This last weekend was Veterans Day and the closing of D-14 deer season. Rudy, Brad and myself made the drive up to Big Bear. With the temperatures in the low 30's and highs in the low 60's the weather was perfect. Made the hike in Saturday morning at first light. Rudy 2 weeks prior spotted a nice 5x5 and 4x4 in this same area. With high hopes of getting a shot at one of these big bucks we took our time. Being in the mountains as the sun is coming up is great. The hills come to life with birds chirping, crows cawing and then the unfriendly sound of truck after truck in the distance. Hunting public land there is always a chance of other hunters but you hope you don't see any one. Well lets just say there was a lot of other hunting pressure. The morning turned out to be uneventful. We hiked and glassed but never saw a deer. Great deer tracks and scat all over but with the other hunters I think the deer have been moving at night. We made the way back to the cabin for a snack and relax for a little before the evening hunt.
We decided to change up the evening hunt and stay close to home for the night and do a little predator control. The coyotes in the area have grown in numbers in the past few years. We set up in a good meadow and let the call do the work. In about 5 minutes we had a grey fox coming in on a string. With fox season closed till November 24th the little guy got a pass.
We headed back out for a quick Sunday morning hunt. With all the people, wanting to get on the road before all the traffic and lack of deer. We decided to head back to the cabin, load up and get back down the mountain. This season I was not In shape like I should have been and really lacked motivation. I have a new fire under my butt for 2018 and looking forward to improving myself as a whole. Merry Christmas to all and a Happy New Year.
