HUNTING ON MCDOWELL CREEK

… a meditation by David Mayes

It's almost like stepping back in time when you walk along a ridgeline or creek bed on McDowell Creek--the effect of man is minimal. Most of the hunting I did growing up--and I still do quite a bit--was for pheasants and quail on cultivated farmland or on cover (hedgerows, grassy borders or CRP fields) near crops. Hunting McDowell Creek is different. There you are surrounded by native prairie--and native animals like deer, turkeys and quail can be hunted in their natural surroundings--rolling hills, grassy meadows and treelined creeks.

I especially like the abundance of other animals you see while hunting, particularly the birds. The majority of my hunting is for turkeys and deer. Few things can match a hike through the greening hills in the spring while the turkeys are gobbling as they come off the roost at sunrise--or a crisp fall afternoon on the deer stand, surrounded by the amazing colors of the changing oaks. These are the things I am excited to share with my son.

As a younger man, I thought hunting was all about results, and a successful day meant filling my limit of whatever I was hunting. Today it's more about experiencing the whole panorama nature has to offer. McDowell Creek is about the best place I've found to experience nature the way it is supposed to be. It is very fulfilling to put natural food from healthy habitat on the table for my family.

 

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