if only I had a movie camera

As I tromped across the snow covered cornfield, in the dark, I had no idea that I would be treated to one of the greatest nature shows I have ever seen. It had been extremely hard to haul my aching, sleep deprived body out of bed at 4:30 a.m. I was hoping it would be raining, like the forecast said, so I wouldn't have to go hunting. "Have to go hunting", I must have really been tired to think like that.

It was a perfect morning. What little wind there was came from a favorable direction. There was snow on the ground. The deer had had a week to rest up from shotgun season. It was now the first morning of muzzle loading season.

I got in the treestand and became still. As legal shooting light arrived, so also did a buck, eating berries off a bush, taking a drink from the creek. He messed around for about five minutes getting as close as 10 and 15 yards from me. He wasn't teasing, just lingering, but he was safe. In the dim light I couldn't see my sights well enough to get off an accurate shot.

Next, a group of four, a doe with ....triplets? Maybe. They were close enough, at 10 yards, still there wasn't enough light for me to feel comfortable. And, after all, a mother that can take care of triplets deserves a pass.

A half hour later, with more than adequate light, a large doe came tearing out of the cornfield and through the woods, leaping over logs, crashing through the creek. I started whistling, trying to get her to stop and perk up her ears. Deer are curious, you know. Nothing doing, she was scared. What was the problem? Then I saw him, hunting alone. A coyote. Running and watching and strategizing. The doe stopped eight yards from my tree and looked back at the coyote. She had no idea there was a gun pointed at her ribs. Off she went running to the southwest. With the doe off and running I swung around and the coyote now had a gun pointed at him. He tried to cut her off. It looked like she escaped...for the moment.

A half hour later I heard an animal coming from behind me making a strange bleating noise. It was a young deer, a yearling, bleating for it's mother. It was about 20 yards away. I see deer that size that hunters bring in to the check in station. Still, I'm not so desperate as to shoot a baby crying for its mother.

Another half hour or so goes by and I saw a group of three does coming my direction about 150 yards away. They walked toward the field, then back to the creek. They did this two or three times. Finally it looked like they were moving away from me. I began to grunt (using a special apparatus designed for this, of course). They got curious and start coming toward me. Occasionally they would look my direction, apparently they were trying to spot the buck that was grunting. They veered off to the side of me and in the line of three passing by at 60 yards it seemed the middle one was the best to fill my tag.

I saw four more deer before I had mine loaded in the truck. Two just walked in on me and got within 15 yards before they turned tail and ran. I've never had a day in the woods quite like this one. I saw at least 11 deer.