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It’s Prime Time

For me and my spaniels there are two time designations in the fall – BN & PT.  The BN or Before November time period is often characterized by the mostly carefree time one spends outdoors pursuing critters during the early hunting seasons.  These hunts are often rather relaxing affairs with the idea that many are a prelude to the bigger or better hunts yet to come.  Common examples of hunting at this time can include guarding puddles for early-migrating ducks, freezer-filling sits for deer and maybe even a walk for the devious birds we call prairie grouse.  Hunters during this time usually have a smile on their face and an overall friendly demeanor.

The of Look of Hunter During the PT

But things change…

Come November, we enter into the PT or Prime Time period.  In the PT hunts become longer.  What was once a couple-hour affair now turns into a full day adventure.  Sometimes the hunt even turns into a trip.  Sleep is taken when possible:  in-between fields, at family-gatherings, during sermons and mostly after shooting-hours.  The intensity of the hunts can, and often do, increase as well.  This is a time of action and of tunnel-vision.  Great examples of the hunting that takes place during the PT period are day-long sits for antlered deer, dawn-to-dusk vigils for ducks and long-distance hikes for pheasant and quail.  The demeanor of the hunter during this time period is much different.  If you can find them during daylight, or shooting hours, their face will generally contain a more intense stare.  Conversations with a hunter caught in the PT  are usually quick affairs that revolve more and more around activity in the field.

Though we hunters enjoy both the BN and PT, it is the PT that we were dreaming about the entire offseason.  However, this time of year can be pretty tough on a hunter, too.  Especially when others schedule non-hunting silliness during this period.  Indoor family gatherings, parent-teacher conferences and birthday parties to list a few.  This is the time period to allow the hunter to be a hunter…

My regards to those of us already celebrating the PT!

hershy

About Aaron Hershberger

Aaron "hershy" Hershberger is an Outdoor Education Specialist with the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. He loves being outdoors. When not outdoors he is day-dreaming about being outdoors and/or whining that he is not outdoors. Hershy has been a Hunter Education Instructor, in two states, for nearly three decades & a Bowhunter Education Instructor for over 20 years.

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