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I’ve been a little disappointed that we haven’t had any response to our photo call outs for deer hunting and pheasant hunting. I talked to one lady this morning, 90 years old, who has been hunting deer for 77 years with her 4-10 shotgun. “I haven’t heard of too many scoring any in this area she said..seem to be a little hard to find this year.”
Then I opened a couple of other local newspapers and found on the front page four of the biggest deer I’ve ever seen taken in this area. So, I come to the conclusion it all comes down to being in the right place at the right time, at least where the deer are concerned. Pheasant, I know, are just plain scarce this year.
You know the reason I think I’m so anxious to hear from some hunters, especially those who are taking their kids out for maybe the first or second time, is that hunting expeditions with dad or mom create such memories. I really want to hear some and hope those of you reading this will share some, not just from the current season, but maybe ones when you were growing up as kids. I can’t promise I’ll get them all told on the pages of our newspaper, but some I will and the rest will provide tremendous pleasure as I read them, so I thank you in advance.
I can still remember my first hunt with my dad. Even the excitement of the first morning waking up deep in the woods in our four-wall sheepherders tent and the smell of the bacon dad was fixing for breakfast. Of course it was still dark outside and we had laid out are plans the night before. The call was to be in our spots before sun up. Action couldn’t begin until then but we wanted to make sure we were in place. Hunting in the Rockies is a different experience than hunting in and around the cornfields of Minnesota. There you go up a couple of days before hand, scout out the area for waterholes, game trails and meadows used for bedding at night, The plan is to position yourself downwind from one of these and then begin the waiting game. I never found tracking to be all that fruitful, but waiting for the game to come to you...it almost always happened.
I think two parts of the hunt stand out for me. One was the part I spent with my dad. These were bonding moments of the highest degree. Sharing a cold sandwich at lunch, my first taste of coffee from a thermos bottle, a candy bar later in the day or a piece of fruit. The second part was the thrill of bagging a deer or elk and how proud my dad was of me. “That was a fine shot son,” he would say. “Down hill too, maybe 150 yards!” The elk could have only been a spike or a deer with just two prongs, but at that moment it was the biggest on the whole hillside. Then there was the picture taking, laying it across the hood of the old 55 Willy’s Jeep, hanging the animal up on the game pole back at camp, and finally enjoying the fried tenderloins that night while sitting around the pot bellied stove we had in the tent. Those were memories man!
So now you get the idea. Make this old man happy. Send in your photos, describe a little about the hunt. If you have taken your son or daughter, share their experience and feelings. It will be great and will bring much joy to these old bones and those of many others in our reading area.
I’ve been a little disappointed that we haven’t had any response to our photo call outs for deer hunting and pheasant hunting. I talked to one lady this morning, 90 years old, who has been hunting deer for 77 years with her 4-10 shotgun. “I haven’t heard of too many scoring any in this area she said..seem to be a little hard to find this year.”
Then I opened a couple of other local newspapers and found on the front page four of the biggest deer I’ve ever seen taken in this area. So, I come to the conclusion it all comes down to being in the right place at the right time, at least where the deer are concerned. Pheasant, I know, are just plain scarce this year.
You know the reason I think I’m so anxious to hear from some hunters, especially those who are taking their kids out for maybe the first or second time, is that hunting expeditions with dad or mom create such memories. I really want to hear some and hope those of you reading this will share some, not just from the current season, but maybe ones when you were growing up as kids. I can’t promise I’ll get them all told on the pages of our newspaper, but some I will and the rest will provide tremendous pleasure as I read them, so I thank you in advance.
I can still remember my first hunt with my dad. Even the excitement of the first morning waking up deep in the woods in our four-wall sheepherders tent and the smell of the bacon dad was fixing for breakfast. Of course it was still dark outside and we had laid out are plans the night before. The call was to be in our spots before sun up. Action couldn’t begin until then but we wanted to make sure we were in place. Hunting in the Rockies is a different experience than hunting in and around the cornfields of Minnesota. There you go up a couple of days before hand, scout out the area for waterholes, game trails and meadows used for bedding at night, The plan is to position yourself downwind from one of these and then begin the waiting game. I never found tracking to be all that fruitful, but waiting for the game to come to you...it almost always happened.
I think two parts of the hunt stand out for me. One was the part I spent with my dad. These were bonding moments of the highest degree. Sharing a cold sandwich at lunch, my first taste of coffee from a thermos bottle, a candy bar later in the day or a piece of fruit. The second part was the thrill of bagging a deer or elk and how proud my dad was of me. “That was a fine shot son,” he would say. “Down hill too, maybe 150 yards!” The elk could have only been a spike or a deer with just two prongs, but at that moment it was the biggest on the whole hillside. Then there was the picture taking, laying it across the hood of the old 55 Willy’s Jeep, hanging the animal up on the game pole back at camp, and finally enjoying the fried tenderloins that night while sitting around the pot bellied stove we had in the tent. Those were memories man!
So now you get the idea. Make this old man happy. Send in your photos, describe a little about the hunt. If you have taken your son or daughter, share their experience and feelings. It will be great and will bring much joy to these old bones and those of many others in our reading area.
