Hunting On Belleayre Mountain Poem by Eugene Levich

Hunting On Belleayre Mountain



Snow last night
Early this year
Flakes still flutter
White drifts four feet deep.
Deep powder,
Feathery stuff,
So cold so dry
You see the six points on every flake
Each unique

I climb straight up the mountain
Before dawn
On the mountain's other side,
Away from ski lodge and trails.
No sound heard.
But my boots shuffling shuffling
Through snow
Up to my knees

Sunlight awakens the world
Dawn
I keep moving... one hour... then two.
The trees... leaves mostly fallen
Others still hanging, yellow or red
What are they?
Maple, ash, and oak,
Hemlock, poplar, some kind of pine
Fifteenth birthday last July
First hunt
All alone
Totally clueless
Delighted to be where I am.

Stop... eat some jerky and an apple
Drink some tea
Then go on, ever up and up.
Young... I think I can climb forever.
But I stop next to a wild apple tree

And suddenly!
Listen... what is that?
It's like whispering, whispering, whispering
In my ear
It is deer moving through the powdery snow
Whisper, whisper, whisper
I hear them from far away

They come in a line. No antlers.
All does. My.35 is up
Sighted in the day before
Waiting for the buck
Stunningly beautiful scenery,
High up on Belleayre Mountain
Watching those does, six—no seven of them
Gracefully moving through the snow
All in a line
And they don't see me
Don't catch my scent
Air too dry
They pass so close
I could reach my carbine out
And touch them with its tip.

CRASH in the tree line
Just above me...
Hundred yards away
A great antlered buck and a white tail
Disappearing in the flash of an eye
No fool he...That wise old buck!

My heart is beating fast as a rabbit
Tapping its paw
I couldn't take that buck
But I don't care.
I could never have even gotten him
Down from there, anyway
If I had shot him

But I don't care.
I'm glad he's alive and free
Just like me.
One of the most
Beautiful days of my life
Hunting up on Belleayre Mountain
Near Margaretville
Just those deer, the snow,
The trees, the sun,
The mountain, and me.

Saturday, June 14, 2014
Topic(s) of this poem: memory
COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Bri Edwards 21 December 2016

make that Section B..............not c

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Bri Edwards 21 December 2016

i'm swiping it now, bubala. going into section c of dec. showcase. :) bri

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Bri Edwards 19 December 2016

Gino, how about having me put this into December's showcase? i have space for it in Section A or B. let me know! thanks. i still like the poem! bri :)

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Eugene Levich 20 December 2016

Bri-gand, You may use any of my poems any time. I consider it an honor! Gino

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Bri Edwards 29 June 2014

Totally clueless Delighted to be where I am..................i like. i like the whole poem. But I don't care. I'm glad he's alive and free Just like me. ..........................i'm glad this was the outcome............for you and the deer. i went to cornell u. and was supposed to be majoring in wildlife science. i always enjoyed being out in nature as a kid and teen. i did not come from a hunting or fishing family. one brother did some trapping, to sell the pelts. i did kill one sparrow with an arrow (i was quite young) and i cried and hid the body. when i was a bit older i caused the death of a pigeon and injured a swallow when i was using a bb-gun. i didn't feel as bad and i didn't cry, but i love wild birds and don't know why i wasn't satisfied with shooting at non-living targets. since i wasn't enthused to begin with about higher education, AND then i found out [(didn't i realize it when i chose my 'major' to study?) ] that 'wildlife management' had a lot (a LOT) to do with managing wildlife populations to supply hunters and fishermen with sport (and food sometimes i'm sure) , i dropped out of college in my senior year. i guess there are inbred 'drives' some men (and some women) have to kill 'innocent creatures', but i prefer enjoying the birds and the beasts, and the snow and sunshine, the mountains and valleys, and the rivers and ponds, and trees, bushes, and flowers without using a gun, fishing rod, etc. thanks for taking me with you on your tramp in the woods..........so MANY years ago! :) bri

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Gajanan Mishra 14 June 2014

very good writing, thanks, rabbit's run. please read my poems and comment.

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