I live on a 3 acre lot in Virginia, not a tree on it. It backs up to a 200 acre corn field. The field is in stubble. The only thing separating my back yard from the field is a barbed wire fence, with a little bit of thicket in it. The back fence is almost exactly 50 yards from the back doors of my house.
It was a crystal clear blue sky today, but only 15 degrees with a hard wind blowing. I looked out my back kitchen window, and saw a beautiful red fox, large, trotting along the fence line, about 2 feet inside of the corn field (other side of the wire fence).
I grabbed my .22 rifle, with 4x scope (sighted dead on for 50 yards) and ran out the far end of my house (in my white undershirt), hoping to cut him off, and that he would pause and I would get a shot at him through the fence.
But, as soon as I closed the house door, he simply veered away from me, at a 45 degree angle, out into the field. So, I ran as fast as I could (heart attack city) to the back fence, rested my rifle against a post, and sighted out on him. I knew he would stop about 50 yards away to look back.
I whistled, and he stopped about 70 yards out, and stood broadside. I put the cross hairs on his body, and held steady. But, I could feel that icy wind blowing hard against my face, really hard. (Man, his tail was flying in the wind like a flag.) I suddenly realized that I would just miss him, or wound him. So, I just let him go. After about 15 seconds, he turned and continued away, fast out into the field.
Nice memory though. :-)
Mannyrock
