Page 4 - 2015 South Arkansas Hunting & Sporting Gazette

Remember the real reasons we enjoy the outdoors
Hello hunters! I hope you enjoy the South Arkansas Hunting and Sporting Ga- zette Fall Edition as much as we enjoyed putting it together for you. We tried to get everything we could in here for all the out- doorsmen and women in the area.
We have the local vendors selling ev- erything from guns and ammo to clothing and supplies. Please spend your money with our small business owners. It helps the economy and helps the suppliers in this area. Sure, you might be able to save $5 on that shirt elsewhere, but you will not receive that personal attention that you get from a small business owner. Spend your money locally and help the local guys and gals. They will know you by name and give you customer service you will not find in large chain stores.
I wanted to share some tips and ideas to wrap your brain around this hunting season. Some people may consider these minor ideas but they make a big difference.
• My main tip is the most important of all: Be courteous of all hunters. While deer, waterfowl, squirrel or predator hunting, you will meet men, women and youth of all ages. My biggest pet peeve is rude hunters who need a lesson in common courtesy. The best example, and I know most of you will agree, is duck hunters in the Felsenthal Refuge. I know a lot of hunters will call a duck hole “their hole” just because they killed their limit in that spot two days in a row. They come to hunt the third day and arrived 30- 40 minutes later than usual. They find an- other group of people are hunting that hole. In anger, they set up just 100 yards down from the decoy spread of the hunters who arrived first. You will accomplish nothing doing this. It just makes it where two groups will not kill a bird and leads to hot collars. Yelling leads to peppering and that leads to even worse matters.
When you purchase a hunting license, you have a right to hunt public land such as the wildlife refuges. The key to that sen- tence is “public.” No hunter owns public land. There are plenty of holes to throw out some decoys. Some adults, and I use the word “adults” loosely, are the worst. Refuge land is first come, first served. Anyone who has ever hunted Felsenthal just one time knows that the “hot spots” change from day to day. One day the ducks are in Pete Wilson. Then they want to be in the First Flatwater later. Three days later they move to Shallow Lake. On most days, they want to be in the sanctuary! You can be the best caller, have the best blind, decoys, gun and the best camo, and you may kill one duck. But the guys with the 40-year-old jon boat, a dozen old decoys and a family heirloom 12-gauge pump killed their limit because that is where the ducks wanted to land. You are always at the mercy of luck. Just remember that if the hole you were planning to hunt is taken, then please move down at least 300 yards and set up. If you were in that hole and the other hunters had to move
you wouldn’t want them set up so close that their shots pepper you.
• Kids are the most important people at the deer camp and in the duck blind. Lots of kids will be hunting or will be experi- encing the outdoors for the first time. They learn from older hunters. Do not set bad examples for them. A sour adult can ruin a kid’s hunt. People will boast that they are the most hardcore. I view anyone as hardcore who gets 4 hours of sleep, wakes up at 2 a.m., dresses to combat 20-degree temperatures with 10-degree wind chills and only kills 3 ducks. It is not about being hardcore. It is about doing what you love. I am proud to stand in ice-cold water while waiting patiently for a greenhead or bull sprig to fly by. I am even more proud to take a youngster to the deer stand or duck blind to experience the outdoors. The looks on those faces are priceless when they take their first deer, duck or squirrel. They are so proud of themselves and their accom- plishment.
• Deer corn bags. Whether they are paper or plastic, it is easy to keep up with them and throw them away. I see them fly off of trailers, ATVs and truck beds. Strap them down, put them in a garbage bag in the back seat or put them in your toolbox. Everyone has a garbage can or burning bar- rel at their house or deer camp. I get so mad when I see them litter the sides of roads or blow out of trucks and hit cars. Please do your part. Don’t litter.
• Know where all of your fellow hunters are located. Make sure a spouse and a fellow hunter know the exact location of where you will be hunting. It can save a life and prevent accidents. Get land maps of your deer lease or hunting land. Print them off online. Mark the land boundaries with red ink. Mark landmarks all hunters in the club are aware of or recognize (bridges, creek crossings, clear-cuts, etc.). Use a different color to mark the ATV trails. Use tacks or tabs to mark everyone’s stand location(s). A numbered list with numbered tacks can mark everyone’s hunting area. In the event of someone not returning home or to the camp by dark, anyone can go to your stand location and make sure you didn’t fall out of your stand, get snake bit or have an ATV accident.
• Be prepared for anything. Anything can happen when you are in the middle of nowhere. A small emergency bag can be a lifesaver. Items like extra batteries, extra flashlight, a bag of wet wipes, bug repellant, matches, knife, a box of electrolyte tablets, bottle of water, small bottle of ibuprofen and a few snacks can save you in a spur of the moment emergency. You may not need them, but you could come across someone who is in a bind. Keep an extra change of clothes with you. A dry shirt, dry pants and dry socks are very easy to stick in your bag or truck. If you fall in while duck hunting, hypothermia can set in quickly. Get to the truck and change. If your body temperature
The Huntress
By Katie Meade
goes below 95 degrees, damage can occur to your organs.
• Ladies, do not be afraid to hunt or take interest in the outdoors. I was lucky because I was raised by a hunter and by a family of hunters. Almost every man in my family is a hunter. I grew up surrounded by the deer camp lifestyle. If you want a pink bow or gun then by all means get one a go! Tell your husband, cousin, brother, sister or best friend that you want to hunt. Do not be afraid of judgmental ladies that view hunting only as a male activity. The make- up, purse and high heels are great when it is a girls night out on the town. Do not be afraid to exchange the dress and jewelry for camo, face paint and a gun. Ladies can hunt just as well as men. And men, please do not deny a lady the chance to take her first buck, duck or hog. If a lady asks you to take her hunting, then you take that woman hunting! Women who love the outdoors and will clean your fish are a rare gift from God. Treat those ladies with respect!
• If you have any medical conditions, please take all necessities with you. I say this because I am an insulin-dependent dia- betic. I have been diabetic since about age 6. I always have food and my supplies with me. I use an insulin pump because it is better for people with active lifestyles. I decided a long time ago that I may have diabetes but it will never have me. I will never let this disease keep me from doing what I love. If you have allergies to some medications, let your hunting buddies know. You can wear medical alert jewelry in the event you have a heart attack, stroke or pass out. In the event that you are unconscious, medical personnel need to know your medical history and any conditions that you may suffer from.
• Always keep your eyes peeled. You never know when you may have a bear or wild hog watching you. The most danger- ous animal is any mother protecting her offspring, regardless of species. A wild hog can put you in the hospital. Bears are being seen more often in South Arkansas. Be cautious and do not sneak up on bears or hogs. Make noise as you walk through brush. We also do not get a good freeze until after deer season opens. Snakes will be preparing for winter. A 65-degree day is a perfect day to step on the business end of a rattlesnake, copperhead or cottonmouth. Even if it was cool at daybreak, a snake will retreat to rock piles or roads after it warms up to absorb heat. When stepping over a log, there could be a snake hiding underneath. Look before you stick your leg over. It could save you a lot of pain and a hospital stay.
I hope you find these tips helpful and apply them to your outdoor routine. I hope everyone has a great hunting season. If you can, introduce a new hunter to the outdoors. They will remember it forever. Even if you do not take a deer or duck, they will remem- ber that they were important enough for you to spend time with in the woods or on the water. Be safe out there and have a great fall hunting season. You can catch me every Thursday in the El Dorado News-Times in the sports section. Please email me anything you would like to see in the future in my column, The Huntress. Send us your pic- tures of your kids and even yourself if you caught a nice fish or took a cool non-typical buck. Feel free to contact me by email at: katiem@eldoradonews.com
Have a wonderful weekend, and God bless.
4 – Friday, August 21, 2015 – El Dorado NEWS-TIMES