I am no longer in Hunter’s Heaven. The government decided to contract out my job along with 13 others. I decided to stay Civil Service and moved back to Seymour Johnson AFB, NC which just happens to be 15 miles from where I was born. Back home with family, well too much family, we lived with my wife’s Mother for about 9 months and I tell you this, when two women are both used to being in charge you have a problem! It took us 4 months of those 9 months to find a house, and the one we purchased was the first one we looked at and was only 1 mile from my mother’s house. We had gotten used to being in different states and lots of miles away!!!  We purchased that one and have been happy until all the land around us grew houses on them. Well enough with the background.

The fellow that lived next door just happened to deer hunt with dogs, and we got to talking, and he invited me along. I got to know the others that hunted with him, and I became a regular. I started taking my son, Hal, along with that hunting group. He was nine then, and he had gone with me before to Hunter’s Heaven, Dare Country. I always make sure of who I am hunting with before I take family along, especially children, and check to see how safe are they. These guys passed the family test and also brought their kids along. We were hunting blocks of pines owned by a timber company two counties over and at the time it was free because they just wanted the deer to stop eating the young pines. That was before timber companies found out hunters would pay!!!

We were in our second season, and my son had already gotten his first doe with his shotgun. This day he was doing the hunting with my .270, and I was the dog handler. I had a few young dogs that I needed to walk into the area. I was assigned to let my dogs go and then stand on. I had my son stay at the truck to be ready and to be careful, which he had learned very well, or I would not have let him have the rifle that day. I got the dogs in and was cutting back around with Bruno, our Lab, heading back to the truck. We had to jump a ditch which was taller on the side we had to land on. I got a good running start and jumped across and immediately felt something hit me squarely between the shoulder blades. Bruno had run after me, jumped across and landed on me!!! He then proceeded to walk up my back and stepped on my head as he made his way up the bank and to the truck. I just lay there looking at him, and I swear that he smiled at me!!! Of course my son saw it all and was having a great laugh with Bruno!!!

We had a lot of good chases that day and saw a few deer but none that my son wanted to shoot. He wanted a racked buck!!! It was only about one and half hours before dark, and we were the only ones who still had one dog out. We did not have tracking collars yet, so everyone just picked a spot to look based on how the dogs and deer ran that day. Finally one of the guys called and told me he saw my dog and she would not come across a small canal with water in it. We drove over, and I tried to call her across. She just wagged her tail and walked up and down the other side trying to find a spot where she would not have to go into the water. One of the guys then pointed out a dead log across the canal, and I said OK. Everyone was there by then, and they were taking bets on whether or not I would fall into the water, what are buddies for!!! I got about half-way across, and the log broke, and I fell on my back into that cold water. I forgot to mention that it was about 25 degrees that day!!! I stood up and found out that the water was only knee deep, but I sure was wet all over!!! I got the dog and carried her back to the truck while all my buddies including my son and Bruno laughed!!! I had a summer set of coveralls in my truck so I took all the wet clothes off and put them on along with my very wet .357 Dan Weston which I unloaded and wiped down. The other guys all headed in but I told them that I would find a spot for my son to still hunt and we would leave at dark.

I went to an area that we had run that day thinking that maybe the deer would be moving back as the dogs had been out of it for over 3-4 hours. I parked the truck facing down a path that was a dead-end and had my son get on the dog box while I set inside the truck trying to stay warm. I had the back sliding glass window open enough so we could whisper to each other. We had about 30 minutes of daylight remaining when a buck stepped out at about 100 yards. I whispered to my son, "do you see him?" and he said, "yes Dad." I replied, "take him when you feel right about it." I then covered my ears and waited what seen like a lifetime for that gun to go off. He finally shot, and I saw the buck give the hit rear kick and then go into the canal on the side and into the pines. I asked my son how he felt about his shot placement, and he said he felt good. I pulled the truck up to the spot and got out to look for blood and found it right away.  I looked at the canal, and I remembered how cold it was, then I looked at my son. I told Bruno to find him, and he took off across the canal. I then eased into that cold water to follow and this canal was waist deep!!! Boy was it cold!!! I found where Bruno and the buck had left a water trail and followed that for a bit and then Bruno came back to me wagging his tail and smiling which made me feel good because he did that when he had found the deer. I told him to go to the deer and he led me to him.

The deer was dead and I counted 6 points and yelled to my son that I had him and was bringing him out. Here is the only problem I have ever had with Bruno; the deer is not to move. While I was trying to drag the buck out Bruno was trying to keep him from moving. I finally had my son call Bruno to him, and I finished dragging him to the canal. My son threw me a rope, so we could pull the buck across. After getting him over the canal, my son finally got to count how many points and how big he was. After my third time in the water I was in a bit of a hurry to get the buck tied on and headed the hour and half drive home!!! We were very happy on the way home as my son had been hunting with me since he was 5, and he got his first Doe at 9 and now his first Buck at 10. I was 28 when I got my first buck and deer.

We stopped at a store, and I sent my son in for a soda for me and anything he wanted along with a Honey Bun for Bruno. That dog loved Honey Buns and they were his special treat and he knew it. When my son got back into the truck with his bag of goodies Bruno was all over him looking for his Honey Bun, and Hal let him have that first and then I got my drink. On the way home Bruno also got a lot of Hal’s treats also!!! When we pulled into the driveway, I was honking the horn for my wife to come out. She thought I wanted the backyard gate opened to unload the dogs so I drove through while she looked at the buck in the back as I drove by. Our son jumped out with the biggest grin on his face, and she then knew it was his, and she started hugging him. His younger sister came out to see what was going on. Bruno came over for his hug too; remember he was our son also!!! I told my son that he could go in and call everyone while I unloaded the dogs and fed them, and then he and I would dress the deer. When we got to the deer dressing, his uncle and cousins had come over, and we had lots of help. I could set back and have a cold one with his uncle.  I could do nothing but just smile about the whole day and laugh at every little thing because I was on Cloud Nine!!! Just writing about this brings back those beautiful memories!!! Remember Take a kid Hunting, you will be happy you did!!!

By Harold Hollingsworth