Apr 25, 2015 4 min read

Stupid me, I went to the wrong hospital intending to visit a friend. He is one the most knowledgeable shooters I know. I visited the Washington Hospital only to find he wasn’t here.

I finally found Ed at the new Advanced Orthopedic hospital near the Wild Things ballfield. So much for my intelligence.

Ed Buchili of McDonald Sportsmen’s Club had a hip replacement, which just happens to be what I had done a month ago. I thought about entering his room on crutches but decided that kind of joke wasn’t the right thing to do, so I told him the truth. I’m doing great and hope his recovery goes as well as mine has. Ed’s a great guy and all I can say is listen to the doctors and therapist and good luck old timer.

Trout fishing is in full swing, and I have managed to do well though that I can’t fish some of my favorite spots. This not because of pain but because of caution. Perhaps in another couple of weeks I’ll be able to go where I please.

But for all those who have inquired I’m doing great and feel almost normal. Of course, my friends would say I have never been normal.

Many times the elderly find themselves thinking in the past. So it is with me.

I have always thought that I owed a thanks to the late Susan Pajac, an outdoors writer who has been deceased for some time. I once said to her that I could easily have been a school teacher had I continued my education. Her full-time job was just that.

I was a rookie writer at the time and appreciated her words. “But you are a teacher.” is what she said. “You teach when you write. You teach or relate the past or entertain.”

I have never forgotten that session with a fine lady. As I look at the worm dirt under my fingernails, it reminds me I am no better or worse than others on the stream.

Next week, I will be found sitting in cover with a big tree or rock at my back making sounds I hope will imitate a hen turkey.

While I have been referred to as a turkey, I don’t think I look like one so don’t shoot me. That is why I protect my back. I can see another hunter approaching from the front, so it is my back I worry about.

A dose of 5s or 6s in the back wouldn’t feel too good. I believe that turkey hunting is safer than it was but there are still those who try to sneak up on this keen-sighted bird. Look for the beard, for only bearded birds are legal in the spring.

I have a habit of writing what I believe to be the truth as I see it, and I don’t think turkeys are very smart. Keen of eye they are, hypersensitive to things that they think shouldn’t be there they are, but smart they are not. I once shot a big Tom and rolled him only to see him get up and head across the field in front of me.

Just as a joke, I hit the slate as he departed. Guess what? He turned and headed back to the decoy! This time he wasn’t so lucky. A full dose of number 6s ended that game.

• One of the more controversial rule changes being decided by the Pennsylvania Game Commission relates to the use of semi-automatic rifles for hunting.

To put it bluntly I am opposed to this change despite the popularity of tactical rifles. If such a bill is passed and black rifles are legalized, it should at least be done with a caliber restriction.

Despite what many think, the .223 cartridge, which most are chambered for, is hardly a deer round. If one is going to hunt with such a rifle the cartridge should be at least .24 caliber.

I have seen the inadequacy of this round while hunting in West Virginia, where semis are legal. A fellow shot a small spike 17 times before keeping it down.

Poor shooting was the culprit but also the small varmint round just wasn’t enough.

If you doubt that most semis being shot today are of .22 caliber just look at the empty casings scattered about the local range. It just isn’t big enough, and many times doesn’t even anchor a 10-pound groundhog.

Disagree with me if you want but that is my feeling.

George H. Block writes a Sunday outdoors column for the Observer-Reporter.