Dead Deer in the road!!!!
 

Coming down into Melvin Village yesterday I came around that sharp turn at the top of the hill leading down to the junction of 109 and 109A. There was a dead deer right after the turn. I called it into the Ossippee dispatch, and they were to inform the Tuftonboro police. As I was headed home I felt bad because I sure didn't want some motorcyclist coming around that corner and hitting the deer. It would have been messy. So I turned around, went back and extracted the deer to the side of the road. Still no police 30 minutes later. What if there was an accident there? I mean I had to swerve into the other lane to avoid it. I am certain others had to as well. I even parked my truck in the lane around the corner to slow people down from hitting me as I dragged it off. You should have seen the looks I got, like wtf are you doing...I also figured maybe the police would know of someone that could use the meat as it was a fresh kill. Went by this morning and the deer had been pulled partially up the hill. I guess a Coyote or Fox tried to get it home but the hill was too steep. Sad to see a good deer go to waste like that. Then a couple miles up a large flock of big turkeys walked across the road. Maybe 10 of them. They looked like they were doing well as they were all fairly plump.....Mmmmmmm......:D (I did try to report them on the NH F&G website.) So anyway my standing cautionary statement still goes. Be careful driving out there at dusk and dawn. They are out there just waiting for you to not being paying attention! :eek:;)

not just dusk and dawn
 

I had a close encounter a few weeks ago at 10:30 on a Sunday morning close to the Epsom rotary. My husband was in the car behind me and said it looked like there must have been a bullseye on the side of my car. I made out better than the deer did. Two men pulled over right behind me and moved the deer off the road - then asked if they could have it. I think as stunned as I was by the accident, I was also stunned that people (others stopped and asked for it too) felt it was mine to give away.

But we were very surprised by the time of day and the busy location.

It's rutting season, so they are far less cautious (or aware) of crossings, vehicles, etc., and primarily interesting in mating. Peak collision time. Be careful.

Maybe I'm misunderstanding, but you reported the flock of turkeys to NH F&G? Asking because we've had a huge flock of 20+ in my yard lately. What is the reason for reporting them?

Thanks!

Tons of turkeys....
 

Lets talk turkey!! We saw tons of turkey flocks while up this weekend. Has anybody else thought that the population of wild turkey is high? I never remember seeing that many turkey any other time I have been up. They look healthy and well fed as well, it looks to be a good season for the hunters.

Also saw a few deer. Funny, but all the years and different seasons that I hve been coming up to The Lake, I've only seen a handfull of deer. I bet I saw more deer this past weekend up there, than I have in total for all of my trips north!! They look a little scrawny though, but then again, here in Jersey they live off of corn, soybeans and apples, all of which are farmed hard in my area of the state, so most of the time, deer here are fat and healthy.....

If I'm not mistaken, turkey season is in the spring. A difficult winter could significantly reduce the flock.

You definitely need to stay alert and use the high beams .... especially at night!

About three weeks ago at 7-am, there was a good sized black bear laid out in the left hand shoulder area of Route 93-southbound just before Exit 26 and an orange DOT truck was standing by waiting for assistance or something. The bear looked like it was still alive and was down for the count or something? Could be the bear got transported up to www.clarkstradingpost.com to get nursed back to good health and become a trained show-bear doing three shows a day or so ..... and living the good bear life for the next 33-years .....grooving on that milk & honey beverage ...... and fresh veggies .....served up twice /day..... and a big glass of Budweiser before 2-pm nap time!

Getting smacked by a car on Route 93 was probably the best thing for that there black bear!

Sorry but thanks. I meant to say I tried to report them but the survey is closed for now. Yes there is a survey on the website that asks you to give information on flocks in NH. They were/are tracking them and their progress. The survey starts back up on Jan 1. Google NH brood survey.

Edit.....I found the link.....

http://www.wildlife.state.nh.us/turk...vey/index.html

Winter survey link....

http://www.wildlife.state.nh.us/turkeysurvey/index.html

There is also a Bobcat observation link....

http://mlitvaitis.unh.edu/Research/B...eb/bobcats.htm

Why would It be the best thing for the black bear to get hit by a car on Rt. 93?:eek:

Because the bear would enjoy his newly found disability entitlements? ;)

I can bearly believe it! :D

FREE Meat
 

Bear meat tastes just like beef if you cook it to rare and not more. FLL could have stocked his freezer for the winter for free if he had volunteered to pick up that bear in the road to "take care" of it. :laugh:

Bad season for deer
 

This graphic has been posted on this forum before, but is relevant here. An analysis of road-kill in Moultonborough over the past 20 years or so, show a rise in deer kill in October till April, with March the peak. Be careful out there.

Unlike the State of Vermont, the State of N.H. allows for bear hunters to hunt using bait like a pile of old jelly donuts or something as a way to attract a bear while the hunter is perched up a nearby tree in a tree stand, and this baiting is not allowed in Vermont.

In New Hampshire, the average lifespan for a wild bear is seven years, while the bears at www.clarkstradingpost.com live to be 25 to 30-years or older.

Not a hunter.....
 

Just assumed that turkey season would be around Thanksgiving!! Sorry!!

Baiting any animal while hunting legal or not is a slime bag way to hunt and yes, although I don't anymore I hunted for years.

HuH ?:rolleye2:

Apparently, there is a moose trail that gets pretty frequently used by moose on Route 49 in Waterville Valley, on the Hardy Hill section, where the moose like to walk down the paved state road to the bottom of the hill, so's they can get to the Mad River there.....where the shoulder fence stops and it levels out ...

Driving past that spot about two months ago at maybe 9-pm, there was a car with a smashed in roof, looked like a Camry, plus a police car, another police car, an ambulance, and a moose lying next to the road.

About two weeks ago, I came very close to hitting one big moose that was walking up the hill in the downhill lane at night there on Hardy Hill-Route 49, maybe 9-pm. Darned good thing I was driving slow through there and using the high beams so I just barely saw it and stopped my bar very close, next to the moose ...... the moose stopped next to my car...and was just standing there with a dopey look ....so's honking the horn a few times shooed it away up the hill and into the woods there....moose alert!!! ...... probably not the brightest bulb out there in the forest .... but definitely the largest!

Yes, but the moose tend to be pretty smart and big too!! ;)

There is a fall turkey season for archery that runs the entire length of the archery season, Sept.-Dec. Then a 1 week shotgun season in October in some parts of the state and growing each year.

If you think you see a lot of turkey on that side of the state, you should come over to this side for a ride. Turkey was reintroduced in the Claremont area some 50 years ago and anywhere in the Dartmouth/Sunapee Region is loaded with turkey. I used to count on average 75-100 birds during a commute one-way to the office, approximately 10 miles. I hardly even notice them anymore, they are so frequently seen.

IMO, Bear meat is absolutely terrible, no matter how it is cooked! :laugh:

If you want something that tastes like beef, I need to get you some of the Elk that I came home with 2 weeks ago from Colorado, now that is good stuff! :liplick:

All wild game should be cooked to Medium Rare, MAX! Rare is perfect and takes most of the game taste out.

Elk meat is good and you can kill it too by not cooking it right. Just like deer.

I had bear once and it is tough as a shoe. Not sure if this is the norm or bad cooking. I will take your word for it.

You must also watch out for crows
 

Researchers for the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority found over 200 dead crows near greater Boston recently, and there was concern that they may have died from Avian Flu. A Bird Pathologist examined the remains of all the crows, and, to everyone's relief, confirmed the problem was definitely NOT Avian Flu. The cause of death appeared to be vehicular impacts.

However, during the detailed analysis it was noted that varying colors of paints appeared on the bird's beaks and claws. By analyzing these paint residues it was determined that 98% of the crows had been killed by impact with trucks, while only 2% were killed by an impact with a car.

MTA then hired an Ornithological Behaviorist to determine if there was a cause for the disproportionate percentages of truck kills versus car kills.

The Ornithological Behaviorist very quickly concluded the cause: when crows eat road kill, they always have a look-out crow in a nearby tree to warn of impending danger. They discovered that while all the lookout crows could shout "Cah", not a single one could shout "Truck."

^That gave me a good laugh.