I don’t know about you, but I think of the autumn season as brisk nights, clear blue skies and gorgeous foliage colors. In many ways, it should be the best of all seasons to enjoy the outdoors. But in recent years, it seems we’re being cheated, as our autumns have lean toward cloudy skies and rainy days. Heavy rains combined with winds have wiped out the fall foliage just as it was beginning to inspire visual awe.
I’ve heard people remark that we seldom have traditional spring and fall seasons anymore, but rather winters that often jump right into summer-like weather, and then back into winter again with maybe a token week or so of autumn. It does seem that way when looking back at the last few years. Meteorologists would probably say it’s merely a normal cyclic phenomenon that our region goes through every so often, but that’s small consolation to those of us who truly enjoy autumn.
All in all, it was a beautiful summer this year, so I guess I shouldn’t complain?especially considering our “non-summer” of last year, but I’d gladly trade a couple of those summer weeks for two traditional ones this autumn. If this sounds selfish …well … it’s because it is. I look to autumn as a season that allows me a few weeks to take a deep breath of the best outdoor life before the snow and cold of winter arrive – kind of a tonic, if you prefer. Lacking that, winter can seem much longer than it truly is.
As one who enjoys wandering the woods and field under the guise of hunting game, doing so in autumn is the perfect fit – temperatures are pleasantly cool, no biting bugs to contend with, and the sights and smells of autumn are unmistakable. The crunching of fallen leaves beneath my boots and the cider-like scent of the fall woods combine in a once-a-year opportunity I’d hate to miss. But Mother Nature can play her cruel joke and soak those crunchy leaves into soft submissive mulch, and the air smells more of mold than fresh cider.
I noted that the Weather Channel’s local Time-Warner version of reported total precip for September is below normal. That seems strange to me as we’ve had several very intense rains this month, but then I remember that the local data they give is primarily Oneonta’s and not Norwich’s. I wish I’d put our rain gauge out this year to challenge the reported “moderate drought” this month, but alas, it’s still in the garage.
From a hunter’s standpoint I guess there are a few benefits to a cool wet autumn season: less foliage clinging to trees and shrubs, making flushing game birds easier to follow; squirrel hunters aren’t bothered by heavy foliage on the mature trees; and bowhunters in their tree stands can see approaching deer earlier. Wetter ground also makes scent-trailing game easier for hunting dogs. But the downside is the hunting often takes place on rainy or cloudy days, and the colorful fall foliage landscape is replaced by dull gray or brown leafless flora.
For non-hunters, most of whom relish hiking or sightseeing amid the fall foliage scenery, a non-autumn-like season can be even more disheartening since in many respects it’s not much different than those early spring outing, before the foliage emerges. Autumn is also a big favorite of photographers, but no colorful landscape means mostly blah photos. You might as well be shooting black and white if the fall leaves are gone.
Maybe, or at least I’m hoping, we’ll actually get a “normal” autumn season this year. And it better start pretty soon, as the fall equinox is next week. If it doesn’t happen, it could seem like a long winter season for many people, even if we get an early spring in 2011.

State To Stock 30,000 Pheasants This Year
Prior to the Oct.16 opening our areas’s pheasant hunting season, the DEC will be releasing portions of the 30,000 birds reared for the purpose this year. Junior hunters (12-15 years old) have the opportunity to hunt pheasants the weekend prior (Oct. 9-10) to the regular pheasant hunting season. The majority of birds will be released on state-owned wildlife management areas and cooperative hunting areas prior to and during the fall hunting season. All release sites for pheasants provided by state-funded programs are open to public hunting. All current pheasant rules and regulations remain in effect during the youth hunt.
A list of statewide adult pheasant release sites and sites receiving birds for the youth pheasant hunt weekends can be found on DEC’s website http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/9349.html. In Chenango County pheasants will be released at Long Pond State Forest in the Town of Smithville. And in nearby Broome County, birds will be released at Whitney Point MUA in the Town of Triangle and also at Oriskany Flats WMA in Oneida County.

Hanna To Be At Oxford Sportsmen’s Weekend
Congressional candidate Richard Hanna from Barneveld, N.Y announced plans to attend the Oxford Rod and Gun Club’s Fifth Annual Sportsmen’s Weekend the morning of Saturday, Sept. 18. The event also runs Sunday, Sept. 19 and is open to the public.

Hunting And Fishing are Good For The Economy
Spending over $70 billion a year in pursuit of their pastime, America's hunters and anglers would rank 11th on the Fortune 500 if they formed a corporation, according to a new report. The report, based on a survey, was released last year by the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation (CSF) and the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF).
According to the report, more than 38 million Americans enjoy the outdoors--twice the number of labor-union members--and sportsmen support 1.6 million jobs, well more than Wal-Mart, the country's largest employer.