Minnesota hunters with some of their guides ... standing on left is Bayle Worden; kneeling in front left to right are Casey Williams, Paul Radeke, and Dakota Click;
in back are Phil Thompson and Mike Conway. Chris Wagner also from Minnesota took the picture.
MINNESOTA VISITORS
#1266
by: Eddie Trapp
For fifteen years or so Phil Thompson from St. Cloud, Minnesota has come to Texas to hunt hogs with me. Each time he brings two or three people with him and returns home with lots of meat and stories. Naturally they show pictures to their envious friends. So many of Phil’s friends have wanted to travel down here he is making two trips this year, just returning home a few days ago and will visit again in March. On the recent three day hunting trip with Phil were Chris Wagner, Paul Radeke, and Mike Conway. His group brings two deep freezes in the back of their pickup and usually they are filled on the return trip. This year over the three days those helping me guide were Bayle Worden, Dakota Click, Casey Williams, Chad Harrington, Mark Owen, Dan, Savannah, Alex, and John Peters.
Saturday, January 19 we hunted near Kensing and found some fresh sign but we think the hogs were across the river in the next county. Heavily used trails led that way. After supper we even tried another place at night, trying not to end the day empty handed. Sunday, the 20th we traveled south of Charleston but the hogs were again just over the fence from where we had permission to go. By 1:00 we moved on west of Cooper and the dogs soon found a large group of hogs in a weed field. When the dogs barked the hogs made their excited alarm call and the hunters rushed in. As the hogs scattered one of our guests fired off three rounds but missed. A few of us had waited in a nearby open pasture and here came a hundred fifty pound reddish boar, trying to put some distance between him and the dogs. Cousin Dan Peters and his daughter, Savannah, were sitting on a side by side ATV and bounced across the pasture, already rough from rooting. As the ATV was about to run over the boar, it put the brakes on and cut behind the Polaris. Went under a fence and got away. My Jack Russell terrier, Zack, was the only successful one of the group as he caught a rabbit sized, striped pig and carried it to Grandson Casey who later put it in a cage at home.
At least we found some hogs on Sunday and one of the hunters got to shoot but we really needed to do better on Monday the 21st, their last day. Time to go to a place I’ve never been without getting a hog. Would our bad luck continue and break my streak at this hot spot? To get to the hunting place you must cross a river by boat. I rigged a rope from one bank to the other so we could ferry back and forth more easily. The dogs took off and the group followed while I stayed with the boat. That way when a hog is caught I can motor as close as I can and it sure saves dragging the hog so far. The group had been gone
fifteen minutes when the dogs struck a hog and ran back toward me. Soon they were baying right back near me and I radioed our group to come on. The hog was killed, field dressed, and put in the icy river to keep the meat from spoiling as the day warmed. The day wore on and we kept finding a hog every hour or so. Finally wound up with four big ones. I don’t know who was happiest, the hunters, the guides, or the land owner. The happiest may have been Zack who enjoys hog hunting and also caught another rabbit size pig today. See you in a few weeks, Phil.
Unless there is a cold spell about February 22 we should see some tiny leaves on elm, hawthorn, and black cherry trees. For years I have noticed that date almost always produces some greenery. Jean puts out sunflower seed for hundreds of small birds and most of them are goldfinches. Already I have seen many of them changing from their winter drab color to the brighter yellow. They will be moving back north in a few weeks. Wednesday, January 23, I sat in the warm sunshine at my cabin and was bitten twice on the left wrist by pesky mosquitoes. Two days that week reached a high in the mid seventies.
The Dallas Morning News reported recently about a study done by North Carolina State University concerning belly button lint. The title of the study was “Belly Button Biodiversity Project.” After swabbing five hundred belly buttons they found 2368 different kinds of bacteria. Belly buttons are a perfect home for bacteria since it is usually dark, moist, and warm. Most bacteria are harmless, some cause disease, and many are helpful. The study showed ninety percent of navels are “innies” with a sunken appearance. Bacteria are much more common there than in the protruding “outies.” Magnified images of some of the things found in navels can be observed on a website, wildlifeofyourbody.org
Saturday, I finished typing the On the River articles 701-800 which form Volume 7. Now the articles will be proof read and corrections made for a few weeks. Albums will be searched and pictures selected that go along with the tales. Hopefully Volume 7 will be back from the printer by March 1. To order Volume 7 or any of the previous six contact me at etrapp327@hotmail.com or call 903 439 8110 so I will know how many copies to have printed.
A man and his little boy had the habit of saying a prayer when they saw a wreck, hoping no one was severely injured. They were going to McDonalds one day and almost there when they saw a wreck. The daddy and little boy were saying their usual prayers and the daddy heard the little boy at the conclusion say, “And please don’t let the entrance to McDonald’ be blocked. Amen.”
etrapp327@hotmail.com
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