Tree Sitting In A Swamp

A bed is always more comfortable a few hours before daylight. This is a hunter's dilemma, but for said hunter to succeed, he must give up; that comfort and venture forth.  

What makes a grown man with more than half a century of time walking the earth, leave the comfort of bed and hearth in the pre-dawn hours to go and sit in a tree? My guess is if you don'/t know this answer, it will be near impossible to explain it to you. I will at this time, try my best to offer somewhat of an explanation.

I will tell you this, there is nothing like being in a stand or blind and watching the world wake up. The late, great Old Duck Hunter, Gordon MacQuarrie put it this way "No sport calling for communion with the dawn can escape a certain air of romantic mystery." Most people who do not hunt or fish, will never experience this,

This morning being opening day of archery season, I trudged to a near by stand to watch the awakening of the world, and to have the opportunity to try out a new cross bow on something other than a foam target. Cool and comfortable, I settled into my seat and readied an arrow. It is always magical right at dawn, the sights and sounds consume you. The first miracles of dawn that I got to witness this morning was a flight, of historical proportions, of newly hatched mosquitoes. They came in hard and fast, and some were so large that I swear, they had USN painted on their sides. They tried to over power and remove my therm cell. Luckily they failed, but this was really something to see. All the while lightness continued to over take darkness, as the day began, and the woods came to life. Birds were moving about through the limbs, and a noisy squirrel seemed to think I had taken his perch. It was at this point I was visited by a pestilence of the deep south known as love bugs, thus named because they spend their lives physically attached to their mates. Therma cells obviously have no effect on love bugs.

With the good earth now fully awakened and the temperature rising, this quickly led to the end of my morning hunt. My arrow found no venison today, but the season has begun and I was thankful to be there for the kick off. Was it worth it? You bet it was, it is a season of new beginnings and new promises, new hopes, and chances to replenish our food stores with meat straight from the bounty of nature.

Fred Bear, renowned archer, and hunter may have said it best about tree sitting: "When a hunter is in a tree stand with high moral values and with the proper hunting ethics and richer for the experience, that hunter is, 20 feet closer to God.

Old Captain sends