Hunting Camp

So, surprisingly enough, PA is not as 'city' as most folks would think.  Now, don't get me wrong, there are definitely large cities here (I happen to live in the large metropolis of the capital--a dash of sarcasm-- although it is large in comparison to most TN cities I am used to...).  Well, in the great state of Pennsylvania, many school districts have you go to school until Thanksgiving (through Wednesday) but students are out on Monday (when most systems go back).  Why, you might ask, would they decide to do this?  Well, I will tell you.  Hunting.  The first day of Buck Season.  A lovely two weeks of gunfire from all around, all in search of the elusive deer with a "nice rack".....yes folks, that's right.  I said a nice rack- get your minds outta the gutter! ;)

The districts decided to give students off that day because they had such poor attendance (prior to my living here).  The result is as follows:  We get to spend days at the farm cooking, and shooting things.

Here is how hunting camp works in our lovely, not so little, family.

The farm is a hair shy of 90 acres.  No one but family is allowed to hunt there, so it is PRIME for good hunting on such a stupendously rockin' holiday such as the first day of buck season.  There are 4 couches, 4 bedrooms, and plenty of floor space, so when you shove 12 people and a hunting dog (that is scared of a gun, more on this later)--no Pugs allowed (Tucker would try to eat them)-  it is PACKED! There are, at last count, 5 tree stands in the forest, so take your pick- again, plenty of room for everyone.

Before the story starts, feel free to get a good chuckle at Matt wearing his "hunting gear"....which translates to Alex's jacket (an 8th grader), Austin's gloves (a 7th grader), and Lord only knows who the hat belonged to (perhaps TJ?? a 9th grader)!!  Yep, you guessed it- this is going to be THAT kind of story! :)

The guys head out before the sun is up- apparently, prime time again for finding that Buck eating his breakfast.  Note, I will not call it Bambi, lest I begin to weep on the keyboard as I type this.

Here is how catchin' the rack went down this year.

7:30 am...all fellas have been gone 15-20 minutes and the BANG, BANG, BANG, BANG (I am tired of typing BANG, so add about 6 more in there) begins.  Tucker- this is the aforementioned hunting dog (Springer Spaniel) that is scared of a gun- begins barking and howling.  Poor Meg, no more sleeping in.

Oh boy, here come the fellas, Jeep with trailer in tow, dragging two deer to the house.  Have I mentioned that there is a huge tree out back of the pool?  Yeah, that's right, your thoughts would be correct if you are thinking: "Oh No!  They aren't gonna use that tree for the deer are they?!?"  Incredulously so, yes, they are.

Now, I should stop for a moment and tell you about how these lovely deer looked.  I will make it as descriptive as possible so you can feel my agony over the slaying of Bambi (one time use of the name).  First, one has three legs.  Yes, that's again right folks, no typo there, this deer only had three legs.  Look close in the pictures and you can count three little gangly legs!  And his rack was quite lop-sided.  The fellas were pretty sure that it had been hit by a car and survived.  They tried to make it sound a little better by saying that the deer wouldn't have lived through the winter, but that didn't really comfort Meg or me. :/  Needless to say, this one didn't get 'cleaned' for meat.

The second buck they shot was a nice 9 pointer, that, according to Billy Bob, came through the early morning mist, so majestic that he almost thought twice about shooting it, then BANG!  Fired away.

I will take his word for it that it was 'majestic' seeing as how all I saw was a dead deer.....

Now, on to this bit about 'cleaning'....I really don't see the need to call it cleaning a deer, honestly, there is not a darn thing about it that is clean, except those of us that refused to look at it.  I'm telling you, there is enough blood, guts, and gore to put a Rambo movie to shame!  By the time Andy was finished, he was covered in so much blood and nastiness, it was enough to turn the most hardened carnivore into the newest of new vegetarians!


I am convinced that the girls had a MUCH better job- chillin' in the kitchen, cooking good food for the boys! :)  We had such a great time sitting around, talking, and cooking.  Deer Camp Chili is a must!!

The best part of the opening day of Buck Season is seeing the boys- TJ, Alex, and Austin- all exciting about their successes!  They were totally into the season, then totally crashed on the couches for hours!  The cold zapped some energy, then the excitement of the kill took the rest!

I hope you have enjoyed a little glimpse into the lively living we do around here as part of the Dressler Clan...oh who am I kidding, you are probably completely grossed out! :)

Be Blessed!