September 2021 - 21

Peterson walks down a two-track
road in the Laramie Range while
hunting turkeys. Hunting alone isn't
generally recommended, but in
certain circumstances, with caution,
can be a way to evolve as a hunter.
(Photo by Peterson family)
A hunter uses a slate call to attract turkeys. Simple tasks like this can be more difficult if you get flustered while hunting alone.
(Adobe Stock Photo)
I walked more and made what were surely
the worst box-call sounds in history. The rain
kept pouring.
Frustrated, I turned around to look for
that missing striker.
And then I fell. My boot slipped out from
underneath me on a slab of moss-covered
granite. I came down with a thud on my back,
my Winchester slamming so hard on the rock
the stock twisted. So I did what anyone in my
position with an audience of no one would
do: I stared up into the rain and cried.
But as I slunk back to camp, lugging my
twisted shotgun and nursing my wounded
back and ego, I realized something important:
We all, at some point, have that first time
hunting alone in the woods. For most of us
who learned to hunt as teens and preteens,
it occurred sometime in those years before
we became aware of our own mortalities. As
much as I felt like a failure, I learned more
that morning than I likely had all season.
Suddenly the decisions were mine to make.
No one would tell me what to do, what shot
to take or what direction to walk.
Alone in the woods I could learn who I
was as a hunter. This wasn't an embarrassing
failure. It was growth.
Cruise through social media or any
number of hunting magazines and it's easy
to believe all hunters are experts, and the
tough ones hunt alone. They're real hunters,
the captions so often read.
We imagine that will be us out in the
woods. Tagging along with more experienced
hunters, I can almost pretend it is. Sure, I
don't look the part. My camouflage doesn't
match and my Winchester is covered in
scratches, but I can feel the part under the
tutelage of a knowing partner.
Wyoming Wildlife | 21

September 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of September 2021

September 2021 - 1
September 2021 - 2
September 2021 - 3
September 2021 - 4
September 2021 - 5
September 2021 - 6
September 2021 - 7
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September 2021 - 44
September 2021 - 45
September 2021 - 46
September 2021 - 47
September 2021 - 48
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