Three and Out

Well, I was supposed to be in Iowa today. But, well, I'm pretty much a baby when it comes to travelling in ice. The weather here in the Midwest has been bizarre to say the least. Iowa has been pounded with ice for about three weeks and today they're getting one final round before things look to settle down.

It was 61 degrees today here in Michigan. The 13 inches of snow on the ground melted in about 12 hours and it was coupled with an inch or so of rain. Yeah, fun soup. The wind is whipping at about 25 mph and is expected to gust to 50 tomorrow. So it's a good day to head West and give it one last shot at filling my Iowa tag.

I will have three days to hunt and then I'm finished. I am dead-dog tired and a quick check of the calendar shows that I've spent at least some time in the woods in 56 of the last 61 days. In November, I had a span of two weeks where I spent an average of two hours of daylight when I wasn't in a treestand.

I am not a big-time TV star. I'm just a guy that lives to hunt and loves to live the huntin' life. I had to make the outdoors my profession because, truth be told, there's no way I'd hold down a job any other way. I hunt hard because I love it but also because it's part of what I do for a living -- and sometimes hunting does seem a lot like work. Don't get me wrong -- it's a great life and a great gig. But I definitely understand and appreciate the toll it takes on my family. My wife, as I've often said and absolutely mean, is the finest person on the face of the Earth. She has never -- not once -- ever got upset that I was headed to the woods. In fact, it's because of her that I'm heading for Iowa one more time. She knows how badly I want to take an Iowa deer and finish the task. She has total confidence that I will. Me? I'm not so sure.

But I know one thing -- and I really want to share this with all of you hard-huntin', buck-stalkin' Rack Report diehards: Hunting hard is a badge of honor for those of us who understand what it means. The weather stinks. It's late in the year and I'm going to attempt to hunt public land in an area that see its share of hunting pressure.

But I'm going anyway. There's no other choice for me. It's what I have to do and what I want to do. Sitting it out is not an option becuase I simply refuse to give up. I'm going to pour my heart and soul into three final days. And when the sun sets on Dec. 31, I'm done for the year.

And guess what?

I'm already counting down the days till next season.

Tony Hansen, Michigan Man