of the morning that lasted for almost two hours and I was soaking wet. The pine plantation in Seale had received a thunder storm the previous evening and the brush still dripped water from the leaves in this, the early morning hours.

I listened to the dogs running in a thicket above me on the slope with the camera holstered as I ate a granola bar. The sager ran to within a few yards of me and froze, looking at it’s back trail.
I dug out the camera, turned it on and tried to get a shot of the rabbit.
I’m pretty well know for my picture taking abilities with titled pictures ranging from "Outhouse before the rabbit crossed", "Outhouse after the rabbit crossed", "Log the deer jumped over" and "Hen Turkey-A study with the lens cap on"


I missed and then fired both fingers as the bunny fled down the trail.

I’m so used to missing with my gun that I even fire both fingers in the pre-season exercises.

I can’t complain about the dogs. We suspect that the first rabbit of the morning was another fist sized rabbit as it ran in tight circles within a house sized thicket before the girls lost it.
They more than made up for that rabbit with the previously mentioned race that went on for almost two hours.
The girls did well on their first race without Julie

Kate was the typically the lead dog followed in a flip-flopping order of Dixie and Lucy with Mystery bringing up the rear. Though Mystery was frequently in the back of the pack, she often straightened out the trail when the other three girls led by speedy 15 inch Kate overran the trail.

Brag and I are going to check on some dogs next Saturday…..hopefully. They’re 13 inch females, some two year olds, one 11 month and some 8 week.

Our pack (Yes, it needs updating) has taken a beating lately and went from matched 13 inchers, Maizie, Julie, Sugar, and Dixie to

One fifteen incher, (Kate) that we inherited from Uncle NoPass.

One surviving member of the original pack, 13 incher, Dixie

Lucy, our beaner, or mixed breed beagle and basset with the solid squat body

and Mystery, an 11 incher who adopted us last year in Chambers county

I’m trying to figure out if we can afford two dogs or will we have to settle for the one 11 month old, if she pans out. We think that the gentleman that owns the dogs is the same one that sold Middle Boy his two.
One is a beautiful copper beagle that is just chock full of hunting potential though my daughter in law won’t let me take him hunting.
My grandson, yes, the dog, no.
Go figure.