Fall is Just Around the Corner

By Chris Erwin

The foggy mornings and dying garden plants are the first sign that fall is just around the corner. Deer hunters will hit the woods looking for signs of deer beginning the rutting season and fall fishing will hit its peak through September and October.

I have a love-hate relationship with fall. I look forward to the fall fishing it’s always my favorite time to be on the water. The woods are invaded by everyone from naturalists to hunters of all kinds. This time of the year sparks the reality that winter lurks in the shadows, waiting to send the chill of death to the colorful dying foliage of our forest.

I write about water sports and fishing a lot in this column not because it’s my only interest, but because it’s a family-oriented outdoor activity that I want to share with you, my friends, family and readers.

All through the 80s and 90s I spent a lot of time in the woods hunting. In the 70s, we had very little deer in Kentucky, however, we had excellent quail and grouse hunting. I was in love with bird hunting. My Britney Spaniel was always eager to hit the woods, and I loved watching her hunt. She lived for 17 years and with her passing by bird hunting days became few. I still love it but there will never be another Fancy Girl wagging her short stubby tail as she begged to jump in the truck and barrel through the woods, finding the scents of game hiding in the underbrush just waiting to take wing.

In the 80s the deer population starting growing and with it my desire to hunt them. I worked midnight shift at the National Mine Service Company and my wife worked day shift at Corbin men’s clothing factory so no one was waiting on me when I got home. Three or four days a week I would go right from work to the woods where I  had a tree stand waiting for me to spend the next few hours hunting.

My skill in tracking, reading signs and understanding all the little things pertaining to deer movements became second nature to me, thanks to my hunting buddy Hershell Crum. He who once told me the first flush toilet he ever sat on was when he joined the service during the Vietnam War. I’ve managed to harvest 28 deer here in Kentucky during the late 80s and 90s, and I did it using every legal means: rifle, shotgun and slug, bow, muzzle loader, and hand gun. So you see, I was hooked on deer hunting until I felt I had just about done it all. Today you can hunt with a crossbow and I find myself wanting to explore using it for one more trophy.

Bow hunting season is just about to open and with it,  you may want to check out some of the packages that Greenbo Lake State Parks offers for deer and turkey season. Set. 30 – Oct. 3, Oct. 28 – 31, and Nov. 11 – 14 for $225 plus tax (double occupancy) get three days of hunting, three nights lodging, three breakfasts, three lunches and three dinners. For more information and reservations call: 1-800-325-0083 or email stephanie.poplin@ky.gov For details and park information, check their website at parks.ky.gov Greenbo Lake State Resort Park is located at 965 Lodge Road, Greenup, KY 41144.

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