Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 57

most, if not all, of these cases, such
terrible outcomes are entirely preventable if just a few safety precautions are
taken. The recent saga of one seasoned
bowhunter, Pete Moffett from Honey
Brook, serves as a cautionary tale for
anyone who takes to the trees while
hunting deer with bow (or gun) in
hand.
This story begins in the predawn
darkness of October 16 during Pennsylvania’s regular archery season. At 6:30
that morning the 73-year-old Moffett
parked his truck some 300 yards from
his stand location in Hibernia Park in
Chester County, and toting his Ross
compound bow and a quiver of arrows,
headed toward the tree where he would
find his climbing stand, already locked
in place, waiting for him. Moffett didn’t
know it at the time, but he was already
mixing the ingredients for disaster.
This particular morning, Moffett’s
hunting mission reflected a new sense
of urgency. He had been diagnosed
with lung cancer in late September
and, with a biopsy slated for the next
day and the unknown lurking ahead,
he wanted to squeeze in at least one
more hunting foray before going under the knife. Arriving at his stand,
he prudently tied his bow to his stand
with a hoist cord, mounted the stand,
lifted the climbing aid, and began
ratcheting his way up the trunk, a task
he had already performed twice before
that season.
“It was a tough climb,” Moffett recalled. “I was headed up the tree — a
hickory with very loose, rough bark.
There were a lot of knots and bumps

and lumps I had to juke myself around
as I worked my way up. It was not an
easy tree to climb.” Moffett had almost
reached the end of his climb — the
place where his strap-on bow hanging
hook had been attached to the tree on
an earlier hunt — when he suddenly
felt dizzy and his vision faded. As first
light seeped through the forest, he sat
back into the climber and leaned his
head forward against the tree trunk,
intending to take a brief respite from
the strenuous climb. “That’s the last
thing I remember doing,” Moffett said.
Then he passed out.
At this point in this cautionary tale,
we should understand that Moffett is already guilty of several critical mistakes.
One was in selecting a tree that offered
a hazardous route to its hunting height.
The loose, exfoliating bark and bumpy,
knotty surface of the hickory tree represented tree-climbing “stop signs” for
anyone. At least the weather was clear
and the bark was not wet from rain or
icy from sleet or snow — circumstances
that would make using a climbing stand

TO AVOID disaster secure a safety harness
to a vertical rope via a Prussik knot before
climbing.

MAY  2013 

57



Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013

Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013
Contents
Moving Forward
Whitetail Predation
Huntin’ the Big Boys
Pymatuning and Conneaut
Sam Townsley, Loves Valley’s Watchdog
Memorial Day Memories
My Buck Hunt
Field Notes
From the Field
The Remaking of a Shelter
Conservation News
Making a Difference
What Should I Be Doing This Month?
Another View
The Naturalist’s Eye
Straight from the Bowstring
Lock, Stock & Barrel
Crossings
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Cover2
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Contents
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Moving Forward
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Whitetail Predation
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Huntin’ the Big Boys
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 5
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 6
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 7
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Pymatuning and Conneaut
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 9
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 10
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 11
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 12
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 13
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 14
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Sam Townsley, Loves Valley’s Watchdog
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 16
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 17
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 18
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Memorial Day Memories
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 20
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 21
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - My Buck Hunt
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 23
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 24
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Field Notes
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 26
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 27
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 28
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 29
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 30
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 31
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - From the Field
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 33
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - The Remaking of a Shelter
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 35
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 36
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Conservation News
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 38
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 39
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 40
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 41
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 42
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 43
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 44
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 45
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Making a Difference
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 47
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - What Should I Be Doing This Month?
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Another View
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 50
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 51
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - The Naturalist’s Eye
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 53
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 54
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 55
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Straight from the Bowstring
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 57
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 58
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 59
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 60
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Lock, Stock & Barrel
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 62
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - 63
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Crossings
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - BB1
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - BB2
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Cover3
Pennsylvania Game News - May 2013 - Cover4
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