Opening day of the deer gun season.
Number 76 for me. “You’re still
deer hunting?” A question I hear on occasion.
“Yes,” I answer with a smile. “Wouldn’t miss it.”
I must confess that weatherwise, this opening day for the 2022 deer
gun season was no prize. The temperature
hung around 18 degrees, the wind blew from the northwest, and snowflakes
fell. Fell so hard that at times I
couldn’t see across the little field where I was sitting. We already had two-three inches of snow at
Roshara, and within a half hour or so we added another quarter to a half
inch. If you like to sit in a
snowstorm—and believe it or not, if I’m dressed properly, and I was, I rather
enjoy it.
In my early days of deer hunting, bagging a deer with bragging rights
was always my goal. Then for a number of
years, filling the freezer with venison was the goal. Especially when the family numbered five and
my income was on the low side. For the
past 20 years or so, bagging a deer was a secondary goal, being with family was
first, and being outside, no matter what the weather was always a goal. I have always enjoyed the sights and sounds
of nature—and deer season is one time to do that.
I remember so well the days when my dad hunted deer—he did it into his
early 90s. In those days, the family hunters included my brothers, and my
sons. Three generations. One of the stories passed on over the years
was when my dad was 92, and he was standing on a little hill with my son, Steve. They spotted three deer running across a
field some 100 yards away, maybe more depending on who was telling the
story. “Is one a buck?” Dad asked. “The middle one,” Steve answered. Dad pulled up his 30-30 Savage rifle, and fired
one shot. The buck deer dropped, shot
through the neck. When asked why he shot
it in the neck. His answer, “Didn’t want
to spoil any of the meat.” He said it with a big smile on his face.
This year the crew hunting at
Roshara included me, my son, Steve, my brother Donald; his three sons Marc,
Eric, and Matt, and Matt’s son, Ian.
Three generations once more.
I did not bag a deer. My nephew
Eric did. He is a true deer hunter. But once more, we all have stories to tell. Deer hunting has always been and will always
be storytelling—some of them even may be true.
THE OLD TIMER SAYS: There is so much more to deer hunting than
bagging a deer.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Monday, November 28, 7:00 p.m. Watch “Jerry Apps: Food and Memories” on PBS
Wisconsin. An hour-long documentary with
my daughter, Susan, and based on our book, OLD FARM COUNTRY COOKBOOK/
Saturday, December 10, 1:30 p.m. Verona, Library. Launch of my new book, MORE THAN WORDS. I plan to be there in person.
WHERE
TO BUY MY BOOKS. Buy from your local bookstore,
or buy online from the Wisconsin Historical Society bookstore, https://shop.wisconsinhistory.org/books, bookshop.org, or purchase from the Friends of the Patterson
Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for
prices and ordering, or contact the librarian: barnard@wildroselibrary.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984.
www.wildroselibrary.org
If you live in the
western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby, visit
Dregne’s. and look at their great
selection of my books. Order a book from them by calling 1-877-634-4414. They
will be happy to help you. If you live
in northcentral Wisconsin, stop at the Janke bookstore in Wausau (phone
715-845-9648). They also have a large
selection of my books.
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