The Tradition of Hunting Camp

As 2012 is coming to a close, and 2013 begins, I spent some time reflecting on this past year of hunting and fishing adventures when I came to the realization that regardless of how successful my adventures are, more importantly, they are another link in the chain of the tradition of hunting and fishing.

While I am a novice deer hunter, only having hunted 6 seasons, I eagerly anticipate the Pennsylvania deer season each year.  5 years ago I discussed my new hobby with a friend and he shared his memories from deer camp at his farm in Bedford, Pennsylvania.  We quickly realized our properties were only 20 minutes apart and he suggested that we start deer camp again at his farmhouse that year.  Never having attended a deer camp before, I jumped at the chance to get together with other hunters to share tips, techniques, and insights into the elusive PA whitetail deer.  What actually came out of that first deer camp was a deepened relationship with the friends who participated, and a great appreciation of the tradition of hunting. 

copyright 2011 William Imler

The first year at deer camp was great.  While we were in an old farmhouse that had evolved over the years from a log cabin, we still had no indoor plumbing thereby creating the need to haul water from a springhouse and use a very drafty outhouse in the cold November nights.  The focal point of the farmhouse is the huge stone fireplace approximately 5 feet wide by 4 feet high in front of which we would sit in handmade chairs resting our feet on a 7 foot long butchers table that was turned into a bench.  Across the mantel are several sets of antlers from deer taken many years before, and in the fireplace is a rack with the first names of my friends family etched into the uprights at the front.  Cooking was done on a turn of the century wood fired cook stove and cast iron pans.  There was always work to be done, but everyone was enthusiastic to lend a hand to get it all completed.

As we gathered around the fireplace that week, we were regaled with stories of the men who hunted there last.  Randy shooting a deer while he was using the outhouse, Dr. Griffiths telling another member of the group that he might have been able to save that deer if only he wouldn’t of pulled out all of it’s guts, and others too numerous or too incriminating to share. As it turned out, most of the people I was hunting with that first year were the sons of the men in the stories I was hearing.  It was then when I first began to realize the tradition of deer camp wasn’t about having people to share the chores with, but rather having people to share the adventure with.  Now after 5 years of hunting and sharing life with these guys, we have created our own stories to add to the mix shared around the fire; some of success, some of failures, and other events that aren’t spoken of, but by experiencing them together, we have become closer friends, and better people.  What will the future hold?  I don’t know.  But what I do know is there is a new generation of younsters that are only a few years away from being able to go into the woods with their dads to hunt for their first deer.  Will there be room for those who were there from the beginning?  Will the tradition continue with them when they become adults?  I hope so on both accounts.  Being able to witness 3 generations hunting from the same farmhouse, on the same property,  sharing some of the same stories from before would be the, “ And they hunted happily ever after.  The End” to this tale.

Be safe on your adventures.

duck...duck...GOOSE!

There is nothing like going "all in" when starting a new activity.  In my last post, I shared how my first ever duck hunting adventure went, and this past Saturday, being the start of the regular Canadian Goose season, afforded me the opportunity to try my hand at Goose hunting.  Where did the adventure start?  You guessed it!  Bass Pro Shops in Harrisburg to pick up decoys and a call.

Seeing how I never had done this type of hunting before either, it was just as daunting to pick decoys and the call I would use for my first goose hunt as it was for my first duck hunt.  Fully flocked heads, floating decoys, flag decoys or full bodied decoys for the yard?  Single reed, double reed, Champion caller created, or a guide's best pick call?  Well, I used the same method I used for buying my duck decoys; what was in stock that I also could afford. (That last part has become more and more important as I try to explain to my wife the growing collection of stuff for this new found activity.  I am still not sure how I am going to hide a canoe, even a camouflaged one...)  I finally selected the Redhead Floating Goose Decoys because they were reasonably priced, had fully flocked heads (which by the way the salesperson said it seemed like it was important), and.... looked like Canadian Geese.  For the call, I chose Buck Gardner Calls Canada Hammer II Goose Call.  It was inexpensive and received good reviews on multiple sites during my research phase.  I have found it difficult to use, but I am getting better each time.  A word to the first time callers- all the videos are good, but you really need to take the principles and make them work for you as you spend time trying to make the call work.  Spend the time, and it will eventually sound like a goose; eventually.  Did I say that already :)

My honey hole spot was the same one as my honey hole duck spot.  (Hey, quit hatin' on me just because I have geese and ducks that love the area right behind my house)

So this morning I didn't get up quite as early, but I knew other hunters would be out with large decoy spreads, so I chose a simple two alert geese spread in the main channel to my left in this photo.  There I am, decoys set, my Benelli SuperNova 12 gauge loaded with Federal 3" BBB loads, just waiting for the geese to come into visual range.  I am ready...the sun is coming up...I look over to check that my decoys are ok....and what do I see........TENTS!  Yep, some kids decided to camp across the creek from my blind set up.  Well that is a BIG problem as now the safety zone has shifted and I am in a "no-go" situation.  I unload my gun, and go get my camera.  (Hey, I am a photographer after all!  It is my standard plan B.)  And 5 minutes later.... GEESE!

And 10 minutes after that.... GEESE!

And 5 minutes after that...you guessed it, geese.

As you can see from this last photo, this group at least took a look at my decoys!  During this time, the kids finally woke up and were painstakingly sloooooowwww at cleaning up their camp.  Finally by 8:15 am and 3 groups of perfectly tasty Geese later, the kids were gone and the safety zone re-established.  I darted back into the house to swap the camera for the gun figuring I have seen geese up until 9:15am or later so not all was lost, yet.  I knew the first group of geese wouldn't be back based on the machine gun like fire I heard from the other group of hunters a half mile down stream.  They may have missed, but then they would be worse shots then I am. 

It didn't take more than 30 minutes for another group of geese to come flying upstream from the river.  I let them pass at about 50 yards away and when they were another 50 or so yards up stream I let out a single honk, then another.  Sure enough, the lead goose put on his turn signal and they all turned left and came back.  50 yards out, I let out another single honk.  That sealed the deal.  The whole group set their wings and started gliding in towards the decoys!  I couldn't believe it.  They were committing to my two little decoys and single honks like a geek to a Comi-con booth girl!  I lined up my shotgun and waited, but not as long as I should have.  I just could resists and let out an early discharge while they were 40 yards away causing them to pull up exposing their bellies.  I let out another shot, but they just kept flying.  I let out a few choice words at myself regarding my inability to wait to shoot and reloaded my gun for the next group as I watched them fly away.  250 yards down stream, one of the geese dropped like a rock and belly flopped into the creek and in the immortal words of Steve Erkel I thought, "Did I do thaaaat?"  Of course I did; when they pulled up, I swore I hit one with my second shot, but on TV they always drop immediately into the lap of either the shooter or their cameraman, NOT fly another 250 yards ∫DOWNSTREAM!  At that moment I was off to the races!  I grabbed my shotgun, made sure it was on safe and did not have a round in the chamber, and started running down stream to retrieve my goose.  

Oh wait, you are asking why I didn't just send my dog, or even hop into my boat?  Well that would have involved 1) More money that I would have to explain to my wife and 2) prior proper planning on my part; neither of which I did. Now, back to the story.  Please keep your questions until the end.

So picture it.  You walk out onto your deck just in time to see a guy, in waders, a hunting jacket, hat, gloves, carrying a shotgun, RUNNING downstream!  Far downstream.  I was extremely motivated not to let the other hunters simply have to pick up my goose as it was floating by, but neither did I want to get close enough for them to high 5 me on my most excellent retriever skills.  For most of my morning workout the water was less than knee deep, but in other places it was waist deep with a few swimming holes thrown in to aid in the excitement.  At times I must have looked like a recruiting poster for the Army as I slogged through the deeper holes carrying my shotgun overhead.  I was gaining, albeit slowly.  Finally I was close enough to see my goose...on the other side of the creek!  I wadded carefully across and panting extremely hard, picked up my prize!  My very first Canadian Goose and on the opening day of the regular season no less!!  I slung him over one shoulder and my gun over the other, forced myself not to look down to where the other hunters might still be, turned, and started walking back upstream.  By the time I caught up to the goose, I ended up a little over 300 yards downstream, but that didn't matter anymore because I had my goose!  

When I finally got back to my house, and my blind, I was panting so hard I thought I was going to have a heart attack. I was wearing that day:

• Cold Gear base layer under my waders.
• A light Under Armor base layer shirt
• My hunting coat's outer shell
• a Gore-tex hat
• cotton gloves

None of those items are exactly designed to allow the body to properly cool itself during extreme physical exertion which was the plan C method of goose retrieval that I chose for that days hunt.  Just then my wife came out and asked if I wounded it.  I said no, and proudly showed her my trophy.  She snickered and walked back inside.  It wasn't until later that she told me she saw me leave the sand bar area running, but couldn't figure out what was taking me so long to get back.  When I relayed the story to her, she had a good laugh for a few days.  

I did have another opportunity to shoot at one more set of geese that day, but I was so tired that I really didn't have my mind in the game to seal the deal.  All-in-all it was a great first day of goose hunting.  The day ended with me plucking and cleaning my goose.  Again, somewhere in all of this planning, I had forgotten one, rather important thing; I am allergic to goose down. There I was with hand sanitizer, latex gloves, shears for the wings and back bone, my knife sharpened and ready for whatever task it was needed for, but I did not have a face mask.  Did I mention that geese have a lot of feathers!  At one point it looked like a drawing of PigPen from the Peanuts with all the goose feathers flying around in the pre-hurrincane Sandi breeze.  For the rest of that day, as I was reveling in my hunting I was also experiencing some pretty intense respiratory distress.  Every cough brought a small chuckle from my wife which then led to me trying to laugh, but ending up just coughing some more.  My wife prepared the goose for dinner the next evening and it tasted wonderful!  She is such a great sport for putting up with my hunting adventures.  

Now that the storm is over, and there a few days left in the goose season, I will be back at it trying to fill the freezer with my limit.  

Be safe and happy hunting!

Duck!

This year I decided that I was going to take up duck hunting.  I have been hunting for only a few years and mainly stuck with big game- deer, bear, and turkey, but seeing as I live along a wide creek, a mile upstream from the Susquehanna, that is frequented by mallards, teals, wood ducks, and Canadian Geese, it seemed to make sense.

 So of course this means a trip to Bass Pro Shops in Harrisburg for some gear!  Who would have thought there were so many options for decoys.  I used the tried and true method to select mine; what was in stock that I also could afford.  (Read as explain to my wife my attempt to remain budget conscious) I also figured since it was early in the season, I would limit my purchase to one family group  ( one box) containing 4 mallard drakes and 2 hens.  That was what I was seeing on the water, so all the blogs and magazines said that is what I should put out.  Seems easy enough for a newbie like me to understand.  Maybe this whole duck hunting thing wasn't going to be so bad.  I did end up going back that afternoon to purchase more decoys.  Both posts of my deck are now surrounded with 2 dozen decoys, but hey, they're needed, right?!

Then I started researching calls and my head started to spin.

Single reed, double reed, or reed and a half?!  Which brand?  What style? Acrylic or wood?  I settled on what seemed to be the easiest to use and was on the lanyard of many of the people I was researching for advice; the Haydel DR-85.  Ok, I have decoys and now a call, time to learn how to use these new tools.  Where did I seek advice...YouTube.  I was surprised by how little junk I had to sift through to get the education I needed with opening day just around the corner.  I quickly learned the basic quack and HOW to do the feeding call (Tic Ka, Tic Ka...) which ending up being well out of my abilities with only two days to go.  So with a passable quack and being able to string 5 quacks together, it was time to hunt!

I set up on a small sand bar that is just to my left in the picture above.  That placed me 20 feet out into the creek with a great view upstream and down.  The creek is flowing from behind me in this photo and a small eddie is formed in front of the sand bar where the ducks really seem to enjoy feeding.  This has to be just about the perfect spot and it is 150 feet out my back door!  So opening day arrives and I am up an hour and a half before sunrise.  I get settled in, locked and loaded with my Benelli SuperNova 12 gauge for the action to start.  As the sun rose, there was a mist on the water and a beautifully colored sky allowing me to clearly see the ducks flying.

Just about a half-mile downstream, about the place where the tree line on the right side of this photo ends, is another group of hunters.  These guys have been hunting there for two years prior and always put out a big spread as they are only a half-mile from the Susquehanna River.  Last year as they started shooting, the ducks started to fly up and land right here, so I was more than happy to harvest there left overs.

The action was fast paced for the first hour and a half.  I was getting ducks to come in on my decoys and even using my variation of the come-back call to get ducks turning around to set up on my spread.  What I did learn was patience!  I was shooting WAY to early to be effective.  Finally, with the last group of ducks I could see just about over the other hunters, I laid on the call hot and aggressively.  The group turned and came within shooting range.  I waited until I thought I should shoot and then forced myself to wait a little longer then...BAM!

Success!  My first green-head on opening day of my first duck season!  I am hooked on waterfowling now.  Nothing is better than seeing a group of ducks or geese responding to your calls and decoy set up. What a challenge.  Even if the action is slow, as it was on other days, or mistakes are made, which many have been, it is a great way to start or end your day sitting over a decoy spread enjoying the great outdoors!

Be safe and happy adventures!