Sharing the Blind
Ask any waterfowl hunter what their favorite part of waterfowling is and you will hear a variety of things such as, “Watching the birds cup and drop in,” or “Seeing my dog work,” or “Seeing the sunrise over the water.” Somewhere in the mix you will get, “Spending time with someone special in the blind such as a family member or friend.”
An outsider looking at a waterfowl blind, would most likely frown with distaste thinking it merely a ramshackle shack on stilts in the water. Some are obviously more elaborate than others. All are functional.  I remember being taken to a blind down the Northern Neck one time, and when approaching the blind it reminded me of the houses off the coast of New Orleans. The blind was on telephone poles and was HUGE. There was a couch and a small stove in the blind. There was room for ten or more hunters. The guys swapped out shooting while others lounged in the rear of the blind.
My first blinds were really bad looking. I was nearly ashamed to hunt out of them they were so bad looking. That point was driven home years ago when upon approaching my first ever built duck blind, a friend commented, “Man, you are in the ghetto with that blind!”
However, what outsiders don’t know is that special things are said and conversations are sacred in those blinds. Duck blinds are where deep thoughts are shared, family issues are sorted out and sometimes secrets are shared. Special moments are experienced; futures are figured out. Advice is given, world problems are sorted out, and once the serious stuff is taken care of, jokes are told and played on fellow hunters like dummy loads being slipped into guns and guns getting emptied when the owner is not looking. Sure, being there is about calling and hopefully shooting ducks, but the ducks in Virginia don’t tend to overwhelm hunters in numbers and there is a lot of time spaced between shooting and flights of birds.
I cannot remember a time I did not enjoy standing in a duck blind. Admittedly, I hate the cold weather EXCEPT while duck hunting. Even I am not sure how that happens but it is true. I can stand a long time in the cold while duck hunting and actually enjoy it. There is a special beauty about being in the duck blind with snow or even rain falling. Crystal clear blue bird days in the blind are just as gorgeous but in a totally different way. I have seen some really memorable things while in my blind too. A flock of turkey coasted over the creek through the fog last year. A small group of deer swam the creek through the same fog.
This year I have had the honor and pleasure to share the blind with my youngest daughter. How many dads can say they have a daughter that is just ate up with waterfowl hunting? Of those, how many feel that way despite years of getting next to nothing because of few ducks and a not so great spot to have a blind? I am very blessed because my daughter lives for duck hunting despite the poor hunting we have access to. She is the one that beats me getting ready in the mornings and she does nearly all the work getting the truck loaded and the dog ready. She never complains. I probably would not go that often due to the lack of birds we have, but sharing that blind with her and her little yellow lab makes every minute of the time well worth it.
This season the morning light found us waterfowl hunting a half dozen or so times despite my schedule and I never went alone. She and her dog were with me each time. We got to see those turkey float through the fog, and the deer swim the creek. We got buzzed by mergansers that passed so close that I ducked feeling the air being displaced before popping up and shooting.
On the last day of the season we went to a marsh and hid in the brush watching and waiting. The day before, a goose had been gotten there. On the last day we hunted, we sat on that briar covered bank and talked about her dog, her future plans to open a dog kennel, and locations where she would want to have it. All the while we kept our eyes scanning the sky. That was a very special few hours I got to spend with my daughter. As the sun dropped to the horizon and time got short, we reminisced about things that had gotten upside down while hunting or things the dog had done on previous hunts. We laughed and smiled and our hearts were happy despite no birds wheeling in. At the end of legal shooting we gathered our belongings and trudged out therefore ending our season. However, we did so with joy in our hearts and a smile on our face. We will suffer a little withdrawal until next season but we will be OK. The memories of sharing a blind, and having those special conversations will keep us going. If you have never shared a blind with someone, surely you are missing out. Next season, give it a try.

As I told readers in my last article published in The Journal, I am going to make a run at putting my column on my website here. I welcome feedback from readers. If the response is favorable, I will continue posting news, articles and stories each week. Enjoy!
Beagles baying at the trail of a rabbit soothes a bad deer season memory
It is a fact that much  of Virginia experienced a poor deer season during 2016. My season was a season I really have no desire to think much about since I saw six deer all season long while in the woods and of those, only one, a spike, was even shootable. I am a meat hunter and although I enjoy simply being in the woods, I also like to at least take home supper every once in awhile. The time in the woods was enjoyable and relaxing but it got a bit old not seeing deer or sign of deer for weeks on end. Apparently our heyday of punching deer tags in quick succession is over for at least the near term.
Duck season came in and the first weekend of the December segment was not bad, not great, but definitely not bad. Things tended to go downhill from that time though. With only a week left, I don’t have high hopes with the warm weather that duck reports will change much.
That leaves small game hunting to save the day. Last weekend a good friend of mine, Frank, invited us to come partake in a rabbit hunt. Frank has an exceptional pack of beagles that always do the job despite the conditions. Last year the wind was biting and I think the temperature was less than 20 degrees. I know the wind chill that day was certainly less than 20. Despite those windy and seriously cold conditions, we saw plenty of rabbits scampering in front of the baying beagles last year. For that reason it was a no brainer for me and my daughter to say “Yes” to his invite this year.
The dogs hopped off the tailgate of his truck after he opened the dog box and quickly began sniffing the air and spreading out looking for a fresh trail to follow. Frank had a mix of veteran dogs and one young puppy to run for us. He also brought his daughter on the hunt too.
It did not take long before the first baying cry went up and then the chorus started. Excitement rose in my body and so did the corners of my mouth. Any time a good hound starts doing what its bloodline urges it to do, I get excited and happy. Stress just melts when you have a pack of beagles giving a rousing cry to the chase.
The white tips of the tails of those little dogs were whipping back and forth and soon enough a train of black, brown and white dogs with a red one in the mix, rolled on by slipping through briars and under brambles. We spread out a bit and soon saw a bunny scoot by and dart back into cover. The chase was on! Round the field and through the thick cover the dogs went. When the dogs had run awhile, the rabbit was taken and the next chase was started on a new track.
At one point while walking through the cover, I stepped on a tuff of laid over grass and a rabbit squirted out. Frank’s daughter rallied the dogs with a cry of “Tally Ho!” and the pack fell in and began snorting around the thickets nearby and jumped on the track to begin pushing Mr. Cottontail along. Miss Katelyn had the dogs riled up and headed in the right direction with her rally cry. The chase was back on! We listened to the melody of various baying that was music to our ears. Soon enough the rabbit came back around. My daughter, Kristy, was able to take her shot.
We enjoyed the incredible serenade of the beagles all afternoon. At times it would fade out as the dogs took the chase far away where my bad ears could not hear. Then the music would grow to a crescendo and the rabbit would dart this way and that around us until we got a shot and stopped the chase.
As the afternoon drifted towards evening, the light faded reminding us all of chores undone. As much as we wanted to get in just one more chase, we knew it was time to hang it up for the day. Frank called in the beagles and we waited for the pack to gather around before hiking across the field to our trucks. After a long, hard, nearly fruitless deer season, the baying of those rabbit dogs was a soothing salve to the heart of a hunter. Not only did we get to enjoy some of the best music out of doors, but we also got to take home a great supper! We thank Frank, Miss Katelyn and his pack of willing four legged hunters that made our day.
Gear note: During our hunt, I was able to enjoy walking through thick and downright mean briars with no scars, cuts or scraped skin thanks to Dan’s Hunting Gear. Dan’s makes Waterproof Briar Fighter Bibs, a Sportsman’s Choice Coat and the Game Vest I wore. I also had the gloves they sell which are briar proof too. I definitely wish I had this gear years and years ago. Check out www.danshuntinggear.com

After more than 25 years of writing for The Journal newspaper in the Northern Neck of Virginia, I will be closing that chapter of my life due to the paper closing.
I recall back in the late 80's seeing an outdoor column in The Free Lance Star from Fredericksburg and wondering why the local paper did not have an outdoor column. Certainly we were more rural than the city of Fredericksburg!
So, without much thought, I called The Journal and asked why they did not have an outdoor column. Little did I know I was about to start a long journey. The lady that answered the phone was Ruth Herrink, the longtime owner of the paper. She said something to the effect that she expected "copy" on her desk by a certain day and that we would now have an outdoor column. Then she hung up. I was stunned. However, I was also challenged and thus began my career bringing outdoor stories and news to the local area, later to the state, and even to national publications.
With the closing of the newspaper, I need to find a way to continue bringing outdoor news to the locals that want it. For now that will be my website/blog. While that will not replace the income I lost with the closing of the paper, it will be a start to at least providing the service. At some point, if there is enough demand, I may switch things over to a paid subscriber list. For now I am exploring my options. Look for the regular articles and news to start around the 23rd of January. Meanwhile I will figure out a good schedule so the news/blog will be consistent, so readers will know when to slide over and look each week. I welcome any comments.
Thank you for reading!

Last year the outdoor scene was very different in a lot of ways. Some things just seemed “off” or not so good for the outdoors folks. Included in those reflections of less than stellar topics would be the poor croaker and spot fishing locally. Croaker used to be the bread and butter of any trip on the mid to lower Potomac and lower Rappahannock. Now, targeting them and actually catching a mess of fish for supper can be a bit of a challenge. Bluefish seemed to be less abundant in quality and quantity last season. Until mid to late October, rockfish were not all that an enthusiastic customer either. Our deer season in general was poor. There is talk of the possibility of HD having visited us again this past summer in small but spotty outbreaks although I have not gotten confirmation from officials that King George was hit. The coyotes are being blamed for putting a dent in our deer population. Undoubtedly they are impacting the deer numbers. The question is how much. After a decent opening early season for ducks –mostly wood ducks—and a decent opening weekend for the second split, the duck season has slowed to a crawl for most people I have encountered and heard from.
Now that I have gone over some of the less than appealing outdoor trends from last year, there are some good things going on in the outdoor world in and around King George and Westmoreland counties. Turkey numbers are good and birds were seen by various hunters this fall. Hopefully our wet and cool spring did not kill too many poults and numbers will remain strong. Small game numbers appear to be strong or on the upswing. Squirrels were scarce for a few years, but this year there appears to be a boom. Given the poor duck and deer numbers it may be time to venture out this month with a .22 in hand. Brunswick stew anyone? Rabbit numbers, at press time and according to local hunters, appear to be decent. As with anything, there are pockets of good hunting and some spots are better than others.  On the fishing side of things, the Spanish mackerel made a good showing this past summer and hung around the lower Potomac and bay for a while. There were whiting to be had and even some sea and speckled trout being caught! There were also great reports of fat smallmouth bass being caught just below Fredericksburg this past fall. We have reports of really nice rockfish in the lower bay. Some reportedly pushed over 50 pounds. Maybe this year there will be a winter fishery off Virginia Beach although early reports are not showing many fish inside the “fence”. For the past few seasons there were virtually no fish in the area within the 3 mile line.
One of the pursuits I am involved in these days is mentoring new anglers and hunters. I started, with our local game warden’s help, a youth outdoor club. I am in the process of turning it into a 501c nonprofit to open some additional doors for financial assistance to help young people get introduced to the outdoors. Since its inception some 6 years ago, many youth in our area tried fishing, hunting and shooting and had very positive experiences. The response from parents and the community has been very supportive. I hope to take the club to a new level in the next few years.
This past year we partnered with National Wild Turkey Federation to take 8 youth on a bird hunt. Every youth got a pheasant or a chukar after spending a few afternoons prior to the hunt learning to hit moving targets with a shotgun. This year we will be repeating the event with NWTF, as it was well received last year. This year I was also able to accept an invitation to take 8 youth on a youth only deer hunt. I was a bit nervous because the deer hunting was so slow locally. The hunt was held at the gorgeous farm of Bruce Lee in Essex County. Of the 8 kids that went, 4 got a deer. That is great success! The others are determined to get a deer and are now hooked on the outdoors. I thank Bruce Lee, Mac McLennan and their helpers for inviting the kids from the club to come down free of charge. They were great hosts!
I also had the pleasure of seeing another local outdoorsman, Steve Purks, get the kids infected with the waterfowling bug. He called in a number of geese for some young ladies earlier this season and they all limited out! I have heard of other youth getting similar successful opportunities with him. Without people like Steve, Mac, Bruce and others in our area, the youth would not have the opportunities that they do. We hope to have some fishing opportunities and more hunting opportunities this year too.
With a new year ahead of us, let’s make the best of what we have and be grateful for the opportunities. Most of all, let’s share those opportunities and mentor others, especially our youth, in the outdoors. It is a healthy pursuit that we enjoy. I challenge all of the readers to make a point this year to take someone that has not fished, hunted or shot a firearm out to do one or more of those things. We will better our image and our traditions by bringing more folks on board even if they just learn about the positive aspects of what we do but never really take up that passion themselves. Best wishes to you in the New Year!