Seasons

I spent a year on the road once, letting weather and hunting seasons dictate my path.  North while it was hot, south while it was cold, and several states for hunting while it was in between.  I remember being at the Grand Canyon in AZ in January and overnight a few inches of snow fell.  It was quite beautiful to see the snow on the layers of the canyon.  But it was also the first time in my travels that I felt homesick. 

It was then that I realized how important the 4 seasons of the north are to me.  The joy of warm sunshine in the spring and the scent of lilacs blooming.  Summer brings it's heat, but everything is beautiful, green and lush.  Fall, well, there simply should be several Octobers in every year. The earthy scent of the woods, the sound of footsteps on leaves on the ground, the crisp air that makes you breathe in deeply, and the colors.  Oh, the colors.  The brilliant foliage, scattered leaves, pumpkins and squash, and even the sunlight takes on a golden hue.  Winter comes with a hush.  The first snow silently falls in the dark, grey woods and silences the leaves as living things tuck themselves away for the season.  It is a time to settle in, get caught up on reading lists that have grown lengthy throughout the year and endlessly carry in wood for the stove. 

Seasons are not quiet or peaceful here in Kansas.  Spring storms are thunderously loud with howling winds and laser show lightening strikes.  Summer is sizzling hot.  Snow does not gently fall, it is blown in horizontally on 50 mpg winds which leave some areas bare but drifts that block roads and doors.  But today it is beautiful.  Blue sky, snow that will melt in a few days is still lovely to look at.  The woodstove is clicking from the log I just added. Yes, seasons are good.

 

Carrying On

What goes around, comes around?  Top photo: Annie today at 4 months, Bottom photo: her mother 5 years ago, at 6 months. Annie carried this stick for most of her run today here in Michigan and it brought to mind her mother Sally's first days in Montana at the age of 6 months. On one of the first days in MT, puppy Sally found this cattle pelvis and proceeded to carry it all the way back to the truck. The next week she got into sharptails and forgot all about bones. Annie's time will come, meanwhile I enjoy watching the puppy in her.

A Day of Double Takes

  

Some things you have to look twice before your brain makes the connection with what you are seeing.  I took these photos today but no, I am not back in New England and that is not the Atlantic.  It is a bay on Lake Michigan with a north wind blowing and lake effect snow in the air.  

This morning's double take woke me up faster than the caffeine in my tea.  I stepped out of the trailer to get something and my car started up. All on it's own.  I was standing right next to it and suddenly it was running.  Took my synapses a quick lap to realize that I had the keys in my pocket and that I had somehow managed to "butt dial" my remote starter.  A bit amazing given that the small button must be pressed twice to remote start.  

Last double take of the day was sitting in the trailer eating dinner. Looking over at Kate as she watched out the window my heart did a double-take and I saw my late, beloved Ditto as a youngster.  Two generations separate them yet bring them together.    

    Kate, tonight                                                Ditto, too long ago

Cheers and Happy Hunting all...

Lynn Dee

Reflecting on Blogging

After a year +  hiatus from blog posting I am giving it another try with a bit different and fresh angle.  This blog was originally created years ago because friends and family wanted to know what I was up to and that all was well as we travel each fall for bird hunting.  Particularly while on the road where internet service is often limited to a weekly top-off at an in-town bar & grill, maintaining a blog as a single info source seemed easier than managing email exchanges.

However, in recent years I have come to realize a shadowy side to posting about wingshooting traveling. Hunters used to read about bird hunting in destination states in a single article in an outdoors magazine months after the season had closed. Pleasant reading that led to fireside dreams of similar trips but it all seemed so distant and unlikely to actually happen for most.  But today, social media is bursting with thousands of hunters who in real-time read about hunting trips and they see people just like themselves in the photos.  Hunters "go live" on Facebook to take their cyber friends along as they hunt or post photos and videos of their day's hunt even before the birds of the day have been cleaned.  In addition, the average age of hunters in the US is on the far side of middle age which translates into them having more time and money for travel as families and careers have grown and are on their own. The end result of these trends is  that anywhere it has been posted that the bird hunting is good, every motel, campground, and bar & grill parking lot is filled with out-of-state license plates and dog boxes.  

I recognize that my vehicle and RV have been one of those for weeks every year and frankly, that isn't going to change.  I still plan to be hunting several months a year for a variety of species in a variety of states.  But the focus of this blog will be the how, what and why, not the where. It will reflect smaller hunts, the dog pack, passions and events.  Perhaps not anything that will be on someone else's bucket list, but hopefully some food for thought, a chuckle and a light little read.  Happy Hunting all.   

A Weekend of Fr Brit Field Titles

This weekend Mike attended the Midwest Epagneul Breton Gun Dog Wild Bird trial in Iowa and came home with two new titles on the dogs.  The trial was held in CRP fields with wild pheasants which are Jack's favorites.  Jack's talent and experience showed in his run and his handling of the birds and impressed the judge enough to earn him 1st place in his stake.  This win completes Jack's Gun Dog title; not bad for having run in only 4 trials.

Mike also entered his puppy, Rip, in the TAN which is a natural ability test for Fr Brits.  She quickly showed her bird finding ability and pointed with style to earn her TAN title.

All in all a fun and successful weekend.  Thank you to the breeder - judges for considering our dogs.  

Photo fest, part 2

Our season continued in November.

I still need a good dose of ruffed grouse hunting every year, again this year it was in MN.

Due to spring rains, the habitat in KS was great this year.

Even as we closed out the season we were already talking about and planning next year.  But in the months in-between we will be busy.  We are planning two litters, one Setter litter and a Fr Brit litter not too far behind that.    As winter begins to break our produce operation will be revving up with  Farmer's Markets and bread baking beginning in April.  

Cheers

Lynn Dee

A little photo fest

It has been way too long since I have made a post, my apologies.  If a picture says a thousand words, how about I post a bunch of photos as a way of getting caught up?  I'll start with Montana in this post.

As we walked into our favorite local watering hole in MT for the first time since last year we were greeted with "welcome home."   Yep.  

A rare foggy day.  There is actually a dog on point up in the middle of that fence row.

We had an unusual amount of rain and mud this year.

The Sheriff in his official position on the console between us in the truck.

to be continued........