How Come?

Maybe it happens to all hunters. Maybe not. But it seems more than coincidental that I see plenty of game when I'm hunting, but rarely the game I'm looking for or the game that's in-season when I'm hunting. How come?

My usual practice is to harvest a doe during bow season. I can then be selective during muzzleloader and rifle seasons. One deer supplies me with all the venison I need from one season to the next. The meat from my second deer goes to friends or one of the area homeless shelters.

I had a couple of long misses during bow season but was hindered mostly by the fact that I've been trying to introduce a new dog to the duck blind.
I bow hunted out of the sluice duck blind. The deer travel-corridors are between 40 and 50 yards from this blind so I wasn't surprised that long shots were all I had.

I had a shot during muzzleloader season out of this same blind - roughly 85 yards up hill. With only a four inch hole to shoot through, I missed a neck shot on a six pointer.


Yesterday was cold and crisp and followed a dark night. Tennessee Valley Authority wasn't scheduled to generate electricity from the upstream dam until later in the day so the water flow was near its normal low point. Deer seem a little more relaxed getting into a placid stream rather than a roaring torrent. It had the makings of a good day. I saw two does - it being buck only hunting in Hawkins County.

But yesterday was also opening day of duck season. The shotgun blasts were numerous. I saw a couple of dozen shootable ducks out of this duck blind over the course of the day.
Two wild turkeys flew across the sluice within 40 yards. Another flock of turkeys worked down the island about 80 yards behind me. River otters played out front of the blind. Geese traded up and down the main channel of the river. But I was deer hunting for a buck.


Patience paid off today. Took a nice little 5 pointer about 10 a.m. So now I can make jerky and summer sausage for Christmas presents. And there'll be plenty of venison in my freezer to get me through the winter.

Bucks & Birds: Not a Bad Weekend on Strum Island

Rick Hartley had a good hunt bagging a nice little 8 pointer Saturday morning on Strum Island out of the Holston Hilton duck blind.

Art Swann and bird dog, Susie, joined us, too. They successfully bagged a limit of woodcock on the island.

After a miss Friday at lunch, I saw no more deer so the freezer is still empty.

All in all, it was a good weekend on Strum Island!

Constitutional Amendment Passes Overwhelmingly!

Nearly nine out of ten Tennesseans voting last Tuesday approved the proposed amendment to the Tennessee Constitution.