Joseph Thomson: Mystery Man of Africa
Over the course of the 19th century, phenomenon sometimes referred to as “the opening up of Africa,” hunters and explorers, along with a solid sprinkling of traders, were in the forefront. They pioneered the way into the interior and their tales of grand adventures,...
Remembering Grandpa Joe
I flat-out worshiped Grandpa Joe. His folksy wisdom, the wonderful times I enjoyed in his company as a youngster, and what he taught me when it came to living close to the good earth endeared him to me. He died a half century ago, and in fairness and from hindsight, I...
Preserving Turkey Memories
A delightfully different approach.
Of Catfish and a Smelly Old Codger
To a starry-eyed boy enchanted by anything connected with hunting or fishing, his knowledge of the river had a mysterious, almost magical quality about it.
Mollygrubs And The Birds And Bees
Similar to pretty much any teenage boy in the time around the onset of puberty, Mollygrubs Messer talked with his buddies about the birds and bees, bragged of planned sexual conquests, boasted around backcountry campfires of upcoming plans to date some “hot chick”...
There Are Strange Things Done in the Springtime Sun
Aficionados of campfire poetry in general, or fans of the so-called “Poet of the Yukon,” Robert Service, will likely recognize that the title of this piece comes from his eerie yet wonderful poem, “The Cremation of Sam McGee.” The setting for the saga lies far from...
Mollygrubs To The Rescue!
As Mollygrubs moved into his mid-teenage years amidst a seemingly never-ending series of snafus and strokes of bad luck, through dogged determination on his part and patient tutelage from his father, he nonetheless somehow managed to develop modest skills as a...
Mollygrubs Messer: Trials and Tribulations with an English Pointer
Although Mollygrubs Messer grew up in a region of the South not known for abundant populations of quail, during his youth that grand game bird Havilah Babcock once described as “five ounces of feathered dynamite” was still fairly commonplace in agricultural regions...