Opening Day of Shotgun Deer Season in Iowa

What a day ! The snow started spitting well before daylight, flakes getting bigger and more abundant as the time came to be getting into the timber. 6:50 AM rolled around ,I went out the back door to start my quest for a deer, only to have the wind whip the door out of my hand. It crashed against the rail to the steps . The thought crossed my mind that the deer standing out in the cornfield wouldn't be there by the time I got around the house . There were three fawns and three does. The fawns took off early...then the does decided the open field wasn't for them either. Half a mile down the drive there was a pickup surveying the deer activity... After the does took a route towards the neighbor's hunting plot I went back to commonly traveled paths. Stood in a couple of spots within 50 yards of each other. Heard lots of guns shots not far away, none were my own. My choice to go inside came when the freezing rain coated my gun barrel with ice. My double layer mossy oak hunters mitten/shooting gloves weren't able to keep my hands warm any longer... Got back into the house after 8:00 and ran to the window several more times, hearing guns going off , wondering what the die hards were actually achieving by staying outside being pelted by freezing rain and ice pellets. More power to them! My landowners tag allows me to hunt either December 1-5th , or December 8-16th, if I don't claim a deer in the first season . I will be back after MY deer come tomorrow....

In My Dreams

Today everywhere I looked seemed to have a deer of one shape or another occupying the space. I am wondering if it is because they feel safe here after the bow season has been going on for so long and the anterless season which ran over the weekend finished up last night. People have been using the south side of our property for their personal use without permission. Most evident on our return from the Thanksgiving holiday when we had time to survey things Saturday morning. Caught someone leaving after dark when I was returning from a grocery run Saturday evening. They were intending to come down the hill from the other side but I was blocking the way. As I started their direction the exit through the cornfield was the escape of choice. Will continue to make more runs down that direction to keep them on guessing. My mail excursion happened shortly before 3:00 today. What was unexpected were the 2 bucks and 2 does feasting west of Hubby's runway . Later,working on putting a few Christmas decorations up I glanced outside. My eyes grew wide as saucers, not unlike those of a child in awe of new sights. Feast your eyes on what I saw and know what will be in my dreams,to focus on , in order to get ready for the shotgun seasons beginning at the end of the week.