Epilogue

Duck Hunting in 2019.   Photo Credit: Brett Kelly

Rich returned home with a chest cold shortly after he wrote his last blog post.   He had been feeling a bit under the weather during his trip to Bishop, and assumed it was the result of of long days four-wheeling around the valley enjoying the scenery and wildlife.

Rich’s condition quickly worsened, and he was soon fighting for his life.  He was intubated and flown to Stanford, where he was placed on even more intensive life-sustaining machines.  His illness was a mystery for a few weeks, until he was diagnosed with Valley Fever, likely contracted by breathing fungus-laden dust on his last hunting trip.

Rich fought valiantly for 6 months, but eventually Valley Fever claimed his life.  He died on May 6th, 2020 at home, surrounded by family who loved him.

A writer at heart, blogging about his adventures was one of the joys of Rich’s life.  He looked forward to the comments of his readers, and was frequently thinking about what he might share on the blog next.

We all miss him terribly, and can’t believe he is gone.

If you’d like to read his obituary, you can find it here.

Thank you for reading.  I know that’s what Rich would want to say to you if he could.

 

 

Written by Betsy Kelly, Rich’s daughter

 

 

 

Glassing for Deer, Round Valley

Sat in my chair and glassed the sage brush, rabbit bush, bitter brush, black brush and white-thorn ceanothis for deer.

Saw somewhere between 30 and 50 deer this morning and 23 in the evening. Hard to know which are repeats. Mountain lions in the area. Probably should have seen more.

Actually had six or seven does run past me in two separate groups an hour apart (at full speed.) Mule deer are terrified by lions. Sometimes they will not only run a half mile at full speed, but they’ll also bleat frantically as they run in fear for their life.

I have personally observed this on a hunt at Anderson Flat about twenty years ago. The deer was screaming as it ran towards me and I saw it cross the ridge top while sitting in my tree stand.

Seconds later the lion came into view for a brief period of time. This took place just before sunset.

The next day I came back and could find no evidence that the lion had brought down the deer.

As for the current hunt, I saw only two bucks today. This evening a 3×3 was following a doe. That’s a good sign.

Looking for a big one. Four days left here. Hard hunting.

Posting from my cell phone.

Round Valley

Today I saw Round Valley for the first time. It is a valley inside a round bowl. Here are some pics.

This is a photo of a cottonwood, beehives and Round Valley Peak, which stands west of Round Valley.

Looking at the eastern rim of Round Valley.

This is a panorama with Round Vally Peak to the left ( west) and a rothe next mountain range to the east.

Found deer this morning. They were mostly near the small town named Rovana, which is on Pine Creek Road just south of Round Valley.

Along with about 30 does, there was one buck. I’ll post a photo of him later. Just a forked horn, but he was with the does. The rut is starting.

The weather is beautiful, for rock climbing, not for deer hunting.

I’m probably moving north tomorrow, towards Mammoth Lakes. The deer, especially the bucks, are still high. Probably Seven to eight thousand feet. The valley floor is about five thousand feet in elevation.

May have to put my ankle to the test and climb. We’ll see.

Buttermilk Country

Buttermilk Country is the lower elevation area between Bishop and the big mountains to the west that divide the Owens and San Joaquin drainages.

This is where mule deer migrate over the passes and drop down into the Owens valley.

Tomorrow the hunt starts.

Duck Openers

2019 opened with a glorious sunrise.

October is a great month for hunters. Coastal deer season is over, but late season and out-of- state hunts are looming. The weather is changing and the days are growing short, but the highlight of October for me so far this year was yesterday and  the opening day of the 2019 duck season.

Back in the glory days of Mayberry Farms, opening day was always full straps of mallards.

Brother Rob, myself and Fred Hilke on opening day 2006.

Those days ended when the seasonal marsh was replaced by permanent marsh.

In 2009, I was concerned about river otters: 2009 https://hunterlandowner.wordpress.com/2009/10/

In 2010 the Giants were in the World Series: 2010 https://hunterlandowner.wordpress.com/2010/10/28/opening-day-ducks-and-baseball/

Opening day 2011 was a winner and brought back memories of the “good old days” : 2011 https://hunterlandowner.wordpress.com/2011/10/

In 2014 I joined the Kerry Duck Club in the Grasslands to fill the void. My disappointment with Mayberry was mitigated by grasslands teal.

2014 https://hunterlandowner.wordpress.com/2014/10/

Last year provided good action as I covered the hunt in detail.

2018 https://hunterlandowner.wordpress.com/2018/10/

2019 was a success in many ways. The Friday night dinner was perfect and the mood of the club members was optimistic and lively.

On Saturday morning we were greeted with more ducks than I can recall for a grasslands opener. I was lucky to have my son-in-law Brett with me. Lola made it to another year of duck hunting, a little slower, but able.

Brett and I both had our hits and misses. We each had six ducks by about 9 o’clock – mostly green-wing teal. Then we decided to wait for a shot at pintail. Brett connected right away and got to watch me miss.

I missed three drake pintails in a row, each time emptying my shotgun. Finally I figured that I needed a bigger lead. The “teal” lead did not work for the faster-flying pintails. On the next bird I “aimed to miss” and the bird dropped with one shot. I was disappointed to see that I’d shot a hen – something I try hard not to do. You would think that it was be just about impossible to shoot a hen.

However, I did. And, we were done.

Lola’s retrieves were slow but effective.

Brett with his strap.

When we signed out, we found that everybody to that point had reported limits.

Planning Your California Muzzleloader Deer Hunt

On October 26th, many California muzzleloader hunts open. Make sure you are properly prepared.

One of the main issues with muzzleloader hunting is the amount of paraphernalia it takes to operate. The best way to get past this obstacle is to practice several times before going afield.

However, California laws regarding toxic shot are throwing a new wrinkle into the program. For several years, muzzleloader bullets have had the appearance of being made of copper. In fact, I was one who thought I was shooting lead-free bullets until recently.

Now I’ve found out that the so-called “Copper” bullets I’ve been shooting for over two years are actually only copper coated. To complicate things, I’ve not found any bullets that call themselves “lead free.” However, Barnes does make an all-copper 45 Cal. bullet that fits into a 50 Cal. sabot and it meets the California standards as far as I can tell.

Check them out. Here’s a photo of the POWERBELT so-called “Copper” bullets on the left and the BARNES bullets with sabots on the right.

The POWERBELT “Copper” Bullets on the left call themselves “copper” bullets, but as near as I can tell they have lead in them. The BARNES bullets on the right are described as pure copper. They are 45 caliber with a 50 caliber sabot.

I shot the Barnes bullets and they were accurate in my Bonecrusher model 50 caliber muzzleloader. The sabots are a very tight fit and it takes a bit or work to get the bullet down the barrel. Make your first shot count and carry a bullet starter. If you have only a long ramrod, you may never get your firearm loaded.

Sunrise at Lake Almanor

Got up early. At 6:45 the horizon was established. At 7:20 the sun popped up.

It was worthwhile. It always is.

Planning Late Season Buck Hunting

One of the best parts of owning an Open Zone deer tag is planning the trip.

Especially as one grows older, it’s better to be looking ahead than looking back.

My foot troubles are mostly behind me. Still a bit of healing going on, but I’m about 90% healed and by November, who knows how far along I’ll be, but whatever, it will be good enough.

During my previous Open Zone escapades, 2016 & 2018, I went to places that I really wanted to see and hunt. Now that the ice is twice broken, I’m going to be a bit more systematic and practical.

I’m leaning towards focusing on two or three November hunts and taking into account my resources. I’m going to do as much scouting as possible during October. I also have some friends who are imbedded in the areas I’m considering.

And, I have the house at Almanor which is located near several of the best late-season muzzleloader hunts. The house can be my home base and  muzzleloader shooting takes less preparation (practice) than archery.

Now that I’ve spent the summer laid up, the time I needed to hone my archery shooting is mostly gone making it unlikely that I could attain the level of confidence I would need to shoot a great buck with a bow, but I can reach that point with a lesser amount of practice with the muzzleloader.

The late-season muzzleloader hunts begin during the last week of October and run through November. And, one of my favorites, M3 (Doyle) ends before Thanksgiving, meaning I won’t have to come home in the middle of the hunt.

This is a Doyle buck I decided not to shoot.

This was the best buck I saw during the M9 hunt in 2018, but not good enough. I figured he was close, but the decision wasn’t hard. He came by on the next to last day of the hunt, following a doe. Keep in mind that I had an Open Zone tag so I could continue to hunt after the M9 hunt was over. If I’d had only an M9 tag, he would have been a shooter.

This guy was competing with other similar bucks (M9).

This is my 2018 Goodale Buck. He’s not a big deer. His width is 21 inches, and height just under 18 inches tall. He has all four points on each side and also nice eye guards. Everybody who hunts Goodale wants a monster buck, but the truth is that they are hard to find. I am very happy with this buck.

This 2016 M3 buck is my favorite California deer. He has lots of mass and huge eye guards.

This Devil’s Garden buck is very pretty. I couldn’t shoot him, even if I’d wanted to. He was 30 yards outside the boundary of the zone.

Phases of Ankle Surgery

Figuring out how you’re going to get around is a major consideration. I mainly used crutches during the eight weeks when I could not put weight on the ankle.

For those who care, I’m posting the progression of my ankle (fusion) surgery from start to finish. Just in case you’re contemplating, or even if you’re not…here you go:

1. 1. Preparation. It may take years to come to the realization that you can no longer stand the pain. Once you decide to go for it, begin to prepare and don’t look back.
   2.  Surgery. The surgery itself was an exercise in trust. I trusted my surgeon and it worked out. He is a man or great confidence.

      

      The first cast was heavy and not fun. It stayed on for three weeks before I asked for a new one a week ahead of schedule.

   3.  The second cast was on for the remainder of the first six weeks. It came of in mid-July. By the time it came off, I was suffering from serious  cabin fever. Even took some anti anxiety pills. They worked.
      

      The second cast was a nice red color. It stayed on until the first  six weeks point when I was allowed to use a removable cast – but could still not put weight on the foot.

      4, With the new “boot” cast I had to use crutches for two more weeks, but at the end of eight weeks, I was allowed to walk with the boot on.

      

      Here’s the special boot used to get started walking.

5.Finally the day when I could put my mountaineering boot on my right foot. That was around the 10th week. The July 15 X–Ray showed that the bone was 80% grown in.

Putting the Kennetrek mountaineering boot on my right foot was a major positive. I had to cut the tongue of the boot in order to fit my foot into the boot.

6 After putting on a real boot, it wasn’t long before I could take real walks and even a hike at Del Valle dam.

Lola and I didn’t make it to the top, but we did go almost half way.

7. At some point in mid August, I celebrated a bit because I could see better days ahead.

 

8. Today, at the three month visit. Dr. Hamilton told me that I was good to go  and that I didn’t have to worry about hurting the ankle because it was 100% fused. He told me to do whatever I was comfortable with.

He also said he liked my video.

Today I climbed the hill again. Not all the way to the top, but at least half way. Didn’t want to get too sore, but right now, I’m fine and ready for more. Let the mountain climbing begin.

 

A-Zone Opener

We had a very good time on the opener and we bagged two bucks while doing it. We also ended up with a bonus pig, a nice-sized boar – weighing in at about 250 pounds.

This egret and a brood of mallards posed at one of the ponds along Ranch Road.

This boar appeared at cocktail time on Friday night. John Fredendahl shot him on Saturday night when he appeared at the pond where John was waiting.

A few of the local turkeys stopped by camp.

After Brett Kelly killed his buck, the rest of the herd stood by looking to see where he’d gone.

This young bobcat ran down the road ahead of me on the way home.

Here are some success photos.

Son-in-law Brett got his buck Saturday morning

We spotted Brett’s buck about 8:00 AM on Saturday morning. From about 430 yards, Brett watched for a while before deciding that he was the right deer. Seeing there was a good path to about 200 yards, Brett decided to go for it while the buck remained bedded.

The 200-yard shot hit the buck in the heart. His reflexes carried him in a 20 yard circle before he fell. Turns out their were four other bucks with him.

The cocktail-hour boar met it’s demise about an hour before sunset on Saturday night. It ran into some steep country where it almost was lost, but the crew finally located him in a crevice about 100 yards from where he was shot.

Due to darkness, there we no photos taken at the sight of the kill, but here he is hanging in camp.

Joe’s buck was even further in the rough. He arrived in camp in pieces. Here’s a shot of his head and antlers. A nice 3×3 with eye guards.

My fused ankle held up well. I stayed away from slopes, but managed to get around pretty well.