I was supposed to sleep in this morning… Yeah right. I tend to rise around 4am, and sleeping in is generally around 6:30am. Today was my day off and I did NOT “sleep in”. I woke up and tended to some of my designated chores. Hank was nice enough to drive the Little Gal to school so I at least didn’t have to rush around too much. When he returned, I had my camo, mud boots and gators on. We were headed to scout for mountain lions.
Scouting for mountain lions means “cutting tracks” which is not so easy this year since the snow seems to be heading everywhere but here. Such is life. I haven’t gotten to go much so I was out the door today!
We loaded up the dogs and drove some of the side roads. There were patches of snow here and there. Then we came to a good patch of snow covered ground. We spotted some tracks. I was so excited. They looked big. As we got a little closer, we noted that they did not have pads. They were cow tracks; aka: bovine cattle.
We continued on our trek cutting to the left, coming back, cutting to the right and up the hills and down the hills. As we progressed, the road became less and less firm. Mind you, it IS January and we ARE in the Rocky Mountains. What comes to mind? 1. Snow 2. Cold 3. Ice. Well, that is exactly what we did not encounter much of today. The temperature was in the mid 50′s and we hit MUD. Felt a little more like spring the dead of winter.
We put it in 4-wheel and motored along. We saw some deer tracks and then some coyote tracks. More bovine tracks and then finally some elk tracks. Then we took a turn to the right hand turn and headed up a steep hill. We chatted as we were looking for tracks, and then the road started to get real sloppy. Now by sloppy, I don’t mean a foot of snow like it should be this time of year. We had a foot of “greezy” mud. Hank told me “no worries” we were doing fine. Next thing we knew we heard “Uh.”
No, not “Uh-Oh.” Just “Uh.” It came from both of us at the same time as we rounded a bend. The sloppy, rutty road suddenly turned and it was then sloppy, rutty, full of big rocks and had deep ditches along side. We pressed on and had to stop and put chains on. Here is the view as we chained up.
What do you think a view like this can mean? You guessed it. Four-low, chains and as a friend said “Yee-haw!” 
We made it through, cut more roads and never saw a single cat track. We did however scout and learn a new area.
What do you do on your day off? It’s always an adventure!
Note: We do not offer lion hunting through the outfitting business…. I happen to have a license and am out hunting.
…..
Don’t forget to read about Mia & the Little Gal’s adventures at the Women’s Outdoor News
Visit Prois Hunting for hunting and field apparel for women.
Visit TenPoint Crossbows for “the mark of perfection” in crossbows
Hello there. Thank you for stopping by my blog. I enjoy sharing my adventures with others. Enjoy the stories and please share your comments.
