Well, I really don’t know how we got here so fast, but it’s here. Hunting season, that is.
I know, I know! Don’t kill the messenger! I hear what you are saying out there: “It’s still summer!” (Which is true.) “It’s too hot to hunt!” (Which it may be.)
But the fact remains that we are here. Don’t believe me? Let’s look at the evidence.
How about if we start in the great state of Tennessee? (Home of Davy Crockett, you know. Any of you old guys still got the coonskin hat we all had when Fess Parker was all the rage on TV?)
Tennessee started a deer hunt for bucks in velvet a few years ago. If you recall, we have discussed the natural process where male members of the deer family grow antlers (not horns; remember, I only call them horns to aggravate those who get uptight about such things).
(READ MORE: Tennessee’s new deer season is draped in velvet)
Anyway, the headgear on a buck starts growing in the spring, not long after the deer drops his old set of antlers. The new antlers grow quickly, have a blood supply and are covered with a fuzzy skin of the substance known as velvet. The antlers are quite fragile in this stage, and if the buck injures part of his rack, he may have a funny looking set of antlers for that year.
In late summer, the antlers start to harden and the velvet is rubbed off by the buck as he prepares for the craziness of the rut, which is the deer mating season. There is always a lot of speculation about when that actually takes place.
As for this year’s bucks-in-velvet season in Tennessee, which is for bow hunters only on private land, the three-day stretch allowed will already be underway by the time you read this, but it lasts through Tuesday, Aug. 27. (Check your local regulations to be sure.)
Other states have had this early deer season during the time when bucks are in velvet for some years. South Carolina, where they have been deer hunting since Aug. 15, is the only state (I believe) where you can take a buck in velvet with a rifle; all others are archery only. The chance to take a whitetail buck (there are some western states that allow this for mule deer as well) while still in velvet has taken hold in the past several years, to the point it has become a “thing” among deer hunters.
Here in the mountains of West Virginia, we have two early seasons for black bear this year. The first will begin, believe it or not, on Aug. 31 and run through Sept. 8. This season is in certain selected counties in southern West Virginia (again, check those regulations). A second early bear season in the Mountain State will take place Oct. 5-11. Your humble outdoors scribe may very well take advantage of this season with some of my bear-hound hunting crowd.
(READ MORE: Going on a bear hunt is special for these two veterans)
Squirrel hunting traditionally starts early, and some states are already out there after those bushytailed rodents. Georgia squirrel getters started collecting the main ingredient for squirrel gravy and biscuits on Aug. 15. Virginia will start on Sept. 7, and Pennsylvania and West Virginia join in a week later. Those who tramp the squirrel woods know they are already cutting their favorite food, the hickory nut. Few things in the wild are more fun than slipping through the early morning woods stalking squirrels as they dine on hickory and shower the forest floor with the shell particles (or “cuttings”).
So, as always, it seems getting ready for these seasons is already past due. You squirrel hunters, if you are using a rifle, have you taken it out of the gun case and checked your zero? Sighting in a .22 rifle for squirrel hunting is crucial. A squirrel is a small target and requires excellent marksmanship. Try some different brands of ammo and see which one your particular rifle likes best.
You guys and girls who may try the Tennessee early buck season have been shooting your bow, right? Are you tuned up? If you have not done this yet, you better get with it.
Personally, I hope to go on a good dove shoot at the beginning of September and waste a lot of shotgun shells. I probably need to get rid of some of them that are over 20 years old anyway.
It’s here, folks. Isn’t it wonderful?
“Guns & Cornbread” is written by Larry Case, who lives in Fayette County, W.Va. You can write to him at larryocase3@gmail.com.