Four of us traveled up to Camp F-Troop last week for the fall muzzleloader deer season, and the trip was a great success. We climbed mountains, visited our favorite old boulders from hunting seasons past and enjoyed crisp mornings and sunny afternoons in the colorful autumn forest. Todd and I took our guns and cameras for excellent walks in the woods, and Billy shot a fine, hefty doe an hour before dark on Tuesday, but Brett claimed the most interesting hunt of all, since he had to work past three bucks in one day Monday to find an antlerless deer.
That morning Brett hunted alone at Fern Hollow Run while the rest of us were still en route. He hiked up the fire trail that runs above the trout stream for a mile and stopped frequently to search for signs of deer. At 10 a.m. he left the trail and climbed the slope toward the mountaintop plateau, where sometime later, he stopped and rested against the side of a large sandstone boulder.
Just then a big deer broke over the crest of the ridge and trotted toward him, apparently spooked by someone or something on the sidehill slope below. It was a buck, he saw right away, and a good one. Brett froze in place as the deer closed to within 30 yards and stopped and stood motionless among the amber and bronze leaves recently fallen to the ground. It was an elegant eight-point with heavy and symmetrical antlers, a beautiful animal, but unfortunately not fair game in this season. Then Brett noticed something else, the dark-colored sparring marks of dried blood on the deer’s thick neck. Apparently there was another buck in the area big enough to challenge this one.
An hour later, Todd, Billy and I arrived at camp, and the four of us planned an afternoon hunt. We scattered up the mountainside behind camp in a semi-organized manner with plans to meet up just after dark. Brett hiked south for half a mile to a spot where a small trail angles uphill toward the mountaintop. Not 15 minutes later he spotted a deer on the trail 100 yards above. He cranked up his scope to 7-power and studied the deer as it drank from a shallow watercourse at the edge of the trail. The deer lifted its head and revealed two small shovel-tipped forkhorns. Another buck! Brett was amazed.
After a moment, the young buck wandered off up the trail. Brett watched it disappear and shook his head in frustration, then headed north up the hill toward the area where he knew Todd, Billy and I would be hunting. A half hour later he stopped behind a big white pine, scanned the upward slope for sign and noticed an odd-colored light patch in the sun that didn’t quite fit in with the dull colors of the forest. He lifted his scope and saw that it was a third buck staring back at him, a thick-bodied deer with wide antlers of heavy mass and eight or ten points. “Come on,” Brett said to himself. “I go years without seeing a buck in the woods sometimes, and now I walk up on three in one day when they’re not legal game?” He watched as the big buck spooked and bounded away, then continued his hunt.
Later, Brett heard a small commotion in the dry leaves to his left. He turned and saw a group of six deer come over the ridge and stop 75 yards away. He raised his scope and saw that they were antlerless — finally — a herd of three adult does and three yearlings. But he couldn’t shoot because the deer were milling around close together, and he was afraid of hitting more than one.
Eventually one of the adult does stepped away from the group and stood broadside, looking back at the others. Brett fired his 50-caliber Thompson Center inline, and the deer dropped and rolled down the hill until it came to rest against a shag-barked hickory. He tagged and field-dressed the animal and began dragging it quickly down the slope. He knew he had a good story to tell the boys at camp that night.
Good luck out there. And have a great week outdoors.
Trail Notes: Looking for the ideal holiday gift for an outdoors person? Paperback copies of my book The F-Troop Camp Chronicles are on sale at The Book Rack, Daffin’s, Copyland, Luigi’s Pizza, Greenville News, Courthouse Square Drygoods Co, Allied News, CDS Sports, and Neshannock Creek Fly Shop. For special prices on signed and numbered hardcovers, use the contact info below.
Don Feigert is the outdoors writer for THE HERALD and the ALLIED NEWS. He can be contacted at 724-931-1699 or dfeigert@verizon.net. Visit his Website at www.donfeigert.com.
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Outdoors: Muzzleloader season brings buck sightings
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PIAA Track: Hickory's Bell, Lubarski, Regginello grab gold
SHIPPENSBURG — There’s a big difference between being seeded 1st and finishing 1st — Matt Bell can attest to that.
After settling for silver last year, the Hickory High senior put the shot 59 feet, 6 3/4 inches Friday afternoon to garner gold at the annual PIAA Track & Field Championships at Shippensburg University. -
WM to play for D-10 baseball title; GC, Sharon, Sharpsville lose
Four area baseball teams were in action on Friday in the District 10 semifinals as the squads battled to compete for District 10 championships on Monday.
West Middlesex rolled past error-prone Linesville, 8-0, in Class A action at Slippery Rock University’s Jack Critchfield Park.
In Class AA, both Sharon and Sharpsville suffered 2-1 losses. The Tigers fell to Saegertown at Ainsworth Field in Erie while the Blue Devils lost to Titusville at SRU.
In Class AAA, the Grove City Eagles were denied the chance to defend their D-10 crown after suffering a 6-3 loss to Warren at SRU. -
Farrell volleyball falls in D-10 semifinals
The Farrell High boys volleyball team suffered a 2-0 (25-15, 25-12) loss to Saegertown on Thursday night in the District 10 semifinals at Meadville Area High’s “House of Thrills.”
“This was the first year we made it out of the first day (pool play) of the playoffs,” said Steelers’ coach Dan Dragicevic. “I’d like to cite my seniors (Eric Demus, Anthony Perkins, Jaylen Chambers and Lawrence Hughes). -
Locals ready to go for gold at Shippensburg
Now that Mercer County is on the map, it’s incumbent upon the area aggregation to chart a course for the ultimate destination — Seth Grove Stadium’s medals stand — during this weekend’s PIAA Track & Field Championships.
Led by West Middlesex High sprinter Clay Allen, many Mercer Countians are seeded at or near the top of their respective events for the annual 2-day marathon at Shippensburg University, which commences 9 a.m. Friday. It will continue beginning 9 a.m. Saturday. -
D-10 Playoffs: Local teams go 6-for-6
ä Grove City 1, Harbor Creek 0 — At Slippery Rock University’s Jack Critchfield Park, what the Grove City Eagles couldn’t accomplish themselves, the Harbor Creek Huskies unwittingly did for them.
Unable to plate runs themselves, Torin Smith scored the Eagles’ only run when teammate Tyler Devine’s seeming inning-ending pop-up to left field was dropped by Harbor Creek’s Chris Merritt in the bottom of the 7th inning of Tuesday’s tourney opener. -
Great year for WM track; local qualifiers listed
It’s been a big year for the Big Reds.
Though there’s no official documentation, the 2011-12 academic year may be the most successful in West Middlesex High’s athletic annals. -
SPORTVIEW: Local names Kroko, Lutz, Kareklas in news elsewhere
IT’S ALWAYS GOOD to hear of former area people who have gone on to athletic success in other areas, or the family of former area residents. Following are a few of those stories:
ä Bob and Betty Kroko of Sharon are avid followers of professional baseball. No, not necessarily the Pittsburgh Pirates or Cleveland Indians like many local fans.
The Krokos keep a close eye on the Austria Major League! -
Petty an all-around great athlete in track and gymnastics
When Mercer County’s contingent convenes at the annual PIAA Track & Field Championships this weekend, it will be well represented
Clay Allen, Matt Bell, John Yohman, Johnathan Jacoway, Jeremy Jansco, Nico Zahniser, DeShawn Coleman, Dan Jaskowak, et all, should haul home some hardware. But with all due respect, the aforementioned young men may or may not be best athletes in the area’s aggregation that will assemble this weekend at Shippensburg University. -
Lubarski, Richards, Petty, Allen shine at D-10 Track Championships; Hickory girls, WM boys team champs
Hickory High’s high-jump state champion Lauren Lubarski suffered a severe blow to open her competion at the annual District 10 Class AA Track & Field Championships Saturday at Hickory HIgh Stadium.
She failed to qualify for state in the event she had won the previous year. -
Baseball, softball D-10 playoff pairings
The District 10 pairings for the baseball and softball playoffs have been released. Five area baseball teams and four (possibly 5) softball squads have qualified.
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