VE6AB Technical
Where House Wrens Forage
So I'm thinking today would be a good day to visit my trail cameras that I placed on location down at McKinnon Flats several weeks ago.
Arriving at McKinnon Flats about 6:30 AM, I shoulder my day-pack along with the other requirements that include spare memory cards, batteries, as well as my APRS radio with its companion Mobilinkd TNC that I described recently in an article I wrote for QST.
Of course it goes without saying that I also had my camera and tripod along.
So after leaving my mobile and while hiking the short distance to my first trail camera, I spot a truck parked off in the distance with the hood open.
If you recall I was down this way about 3 weeks ago when I came across a stolen Mustang that had been stripped of some of its components that included the wheels and tires amongst other things.
This comes to mind as I glass the truck with my field-glasses, and I say to myself...."Surely its not another stolen vehicle" I work my way over to the truck and it certainly looks like it is stolen, as its up on blocks, the wheels and tires are missing, the dash as been stripped, and things are strewn about in a hap-hazardous fashion.
With no cell service in this deep valley, I hike back to my truck and drive to the top of the switch-back where I place the second call that I've made to the RCMP in the past 3 weeks to report this potentially stolen vehicle.
I then wait for a RCMP constable to arrive from the Chestermere detachment, and once we drive back down to my original parking spot at McKinnon Flats, the constable and I make the hike back in to the spot where the truck is located.
Its quite amazing that in all the years that I have been visiting McKinnon Flats, I manage to find two stolen vehicles over the course of 3 weeks.
Not only that, but I arrived one morning just after sunrise and surprised a guy and gal burning the insulation off of a very large pile of coiled copper wire.
The way they were acting with guilt written on their faces made it look highly suspicious to me.
All this after hour activity has me starting to look over my shoulder when I'm wandering around in the bush down at McKinnon Flats.
Maybe I should be carrying bear spray just for the two legged species of predators that I may encounter while checking on my trail cameras!
Expand the photo for a closer look......
