The Thrill Of The Hunt. [NATURE], page 1

Five o'clock in the morning on the opening day of hunting season. You put on your gear, give it a check, grab your bow, and start the stealthy trek to the woods. The air is crisp and damp. As you walk through the low spots you notice the temperature drop and then warm again as you go up the hill. The wood is getting closer now so you begin to walk slower, and more quiet.

By ow your eyes have adjusted to the darkness of the fall morning. You stop and scan the open fields as you head to you tree stand. Maybe you see deer out in the distance, maybe you don't. You quietly continue on, another fifty acres to go. You creep up over the last hill in hopes that you will not come face to face with a herd of deer. At last you have reached the edge of the hardwoods. Only a little further until you are comfortably sitting in your stand to enjoy the show for which nature is about to perform.

Finally you have reached you tree stand. You tie your bow to the rope and quietly climb the ladder to your stand. You sit down and pull up your bow, being ever so careful not to catch a branch and make a loud noise that will be heard throughout the woods. Once your bow is safely up you hang it on it' hanger and hunker down and wait patiently for the woods to come alive.

You look to the east and see the sky begin to brighten. The few remaining birds begin to make their way about the countryside. You can hear the canadian geese honking in the distance. You here a thrashing below you and look down to see a large raccoon making his way through the forest. Like clock work the squirrels and chipmunks come alive. The scratching of the squirrels claws as they climb down from their trees can be heard from all sides. The pitter patter of them running through the forrest becomes the dominant sound at this time. This sound is often mistaken for a deer trolling about and keeps the hunters alert.

As it slowly grows lighter out you begin to hear their movement. Crashing through the swamp on their way from their bedding areas out to where they will feed. You sit quietly, hoping that today will be the day you get your trophy. You see the first couple come out. Just a couple of small does. Soon more does and even some with yearlings begin to wander out in the field and in your general area.

You grab your bow, make sure the arrow is rested properly. and you wait. You know there is a buck in there ready to come out, it is just a matter of when, or if he will at all. The rut has begun and your chances for having him chasing does is good. Within minutes you see what you have come out for. When you see him at first you just see that he is holding his head low and bobbing a large set of antlers above his head.

As daylight finally arrives, you get a good look at this monster. He is very large bodied. Probably six or seven years old with a twelve point very symmetrical rack. He is following a doe about a hundred yards away but she seems to be heading in your direction. As you realize this may be your chance, your heart begins to beat fast and your nerves begin to tremble. This is the buck of a lifetime for most and it could be yours.

Ten minutes pass as they steadily graze their way toward you. At this point you know you will get a shot and you sit still and wait. As the doe walks by at fifteen yards you are so still that you do not move a muscle. Your heart starts racing faster now as the buck comes within range. He walks just in front of you and stops and begins to stick his nose up and smell the area. He has made you, the time is now or never. As he turns his head away you draw your bow, take aim, take a deep breath and release...

You breath a sigh of relief immediately when you see the arrow strike his vital areas. You know it is a clean kill. You watch the deer stumble, try to take a few steps and crash to the ground and give out a few final thrashes of life. You stay in your stand and have a smoke while you wait to see if their is movement. This is one deer you do not want to have run and lose in the holy land which is their sanctuary where no human will set foot.

The excitement now has you unable to sit still. You finally climb down and approach your animal quietly. You poke his eye with a stick to ensure that he is dead. Once you are assured, you bend down and have a look at the antlers. You thank the animal for giving up it's body for the food we will receive from his death.

For any hunter the best part of hunting is not always the kill. The most rewarding part of hunting is spending hours out in the woods and just observing nature and the forrest around you. The wildlife is interesting and you can learn a lot just from spending some time outside once in a while