So, .... You Missed Me?

Got a note from a friend that read: "WOW --- I'm absolutely thrilled to see that you put something new on your blog!  Way to be." What an encouragement!

As far as I can tell there are only a couple of folks still dropping and checking out my blog ... my friend and my brother. I'm not even sure about my brother as he too may have given up on me due to a lack of postings.

Either way I'm thankful for the notes and comments that I receive, and no promises being made, but my goal is to post more.

So, whats on the horizon ....

I'm pretty sure now that I will be obtaining another turkey tag for the final part of the season in Iowa. I hopefully will purchase it sometime nest week and get back out into the timber as sooon as possible! The season closes on May 19th.

Summer Camp season is coming on fast! Special Camp begins on June 3 and then it is one thing after another! Due to a lack of counselors from our church, I will be most likely counseling Jr. Boy, Jr. High and Sr. High. I have been asked to be the evening speaker at Family Camp #3 in the middle of July. That is a really cool opportunity and I'm looking forward to that!

Something I have not done for awhile is to post something from Lowell Washburn, I used to call his stuff "Creation Corner"  ... Enjoy!

There wasn't any gobblin' this morning -- at least in my corner of the timber.  Snowstorm Achilles was venting it fury across the mid-west, putting a literal damper on this year's already tardy spring weather.  In the Clear Lake area, the storm was following up a two-inch rainfall by dumping anywhere from 9 to 11 inches of wet and heavy snow before sunrise.

I don't have to tell any of you that weather like this is hard on outdoor equipment; but not nearly as hard as it is to stay indoors when such a magnificent, record breaking storm is on the prowl.  Entering the woods, it took about one minute before my stuff was soaked.  But when daylight began to creep in, the timber came alive with activity.  Although I saw or heard ten bird species by legal sunrise, it was the sparrows that stole the show with five species showing up in short order.  Larger birds, like jays and cardinals, arrived as soggy bundles of feathers.  By contrast, the smaller birds were, for the most part, bone dry.  An adult Cooper's (hawk)showed up and tried to catch a white throated sparrow, but was too wet to complete the task.  The Cooper's lit just yards away and I got off two quick shots before he heard the camera.  Just before full light, I spotted a roosted gobbler farther back in the woods.  "Great.  There's a chance," I thought.  But with the tom still in the tree at 9:30, my optimism began to wane.  When I finally sneaked out of the woods, he was still sitting on the branch.

I went back home, dried off, the snow backed off and finally quit.  Back in the woods this afternoon, I saw a single hen and I what I assumed was the same gobbler I spotted this morning following another hen.  I had two fairly close sightings before sunset; one at about 30 yards and another at around 18 yards -- a close call but no decent shot for the bow.  I stayed in the timber until sometime after dark.  Although I saw deer -- including one buck under 15 yards  -- I was only able to spot a single hen going up to roost.  Nevertheless, I suspect the gobbler roosted somewhere fairly close.  He is a great looking bird with long thick beard and very nice spurs [attached photos].  I plan on returning to woods well before daylight.  Maybe I'll see him again.

I Remain,
Pastor Steve

PS: Enjoy Lowell's Photos: