Brian and I used today to check out a few of our old haunts to see what they looked like. Between the rain and the wind, it was tough to see much sign in the five-mile loop we covered. However, we did come across a smoking-fresh rub, and we could smell the buck that had just made it.
Besides the rub, we didn’t see much of anything else due to the leaves falling fast enough to cover up our tracks within seconds. Although some of the old spots still looked good, some of the other places were void of sign due to a number of new blowdowns. We also found a few new places that we had somehow overlooked over the years. We haven’t found any type of mast crops this year, so I’m assuming that not may beechnuts found their way into the leaves.
I’m finally beginning to feel like hunting, even though the forest is inundated with low leaf cover, making it impossible to see anything useful. Looking at the forecast, I think the top leaves will probably be done when opening weekend of rifle season gets here, which is in two weeks. Muzzleloader season opens next weekend. The woods are usually overloaded with people because they can take bucks or does. I”m hoping to see a deer. I still haven’t seen a deer while hunting. It seems to be a trend for me the last few years. Hopefully, it picks up as the season progresses.