It was a cool December evening. I sat in a blind made from palmetto stalks and Spanish moss, waiting for a deer to wander close enough for me to pierce it with an arrow. The sun was hanging fairly low in the sky; it would be dark in 20 or 30 minutes. Just as I was thinking about the limited shooting light, I noticed four does standing behind a clump of palmettos about 40 yards away. This would be an easy shot with a rifle, but I was hunting with traditional gear, which consists of a longbow or recurve that does not have any of the accessories such as sights or stabilizers, just a stick and a string.

The does quickly pranced across the field into the woods. And just as quickly as they had appeared, they were gone. When the sun finally fell below the horizon, I began my hike out, empty handed and disheartened.

This day represented the entire season for me. But just because I did not kill a deer this season does not mean it was completely unsuccessful. I learned more than I have in all of the previous years I have spent pursuing “the elusive deer.”

One thing I discovered was how quickly wind can change up on a ridge. For those of you who don’t hunt, the wind is your biggest enemy because it alerts your prey to your scent. The biggest lesson I learned was to expect the unexpected.

Nature taught me these lessons during one very memorable hunt in North Carolina this past October.

I was hunting on a ridge the critters were using as a highway to get food. It was getting dark and nothing had been moving all day, so I was thinking about heading out. Just as I was about to give in, I heard something moving behind me. Sure enough, a fat doe was working her way across the ridge. I did not expect any deer to be moving back there, especially since there was a heavily used deer trail 15 yards in front of me. The wind was not in my favor though; it was blowing right in her face, so she caught my scent and spooked.

That was the typical ending for each day of this deer season. It didn’t matter if it was archery season (Sept. 12 to Oct. 14) or rifle season (Oct. 22 to Jan. 1); the outcome was always the same: no deer. Sometimes, if I was fortunate, someone hunting with me would harvest a deer. They were always happy to share some meat with me if I was willing to lend a hand in the gutting, skinning and butchering of the animal. So in a way, I did accomplish my goal of putting meat in the freezer.

I look back on this season, not sad, but excited and ready for next year. I have no regrets. I sat in various spots many days; some were good and some were bad, and they all ended the same way. But I did get the chance to spend many hours sitting and studying the beauty of the nature surrounding me, and that’s what being in the woods is all about.