Originally Posted by
quack head 11
My father has been all but absent from my life since the age of 15. Even before that he never was a hands on dad. He had no hobbies. NONE. He worked, we camped and he would watch baseball on TV.
He didnt hunt, fish, golf, play mens softball, nothing.
As a youngster I grew up on the family farm, but no one and I mean NO ONE hunted or fished in my family. Back then I had a spot light that came from an old video recorder setup that plugged into the wall. It was bright and would light up the world.
I would always sneak outside and shine the fields that were planted in oats. The fields would be FULL of deer like nothing I had ever seen before or probably ever will again.
Luckily we lived in an area that had an extremely high deer population and many many big bucks.
Something about those deer just flat turned my crank.
Fast forward until about the age of 9 and my mommas brother was going to look at a horse and asked if i wanted to go, so I did.
We had to go through a little spot inthe road called Epworth. This would have been around 1986, and there was a little store there named Epworth grocery. They had biscuits, drinks, coffee hot dogs etc.
They were also a big game check station.
We pulled into that parking lot, and there was pickup trucks, big red three wheelers, and every one of them had spikes, 4 points, 6 points and anythign in between straped to them.
I was in utter amazement. I bet I made 40 circles around that parking lot inspecting each and every deer.
I knew right then and there that deer hunting was for me.
The probelem was I had land, and I had desire but I didnt have the knowledge, a gun, nor anyone to teach me. So every time I would go to the grocery store while my mom shopped I would sit at the magazine rack and read every article that I could.
I even got me a wind up camera and would take pictures of rubs, scrapes and different trees. I would get my momma to have the pictures developed and then I would take them to the grocery store and compare my pictures to what was in the magainzes.
It took me until October 11, 1990 before I shot my first deer. A doe on opening day when it was NOT a doe day. I couldnt resist the temptation after 4 years of preparation. Once I had her down, I had no idea of how to skin and gut her.
Luckily i called a fella that went to church with me Mr Jerry Duncan . He came over and said, "i will skin this one while you watch, after that the rest of them are yours to clean"
And the rest is history. Ive been blessed to take numerous big bucks in South Carolina, Ive killed 2 pope and youngs one in Indiana and one in Kansas, and Ihave lost one that was 160 class and another 140 class with archery gear.
I have hunted 8 states and still love deer hunting as much as I ever have, but these days my happiness comes from watching my kids squeeze the trigger!
Bookmarks