gamestalker
member
I'm laying here talking with my wife about bizarre things we've seen and experienced while hunting over the years and just remembered a couple more.
Back in the mid 1990's while living in Flagstaff, Az., my wife and I were either hunting turkey, or doing some pre-season scouting when we saw this large dark animal on a big rock shelf. Actually it was a large rock shelf on the side of a solid rock cliff in Sycamore Canyon. Anyway, we were probably a good 1000 yds. away, maybe more, but at first glance we both thought it was a young black bear cub, but upon closer inspection with the spotting scope, we quickly realized it was in fact the largest porcupine imaginable. This thing was probably approaching 60-70 lbs., and I'm being conservative, as I have no idea how big those critters get, but it this one was likely the largest porcupine in history, huge.
Other than it's unbelievable size, it appeared to have gotten it's self trapped on that shelf, as there was no apparent way for it to get off the shelf. So, considering the circumstances, my wife decided we should try to rescue it if possible. So we walked back to the truck and grabbed some rope, thinking if we dropped a rope down to it, tied the rope to a tree, he would be able to climb up the rope, as those things have an amazing ability to cling trees, much like bear claws. So when we got to where it was though to be trapped, it was gone. We assumed it either fell off the cliff, or maybe it was able to climb up the rock face?
I had another porcupine encounter happened up there, and once again, it was during turkey season. Anyway, I had been trying to locate a gobbler, and some time during the day I decided to sit down against a large ponderosa pine eat some food, and take a mid afternoon nap. Just as I was dozing off, I heard what sounded like bark crunching, and what got my attention is it sounded really close, really close. This all happened within the first 30 seconds or so. So after glancing at a couple of trees right near me, I lifted my head up to look above me in the tree. My first thought was that it may be either a turkey on a branch above, or possibly a bear. When I looked up I almost soiled myself, as my head was mere inches away from two porcupines. One was of epic proportion, probably at least 30 lbs., the other was about half as large. And if this wasn't bizarre enough, to my surprise they were mating, mere inches from my head.The bizarre I slowly crawled away from the tree so I wouldn't startle them, and fortunately, I succeeded. I decided to just leave them alone to finish their love making ritual. A little research revealed that porcupines will often mate like that, and that the male becomes very lethargic during mating, which explained why they didn't nail me with their quills.
Just this last spring, my oldest son and I had just finished about a 3 hr. hike to the top of a mountain in hope of increasing our ability to hear a gobbler in the massive canyon we were in. After getting to the top we both decided to eat some lunch and managed to doze off, it's so easy to fall asleep up in the high country. A nice cool breeze, full stomachs, and it was so absolutely peaceful, which is why we fell asleep. Anyway, we were both woke up to the sound of some turkey clucking, putting, and when we looked we had a few hens walking around feeding within just a few yards of us. We started matching their talk in hope there might be a gobbler among them, no such luck. But that was when also noticed several elk standing up, they were bedded down within just a few yards of us as well. What a cool day.
I have had some of the most bizarre and privileged encounters with wild life, what's more, most of my experiences have occurred during turkey hunting.
GS
Back in the mid 1990's while living in Flagstaff, Az., my wife and I were either hunting turkey, or doing some pre-season scouting when we saw this large dark animal on a big rock shelf. Actually it was a large rock shelf on the side of a solid rock cliff in Sycamore Canyon. Anyway, we were probably a good 1000 yds. away, maybe more, but at first glance we both thought it was a young black bear cub, but upon closer inspection with the spotting scope, we quickly realized it was in fact the largest porcupine imaginable. This thing was probably approaching 60-70 lbs., and I'm being conservative, as I have no idea how big those critters get, but it this one was likely the largest porcupine in history, huge.
Other than it's unbelievable size, it appeared to have gotten it's self trapped on that shelf, as there was no apparent way for it to get off the shelf. So, considering the circumstances, my wife decided we should try to rescue it if possible. So we walked back to the truck and grabbed some rope, thinking if we dropped a rope down to it, tied the rope to a tree, he would be able to climb up the rope, as those things have an amazing ability to cling trees, much like bear claws. So when we got to where it was though to be trapped, it was gone. We assumed it either fell off the cliff, or maybe it was able to climb up the rock face?
I had another porcupine encounter happened up there, and once again, it was during turkey season. Anyway, I had been trying to locate a gobbler, and some time during the day I decided to sit down against a large ponderosa pine eat some food, and take a mid afternoon nap. Just as I was dozing off, I heard what sounded like bark crunching, and what got my attention is it sounded really close, really close. This all happened within the first 30 seconds or so. So after glancing at a couple of trees right near me, I lifted my head up to look above me in the tree. My first thought was that it may be either a turkey on a branch above, or possibly a bear. When I looked up I almost soiled myself, as my head was mere inches away from two porcupines. One was of epic proportion, probably at least 30 lbs., the other was about half as large. And if this wasn't bizarre enough, to my surprise they were mating, mere inches from my head.The bizarre I slowly crawled away from the tree so I wouldn't startle them, and fortunately, I succeeded. I decided to just leave them alone to finish their love making ritual. A little research revealed that porcupines will often mate like that, and that the male becomes very lethargic during mating, which explained why they didn't nail me with their quills.
Just this last spring, my oldest son and I had just finished about a 3 hr. hike to the top of a mountain in hope of increasing our ability to hear a gobbler in the massive canyon we were in. After getting to the top we both decided to eat some lunch and managed to doze off, it's so easy to fall asleep up in the high country. A nice cool breeze, full stomachs, and it was so absolutely peaceful, which is why we fell asleep. Anyway, we were both woke up to the sound of some turkey clucking, putting, and when we looked we had a few hens walking around feeding within just a few yards of us. We started matching their talk in hope there might be a gobbler among them, no such luck. But that was when also noticed several elk standing up, they were bedded down within just a few yards of us as well. What a cool day.
I have had some of the most bizarre and privileged encounters with wild life, what's more, most of my experiences have occurred during turkey hunting.
GS
