How to get by hunting with a little help from my friends
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This week has been a little boring what with being shut in the house because of Covid-19. It used to be on these cold snowy days that I could still go out and scout for deer or take walks in the fresh snow. But these days it seems I am trapped indoors. Time seems to go faster while I move slower. But I am lucky to still be out hunting at all. This article is for those who are older and stuck home while trying to figure out if they will be hunting next year.
If you make it to the opener next year and now need some tips to prepare yourself for the upcoming season, this is your article. The first most important thing you need to remain hunting, and out in the sporting environment, is a friend. My friends are priceless to me. It wasn’t so long ago that this old man enjoyed the solitude of hunting alone. No longer. Luckily for me, I have a solid group of friends who support me and help me. I thank them every day. With the antler restrictions, you need good eyes or good friends’ eyes.
Mike and I were hunting with a resident of Greene County and we were seeing quite a few bucks. We kept passing by all the undersized bucks, waiting for that nice one to come along. After all, I have my reputation to uphold. There were enough deer to prevent boredom and my Greene County friend, Monty, was standing with me while my son-in-law was settled in a short distance away. There was a small buck feeding about 100 yards away. Monty whose eyesight is excellent and was helping me, said shoot it. I said it was just one of those 4-pointers that seemed to be teasing us that day. In the unit we were hunting in, two on each side wasn’t enough so we ignored him. Suddenly, we heard the shot.
It was Mike.
Now Mike is relatively new to deer hunting and I looked at Monty and could see the steam building. He thought Mike had shot an illegal buck, which is not something we do. Off he went in my son-in-law’s direction. I was looking around for a groundhog hole to crawl into if it was in fact illegal. Then I heard my two companions laughing and enjoying the moment. Both Monty and I had been wrong. This buck had the legal four points on one side and two on the other. I hated to admit it, but I needed my friend’s eyes, or I could no longer hunt at all. I am like a Chevy with 200,000 miles on it. Pretty worn out. But Mikes eyes were good enough this day and we had a great outing.
The second thing you must consider once you have some friends who are willing to help you out by being your legs, eyes and ears is the terrain you hunt in. In the past, when a buck jumped out through crab apples and berry briars that are so common in Southwestern Pennsylvania, I would bring up my rifle and fire. Not now. I always look before setting up to see where it is that a shot deer will land. Now, even if I know where he is going after I shoot him, I can’t follow unless the terrain is gentle. This can go back to rule one friends to help. But if you are planning to go it alone, you should know what that terrain i,s like.
Lastly, the hunter who is older had best anchor that deer close to where he spotted it. It is all but impossible for me to track a wounded deer any distance. You know if hit, that buck will head for the heaviest, steepest piece of cover around, so that shot needs to be a good one. The older hunter must reach deeper into his knowledge and instincts and, most important, his knowledge of rifle performance. This comes from shooting. So, I still practice at the range as much as I can. The elderly still can hunt but now we must plan each hunt carefully.
The desire to hunt remains the same and the drive might be a little weaker on cold, rainy days, but the older hunter still has something to offer. My friends seem to enjoy taking me out and spending time with me. And I try to keep things light and enjoy my time still out in the hunt, even if it is a bit different. So, I say keep hunting and doing what you love for as long as you can.