Morning Walk

I took another walk by the river today. I told Myra I was going before I left so, I DID NOT get into trouble. I walked up river this time instead of down river. The slough (side shoot of the river) just north of our landing (200 yards) has all but dried up so I was able to cross it in just a few inches of water, and continue up river as far as my heart desired. One of the first things I got to experience was a pair of Trumpeter Swans setting at the end of "our" gravel bar. I stopped and listened to them for quite some time and I took this video. It is hard to see the Swans because I can't zoom in while on video, but this will give you an idea of the quiet and the sound.(It will get you close anyhow., I don't know why my little camera makes that ticking sound on video, and I guess I should have held my hands more still) This is another one of those experiences that can take you (me) to heaven right here on earth. Oh wait, I am already here / there, where am I? I am so confused. No, Not confused, Blessed to be in the grips of Gods creations. There is heaven on earth! It is going to be hard for me to tell when I die. Oh wait, have I been a good boy? It might be easier to tell than I am hoping for.

After stopping for the Swans I came across these Grizzly Tracks. I laid my 410 gun down beside the tracks to give a reference to size and gate of the animal. The size of the bear is usually figured by the width of the paw plus 1 equals the size of the bear. I would guess this bear to be about 7'. These tracks went on along the bank for a few hundred yards, walking to the waters edge then back toward the woods etc. After the Grizzly tracks I seen Wolf tracks, Coyote tracks,Porcupine tracks,also Black Bear tracks and Cat tracks (probably a linx). I seen a half dozen different animal trails from the forest to the waters edge that were so heavily used they were worn to mud.I guess I know which way to go hunting now, for everything but Moose. Not a single Moose track on this walk, but I see thier tracks all the time back behind us near the swamps, plus they have been using our trails too, recently.

Along the bank of the slough, I came across an area where there was many water seeps coming from the bank, causing erosion, then in the middle of all this water, there is Oil seeping out of the ground. (Nope, it's not on our land) I have seen this Oil in another place over on one of the Fish Lakes, but this is the first time I have seen it along the river. Can you see the difference in the color? The gold stuff is the sludge and the oil is very shiney, unlike the water in the other seeps.

After getting past the seeps and erosion I came across this Den. You can see the digging to the right and the tracks down low in the approach. I have no idea if it is occupied. My Momma always said to keep my nose out of where it doesn't belong, and I heard her from the grave on this one.
To finish my walk, the dogs came across a Grouse and flushed it up into a tree. Since I was carrying my trusty "new" 410 for just this purpose, I flushed it out of the tree. Guess what's for supper!
To put a few peoples mind at ease, Yes, I still carry my 44 with the bear loads while I am carrying the 410. Shooting a bear with a 410 would be like giving it a Bee sting, just enough to piss it off. Now, onto a few other items just because it has been so long since I have posted.

If you want to send us cookies You might consider individually wraping each one in tissue paper. These are some Butter thins from Myra's favorite child hood Bakery in Muskegon Mi. Not one cookie survived the trip whole. The flavor was great but, We ate them with a spoon. Thanks Mandy for sending them! Who knew the post office could be so rough.
Myra and I took a drive down the river bank a few days ago. I caught a few good pictures of her in action. She is driving down the bank we usually walk to our boat. Where Hans is standing in the first picture is EXACTLY where our boat sat most of the summer give or take a foot or two. If you can see the gray stick by Myra's front left tire (our right) that stick is the high water marker for this year. I am standing down near waters edge taking these pictures. I hope this gives you a better perspective of how much the river has dropped and how steep the bank is that she is driving down. I think Hans is about to attack in this second picture.

This is our water source for now. This is the seep that I made a little pond (covered under the lid) and put this pipe in. You want to talk about clear cold natural spring water, bring your plastic bottle and fill it here. We only charge $.99 each instead of the convienience store price of $1.49. You do have to pay your own shipping charges though!
And Finally, after all of this, Hans is WORN OUT, he crashed!
It's a great life, Thanks for sharing it with us!
See Ya,
Roger