Courtesy photo Wearing orange out in the woods during hunting season is of the utmost importance.

Just a few short months ago hunters were all excited about the upcoming deer season, even though we were concerned about the diseases rampant among wildlife.

There was CWD, Mange in black bears and rabies in the raccoon that was raiding our garbage at night. I am extra thankful right now for the venison in my freezer. I remember the column that I wrote some months ago about having a fireplace and enough firewood to keep me going all winter, and how I could cook in my fireplace if ever I needed to do it that way.

Of course, I didn’t have anything like this situation in mind when I wrote that, more like a power outage or something. So I, like most of you, have learned that it will be wise to keep some extra supplies in our cupboards just in case.

We have all had to adjust our schedules, but sometimes we find ourselves in need of adjustment to all this fear that we simply are not accustomed to having in our life.

Many churches in the area are live-streaming their services to give spiritual support to those who desire and my church is among them. New Hope Baptist Church in Duncansville is live streaming services thorugh Facebook so there is one place. Look up New Hope Baptist Church Duncansville.org if you like.

Coming May 2

Spring gobbler season is set to open on May 2 and I’m wondering if that will be cancelled.

The trout season opener was changed to April 7, but I don’t know yet about gobbler season.

I heard a doctor say, awhile back on television, that he thought that people should get outside and walk in the woods. Or you can walk around the block just to clear the cobwebs. This I know for sure — there is not a gobbler hunter who wants another hunter anywhere near him in gobbler season, exceptions of course if you are hunting with a buddy.

So that may be a consideration but you know what will have to stop — showing up at a diner for breakfast after hours. That’s a big part of the day for most gobbler hunters. Even though most will have a snack or apple tucked in their vest, you are usually ravenous by quitting time. Lots of stories to tell and a friend’s company to enjoy after a morning’s hunt, it’s what we love.

So if you are not accustomed to hunting alone this will be a hardship for a lot of us. I have not heard anything from the Game Commission about a delay or cancellation of the season, but they probably will assess that situation in a couple weeks.

Turkey sightings

I have heard reports that hunters are seeing lots of turkeys that have survived this mild winter past.

One morning I was talking to my hunting buddy in Armstrong County and she saw 16 turkeys parading through her yard even as we chatted.

I have often wondered if we can catch a disease from an animal — like CWD. Now I am wondering if animals can catch this virus from us.

So I am proceeding by faith, spraying all my camouflage clothes with Permanone spray for ticks, tooting on the mouth calls, packing up my backpack and making some repairs to my portable blind.

Missing those games

Like you, I am suffering withdrawal from the sports that are usually rampant this time of year: opening of Pirates baseball, March Madness, race for the Stanley Cup but the reruns of past classic games just don’t cut it for me.

This spring season, it is not necessary to wear fluorescent orange while hunting or just walking through the woods. That calls for hunters to be doubly careful in identifying their target before pulling the trigger.

Some hunters will, for safety’s sake, still don orange when moving in the woods but some hunters will not. Therefore, if you see something that you are not able to identify easily, remember that you cannot shoot just because you don’t see orange. This is going to take some getting used to in the woods.

And some discipline. Take the second or third look to properly identify that what you see really is a turkey. It was 31 years ago that I became the victim of a mistaken for turkey incident. I still carry pellets in my body from that shooting.