A Return to the Long Grass....

There are events in every life that are indelibly etched in memory. Its almost like the brain, acting as a movie camera, records a few brief moments, or hours that are significant in the time we are allotted to spend here on earth. Every scent, every color, every sensation is heightened.. Every texture, touch, and emotion is razor sharp and electric.

It is more vivid, more real, and more stimulating than anything you can imagine. It is neither drug, nor drink induced. It is simply the purest essence of living, or at the very least the truest realization of actually being alive. It is sacred.

Wednesday night was one of those rare times in my life, and I'll never forget it. It will be one of those special, rare moments that each sportsman ( or woman ) will reflect upon countless times throughout the years. And each time it is remembered, it will be as if I am right there again in the long grass.

I had already been to this specific hunting unit of the Everglades 4 times in the last week to scout for Alligators. Both in a "flats boat", and hunting alone along the shore of the tannin stained water. Having never hunted this type of creature before, or any creature in this manner it was a "learn as you go" affair. No guides or professional hunters were used or consulted. I wanted to learn and form my own strategy, not someone else's. Although not a professional hunter, I felt qualified to attempt this. Granted, this somewhat increased the risk of doing something stupid or being possibly injured, but that was a risk I was willing to take.

To say that it is a remote area would be an understatement. Lets put it this way, a cell phone might be useful in making a dying declaration to your beloved, but other than that it's better used as a weight for a fishing line. You get in trouble out there, and you are completely and utterly on your own. The sheer vastness of this wetland in and of itself is enough to make you truly feel how small and fragile you are, much like being out on the ocean. Oddly enough the Indian word for this place "pahokee" means "sea of grass". In a way its comforting..

The Everglades at night really is a beautiful place.

I think it truly is one of the few places left on earth where you can actually see what the environment was like 10,000 years ago. It is timeless, and largely unchanged despite civilization raging foreword on almost all sides of it. The creatures are the same, the motive, and routine are the same yet incredibly random. It all makes sense out there, or at least it does to me...

The sawgrass whistled and moaned in the wind, bullfrogs croaked an odd bass rhythm, mud fish and gar popped along the surface of the water feeding, and the mosquito's hummed. Occasionally, a heron cried out as it hunted along the water.

I sat back took a deep breath, and allowed it to envelop me as we drifted with the muggy, velvet current. The phosphorous scent of a match perfectly complimented the decaying vegetation, making me wish I could bottle it and take it home with me. The fluid water sounds, and insect noises made a soundtrack that no human composer could ever rival in their wildest dreams. Real, savage, and yet peaceful.. I found perfect balance in a place 99 percent of the world would call "unpredictable".

It was honesty at it's purest form. It was the first place I could take what I smelled, saw, and heard at face value.. It made me sad that I had neglected that part of me for so long.

I felt alive for the first time in years. Too many seasons of scanning monitors, radar signatures, satellite images, and other soul numbing activities melted away in the scents, and sounds of the night.

It's hard to explain, but I was Home...

All the years of my youth where I was repeatedly out in the bush alone, came back to me. Almost like a fountain of youth that I never knew existed, suddenly came into sight and took me back. I never realized how much I missed it until that night. I was 12 years old once again and camped along a river, or 24 and out for 2 weeks tracking a puma in South Texas.. The excitement, the wonder, the heartfelt appretiation, the sheer awe came rushing back to me. And for that, I will be forever grateful.

We caught the Alligator...

But it was so much more than that.. It was a rejoining of my soul to the place where it was, and always will be the happiest...

In the Wild.... The only place I have ever really belonged..

I don't know what to do with the information, but If anyone out there knows a Safari firm looking for an apprentice professional hunter send an e-mail. ( really )