The Legend of Sneeky Hollow (not Sleepy Hollow), blog entry #7

One of my favorite Halloween stories growing up was Washington Irving's, classic tale "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow". I always loved that scary story about the frail school teacher, Ichabod Crane, and the Headless Horseman. I loved it when the story read at Halloween parties. The story ended the fateful nighttime chase of Ichabod by the Jack-o-Lantern carrying Headless Horseman. A chilling classic tale! If you have never read it, I recommend you read the "Legend of Sleepy Hollow", by Washington Irving.

Well I have an October tale for you, by Jerry Strennen. It is a true hunting (not haunting) tale called the "Legend of Sneeky Hollow".

My tale begins three years ago in a thick wooded hollow in Eighty Four Pennsylvania. It is archery season. I am 30 feet high in my tree stand. It was a chilly October morning. I had been in my stand way before sunrise. I had seen a couple of deer but no buck, Around ten a .m., I glanced down, and directly underneath me, out of nowhere was a massive buck. Startled, I tried to get a shot at the big buck. He sneaked away slowly at an angle that could not give me a shot. The deer disappeared on the wood line. I was baffled by this elusive giant. How did he get directly underneath me with out me seeing or hearing him?

Last year's archery season, same tree, late October, around10:30 am. I not seen a deer all morning. I had my bow in my hands since 6:30 am. I was patient and determined, I turned my head slowly, watched my every movement, for five hours. NOTHING!!! Then my cell phone vibrated in my cammo jacket. Nothing going on, "Just take a quick glance". I hung my bow on a hook on my tree and pulled out my phone. Briefly I looked at my cell phone. Nothing important, the whole event took less than a minute. As I placed the phone in my jacket and reached for my bow, I looked down and "NO LIE" a huge buck was standing underneath my tree. The deer wasn't spooked, but he trotted off into the thick briars and green rosebushes before I could draw my compound bow back and get a shot. I looked at the sneaky buck in disbelief. Next year, I will be ready for the ghost buck.

Yesterday, October 15th, 11:00 am. I found myself up in that same hollow. But this year, I scouted out a different tree to climb and hunt out of. This tree faced the tree I had hunted out of the past two years. I would ambush the sneaky buck. The deer sign and trails were incredible. I had been in this stand since 5:30 in the morning. It was now 11:00 o'clock, I had to leave. Before I would turn around and start climbing down the tree with my portable tree stand. I looked all around in a 360 degree angle. I saw nothing, the buck never showed up. "Time to climb down". I lowered my bow tied to a rope from my tree stand, (about thirty feet up). I then got ready to descend, and turned around in my stand, and there was a buck standing underneath me. Seriously?!? My bow and arrows were on the ground!!! I looked at the deer in shock and amazement. The sneaky phantom buck slowly turned and leaped and bounded away without a care. I watched in disbelief wondering if I was having a bad dream.

I climbed down the tree, packed up my gear and strapped it on my back, shook my head in disgust. As I walked down through the thick dark hollow towards my truck, my mind replayed the past three year's hunts and the elusive buck in this hollow. Was it possible that the same buck had been sneaking by me the past three years? HMMMM. I kind of hope that it was. Before I got in my truck. I looked at the hollow again. I decided to call those woods Sneeky Hollow. I will return again and try to get the elusive phantom buck that appears out of thin air and sneaks safely away with a strange quickness.

I then decided will not go back to Sneeky Hollow until late October, I am in search of the phantom. Next year I stay until 11:30.

Humbly Submitted for your Approval;

Jerry Strennen