2008-2009 News Archives

      The turkey season of 2009 ended with little fanfare for me. I hunted only about three times in the final two weeks, hearing a bird on one of those hunts and finding nothing gobbling on the other two hunts. Our birds quietened down---what was left of them---towards the end and as the weather warmed up and the bugs got worse, I lost interest a bit.
      Our turkey numbers were certainly down this season, nevertheless, we we had a good time and killed five birds in all, three for myself and two for my father.
      I've now turned my attention to crappie fishing and spending time with my two boys. Thanks to all who have tuned in here each week for updates throughout this 2008-09 hunting season. I'll see you back here in September. In closing I share photos and tidbits submitted by some of you that enjoy this site. Thanks for sharing and have a good, safe summer.

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      Saturday morning, a week ago, my father and I tangled with a bird for the first hour and a half of the morning and having no luck with him, we set out on a walk around the property in search of a willing turkey. We finally found one at about 9 AM and set out towards him. He was in a pine plantation and gobbling periodically on his own. I almost walked too close and I suddenly heard clucking through the timber in front of me. It was my dad's turn to shoot and I had intended for him to be in front of me, but I could only sit down right where I was as did he, about 10 yards behind me.
      I really thought we were busted as I put my back to a pine tree. A few moments later the turkey gobbled again, much to my relief. He was not far and there was no point in risking moving around to change our positions. I yelped a time or two and he answered both calls. I felt good about our chances. I had a good shot if he came to our right and my dad would be covering him if he came to the left, a real possibility.
       In a few moments I saw him through the pines moving to our right. He then came towards us and with the timber so thick I had to let him get pretty close before I could get a shot. At 20 yards I got him, my third of the season. The shot came just seven minutes after we sat down.

The bird came through the timber from left
to right and I shot him at the X mark.

       We had a great crappie tournament here on Saturday, maybe one of the biggest in the state. Two hundred and forty anglers competed and a 2.85 lb. fish took home the top money of the day. We paid out over $4400 in winnings and another $1300 worth of door prizes. The tagged fish event has started off slow and the best of that still lies ahead. It continues until May 17th and the fish are soon to be on the banks. If you crappie fish, you need to be in Camden the next few weekends to get in on this action, and you just might even win a new Chevy truck or some of the thousands in cash that those tagged fish represent. See all the details and photos at our website by clicking here.
       I have not hunted much in the past week but intend to chase the birds a few more times this week and this weekend. Stay tuned...

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I have another turkey tale or two to tell, but time is short this week. Until I get that put together, I highly recommend that you LINK over to this PAGE and read David Rainer's article on Camden's Sadler McGraw. Sadler, who lives down the street from me, has made a name for himself in the turkey calling contests across the nation. The aforementioned article offers a lot of valuable information that you will want to read.

I'll have another post later this week to focus on turkey hunting, but right now I'm preparing for the Wilcox Area Chamber of Commerce's Big Fish Crappie Tournament and Derby that kicks off this Saturday. We are expecting over 200 anglers in the tournament on Saturday and then for the next 30 days hundreds of anglers will be looking for the tagged fish in the lake worth anywhere from $100 up to a brand new Chevy truck. See all the details at www.wilcoxareachamber.org and if you can fish, come join us on Saturday or anytime during the 30 day derby.

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      Monday's hunt started out with a 36 degree temperature. Though several hunters that I spoke with later in the day heard turkeys gobble, I did not. On Tuesday I returned to the swamp on a colder day with a light frost on the ground and the temperature at 33 degrees. I did hear several turkeys but by the time I reached the hot gobbling bird he had quietened down for the morning.
      Thursday my father and I found a bird roosted right back in the same place he was on the prior Saturday morning. Knowing which way he went after hitting the ground on that day, we set up accordingly, in the edge of a very open pine plantation, a former field planted in pines through the CRP program. He gobbled well on the roost and when I heard his first gobble on the ground I gave him a very low yelp. Then another yelp that was just a bit louder. He answered that one.
      A minute or so later his gobble was much closer and then he came into view, headed right towards us, in and out of a half strut. I was sitting against a pine that was not nearly wide enough to break my silhouette but I had placed many sweet gum limbs in front as a blind. I shot the bird at 20 steps.
       It was at least the fourth or fifth day we had yelped to this turkey with all prior attempts in vain. I felt sure he was an older, long spurred turkey, by the way he had played us on the prior hunts. I was wrong. He was a 2-year old.

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Saturday morning a great turkey hunt was cut short when my father and I came upon three big sows and lots of piglets as we were closing in on a hot gobbling turkey. The sows made such a commotion that the bird clammed up and not knowing where he was and what his mood had become, we left him alone. We spent much of the morning looking for another turkey to engage and though we heard two more, neither was interested in us or any amount of gobbling.
It was evident on our travel through the property that the river covered more ground in the recent high water than I realized. Here are a few photos that show the water line around four feet deep in some of the areas that normally hold turkeys.

Alongside the "pen woods," the water line is
evident about four feet off the ground.

       Sunday morning, through intermittent rain showers, Scott Dickens and I hunted his north Monroe County property. We had one bird to start the day gobbling well but I fear we moved too close to the bird who was roosted in a stand of thinned plantation pines. He clammed up and since it happened right after we moved positions, I think he saw us somehow.
       This season's weather has been challenging for sure. We have had some good days, but also plenty of windy and wet days. And now a rare cold front for the first week of April. For the next two mornings we are looking at temps near 30 degrees, which is not all that bad, but the wind appears to cause some issues for at least Tuesday.
       Thanks to everyone who has emailed photos and stories. Keep them coming. I'll try to post something at least twice a week. This week we feature Wint Smith's story of his son's first bird. Wint hunts some beautiful property south of Dothan, Alabama. It was on that property, with his brother Alex back in our college days, that I experienced my first and only quail hunt---a real quail hunt. They had, and likely still do, have a good population of wild birds there on the state line. We had one heck of a hunt one weekend that I will never forget.

Wint and Winston Smith

Wint Smith writes....

      It was 5:15am and I was getting a little upset with my 13 year old son, Winston. It was March 15^th and the second day of the youth weekend of turkey season in Alabama . We hunted the day before and we heard a tom sound off 4 or 5 times but I couldn’t get the bird to respond or fly down. The weather wasn’t real good that morning either, and I started thinking I didn’t like way the morning was shaping up. I told Winston we would back out of there and leave him alone and come back and try him again the next day.
       That Saturday was his first day of turkey hunting ever and he couldn’t understand why I didn’t keep calling. He’s 13 and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t make him understand.   Needless to say, getting him up the next day was a chore after an uneventful first day of turkey hunting. I finally told him, “Winston, get up! I can’t go hunting unless you go, son!”
      I had my own selfish reasons for wanting to go. I have been addicted to turkey hunting since starting late at age 38 and one could easily say I was “sick” when it comes right down to it. Even though I couldn’t carry a gun this particular day, I love to watch the show and the chance of seeing my oldest son get his first bird was not going to pass me by. Well, I finally got him up and we were off to woods about 5:50am well before sunrise. Winston was not happy.
      I sat Winston next to a big water oak on a thick fence row full of hardwoods. He was holding my Beretta 12 gauge loaded with 3” #6 shot. The fence row was facing a 10 acre corn field. I placed a hen decoy in the corn field approximately 25 yards in front of him. I sat parallel to Winston against another big water oak so that I could watch him and get his attention if I needed to. To the right of us was a hardwood bottom and creek swamp. On the other side of the corn field was more of the Cowart’s Creek swamp. To our backs were young long leaf pines. It was the exact same place we had set up the day before.
       After 30 minutes of sitting in the dark and watching it lighten up around us, I noticed I had not heard a Barred Owl that morning. This was highly unusual for this spot and the reason I never bothered bringing a locator call with me. At 6:30am, I decided to yelp, very lightly, on my slate call. On the other side of the corn field in the creek bottom, the tom immediately responded from the same spot he was the day before. At least we knew he was there and I could tell Winston was excited. I remained quiet and then an owl sounded off and he gobbled again.   Five minutes later, the owl broke the silence again and the turkey double gobbled. I decided to call again and heard nothing from the bird.
      I waited until about 6:50am before I called again…very lightly on the slate. The gobbler didn’t respond. However, across the field I heard a turkey fly down and immediately a hen entered the field and she was steadily yelping. I decided to yelp back at her and we had a conversation for a few minutes. At 7:05am I thought to myself, there is no way he is going to be able to stand this, he’s got to fly down. Not 30 seconds later I heard two sets of wings fly down in the creek bottom and another hen and the gobbler soon entered the field. He was in full strut and gobbled two or three times. I looked at Winston and the gun was laid across his lap. I couldn’t believe it. I whispered as loud as I could, “Get ready.” Winston eased the gun up.
       The turkeys were about 65 yards away from the decoy and I had instructed Winston to not shoot until the bird got within 10 yards of the decoy. Well, for 40 minutes the gobbler would move to within 50 yards of the decoy in response to my calls and then move back toward the hens. It was a great show full of strutting, drumming, and gobbling. It was exactly the reason I love turkey hunting so much. I thought, we aren’t going to kill this bird---he’ll never leave those two hens---and I started getting a little depressed. I really wanted Winston to get a shot at this bird. He was starting to fidget and moving around and I worried he would spook the birds.       At approximately 7:50am, our luck turned. Another tom gobbled about 40 yards behind us in the pines behind us and immediately our strutting bird in the field came out of strut and stuck his head up. There was competition coming his way. I felt better immediately because I felt like Winston would at least get a shot at the bird behind us. I called and the bird behind us sounded off again. Immediately our bird in the field eased about 10 yards closer to the decoy and went into strut again. I started purring continuously on the slate and he couldn’t stand it anymore and made a bee line to the decoy.
      I looked at Winston and he had the gun up and the tom was about 15 yards away from him when I heard him take the safety off. I couldn’t believe he hadn’t already taken the safety off. I was about to die. I was thinking to myself, “What are you waiting on, son, shoot him!” The gobbler was moving around, bobbing back and forth when Winston finally fired the gun.
      He missed! I couldn’t believe it. The pattern on that gun is tight at that range and he obviously didn’t have it right on his head when he fired. I thought, “It’s over.” To my disbelief, the gobbler went about 7 yards and stopped. Also, the hens didn’t fly. The tom behind us didn’t fly, either. I looked over at Winston and the gun was swaying from left to right. I thought to myself, “He is going to miss that bird again!”   All of a sudden the Beretta went off again and the gobbler tumbled approximately 13 yards away from where Winston sat.
      I got up and started whooping and hollering and went over to Winston and he looked like he was slap worn out and so relieved. The gobbler behind us had gotten to within 20 yards of us and he flew. The hens flew off this time, too. I had educated those turkeys in my excitement but I didn’t care at the time. I hugged him and told him I was proud of him and ask him why he missed the first time and he replied, “Dad, I was shaking so bad!”   I said, “It doesn’t matter now, does it? Let’s take a look at him.”
      He was a great first turkey for Winston. He weighed 18 lbs, had a 10 ½” beard, and had 1” spurs. He was as nice as any bird I had killed in four years of turkey hunting and I couldn’t have been happier. I will never forget that day and I know Winston will never forget it, either. I have a partner for life in the turkey woods.
      For what it’s worth, the bird that was behind us that morning replaced the old tom immediately and proceeded to make a complete fool out of me the next weekend. If I don’t kill him or any other bird for that matter, it’s no big deal. The experience my oldest son and I had together was all I needed to make this year the most successful year I’ve had yet. I have two more boys coming up and a baby girl, and I can’t wait until I get to share something like this with them one day.

Email Wint at wint.smith@sefl.com

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      Wednesday morning we returned to the gobbler that put on such a show in the thunder of Tuesday. We might as well name him Thunderbird, thanks to the twelve consecutive gobbles that he performed at the clap on thunder on Tuesday. I think we are going to be speaking of this bird for a few days, if not weeks. He did not gobble early but we suspected he was roosted in the same location so we moved in after day had begun to break. He was roosted in some big pines at the edge of a little wet spot, bordering a old field that was planted in pines 18 years ago. We moved in close—almost too close—but quietly thanks to the damp ground and pine needles. I knew where I wanted to be which was right where he walked the day before. He gave us one gobble to confirm his location and we moved forward, out of the smaller pines in the old field and to the larger pines. We were closer than I would like to have gone, but we were where we needed to be when we sat down. Or at least I thought we were.
      A short while later I heard him fly down right in front of us. He hit the ground about 60 yards away and I gave him a soft cluck and yelp. He immediately strutted and came into view and moved closer. I was certain he was going to my right and directly in front of my father. He got 40 or so yards and spun around and strutted back the other way, then back towards us, and then strutted to our left. He put on a ten minute show but was not coming to the spot of the hen’s call. The hen would have to come to him. He moved off a ways and I yelped at him again. He turned toward us in full strut, then out of strut, and the last time I saw him he was walking the opposite direction from us.
       We hatched a better plan for Thursday morning. We would move in earlier, in the darkness and we had trees picked out for each of us to sit by. My father would be in the shooting position and I would stay back about 50 yards to lure the bird in. A thunderstorm in the area kept us close to the truck and by the time the threat of lightning subsided, it was daylight and the plan could not be carried out. I hooted and heard a different turkey gobble on the property. To him we went.
       We set up on this bird a good distance away with a good idea he too would come to an old field now planted in pines, thanks to the CRP program. He gobbled a few times in the tree, then hit the ground and gobbled. I yelped and he answered. A few minutes later I yelped and clucked again and he answered again. He took his time, but it wasn’t long before I heard him drumming and then through the pines he came. My father got him at a range of about 25 yards.
       He was a fine bird indeed. One spur was and inch and three eights and the other and inch and a quarter. He weighed 17.8 lbs. and had a ten inch beard.

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          Ten and a quarter inches of rain fell at my house on the north side of Camden through Saturday morning. The river has risen but lacks three feet of cutting us off from reaching our property. Of course we have water backing in on the property in the low areas and everywhere that water can stand it is standing. On Saturday I literally saw water gurgling out of the ground in high spots. It is wet indeed.
       Barnett Serio again hunted with me on the school benefit hunt. We exited the truck about 8am on Saturday after the last band of rain passed over. I hooted and a bird gobbled. I guessed he was in a food plot nearby, likely where he spent the rainy morning. I've heard it said that even chickens, with their tiny brains, have enough sense to get out of the rain. But turkeys, when it rains, go right out in the open. They just love a field when it is raining. I guess the woods don't offer that much cover and when everything is moving, the field becomes a safer place from predators.
       We never found that bird or heard him again. Not seeing him in the field and after not getting another response for some time, we kept moving down the riverbank quite a ways where we got another bird to answer several hundred yards away. We moved that way, then had a gobbler come in behind us and start gobbling. We stopped, still in the middle of the two and not as close to either as I would like to have been. My decision was to wait a few minutes and see what their intentions were. We never heard from either of them again.  It was really weird the way they treated us. And certainly not appreciated.
       Saturday afternoon the wind blew and blew and we had no luck at all. On Sunday morning we cashed in an invite to hunt with friend Marc on his property on the western side of the county.  Sunday dawned clear and cool but the wind rustling through the trees at daybreak would steadily increase in strength through the morning.  We were hunting woods in the high ground overlooking Dixon Creek, which was full of water backed in from the river. We heard a lot of turkeys gobble and it was one of those times I am always thankful that we are the ones with the guns and not the turkeys. We were certainly outnumbered.  The first bird we set up on I suspect we got too close and yelped too early. He shut up. And with two gobblers rattling the woods a little distance away, we struck out towards them.
       When we arrived in their bottom, they had hit the ground and gotten quiet themselves. After a while we eventually gave up on them and went back to bird number one. He had pitched over a food plot into a hardwood bottom and was on a dry patch of ground in a prime location for his enjoyment.  He answered our calls and we moved in, but he held his ground and stayed in his strutting zone. Marc maneuvered into position to get a good look at him, well outside of gun range. The bird remained in full strut for almost an hour. Our time ran out and we backed out and left him alone.
       Overall the benefit hunt went well. As is often the case, in years when the weather is less than what a hunter would order, the body count is higher than would be expected. Out of 25 hunters, eight birds were killed and there were seven misses. Barnett and I did kill 6 hogs in the Swamp on Saturday, seeing three big groups there.

       Tuesday morning my father and I tangled with what is apparently a smart bird. We found him in the piney woods and elicited a goggle from him as day began breaking. We moved into position as a light rain began to fall and distant thunder echoed through the swamp. The gobbler answer each clap of thunder and then one struck close, about two miles away. That lightning strike was a big one and the thunder seemed to roll and roll and roll through the early morning air. The bird gobbled twelve times as fast as he could, pausing only to suck in enough air to let out the next gobble. It was one of the best gobbling barrages I have ever heard.
       When he hit the ground I yelped to him and he responded well. My father was sitting five yards in front of me and the gobbler quickly walked toward us and approached at a ten o'clock position. He then circled us, moving clockwise until he reached a four o'clock position. I had twisted around to get the gun on him, hoping he would come right on a little closer. He was fifty yards and that's a little farther than I care to shoot a bird.
       He then proceeded to backtrack, going counter clockwise back to a nine o'clock position and behind some thick cover. He stayed in about the same place for thirty minutes and gobbled a few more times. It was obvious he was not going to come to us today.

Brian Jones, of Camden, and one of two he's killed this year.
1 inch spurs, 10 inch beard, 19 lbs.

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      We started March needing 10 inches of rain for the month to get us to average for the year so far and we are already there. Thanks to this last round of 5.3 inches that has fallen in my gauge from 7am Wednesday to 7am Thursday, we have now received 10.45 inches for the month of March and it is still falling. There could be one or two more rounds of heavy rain to pass through before we dry out for a few days.
       Such rainfall is always greeted with a watchful eye during turkey season. With much of the Horn Swamp susceptible to flooding, these rains can raise the river and put a real damper on the turkey hunting. Of course, what falls here does not matter as much as what falls upstream. Time will tell and we'll just have to wait and see.
       Nevertheless, thanks to wind on Wednesday and heavy rain this morning, I have not been back to the woods since I killed the bird Tuesday morning.

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      My third hunt of the season on Tuesday morning went pretty much according to plan. Finally I got to the woods on time. I left home a little earlier and the cloud cover kept the approaching daylight at bay for a few extra minutes.
       I found one of the gobblers I had heard on my previous outings near where I had last heard him four days earlier. This time he was roosted in the oldest pines on the property, near where several stands of mature pines intersect and about 200 yards east of the Alabama River. About 75% of the property is capable of flooding in a real high water and there exists a sudden elevation change of about 10 feet that runs across the property, somewhat from east to west, that divides the part that will and will not flood. Right on the edge of that change in elevation, on the higher ground side, is the remnants of a sharecroppers cabin. I missed my first deer out of a log structure that was part of the tenant's homeplace many years ago in this exact spot.
      The bird gobbled pretty well in the tree. With the woods still very open I had gotten as close as I could to sit and wait. I did not make a sound, opting to let him get on the ground before I yelped. I sat and waited. Finally he flew down, in the bottom under the hill below me and seemingly a bit in the other direction. I knew I had room to move up, so I yelped to him and pleased with his answer, I moved forward. I pictured him popping up right from the lower elevation into view as I settled by a pine tree.
      He gobbled a few more times, closer with each response. I yelped a couple more times and shut up. He popped up the hill about 40 yards west of me and still out of sight, but I knew he was on my elevation when he gobbled the next time. In a moment I saw him as he walked right through what little remains of that old homeplace, his blue-white head bobbing through the brown of the piney woods. I had to twist a little to my right to get the gun on him, then he turned a little more to my left and walked closer. It was finally time to close the deal and at a range of 25 yards I got my first gobbler of the season.
       The bird weighed 17.6 lbs. and had good sharp spurs of an inch and a sixteenth in length. His beard measured 11 inches with one strand reaching 12 inches. I estimated he was a good 3 year old bird and possibly a 4 year old.

The ground slopes off to the left of the photo and this little
change in elevation separates what does and does not
flood in a real high water.

The bird was at the X mark when I shot. The tree I was sitting beside was as bare as the one in the photo. There is little cover in which to hide in these woods right now.

First gobbler of the season!
The pile of rocks you see in the background is the remnants of a chimney from a sharecroppers home. I killed the bird in the "yard" of this old homeplace.

The spurs were just an inch and a sixteenth but had
some curvature and were quite sharp.

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I was out of town for this last beautiful weekend, the first of turkey season, and did not hunt. I'm returning to the woods within the hour and hope to hunt a good bit in the coming days. How much quality hunting I will get done remains to be seen as the pleasant days come to an end and the rain returns. Some forecasts call for as much as 4 inches between now and the weekend. This weekend will mark the Wilcox Academy Benefit Turkey Hunt, in about its 38th year of the hunt. I'll be guiding my usual hunter and friend, Barnett Serio, from Natchez, Mississippi.
Last season Barnett and I had good luck on Saturday morning. We waited out a rainstorm at daybreak and then set out through the woods and calling and walking. We eventually got a response and called a bird right up in the piney woods to Barnett and he made a good shot.

These tiny sweetgum leaves will soon provide
some good cover in our pineywoods that are now
currently void of any green or any good cover for the hunter.

So far, what little I've seen, the birds have gobbled fairly decently in the tree but have flown down and gotten quiet. I have not been able to stay with them later in the morning to know if any interest returns at some point. The woods are very open but the trees are budding more and more each day and soon we'll have a little more cover in which to hide from the wary eye of the turkey.

William Malone and author, Tom Kelly, from
Mr. Kelly's recent appearance in Camden.

Charles Estes, of Dothan, killed his first gobbler on March 15th
while hunting with his stepfather, Mark Coffman.

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      March the 20th was the opening day of turkey season for many years, until it was bumped back to the 15th just a few seasons ago. Though turkeys have been gobbling for weeks now and the mating ritual is well underway, the best of the season in this area does not take place until very late in March and into April. Sure, turkeys have been killed and will be killed anytime the season is open, but the best of the gobbling action, which by the way is the reason I hunt turkeys, is a week or two away.
      I've talked to quite a few hunters in the area and their observations concur with mine at this point--the turkeys are gobbling fairly well in the tree but most have little to say once they hit the ground. At this point they are surrounded by hens and calling more hens to them is not a necessity. As the spring progresses that will change. The hens will go their way earlier to nest and the gobblers will become more anxious to find them. That is when it gets really fun.
      If this beautiful weather continues I expect a whole lot of action in a week's time in our woods.

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      Last Wednesday night I had the pleasure of attending an evening event at the Hunter's Run restaurant in Camden in which Tom Kelly, the Poet Laureate of turkey hunting, spoke. It was a fun evening. Mr. Kelly is starting his 71st turkey season and had his latest book, "Absent Companions," for the attendees. He has written quite a few fine books in the past few years. You can order any of his book in print at www.tomkellyinc.net .
      Our 11th Annual Wilcox County Longbeards Chapter of the NWTF banquet was held Saturday night. I expected it to be off in attendance due to the poor economy. I was wrong. We filled up the local armory with 350+ and turned down ticket sales on Saturday, when we absolutely had no more room, that would have pushed us over 400. It was good to see folks turn out for a fun night and a great meal to support the NWTF.
       I finally got in the woods Wednesday morning. I heard two birds, but did not get a shot. They gobbled pretty well in the tree but little on the ground and were very uncooperative. The weather for the turkey hunting, beginning this past Tuesday, has been perfect. What a wonderful time to be in the woods!

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Country music artist Rhett Akins' new song, Hung Up, will be playing through your speakers in a moment so turn it up and enjoy. Akins sings about an old boss gobbler that he tangled with, "down in a holler." Akins has several songs that have done well on the charts in country music. He has written quite a few about hunting and the outdoors as well. Most are not yet on CD. One of my favorites of is, "I've got friends with tractors." I'll let you hear that in the coming weeks.

Houston Trexler and father, Chuck, pose with Houston's
first buck, killed in Wilcox County this season.

      It is beginning to feel a lot like spring. And here we are at the start of another spring turkey season, my favorite season of the year. There are so many reasons I like turkey hunting more than deer hunting. I think I've covered it here before, but I'll revisit those reasons just for the heck of it.
      Defeating a deer's sense of smell is always a pain in the rear. You do what you can on your end and then you have to rely on a steady wind that often swirls around a bit just to keep things interesting. A deer's nose is his best weapon and it is often hard to defeat. Turkeys don't smell so that problem does not arise in the spring turkey woods.
      The turkey's weapon is his incredible eyesight. A turkey hunter must be absolutely still when the eyes of a turkey can see him. Should a hunter need to move a bit, he still can, as long as his movement progresses at the slow speed that kudzu grows. A hunter can put on complete camo, find a good hiding spot in the woods, and maybe sweeten it up with a blind or just some fresh cut branches stuck in the dirt in front on his location.
       Turkeys are not nocturnal. Put some pressure on deer and they will begin to move almost exclusively at night, especially the older bucks. Turkeys of all ages go to roost at sunset and will remain in the tree all night long. They will fly down in the morning and spend the day on the ground, feeding and doing the things that make them turkeys. But they are huntable during the daylight hours, unlike many deer are.
       I like the fact that you can go out in the morning for a few hours and have a great hunt and return to other things the remainder of the day. With deer hunting, I tend to spend large amounts of time in the tree simply waiting, and waiting, and waiting. I can gauge the potential success of a turkey hunt pretty quickly each day. Some mornings they simply don't gobble and I let them be. I have never been able to pin down deer movement as well as I can that of the turkeys.
       Turkey hunting can not go down the trophy hunting path that deer hunting has evolved into. A somewhat experienced turkey hunter can tell the difference in a 2-year old bird and an older bird, but not always, and can certainly tell the difference in a 1-year old (jake) that should not be shot, and a 2-year old or better that is fair game. Most of the time you don't know if you killed an old gobbler (4+ years) or a younger gobbler (2 to 3 years) until you get your hands on him. Plus, you can't fence in turkeys, feed them high protein, and grow them larger than the folks down the road can. There is something simpler about turkey hunting and a turkey is just a turkey. Simple is just so much better to me.
       You can actually have a nice conversation with a turkey. I've never done that with a deer. Turkeys let you know where they are, most days, and by their gobbles often times you can tell where they are going and even if they are leaving the area. Deer slip in and out quietly and you never know where they are or even if they are still on the property. The vocal nature of the birds and the ability to call them in is what really makes turkey hunting the draw that it is for most turkey hunters.

      I did not get to attend the Beer Bust last weekend and don't have a report on how it went just yet. I'm looking forward to hearing Tom Kelly speak tomorrow night in Camden and on Saturday our NWTF chapter is having its annual banquet. Once we begin to recover from that, Monday will be here and the season will open. Good luck to you and see you next week with an early report.

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Here are the last of the pictures send to me by successful area hunters this deer season.

Carter Weeks killed this fine buck in Clarke County
the last week of the season, near the Tombigbee River.

Scott Cawthon emailed this picture of bucks killed by his
father and brother in Lowndes County this season.

       Tom Kelly, known as the Poet Laureate of turkey hunting tales, will be in Camden at the Hunter's Run restaurant on the evening of March 11th. For a ticket to attend this special night, contact Jeannie Buckner at 334-349-8876. Tom Kelly is known for his books the Tenth Legion, Better on a Rising Tide, Dealer's Choice, the Season, and many others. I have read most all of his books at least once and some many times. They are entertaining and enlightening. I have heard him speak at a similar function and he is quite entertaining. You will not want to miss this event if you are in the local area or within a reasonable driving distance.
      Our Wilcox County Chapter of the NWTF will hold its annual banquet on the evening of March 14th in Camden. Normally held in February, the date was pushed back to March this year and it appears to be a good thing. A good many hunters from out of town will already be here either in anticipation or preparation of the pending turkey season or for the youth hunting days. Anyone who wants a ticket in advance can contact me at 334-525-0462. We normally sell out (325+) prior to the event so please do not delay if you are interested.
       So, are the turkeys gobbling yet in this area? I have talked to hunters who say they are are some say they are not. Others have been pleased to see this cold weather stick around a little to "keep them from gobbling out before the season starts." Too much warm weather in February and early March really can kick start the gobbling and possibly cause it to play out early in April. This February has seen plenty of cool weather so that should not be the case this year.
       See you next week and I'll try to have an update from the Beer Bust at Bill Cooper's range that takes place this weekend. If you don't know what I'm referring to, scroll down to last week's update for details.

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For those expert marksmen out there, those that might think they are, or anybody that wants to have a little fun with their rifle, let me tell you about the Beer Bust taking place near Camden on March 8th. This is being held at Bill Cooper's firing range just north of Camden, between town and the State Park. For a $10 entry fee (and you can enter as many times as you want), you get 5 shots to hit a suspended beer can (a balloon is the target at the 400 and 500 yard shots.) Let's hope it isn't windy that day!. The first shot is freehanded at 100 yards, the second shot is sitting down at 200 yards, the third shot is from a bench rest. For the 4th shot at 400 yards and the fifth shot at 500 yards the target changes from a beer to a suspended balloon, both from a bench rest. There's a 100% payback to the winner(s). For more information call Bill Cooper at 334-682-9340. It is going to be a fun event.
I'm short of time this week but still have some photos of nice bucks to upload to this page. I'll have those for you next week.

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      We're now a month away from spring turkey season. Veteran turkey hunters will want to take note, the season opens on March 16th this year rather than the traditional 15th. I have talked to a lot of people so far that do not know that. The 14th and 15th will be Youth Hunting Days and the regular season will open on Monday the 16th.
      For those of you in the Win 98.5 listening area in west Alabama, tune in to the outdoors show, Chattin Outdoors, on Saturday morning from 7 to 8:30am. I will be a guest host with "Big Daddy" Lawler and we will be talking about the upcoming Wilcox Area Chamber Crappie Tournament and Jackpot Derby.
      Anyone with more big buck pictures from the season please send them to me at hornswamp@yahoo.com . Turkey season will be here soon and we will switch gears.

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Danny McDonald at McDonald's Grocery and Sports Store on Highway 10 west of Camden sees a lot of hunters come and go through his store. He recently told me that he has seen more big bucks killed this season than any season in the recent past and he's heard of more hog problems as well. I am continuing to get photos of nice bucks killed in this area and share a few more of them this week.
No area hunter likely had a better season than Billy Perryman. I showed you the 152+ inch buck that he killed early in the season. He followed that one with a 160 3/8 12-point killed in late January. Both bucks were killed on the same property in Wilcox County. Their property has no high fences, no feeding operations, nothing special done other than letting the little ones go and grow.

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      Three and a half hours into my hunt Saturday afternoon I looked over my left shoulder and watched the sun drop behind the trees. It was 5:10 and that signaled that about 40 minutes of shooting light remained in the big hardwoods where I had been sitting since 1:30 P.M. I had seen only one deer up to that point, a small buck that worked his way through the woods nearby. I did not make it out for a morning hunt so this was my one and only "last weekend" hunt.
      The big woods had been disappointing in my trips there this January. It began with a lot of promise, based on seeing a lot of deer there last January, including a good many bucks and two big shooter bucks. We had another big acorn crop this fall, bigger even than the prior year's, and I expected the pattern to continue. It did not and with each passing weekend of January I saw fewer deer in those woods. I surmise that the acorns soured earlier this year with all the rainfall we had and the deer have held back in the thicket.
       For this last hunt I moved my climber about 75 yards and was perched over a good scrape line. I could see numerous big scrapes from my stand, many within shooting range, and all in the area where the bucks were crisscrossing at the end of last season.
       The light grew dimmer and dimmer Saturday afternoon as the season wound to a close. A big hog appeared behind me but did not pass within range as he fed his way through the hardwood forest. The season came to an uneventful close as I climbed down and carried the climber stand from the woods.

       My cousin Curtis and his friends hunted the Swamp the last few days of the season. I have not gotten a report from them from the last day of the season, but can say that Bob killed a fine 9 point on Thursday afternoon. Bob was in a climber in the big pines in the heart of the property when this buck kicked some sort of discarded plastic bottle or small bucket. Bob said he heard a distant "clunk" and looked nearby to see the fine buck that had tipped right up on him in the pine needles. He quickly found an opening and killed him at less than 30 yards.

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      The falling rain did not tempt me Saturday morning. I stayed home---inside. At lunchtime my family joined the group hunting in the Swamp for lunch and a campfire as the rain subsided. As the weekend wound down Sunday afternoon I finally got in the woods for a very uneventful hunt. I saw one spike. Back in the big hardwoods where I could see a long distance I was surprised to just see one deer in that three and a half hour sit.
      My cousin Tommy and his friends Billy, Randy, and Brad killed 8 more hogs in the Swamp this past week. That brings our total to 36 killed from the property since October. There are plenty more and I suspect the next group of hunters this final week of the season will push that total well over 40.
        One day remains for me to hunt. I stick with them Saturday from dawn to dusk and see what happens. After saving up my time to hunt until January, this month has been very uneventful for me in the woods. I saw more early in the month that I have of late. Maybe that will change the last day.

Kirk Talbot was walking to his stand on their lease in Wilcox County the weekend before last and tipped right up on this big buck. He shot the deer at less than 30 yards. A bow hunter on the adjacent property had shot this deer a few weeks ago in the neck, making a non fatal shot. Don't you know he was sick to have not gotten the buck then. The buck was not so lucky when Kirk spotted him as Kirk was toting a rifle.

Hugh Holland killed this nice buck (above) the weekend before last and his son Rhett killed the heavy racked 6 point this past week. This father and son team had a great week in the Alabama deer woods of Autauga County.

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      The 22 degree morning on Saturday did not entice me into my climber to hold a cold bow in such weather. I got in the woods Saturday afternoon and saw a good many deer, both bucks and does, including one likely shooter that passed through about 100 yards from me. I did sit through a light rain Sunday morning and saw very little. Sunday afternoon was uneventful as well.
       I spent eight hours in the tree Monday, beginning before day and lasting until about 11am before taking a break and then getting back into a stand around 1pm. The wind really began to blow about 2pm and I was swaying in the tree for much of the afternoon. I saw very little all day with the highlight coming at 10am when a small 8 point passed right under me. At fifteen minutes past sundown I had enough and climbed down. On the way back to camp I saw a few hogs cross the road and I stopped the golf cart and walked forward and got a shot at one, a quick shot, and sent an arrow right through the gut of a 75 pound sow. I trailed her for 100 yards and the blood ran out and I gave up.
       My cousin Josh and his friends Wes and Clay hunted several days in the Horn Swamp, killing one 6 point and 4 hogs. Pictured below is Wes's 6 point.

I'm getting a lot of pictures in of bucks killed across the area in recent weeks. Indeed they are on the move. I'll have those pictures posted in coming weeks so stay tuned and keep them coming.

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      This past weekend started warm and ended rather cold. My guys on the school deer hunt (Larry, Dane, Brian, and Keith) got in the woods Thursday afternoon. Larry shot two hogs on that hunt. Friday morning started off cool but quickly warmed to the high 60s. Larry killed a nice 8 point on Friday afternoon and Brian killed a big doe (118 lbs.) that afternoon as well. Brian and his 12-year old son Keith were hunting together and the shot was farther than Keith wanted to attempt so Brian took the doe. As of Saturday evening that doe was leading the Big Doe Contest of the hunt.
       I joined the guys Saturday morning and managed to jump a few hogs in the piney woods of the property and kill one, an 80 pound sow. Larry killed a 60 pound sow that morning as well. The low for the morning was 62 and the high reached 71 as scattered rain showered moved through during the day. Saturday afternoon Larry killed a big spike that had some little brow tines. That concluded their hunt as all were driving back to Lake Charles, LA the following morning.
        The big rain passed through during the night and we got about an inch overall. By Sunday morning the temperature was down to 42 and would not reach but 44 all day. I went to the bow club Sunday morning and climbed back into my climber in the hardwoods. I saw about 10 deer, half of them young bucks, and got very cold. I did not have enough clothes on to block the cold wind. Sunday afternoon I returned with more clothes but saw just one deer.
       Over the Wilcox Academy Benefit Deer Hunt saw 98 animals (bucks, does, and hogs) brought in by about 95 hunters. There were a dozen or so really nice bucks killed including some of the best racks I've seen taken on the hunt in recent years. I hope to have some more pictures to show you in the coming weeks of those bucks. For a warm weekend with a full moon hanging overhead I thought it went real well.
       The best of the season is upon us and I'm looking forward to hunting the next few weekends. Stay tuned...

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      On the afternoon of January 1st I hooked my climber on a tall, straight red oak and ascended 25 feet over a hardwood swamp filled with acorns. It would be my first hunt of the season. The last time I deer hunted was Jan. 31st, right here in this same tree. A lot had changed in the world since I had climbed down that day eleven months ago.
      The economy had officially gone on the skids and the stock market had fallen dramatically. A new President had been elected. We had said goodbye to my 100 year old grandmother and then a few months later welcomed a second son into our family. But as I settled into the stand and perused the landscape one thing was evident---nothing had changed here. The woods still looked as inviting as I had left it and the silence of the swamp was welcomed by my senses.
       I pulled out a book and began the vigil. Would I get lucky on the first time out?
      I was already a bit proud of myself. It appeared that I had made it to the woods with all the required gear---safety strap, string to pull up the bow, gloves and facemask, cap, flashlight, wind checking powder, limb saw, rangefinder, and the obvious bow, arrows, and release.  Many a first trip in the past had I forgotten some key element of gear. Not this time.
      There were plenty of deer tracks that I had seen on my way to the stand and acorns covered the ground in immense proportions. There remained more acorns here, most still good, than the animals would ever eat. I saw but a few scrapes under the limbs of trees where they were last January, but they are soon to be made I am certain.
       I did not see a deer until the sun set and between then and the time darkness enveloped the woods I saw 8, a mixture of does and small bucks. There is no pattern of movement here in these woods but there seems to be a few areas the deer like to walk and those are the ones I'll concentrate on for the remainder of the season.
       I enter this January with a fresh sense of excitement. For the past 14 or so seasons I have hunted from opening day until the final day. By the time the rut rolls around I've had over 2 months of hunting under my belt and I'm a bit weary of the sitting. This time around I'm excited that my "season" is just beginning. I see 8 days remaining that I can hunt and weather permitting I'm hoping to have some success.

            Saturday morning I returned to those same woods and set up in another tree about 200 yards from the previous location. Just after eight o'clock a doe tipped in from behind me, to the north, the same direction the wind was blowing. It was a warm and muggy morning and I knew my scent was hanging close to the ground. She soon got wary and hung up in the woods about 30 yards from me, then tipped closer. I was sure she would bolt but did not, and soon stepped out in the open and looked right at me.
        I was ready to draw but could not move a muscle. She looked forward, then back at me, then forward again, then back at me again. Then she looked the other way and I drew. She looked right back at me as I peered at her through the peep sight. I moved the pin into position and touched the release.
        It was a 23 yard shot and I aimed a little low on her just in case she ducked a bit. The bows of today are unlike those of a decade ago when such was necessary. The arrow hit her before she could flinch. It went right through her lower brisket and out the other side, centering her heart and breaking her leg. She ran 20 yards and fell dead.

X marks the spot where the deer was standing when I shot her.

A heart shot that also broke a shoulder did not let the deer get more than 20 yards. You can see the white of her belly inside the red circle.

I tried a Saturday afternoon hunt but just as I entered the woods I heard the rolling thunder approaching and after calling my sister who was at home for a weather report, decided against climbing into a tree. My early Sunday morning hunt was warm and uneventful and I headed out for church just in time as more rain with thunder arrived. With temperatures hovering around 70 I decided against a Sunday afternoon hunt.

This weekend our community is hosting the Wilcox Academy Benefit Hunt. Right now the weather forecast looks cooler for the weekend but maybe with more rain, of which we might see a good bit more of this week as well.

Speaking of rain, after receiving just 31.17 inches in 2007 in my gauge on the north side of Camden, I tallied 61.22 for 2008. The average is in the mid 50s. That total was helped by 16 inches in August from several big rains including a tropical storm.

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      Unseasonably warm temperatures kept the deer movement to a minimum according to the hunters I spoke with that ventured out during the Christmas holidays. The 10 day forecast looks much better now as January arrives and the rut is almost upon us.
     A mostly weekend hunter I will be hoping for cold weather for the weekends of January. That makes all the difference in the world for hunting even during the rut.

Garrett Gaston, my next door neighbor, killed this buck on Dec. 21st just north of Camden in Wilcox County.

Malcolm and his sister Emily Smith killed these bucks just west of Camden in the Canton Bend area of Wilcox County on Dec. 23rd.

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      For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.    Luke 2: 11-14.

      From our family to yours, Merry Christmas!

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A correction to the total of hogs killed last weekend in the swamp is needed. The guys actually killed 11 hogs. I don't ever remember such a productive couple of days of hog hunting. I have a few pictures to add to their quest.

The picture shown below along with two others are making the rounds via email. I have gotten two different versions. They are obviously taken by a game camera. One says that the pictures were taken in Butler, Alabama and the other version claims Clarke County, Mississippi.
I always greet things like this with a great deal of skepticism. That being said, it would seem that one day someone would get a picture of a long tailed cat on a game camera. There are simply too many people who claim to have seen such for them not to be real, despite the lack of hard evidence that biologists point to. And the number of game cameras watching over the woods these days only increases each year. Are these pictures finally the proof that such cats exist in the south? I don't know, but maybe we'll find out the truth about these photos real soon.

This week's big warm up has seen near record highs during a deer season that has been so far quite cold. It appears the weekend will begin warm and cool off rapidly towards the end. For those in the woods Sunday afternoon and into Monday, the hunting could be real good as the cold air rushes back down to us.

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      Cousin Josh and his friends had a big weekend of hunting and really worked on the hogs. By Saturday night they had killed 10 hogs bigger than 100 pounds each and had seen many more. So in the past two weekends we've killed 14 hogs in the swamp.
       My email box has really picked up with inquires about hog hunting and trapping, mainly trapping. I think as hunters have gotten out in the woods this fall they have seen more and more sign of hogs and have gotten home, searched the computer for trapping ideas, found this site, and emailed me with questions. And this is coming from all over the country, not just our little neck of the woods. The hog problem is only getting worse out there.
       Though I have been mainly absent from the woods this fall, I am determined to spend a lot of January weekends in the tree. With limited time to hunt, I'll get out there when the bucks really get on the move, those last three weeks of the season. It will not be long now until that time arrives.

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My cousin Curtis and his friends Chad and Walt had a beautiful weekend of hunting in the swamp this past weekend. They saw some deer and killed three of the many hogs that they saw. Cousin Josh is coming in for this weekend and it looks like another nice weekend of hunting. The cool weather just keeps coming. And the official "winter" season is almost upon us.
This week I share more stories and photos submitted by readers. Y'all keep them coming. I will be back in the woods later this month and plan to spend much time in a tree in January. Until then, I rely on you.

This fine buck was killed by J. R. Tomlinson on November 25th while hunting with his father, Dr. Tommy Tomlinson, near Uniontown, Alabama in Perry County. The buck roughly scores 131. Ten year-old J. R. dropped the buck with one shot from 120 yards with his 7mm08 rifle. The buck was trailing a smaller 10 point and several does into a green field near 5pm that afternoon.

Al Jones took this buck with his bow near Lowndesboro, Alabama in Lowndes County. The buck is rumored to have grossed about 160.

Lee Davis killed this buck opening weekend while hunting south of Montgomery, Alabama.

Eleven year-old Rhett Hollon killed this fine buck on the youth hunt weekend this season in Autauga County.

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The season continues to shape up as a cold one. We had the biggest frost that I've seen in a while on Thursday morning. Many a season I've complained about the warm temperatures and though I've been in the woods very little this fall, those that have are certainly enjoying the cool and cold weather.

       Here's the picture of my son Alexander and the hog we killed several weeks back. I've been back to the Swamp on one hog bowhunt since then. I saw plenty of acorns and a good bit of sign but found no hogs this past Sunday afternoon.
       My Malone cousins from Georgia will be here the next two weekends and hopefully they will have some good stories to share with us. This weekend looks again to boast of some nice hunting weather.
       Normally the month of December sees declining quality buck movement as the deer adapt to the hunting pressure that began in November and even October in areas that are bowhunted. But on cold December days we've had good success seeing and killing good bucks in the Horn Swamp. Just don't let the temps get over 60 degrees.
       Here are a some pictures from successful hunts so far this season in our area. Keep them coming and I'll have to share next week.

Billy Perryman killed this buck in Wilcox County.
He green scores 152 5/8 and is the best killed so far in this county
that I am aware of.

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      This past Saturday Alexander (3.5 yrs) and I spent some time in the Swamp. He really wanted us to shoot a hog. We spent some time driving around the roads looking for hog sign and we pretty well found that everywhere we looked. We crawled into a shooting house or two and stayed for short periods of time and even saw a few deer stirring around. Alexander is a self proclaimed "radio" and is not interested in being the kind of quiet it takes to hunt any big game seriously. After all, he is just 3 years old.
     I parked the truck on the edge of a field about 45 minutes before dark and while he waited in the truck I walked 30 yards into the hardwoods for a quick glimpse. The winds that had been so strong during the day were dying down and I could almost hope to hear the sounds of a hog squealing somewhere in the distance. I peered through the hardwoods for two or three minutes and seeing nothing I was about to turn back to the truck when a hog stepped into an opening about 75 yards in front of me. I quickly closed the distance a bit and saw three grown hogs in the area. At 40 yards I leveled off the Ruger Mini-30 (6.72x39 round) and dropped one of the hogs as the others faded back into the woods. I walked back to the truck and got Alexander to come see. He was very fired up that "his first hog hunt" had been successful.
       Sunday afternoon I went back to the swamp alone and covered a good bit of ground on foot, scouting for deer and hogs. I was amazed at the number of acorns on the ground. Many areas were absolutely covered with acorns with many more yet to fall. Hog sign was plentiful but only a few deer were seen in the woods. I did see some deer in the greenfields I checked at dark and saw more small bucks in those areas than does.
       I've heard of some good results from this past weekend's youth hunt and the coming weekend will mark the always anticipated opening weekend of gun season. With all the acorns in the woods, the question arises where to hunt this weekend? From what little I've seen and heard, the deer are coming to greenfields including some nice bucks. I expect the good bucks will be there again this weekend until they feel the hunting pressure and move deeper into the woods. Greenfields might be a good bet this weekend, but in the coming weeks I imagine the plentiful acorns (if you have them) might be a better spot to hunt as we move in the month of December. The opening weekend weather forecast looks great with lows near freezing and highs in the 50s. The conditions remain very dry in the woods though. We have gotten very little rain in the past two months.

Hayden Dickens killed this fine buck in northern Monroe County this past weekend while hunting with his father, Scott. This is Hayden's second buck.

Good luck to all this weekend and let me hear some reports from your woods!

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That first frost fell last week and the grass in my yard shows the effects. I don't really think it was a hard enough frost to kill off much of the vegetation in the woods, so the deer will still have plenty of browse to munch on not to mention the many acorns that are on the limbs and falling.
On Wednesday, my son Andrew was born. We got home on Friday and have spent the weekend getting to know the newest member of the family. His big brother Alexander is really excited to finally have him here. There will be many days in the outdoors to come for these guys but for now we're sticking close to home.

Y'all keep the updates coming from your neck of the woods and I'll have some of them compiled at this update next week.

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      On Saturday we finally planted a few food plots. Lots of obstacles got in the way this fall. First, a huge oak blew across the road and blocked our way to the property. Several weeks later that was moved and we then dealt with a lot of grass in the plots and a very dry September. When we did finally plant, a good bit of dead grass remained in the plots and though I think the seed will come up well I do fear the hogs will root the plots more than normal this time around. Time will tell.
       Reports so far coming from around the area indicate that hunters are seeing some deer and the acorns are beginning to fall more and more. The heavy winds late last week certainly brought more nuts to the ground. I have not gotten any reports of any big bucks taken so far this bowseason.
        One can not complain about the weather so far this season. The first two weeks of the season have been quite cool and this morning's low just above freezing is quite unexpected for October. As the sun begins to rise this morning I do not believe we actually have the first frost, but that indication might be premature. We did get three quarters of an inch of rain late last week which certainly helped everyone's food plots through the area.

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For the first time since 1992 I did not get in the woods for a single hunt on opening weekend of bowseason. Though the weather was great, with highs in the 70s and lows in the 40s, the few hunters I have communicated with have not reported any great success so far. Ray Lynch emailed that their hunting in Lowndes County was slow, but they did see more deer during the middle of the day which he believes is a result of the full moon (and I concur on that). He says there are not many acorns falling yet on their lease. I talked to a few Wilcox County hunters who said they were hunting in good places with some falling acorns but saw few deer.

       My outdoor experience this weekend involved meeting a kayaker, Ardie Olson, who was paddling down the Alabama River in route to Fort Morgan. He is attempting to be the first person to paddle the entire Alabama Scenic River Trail that begins in Cherokee County on Lake Weiss, right on the Alabama - Georgia border, and continues all the way to Fort Morgan on the Alabama Gulf Coast. It is a total of 631 miles.
       Ardie passed through our area on Saturday, paddling up to 50 miles per day at a rate of 4 to 5 miles per hour. He has been easy to track as he is equipped with a SPOT receiver that gives his location via GPS and can be tracked via the internet. Click this link to track him yourself. As of this morning he has made it half way down Mobile Bay and will conclude the trek sometimes today.
       He was traveling in a 20 foot racing kayak that weighed only 25 pounds. He had no support boat with him and has carried his gear and gotten provisions along the way where possible. He'll collect a $1000 prize for being the first person to paddle the entire trail. That is a whole lot of paddling for $1000!

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Bow season arrived yesterday. I talked to a few die hard hunters that said they did not slip away from work to hunt on opening day, citing too much heat. That will change in another day or two. Over the years it is really uncanny how the first weekend of bow season usually brings a cool snap. This year appears to be no different. A front will come through tonight and tomorrow and the temperatures will be pretty reasonable for hunting by Friday and the weekend. Good luck to all of you in the woods. I would appreciate a report from you by the weekend's end if you get to hunt.

We got less than a tenth of a inch of rain in our area from the system that moved through Tuesday and Wednesday and that spells trouble for the area food plots that are already in the ground. With temperatures in the mid 80s for the foreseeable future and not another chance of rain in the next 10 days, a lot of plots are going to be lost. We have not yet planted ours, and the lack of rain will certainly have them on hold until the moisture comes.

      We broke ground on food plots this past weekend as best we could. The ground is hard and there is a lot of grass to die out before we have a good seed bed for planting. This is the latest I've gotten started in years and the quality of the plots will suffer as a result.
      I've talked to quite a few people that planted plots three to four weeks ago and those plots either never sprouted, sprouted and died, or are in dire need of some moisture. That might come this week, just in time to salvage some of those plots. Our last rain fell on September 9th and the 80+ degree weather for the past month as dried out the surface once again.
       I looked around the woods enough this weekend to know there is a bumper acorn crop awaiting hunters this fall. The deer will be in the hardwoods and might not make it to those plots as often as hunters might wish.

      Though September brings dove season, the first hunting season to open in south Alabama, my calendar is always marked for October 15th and the opening of bow season. The days are getting shorter with each pass of the sun and the weather is cooling as well. I'm enjoying the less hot days and the cool nights we're experiencing now and thankfully there's much more of that to come.
       The majority of the winter food plots for deer have been planted in the area. There is concern about how well they will perform with the lack of rain through September. At my house in Camden, sixteen inches fell here in August but only three inches have fallen in September and nearly all of that came on the 9th of September. The surface of the ground, particularly if it has been plowed a time or two in preparation for planting, has gotten dry again. The plots need rain soon, but none if forecast in the next 10 days.
       We have not yet planted ours. I like to plant by the first of October, but we are running late this time around. Hopefully in a few weeks we'll have some seed in the ground just prior to the next rain.

      For the past nine hunting seasons I've made a weekly update here that chronicled my adventures in the woods that occurred nearly every weekend from September through May. Gosh, I have spent a lot of time in the woods---a lot of good times. The material for updating the website was easy to come by as few weekends came and went without some time spent chasing the wild animals that inhabit our area.
       That all started before I was married. My wife of 10 years now has been quite patient with my hunting adventures that have taken me away from the house many a weekend. Many times she might have even been glad for me to go so she could have the house to herself, though she has never liked the sound of that alarm clock at 4am during turkey season.
      Three and half years ago my first child was born. For a few seasons I could still easily slip off to the woods on a pretty regular basis. Alexander was too young to even notice me gone.  We had our time together and I still found time to hunt quite a bit.
       But that is changing now. A typical conversation for us on a random Tuesday morning goes like this.  "Daddy, what day is this?" "It is Tuesday, Alexander." "Do you have to go to work today?" " Yes I do." " When is Saturday?" "It is four days from now." "Are you going to play with me on Saturday?" "Yes I am." "All day?" "I sure will."
       We do that again on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. And come Saturday, you do not actually think I can sit in a tree all day, or even part of the day, knowing that little fellow is missing his daddy?  I don't think so.
       Times change, priorities change. That is the way it is. That is the way it should be.
       And with Alexander's little brother's upcoming birth around the first of November, no, I haven't even pulled out the bow. I might shoot for a little hunting during the rut if I can squeeze it in. But my days in the field in the coming seasons is going to be cut short, at least until the day that these boys can join me there. And then I'm sure we'll be right back out there in full force.
       So bear with me this season. The updates will not be on as regular of a basis as in the past. And I need some information from our faithful readers more than ever. So keep in touch. Let me know how the hunting is going. I want to hear from you. You will be my eyes and ears to keep a pulse on the hunting scene.

       We are having a more normal summer in regards to rainfall. I've recorded 35 inches of rain at my house so far this year, compared to a total of only 31 for all of 2007. We're running about average and by the time Tropical Storm Fay passes through we are likely to be a bit ahead for a change. This summer's heat has certainly been milder than the past two summers, thanks to the showers and clouds that have returned to the area.
        Though I've been out in the woods next to none this summer, my sources tell me we have a pretty good acorn crop on the trees. Dove season is two weeks away, starting a week or so earlier this year than in the recent past.
         With grain, fertilizer, and fuel prices significantly higher than this time last year, you have to wonder what affect that will have on area hunters. Will there be less acres planted in food plots and fewer trips to the woods overall? One would think so. Time will tell.

         I've gotten a lot of emails from people over the years that have found this website while searching for hogs, hog traps, and solutions to wild hog problems. One of the more interesting emails I have received came from a man in South Korea. It is certainly apparent that the wild hog problem exits in his country as well. Here's what he initially wrote:

"Dear Hornswamp manager,
I was interested seeing your valuable informations on wild boar trapping with sour corn. Wild boar is pest animal here in S. Korea especially for farming areas. I need to learn your practical lessons about trapping practices; instead of sour corn, what about using commercial urine attractants? Have you ever used the attractants in your trapping? The other question is how many hogs did you get at once and usually how long did it take to catch hogs in your trap? Please give me your mail with your real experiences about my questions. Thanks all.
Sincerely,
Song Jang-Hoon from S.Korea"

"Thank you for your fast reply. Actually I've never caught wild boars. But farming area has been devastated by them. As researcher in Pear Experiment Station I want to give solutions to all of farmers in Korea. My major was bird management in orchards. Hunting in Korea especially for wild boars is regulated by strict law. Because the hunters are also under the regulation, farmers should take more positive measures instead of present methods such as hanging hair, netting, setting electric fence, selecting crops that wild pigs wouldn't attack, and so on. This year February to April they marched to urban areas 2 times and were shoot to death, this was big news to Korea. Actually this is just trifling example, over 60% of wildlife damage is by wild boars every year. Therefore government has paid hunter's union lots of money to remove the wild boars, but that is only effective to what extent. One of my colleagues tried trapping with portable type. But the trapping didn't work effectively. William, As a starter I have more questions about the your experiences.Could you show me the way how to prepare corn mash in detail? To elect posts and fence firmly, did you bury some part of post and metal fence? I think when the entrapped hogs are realized inevitable at the trap, they will dig the soil to make the hole for escaping there. THANKS AGAIN, Song"