2025 Bear Hunt Days 10,11 - Post Hunt Scramble

I was up early and with almost everything, especially my now frozen bear, packed up, it was a quick shower and I was ready to go.

I walked down to the bay to say goodbye and was struck with an absolutely astonishing moonlit goodbye.

But all things really, really must come to an end.  I jumped in the Maverick and headed out.

There was some fog as I made my way through Manitoba, but it was never bad enough that I had to slow down very much.  In a few spots the temperatures had dropped to well below freezing.

I stuck to paved roads and made my way through the two towns, before the final stretch toward the border.  Traffic was light and the final goodbye to Canada was once again stunning.

The border took a few minutes to fill out the form to import my bear.  The form was different from the example they gave me to follow, but I did my best.  The rather bored-looking border guard said, "Perfect!" and I was on my way.

I was listening to Cormac McCarthy's The Road.  I don't read much fiction, but I've heard several references to this book recently to the point I felt I had to listen to it.  It was good, but only good - brutal, dark.  The end was predictable.  It was worth listening to.

I made my way to my sister's in Wisconsin.  It was a long 12 hour drive to get there.  Because I left early, we had quite a bit of time to catch up.  It was great to see her for a bit.  Around dark we called it a night.

______________________

After coffee with my sister, I was back on the road for the final leg home.  I was out of books, so I was just listening to podcasts.  Hidden Brain was oddly refusing to hold my attention.

I have planted several paw paw trees as well as given away seedlings.  I knew there was a Paw Paw in Michigan, but I did not know (more realistically did not remember) that there is one in Illinois as well.  I didn't stop...

Traffic was tolerable most of the day.  I timed Indianapolis well.  Working my way toward and down the familiar roads near home, I was looking forward to the familiar.

Once home it was a scramble to take care of the bear and get it in the freezer.  It was a late night (by my standards) and there was still much to do.  But work starts in the morning.

As I went to sleep, I relived many of the past week's amazing moments.  I thought back to bears and fish and the people I hung out with.  I am truly fortunate to be able to pursue my outdoor interests.

2023 Family 350 Day 1 - The House Next To Evil Dead House

My fishing trip a couple weeks ago not withstanding, I'm due for a break - longer than a day.  The fuse to aggravation is a bit shorter than it normally is while my sense of humor insists on going in a less humorous direction.  Working from home helps; at least there, I can step back and pause before doing the wrong thing.

The weather hasn't helped - with the dog days of summer heat (so hot the dogs go mad) and some brutal thunderstorms.  It's not the heat and it's not the humidity - it's all the people bitchin' about the heat and humidity - Wayne R (RIP).

"When are you gone?" asks my boss.

"Tuesday through Friday ... next week."

"Are you around home?"

"Getting together with my family in Northern Michigan."

"And how are you getting there?" 

"?"

"Can you call in Tuesday to a meeting if needed?"

"I'll be on my motorcycle.  It's a long drive."

I do feel a bit bad that I'm getting an award at work and won't be there to be recognized.  I thought about trying to reschedule, but the complications quickly begin to multiply.  

The gods are fallen and all safety gone. And there is one sure thing about the fall of gods: they do not fall a little; they crash and shatter or sink deeply into green muck. It is a tedious job to build them up again; they never quite shine. - John Steinbeck

Monday ended with a typical level of angst about all that can go wrong at work, but things were in a relatively good place.

Tuesday morning did eventually arrive.  I walked outside well before dawn.  The air was cool and still; I love the magical early morning moments.  Frogs were contentedly gurping in the ponds to the north.  An owl was hooting off to the northeast.  Part of me didn't want to leave.

Home to VRBO House: 518.3 Miles

I left and drove through the roads I frequently walk the dogs on, then on to my bicycle roads, then past the land I hunt on and onwards north.

I had a hard time settling in to the ride.  The last time I did anything like a motorcycle road trip was the previous year in May.  I definitely felt out of practice.

I let my mind wander wherever it wanted to go.  Surprisingly (and happily) it rarely sunk to work.  When it did, I let it linger before moving on to other things.

Temperatures were cool - I was wearing my mesh jacket and wished I had my "real" touring jacket.  But I made do.  Traffic wasn't too bad and the construction zones were easy to get around.

I made my way around Fort Wayne and onto the interstate.  Brainless...

Making my way into Michigan and around Lansing, I headed north on US127.  I expected US127 to go to two lanes quickly, but it stayed four-lane divided the entire way with speed limits of 75MPH.  I happily putzed along.

As the afternoon progressed, the area started to get very Northy-looking with birch trees and boggy areas.  It reminded me a lot of the area around Kenora, Ontario.  In places, the roads were almost as bad.

It became evident once I entered the touristy area as the number of billboards increased.  These things have their place and can (rarely) be helpful, but the shear number was utterly vulgar.

I was the first person to arrive at the house.  I wore ear plugs all day, but my head was still buzzing.  The house looked good enough if a bit weathered outside.  The house sits on 350 acres and for the price I wasn't expecting anything too amazing; comfortable will work.

My older sister and Mom showed up a few minutes later, followed by our host.  We talked for a few minutes before exploring the house.

There were lots of rooms but the house showed its age with wrinkly floors and bathrooms that were definitely an afterthought.  The smell was a bit odd, but not in a totally disagreeable way - perhaps just a lingering question mark.  Overall - a win for sure though.

After unpacking we claimed bedrooms.  I took the room with the air conditioner - not because it was hot, but I wanted the white noise.

Big Sis and I took a short walk (maybe it qualifies as a hike?).  The property was gorgeous with deer everywhere.  At one point we exited some heavy woods into a big pretty valley.

A broken windmill sat near a hilltop with a shed - this reminded me of the beginning of the Bruce Campbell movie Evil Dead.

We got turned around a bit before heading back to the house.  The invasive wild Mullein was a bit much in places.  It looked almost listless - like it was biding its time before eliminating humanity.  It still seems far less objectionable than bush honeysuckle.

Back at the house, Brother and Family showed up a bit later.  Everyone was in good spirits as we talked - my nephew was a hoot, sharing his frog game that he had invented.  My brother even had cards printed up, making it look like a "real" game.

Pizza and salad dinner ended the day followed by everyone catching up a bit.