| A Christmas Hunting Story written by Joel Bailey |
When I was a kid, Dad, me and my brothers, did a
lot of hunting. And a lot of times, me and the other
guys in the neighborhood would go hunting. We never
hunted for deer, as a lot of guys do today but we
hunted squirrel, rabbit, and birds.
I did a lot of my hunting behind my house - the lot
back there was nothing but woods - until they put in
a sub division called Beverly Hills. Dad had rabbit
boxes set out in the woods behind our house and I
would go check them every now and then....but I
never remember finding any rabbits in them.
My neighborhood buddies, Jerry and Woody Jenkins,
hunted quite a bit when we were kids. I believe
Woody is still an avid hunter. I remember they used
16 gauge shotguns but my dad used 12 gauge
shotguns...but I had always wanted an Over and
Under shotgun (16 gauge on the top and 22 rifle on
the bottom). But I never did get one of those. But
Dad did buy me a 12 gauge double barrel sawed-off
shotgun from Luptons Hardware in Rockingham.
I remember my first time hunting with this
sawed-off shotgun - right around Christmas. Me,
Woody and Jerry were behind my house hunting for
squirrels. A sawed-off shotgun really wasn't the
best for hunting squirrels but it was pretty good for
hunting rabbits - as long as you were weren't too
far away from the rabbit. But squirrels loved to
jump from tree to tree and the distance a gun like
mine had was not too good for shooting at squirrels
because the shot scattered so quickly once it was
fired.
When Woody hollered at me "there he goes", I spun
around to see that squirrel jumping from one tree to
the other - just like he had wings. He was a good
distance up that tree but I was determined to get
me a squirrel that day. So, when I got him in my
sites, I fired away.
The next thing I knew, I was sitting on the ground.
Leaves were flying through the air, just like it was
snowing! When I pulled the trigger, both barrels had
fired! The force of the kick had knocked me to the
ground. A 12 gauge kick was pretty good anyway -
but this was a sawed-off, double barrel 12 gauge
kick with both barrels fired at the same time! I
didn't kill the squirrel that day but I sure got a
bruised shoulder. That old gun of mine would fire
both barrels every time you shot it - some kind of
defect, I guess. My son has it now but he doesn't
hunt with it. I guess he'll keep it as a kind of relic
from the past.
Every time I walk the trails here in Cary in the
winter and look up at the trees and see the squirrels
jumping from tree to tree, going in their nests,
running on the ground with my dog Charlie chasing
after them, I am reminded of the many times I was
in the woods when I was a kid hunting squirrels,
rabbits or quail and the crispness of the winter air
felt during these times. It's memories like these
that really take me back to my childhood years and
hopefully will bring back memories from others that
will be shared in this website as time goes by.
lot of hunting. And a lot of times, me and the other
guys in the neighborhood would go hunting. We never
hunted for deer, as a lot of guys do today but we
hunted squirrel, rabbit, and birds.
I did a lot of my hunting behind my house - the lot
back there was nothing but woods - until they put in
a sub division called Beverly Hills. Dad had rabbit
boxes set out in the woods behind our house and I
would go check them every now and then....but I
never remember finding any rabbits in them.
My neighborhood buddies, Jerry and Woody Jenkins,
hunted quite a bit when we were kids. I believe
Woody is still an avid hunter. I remember they used
16 gauge shotguns but my dad used 12 gauge
shotguns...but I had always wanted an Over and
Under shotgun (16 gauge on the top and 22 rifle on
the bottom). But I never did get one of those. But
Dad did buy me a 12 gauge double barrel sawed-off
shotgun from Luptons Hardware in Rockingham.
I remember my first time hunting with this
sawed-off shotgun - right around Christmas. Me,
Woody and Jerry were behind my house hunting for
squirrels. A sawed-off shotgun really wasn't the
best for hunting squirrels but it was pretty good for
hunting rabbits - as long as you were weren't too
far away from the rabbit. But squirrels loved to
jump from tree to tree and the distance a gun like
mine had was not too good for shooting at squirrels
because the shot scattered so quickly once it was
fired.
When Woody hollered at me "there he goes", I spun
around to see that squirrel jumping from one tree to
the other - just like he had wings. He was a good
distance up that tree but I was determined to get
me a squirrel that day. So, when I got him in my
sites, I fired away.
The next thing I knew, I was sitting on the ground.
Leaves were flying through the air, just like it was
snowing! When I pulled the trigger, both barrels had
fired! The force of the kick had knocked me to the
ground. A 12 gauge kick was pretty good anyway -
but this was a sawed-off, double barrel 12 gauge
kick with both barrels fired at the same time! I
didn't kill the squirrel that day but I sure got a
bruised shoulder. That old gun of mine would fire
both barrels every time you shot it - some kind of
defect, I guess. My son has it now but he doesn't
hunt with it. I guess he'll keep it as a kind of relic
from the past.
Every time I walk the trails here in Cary in the
winter and look up at the trees and see the squirrels
jumping from tree to tree, going in their nests,
running on the ground with my dog Charlie chasing
after them, I am reminded of the many times I was
in the woods when I was a kid hunting squirrels,
rabbits or quail and the crispness of the winter air
felt during these times. It's memories like these
that really take me back to my childhood years and
hopefully will bring back memories from others that
will be shared in this website as time goes by.
| So, as the Train of Life keeps chugging along, another page written of my Childhood Memories of.... Rockingham Remembered. |
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