Larry A. Smail's Blog

Morning Mist

I arrived five minutes later than I had hoped to the site where I elected to listen for gobblers. I opened the door and began gathering my camera and gear when a thunderous gobble erupted about 130 yards from me. I eased the door and walked away and up and over a hill.

Cherry Run

Early Dogwood blossom

I heard another tom farther back from the original. I walked diagonally towards a field where my step-father, Bob likes to hunt. A hen flew from a tree and another third gobbler announced his presence. He was in some pines at the field’s edge.

   I hurriedly checked some distant areas but by 6:15 A.M. the turkey music was over. I left this site and went south to an area where the two Cherry Run streams converge prior to entering Crooked Creek. I saw more deer and a two great blue herons on this jaunt. I was watching a trout swim under a log when a blur of rich brown appeared and just as quickly vanished. the blur was a mink among a fallen tree. The critter suddenly left this fallen tree that was across the creek allowing mr a couple of very quick photos. One doesn’t see many mink in the wild and I felt truly blessed with this sighting.

Mink

I saw lots of squirrels; about 5-6 different deer and about another eight turkeys throughout the morning. However, they were quiet. I managed some close photos of two longbeards and three jakes, but my aging eyes didn’t allow for much quality. I find myself failing at photos more than I should. The image may appear crisp, but once on the computer they, far too often, are slightly fuzzy.

   The only negative aspect of my woodland jaunts are those deer ticks. I removed 15-18 of the pests from my pants prior to KILLING them! Later, at home, I removed one from my arm and another burn was felt on my leg. I removed another tick from my hide. I HATE TICKS!

The morning was a beautiful one for sure. The wildflowers are emerging at a quickened pace. The wildlife is very active.

Lower Cherry Run Watershed