NEW CABIN AND LAND

It has been sometime since I have been able to add to this site. My wife and I have been having a very busy schedule of late and have been dealing with a number of family matters that needed our attention. Part of that was the sale of her childhood home and the buying a cabin and few acres of land up here in Northern New York. This has been a dream of ours for quite some time.
The cabin is just over 1000 sqft and there is about thirteen acres with it. We plan to eventually retire and live there in the future, but that is still a few years away.
We were walking the property the other day and I startled a snowshoe hare out from under a brush pile. He wasn't quite sure of what was going on so he only went a couple of steps and then stopped.

I was able to photograph him in the brush and it is remarkable how well he blended into the undergrowth. He went a few more hops and then sat and watched us from a distance of only about thirty-five feet or so. I took more photos of him and it was as if he was posing in the sunlight just for the photo. He was a mature and big snowshoe, one that will probably be able to make it through the winter in spite of the predators that will be after him.

I continued the walk and found no other tracks of any other snowshoe on the property, so apparently he has it pretty much to himself as far as the hare population is concerned. There were plenty of deer tracks however, and a number of squirrel tracks.
I am looking forward to further exploring the property and finding what other creatures may live there.

SMALL GAME HUNTING SEASON WINDING DOWN

Got a break in the lousy weather of the past few weeks, just before this last storm hit. I took time to get out hunting the snowshoe hare.
This is always fun and even though I only had a couple of hours, I thought the dog would like the exercise. We went just across the road into a cedar-evergreen swampy area that usually holds a number of snowshoes.

(a snowshoe sitting )


I had seen the trail of a fisher going back and forth across the road, into the swamp a couple of times on my walks. I was wondering if there would be any snowshoes left in there, but shouldn’t have worried. There was plenty of sign and as the hunt progressed, a number sighted.
It didn’t take but ten minutes before my beagle jumped the first snowshoe. He started running and I could tell he was on the usual trail that would take him right past a funnel of thick stuff on the other side of the swamp. I hightailed it for that corner and sure enough, after a few minutes, got a glimpse of the hare streaking through the downfalls. I never got a chance to shoot.


(snowshoe taken on previous hunt)


I saw two more hare during that hunt, one in front of a strange beagle that showed up and then I found his hunter not long after. I was on my way out anyway, so I wasn’t upset that they might spoil my hunt this day.
I finally collected my beagle and headed home with no heavy load of snowshoes to carry, but there was the pleasant time listening to the beagle music and seeing a number of the hares.
It started raining soon after I hooked up the beagle to head out and I was a bit damp by the time I got back home. But I was content and happy with the hunt.

Only a couple weeks left of rabbit hunting.

SNOWSHOE HARES AND HOUNDS

Deep in boreal forests, you can often hear the baying of hounds on any given winter weekend. The beaglers are out with anywhere from one, two or more beagles chasing the snowshoe hare. This is an exciting way to hunt the snowshoe.

(15 inch beagle at work)

Snowshoe hares seem to float across the surface of the snow at times. They have even been referred to as the Ghosts of the North Country, white rabbits and a number of other names. They have large feet with long hairs between the toes that gives them a buoyancy on many types of snow cover, whether soft and fluffy or heavy and wet.

At first glance you might think the diminutive beagle, it’s short legs and long ears, is not cut out for such speedsters as the snowshoe hare. But the beagle is, whether 13 inch or 15 inch, just about the right size to chase these hares through cedar, balsam or tag alder swamps. Hand in hand with their trailing ability, they also have some of the sweetest singing voices in the woods. There is no greater pleasure than listening to beagles on the trail of a snowshoe.

(Two rabbit dogs, one mixed breed and one purebred)

Over the years, I have had a couple of beagles, some mixed breed and some purebred. I never noticed a big difference in performance, although I am sure many houndmen would differ on that count. Let’s face it, I use the family pet to hunt with, while the beaglers are into a bit of a profit margin when it comes to hounds. It is quite difficult to sell mixed breed hounds, but purebred beagles from good lines can help pay some of the bills for your own pack of beagles.
Presently I am running a 15 inch male beagle that I got during a low cycle of the snowshoe hare population. He had a hard time learning to figure out those hares the first couple of years, but seems to be doing quite well now. If the hunter with him could either be at the right place at the right time or shoot a little straighter, we would probably come home with more game in the bag.
The keeping of beagles is not for everyone. They are a higher energy dog and need attention or they tend to get into mischief. But if you have a beagle or know someone with a hunting beagle, go out and try chasing the snowshoe hare. I am sure that you will be enchanted by the hound music and hooked on the chase from that time on.

(two purebred beagles, one 13 inch and one 15 inch)

On my first outing this season, my beagle hit a fresh track and I headed for an inside corner of the cedar swamp where I knew they often crossed. Standing there under a large evergreen, I listened to the progress of the chase as the beagle howled out his song on the trail. Suddenly I looked to my right and the snowshoe hare was just hopping out of a thicket just about ten yards away. I swung up the shotgun and promptly missed the shot as the hare zig-zagged through the brush. That is one that lived for another day.

(Mixed breed pup with her first snowshoe hare)

Not all my hunts end on such a low note. I usually do quite well in the shooting department and often have a couple of snowshoes for the pot. But that particular hunt I went home without game. Such is the way of hunting snowshoes with beagles.