Next Time We'll Wear Orange

A friend, that I have not seen in a few months, and I decided to take a trip into the woods last weekend.  We have frequented a local...well, a fairly local wildlife management area.  Labeled as a "Dog Training Area," after numerous trips to explore we have discovered nothing more than an old logging forest.  There is a main "road" that slowly branches into smaller "roads" and continues into smaller and smaller trails.  To the best of our guesses, and xylologists we are not, this particular area of the forest has not been logged in the last 5 to 10 years.  Therefore, the "roads" and trails are quite overgrown and only the largest are still discernible.  Stray from the trails and you can hike through the bush, off-trail, knowing that there are "roads" within two or three miles in any direction.

In the nine months that we have been exploring this area, once or twice a month at best, we have never seen anybody.  Besides a few bugs and squirrel or two, the wildlife has even been minimal.  A deer, a turkey vulture, and a turkey, all on different trips.  Needless to say, life has been sparse in this area of the forest.

We like to travel early, to get out into nature and perhaps see the sunrise,  but make it home before noon and still be able to get some things done.  The morning was a brisk 29 degrees with snow flurries on the way there and a relentless 15 to 20 mile per hour "breeze".  Many wonder why we do it.  Cold weather trips with snow and ice or warm weather trips with bugs and snakes and the answer is simple.  To enjoy nature, at any expense, even comfort.  We hiked for about an hour, making our way out and then starting back in when stopped to eat a snack and grab some water.

While resting I explained a survival fire technique that I had read about.  We decided to try it out on a smaller scale to see how easy it would be to build, and based on the details of the survival guide, how well it could be concealed when finished.  It involves a little bit of digging, so while I was preparing the fire starting portion of the project, my friend had fashioned a small shovel out of a small rock, a stick, and some paracord and began digging.  I was just about finished with the wood when he finished digging.  POW POW!  Two quick shots fired in the distance.  We froze.

"How far do you think?" he said.
"I don't know, what kind of gun do you think..."  POW POW
"Shotgun, double barrel," he said.
"Half-mile, maybe less."

We proceed to quickly pack our things back into our bags and headed for the truck.  I tied my red bandanna around my head and gave him my bright neon green camp seat and we set off.  20 yards into the hike...POW POW!  I had my survival kit with me which has a whistle, and we thought it would be a good idea to let someone know we where there.  One long blast and we started moving again.

Turns out that some hunters were there to train their dogs.  This section of forest allows you to release farm raised quail into the forest so your bird-dogs can learn how to get them flying and you can get some target practice.  I suppose it was naive to assume it was a place to bring your dog and teach him how to sit, or play dead.  But, perhaps it would be a good idea for the government owned property to be labeled as hunting grounds?

The two older gentlemen were very nice and chatted with us for a good 15 minutes.  We asked if people hunt here often and if he'd seen people hiking before.  He said people only hunt right there where we were parked and they aren't really hunting but training their dogs.  He was surprised to see hikers but always wondered why more people don't use the land.  WMA's are designated for hunting, camping, and hiking after all.  He did say that its used for hunting more in deer season.

We thanked him, wished him luck, and headed for home.  Future trips will include an orange hat or bandanna.  And we'll definitely go back soon.  After all, there is a hole in the ground and all the fixin's for a nice little fire just sitting out in the forest waiting.