- Outdoor columnist Ben Smith says the most exciting thing on the calendar over the next month is by far alligator season.
Last week I wrote about a recurring summer dream that I’ve been having about hunting a big buck. Fortunately for me, maybe actually writing about it has freed me from the curse of having it again because I haven’t dreamed about squat in the last week. On the other hand, it’s also getting harder and harder to be patient until deer season arrives. There have been a few mornings lately that have felt a lot like early bow season, and it’s given me an itch that desperately needs scratching. And since I don’t want to upset any of the good folks that work for the MDWFP by hunting out of season, I’ve been thinking of other ways to pass the time until the season arrives.
The most exciting thing on the calendar over the next month is by far alligator season. If you’ve followed this column for any length of time you already know how giddy I get when it comes to hunting gators. I cross paths with a lot of duck hunters that strictly duck hunt due to the comradery of the sport and how much of a social event it is. That’s alligator hunting for me. I love being out on the boat in the middle of the night with friends chasing what I think is the top apex predator in the South.
You just never know what’s going to happen and that’s exciting to me. We may have the chance to kill a state record gator, and we may not see anything over five feet long. And we may run out of gas in the middle of the Mississippi River at three o’clock in the morning and barely float over the top of a huge rock dyke. You just never know. It’s the adventure shared with your buddies that make it so special. For those of you that have tags, or a buddy with tags, it’s almost go-time. Just make sure you’ve inspected all of your gear and have gas in the boat.
Something else that opens along with gator season is our annual dove season. While it doesn’t get me as excited as gators, there really isn’t a better opportunity to share time with friends while hunting than dove season. The more people shooting the merrier, especially if you have birds. And while I’m on the topic of having birds and with keeping in the good graces of the MDWFP, you need to be sure you’ve covered all of your bases with planting and harvesting. You can’t go out and plant a wheat field the day before dove season opens. And if you’ve planted sunflowers, you need to make sure any harvesting that you do is within normal agricultural practices to remain legal. It would be a real shame to have your dove hunt ruined because you cut some corners and bent the law to have birds.
Alligator and dove seasons will take us through the better part of September. Then, for those of you on private lands that are interested in battling mosquitoes and heat exhaustion, you’ll get your opportunity to kill a buck in velvet. Mississippi started the velvet season a couple of years ago and a lot of hunters have taken advantage of the rare chance to kill a Mississippi buck in full velvet. I will likely sit this one out for several reasons. One, it’s still really hot and it just doesn’t feel right to sit in a stand and sweat that much. Two, killing a buck in velvet isn’t really something I’ve ever put a high price on. And three, I refuse to submit my buck for CWD testing when it’s the only time of the year that it’s mandatory. It’s not that I have beef with the MDWFP, I know they are trying to do their best to curtail any more spread of the disease. I just don’t like the idea of targeting private landowners without mandatory testing of public land deer throughout the season. If someone could give me a good explanation of why this is the only time of the season that CWD testing is mandatory I’d love to hear it. Until then, I’m content to wait two more weeks to hunt deer.
In reality, October isn’t that far away. How are you preparing? Have you inspected your gear yet? Have you started shooting your bow? Is your land prepped for winter food plots to be planted in a few short weeks? If you asked me these same questions I’d answer “no” to just about all of them. As ready as I am for the season to arrive, this may be the most unprepared at this point of the year that I’ve been in a long time. I am, however, getting back to more primitive hunting this season. I’m planning to get back to staying in the tent and grinding out hunts like in the past. It should make for some interesting stories and hopefully my suffering will be rewarded with a profitable hunting season.
One more thing that might get us all in the hunting season spirit are local Whitetails Unlimited banquets. Here’s my shameless plug for you to join us in Hattiesburg on August 28th at the Jackie Dole Sherrill Center in downtown. The banquet kicks off at 5:30 with dinner and there will be tons of giveaways during the evening. Proceeds from these events go to local chapters that help fund hunter’s safety programs in schools along with helping kids with disabilities have an opportunity to kill a deer. It’s a great organization and vital to the future of our sport. Tickets are available at the door, or you can purchase a table ahead of time. You can visit here for more information. I hope to see you all there!
Ben Smith
