That might be true for some people but not for me. I am leaving on an ice fishing trip with about 12 of my good friends tonight (would have been more but a few had to cancel due to the Fargo Flood). Later guys.
Growing up, there were three boys in the neighborhood who had this inexplicable fascination with everything in the woods. We were friends. None of our parents really wanted us at home vegetating, so once we got past 3rd grade, they told us to get the hell out of the house and stay gone until the street lights come on. So... We became aimless youths with lots of idle time... Everyday, all summer. Every summer. We played in the woods b/c, frankly, there was no alternative for 3 broke-ass kids living in the appalachian foothills. It started with shooting tweety birds with bb guns. It eventually evolved into full-fledged gun hunting. Our collective fate was sealed when we all got into archery at 13/14. It was weird that the Three Amigos were constantly at each other's thoats, vying to out-do the other two. Everything was a bloody competition. We pushed each other. If one guy trapped a coon, I wouldn't stop 'til I trapped two. It wouldn't be long before the other jerk had three. In 23 years of knowing each other, we've fought, we've argued, we've all felt the glory of victory and had defeat rubbed in our faces. 23 years of struggle to establish a pecking order that, quite frankly, never came. 3 equals. Unfortunately, one of the guys has made some bad decisions with regard to finances, education and women - so he's drifted away. We still compete. My season is not complete until I find out how many bucks he's killed and how big. It will never end until all three of us are dead. The last two standing are myself and my homeboy Mark. At this point, we've tried to cut each other's throats so many times that it's just useless to even play those games anymore. So now, we share everything and hunt as a unit. Everything is still a competition, but that's just what drives us. We still bicker, but it's all just whiskey under the bridge. We're learning to suppress the greed and one-upsmanship. It's a process. Don't get me wrong, there are a LOT of people who I love to spend time in the woods with. Friends. Family. But your question was about the "one" guy who you can hunt with all the time. Even with that said. Having confessed that I love the guy . . . there are just days when I LOVE hunting by myself . . . engaging Stealth Mode in the Huntmobile and dropping off the radar like a ghost in the night. No Mark. No family. Nobody. Just me and my cell phone and nowhere to be. So for me... does "one guy" exist? Probably not. There is nobody on this planet that I could hunt with "all the time."
I fall into the crowd with several other hunters that I hit the field with once in a while, but it's so hard to find that person that your 100% compatable with - or at least close enough not to drive you crazy....
Like Tim commented on earlier about "trust" I concur. I hunt only with guys I feel I can trust 100%. Not just with my hunting grounds but around my family. That goes a long ways with me. I actually enjoy sharing what I have access too. Theres definately plenty to go around in regards to country and critters out here. I have truely had the best of times with Ryan, Mike, J, Scot, Dan B.,Pat Ely and Tim, and I hope to have more with some others as well. My brother of course will always top my list, hes always been my best friend, who I trust with anything and everything. I dont hunt with locals; they can't keep their mouth shut. I hunt alone if Dee or the boys aren't joining me or a bud from our cyber community isnt out for week. There is enough country out here if I had the one good bud, I could easily hunt with them a lot.. especially for elk and turkeys, teaming up.. bears too.. Whitetails not so much I like hunting them alone for the most part... or at least in areas were we have no impact on each other like my brother and I do.
