I like the concept behind Keith Warren’s television show “The High Road,” which airs on The Outdoor Channel.
Warren is basically saying that, as hunters, we are all in this together. As long as the way you hunt is legal in your state, well, you go, guy or gal.
The way Warren hunts isn’t for me. He basically raises deer in somewhat of a farm environment. He raises big deer with big antlers on his Texas spread. He puts in water systems so the deer have liquid during a South Texas drought. He has feeding stations. He uses genetic engineering, having deer whacked that don’t have the size of antlers he is looking for. It’s perfectly legal. He likes doing it. So that makes it OK with me.
For me, I’d rather hunt a spindly racked 6-point in a wild mountain setting. From earlier columns that I’ve written in this vein I now know that there are numerous readers who join me in that belief.
I think Maryland should go ahead and make crossbows legal during the entire archery deer season for anybody who wants to buy one, practice with one and then use one to turn a deer into dinner.
If you don’t like crossbows then don’t use one. If you don’t like crossbows and you have the say about a certain piece of land, then don’t let anybody use one.
As a fading user group, hunters need to be very careful about being snobbish, about saying my way is so much better than your way that you are an inferior hunter or even an inferior person to me.
On the Web site of The Outdoor Channel it reads, “The goal of ‘The High Road with Keith Warren’ is to unite hunters from all over the country, regardless of geography, styles, techniques and views.”
In my opinion, those of us who use compound bows have no reason to complain about crossbows. Those who use recurves or long bows have no reason to complain about compound bow users.
I wonder if Ishi’s counterparts in northern California who used spears started to complain when somebody came up with the bow and arrow idea.
If you are unfamiliar with Ishi, check him out on the internet. Fascinating stuff.
If you think about it, the evolution of the average blackpowder hunter from the flint to the cap and ball to the in-line rifle with 209 shotgun primers came about without much of an internal fuss from deer hunters.
If you’ve been around Western Maryland for a while, though, I’m sure you remember when we went through the years that scopes became legal on muzzleloaders, then scopes became illegal, then scopes became legal again.
Make a vow this hunting season. If you are a traditional bow user, make a vow to help a crossbow hunter drag a buck out of the woods. If you are a person who doesn’t bait, make a vow to help a Corn King skin his deer.
And vice versa, of course.
Let’s have a good hunt.
Contact Outdoor Editor Mike Sawyers at msawyers@times-news.com.
Michael A Sawyers - Outdoors
Let’s take Warren’s high road
- Michael A Sawyers - Outdoors
-
-
They have their ways
“Brrrrrrrt! Brrrrrrrt!” my phone vibrates in my shirt pocket. Sometimes when that happens I think that I just burped.“Hello?” -
Md. hunt rules being formed
The Maryland Wildlife & Heritage Service, currently in the early stages of setting hunting regulations for the next two years, envisions no changes to the deer bag limits in Region A (Garrett, Allegany and western Washington counties).On the other hand, substantial changes are being eyeballed for Region B, which is all of Maryland from Clear Spring eastward to the Atlantic Ocean. -
Officers allowed to enter
Is it legal for Maryland Natural Resources Police officers to walk onto your private land?
-
Wapiti survey begins
What’s up with this elk stuff anyway?
I’m speaking, of course, about the news announced this past August that some folks are going to look around Garrett and Allegany counties to see if it would be feasible to reintroduce Rocky Mountain elk. Elk used to live here, you know. -
Jury still out on Marcellus shale drilling
Mother Earth, having been around as long as she has, should be given the right to choose elective surgery when needed rather than have exploratory surgery forced upon her.
-
Gobblers hunted on Sundays; sun still rises
See. It wasn’t the end of the world.
Well, wait a minute. I better check before I speak too quickly.
Getting on the Internet, hmmmm, hmm! Yahoo now. Hmmmm! Nope, nothing there. Checking Bing. OK. Now MSN. -
2011 was a very (insert adjective) year
As January started, grumbling could be heard on both sides of the North Branch of the Potomac River.
-
Progress in eye of beholder
Folks in the state-run hunting and fishing industry are always looking for ways to attract new license buyers.
-
W.Va. buck kill up
I have always thought that the wildlife biologists for the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources were brave. Each year, about the middle of November, they predict the buck kill for the upcoming firearms season.
-
And then there were...
I want to start this column by assuring you that I don’t begrudge anybody a buck that is taken by legal means.
- More Michael A Sawyers - Outdoors Headlines
-
