PA Hunting: Day 9: A Snow-go kinda day.

After the early morning fog and rain, the snow started before noon. Initially it was a heavy wet snow since the temperature was around 36 degrees. But as the temperature fell, the snow flakes got smaller but more numerous. Between 2 and 4 PM it was really coming down.

Well, the 1-3 inches has become more like 6 inches. It's currently 9 PM and it's still snowing. Radar maps show this will end around midnight.

I'll be spending the morning moving snow around.

They goofed again.

Well, the weathermen screwed the pooch on today's forecast!

On Sunday they said today was supposed to be a bright sunny day. Today we have continued fog and rain that may or may not turn to some snow showers later. Weather.com now says there's a winter weather advisory for the area and we could have an inch or so of snow overnight.

Apparently, the front has stalled and the jet stream is parked just to our east. It's bringing moisture in from the Gulf and the coast and here we sit right under--and in--the precipitation. Travel a little to the north and west and the radar shows snow and ice. Another fifty miles and the radar shows clear.

Could be worse. The Poconos and Catskills may see 3-6 inches of snow--if you can believe the forecast.


Do you think they use a Ouija board or flip a coin?

PA Hunting: Day 8: Another no-go.

Another day in the house and not in the field. My back and knees are protesting. The weather really was poor, too. The rain we got last night was supposed to end by noon. Didn't happen. The radar on weather.com didn't show much in the way of green blobs indicative of rain but that might have been because the clouds were flying below the radar. We were in fog all day. Even when it rained, we were still in the fog. Temperatures have slowly fallen all day as well. We started the morning in the upper 40s and they've dropped down to the upper 30s.

Maybe tomorrow. Maybe not.

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I spent part of yesterday and again today down in the wood shop. I'm working on some super-secret Christmas presents that I can not put photos of on this site because some of the recipients may get a sneak peek if I do.

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We finally got the last of our Christmas cards in the mail today. That's only about a week late. Terry usually addresses them all the day after Thanksgiving and I write up the letter to be enclosed. This year we were both a little slow.

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We've already received some cards from family and friends but today we got our first Christmas present. Brian and Vicki sent a package of Omaha Steaks. While we certainly will enjoy them, I have to wonder if he's trying to say something about my efforts to put some venison in the freezer?

PA Hunting: Day 7: Fuh gettabout it!

They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Five days last week I went to the same spot on the hillside behind the Aerie hoping to 1-ambush a buck and then 2-ambush a doe or a buck. Didn't happen.

On a couple of those days, my knees and back were acting up, but I struggled through the aches and pains to stay on stand or take short walks around that end of the property looking for sign. Saturday was not one of those days. In fact I felt really, really good. Perhaps it had to do with the sky-high barometric readings and the beautiful weather.

That changed on Sunday afternoon as a front approached and then stalled over the western half of the state. Clouds returned and with them the threat of rain. Along the Ohio River Valley and over Lakes Erie and Ontario to the west the threat manifested itself and a long, skinny string of rain showers moved/marched from Houston to Toronto and beyond. It's still there coming up from the south along a giant of a loop of the Jet Stream. We're getting some of the warm winds associated with the weather along with a drop in the air pressure, but, so far, no rain. (It's 40 degrees here, yet it's snowing in New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas? Weird.)

The drop in air pressure--and perhaps sitting all Sunday afternoon watching Jets and Giants football--has caused aches and pains in both knees and along my back at the belt line. My shoulders don't feel too good either. In short, every joint started complaining last night and continues complaining this morning. As a result, I've opted out of today. Just going to take a couple of arthritis strength acetaminophen and climb back under the covers. Might stay there until Wednesday when this rain is supposed to finally get the heck out of here.

NFL Lessons

Three things I learned watching football today:

1: Never give up on the J-E-T-S. Trailing 16-13 going into the fourth quarter the scored 21 points in that period and won 34-19.

2: The Giants play Jekyll-Hyde football. Excellent in the first half of the season and pretty bad in the second half. Last week they were horrible against New Orleans. This week they were pretty damn good. Tying the game at 35 in the fourth quarter they made only one mistake: they left 58 seconds on the clock for Rodgers and the Packers. And it cost the G-men 38-35 on the final second of the game.

3: Tim Tebow. If you listen to the "experts" you'd think the poor kid can't do anything. Yet all he does is lead his team to wins! The Broncos are starting to believe and are playing like they don't mean to stop. Today they came from behind to take down the Minnesota Vikings. On the passing side, Tebow completed 10 of 15 attempts but got 202 yards and two third quarter TDs. Teammate Willis McGehee rushed for 111 yards and scored a fourth quarter TD after which Tebow rushed for a two-point conversion. Matt Prater kicked two late field goals to tie with 1:33 left and then win the game 35-32 as time ran out.

College Football 2011, Week 14 results

And then there was one. Undefeated team that is. LSU extended its perfect season with a dominant second half against #12 Georgia in the SEC Championship game. The Houston Cougars did not.

Ah, but there were a few stunning upsets this weekend. The #5 Virginia Tech Hokies fell to #21 Clemson—again. The #7 Houston Cougars lost their C-USA Championship game and its undefeated season to the #24 Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles. The #11 Spartans of Michigan State got beat by #15 Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship.

Virtually everyone on the list below—with the notable exception of Southern California— will be bowling in the weeks ahead.

(Polls are AP, Coaches’, the CBSSports120 and the BCS. NR = not ranked)

1/1/1/1 LSU (13-0) The Tigers teed off on the #12 Georgia Bulldogs (10-3) 42-10 for the SEC Championship. While the Bulldogs played tough in the first half—jumping out to a 10-0 advantage and lead 10-7 at the break—the final 30 minutes belonged to the Tigers. Kenny Hilliard scored three TDs—two n the ground and one on a Jordan Jefferson pass. Morris Claiborne closed out the scoring when he returned an interception 45 yards for a TD.

2/2/3/2 Alabama (11-1) The Crimson Tide have finished their season.

3/5/2/3 Oklahoma State (11-1) The Cowboys routed the #13 Sooners of Oklahoma (9-3) 44-10. So dominant were the Cowboys that the Sooners TD came late in the fourth quarter when it was 44-3. Joseph Randle rushed 19 times for 151 yards and two TDs, Jeremy Smith had 119 yards and two more rushing TDs on 10 carries, and Richetti Jones returned a fumble five yards for a score for the Cowboys.

4/4/6/4 Stanford (11-1) The Cardinal will face UCLA in the PAC 12 Championship. Oops. Of course, the Cardinal season had ended. I goofed!

5/3/10/5 Virginia Tech (11-2) The Hokies hopes for revenge for their only loss to date were dashed as the #21 Clemson Tigers (10-3) whipped them again for the ACC Championship 38-10. Tajh Boyd came out of a four game funk to complete 20 of 29 passes for 240 yards and three TDs and scored a fourth on the ground as he led the Tigers. Andre Ellington rushed 20 times for 125 yards and a TD.

6/10/14/8 Arkansas (10-2) The Razorbacks’ season has ended.

7/6/5/6 Houston (12-1) The Cougars lost to the #24 Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles (11-2) 49-28. Austin Davis completed 17 of 33 pass attempts for 279 yards and four TDs in leading the Golden Eagles. Furious Bradley returned a blocked punt 11 yards for a Southern Miss score. Case Keenum, intercepted only three times in the previous 12 games, was intercepted twice with one being returned by Ronnie Thornton 26 yards for a TD. Keenum was 41 of 67 for 373 yards and did connect twice with Justin Johnson for TD scores, but he spent a good part of the afternoon being hurried and/or laying on his back.

8/7/9/9 Oregon (10-2) The Ducks’ season has ended. Oops! The Ducks faced the UCLA Bruins in the PAC 12 Championship game and came out 49-31 victors. LaMichael James rushed for 219 yards and three TDs.

9T/NR/11/NR Southern California (10-2) The Trojans season has come to an end.

9T/8/5/7 Boise State (11-1) The Broncos drubbed the New Mexico Lobos (1-11) 45-0. Kellen Moore completed 28 of 33 attempts for 313 yards and three TDs in his final game on the Blue Carpet. Doug Martin carried the ball 22 times for 110 yards and two TDs.

11/9/19/13 Michigan State (10-3) The Spartans fell to the #15 Wisconsin Badgers (11-2) in the Big Ten Championship game 42-39. Montee Ball scored three TD rushing (27 carries for 137 yards) and a fourth on a pass from Russell Wilson for the Badgers. Kirk Cousins completed 22 of 30 pass attempts for 281 yards and hit B.J. Cunningham for three TDs for the Spartans.

12/14/15/14 Georgia (10-3) The Bulldogs fell 42-10 to the LSU Tigers (13-0) for the SEC Championship. See above for more.

13/11/4/10 Oklahoma (9-3) The Sooners were routed 44-10 by the #3 Oklahoma State Cowboys (11-1). More above.

14/13/13/12 South Carolina (10-2) The Gamecocks’ season has come to an end.

15/12/16/15 Wisconsin (11-2) The Badgers edged the #11 Michigan State Spartans (10-3) in the Big Ten Championship game 42-39. More above.

16/15/12/11 Kansas State (10-2) The Wildcats beat the Iowa State Cyclones (6-6) 30-23. John Hubert carried the ball 15 times gaining 120 yards and scoring a TD, Collin Klein threw for one TD and ran for a second and Anthony Cantele converted three field goals for the Wildcats. Jeff Woody had two TDs on the ground for the Cyclones.

17/16/8/6 Michigan (10-2) The Wolverines’ season is over.

18/17/17/18 TCU (10-2) The Horned Frogs creamed the UNLV Rebels (2-10) 56-9 in their season finale. TCU’s defense held UNLV to just 164 yards net offense and six first downs. Greg McCoy returned a punt 99 yards for a TD and Kris Gardner returned an interception 16 yards for another. The other six TCU TDs came on the ground with five different players crossing the goal line. Only Waymon James scored twice. The Frogs will be bowling now that they are Mountain West Champs, but will they be ranked high enough for that bowl to be one of the BCS big six?

19/18/18/17 Baylor (9-3) The Bears doubled up on the Texas Longhorns (7-5) 48-24. Robert Griffin III put in his bid for the Heisman when he ran for two TDs and passed for two more. Griffin completed 15 of 22 attempts for 320 yards. Case McCoy completed 24 of 39 for 356 yards and two TDs for the Longhorns but he was intercepted four times. Texas also lost two fumbles and was penalized 12 times for 105 yards.

20/19/20/19 Nebraska (9-3) The Cornhuskers’ season has ended.

21/21/25/20 Clemson (10-3) The Tigers dominated the#5 Virginia Tech Hokies (11-2) 38-10 earning the ACC Championship and a trip to the Orange Bowl. More above.

22/20/NR/23 West Virginia (9-3) The Mountaineers edged the South Florida Bulls (5-7) Thursday night 30-27 on a field goal as time ran out. The win earned WVA a piece of the Big East title. In addition to Tyler Bitancurt’s winning 28-yard field goal, the Mountaineers got a 90-yard kickoff return for a TD by Tavon Austin and an interception return of 52 yards by Pat Miller for another TD. Bitancurt also hit field goals of 23 and 42 yards. WVA, Louisville and Cincinnati are all 5-2 in the Big East.

23/22/24/21 Penn State (9-3) The Nittany Lions’ season is finished.

24/23/23/24 Southern Mississippi (11-2) The Golden Eagles upset the #7 Houston Cougars (12-1) in the Conference USA Championship game 49-28. See above for more.

25/24/NR/NR Florida State (8-4) The Seminoles have ended their season.

NR/NR/21/22 Texas (7-5) The Longhorns ended their season at #19 Baylor Bears (9-3) losing 48-24. See above for more.

NR/NR/22/NR Notre Dame (8-4) The Irish season has come to an end.

NR/NR/NR/25 Missouri (7-5) The Tigers have ended their season.

PA Hunting: Day 6

Nada. Zip. Nil. Nothing.

That about sums up my day in the woods.

Started out the coldest morning yet with a temp of 24 degrees when I went out. Thankfully the wind was nonexistent. The only movement I could detect was of the cold air sinking down the hill to the valley. Until around 9 AM when the windmills all turned to the south and a slight breeze started blowing. Regardless of the direction they faced, breeze at my level was in my face. The sun came over the hill shortly after that and things warmed slightly. It eventually reached 40 degrees at the Aerie but it felt cooler in the woods.

Not only did I not see a deer, but there were very few shots fired and only one of them was anywhere in the vicinity. It was pretty lonely out there.

No hunting tomorrow. PA doesn't allow any on Sunday. The weather is supposed to deteriorate next week so we'll see if I get the urge to go out at all.

PA Hunting: Day 5

With the weather supposed to be decent I opted to head out to the woods once more. When I went out at 6:30 it was still 30 degrees with a promise (by the usual suspects) of it reaching the low 40s. Any snow showers were supposed to be confined to the Southern Tier of New York State. So I chose to leave the heavy cold wear in the house and only put on some heavier socks and insulated boots.

I got to the stand at 6:45 and settled in as silently as possible to wait for a buck to show up.

I'm still waiting.

I sat and stared around me for several hours with only two gray squirrels and several ravens for company. Both squirrels came from the same direction and were heading for the same thing--my bird feeders.

One squirrel took the ground route. It's amazing that a single squirrel can one moment raise such a ruckus kickihttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifng up leaves as it moves across the forest floor and, the next moment, be totally silent as it hits the logs and rocks along its route.

The second squirrel took the aerial route. It saw me and decided its safest path would be overhead. I watched as it navigated from tree to tree and from thin, fragile-looking branch to even more fragile-looking landing twig. I marveled at the daring little devil as it would back up on a skinny little branch, turn, and then race to the end before leaping. Landing on a tiny little twig that shouldn't support its weight, it would race to the thicker portion of the branch and continue on its way. Finally getting sufficiently past me that it no longer worried about me, it descended to the ground and went on its way.

As for the ravens, they performed their usual aerial ballet. And accompanied it with plenty of chatter. I don't speak Corvus and these rude birds weren't speaking English in my company, but I imagine they were commenting on my hunting. I do believe I caught on word, however. It sounded like, "Nevermore!"

A little after noon, I saw another hunter emerge from the spruce woods on at the bottom of the cove. He turned and walked the logging road up the other side. I don't post my land and neither do two of my immediate neighbors so I wasn't too surprised to see a human. I was disappointed, however. I had been thinking of going up that way myself after I ate my lunch. Worse, the guy didn't kick up any deer.

When I did finish my sandwich, the flurries that were supposed to stay north of here, started to fall. It would spit snow for the rest of my stay. I already knew it wasn't going to get over 40 degrees. The sun never made it over the hill before the cloud cover intensified keeping the temps in the mid 30s. I was regretting not wearing the heavier pants and jacket as bouts of shivering were starting to plague me. By 3:30 they wouldn't stop. And the helicopter--the one that flew up the power line right of way next to me, circled overhead to check something out and then flew back down the way it had come--made up my mind. I headed in.

Tomorrow I'll be able to legally shoot a doe as well as any buck with three or more points on a side. Thus, I'm sure to see a bunch of spikes and fork horns. (If I wasn't so ethical, I'd already have a doe in the freezer. But I read the laws and when they say no does in the first week, well, what can you do?)

PA Hunting: Day 4

I took the day off today to do a few things around the house and give my knees a rest.

I regretted it a bit, as today was the nicest yet. It was a chilly (and icy) 28 degrees at 7 AM and, without a cloud in the sky, it got up to 50 degrees this afternoon. Dressed for cold, I would have been striping in the woods. A beautiful day.

Tomorrow I'll be back in the woods early in the morning. It's supposed to be slightly cooler but just as clear--according to weather.com. AccuHunch says there may be snow flurries in the afternoon. Somebody must have flipped a coin and had it land on edge.

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Got a call from my buddy Joe. He and some of the old Jersey crew were hunting in eastern PA on one of the guy's uncle's farm. They tagged two 7-pointers and a doe during the first three days.