Pennsylvania Game News - September 2013 - 16

We headed off through the field, following a prominent blood trail. A few
yards down the trail Jay found the arrow, a complete pass through, covered
with bright red blood. After 50 yards,
the trail entered the woods at the head
of the hollow where a huge sentinel red
oak stands watch over the valley. Blood
was becoming scarce so we split up, I
followed kicked up areas in the leaves
and Jay followed a small deer trail down
the hollow.
“Here he is. I got him!” Jay beamed
“And he’s a nice one, too.”
He was right; the buck was a dandy
with a thick, wide 8-point rack.
It was the first day of fall turkey
season two years later, and while we
had been seeing turkeys everywhere
throughout the summer and early fall,
I had done little actual scouting to try
to pinpoint the birds. Usually I have
several spots picked out and know exactly where I’m going to be on opening
morning, but this year I was going in
“blind.” I wasn’t really worried, though,
because I knew several flocks were in
the area and the chances of running
into some birds were pretty good. I
also knew I probably wouldn’t have to
go looking for them. My strategy for
the day was to stay put and let them
come to me.

Jay said he would be bowhunting for
deer on the ridge between his permanent deer stand and mine. His buddy,
Mike, would be on another ridge in
his archery stand. So that left the area
between them (about 400 to 500 yards)
for me. That was okay, though, because
my favorite hollow lies between these
two ridges.
Standing guard at the head of this
particular hollow is that huge sentinel
red oak that has to be more than 200
years old. Every time I look at that
grizzled old veteran, I can’t help but
imagine the things that have occurred
around it. Native Americans probably
stalked deer or turkeys near it, as they
came to drink from the little stream
that runs through the hollow. Majestic
chestnut trees probably surrounded it,
too, before becoming victims of the
blight.
I decided to set up on the right
side of this hollow to start my turkey
hunt. Dawn was breaking as I crossed
the field and entered the woods. The
first 30 yards traversed a reverting field
comprised mostly of birch, cherry and
red maple. There are no mature oaks
in this patch, so we rarely see turkeys
there. However, this day the ground
was torn to pieces from scratching
that almost certainly was done the day

It’s the Law:
Q: Do I need to display fluorescent orange material on my
blind if hunting for deer during the firearms season?
A: Yes, a minimum of 100 square inches of fluorescent orange material (orange alert band will suffice) must be displayed within 15 feet of the blind and
visible in a 360-degree arc during the firearms deer, bear and elk seasons. This
is in addition to wearing the required amount of orange while in the blind.

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Pennsylvania Game News - September 2013

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