Two more bite the dust 6-29-2016
Jun 29, 2016 19:11:07 GMT -7
Post by broper on Jun 29, 2016 19:11:07 GMT -7
Hello every body,
Well, I went out and drove through the badger hills this morning on the way to the Idaho Varmint Hunters weekly B.S. session and bean feed at Tom's Cabin Café & Beanery. I stopped in a couple places where I'd seen badgers before. Tried calling and sat and watched each place about 10 minutes. Didn't see anything except a few magpies flitting about. So, I got back to the main two track and kept watching both sides, stopping once in awhile and glassing. Finally looked over to my left and there's a badger laying on a mound watching me. I stop the truck, grab my .204 off the passenger seat, crank a round in the chamber, leaned on the window sill centered the cross hairs on the chest and lit one off. WHOP!, DRT. I range it at 47 yds. Get out of the truck, grab my camera, scales and sling my gun. Walk out there and it had slid off the mound, just in the opening of the hole. Started to reach down to pull it out by a leg and I hear another one hiss and growl at me. Then I'm a little hesitant to reach down and grab the dead one. So, after I think about it and screw up my courage, I reach down, grab a fore leg and jerk it out on to the mound real quick. Take one picture and another with my gun, then turn it over and see that it's a female. All this time I can hear the other one in the hole growling like a bear and hissing at me, wondering if it's going to come charging out of the hole after me. Finally, I look in the hole and see it grinning at me about two feet down, just it's face. So I'm standing there wondering what to do, listening to it growl and hiss. Should I walk back to the truck for my pistol? Finally I get down as close as I dare and try to take it's picture. To dark in the hole it wouldn't show up. So I unshoulder my rifle, hold the muzzle down to the mouth of the hole and pull the trigger. After about 10 minutes, when the dust clears I look in the hole and nothing, but I can see about a 2" depression in the dirt where the bullet apparently hit but no badger. So, I figure, that was a waste. I stand up and I hear the growl again, look back in but can't see no stinking badger. I just chalk that one up as lost, figuring it won't be back out for at least another day after that. I walk back to the truck, put my camera and scales up, lay the rifle in the passenger seat, get in, start the engine , turn on the air. Get out pen and note pad to write down all the info on the one I shot, look over at the dead badger and there's the other badger up on the mound sniffing the dead one. Then it sniffs all around the mound and turns broad side to me. I shut off the truck, grab the rifle, crank another round in the chamber, lean on the window, set the cross hairs right behind the shoulder. At the same instant I pull the trigger, it turns toward me and I smack it right in the muzzle. WHOP! So, I get the camera and scales again, walk back out there and it's laying about 30" from the first one. As I walk up to it, it takes a big deep breath lets it out and that's all she wrote. I take a picture of both together, one by it's self, then kick it over to take a look at the under carriage, it's a male. Lean down to grab one foot to put the weighing string on it and that's when the GOD awful smell hits me and about knocks me over. Man, can those breeding male badgers stink. If they could spray they would put a skunk to shame. Anyway, I get it weighed, go back to the truck...... no hand wipes, one left and it's dried up. There I am with badger love potion on my hand and no way to get it off. Happen to remember I have Armour All wipes for the truck. Grab a couple of them and wipe down, and it works, no badger stink! I was very careful not to let them touch my clothes, been there done that! When I got to Tom's Cabin I went in the restroom and gave myself a good scrubbing. So, that's my story today. What do you think? Sounds a bit like a Laurel and Hardy episode, huh?
Female undercarriage!
Female Shiny Side!
Female and 204 Ruger
Male Undercarriage
Badgers Together
Well, I went out and drove through the badger hills this morning on the way to the Idaho Varmint Hunters weekly B.S. session and bean feed at Tom's Cabin Café & Beanery. I stopped in a couple places where I'd seen badgers before. Tried calling and sat and watched each place about 10 minutes. Didn't see anything except a few magpies flitting about. So, I got back to the main two track and kept watching both sides, stopping once in awhile and glassing. Finally looked over to my left and there's a badger laying on a mound watching me. I stop the truck, grab my .204 off the passenger seat, crank a round in the chamber, leaned on the window sill centered the cross hairs on the chest and lit one off. WHOP!, DRT. I range it at 47 yds. Get out of the truck, grab my camera, scales and sling my gun. Walk out there and it had slid off the mound, just in the opening of the hole. Started to reach down to pull it out by a leg and I hear another one hiss and growl at me. Then I'm a little hesitant to reach down and grab the dead one. So, after I think about it and screw up my courage, I reach down, grab a fore leg and jerk it out on to the mound real quick. Take one picture and another with my gun, then turn it over and see that it's a female. All this time I can hear the other one in the hole growling like a bear and hissing at me, wondering if it's going to come charging out of the hole after me. Finally, I look in the hole and see it grinning at me about two feet down, just it's face. So I'm standing there wondering what to do, listening to it growl and hiss. Should I walk back to the truck for my pistol? Finally I get down as close as I dare and try to take it's picture. To dark in the hole it wouldn't show up. So I unshoulder my rifle, hold the muzzle down to the mouth of the hole and pull the trigger. After about 10 minutes, when the dust clears I look in the hole and nothing, but I can see about a 2" depression in the dirt where the bullet apparently hit but no badger. So, I figure, that was a waste. I stand up and I hear the growl again, look back in but can't see no stinking badger. I just chalk that one up as lost, figuring it won't be back out for at least another day after that. I walk back to the truck, put my camera and scales up, lay the rifle in the passenger seat, get in, start the engine , turn on the air. Get out pen and note pad to write down all the info on the one I shot, look over at the dead badger and there's the other badger up on the mound sniffing the dead one. Then it sniffs all around the mound and turns broad side to me. I shut off the truck, grab the rifle, crank another round in the chamber, lean on the window, set the cross hairs right behind the shoulder. At the same instant I pull the trigger, it turns toward me and I smack it right in the muzzle. WHOP! So, I get the camera and scales again, walk back out there and it's laying about 30" from the first one. As I walk up to it, it takes a big deep breath lets it out and that's all she wrote. I take a picture of both together, one by it's self, then kick it over to take a look at the under carriage, it's a male. Lean down to grab one foot to put the weighing string on it and that's when the GOD awful smell hits me and about knocks me over. Man, can those breeding male badgers stink. If they could spray they would put a skunk to shame. Anyway, I get it weighed, go back to the truck...... no hand wipes, one left and it's dried up. There I am with badger love potion on my hand and no way to get it off. Happen to remember I have Armour All wipes for the truck. Grab a couple of them and wipe down, and it works, no badger stink! I was very careful not to let them touch my clothes, been there done that! When I got to Tom's Cabin I went in the restroom and gave myself a good scrubbing. So, that's my story today. What do you think? Sounds a bit like a Laurel and Hardy episode, huh?
Female undercarriage!
Female Shiny Side!
Female and 204 Ruger
Male Undercarriage
Badgers Together