The boat
There was no understory in the pines. A heavy layer of pine straw covered the ground. The trees were tightly spaced and were not in rows. This was a stand of volunteer pines that had taken over an old field and had now grown to maturity. It was practically a biological desert. There were a few game trails but not much habitat for wildlife.
The land sloped down toward a big swamp, and the pines gave way to hardwoods at the edge of the swamp. There was a good understory of saplings and green bushes in the flat, moist bottomland. The lush swampland seemed to be a good place for a variety of wild creatures. A virtual sanctuary.
I turned from the pines to follow the edge of the swamp and soon encountered an unusual mound or small hill. This mound was covered in a mix of hardwoods and pines, with a thick understory of saplings. It was right on the edge of the swamp and rose nearly 20 feet above the surrounding woodlands. I walked along the top of its length, which was about 100 feet. It was at least 50 feet wide. There was a commanding view of the open woods around the mound.
A heavily traveled deer path was etched into the side of the hill. Another path crossed over one end of this remarkable place. I was intrigued. What created this mound - or who? I wondered if it was a natural feature or maybe an old Indian mound.
I knew this would be a good place for a deer stand, but it was too far back in the woods, with no easy access. I had to keep on looking.
Just beyond the mound, I encountered a deep gully that flattened out into the swamp. I followed the gully back up into the pines and was surprised to encounter an old road bed. The road had not been traveled in a very long time and was overgrown.
The dim woods road went back toward the swamp, so I followed. It passed the mound just out of sight and turned up a slight incline. Around a sharp turn, I encountered the boat.
I didn't expect to encounter a boat out here in the piney woods. There were no navigable waters within miles. Someone had to have left it here a long time ago. The boat was just off the old road and had trees growing tightly around it.
It was abandoned here for some reason, but I didn't know why. It was almost full of water, so it must have been sound, with no leaks.
The boat was an older fiberglass speed boat. The type I had learned to ski behind many years before. There was probably a good story behind this old boat, but I knew that I would not likely ever know how it got here, who left it here or why.
I walked the old road back toward the highway and my truck. There were some limbs down across the road and a bunch of saplings growing in the travel way. But I knew it could be cleaned up and would give good access to the area of the mound - if I put a stand there.
Later, I talked with Ed, and he told me that no one had a stand on that tract of land. So, I told him that I would like to put one back there on the mound. And yes, he knew about the boat. He even knew the guy that left it there but didn't know why.
I returned a few weeks later with my chainsaw and lopping shears. It took a whole day, but I was able to clean the road up enough to drive my truck back there. I cut a walking path from the road to the top of the mound. Then I trimmed out a good turn-around for my truck near the boat.
A few weeks later, I came back with a ladder stand. I've got some trim work to do with my limb saw, but the hard work is behind me now. From my stand, I'll be able to watch the edge of the swamp and the paths that crisscross the mound. And I'll probably wonder about that boat, out in the pines.
Reach Dan Geddings at cdgeddings@gmail.com.