The camp we use, is on leased land just north west of Minden. Drive to? NOT
well, sort of not.
It requires two hours to three of bone jolting neck snapping adventure in an old 4wd army truck with chains on all fours, and a lot of luck to get there.
The stream we have to drive down was so deep this year it wet the undercarraige of the truck, the means three feet of water. The rocks were so slippery with the rain that even with chains on we damn near slid off a short cliff at one point. Slid into a few trees, boiled over the engine ripping the crap out of a few of the steep rock and mud hills, but finally made it.
Job one is to sweep the mouse crap off all the bunks, this was added to this year by chipmunk crap.
The bears didn't break in at least this year, as they did last, but there are new chew marks at shoulder height on one of the window ledges, and deep claw marks at the bottom of the door.
The usual trail we take to get to the ridges is below a large bever dam, a very full beaver pond greated us the first morning of the hunt, and the small beaver channel we usually step across is now six feet wide, and four feet deep. So.. we have to walk the dam all week. The dam has been added to by the beavers, so it nice and skinny on top, like about eight inches, and water running over the top of most of it. We made it until Friday, before one of the guys fell in the pond.
No terrible incidents to report, seven guys saw seven moose we could not shoot, we saw six whitetails too, a fisher, and a bunch of crazy ravens feeding on the gut pile from the moose the next camp shot.
Tuesday, I walked up on a cow moose in the hardwoods, got to within fifty yards, she heard me, and turned her but towards me, giving the narrowest profile, she looked like a stump. I took another crunching step, she turned broadside, stopped, looked directly at me, then moved off at a trot, like a bulldozer breaking brush. An easy shot, even with the 30-30 I was carrying that day (remember I have only a calf license)
We never fired a shot. We did run out of beer on Friday, and Wisky on Saturday. (We only drink at supper time, and not to excess).
The other camp had a hell of a good time, and were group singing over the CB, so I guess they didn't run out of booze.
I can say that despite the rain, the mud, the deep water, the snow, the sleet, and even the thunderstorm, the earthquake, and the mouse crap, I too had a hell of a good time.
Going out the old truck decided that jumping out of gear is fun, on steep down hills even more fun. As it has NO BRAKES, that was fun. I was co- driver, and it was my job to try and slow her down with the old drive shaft brake. ( Thats like throwing a cement block on a string out behind a train)
We got stuck three times on the way out, but didn't need the winch, and avoided rolling the truck on the side hill too.
Total cost to me for this adventure.... $143.56.
