I will never forget his stories. I replay them in my mind in bright, brilliant-colored memories of images I created for the words he spoke. I can see the black snake living in the rafters of the general store protecting the shelves of corn meal and flour from the mice that the shop owner so desperately despised. I can feel the cold waters of the Cooley Hole on my skin when I visualize the town kids jumping in feet first on a hot July afternoon after their chores were completed. I have never visited the general store or the creek of his childhood stories but I know them well.
One of his favorite stories to tell was of a pet beagle and their shared passion for chasing rabbits. My grandfather would set the scene of a brushy, briery place where the ground was soft and damp and very little sunlight was allowed to enter. It was a creek bottom thicket not far from the farm that was scattered with a few open areas where trees were stumped long ago for timber. He would tell of how his dog was such a fine hunter, that all my grandfather had to do was sit on an old stump and wait for the beagle to circle back a fleeing rabbit to him. He recalled the sound of the beagle’s bark most vividly; a high-pitched squeal told him the rabbit was in sight of the hound while a low bawl meant the rabbit’s scent was filling the beagle’s nose. They were a team and there wasn’t a rabbit safe if they set their sights on him. As a young child, I recall listening to the story and wishing so badly I was along on their hunt.
This past week I was invited to join a group of hunters in Greenbrier County on a late-season rabbit hunt. I was anxious to attend, as it had been several years since I had the opportunity to hunt rabbits. The morning was rainy and dreary as we walked the old, over-grown fields dotted with thorn apple trees. Brush piles and fence rows were hunted and we took an occasional rabbit. The terrain was similar to rabbit hunts of my past and I was enjoying my time afield and being in the presence of well-trained gun dogs.
Shortly after noon, the sun’s rays lit the farm and all afield were happy to take in the warmth after the chilly morning. Following the sounds of beagles in pursuit of a rabbit, I began to notice a change in the terrain. The rabbit had led us to a creek bottom thicket that was scattered with a few open areas where trees were stumped long ago for timber. As I swung the gun barrel toward the flash of fur in the brush, the report of my shotgun filled the damp air and echoed across the bottom. I reached down to retrieve the rabbit next to an old stump and recalled my grandfather’s story. This time, I didn’t need to recall the bright, brilliant-colored memories from my mind. There was no need; they were right there in front of me in living color. I placed the rabbit in my vest and quietly gave thanks to my grandfather and for his stories. This time, I took him hunting with me.
Outdoors
Related Photos
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Writer Chris Ellis joined a group of hunters and some well-trained gun dogs in Greenbrier County on a late-season rabbit hunt this past week. The hunt led him to recall one of his grandfather’s childhood stories. Submitted photo
Thanks for the stories, grandpa
- Outdoors
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Hunting has become more mainstream
As sportsmen, we live by an ethical code of conduct. We are taught by our mentors not to take our way of life for granted and to be aware of our actions as not to cause offense to others. In short, we are taught to behave in a manner as to not make a non-hunter into an anti-hunter.
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Birding among outdoor passions
If you love the outdoors, there are probably some activities you like better than others. Maybe it’s trout fishing or deer hunting. My passion is birds. I love the spring migration when new species return almost daily.
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Setting the record straight on rabbits
Thanks to cartoon characters such as Bugs Bunny, the rabbits we see in our backyards, eastern cottontails, are familiar to almost everyone. And yet I suspect that most people think they are rodents. They are not. Rabbits and hares are lagomorphs, members of the mammalian order Lagomorpha.
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Fickle weather can wreck plans
Well, it’s officially spring. We have “sprung forward” into daylight saving time in hopes of long, sunny evenings to play and work outdoors in the glorious, warm rays of the sun. In return for our daily routines being altered by the time change, we are awarded with unpredictable weather and mud season — gee, thanks!
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Black deer among nature’s rarities
A few weeks ago, Joan Robinson contacted me after she noticed something out of the usual while driving along a Hampshire County backroad in the Eastern Panhandle. It was so unusual she even questioned herself at what her eyes were actually seeing.
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Male half of nesting eagle pair feared dead
One of southern West Virginia’s much-loved and only confirmed pair of nesting American Bald Eagles is suspected dead and the pair’s eggs located at the tip of Brooks Island off W.Va. 20 are in jeopardy.
Wendy Perrone, executive director of Three River Avian Center, said National Park Service Law Enforcement was notified that an Amtrak train hit the eagle Sunday around 10:30 a.m.
Since Sunday, the Park Service, Three Rivers and dedicated volunteers have scouted the track and surrounding area from Brooks Island to Sandstone Falls, but no one has recovered the bird. The male bird, affectionately called Whitey, has also not returned to the nest, leading experts to believe he was killed. -
There is help for anglers getting started
According to statistics from the National Surveys of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation, which are published every five years, the number of anglers in the U.S. is in a steady decline. Over the last 20 years the number of anglers has dropped from 35.6 million in 1991 to 33.1 million in 2011.
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Beckley among places to ‘talk turkey’
This past week brought us snow and rain. Like my kids are fond of saying in a very sarcastic tone, “Really?” For the sportsmen in our area, the last couple of days of winter can be a downtime in the action. For those needing to scratch the hunting and fishing itch, I have a little news that might just do the trick.
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‘How do robins survive winter conditions?’
Winter must be winding down because I’m getting letters and e-mails about winter robins.
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Sequester impacting hunting, fishing industries
A news release from Bass Anglers Sportsman Society (B.A.S.S.) Communications came across my desk this week, and I felt the information was worth sharing.
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