We’ve had furious activity in the wood these days and I can give this little one 100 percent of the credit.
Her name is Gracie. Crazy Gracie.
If there is anything lurking in the whole of 85 acres, she will find it. And she will flush it out. She is about 16 months old and she is fierce and fearful of nothing. As she flew by me today in hot pursuit of a 2 and 1/2 year-old 8 point deer, I said to myself, I really need to bring my camera on our morning walks because it is a wild world out here. Nobody could possibly believe this nonsense. But wait. I captured some serious nonsense today.
We have lived here almost 4 years and I have carried my camera many mornings enjoying quiet contemplation with the ferns, the haystacks and maybe a wild flower or two. The past 6 months I havent carried it cause I’ve been too darn busy working in my studio. I had NO idea that all these shenanigans were lurking about me until Gracie came into my life and told me. I’m not sure if I am happy about this or not. It used to be peaceful.
Two months ago, as we strolled on our morning walk, she, as usual, got out ahead of Virginia and me. About five minutes into our walk she comes tearing down the wooded hill with a small pack of coyotes on her tail running towards me. I started yelling in a deep loud voice and the coyotes turned and ran away. Thank goodness. She turned and charged after them.
How can I live this way?
Shortly after that day, she charged a small doe into a fence as I stood there and watched. The poor deer broke her neck. As I watched. It groaned and groaned a terrible loud horrific sound and died. As I watched. Pops and one of the kids hauled it off site quickly.
Last week, she came whizzing by after a beautiful red fox. And when I say these events run right by me, I mean they run right by me. It’s something out of a cartoon. Truly. They went running west and 3 minutes later they come running east. And darn. Where is my camera?
Gracie often bounces out of the wood with a deer head, or a hind quarter, or a gray animal that cannot be identified. In the spring, the turtles might as well come out with their hands up cause she will find every last one of them. And when she is done tossing them in the air, they are left to spend the rest of their life searching for the place last seen.
Back to today…..As I said, the big buck and Gracie flew by on the morning walk and I thought, that’s it, this afternoon I will bring my camera. And this is what I was able to capture on the afternoon walk….Be prepared. We live in the wild, wild hills of Brown County and I can’t say we were not warned when we bought this property…….
Buck trying to get up.
Virginia and Crazy Gracie found the 2 and !/2 year-old 8 point buck (the wild men of the neighborhood gave me that info. You didn’t think I could have figured that out, did you?). He evidently got his leg stuck in fence this morning when Gracie was chasing him. He was struggling to get up this afternoon. The dogs were barking him to death.
Called the sheriff. What did you want me to do? Dark was looming. Coyotes were on their way. I had to get this thing out of my yard. The sheriff was most impressed with my off-road driving. Where’d you learn to drive like this? he asks. I think I scared him a little bit. He was going to shoot the deer if it was still living but since Virg and Gace barked it to death, well….
Look who might need a bath tonight.
Neighbor man came and dragged the poor buck to it’s heaven place.
The chickens are doing just fine all snuggled on their school bus though. Not all is a stress job.
What will tomorrow bring?
Peace,
Karen
The Shieling 