Larry A. Smail's Blog

Scarlet Tanager

Seems to me there was a movie made years ago with this title or close to those words. I felt like such a man this morning. The temperatures in the pre-dawn woods were in the mid twenty degree range. As I walked in the woods the full moon was shining brightly towards the west. Some clouds could be viewed, too. By 5:30 A.M. the entire sky was covered with clouds!

Ice on spider web.

A breeze would begin about the same time followed by increasing winds. I would witness sleet, snow, snow squalls and even blizzard conditions.

I moved up onto a plateau to listen for gobbles. I heard a Barred Owl. I didn’t try to sneak up onto the area where the turkeys have been often

Morel

roosting. The leaves were very crunchy due to the frost. Those birds were quiet, however, I heard a gobble in the opposite direction. He wasn’t very talkative. I moved in and realized about where he was roosting. I set up. His gobbling didn’t have much enthusiasm. After about half-an-hour I was shivering. I was happy to have put long underwear bottoms on, but I still became cold due to temps and inactivity.

I walked away and he was still on the roost at seven. I went for a warm-up walk to tour and call. While walking I was quick to notice the wilted Skunk Cabbage and Mayapples. Later, as the temperatures warmed some, they were almost all back to normal.

Eventually, I moved into the area I was initially hoping to hear birds. As I approached the top of the hill I saw a hen flying off the top and down the hollow. I figured my approach spooked her.

I found some morels before hearing hen talk. I couldn’t determine if the talk was a real hen or a hunter. I suspected a hunter may have been in place. I left and walked away in case the sounds were from a hunter.

I need to find the rest of this turkey!

I called after I went over the back side and heard a gobbler. I set up and he went quiet. Were the earlier sounds a real hen that went over to the bird? I didn’t know. Were the sounds from a hunter and had he heard the gobbler and tried to walk over? I didn’t know, but my instincts told me to skedaddle and I left to be on the safe side.

I was going to drive south and try again, but elected to call it a day. Snow was falling hard enough to actually cover the ground at times.

I, also, heard a Great-Horned Owl and saw a Raccoon.

Wilted Mayapples

SNOW!

Wild Geranium covered with snow.

Old tree with character

Wilted Skunk Cabbage