Good Opening Day!

Saturday was a good day!  The opening day of dove season has always been a good day in my life because it was the season that I most looked forward to as a child.  As I have gotten older, some of the excitement has tempered off (mostly because it is too hot), but now I have a new found excitement as I am trying to raise a son who will hopefully love the outdoors as much as I do.  To say he had a good time Saturday is an understatement.  He had a blast and is itching to go again!

We loader up all of our gear in Papa's truck and headed out.  I was armed with my Browning A-5 twenty gauge, and Reid was armed with his BB gun and 6,000 BB's.  When we arrived at our meeting place, we found that one of Reid's classmates was there with his Dad.  The boys loaded up their guns and started shooting at plastic bottles.  They entertained themselves under careful supervision all the way through lunch.  They even stopped long enough to catch a fish or two in the pond next to the field we were going to shoot. 

 The time finally came for us to make our way to the field.  Reid and I set up in the middle of the field with a blind.  Papa headed for a spot on the edge in the shade of some rather large pine trees.  With the temps in the 90's, it didn't take Reid very long to ask if he could go sit with Papa.  Next thing you know, Papa had Reid and his friend as hunting partners for the day. They became retrievers, or at least tried, and would finish off the doves that Papa had killed by shooting them in the eye with their BB guns.  They got pretty good at spotting birds as they would announce that "we had company" as the birds flew into the filed.  I think that Daddy had a good time watching them, even if it did cost him a few birds.

It was a good shoot and my limit is now soaking in some salt water in the fridge.  They will be good fried up with some grits and biscuits.  As we gathered up to tell lies about the days festivities, I kept hearing the boys shooting those BB guns and then I would hear a loud "whop".  Reid had taken a 20 gauge hull and stood it up about 20 feet away.  He was shooting that thing and hitting more than he was missing.  I was impressed.  I guess all the practice that he got that day was paying off.  I think he fired about 1,000 rounds.  His gun needed a rest, and so did he!

We left the filed and I turned on the radio to find the start of the Georgia Southern game.  They won big!  It was a great end to a great day spent with my Dad and my son. 

 That was worth getting excited about!!!!