Four goose banditas make the most of a golden opportunity
Mark Fike--orginally printed in The Journal newspaper.
Sometimes phone calls that fan the flames of anticipation and hope result in incredible memories. I received such a phone call a few weeks ago from a local man that I have come to know as a true hunter; the kind of man that not only enjoys the chase and learning about wildlife and how the web of nature interconnects, but he is also the kind of unselfish man that shares his passion with those that do not yet know the joys of the outdoors.
The phone call went more or less like this: “Mark you want to bring some of the kids and come goose hunt with me on the opening weekend? We have been seeing geese coming in and maybe we can get the kids on some birds and have a good morning for them.”
Was I living right to get an offer like that? I had to be! I surely was not crazy; I said, “YES!” without a thought. The details were worked out and we all met the preceding weekend to work on camouflaging the layout blinds so things would look good for the morning we were hunting.
Steve Purks directed us on how to put the touches on the layouts while we listened to geese that were flying around nearby. The more I got to know Steve over the past year the more I realized that he really cares about passing on his knowledge and showing those not so acquainted with nature how things really do work in the real world off the pavement and away from television and electronics. Steve is the real deal and he tells things as they are. I also realized that he loves to see youth learn about hunting and how to enjoy being afield safely. In fact, I think it is a passion of his to provide opportunities for youth like this.
After we worked on the layouts a few hours and watched those big gray, white and black bombers honking across the sky, we made plans for the following Saturday. Steve was hopeful that the kids would have a great hunt and he was working hard to ensure any variables he could influence were taken care of.
The morning of the hunt fog swirled in the lowlands of the river bottom making it tough to see much past the truck hood. I knew more or less where I was going, but with the fog I became a lot less sure. About the time I became doubtful, my phone vibrated and Steve was on the other end directing me to where he was setting up. After some twists and turns, I had the truck pointed in the correct direction in the middle of a harvested agricultural field where his truck finally became visible through the wall of fog. I had a truckload of young hunters and although the hour was very early for teenagers, not one complained or griped. When you pile in a truck ready to go well before 5 AM, even most adults would groan. The kids had to be excited. I wish I was that young again—I was dragging despite my anticipation and excitement.
The four young women immediately got to work pulling out decoy bags, layout blinds and began following Steve’s directions on how to set up the hunt plan. Lifelike Canada goose decoys were placed on stakes where they began wobbling ever so slightly in the fog. At first glance a person would think that there were four or five dozen live geese in the field. Diesel, the four legged retrieving machine and Steve’s loyal partner, bounded about checking things out. He inspected each blind and found his own blind and gave it a good sniff too.
Just before dawn the work was done. A safety brief was held by Steve directing the girls to how the hunt was going to go down, where and when guns would be used and fields of fire were discussed. There would be no mistakes, but fun would be had and hopefully some geese would be supper by the end of the hunt.
My oldest daughter and I drove the trucks back to the edge of the field while the hunter master and the huntresses hid in their individual blinds awaiting the welcoming sound of geese honking. KD and I got out of the trucks and looked back in the direction of the setup hoping the fog would lift and geese would fly by.
Slowly the sun clawed its way up into the eastern sky above the treeline. The fog began to retreat grudgingly in the face of the orange fireball beaming down on us. When that happened, a switch seemingly turned on and the first few honks were heard. Anticipation grew and KD and I were soon joined by the landowner who also had a big heart for youth learning to hunt. He stood with us hoping that the flocks that had lifted off the nearby river would head into the spread of decoys that awaited them. We watched eagerly as the fog burned off enough to show a tornado of geese circling over a distant spot in the field. It looked to be the right location but given that we set up in the dense fog, and drove out in the dense fog using the edge of the woods as our guide, it was tough to tell.
I began wondering if indeed the birds had found a safe spot to feed in the field as many dropped in and landed without any shooting. More geese swirled in and small flocks above us joined each other and beelined for the same location.
Our hearts surged with excitement for the young huntresses as a cacophony of distance shots echoed through the remaining fog. KD said she saw a goose fall. I cheered for the kids. Steve, with some cooperation from the geese, had delivered a great opportunity to the kids. I turned to look at my companions standing with me and saw the huge smile on the landowner’s face. He was thrilled the kids were getting some shots. Within minutes my phone buzzed and Steve urged me to drive out with KD and swap out with the kids. Their limits were gotten and we had a chance to get ours too. After shaking the landowner’s hand and thanking him for such an incredible opportunity, we leaped into the truck and wheeled out to the setup. The three young huntresses give me a high five as they grinned ear to ear on their way to the seats in the truck. Geese were coming inbound to us and there was no time to talk. Steve told us to get in the blinds quickly as the truck disappeared across the field. Mere minutes passed and with a little bit of coaxing from Steve, the geese came right in and dropped down on us. Our limits were gotten immediately and the truck was summoned back to us. For two of the group, it was the first hunt where they took geese. Congratulations and “good jobs” were passed around. Having hundreds of geese drop right down on you is an experience that no story told on paper can explain. Even as deaf as I am, I literally heard the whuff whuff, whuff of those big wings as the big honkers came in for a landing among us. I remember peering out and watching those geese bank, drop their big feet down and seeing them commit. That is why people get hooked on waterfowling. Images like that cannot be watched and appreciated on TV as well as in person.
The girls excitedly rehashed how things went down on their hunt and how they were amazed at how many geese came in so close and how they waited, waited and waited for the command to take them from Steve. Kenzie said she kept waiting for him to tell them to shoot and she could not believe how many birds were landing around them. He waited until he knew the girls could all get good shots before he called for the shooting to begin. The words, “amazing”, “incredible” and “awesome” were used over and over to describe what happened. The smiles were plastered on young and old faces alike. Steve and I were pleased to see young people so excited about what just happened. Although we never vocalized it, I know we were satisfied that the mission was complete, the goal met and the kids were hooked on something ethical and good that would allow them to form solid friendships, provide a good way of life and put food on the table. We knew that hunting meant a lot to us and had directed our path over the years. It was an unsaid understanding that now the kids had that same passion and hopefully they would pay it forward too.
We posed for some photos with the kids holding up their geese and our geese before we broke down the set up and thanked the landowner again for his hospitality. Steve was thanked again and we parted ways with a permanent memory that will stay with us for the rest of our lives. Steve did a lot of work to provide the opportunity for the kids. We thank him for his unselfish work. Who would have thought that a simple phone call would have resulted in four goose banditas having such a great time and becoming hooked on hunting?
Mark Fike--orginally printed in The Journal newspaper.
Sometimes phone calls that fan the flames of anticipation and hope result in incredible memories. I received such a phone call a few weeks ago from a local man that I have come to know as a true hunter; the kind of man that not only enjoys the chase and learning about wildlife and how the web of nature interconnects, but he is also the kind of unselfish man that shares his passion with those that do not yet know the joys of the outdoors.
The phone call went more or less like this: “Mark you want to bring some of the kids and come goose hunt with me on the opening weekend? We have been seeing geese coming in and maybe we can get the kids on some birds and have a good morning for them.”
Was I living right to get an offer like that? I had to be! I surely was not crazy; I said, “YES!” without a thought. The details were worked out and we all met the preceding weekend to work on camouflaging the layout blinds so things would look good for the morning we were hunting.
Steve Purks directed us on how to put the touches on the layouts while we listened to geese that were flying around nearby. The more I got to know Steve over the past year the more I realized that he really cares about passing on his knowledge and showing those not so acquainted with nature how things really do work in the real world off the pavement and away from television and electronics. Steve is the real deal and he tells things as they are. I also realized that he loves to see youth learn about hunting and how to enjoy being afield safely. In fact, I think it is a passion of his to provide opportunities for youth like this.
After we worked on the layouts a few hours and watched those big gray, white and black bombers honking across the sky, we made plans for the following Saturday. Steve was hopeful that the kids would have a great hunt and he was working hard to ensure any variables he could influence were taken care of.
The morning of the hunt fog swirled in the lowlands of the river bottom making it tough to see much past the truck hood. I knew more or less where I was going, but with the fog I became a lot less sure. About the time I became doubtful, my phone vibrated and Steve was on the other end directing me to where he was setting up. After some twists and turns, I had the truck pointed in the correct direction in the middle of a harvested agricultural field where his truck finally became visible through the wall of fog. I had a truckload of young hunters and although the hour was very early for teenagers, not one complained or griped. When you pile in a truck ready to go well before 5 AM, even most adults would groan. The kids had to be excited. I wish I was that young again—I was dragging despite my anticipation and excitement.
The four young women immediately got to work pulling out decoy bags, layout blinds and began following Steve’s directions on how to set up the hunt plan. Lifelike Canada goose decoys were placed on stakes where they began wobbling ever so slightly in the fog. At first glance a person would think that there were four or five dozen live geese in the field. Diesel, the four legged retrieving machine and Steve’s loyal partner, bounded about checking things out. He inspected each blind and found his own blind and gave it a good sniff too.
Just before dawn the work was done. A safety brief was held by Steve directing the girls to how the hunt was going to go down, where and when guns would be used and fields of fire were discussed. There would be no mistakes, but fun would be had and hopefully some geese would be supper by the end of the hunt.
My oldest daughter and I drove the trucks back to the edge of the field while the hunter master and the huntresses hid in their individual blinds awaiting the welcoming sound of geese honking. KD and I got out of the trucks and looked back in the direction of the setup hoping the fog would lift and geese would fly by.
Slowly the sun clawed its way up into the eastern sky above the treeline. The fog began to retreat grudgingly in the face of the orange fireball beaming down on us. When that happened, a switch seemingly turned on and the first few honks were heard. Anticipation grew and KD and I were soon joined by the landowner who also had a big heart for youth learning to hunt. He stood with us hoping that the flocks that had lifted off the nearby river would head into the spread of decoys that awaited them. We watched eagerly as the fog burned off enough to show a tornado of geese circling over a distant spot in the field. It looked to be the right location but given that we set up in the dense fog, and drove out in the dense fog using the edge of the woods as our guide, it was tough to tell.
I began wondering if indeed the birds had found a safe spot to feed in the field as many dropped in and landed without any shooting. More geese swirled in and small flocks above us joined each other and beelined for the same location.
Our hearts surged with excitement for the young huntresses as a cacophony of distance shots echoed through the remaining fog. KD said she saw a goose fall. I cheered for the kids. Steve, with some cooperation from the geese, had delivered a great opportunity to the kids. I turned to look at my companions standing with me and saw the huge smile on the landowner’s face. He was thrilled the kids were getting some shots. Within minutes my phone buzzed and Steve urged me to drive out with KD and swap out with the kids. Their limits were gotten and we had a chance to get ours too. After shaking the landowner’s hand and thanking him for such an incredible opportunity, we leaped into the truck and wheeled out to the setup. The three young huntresses give me a high five as they grinned ear to ear on their way to the seats in the truck. Geese were coming inbound to us and there was no time to talk. Steve told us to get in the blinds quickly as the truck disappeared across the field. Mere minutes passed and with a little bit of coaxing from Steve, the geese came right in and dropped down on us. Our limits were gotten immediately and the truck was summoned back to us. For two of the group, it was the first hunt where they took geese. Congratulations and “good jobs” were passed around. Having hundreds of geese drop right down on you is an experience that no story told on paper can explain. Even as deaf as I am, I literally heard the whuff whuff, whuff of those big wings as the big honkers came in for a landing among us. I remember peering out and watching those geese bank, drop their big feet down and seeing them commit. That is why people get hooked on waterfowling. Images like that cannot be watched and appreciated on TV as well as in person.
The girls excitedly rehashed how things went down on their hunt and how they were amazed at how many geese came in so close and how they waited, waited and waited for the command to take them from Steve. Kenzie said she kept waiting for him to tell them to shoot and she could not believe how many birds were landing around them. He waited until he knew the girls could all get good shots before he called for the shooting to begin. The words, “amazing”, “incredible” and “awesome” were used over and over to describe what happened. The smiles were plastered on young and old faces alike. Steve and I were pleased to see young people so excited about what just happened. Although we never vocalized it, I know we were satisfied that the mission was complete, the goal met and the kids were hooked on something ethical and good that would allow them to form solid friendships, provide a good way of life and put food on the table. We knew that hunting meant a lot to us and had directed our path over the years. It was an unsaid understanding that now the kids had that same passion and hopefully they would pay it forward too.
We posed for some photos with the kids holding up their geese and our geese before we broke down the set up and thanked the landowner again for his hospitality. Steve was thanked again and we parted ways with a permanent memory that will stay with us for the rest of our lives. Steve did a lot of work to provide the opportunity for the kids. We thank him for his unselfish work. Who would have thought that a simple phone call would have resulted in four goose banditas having such a great time and becoming hooked on hunting?
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