After taking some time to get my deer in the freezer, I decided to also do a European mount of the skull. Once I had the head mostly skinned, I knew this was the right thing to do since the antler bases were so thick that they looked even larger on the skull once the skin and muscle was removed. Creating a European mount is a little on the gross side and this one seemed to be very sinewy making it even tougher. But with just enough boiling and some work with a wire brush and a screwdriver the skull cleaned up nicely. I'm not sure what I'll ultimately do with it, but it is a nice enough one that it will probably go on the wall ... somewhere.
Tuesday came with moderate temperatures but a biting wind with gusts around 20MPH at times. Normally I'd be back at work, but with much vacation I must use before the end of the year, I'm quite happy to take advantage of a few days off. I hemmed and hawed most of the morning about whether I should go hunting again and try to get a doe for the freezer. At nearly the last minute I decided I would and quickly got ready to go.
Once at Mike's I got my treestand set up and was sitting comfortably. It was sunny with a temperature around 40F. The trees blocked some wind, but my left side was quite a bit colder than my right side. I guess the wind is both a blessing and a curse. In addition to making it feel colder, the wind makes it really hard to hear anything. There was also a loud combine working somewhere to the northwest. But I do feel a little more comfortable moving when the whole world is blowing back and forth. Overall it was a fairly comfortable afternoon all bundled up in my snowsuit.
About an hour before sunset my spidey sense went off and looking to the east I saw four does making their way across the small ravine. I knew there is less than a 50% chance they will work my after making it to my side of the ravine. And they did not, slowly going south and west, safe from any of my handloads.
As it started to get darker the wind quickly died down until it was just a very light breeze. The dark shadows played tricks on my eyes as I passed the evil few minutes when I know I should not shoot, but still could probably try to. This time passed without any deer showing. I climbed down out of the tree and headed back to the truck. I could see well enough to not use my flashlight - I thought. But I ended up sounding like a noisy clodhopper on my way out, seemingly snapping every stick in my path.
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After sleeping in the next morning, I headed out again to Mike's. The temperature was near freezing with absolutely no wind. I was able to quickly and quietly get my treestand up to my spot. Then I got to enjoy that magical 1/2 hour of time to just sit there in the dark. It was so still I barely felt like I could breath. My mind wandered - I wasn't even sure I wanted another deer, so I was there in the woods at some level to just be there. I realized that I hadn't thought about work, or at least very little, for over a day. This has been the several-day break that I needed.
Squirrels started their hectic running as it started to get light. It was cold, but I was comfortable. The sun took a very long time to get high enough in the sky to see, casting long shadows to the west. I kept a vigilant watch while listening. The deer were somewhere else on this morning.
I did see a mink to the south. At first I thought it was a small cat, but after getting a better look it was obviously a mink. There are not many of them around, but this is the third time in the past year that I've seen one. I was quite glad I got a chance to see this one while hunting.
By late morning I was squirming and walked the back part of the property before packing out my stand. With a decent buck in the freezer the pressure is blessedly off. I'm still thinking of if and when I might head out again; as I dropped my stand in the bed of my truck I was already rethinking the afternoon.
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