Thanks....

Well, I didn't stick one, but I could have (unethically though). I saw one small, tiny, doe this morning around 8:30am. Cute little thing walked within 20 yards of my stand. I woke up from a short snooze to the snapping of twigs, and remained still but alert. I watched the doe and realized that she is just a little thing and was probably last seasons newborn fawn. I mean, she couldn't have been any bigger than a Great Dane or a Mastiff or something. Like, did somebody's little pet goat get loose? [:-] I let her walk on by and said under my breath, "that's right honey, go on and find your daddy and bring him back here".

Anyway, I woke up this morning at 4:30am. I had everything all set, and ready to roll out this morning. It was a brisk morning and felt good. I parked my truck in my er, uh, um, well... you know my "special spot" in Cumberland SF. I sat in the truck for a good 15 minutes and drank more coffee from the thermos - to give things time to quiet back down. It was still pitch black outside and surprisingly, I got the seat 'o the pants harness on in the dark, my new Summit Viper X4 on my back in the dark, and grabbed my bow from inside the truck. I quietly, cautiously, hiked up the trail in the dark and remembered my favorite tree. Long story short, I had to sit there for about 5 minutes, just staring into the darkness of the woods to get my eyes better adjusted. I was able to unpack the Viper X4, get it setup, and was able to climb the tree in the dark. What a beautiful morning and beautiful sunrise. It couldn't get any better than that! Nobody around, nothing going on in the woods yet, and it was just perfect for a weekday hunt. Just me, the awakening animals, and God above. [8D]

Once I got to around 18 feet, I settled in and got comfortable. So comfortable in fact, that the seat/backrest on the Summit Viper X4 was so nice and cozy, that I started dozing on and off! Wow, what a treestand!

The only issue I have with the morning hunt was, after sunrise, and the forest was awake and starting to rummage around, I saw dozens and dozens of tree rats all over the place! They were everywhere! One of them actually climbed a nearby tree and started barking at me! [:@] ....what I would have given, to have my Marlin .22 with me!

Anyway, it was a nice morning, nice hunt, and even though I didn't get a buck, I did see the tiny doe. Even though I could have taken her (early bow season is either sex), I chose to let her walk, because it would have been like shooting somebody's Saint Bernard.... I'll take an adult doe or buck, please!

Butch A.