When we got to our turkey blind this morning, the temp was about 32 degrees and it was SNOWING! The winds were howling out of the N-NW at around 25-30 MPH (gusting to 45 MPH) with a wind chill of 19 degrees. I like to think I'm a reasonably sensible and sane woman, but this morning, I couldn't help wonder what the heck I was doing out in these conditions freezing my buns (and all other body parts) when I could have been back home cuddled up in bed with Sophie and Penny while Mr. Johnson (the die-hard hunter) froze all by himself. I guess some people will do anything for a blog posting!
Here's a little video I took from inside the blind around 6:15 AM. Those are our 2 turkey decoys you see out in front and you can tell from the audio and from watching the decoys how windy it was. If you turn up your volume and listen real close at about 21 seconds you will hear the turkey gobble.
We heard him gobbling for about half an hour but could also hear a hen with him. Shortly after 6:30, all became quiet and we never heard or saw another turkey the rest of the day. We left the blind to come home a little after 3 PM.
The day wasn't a total bust though. We were entertained by a group of fat gray squirrels running and playing near our blind. We did also spot this handsome fox squirrel all by itself. There are mostly gray squirrels in these woods so I was happy to see this fox squirrel and also capture his image.
On our way home, we saw a group of young deer out in a hayfield. In this short video you will see them come to a fence and then jump over to head across the road. Watch closely at the end and listen to Mr. Johnson's narrative!
Hope you all stayed warm today. Tomorrow's forecast is still for "unseasonably cold," but hopefully it won't be quite as windy. One thing I know for sure is that I won't forget my blanket tomorrow!
6 comments:
That wind sounds brutal, I hope your blind helped some. What you needed was a heater, plus hand warmers and electric socks and a buns warmer. The videos were very nice and we could hear the turkey gobbling, cool. The deer were pretty nice jumping except for one, there is always one in the bunch who's different. Thanks for the blog.
Mom
What sunshine? We didn't get any sunshine- just wind blowing snow and wind blowing anything else that wasn't nailed down! I hope you have better luck with the turkey hunt tomrrow.
I've never seen a fox squirrel- he's beautiful!
What a brave and dedicated woman you are Ruthie! Mr. Johnson is one lucky man for sure. I do believe I would have been at home with the lap throw...lol. ;c) Love the sweet deer and the squirrel. Stay warm!
You are devoted. There's no way I'd sit in a turkey blind for 8 years and freeze, but I'm glad you did! LOL! Your fake turkeys are cute and I loved the squirrels and deer hoping over the fence.
Maybe next time you'll get your turkey.
Gosh Ruthie! You are a die hard, for sure! Watching the Saturday night news and seeing how parts of Minnesota were getting socked with snow and cold weather, I couldn't help but wonder about you and Mr. J. I can't imagine being in a blind with the temps and wind chill being that cold. Brrrr!!
Hi Mom,
The wind was awful! I kept thinking that some gust was going to blow a big branch down on top of our blind. I was really glad I had my handwarmers along.
All of those deer were pretty small, but that last one was the smallest of all--I suppose it gets pretty hard for the little one to keep up with those other ones.
Hi Lynne,
It finally stopped snow flurrying after noon, but only a few peeks of sun. It was pretty nasty in that "outdoor ladies room" too!
I'm not sure if fox squirrels are becoming rarer, but we sure don't see them much anymore.
Hi Jayne,
Seeing those deer on the way home made the whole day worthwhile.
Hi Mare,
I can take just about anything when I know it's only for 3 days. I'm thankful that I have plenty of warm clothes. We usually hunt during a later turkey season (in May) when it's much warmer. This is all Mr. Johnson's Fault!
Hi Meggie,
I saw those reports on the news too about a foot of snow in northern MN and I was very thankful we only had flurries.
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