I arrived in the north woods yesterday late afternoon.
Weather was nice with a partly overcast sky and a temperature not much above 32 degrees.
The cabin remains strong and sturdy but will need some maintenance to continue providing a warm and dry habitat for this hunting season and many to follow.
First things first, I start a fire to get some heat going.
Depending on the weather, it can sometimes take hours and hours before the cabin is at a nice comfortable temperature.
Ahhhh, Mother Nature is certainly turning this time of year.
The fall tree color is well past peak in this part of the state, with only a few leaves remaining on the trees.
The tamarack needles have all turned brown.
And as always, the oak trees don't shed their leaves so easily.
It was a very good year for acorns.
Many of the oak branches were sagging from the weight of all the acorns.
I expect the deer and other wildlife are taking advantage of this abundance.
The apple trees still have a good number of apples hanging on the branches.
In a week or so I'll start to shake a few down every day to attract the deer in.
Apples are their favorite foods.
I expect it is the sugars they like.
A late afternoon hike through the woods was enjoyable.
A person can see a long way in the woods this time of year.
I found a few deer rubs and even a scrape.
A couple of white tails flashed a long ways in front of me.
I didn't get the chance to see what gender of deer they were.
It will take a few days to explore and observe the woods for deer sign to determine if the rut has started or not.
Many old time deer hunters have a rule of thumb - that Halloween is the time to start deer hunting seriously, give or take a day or two.
It wasn't long after sunset when the coyotes were howling at each other.
This went on for 10 minutes or so.
I usually hear them later at night and not so early.
With the sun down, and the cabin warmed up, I cooked up sausage and potatoes for a meal.
It was a long day so I retired early.
I woke early before the sunrise.
When the sun did shine a bit, you could see everything was covered in a frost.
The pond even had a skim of ice on it.
I'm grateful for another day in the north woods and look forward to more deer hunting and wildlife adventures.
These observations are from the wonderful wood lands of Price County, Wisconsin.
So long for now.
Have a great day and a great 2024 deer hunt.
Best Regards,
Backwoods Burt
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