LostInTheWoods

I live very close to two plateaued mountains which are “eco parks” and they also have a population of elk that occasionally pay a visit to my town. Well, October is the month when they should head back deep into the forest, as it is hunting season, and everyone starts to wear bright orange. Well nearly everyone....

Some of my cycling takes me off-road, along horse riding and gravel tracks, and they are often deserted. But the other day, on one of the tracks I use to shorten my route, I saw two guys looking through binoculars at the back of a black classic car (sorry, no more detail on the car..... I was moving at a pace). Didn't think much of it, then further down the track I approached two guys in full hunting gear with what must have been loaded rifles, and the hats with the orange fluorescent bands around them.

I got home and had a worrying conversation with Renee (for it is she) about being out in the woods at this time of year. She said that basically if you are not wearing high visibility gear, you could be mistaken as fast moving 'game'. Jokes about wearing a cycling helmet with antlers didn't go down too well, and I am staying on tarmac until the season is over. I am a complete chicken.

We don't really have much hunting, now foxes are safe, and I come from a highly cultivated cramped part of England, so all this is very foreign to me.

We also recently received the every second year visit from the King of Sweden who comes down here to hunt some elk. This year his party, which included Prince Carl Phillip, got six of them. Elk does make good eatin' (I've only ever had it once), but six is a lot for the freezer. 

The King of Sweden

The Royal Hunting Party

That is all.
LostInTheWoods