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History in the woods.
It’s out there, and every now then while out hunting, fishing or taking a walk in the woods we stumble upon relics from our past.
In the Jan. 29 issue of “Pennsylvania Outdoor News” there’s a story about a hunter in southwestern Pennsylvania who found a large rock overlooking a wooded valley. Thinking he found a perfect spot to watch for deer, the hunter climbed onto the rock and found a surprise.
Fastened to a nearby tree was a hand-written note encased in plastic that preserved the memory of a dedicated hunter who enjoyed the spot for decades. The writing on the plaque memorialized a hunter by the name of Art Rinker, according to the Outdoor News story. It recounted that Rinker shot his first buck from the rock in 1920 and went on to hunt there for the next 63 years. According to the writing on the plaque, Rinker was born at the bottom of the mountain where the rock was perched and died on Nov. 30, 1988 while, of all things, hunting on that same rock.
According to the story, the person who created the plaque is a mystery, as is Art Rinker.
But it’s an interesting bit of history preserved.
I wish there were more things like it around the woods.
When I hunt the same areas that I have hunted for years, I often wonder about those who came before me. Generations of hunters who roamed the hillsides and hollows that I enjoy today, no doubt enjoying countless memorable hunts and outdoor experiences that, without documentation, are essentially forgotten.
The same could be said for your favorite hunting spot as well. Did those who came before you appreciate the place like you do today? Were their hunts successful? Did they harvest a big buck that decades ago was the talk of deer camp but now has vanished with time?
The questions are endless, but thought-provoking nonetheless.
I’ve come across remnants of history in the woods. An old treestand guided me to the spot where I now hunt deer on opening day every season.
I found it years ago while exploring the woods during an archery hunt. The stand was a bare skeleton of rotting, weathered boards clinging harmlessly to the tree trunk by a few rusty nails. It had long been abandoned by whom, I have no idea.
But the remnants of the old treestand on a remote mountainside made me wonder.
Surely if someone thought enough of this spot to lug armfuls of rough cuts lumber deep into the woods and build a treestand, this spot must have something going for it. The stand had to be put here for a reason.
It has to be a special place.
Acting on a suspicion that the treestand wasn’t just put in this very spot at random, with the help of family members I built my own stand nearby. Someone’s special hunting spot from decades ago was now reclaimed, and over the years my hunch proved true as I harvested numerous bucks and enjoyed countless memories from my stand.
And to think I may have just walked right through the area had I not stumbled upon the remains of the old treestand.
Hunting history can be found in many forms aside from old treestands or a plaque bolted to a tree.
I’ve found old cubbies made of stacked stones used by trappers from years ago. Brittle, tarnished shell cases buried under layers of soil and leaves serve as remnants that someone had a memorable hunt in this spot years ago. I even found a place in a stone wall where, after I cleared a mound of accumulated sticks and leaves, someone had shifted a few flat slabs of rock to make a seat.
We aren’t the first ones to hunt a particular place and the evidence of those who came before us may be hard to find, but it does exist.
