Sigh... so surprisingly the Rabbits didn't come to this familiar spot to sun themselves like I figured they would once the sun finally peaked over the ridge behind us to warm themselves back up from 32 F.
Oh well, no worries, let's try calling for predators.
I walk back in on this popular trail, figuring since it's 32F the low and 52F the high supposedly, figure the usual riff-raff of hikers wouldn't be pestering me today.
Tried to find this off-trail spot I called-in a Gray Fox before. Wasn't quite finding it, said screw it..hopped back on the trail and just went in a lil bit deeper to some spot I remember had a good hiding spot to look out over the decoy.
Pssh... long story shorter bunch friggin hikers end up ruining it. All of em with dogs too.
Sigh...ok.. fine... go back to trailhead then find this other trail I remembered that never has footprints on it and eventually goes over to another flatland area.
This time tried to eCaller for a bit, curious to see if maybe can get a Bobcat or Yote to come in. Eventually the batteries die. I don't remember using em a whole bunch, but it was June when I last put in fresh ones, so oh well, mouth calls it is.
Follow this trail a bit more to these other flatlands. Setup the decoy and give it a sincere attempt with the mouth calls for like an hour. It's getting to be like 2-something pm, so figure I'd better start heading pack so I can sit on the rabbits spot and try to catch them in sunset and last-light when they seem to like socializing with each other and playing grab-ass type behaviours.
So I'm sitting there, tucked-in pretty good up against a large scrub oak. My areas of interest are located "on the clock" at like 12, 2,4,5 & 6.
Had a bunny run past the smallish gap at 12p. This is the spot that they typically come out into first as sunsets to meet up with each other. He didn't give me enough time to move the .17 HMR over on the Kiwk Stix before he was already across the gap and out of sight probably hanging out inside the other scrub oak like the one I'm hiding behind. Dang it. Well, now we'll try to just keep pointed that direction and wait.
So cool, a second rabbit that briefly went into that open space but then turned back into the bushes from which he came, not long after that first one... I wait around.. and thankfully he eventually comes back and makes the mistake of stopping in that narrow space between.
Again like last year at approx 80yds. The .17 HMR blows a whole in him just a little back behind his tiny rabbit diaphragm. Unfortunately this is causing him to writhe a bit. I then try to put one in his head... but unfortunately because of his attempts at writhing...he still ends up occasionally spastically moving his head again and again right as i would attempt to squeeze-off one pointed at his brain.
Eventually he expires. Then curiously... a Blue bird eventually lands nearby, His demeanor is reminding me of watching RoadRunners who are about to cautiously approach left-overs laid-out with care. Son of a BEEP! He starts trying to take pot-shots at his danging entrails! No, no, no... this my kill. i'm leaving out there just a littl bit longer in hope of coaxing that other one to go check on his friend. But oh well...had to regulate on this theivenous Bluebird!
So then I keep the rifle on my shoulder, and crank my head around to view the other positions of the cock at which in the past other bunnies have come into this field. As I look over... because her ears are soo long and have light colored tips... I at first thought this one was some young buck staring back my direction, so I silently gasp and play the freeze game. Eventually figured out it was just a Doe with VERY long ears. Got to watch her for quite some time. And that's always a pleasure. While I'm watching her she eventually settles-in on the idea that I'm not a threat. And oddly... moments later.. I dunno what the hell she saw and was looking at... but all of a sudden she dipped herself downward like as if she saw something horribly terrifying for a split-second. Would have loved to know what it was she thought she saw.
Eventually as she's here--and-there browsing off a clump of low brush... eventually she's worked her way more at my 6, but way over there where she is at. And then I guess at some point she must have caught a whiff of myself AND the blood from this rabbit which I had collected and set near my own feet.
BOING! BOING! BOING!!! She didn't waste any time at all Stott'ing away from that location (where I imagine she'd caught a whiff of the blood), back toward the thick chaparral.
Had a few more minutes to end of last light, but unfortunately that other rabbit never came back. Got to watch a covey of Quail, one-by-one hot-foot it across that gap opening towards the scrub oak. I don't have a upland stamp, so they get a pass.
On way back over there to pickup my Rabbit, I get startled by that whole entire covey of Quail beating wings and taking to the air together flying out of that scrub oak. Ya gotta just grin and laugh at yourself at those times.
So yeah... a lil bit of a bummer on the quantity of Rabbit. But getting to spend some quality time with that doe seemed like a fair trade and made the night worth it, and kinda neat
P.S. soo hard to be a good boy and fight the desire to not just take this gimme of a doe nature is throwing my way with my .17 HMR.
Sigh... sometimes it sucks having to play by lifes rules. Bet for sure I could have dropped her. Love that .17!
Oh well, no worries, let's try calling for predators.
I walk back in on this popular trail, figuring since it's 32F the low and 52F the high supposedly, figure the usual riff-raff of hikers wouldn't be pestering me today.
Tried to find this off-trail spot I called-in a Gray Fox before. Wasn't quite finding it, said screw it..hopped back on the trail and just went in a lil bit deeper to some spot I remember had a good hiding spot to look out over the decoy.
Pssh... long story shorter bunch friggin hikers end up ruining it. All of em with dogs too.
Sigh...ok.. fine... go back to trailhead then find this other trail I remembered that never has footprints on it and eventually goes over to another flatland area.
This time tried to eCaller for a bit, curious to see if maybe can get a Bobcat or Yote to come in. Eventually the batteries die. I don't remember using em a whole bunch, but it was June when I last put in fresh ones, so oh well, mouth calls it is.
Follow this trail a bit more to these other flatlands. Setup the decoy and give it a sincere attempt with the mouth calls for like an hour. It's getting to be like 2-something pm, so figure I'd better start heading pack so I can sit on the rabbits spot and try to catch them in sunset and last-light when they seem to like socializing with each other and playing grab-ass type behaviours.
So I'm sitting there, tucked-in pretty good up against a large scrub oak. My areas of interest are located "on the clock" at like 12, 2,4,5 & 6.
Had a bunny run past the smallish gap at 12p. This is the spot that they typically come out into first as sunsets to meet up with each other. He didn't give me enough time to move the .17 HMR over on the Kiwk Stix before he was already across the gap and out of sight probably hanging out inside the other scrub oak like the one I'm hiding behind. Dang it. Well, now we'll try to just keep pointed that direction and wait.
So cool, a second rabbit that briefly went into that open space but then turned back into the bushes from which he came, not long after that first one... I wait around.. and thankfully he eventually comes back and makes the mistake of stopping in that narrow space between.
Again like last year at approx 80yds. The .17 HMR blows a whole in him just a little back behind his tiny rabbit diaphragm. Unfortunately this is causing him to writhe a bit. I then try to put one in his head... but unfortunately because of his attempts at writhing...he still ends up occasionally spastically moving his head again and again right as i would attempt to squeeze-off one pointed at his brain.
Eventually he expires. Then curiously... a Blue bird eventually lands nearby, His demeanor is reminding me of watching RoadRunners who are about to cautiously approach left-overs laid-out with care. Son of a BEEP! He starts trying to take pot-shots at his danging entrails! No, no, no... this my kill. i'm leaving out there just a littl bit longer in hope of coaxing that other one to go check on his friend. But oh well...had to regulate on this theivenous Bluebird!
So then I keep the rifle on my shoulder, and crank my head around to view the other positions of the cock at which in the past other bunnies have come into this field. As I look over... because her ears are soo long and have light colored tips... I at first thought this one was some young buck staring back my direction, so I silently gasp and play the freeze game. Eventually figured out it was just a Doe with VERY long ears. Got to watch her for quite some time. And that's always a pleasure. While I'm watching her she eventually settles-in on the idea that I'm not a threat. And oddly... moments later.. I dunno what the hell she saw and was looking at... but all of a sudden she dipped herself downward like as if she saw something horribly terrifying for a split-second. Would have loved to know what it was she thought she saw.
Eventually as she's here--and-there browsing off a clump of low brush... eventually she's worked her way more at my 6, but way over there where she is at. And then I guess at some point she must have caught a whiff of myself AND the blood from this rabbit which I had collected and set near my own feet.
BOING! BOING! BOING!!! She didn't waste any time at all Stott'ing away from that location (where I imagine she'd caught a whiff of the blood), back toward the thick chaparral.
Had a few more minutes to end of last light, but unfortunately that other rabbit never came back. Got to watch a covey of Quail, one-by-one hot-foot it across that gap opening towards the scrub oak. I don't have a upland stamp, so they get a pass.
On way back over there to pickup my Rabbit, I get startled by that whole entire covey of Quail beating wings and taking to the air together flying out of that scrub oak. Ya gotta just grin and laugh at yourself at those times.
So yeah... a lil bit of a bummer on the quantity of Rabbit. But getting to spend some quality time with that doe seemed like a fair trade and made the night worth it, and kinda neat
P.S. soo hard to be a good boy and fight the desire to not just take this gimme of a doe nature is throwing my way with my .17 HMR.
Sigh... sometimes it sucks having to play by lifes rules.
Bet for sure I could have dropped her. Love that .17!
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