Last weekend was the opener of Kansas’ pheasant hunting season. Like a modern day Lewis & Clark looking for adventure, my hunting buddy and our pups headed West.
Pheasant season is big business in farm county, and as you get off the beaten path, every small town rolls out the welcome mat as hoards of bird hunters descend, filling up hotel rooms, cafes and taverns. During our six hour journey we saw dozens of ‘Welcome Hunter’ signs, hundreds of pickup trucks with orange hats on their dashes and dog boxes in their beds, and one sign on the message board of a highway-side steakhouse that topped them all… Vegetarian: Old tribal word for bad hunter.
And in a weekend filled with dear friends, plenty of shooting, stylish points and more than our share of pheasants, I certainly count myself lucky to live where I do.
Yep, there really is no place like home, especially when you live in Kansas during the pheasant opener!