Elias got his first grouse yesterday! A beautiful ruffed grouse from near Placid Lake. He took his gun safety seriously, practiced here and there on other camping trips, and this was the first year he could sign up for the state's hunter apprentice program.
Wally's about 1 1/2 and had mostly been focused on digging for ground squirrels to date - when not obsessing over a ball. The first grouse he flushed yesterday was somewhat intentional... he caught the scent but wasn't really sure about it. We flushed a second a bit later that caught his attention when in flew, but he hadn't winded it. He had it figured out by the third time... he smelled a bird, turned, and bounded into a thicket of snowberry, dogwood, Douglas fir, and larch... put the bird up, but his humans never saw it. He was clearly disappointed, but quite polite about it.
In case there's any question about Elias' frame of mind in this first photo, he was SO. DEEPLY. HAPPY. He had wanted to get his first bird so badly, and we finally made it happen. Tonight we'll feast on his grouse and fresh venison backstrap. It's a beautiful thing to see the kids so proud to be contributing to process of getting meat in for the family to share together.
Measuring up against a black bear claw scar on an old aspen
Black bear claw scars
Snuggled up and falling asleep before we made it off the dirt roads and back to the highway.
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