2017 Mule Deer Hunt Day 1 Drive Day

Monday was a pleasantly monotonous day at work.  Pleasant since it was a bit slow.  Monotonous since it was a bit slow.  But I would rather have that immediately before heading out on a much needed vacation than have firecrackers in the pea soup.
So after putting in the requisite eight plus hours, I left work just as the rain started.  Once home, I nationalized the garage so I could pack without getting wet.

I started waking up well before my normal time for work and finally got out of bed a little early.  It didn't take too long to get ready, check and recheck that I had everything, and hit the road.  I pulled out of the driveway right about 4:00 AM.

I crossed into Indiana quickly and took 2-lane roads for about an hour to get to the interstate.  This required one reroute due to construction, but it looked like the construction was nearly complete.  Once on I-74, I headed north and west.  Traffic was just starting to pick up through Indianapolis, but getting through was relatively easy.
Continuing north and west, traffic on I-74 remained relatively light.  I crossed into Illinois just as light was starting to build to the East, and traffic became oddly heavy for a while.  West of Peoria, almost all traffic seemed to vaporize.

I was listening to the book A Dog's Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron.  I was a bit more than surprised when the first incarnation of the dog is euthanized very early in the book.  The second incarnation of the dog made me miss my dogs a lot.  It especially made me miss Mandy and Jackson as the descriptions of Bailey sounded a lot like those two dogs.  Listening to the end of Bailey's life was difficult.  The incarnation as a police dog was only mildly interesting.  The final incarnation into a life with a trash family followed by bliss was a bit predictable.  But I enjoyed the book.  The only frustration was that since the book was transferred from a CD, the ordering of the tracks put tracks 1-10 at the end of the directory list, which required adjustments twice every CD.  Once I figured this out though, it was easy to deal with.

I crossed the Mississippi River on I-280.  SO always takes pictures of the Mississippi when we cross it, so I did too.  But the pictures out of the frame of the truck window don't really have the same significance as when SO and I are on the motorcycle.

Once into Iowa, truck traffic picked up a lot on I-80.  I know things thin out to the west, but east of Des Moines always seems lousy with tractor trailers.  I took I-380 then US 218 to I-35 up to I-90 in Minnesota.  Interstate 90 was gloriously open.  Although I did see the remnants of snow on the shoulder in a few places along I-90.

After A Dog's Purpose I switched the USB to The Billionaire's Vinegar which is a book about ultrararefied wine collecting.  It felt odd to be listening to such a book while headed on a western hunting adventure, and I'm not even sure where I heard about the book.  I only got a few chapters into it, but it was very interesting and it goes into detail about the realities and idiosyncrasies of wine collecting.  Much like anything where there is lots of money to be made, fraud, ego and snobbery plays a big role.  The history interspersed through the first few chapters added a lot to the book.

Eventually I made it to Sioux Falls South Dakota.  The 13-hour, ~850 mile drive was tiring, but not painful.  Weather had been clear and dry all day with temperatures hovering just above freezing.  This is great travel weather (for the Ridgeline, maybe not for the motorcycle).

I ate from my box-o-buffet but hadn't drank much through the day as beverages force more stops.  Once at the hotel, I attempted to rehydrate while also eating more junk food.  I survived a long day on the road, but pork rinds and Quiznos may prematurely end my life.  Maybe the ice cream sandwich will save me, even if it doesn't help me sleep.

2017 Mule Deer Hunt T-3 Days

I didn't start hunting until relatively late in life.  While I had shot guns a few times as a kid, I didn't even own a gun until I was 21.  Starting hunting late, and continuing to do it is relatively unusual.  I guess I always had an interest in hunting, but never the opportunity until I bought my first house next to an avid bow hunter.  Continuing hunting when starting late in life and without many friends who hunt is even more unusual.
A strong interest in hunting without involving other people is just fine with me.  I've tried to get people to go with me on my hunting adventures and they can seem pretty excited about it until it comes time to actually start thinking about money - then they scatter.  I have nearly given up on getting others to go with me at this point.  My 2013 Wyoming hunt for for pronghorn was the worst - where the person I was supposed to go with bailed at the last minute.  There were extenuating circumstances, but they could have been worked around as we are all adults here...

What I want to hunt has changed a lot over the years.  At first it was all moose, which I've never done and is still interesting, but not exceedingly so anymore.  Bears, yes ... wild boar, definitely.  Caribou has never been a big interest, but I've had the opportunity to go after several other animals, some of them more than once.  My motivation for hunting has changed, but it also hasn't over the years; my enjoyment of it has similarly changed and not.  I do hunt for meat - as I really enjoy being more involved in what goes on the dinner table.  And I enjoy seeing and being close to impressive animals, but animals I've taken and taxidermy I have would not impress a real trophy hunter.  What I've come to realize is that I'm after the overall experience of hunting.  It is a great way to travel and see out-of-the-way locations.  It is a great way to meet interesting people - although I've met a few people who don't seem to posses many redeeming qualities as well.  I'm mostly an experience hunter - the whole experience, from then to zed.  And while taking an animal is not required, it is an integral part of the overall experience.

Mule deer has been on my list for a long time.  In my travels out west, I've seen them several times, most notably in 2006 when I nearly hit two impressive mule deer bucks while leaving the Black Hills on an early morning motorcycle jaunt to Devils Tower.  And after accruing some preference points in Wyoming, I'm finally heading there to hopefully go after mule deer.  From research I've done, the area I'm headed to has both whitetails and mulies.  So this could be interesting.

Western hunting is different than the eastern woodlot hunting I'm most familiar with.  I've been shooting at least every few weeks through the summer and mostly off a bipod to get ready.  Frighteningly, I've had a couple misfires which I attribute to bad primers.  This is slightly concerning but only slightly.
The last few weeks has been a whirlwind.  As important as maintaining muscle memory with my rifle, I've spent time making sure my physical fitness is maintained; given ongoing rifle practice, this may be even more important.
With heading out in early November to drive to Wyoming, I've had to get much of the fall chores that are normally done through the end of October and early November done earlier than usual, especially since I'll have minimal time after I get home before the local deer season starts.

Regardless of how well I am or am not prepared and how much I've gotten done at home, I'll be heading out on the long drive to Wyoming.  A lot of my coworkers look at me like I'm nuts when I tell them I'm not flying, but flying with a ton of hunting crap, plus a large rifle case is crazy expensive.  Getting home with meat on a plane is nearly impossible.  And quite frankly, traveling on commercial airlines is about as unpleasant as things can get.  Besides, I like the drive as a part of the experience and a chance to mentally prepare.

When I first started hunting in the early 1990's, I never dreamed I'd have even a fraction of the adventures that I have had while hunting.
I'm sure that regardless of what I return with, it will be with memories that can be created in no other way.