Work Weekend

One weekend each year; normally right around this time of the year, we head out for an annual working day on Mike's farm where we deer hunt. The work is hard but the camaraderie around the campfire and as we work lightens the load significantly. Work day includes running brush mowers through the various trails, cleaning up deadfall and clearing shooting lanes around our stands. Our main goal is to take back the trails from the summer growth of underbrush and the seemingly ubiquitous multiflora rose.

The work was made a bit easier this year since Mike bought a brush mower to complement mine. We also had Matthew along this year and put his 22 year old might to work! There's a certain excitement that goes with the work day. It's our first step to get ready for this year's deer hunting season.

We headed up to the farm after work Friday. We were a bit surprised to learn that we had - unbeknownst to us - selected the same weekend as the 2013 Cannon Run Party; a massive camping and music festival hosted at the small saloon just 1/8 mile from Mike's farm. The Cannon Run Party attracts thousands of bikers and campers. We were told there were 7,000 people at last year's party and they expected 10,000 at this year's event. The thirty, or so, acres behind the saloon were completely packed with campers and tents. The surrounding fields were filled with the cars and motorcycles of those who came to party but not stay at the temporary campground.

There were people everywhere. We learned that people started arriving Tuesday. The actual party started Wednesday and ran through Saturday night.

Did I mention that it was also a music festival? The stage was positioned to pretty much throw all of the sound directly at Mike's farm where we were camping Friday night. The music (really bad music, I might add) was very loud and ran until Midnight. I guess they figured most folks would be too liquored up to notice how talentless the bands were so they didn't want to waste money on a band with talent

We snuffed out our campfire and headed to the barn to sleep at around quarter after ten. I can pretty much sleep through anything so I was sound asleep by 10:20. Apparently Matthew has the same ability because the other guy bunking in the barn reported that we were both out and snoring in nothing flat. Apparently, Mike and Scott did not get a wink of sleep until after the bands finally stopped playing shortly after Midnight.

I was up at 4:45 - after all, I had fallen asleep quickly. The other three were lazy bums and didn't roll out of bed for another two hours (more in Mike's case).

We stoked up the fire, made breakfast and got to work. For the next six hours we mowed, cut trees, mowed some more and cut some more trees. It was brutal work that left all of us bleeding from our contact with the brambles and thorns. It didn't help matters that my asthma decided to flare up in major fashion.

We finally finished the hard work around 3:00 and headed up for lunch. The rest of the day was "fun time" as we picked a spot for a new treestand for Matthew and me this season and took to the field for a little shooting fun! Matthew had a chance to shoot his new rifle; putting multiple bullets through the same ragged hole. It's a nice rifle - and his shooting wasn't too bad, either.

Dinner at Burger King and the long drive home wrapped up our workday. We headed back home to our own beds and bathrooms; ready for to sleep like babies after the day.

The good part of workday is that we get a lot of work done to be ready for hunting. The bad part of workday is that I will be obsessed with thinking about deer season from now until November 23.

It can't come soon enough!!!!