I took a mental health day a couple of Fridays ago. My friend Bob and I went over to Clark County Lake (or as it would be called in Minnesota, a pond) and went fishing. We got there just as the sun was coming up. The blossoming sun revealed a shape moving through the water, coming straight at us. Was it the Loch Ness Clark County Monster? I got out my cell phone and proceeded to video the mystery.
As it got closer we realized that it was a deer! For some reason it had chosen to swim across the lake in 45 degree weather instead of risking walking the half mile perimeter. I did my best to hold my phone steady. The deer approached the shore, veering from it's path just a little so as to avoid us. I continued filming as it stiffly walked out of the water and slowly walked into the trees. I felt that I had experienced something beautiful and special...a once in a lifetime happening that would certainly attain viral status on youtube!
I reached out to stop the video. At that moment I started filming. Either I had not pressed record or it was one of those cruel pranks that my phone plays on me. I am leaning toward the latter explanation. This has happened too often to be a product of my own ineptness. I thought about sending the phone skipping across the water, laughing as it sank to a watery grave. But then I would have to get a new one, and prices are so ridiculous right now. That and there are some actual pictures and videos and contacts that I would like to keep, even on an evil and continually frustrating device such as this one. Here is the video, including everything except the deer.
There is more to the story. The pictures below show how far the water has dropped at our Kansas lake. We have been suffering a severe drought, and you will be able to see where the water is supposed to be up to. We figure that it is down about ten feet from normal.
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| The sun rising. The docks on the left are normally in the water. |
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| Better view of the dry shoreline |
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| If you squint just right you can see the footprints left by my swimming deer friend |
Beyond the missed video the day was a success though. I out-fished my friend by a 7-4 score. I believe the last time that happened was sometime before Covid hit. Or it might not have ever happened. We would know for sure if there was a video!
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| Largemouth Bass, Mental Health restored! |
The final word, a great day of fishing and friendship is a cure to a lot of stress. I look forward to many more of those days!
I have to wonder what was on the outskirts of the pond that would make the deer feel safer in the water?
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ReplyDeleteI too have messed up many videos. There should be background music playing when the video is recording so you know all is well. I’m going to create an app for that when I have time.