A new adventure at The Cabin. As if I need one.
Nearby neighbors kept mentioning the big buck they see occasionally roaming near The Cabin. One sighting described the buck as “about a ten-pointer, maybe more; huge for this area.” I kept an eye out for the prized deer, rolling slowly along the long driveway when arriving and departing. I would never want to bullseye the big buck but surely would like to see it.
Deer are not necessarily plentiful on the seven-acre plot, but it’s not unusual to see them, especially does and their underlings munching acorns near the circle driveway. They also like early morning dessert near the courtyard usually consisting of the prettiest flowers planted by my WW. But seeing the 10-pointer was a challenge – still is. But I think I’m getting closer.
My friend Ronnie has 300 or so acres in a speck of Alabama called Pine Apple. His farm house and land make up his Little Piece of Heaven. Three RDH guys (me, namesake Dalton and namesake Trey) are fortunate to get an invitation each year to deer hunt on this oasis, which has to be considered the deer capital of the South. I do not hunt; I’m the cook. But Dalton, and especially Trey, have learned immensely from Mr. Ronnie about the right way to hunt – respect for the land, respect for wildlife and utmost respect for safety.
On my most recent trip to Pine Apple, Ronnie enlightened me on his new practice – utilizing field cameras to track deer on his acreage. We stopped deep in the woods where he ejected a tiny SIM card from a small camouflaged camera that was strapped to the trunk of a tree. He then inserted the card into a device and plugged the device into his I-phone. Presto, pictures from the night before suddenly appeared, some showing deer enjoying a midnight snack on one of his fields. Time, date and temperature on each picture. He had me. Or, this field camera thing had me.
So, one trip later to Bass Pro Shop for a camera and attachments, and only one question remained: just how fast could I get to The Cabin? It didn’t take long.
Once at The Cabin, in a rare act of patience, I actually read the instructions for setting up the camera. I wanted to get this right. I programmed it to snap one picture every two seconds for eight seconds each time movement was detected. In other words, I would get four pictures every time something moves within camera range. My confidence level about this programming stuff was not very high, so I decided an overnight test was in order.
The test included strapping the camera to a porch post so it would pick up any movement in the courtyard. The next morning, I was amazed that I had programmed the camera perfectly. I also was amazed to get 112 pictures of my oscillating sprinkler. Each time the water spray would enter the range of the camera . . . presto, four pictures . . . then four more . . . then four more. At least I knew the settings on the camera were correct. And, I knew the sprinkler system was working well, too.
I did not flinch at that minor distraction. Next step was to strap the camera to a tree in the woods. A gorge running through the property seemed like a logical place – surely deer would want to shelter there. And, they did (two pictures above). Another placement another night snapped an unsuspecting red tail fox (upper photo, right). And then there are squirrels, lots of squirrels, who often trigger the camera. One obviously was curious of that thing strapped to his tree (upper photo, left) – that’s his eye getting an up-close look.
So the field camera has been tons of fun with good results. A favorite series of pictures shows a hawk landing, pouncing on a dead squirrel and flying away with the squirrel clearly visible in his claws. Other animals now on file include lots of deer including a young spike, raccoons, a variety of birds, a disgustingly fat possum, and a cat – not sure if it is a bobcat or wildcat or just an ugly domestic kitty.
But, no big buck. Not yet.
A Little Piece of Heaven 