Some mite call this here story “Butt Luck”, but I prefer ta call it “Hunters Skill”.  Either way we done seed a lot’o Willow Creekers, give up a heap ‘o plews provin they cud out shine the old Butt and the young Hunter.

Started out sum time back, when the tribe chief in charge ‘o fair huntin got wind that the Willow Creekers seemed ta always fill theys meat pole, when they set out late in the season.  So, the chief say, “Let the Creekers know, frum this day forward, they got ta hunt when the leaves be still on the branch an snow has yet ta fall on the mountain”.

So, we bein the kine what want no bad feelin an ta keep our hair—we do what the chief say.

Round camp, we wuz beside ourselves and others talking an jawin.  Pert neer cited, cuz we done seed a heap ‘o buck mulies just fer dark.  Tamorrow we gonna fill dem meat poles fer sure.  Fer sure nuff ta lay hard got plews down as bets!

Now fer a mountain man ta bet a plew takes sum doin an they be a heap ‘o rule makin ta keep it fair.  Our rules is simple, cuz we get cornfused easy:  1. Five plew entry.  2. If you shoot an don’t bring home no meat an if ya want ta stay in the bet, cost one plew per shot more.  3.  Biggest buck, by horn count plus widest spread takes all the plews.

Purdy simple!  An the plews hit the ground an the stack got really high in the lite ‘o that fire. Fer the Butt, it were one purdy site, cuz the Butt most general takes the plews on regular time.

The next morn’in found the Creekers scattered  an  shootin, it were great fun an at the evening sounds of the crackling fire, the sounds of voices wuz sort of still.  Long faces gazed into the fire, sort ‘o sad like.  They wuz sad cuz ‘or at the meat pole hung one mighty big muley what ‘ol Bears Butt done brought in.  One more in a series of one shot hunts.  The boys wuz sad an more plews wuz added ta the stack fer missed shots.  Butt wuz happy!

As the days went on fer the time we had, lots ‘o shots wuz made an lots ‘o xcusses wuz made fer poor shots er missed oppertunitees, but bottom line, they put more plews on the pile—at leest fer the Butt, it wuz gud!

Now, one  umungus,  Hunter wuz tryin hard.  He done seed lots ‘o muley bucks an came close a time  er to, but no luck.  As the days pergressed he sometimes dressed ta look like a tree!  Other times a bush—he wuz a site sure!  ‘An as skill an luck wud come tagither, on the last day in the woods he finally put a big muley on the pole next ta Butts!  It wuz joy an celebratin that nite shore.

The next morning as  we packed up the lodges an hooked the horses ta head out—we had sum serious business ta figure which one wuz taken the plews.  After kwite a time a meserin,  an lookin , an meserin agin, they finally called out a “Zact Tie” an me and Hunter split up the plews “Fity Fity”.

Fer shore as I be sittin here tellin this here true story, the Willow Creek boys is out gatherin more plews fer next hunt!  Me?  I be joyin my half uv last years stack an they sure is nice!  Thanks boys, an member—don’t aim at dem antlers!!

Bears Butt

Oct-Dec 1999