If you are nearby a river or stream you can also look out for different seafoods to fill your stomach. In this deer hunting season there are some animals and plants which you might not find.
If there is a sluggish stream or marsh handy it might pay to look for muskrats. These animals are working hard during the deer hunting season, preparing for winter, and may often be seen in the daytime. If shot in the head, they will float. Retrieving may be a problem. If the wind is in the right direction, they will float near enough to shore so that they may be reached with a pole. When cleaning muskrats, remove all glands and fat from the carcass. After cooking the food it might be necessary to hold the nose while eating it. Muskrats may be prepared in a well-equipped kitchen so they are quite tasty, but it is a different proposition over an open fire and with little to work with.
Deer hunting time is a little late for ducks. The local birds have usually left for the south, but there is always the possibility of a late flight from the north. One of these will make a good meal if it can be bagged. It is a waste of ammunition to try for one of these on the wing. On the water, they are a better target, and, although they may be hard to retrieve, they are worth the effort. If there is a beaver dam nearby, it is possible to make a break in the dam and to shoot the beaver that comes to repair the damage. This is illegal and might be the simplest way to get out of the woods. Kill a beaver and a warden may show you to the nearest judge. Beaver meat is good. It should be prepared in the same manner as muskrat.
Fall is the time that trout and salmon spawn and they may be found in some of the smaller streams and brooks. A rifle bullet does not need to make a direct hit in order to kill these fish if they are in shallow water. Concussion does the job. This practice is illegal, of course. Having food and shelter, a man can wait out a two or three-day storm without coming to any serious harm, however, his mental attitude about his situation has a large bearing on his well-being.
In the early years of my hunting career, I read a newspaper account of a lost hunter who was found on the third day, and who required hospitalization in order to recover from his ordeal. I determined to find out just what this ordeal was, and I entered the same area with the intention of staying for a full week. I started out as I would for a single day's hunt. I did not own a rifle at the time so I carried a shotgun. The only extra equipment taken was a belt axe, a length of copper wire and a larger supply of ammunition than was usual for a single day's hunt.
When lost in the jungle, you may not go hungry and be without harm, but your mental attitude about your situation has a large bearing on your well-being. So try to find your way with a positive attitude. And use the best of the things you have with you to stay safe when you are still lost in the jungle. |
