Thanksgiving: An Ode to Deer Hunters

Thanksgiving is fast approaching. The air is beginning to chill, the leaves have turned colors and are now dropping from their summer homes. Everyone is bustling in preparation for a feast of thankfulness. For many, the days around the holiday are some of the busiest. But in Ohio, they represent something more—hunting season. While archery season for deer began in September, the Monday after Thanksgiving is a holiday all on its own. It is opening day for Gun in the Buckeye state. While the feast is prepared, a Hunter checks his gear and sights his rifle, all while the giddy excitement of meeting up with friends and buddies at “deer camp” comes to a head. Some have spent months in preparation, working food plots, and checking trail cameras. For others, it's not so much a successful hunt that drives them. The time away from reality, the camaraderie of hunting buddies and the memories of deer camp’s past excite them. I’ve heard more than one hunter say that being in the woods is their equivalent to church. It’s where they talk to God or reflect on their lives. It’s the moments of inner peace that keep them coming back.

Ohio, like Illinois, Iowa, and the State Up North, has historically been a shotgun-only state—with exemptions made to use Muzzleloaders or Handguns that meet certain requirements. Hunters have grabbed their trusted old Remington 870 or Mossberg 500 affixed with slug barrels to take down Ohio’s mainstay game animal for decades. Other hunters may take hold of an old single shot from Harrington & Richardson; other sophisticated types grabbed hold of a custom-built shotgun from Hastings or one of Savage’s superbly (by slug gun standards) accurate 212 or 220 bolt-action models. While considered archaic to many Westerners or Southerners who don’t have such restrictions, those firearms have taken untold amounts of game. More importantly, they become items passed down through generations so their kids or grandkids can harvest their first deer. It is a passing of tradition. Without tradition, who are we?

A New Era: Straight Wall

Luckily, in the past half-decade, Ohio has modernized—somewhat. While “high-powered” bottleneck cartridges are still illegal for deer hunting, straight-walled cartridges are not. These cartridges represent classics such as the 45-70 Gov’t, 444 Marlin, or the 44 Remington Magnum. As the popularity of such guns increased, so did the available options. Relative newcomer 450 Bushmaster exploded in both bolt-action and AR-15 options. This was the grand awakening. Manufacturers saw an opening for purposed-built cartridges targeted at Ohio and similar states. That led to the rise of the 350 Legend, 360 Buckhammer, and the 400 Legend. Each cartridge represents a progressive step in modernizing the Ohio hunter. Never has a deer hunter in Ohio held so many options.

With these cartridges, ethical distances for taking deer increased. Shots exceeding 200 or 300 yards are possible. Mossberg and Remington no longer have the stranglehold on the deer hunting market. Winchester, Ruger, CVA, Weatherby, Franchi, Bergara, Christensen, and more (including Mossberg and Savage) all build and sell rifles for the progressive deer hunter. There are many options, but like the person's reasoning for hunting, a rifle’s selection is personal.

Circling Back to Tradition

This is when new traditions start. That old pump shotgun or single shot is relegated to the back of the safe, only to be brought out to relish in the memories of the past. Those fond memories will be passed down through generations and eventually be replaced by new memories. It’s through tradition that hunters anxiously wait for opening day. While the tools and regulations change, the time-honored pastime of meeting with buddies and sharing in the experience of deer camp endures.

The aroma of turkey, the clatter of serving spoons pouring out helpings of mashed potatoes, and the laughter of family and friends gathering around a table fill the house. In this moment, it’s time to be thankful and share with the people we love. For deer hunters, their time of thankfulness is about to come.

Happy Thanksgiving.