1973 (l to r) – Terry Jackson (with Lady), Bill Downin (with Buck), Jody Jackson (with neighbor’s plot hound, name forgotten) 

Coon hunting was an activity that ran in conjunction with trapping season for more than a few years. I did get to experience this interesting pursuit as a youngster on several occasions and have a handful of recollections from those evenings. But I’d have to say that one of the primary memories is just the general sense of how dark dark really is once you get away from the artificial lights and switch off the headlamps.

Anybody know what these are?  Likely another reason there’s no action shots of the hunts, not as easy as pulling out your “phone.”

And I suppose dark is part of the reason why there are not any photos during the actual hunts.  Instead, the pictures are more so of the processed pelts or the hunters with the true workhorses, the dogs.  I recall dogs named Bones, Susie and Paint while a check-in with Dad also yielded several others such as Buck, Lady, Herbie and Spot (the latter identified by Dad as “the best coon dog ever”).  Certainly a great deal of tales associated with that pack of hounds for another time.

Never knew this second shot existed until Dad recently found another batch of photos, pretty cool from the days when black and white was film not a filter.

Did I happen to mention how dark it gets when you’re coon hunting?

You know, when you’re a kid out there with your Dad, you’re safe, right?  After all, he’s not scared of anything, he’s seen and done it all, knows the woods like the back of his hand and can positively identify everything that goes bump in the night. Even so, when you’re a ten year old kid, it’s a whole different world out there in the dark. And all of these years later, I’d have to honestly say that I’ve never quite put that whole dark thing behind me. Give me some moonlight, a campfire and a little space and I’m perfectly fine. But middle of the woods, pitch dark, senses running overtime…

I’d say don’t tell my kids that I’m not as brave as Papa but I suppose they already know that from some of his outdoor tales. Talk to you later. Troy