Hunting Preparation

Hunting Preparation

Nikolai overlooking the field from the best vantage point on it (at least in November) – his new deer stand that we built with lots of help over the weekend.

 By Allan Olson
Last weekend was all about getting ready for deer season and spending time in the sunny, fall-like weather that we were fortunate enough to experience. We got home from school/work at about 5 p.m. on Friday, packed the vehicle and four of the six of us headed north.
We had one main objective of the weekend: to build Nikolai his own deer stand for the upcoming hunting season. He figures after getting three deer in two seasons that he has earned his stripes and deserves his own stand, and should be able to man it without the company of his father. On the other hand, Dad isn’t quite sure if he’s ready to leave him alone. You know that I will be in a stand close enough to get to him in a short time, if needed.
We arrived at my parents’ after 7:30 p.m. on Friday and spent the evening visiting for a while before retiring for the night. My oldest and youngest brothers arrived sometime after 1 a.m., along with nephews and a niece. My middle brother, who lives much closer than the rest of us, arrived early Saturday morning to help get the day started.
We chose to visit our other chunk of land a few miles away and work on those stands first. We knew by the amount of rain that they have received up north this summer that it was going to be wet, but it was wetter than I’ve seen in a very long time. There was standing water all over the place, which made for great fun for the 3-wheelers and Rangers.
A few of the crew drove over in the Rangers and started investigating some of the stands prior to our arrival. They found that the vast majority survived the storms over the winter, spring and summer with little to no damage, which made our job a whole lot easier. The kids worked on packing down a trail in the wet grass between two of our stands while attempting to not get stuck. I think only one of the off-road vehicles got stuck, and even that didn’t take much effort to get out. 
After watching all the kids riding the toys, I decided it was my turn, so I kicked a kid off the 3-wheeler and headed down the trail. Somehow I screwed it up, and then couldn’t get it started again. I thought I broke it, so I sent another kid to find my brother and he came over to solve the problem. We switched machines and went off splashing through the water. I rode with my knees on the seat to avoid getting too wet, since the day was young.
A few hours later we were done playing and working at that location and headed back to my folks’ place for lunch. I crammed in some food and then headed to town to grab some more gas and a few provisions for the house. It was nearly 3 p.m. by the time I got back, and the crew was just heading out to build the stand. After some searching and discussion, we agreed on the location and set to work. Nikolai and his cousin shared the honor of digging holes in the soupy mud for the poles, and it wasn’t long before the stand started to take shape. 
Some kids helped and others played, but I’m pretty sure all were having fun. Marcus and Alivia both soaked their footwear – Marcus intentionally walked through a substantial puddle earlier in the day. ‘
It took just over three hours to complete the new stand, which we dubbed “The Brick Stand” (see picture and you’ll understand). It comes complete with a roof and a ladder, and is partially enclosed to help block some of the elements. It’s certainly a whole lot nicer than any stand I had for most of the early years of my hunting career. It’s not pretty, but definitely functional.
Sunday morning was much more laid back, since most of the stands around the homestead were in pretty good shape, too. My brother debated building another stand, but was chased out of the prospective location by the mosquito “welcoming committee” and so decided that it can wait a few weeks if we do build one there. We did some more scouting and checked a couple stands, but the little bit of fixing that needed to be done had already been completed the day before. We made lunch for everyone, put a few rounds through the rifles, and enjoyed some cookies before we hit the road. We made it home just after 5 p.m. All three of the kids slept for 80 percent of the ride back, but for some reason I wasn’t able to get the sleep I could have used, too.
If the weather cooperates this weekend, we might do some boating, canoeing, fishing and hunting. We shall see what the weather is like, and go from there.
Please remember to watch out for the buses that are carrying our most precious cargo. Also snap a photo or two to preserve a lifetime of memories. Thanks for reading, and have a great week! Feel free to drop me a line at cltimes1@arvig.net or stop by the office for a visit.

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