Well to say the least it was one hell of a hot summer and summer started in March this year.What a difference today.4 PM in the afternoon and it is only 60,but not a drop of rain like they said we would have.As for the deer I just can not imagine what they have felt like.By the end of May after all the fawns were dropped the ticks were so bad it could make someone cry looking at them.For quite awhile I had doubts that some would survive,but they did.Some of those poor fawns had ticks so thick around their eyes that it swelled them completely shut and they were walking around bumping into each other.It brought tears to my eyes.You just wanted to run out and gather them up and try and clean those nasty ticks off.The does had huge wads of ticks behind their ears that had blown up to the size of grapes full of blood.Most of these deer are less than 40 feet when I film them and the zoom will go up to 200 so I can get some real good looks at those poor things.They were always shaking their heads trying to dislodge those ticks.Then the weather got worse.Day after day of 100 plus heat and things started drying up.By August much of the small under brush they browze on was gone along with alot of the water holes,but to my amazement my main springs are still trickling.Then by the middle of August I noticed something strange but good.The ticks were disapearing quickly.I have not seen a tick on any deer since the third week in August.They are as clean as they are in the dead of winter.Is it possible they got cooked ??.I also noticed I stayed tick free also.I am always out in the woods doing something.
  So many of my big trees look dead but I think they just might have been trying to save themselves so I have marked a few to see what happens.I was happy to see a few of the trees are dropping acorns but I believe they will be in short supply.Tomorrow bow season opens and it might be interesting to see the reports.Bye for now..