After getting things unpacked and reorganized after the long drive home, I headed north. Once again, I knew I had missed the best days to be in the woods in the Adirondacks according to the data I’ve collected over the last 40 years, especially the last 25 years when I started making it my goal to kill specific mature bucks in the big woods.
When I started my truck, it was 30 degrees and a light dusting of snow covered the road. Although the forecast had called for heavy wind, the wind wasn’t too bad.
My body begged for mercy as I walked through the woods to get to where I wanted to start my day. My calves could feel every ounce of pressure on them while I climbed over logs, made my way through blow-downs, and meandered in and out of a wet bog.
When the day finally broke, there wasn’t a sign of any living creature and it stayed that way for the remainder of the day. I never saw a living creature during my time in the woods.
I did see where a few deer had made their way down a ridge and into a swamp, but I never spotted one. I also saw where a few different bucks opened scrapes within the last 24 hours, but none of them offered to give me a crack at filling my tag.
I covered a lot of ground today. I don’t usually feel exhausted, but I’m beyond tired tonight. I need to rest so I can be mentally ready for tomorrow. It’s supposed to be significantly colder than it has been, so I’m going to organize my backpack to make sure I have everything I need to sit for a long time. I’ll make the most out of the chilly day by finding a good place to sit and hopefully intercept a buck that is looking for love in the wrong place. I feel good about my chances because I found three different scrapes that had been opened in the last 24 hours. However, one that is almost always used wasn’t touched. I’m assuming that one will be opened within the next 24 hours since the others have already been cleaned out. I think it’s a pretty good guess, so I’m going to try to get to that one that hasn’t been cleaned out yet.
Dad’s infusion went well today. Hopefully, he can avoid the majority of side effects. He says he feels good too. I’m hoping he’s able to get his strength back.