The Saturday opener hasn't helped in NY. No more visiting with neighboring camps back and forth. No more saloon hopping to buy gun raffles. Breakfasts and dinners at the fire halls is a thing of the past, as is the traditional game feast at camp and late hours card games. Local businesses are suffering, from sporting goods stores to restaurants to grocery stores.There used to be a pretty substantial amount of money pumped into these economies. Not anymore. And all in the name of getting more people involved in the sport. Guess what - I haven't seen a single new hunter in our camp or any of the many camps around us. And it's the same everywhere when I talk to guys in restaurants, bars and around town. Guys used to take a week vacation. They'd come up Friday night and stay till Wed. before Thanksgiving or the whole week. Now, they come up, hunt Saturday and Sunday morn then split for home. All the tradition and comradery is gone. I, for one, don't like it. Even guys that initially thought it was a good idea, have changed their minds.
My heart's in the mountains, my heart is not here. My heart's in the mountains, chasing the deer.
