WMAn
Well-Known Member
I got the call from my father an hour or so ago. My grandfather and uncle were in Kentucky today working on some property my grandfather purchased this year when they were involved in a car wreck. My grandfather was transported to a local hospital, and it appears he will be ok. My uncle died.
It's odd because earlier this week I posted on a discussion here about losing interest in hunting a conversation I had with my uncle in 2007. My grandfather, uncle, and I were in a $25 a night hotel room in the Mississippi Delta getting ready for the second day of deer hunt. My grandfather was busy packing his gear. My uncle sat on the bed with a strange look on his face. He said, "You know it's something to sit here and think I can count on one hand the number of years I've got left to do this (deer hunt)."
On Wednesday, I retold the story on here and then wrote that was 2007 and he's still hunting. I'm sure my uncle meant that he didn't think his health would give him another five years. That's how I took his comments then. Little did we know.
My grandfather and uncle remember when we had no deer. The first deer my grandfather saw was being chased by dogs. He didn't know what it was and told me, "I made up my mind that if it came back through I was going to climb a tree!" They learned how to hunt on their own. They progressed from just wanting to kill a deer, to killing a bunch of deer, and over the last 15 years to targeting big deer.
My uncle was the best hunter I know. He hunted public land and private land that is hunted as hard as public. My uncle really came into his own over the last five years and could consistently kill mature bucks.
A few lessons I learned from my uncle on deer hunting:
- Deer hunting and buck hunting are two different things
- You scout in January for the spot you'll hunt in November
- Ignore deer sign
- You need some type of terrain deviation that will influence that buck; that and a whole lot of luck.
My wife is on her way home from work. She and I will be leaving for Kentucky to be with family there.
It's odd because earlier this week I posted on a discussion here about losing interest in hunting a conversation I had with my uncle in 2007. My grandfather, uncle, and I were in a $25 a night hotel room in the Mississippi Delta getting ready for the second day of deer hunt. My grandfather was busy packing his gear. My uncle sat on the bed with a strange look on his face. He said, "You know it's something to sit here and think I can count on one hand the number of years I've got left to do this (deer hunt)."
On Wednesday, I retold the story on here and then wrote that was 2007 and he's still hunting. I'm sure my uncle meant that he didn't think his health would give him another five years. That's how I took his comments then. Little did we know.
My grandfather and uncle remember when we had no deer. The first deer my grandfather saw was being chased by dogs. He didn't know what it was and told me, "I made up my mind that if it came back through I was going to climb a tree!" They learned how to hunt on their own. They progressed from just wanting to kill a deer, to killing a bunch of deer, and over the last 15 years to targeting big deer.
My uncle was the best hunter I know. He hunted public land and private land that is hunted as hard as public. My uncle really came into his own over the last five years and could consistently kill mature bucks.
A few lessons I learned from my uncle on deer hunting:
- Deer hunting and buck hunting are two different things
- You scout in January for the spot you'll hunt in November
- Ignore deer sign
- You need some type of terrain deviation that will influence that buck; that and a whole lot of luck.
My wife is on her way home from work. She and I will be leaving for Kentucky to be with family there.
