #6 Utah (8-0) put it on the line against one another Saturday. While the home team won both games which pitted two undefeated teams last week, this week I think the outcome will be different. The Horned Frogs may be too much for Utah.

In other games matching two ranked teams—and there are four of them, look for #5 Alabama to tame the #12 LSU Tigers; #10 Stanford Cardinal to beat #13 Arizona. As for #17 Arkansas vs #18 South Carolina or #19 Oklahoma State vs #22 Baylor—pick’em. The former depends upon which Arkansas team shows up and whether the Gamecocks’ Stephen Garcia gets enough time to do well. The latter depends upon which defense bends without breaking too often. Baylor may have an edge there.

[The three numbers for the rankings are from the AP Top 25, The Harris Coaches’ Poll, and CBSSports.com. An “NR” means that that particular poll did Not Rank the team.]

1/1/1 Oregon (8-0) The Ducks will host Washington (3-5) this weekend.

2/3/3 Boise State (7-0) The Broncos will host the Warriors of Hawaii (7-2).

3/2/2 Auburn (9-0) The Tigers should remain perfect host the sacrificial Chattanooga Mocs (5-3).

4/4/4 TCU (9-0) The Horned Frogs put their undefeated season on the line as they hit the road to play #6 Utah (8-0). Someone’s going to have a loss after this one and it could be the home team.

5/5/5 Alabama (7-1) The Crimson Tide will hit Baton Rouge as Alabama plays #12 LSU (7-1).

6/6/6 Utah (8-0) The Utes face another undefeated team in #4 TCU (9-0). Even at home, they’ll have to play better than last week when they used five turnovers to squeak past Air Force.

7/7/7 Wisconsin (7-1) The Badgers travel to Purdue to take on the Boilermakers (4-4).

8/8/9 Ohio State (8-1) The Buckeyes are idle this week.

9/10/8 Nebraska (7-1) The Cornhuskers will be in Ames to play the Iowa State Cyclones (5-4)

10/12/11 Stanford (7-1) The Cardinal play host to the #13 Arizona Wildcats (7-1).

11/9/10 Oklahoma (7-1) The Sooners play at Texas A&M (5-3).

12/11/12 LSU (7-1) The Tigers will host #5 Alabama (7-1).

13/13/13 Arizona (7-1) The Wildcats play on the coast against the #10 Stanford Cardinal (7-1).

14/14/14 Missouri (7-1) The Tigers are on the road to face the Red Raiders of Texas Tech (4-4)

15/16/15 Iowa (6-2) The Hawkeyes play at Indiana (4-4)

16/15/16 Michigan State (8-1) The Spartans try to rebound from last week’s loss as they host the !-8 Minnesota Golden Gophers.

17/19/18 Arkansas (6-2) The Razorbacks play on the road against the #18 Gamecocks of South Carolina (6-2)

18/17/20 South Carolina (6-2) The Gamecocks host #17 Arkansas (6-2).

19/18/17 Oklahoma State (7-1) The Cowboys will be hosting the #22 Baylor Bears (7-2) in a very important BIG 12 game.

20/20/19 Virginia Tech (6-2) The Hokies will host Georgia Tech (5-3) this Thursday night.

21/21/21 Mississippi State (7-2) The Bulldogs have the week off.

22/22/22 Baylor (7-2) The Bears will play #19 Oklahoma State (7-1) on the road.

23/25/23 North Carolina State (6-2) The Wolfpack will play at Clemson (4-4).

24/24/24 Florida State (6-2) The Seminoles host the North Carolina Tarheels (5-3)

25/23/NR Nevada (7-1) The Wolf Pack head north to Moscow, Idaho to face the Vandals (4-4).

NR/NR/25 Hawaii (7-2) The Warriors leave the Blue Lagoon to play on the Blue Carpet of #2 Boise State (7-0)