A lot of the time, while deer hunting, the other things you see and hear can be more interesting than the prey you are after. Strange goings on in the woods have caused me to do a lot of thinking.

For one, I don’t believe November is just the breeding season for deer. I see mating activity among the squirrel and raccoon populations. I’ve sat on stand this past week and watched piney squirrels zipping up and down trees and logs. They chase and chatter at each other while paying me no mind. I see some of this with fox squirrels, but believe most of them will mate next month.

My son Greg and I hunted in the rain on opening morning. All we got was wet. He was using Jourdan’s 20-gauge Remington 870 slug gun. I, the same model, in a 12-gauge.

The guns, though looking the same, were different. Mine has a smooth bore and a lot of kick. The little 20 has a rifled barrel and is a lot easier on the shoulder. It is also more accurate. I would never consider buying a 12-gauge slug gun again. Shooting with sabot slugs, the muzzle velocity is around 1900 fps. These guns, properly sighted with a quality scope, are easily accurate to 150 yards.

After the ill-advised hunt in the rain, Greg and I put our wet clothes in the dryer and had breakfast at the Diner in Pendleton.

Hunting from another location Sunday evening, I could hear raccoons growling and fighting quite loudly for over an hour. In another woods Monday morning, I heard the same thing. The noise was coming from a hollow beech tree. Soon, a fat raccoon came down the tree as if he had been kicked out. He went looking for a better reception in another dead beech across the woods.

Congratulations to Randy and Russ Dillon on taking a nine point buck and a doe on the same day during archery season. They were hunting Franklin County. Also, to Clarence and Kyle for taking two big bucks in Kentucky. For me, the hunt goes on. 

After missing a 10-point buck with my bow, old friend Robert Porter wrote, “You are never too old to get buck fever.” I shot my bow the next day. All the arrows went under the target. A plastic wing nut was loose on my bow sight. As some of my softball players would say, “My bad.”

Our local Ducks Unlimited committee is hosting a first-ever Sportsman’s Night Out. There will be no sitdown dinner and no live auction. However, there will be food and drink and plenty of hunting and fishing equipment along with other outdoor gear.

This will be a raffle-only event. There is limited space for this event Dec. 5 at the 40/8 Club on Rangeline Road. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. Call Lance at (765) 635-9402.

Rick Bramwell’s column publishes Thursdays in The Herald Bulletin sports section. To contact him, e-mail rickbramwell@aol.com.