Small game hunting is a time honored tradition in my family. It is a hunting pursuit I have been involved in for longer than I can remember. From my forays though the fields on my grandfather’s shoulders before I was even 2 years old to my current pursuits as an adult. Small game hunting is a very social adventure, much like waterfowl hunting. Probably one of the reasons I enjoy it so much. Just something about walking the fields with a dog or two and enjoying time with family and friends.
My grandparents had a family friend that owned a dairy farm in southeastern Pennsylvania. I remember going there many times with my father and the rest of the family to hunt small game. This truly was a family event as we would have my father, grandmom, aunt Linda, my cousins and I all walking the fields. As was the usual my father included me well before I was able to hunt. This was very much an integral learning experience for me just as those trips “up the mountains” were. Always enjoyed these trips from listening to my father yell at his German Shorthaired Pointer who never did much other than run around like a wild thing to drinking raw milk from the cooler on the farm.
Not sure why, least the reason escapes me now, we slowly stopped going to the dairy farm for small game hunts. Perhaps it was the fact we moved farther away and my father had purchased a good chunk of land. At any rate, the rest of my small game hunting education would come hunting my father’s property. I can remember my grandmother coming down in the fall and all of us going out to walk the fields after the crops were cut. We never shot much from what I remember but I always enjoyed doing it. By this time we had two dogs so that made it much more fun. The crazy German Shorthaired Pointer that would come running when you shot and the Golden Retriever that would take off for the house as soon as you shot.
Shot my first pheasant on my father’s place. Talk about an experience. I was with my father and grandmother. We get the bird back to the house and it’s time for me to clean it. Grandmom was always known as a rip and tear kind of lady. She did not disappoint at this moment I can assure you. I guess I wasn’t doing it right and she needed to show me how it was done. She grabbed that bird from me, ripped out some feathers and shoved her hand right up the middle and back out with all the guts. Old blood and guts grandmom sure knew how to show me. Needless to
Squirrel hunting was something I mostly did by myself from what I remember. Dad and I would go from time to time but I do not remember anyone else going with me. However, I did shoot a few squirrels in my day on the farm. Always enjoyed wandering around the woods with the shotgun looking for squirrels. It was always exciting to get a couple squirrels to bring back to the house though. Get them back skin them out then dad would throw them in a pan with some butter and lemon. Tree rat or not that there is some good eating folks.
These days I do not get out and small game hunt much. That is honestly pretty unfortunate. There is so much that can be seen, experienced and learned in the small game woods and fields. The problem lies in time. Something that none of us have much of these days. The outcome in a time constrained environment is small game loses out to things like deer hunting and duck season. Regardless there are a lot of great memories from my small game hunts. Hopefully there will be many more memories made in the future.
