Well, I had to come back to town… even part- time work interferes with my fun. It’s been a busy few days in the woods; I played some, got some things accomplished, and greatly appreciated being away from the city. I got my weedfield mowed with a big tractor and that saved me the sweat and toil of marching behind my little one over all that rough ground. I was glad to get that mowing done to enhance the wildlife habitat, and I need to plow a piece of it too. Unfortunately, I still have to leave a wide swath of the frontage grown up with weeds, to avoid all those good citizens poaching deer from the road. There are multiple shift changes… all day and all night, so a lot of trashy people pass on that road. I am continuing to work on developing a hedgerow across the front; progress is slow and it is slow- growing. I think I have stopped the power company from continuously destroying it, but I am beginning to doubt whether I can live long enough to complete it.
I continued my fence repairs at the old family cemetery, and have most of that completed, now. Wow, that’s a hot job and I’m not accustomed to such. Working short stretches, early morning and late afternoon, and drinking lots of water, I have made good headway. I probably would never be able to repeat that project, but I hope the repairs will last until after I have claimed my own plot there. I was working there on my Dad’s birthday (he would have been 86), but was too busy and too hot to do more than merely acknowledge it. I had never spent long periods at the cemetery, and was amazed how much traffic there was. Lots of people visited while I was there and everyone felt the need to interrupt my work… I won’t go back on a weekend. An interesting side note: next weekend, the annual hummingbird gathering will be held at the Rogillio property, which surrounds the cemetery. I must work, but maybe next year… They will capture, band, and record biometric statistics on the hummers, and enthusiasts come from all over.
I had some first- rate critter encounters on this trip. Lots of birds were flitting around and singing. After an afternoon shower, two armadillos came charging through the woods. They were of adult size, and I don’t know whether this was a matter of foreplay, or some kind of territorial dispute. Then a rabbit came nibbling things around the yard, eventually hopping off toward my garden spot. Just as daylight was fading, a young ‘coon, about half- grown, came prowling around. Soon after dark, I heard a deer snorting nearby. So, it was quite an interesting wildlife parade, that day.
The next day, I drove into the yard, returning from my cemetery project, and a deer bounded away. She seemed to have been under the pear tree, probably feeding on fallen fruit that those pesky squirrels have been knocking down. A rabbit passed my window the next evening, too; I think he was smaller than the previous one. Maybe the whole family is over there, gobbling up my young plantings. When I walked over to check the cutover field, there was a coyote poking around. He was successful at finding food… I saw him catch something and give it a shake… maybe a mouse or bug of some sort. After watching him for a while and taking a few pictures, I stepped out into the open. He soon spotted me and loped off to the woods.
At church, Cousin was telling me that I should come fishing at their new pond. It was reworked and stocked about a year or two ago. It was a pond Uncle had built years ago; I had fished it a number of times, but it’s been a long while… I recall some nice bass.
I really needed to get back to the fence- work after lunch, Monday, but first I wanted to check for ATV tracks in the creek… those kids get out of hand and tear up the land if you don’t stay on top of it. On impulse, I kicked off my boots and went wading up the creek, squishing the sand between my toes… I hadn’t done that in a while, either. I didn’t find a fishing hole or even a spot for skinny- dipping, but I had a nostalgic time. I was relieved to find no ATV tracks, even in Panther Creek, but erosion damage from the recent rains was obvious on the neighboring property.
So I shorted my Monday afternoon fence- work. After my sunshower (by the way, 98- degree water is not warm enough in a breeze), I headed over to try fishing the pond. . When I arrived they were talking about the hogs rooting up the pastures. I happened to have my bow along for some practice shooting, so I dragged it from behind my truck seat and went for a hike. Sure enough, there were a number of rooted- up spots. I saw no hogs, but the sun was still high; I probably should go back and try to help with that hog problem, dontchathink? Barbecue? It was a great walk! I went all the way to the farthest pasture. I saw a hen turkey along the way. The coyotes were howling all around. Their sounds carry farther and longer in those open pastures, than they do in the tight coverts of my place. On my way out, the two donkeys caught my attention. I was walking along, watching the donkeys and something fluttered away right beside me—brrrp—scared the wits out of me. I didn’t see it; had to be a quail.
I took my fly rod, walked over the hill to the pond, and caught a fish on my second cast. The pond had been stocked with fast- growing hybrid brim, and this one was bigger than my hand, heavy and thick through the body… beautiful fish. They were aggressive and gullible, and put up quite a fight… I’ve got to bring my boy. I made only about 9 casts and missed 3 strikes, but I caught and released 4 big brim and was quite impressed with the pond.
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