Guy Miner
Master Loader
- Apr 6, 2006
- 17,746
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Came across this old photo, opening day of pheasant season, about 1970... Fifty years ago...
I'm the kid in the back row, far right, with a 20 gauge double barrel Ithaca. Maybe 13 or 14 years old in this photo. Dad is kneeling in front of me, far right. Don, the big strong fellow next to Dad. Tom is the kid in the striped shirt in front. Dad had a 12 gauge Browning Auto-5, and Don had the old Remington version of the same gun. They were probably our two best wing shots, though Tom and I got pretty good by our late teens.
The group hunted together for 40+ years, changing over time. Dads, sons, grandsons... We almost never had a dog. We almost always limited out by noon, then there'd be a big lunch break in that old metal building. We'd make steak sandwiches, a huge salad, and my mom always made wonderful cookies for dessert. Sometimes we'd have to go back out in the afternoon to get a few more birds, but often we'd be done by lunch time. Lots of wild birds in those days!
This was on a 5,000 acre farm in the Sacramento River Delta. Tom's dad managed the farm. He and my dad were good friends and business partners for decades. Tom ended up managing the farm until it was sold a few years ago, and he was ready to retire by then anyway.
No hunter orange in that photo. Everyone used lead shot. We almost never had a dog. Good memories. Tom and I are still friends. Dad and Don are in their 90's now, and still shoot. Dad hasn't hunted pheasants in a couple of years, but he wants to go again. Perhaps we'll make that happen. He prefers to "hold" at the end of the field now instead of walking the fields. I understand.
Ya, I've enjoyed pheasant hunting for a long time now. My son uses that 20 gauge double that I'm holding in the photo. Came across the photo and it brought back a lot of good memories.
Guy
I'm the kid in the back row, far right, with a 20 gauge double barrel Ithaca. Maybe 13 or 14 years old in this photo. Dad is kneeling in front of me, far right. Don, the big strong fellow next to Dad. Tom is the kid in the striped shirt in front. Dad had a 12 gauge Browning Auto-5, and Don had the old Remington version of the same gun. They were probably our two best wing shots, though Tom and I got pretty good by our late teens.
The group hunted together for 40+ years, changing over time. Dads, sons, grandsons... We almost never had a dog. We almost always limited out by noon, then there'd be a big lunch break in that old metal building. We'd make steak sandwiches, a huge salad, and my mom always made wonderful cookies for dessert. Sometimes we'd have to go back out in the afternoon to get a few more birds, but often we'd be done by lunch time. Lots of wild birds in those days!
This was on a 5,000 acre farm in the Sacramento River Delta. Tom's dad managed the farm. He and my dad were good friends and business partners for decades. Tom ended up managing the farm until it was sold a few years ago, and he was ready to retire by then anyway.
No hunter orange in that photo. Everyone used lead shot. We almost never had a dog. Good memories. Tom and I are still friends. Dad and Don are in their 90's now, and still shoot. Dad hasn't hunted pheasants in a couple of years, but he wants to go again. Perhaps we'll make that happen. He prefers to "hold" at the end of the field now instead of walking the fields. I understand.
Ya, I've enjoyed pheasant hunting for a long time now. My son uses that 20 gauge double that I'm holding in the photo. Came across the photo and it brought back a lot of good memories.
Guy
CL
