We had no car today, the truck has been officially declared dead, and that drops us to one car for mom, one car for dad, and none for the would be hunter extraordinaire. So I set my sights on those 'rainy day' fall backs, the grey squirrels. This is not the first time I've tried to catch them with my Tail, but every time I have met with disaster of some sort. He was hesitant to commit and every time the tree rats would get away. It became a mission for me to kill these varmits. Every day they would taunt me, waiting to appear until after I had flown the bird, but not today. I stepped out onto the back deck, listening to the leaves to hear one move. In a minute or two the rustle told me that I had a slip waiting. I ran downstairs as quietly as possible, grabbed the bird and bolted for the door. I held him from a bate as we walked out, then cast him into a tree near where I had heard the rustle. I jumped down the stairs to the second tier of the deck, then to ground level.
Unlatching our gate I shot from the enclosed yard and made for the woods, sliding on leaves as I went. Small plants whipped my face as I slid down into one of several erosion holes covered with a deceptive matt of leaves and small sticks. Falling forward I pressed on, tottering through the woods like a toddler. When I got to where the squirrel should have been, it was gone. Darn... I had not even thawed out more than one or two tidbits... I looked to bird, who was looking at something in the tree with him. I started walking toward the tree, which pushed the squirrel around to hawk's side. He tucked his wings and hit the side of the tree, and stuck. A shrill squeak pierced the air as I ran up to the tree to see a RT plastered against it. The squirrel let go and the bird began to fall, but stretched out his wings and glided through the forest as far as he could go (yeah, I know, carrying, bad habit.) I bolted after him, and finally caught up to him, flattened against the floor, with a squirrel completely subdued, not even curled around the feet anymore. I let him eat the whole thing, I guess hawking for the next couple of days is off. But I got it, I did.
BTW, that is 10 for the season so far.
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