Post Road Trip Report (or my reason for not blogging for 4 days)

On Wednesday last, I took a drive to the north western side of the Catskill Mountains to partake in the early black bear hunt. I left kind of late that day but still got in a few hours of scouting for bear (and for good deer hunting spots). I was out the woods only a short time where, maybe after only about 10-15 minutes of hiking along some old logging roads, I found this:

Clear evidence of bear in the neighborhood.

 There were bear around for sure but just in case you missed it in the first photo, here is a close-up.

Surprisingly to me, there were no seeds evident in this bear scat.
At this time of year they eat lots of a variety of late berries.

I hiked to the top or near to it of a mountain, sat down and took a break after wiping the sweat from my brow. I have to admit, I am not in great shape and I was carrying my 870, had my Redhawk strapped to my hip, and was hauling a pack weighing about 15 to 20 pounds (much of that in bottled water but I had enough of everything to survive a few days if I fell and broke something and could not walk out). Once I was seated and drank a bottle or so of water, I got to thinking - what in Hades was I about to do with a bear if I shot one! Sure, I could drag out a small one, or go and get help from the locals to drag out a bigger one but I figured by the time I got it to my car, it might well be ruined due to the heat. It had to be about 85 degrees and just about as humid as it can get in NY state! If I had gotten one, I would have had to skin it and at least quarter it in the field (and was not prepared to quarter it unless my K-Bar could do the trick) so as to cool it off enough to prevent the meat from spoiling. Regardless, I saw no bear, just bear sign, a few possible bear tracks and some scat. Hell, even the squirrels were absent - and that even where there was plenty of evidence of them having fed on acorns from the oaks that were all around me. The forest floor was littered with acorn husks and caps and with many small branches with several fresh leaves still attached to each. Apparently the squirrels had broken off the branch tips while getting those delectable acorns. I had been planning on camping there to continue the hunt the next day but the heat, the lack of critter activity, the worry about what to do if I got a bear, along with my sweaty brow, was enough to convince me - no more warm weather bear hunting. Add to all that, by the time I was back down at my car, it was too damned late to look for a suitable camp site. Off I went.
 
I moved west to Binghamton and set up camp in Motel 6 for two nights. At least they had air conditioning. They were also close to some state land I have hunted before, well 20 miles or so away but that is relatively closer than from my hone to the state forest. On Thursday, I went to Cascade Valley State Forest and did some deer and bear scouting while carrying the 870 again. This time though I had changed from the 20" barrel to a 28" and I was loaded for squirrel. Yes I had the Redhawk just in case. I saw very little deer sign, some bear sign and also squirrel sign. The only critters I saw though were chipmunks. Even the birds were taking a break from the heat as I saw almost none flittering about, it was as hot as the day before or hotter and all God's furry and feathered creatures except for the chipmunks seemed to be taking a break. I did see several amphibians in the form of three species of frogs, one salamander and one red eft. Go figure, but they were all near water if not in it so able to cool off if need be.



Neat little Spring Peeper.

Again, I saw a lot of squirrel sign same as I saw in the Catskills. I also saw the same type of bear sign, a couple of big piles of it. This time each plop was loaded down with seeds/pits. My guess is the bear that left it was a bigger bear than the one whose scat I saw in the Catskills and here is why I guess it:



Not the biggest pile of it I've ever seen but much bigger than the one the day
 before in the Catskills, note it's a size 12 boot. I 'd like to come across the
bear that left it so long as I was armed well and saw it before it saw me.

Probably one of the sources of the seeds in that bear scat were small trees and bushes in the area and loaded with small fruit like this:

I've no clue as to what type berry bush is this but they were abundant as
were some small trees with orange berries and big sharp pointy thorns.

As for deer sign, there was very little of it but I found some in a spot I have hunted before and I expect I will hunt this year. I also found a new spot, a fairly nice clearing in the middle of the woods with some deer sign in and around it. At one edge of that clearing is a nice mature apple tree full of apples. I will be hunting there too - I am about as certain as one can be on that. I hope I get to go there during the early part of the crossbow season when apples may still be on the branches.
 
On Friday , I headed northwest to Geneva, NY for the Hessney Auction preview that afternoon and for the auction on Saturday. More info on the auction in my post immediately prior to this one. I went to the preview, only the first or maybe second time I have ever been there for all 3 hours of it and took my time checking out the auction lots. Well, actually, I stayed for about 2 hours and 45 minute. Then it was off to my motel in Canandaigua, NY about 20 miles west of Geneva. Only motel available that close, with rooms and with an almost reasonable rate. Hoofed over to and hung out in a local watering hole for a while until the bartender or a customer stole some of my cash off of the bar, when I mentioned it to him he was smug and nasty and no reason to be so unless he was a guilty fucker as I saw it. I him to go fuck himself and left. Since it happened twice, I was pretty sure it was the bartender as different patrons were there earlier when it first happened than when it happened a second time with completely different group of people at the bar. He was the only common denominator except me being stupid enough to leave cash on the bar after the first time. It wasn't much but enough to piss me off yet not enough to have me causing much of a scene over it so I hoofed it back to the motel without getting myself in trouble.
 
Next day, off to Geneva for the auction - a bit later than I expected but then again I remembered I did not have to be there early for the preview that day immediately prior to the commencement of bidding. I got there with plenty of time even though door opened at 0830 and I strolled in around 0915. had my seat reserved in the front row, something I did on Friday night, and was set to have a good time. This Hessney auction was great but was different too. It was an Early - Modern Gun and Military Auction and this time, as opposed to some others billed the same way that had few old guns and fewer military items, there were a very high number of military items for sale including firearms like M1 Garands and M1 Carbines. As usual the auction house staff were friendly, courteous and just all around good folks. I had an excellent time there, a better time than going to a gun store or a gun show.
 
Drove home last nigh despite being pretty pooped when I left the auction house. A decent meal gave me the impetus to make the whole 6 or so hours drive (Geneva is about 320 miles from my place). I didn't even doze off for a few seconds while driving either! ;>)

All the best,
Glenn B