A few weeks ago I stumbled across a blind that was so well hidden that I must have walked by it 10 times and not once did it catch my eye. So I went over to check it out and it was posted with no trespassing signs with Tom's name, address, phone number, and email.
This struck me as odd for a few reasons:
1. There is confusion about who owns the land to get to the water, so I don't believe his signage had any authority
2. There quite a few other blinds in the area without any identification
But, considering the effort that went into scouting the spot, building the structure, and hiding it so well that I almost tripped over it before I saw it, I decided to respect his wish and carry on for my hunting hole.
After trying a few other areas, I still had that blind in the back of my head, what a setup, and so close to home. As I grew more and more frustrated and desperate, due to a lack of experience combined with a lack of ducks, today I finally decided to call Tom and strike up a conversation. And see if maybe I could hunt the same area on days that he couldn't make it out there or maybe hunt it together. I had my speech all planned put before I dialed because I didn't want to step on anybody's toes or get off on the wrong foot. Hoping for a friendly conversation, and even excited to maybe learn some stuff from an experienced hunter because luck hasn't been on my side this season bagging a single wood duck on opening day and coming home empty handed ever since.
Well I dialed. And the line was disconnected. Tried again just to be sure I got the number right. Disconnected.
Next step: google the name and address
Result: An obituary with the same name, I thought "what are the odds of it being the same guy? There's tons of Toms out there"
The date of birth for the googled Tom was April 16th 1947
The email address on the no trespassing signs was [email protected]
I quickly realized that Duck blind Tom was the same as googled Tom. The obituary read that he died suddenly at the age of 64 which hit home for me because my dad is the same age. So excitedly tracking this guy down, quickly turned to a bit of sadness for not getting to meet this guy who has probably been hunting the area long before I was born.
Tom's passing was on December 24th, 2011. Almost exactly a year to the day before I tried to call him today.
So on Monday morning, December 24th, I'm taking my brother on his first ever hunt and we'll be hunting in honor of Tom from the blind that he built with his own hands.
I may have never met the man, spoken to him, or know what he looks like, but he's taught a few things anyway. Do what you love every day because only god knows when it stops. And hunting is a hobby, it's a pastime, maybe even an obsession, but its a culture that I've learned to respect. So his love for hunting lives on in my mind
This struck me as odd for a few reasons:
1. There is confusion about who owns the land to get to the water, so I don't believe his signage had any authority
2. There quite a few other blinds in the area without any identification
But, considering the effort that went into scouting the spot, building the structure, and hiding it so well that I almost tripped over it before I saw it, I decided to respect his wish and carry on for my hunting hole.
After trying a few other areas, I still had that blind in the back of my head, what a setup, and so close to home. As I grew more and more frustrated and desperate, due to a lack of experience combined with a lack of ducks, today I finally decided to call Tom and strike up a conversation. And see if maybe I could hunt the same area on days that he couldn't make it out there or maybe hunt it together. I had my speech all planned put before I dialed because I didn't want to step on anybody's toes or get off on the wrong foot. Hoping for a friendly conversation, and even excited to maybe learn some stuff from an experienced hunter because luck hasn't been on my side this season bagging a single wood duck on opening day and coming home empty handed ever since.
Well I dialed. And the line was disconnected. Tried again just to be sure I got the number right. Disconnected.
Next step: google the name and address
Result: An obituary with the same name, I thought "what are the odds of it being the same guy? There's tons of Toms out there"
The date of birth for the googled Tom was April 16th 1947
The email address on the no trespassing signs was [email protected]
I quickly realized that Duck blind Tom was the same as googled Tom. The obituary read that he died suddenly at the age of 64 which hit home for me because my dad is the same age. So excitedly tracking this guy down, quickly turned to a bit of sadness for not getting to meet this guy who has probably been hunting the area long before I was born.
Tom's passing was on December 24th, 2011. Almost exactly a year to the day before I tried to call him today.
So on Monday morning, December 24th, I'm taking my brother on his first ever hunt and we'll be hunting in honor of Tom from the blind that he built with his own hands.
I may have never met the man, spoken to him, or know what he looks like, but he's taught a few things anyway. Do what you love every day because only god knows when it stops. And hunting is a hobby, it's a pastime, maybe even an obsession, but its a culture that I've learned to respect. So his love for hunting lives on in my mind
