After rudimentary sighting in at a range and getting used to the new stick and string, you can take to the woods in search of game to take home for the freezer.
I have said in the past that I used to take my bow on rabbit hunting expeditions, and believe it or not, I didn't always make the trip home empty-handed.
Rabbits harvested with an arrow didn't have the lead shot problem and were just pure delectable meat. I always liked the back portion of the rabbit. Other folks could have the legs. The back strap and the tenderloins were the best part.
This time of the year is also a good time of year for the waterfowlers to take to their blinds. Even though the season for some birds has been open for awhile, the lack of rain and the warm weather have kept the birds north of us.
However, now with some rain and now that the weather has gotten considerably colder, the birds have moved farther south, some of them into this area.
I went out onto the driveway headed to church last Sunday, and a flock of geese flew right over my neighborhood on the north end of Danville. There was just no mistaking the sound they made as they passed overhead. The Canada goose is a magnificent bird.
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I've been giving a lot of thought to this weekend's free youth weekend deer hunt.
My 13-year-old grandson would enjoy going, I'm sure. I just don't know how much patience he would show after sitting still for a couple of hours in a blind, especially if he didn't see any deer.
My answer to this dilemma would be to let him take along one of his video games - with the volume turned down, of course - to occupy his time while waiting for game to appear. Then maybe he wouldn't be so discouraged if we spent the day and didn't see anything.
Seeing game while hunting is never a given. Sometimes you see game, sometimes you don't. Either way, if you enjoy the out-of-doors, it is a successful hunt. I never cease to look up at the sky and survey my surroundings in wonderment and marvel at how lucky I am to be a part of it.
Even if I decided to take my grandson hunting, I would have to procure a firearm for him. I could borrow one from a friend (it's already been offered), or I could buy him one if I could find one I can afford.
The smart move would be to borrow the one offered, but my grandson shoots left-handed and the rifle offered is a right-hand bolt action.
This point brings me back to what I have been pondering for the last week or so. There are single shots built for youth that are available from time to time. I say from time to time because I have been checking around, and they are hard to find. It seems I am not the only one looking for a youth rifle.
Then after the rifle portion comes the clothing. Sitting still requires better-than-average clothing. A pair of jeans won't cut it, unless you have your long handles on underneath them.
It goes without saying that you must wear a heavy coat to keep warm. Good shoes are also a must. Also, since this hunt would be a gun hunt, hunter orange would have to be worn.
My grandson has no hunter orange (I do have a new hunter orange toboggan), so a hunter orange vest also would have to be procured.
Man, this hunt is getting more expensive by the paragraph. You know what I mean?
