I didn't start hunting until I was in my 20's which is unusual. Generally if someone isn't born into that tradition, it doesn't take hold. This does allow me to look back on those first few years - even those first few hunts - in a more lucid way. The anticipation, the frustration, the mistakes - oh the mistakes... One of the biggest struggles then - and now - is where to hunt. Hunting magazines always talk about the accessibility of public lands in the US, and this is both unique and amazing. But the reality is finding places to hunt continues to be a challenge. Public lands near where I live can be "busy" during the hunting seasons. And I won't say they don't know what they are doing, but I've run into too many people in these places who have a very "unconventional" hunting style. I no longer hunt public land.
I've been privileged to have access to private land and am so grateful for this, but this can also be complicated (for many reasons). So when 30 acres went for sale early this year I saw it as a chance to own my own destiny - until I saw the price. Reality took over and the price decreased over the year until it became more tantalizing. Then it dropped again; SO and I talked it, and looked at the property and put an offer on it. The reasons why we were outbid are numerous and hopelessly complicated. There was enough deer sign to make it interesting. We could have afforded to pay more. I wasn't afraid of the phenomenal amount of work it would take to make it into my playground. But ultimately I realize the reasons boiled down to simply: I didn't fall in love with it when we looked at it. Our bid was, and is, open-ended. And if the current sale falls apart, I would still buy it. But I did - and do - have to admit that on a rational level, buying it doesn't make sense when the annual property taxes alone would pay for a good chunk of out-of-state guided deer hunting. But I'm not always sure the rational and feral circles in the Venn diagram that is my brain ever really intersect.
Which does get to an even bigger-picture issue: Why do I hunt? Quite frankly, I don't like killing. The grocery store is cheaper. Hunting is time-consuming, difficult and can (at times) be mentally excruciating. There are a million reasons to never fire a gun again, but there is a visceral gravitational pull - even if I can feel it without knowing its origins. Dark matter. I don't have an answer for this yet. Maybe I never will. And maybe someday I'll wake up and gravity will cease to exist overnight and I'll be done hunting forever.
With these internal Guantanamo Bay routines in my head, I headed out the door early to head south and hunt deer in South Carolina. This was planned well before ever thinking about buying my own property, and generally the deer around home are larger than in South Carolina. But EHD has hit the local deer herd very hard, so it was a good opportunity to try it. Rifle hunting in September though? When in Rome... At least it was the first full day of fall.
I was headed south by 4:00AM, having the road to myself. The drive went fast and I got off the interstate near Corbin, KY, just as it was getting light. I made my way southeast stopping at my "usual" gas station for fuel. I risked getting coffee and regretted it. It did help me stay alert, but it was absolutely terrible coffee. The fog as I started through the mountains was intense in a few places, but also a very dramatic view.
I was listening to Susan Cain's Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking through the whole day. I was worried it was going to be too self-helpy, but it ended up being pretty good - a solid four stars. It was a bit redundant and it did get me thinking about work a bit too much, but I was glad I listened to it. I was able to relate to a lot of the book and even to the property we didn't buy. The only part I hated was her bit about Tony Robbins - that guy is pure snake-oil salesman and he is so LOUD.
Traffic was far heavier than I'm used to seeing in January from around Asheville. I was itching to get off the interstate and so took a new way once out of Columbia. I was glad I did since the two-lane roads were almost empty, and much prettier.
I got to camp about 2:00. I met the other guys in camp and talked for a bit. Since it was still fairly early, I decided to go out. It was crazy hot and humid - it felt like home in July. So I put on a camo t-shirt and hunted in shorts. I think I've only done this once or twice before.
I was dropped off at a box blind where one of the other guys had sat the previous day and seen a hog. It took a bit to get situated, but once I did, it was comfortable enough. It wasn't too long before deer started to pop out. Deer filtered in and out through most of the afternoon. A few times they ran off and I was hoping that the hog would pop out, but it never did. At one point I had a mess of turkeys come in behind me right by the blind. It startled me a bit when I first saw them - not as much as they were startled.
The only mildly interesting deer I saw was a crab-claw spike. All the rest were does. But it did give me quite a bit to watch through the afternoon.
It got dark quickly after sunset in the heavy pine trees. I worked my way out and Rick was waiting for me. We picked up everyone else and headed back to the lodge. No one had shot anything, but everyone had seen deer.
Dinner was pork chops and taters. After a long drive and hunting, I was ready to turn in.
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