Gooood Morning Diaryland!

Well, its been such an interesting day so far, I may have to break this entry into pieces.

Our meeting last night went well. Enjoyed visiting with quite a few people I haven't seen in a while. Whoever does the hiring and firing in our outfit does a good job, because we have a bunch of good folks working for us. Can't think of anyone I don't like (really! and I'm not saying this because anyone found this diary either!). Although, we would have gotten done about an hour earlier if one fella had remembered he was at a meeting, rather than sitting around a campfire. Didn't get out of there until 22:01.

Grabbed a cheapo capuccino and some snacks at the Mini Mart in River Town and hit the highway. Had a co-worker a few miles behind me, and 41 miles later he was ahead of me. At least for the next 46 miles. Was kinda handy. The moon was half full, and the deer were out in force on the road, despite the drizzling rain. Helped to have someone up front to radio back where the deer were. 'Course I already knew, because I'd been watching his brakelights come on each time. Radio chatter also helped keep us awake, but you have to remember you're on a partyline with anyone with a scanner for a 100-200 mile radius.

Managed to get to my selected strutting ground OK, despite the rain. I'd planned ahead and picked one in the sandy country, made up of sand dunes that were stabilized by vegetation a long time ago. A little worrisome on the county road in the clay bottoms, but once I got to the dunes I was OK. Got to the lek eight minutes before midnight. Swung the headlights around to look for grouse, but there weren't any. Normally with a half moon there'd be enough light for them to strut all night, but they were smarter than me. They weren't out in the rain. Drizzled all night.

Now if you ever decide to spend the night sleeping in the cab of a pickup, let me give you a few tips. First, the hard plastic seat belt receptors on the benches of newer trucks are real uncomfortable on the back. Carry a heavy winter coat and some Carhartts to pad over them. And remember to put the gearshift into granny, 3rd or overdrive. That'll give you an extra 6-8" of room. I forgot to do that, and was too lazy to get up and push in the clutch to shift in the middle of the night, so I slept with the knob in my hips.

My notes of the morning:

06:25 - woke up

06:26 - first count of the lek: 36 cocks (aren't I efficient?), but too dark to see all the birds.

06:27 - I need to pee.

06:28 - I'm worried about the fog rolling in off the mountains. Its coming fast, and already on the dunes behind the lek.

06:29 - get out of the sleeping bag and get dressed.

06:38 - I need to pee, really bad.

06:39 - I feel better now.

06:39 - the fog has hit, full force. I can hear the grouse strutting, but see nobody.

06:44 - I hear the grouse on the lek explode. One grouse taking off is loud, but this is everybody. The whole flock. A few seconds later I see them emerge from the fog and pass by right in front of my windshield. Most of them are in full glide now, I can hear the air whistling through their wings. I try to count cocks and hens, but they are too many, too fast. At least 40 birds. They glide back into the mist. I am really pissed now... a night sleeping in the truck wasted. Two more hens suddenly appear and pass by my open window, headed west instead of south.

06:44¹/₂ - I look up through the fog and see a golden eagle flying directly over the lek, passing over me on the same path as the flock of grouse. Friggin' eagle. This is the only time of the year when I hate eagles. If I had anti-aircraft guns on this truck, right now I would be tempted to use them.

06:49 - call the wife on the cell (got 100 free minutes every month and never use them... why not?). "How's your morning going?" I bitch about the eagle.

06:53 - make a cup of coffee (traveled with two thermoses of hot water, kept warm overnight in my boots). Poor man's cappacino: two heaping spoonfuls of Carnation Rich Chocolate mix, one rounded spoon of Folger's instant coffee.

06:55 - hit the road to the rest of the strutting grounds on the route.

I used the main county road, which runs through one of the older oil fields in this area. Reeks of sulphur fumes. I love it. Probably one of the few environmentalists around who loves the smell of sulphur fumes. But it reminds me of Yellowstone, our A-#1 place on the planet. The rolling mists really help, too. Yellowstone is best on a damp, misty day. I feel better. I forgive the eagle.

Had to drive off the road around snowdrifts in several places, following someone else's tracks. We're out of the sand now, in the clay. The muddy clay. Whoever I'm following rutted up the country going uphill around a huge drift, so I quit. Noticed a herd of ~20 antelope passing me on the left, following the powerline. Smart antelope, staying on the sand.

The powerline road is on the sand! Of course! I turned back and followed the antelope, and got to the second lek on my route with no problems. Only one cock on the lek, with another 20 scattered in the sage nearby. Normally 60-80 cocks. Friggin' eagle! She flushed them, too! But at least I'm back on the sand.

Had to do a lot of driving on the winter roads to get to the other four leks on my route. In this sage country, especially in the dunes, the two-track roads erode down below the neighboring ground and shrubs. So the roads are the first places drifted up and the last places melted clear. So in the winter people drive on the sage alongside, creating the lightly used paths around the drifts. These are "winter roads."

I popped over one dune too fast, and ran right into a huge drift. No choice but to try to bust through. The rain softened the crusted snow to slush, which flies out to the sides. Cool! After that I bust through every drift I can.

Found grouse on three of the four remaining leks, in the expected numbers, so I forgive the eagles of the world again.

On the way out to the highway, I bust through several drifts I had bypassed on the way in. It's a good day.

Now I need a shower. And a shave. And a steak lunch.