Dec 5th 6th and 7th- fini

The weather has dropped into its December "normal". Upon spending our first year here, I was surprised that December is the worst month for cold here. Every other place that I have lived it was January. Most if not all our below zero weather last year was in Dec. It has been in mostly single digits for the last week, with temps climbing to 32 degrees or so during the day.

I have had 8 Harris Hawks in my career and none of them has hunted in the snow and cold. They just aren't suited for it. Hope has done the best. All the others just refused to chase with snow on the ground. Hope gives the impression that she would like to catch one, if she only had the chance. I am making light of the fact that Hope has not caught anything in the last three days of opportunities. Today she had perhaps 20 slips on Jacks. I don't mind the gas required to drive 90 miles, I don't mind the effort of slogging through the Sage for two or three hours. However I expect some blood on the ground and my hands at the end of it. I can't blame her, but it is obvious to me that these weather conditions are more of an obstacle to her than she is capable of overcoming.

Its too bad because I stumbled on an area that is loaded with Jacks just in the last two days. Unfortunately the area has about 1 1/2 inches of snow on it.

The area is close to what I had available last year as far as Jacks are concerned. The area is totally tracked up. I haven't seen anything to compare to it this year.

The areas that are bare of snow seem to cause the same problem, just because of the cold. I guess that I really wouldn't care to crash head first in to a prickly Sage bush either when it is this cold. On the fifth we tried over at the ranch. I walked two different areas and moved five rabbits in about 2.5 hours. That is what the places without snow can produce, most times, less. I expressed to Karen my reluctance to kill any more rabbits in my spots because I feared reducing the breeders to minus optimum numbers.

I had decided after this hunt that it was time to quit whether I wanted to or not. Then on a trip to town I stopped to see an acquaintance and he told me of a spot with all the Jacks. We hunted there with no success and plenty of slips. At this time I had not fed Hope since the fifth. I went again today with the same result, except when I got home, I fed her and removed her transmitter.

She will finish the season with 20 head of game. Nothing to "write home about",  but nothing to be ashamed of either. She is still the most fun and pleasant to fly Hawk I have had. 

For those who have followed Hopes daily progress, I thank you.  I have enjoyed relating her hunts, since it is a bit of a diary for me. I guess its time to dust off the elliptical again, and refresh my library card.