I am a little behind everyone in posting as I just got home from FL. and now have access to a puter. So please bear with me as I tell a little bit of my experiences at the Marty 300.
Just how special is a hunt in the palmetto swamps west of Lake Okeechobee that is hosted by Marty? Let me tell you a little bit about the camp that a lot of you may not know. One of the finest descriptions about hunting in that area can be found in a little known treatise about bow hunting called “The Witchery of Archery” that was written by the Maurice Thompson and dedicated to his brother Will. I cannot say that they were on this exact piece of property but they do mention Fisheateng Creek which is only a few miles away and the descriptions of the land match the camp to a T. As for the volume and quality of the game we can let the story that you have been reading on this post answer that question.
Another thing that makes a hunt at this camp so special is the members of the camp. They truly do take care of the little things that make a hunt special. What am I talking about? First there is the food. I have been to the camp as a guest a few times and never have I had a meal that only classified as good, they are great! This hunt featured the culinary skills of Les and Marty. I know of no better team, unless you wanted to throw Don in to the mix too. On a Second note are the buggies. When do you get to ride atop a modified Pickup frame sporting 40 inch tires and a platform that puts the hunter’s feet 5’ 11” off the ground. Talk about a view. Even in the heat when the buggy is moving dodging the Spanish moss and Scrub Oak braches the ride is comfortable. Even fast enough to stay ahead of the Mosquitoes. About the Stands, each stand is carefully thought out for shooting lanes and wind direction. Even a bug machine to keep the mosquitoes at bay is made available. Each stand has the necessary haul rope permanently attached to the stand, there are multiple bow and equipment hooks well placed in every tree. And then there are the names of the stands, names like, “Gator Hole” , “Poachers”, “Dippin Vat”, “Hog Trap” , “New Piece”, “Tree House”, “Culvert South” and many others. It all begins to bring about an understanding of just how special this place can be.
I am one of the “lucky ones” in that I have gotten to visit this hunter’s paradise a number of times as a guest because Les is my brother. I build him bows and maintain his swamp buggy, (along with Marty's as the need arises) Les in turn lets me come to Florida for a visit every so often to this paradise west of Lake Okeechobee. This trip was a little different in that I was going to be there while Marty was hosting the Marty 300 trip. I guess Les invited me down since I had built a bow for Randy the winner of the Marty 300. I arrived a few days early and got a jump on the hunting so please bear with me as I get caught up on my part of the story.
I got to camp with Les Sunday afternoon and as is usually the case we had some quick maintenance to take care of and then it was off to one of my favorite places, Gator Hole or Garrett's Lair as Les and I call it in honor of a special friend. That night found me sitting in the road stand about 12 yards from the perimeter of the feed zone. Here is the view from the road stand.
All was quiet and a raccoon showed up. What better to test my shooting skills on. Well I gave him quiet the headache and at the same time made a very big mistake. Not wanting to disturb the area by getting out of my stand I left the bloody arrow lay very near the hot zone. About 30 minutes later I learned the severity of my mistake. 3 hogs came in and just as the big one was getting close for a perfect shot he decided to trot a few yards to a better place. Right where my bloody arrow lay. one sniff and GONE AUGHHH so much for porker tonight!
pete
Topic: Ferretwyo comes to Florida! (Read 3235 times)
