Thor is a real estate developer who fell in love with SE Minnesota during a hunting trip and moved here. From what I can tell, he bought some swaths of land and built several high-end homes. An avid outdoorsman, he believes in sharing his passion rather than keeping it to himself. Through the introduction by our friend Merrill, we came to benefit from Thor's generosity. He had already someone hunting at his hobby, or should I say gentleman's farm. So he sent us to a tract of land he owns near CR22 and Fort Ridgeley Rd.
Jim and I decided to spend some time in the woods this very afternoon. Thanks to Thor's good directions and a map drawn on a satellite photo, Jim and I had no trouble finding it. The terrain is a valley with steep hill sides, the very bottom of the valey still owned by the person who sold him the property. We started walking along the NW edge of the plot, the rim of the valley. Jim decided that he liked the one of the first locations we came across, a pond at forest's edge, which he hoped would attract thirsty birds. I continued, came across a similar location just a couple hundred meters further. Here, the pond was dry, not surprising since it was at the top edge of a deep hillside. When I investigated for suitablity of a blind location, I came nose-to-nose (or about 5 m) with a coyote (Canis latrans), right outside of her den.
She took one quick look at me and darted down the hill side, vanishing into the thick growth. Charmed by this encounter I decided that this might not that good of a location to set up since I could not imagine that the fowl I was after would be keen on visiting the backyard of a predator's lair. So I continued, meandering in and out of the woods until I found a location where the woods made a corner. I set up my blind and spent a couple of hours listening to turkeys who did not seem have any inclination to make my acquaintance.
At 16:00 I met Jim, we needed to head back for our date with Merrill at the country club. We went over at 17:00 and partook in the customary Thursday Men's Night at the club. Merrill had bought some filet mignon, they were excellent.
Jim and I turned in around 21:00, with probably a little more alcohol than we should have. The last thing I remember hearing was the barking, yipping and laughter of a coyote family, very close, from the sound of it.
Yes, we could have been more organized. Next time let’s contact Merrill and Thor a couple of weeks before we leave St. Paul and nail down where we will be hunting on the first day. We know most of the turf now. It’s just a matter of getting the O.K. from those two fellows.
ReplyDeleteHard to believe that I met Merrill over 20 years ago. He has been a good resource and a good friend over the years…..very accommodating to all of us from the Twin Cities who have been part of the hunting group. Also, a gracious host who enjoys piano-banjo-guitar-mandolin hootenannies when we can fit them into our schedule! And now there is Thor… also a fine fellow who appreciates the out-of-doors and is quite willing to help folks like us find a safe place to hunt. And, now Shirley, Merrill’s SO, is also in the picture….an interesting lady who claims to have a good recipe for coyote!
The traditional Thursday Country Club rendezvous was great … Good Food [Thanks, Merrill!], and fine conversation. I especially enjoyed Bob’s account of the history of the Country Club and how he, as a young man, helped develop the golf course.
Now refresh my memory … Did I see that red headed woodpecker on Day 1? Glad I had my binoculars. Lots of good birdwatching as I sat next to the pond. Unfortunately, none of the birds were turkeys.