It happened in 1993. Then I lived in the Primorsky Territory in the city of Artyom. He often went hunting to his friend in the village of Yasnoe (Primorye residents know him well).
I will name my friend Alexander. His work was connected with the forest, so in the forest he is not an uninvited guest, but a welcome friend. The case took place in Pashkeevskaya pad. These places are quite familiar to me.
Arriving to visit Alexander, I did not find him, but there was a note "Come to the winter." The winter hut was built by Alexander on the bank of the stream. Nearby you will not see. This is done because there are still trashy people among the hunters. They will come, get drunk, break everything, or even burn the hut. So we have to hide the winter quarters so that they do not catch the eye of others.
This is an introduction. Now the story itself.
The time was 2 hours, maybe more. The road is familiar. I read the note, I threw my backpack and went. I had a dog with me at that time. A wonderful dog, he had a lot of diplomas in wild boar, deer, bear. Animal dog in general. He paid no attention to furs. Yes, I didn't need it.
All hunters, let's face it, are a bit of a poacher. The state helps us in this. But poacher and poacher are different. If you shot a roe deer or a wild boar and left with it, this is normal, but when they take one license, and snap out several dozen, taking advantage of the weakness of the rangers' work or their blessing, and this is not uncommon), these are poachers.
In general, I moved to the winter quarters. I don’t know how it happened, but the road that I had walked more than a dozen times turned me around. On the way I found evening. I didn't look for a way out at dusk, but decided to spend the night by the fire. In September, it is still warm in Primorye even at night.
Promotional video:
I collected dead wood, made a fire. I chose a place near the piled-up cedrine. What? The eversion is powerful and the back is covered, and in front there is a fire. A dog nearby and a gun. What crazy beast is coming? And the dog will warn you in advance. He warmed the tea in a pot, since the brook was not far away. I cut bread, sausages. I had a snack. I think I need to get some sleep.
Only at night in the forest what is the real dream? So, visibility. Maybe some kind of professional hunters will laugh. But when you are 2-3 people, sleep is serene and strong. But when you are alone, even though you have a dog and a gun, you will not fall asleep much. So, a nap with lapses in sleep. You involuntarily listen to every rustle of the night forest.
In general, we dined with the dog. He curled up in a ball to my right, and I began to doze off. Suddenly I hear the foliage rustling and not like a beast moves, but how a person walks. Hunters know, steps are distinguishable and very. And now the grandfather comes out to the fire. Tall, black or dark green raincoat to the toes almost (did not look closely). He was struck by his beard, even in the light of the fire it was clear that it was white as snow and long hair, almost to the shoulders. He was not wearing a hat.
I am glad to any person in the forest at night, and I was delighted, and did not think where a person was here at night, but without a gun. But he got up and invited him to the fire. There was still half of the tea in the pot. The sausage was bread. In a backpack there is a spare plastic mug and a spoon (I always carry it with me just in case. Not a heavy one, but always useful). Sit down, I say, grandfather. Have some tea. Sausages, bread.
Grandfather sat down on a small piece of wood that was to my left. She fell with the cedar. Rather, falling, he twisted her roots. Thank you, he says. But I can't stand your food, but I'll drink tea and thank you for the bread. I poured him some more hot tea (the pot stood near the fire and did not cool down). He gave bread and sugar. The grandfather did not put sugar in the mug, he ate a bite, sipping tea noisily and biting off pieces of bread from a slice.
I ask him: What do you wander about at night? He: Yes, I live here not far away and I have noticed you here with your friend more than once. You are coming, and he is a frequent visitor to me. All this conversation did not disturb me at all. Neither his manner of speaking, nor the fact that he knows us and lives somewhere nearby. Then I already thought - but my dog is asleep and does not lead with his ear. Like there is nobody.
So grandfather drank tea and said: Well, I'll go. I told him: So it's dark, stay by the fire, and dawn will come and go. He: It's for you to wait for the dawn, and I know every bush here. All trails are well-trodden. You're that guy. Go to sleep. Build up your strength, but tomorrow morning you will go out on the path and you will quickly come to the hut. Go to the left of the hollow, your friend knows it. You go upstairs, and he will rustle through the bushes from below, so you will shoot a couple of roe deer. You don't need much. You don't seem to be grabbing.
I got up and went. I don't remember how I fell asleep. Yes, I fell asleep as if at home in a bed behind brick walls. I woke up in the morning. Cheerful, slept. The dog wags its tail. I was only struck by the fact that the mug with which my grandfather drank is on the deadwood and covered with a piece of birch bark. And the tea in it is hot and next to it, on another strip of bark, there is a crust of bread. Not my city, white, but from a black loaf and sprinkled with salt.
The main thing is that the tea could not be hot, the fire was small. Burned out until morning. Yes, and in a pot of tea on the bottom and cooled down. For some reason, I began to analyze all this later, and then I drank tea, ate bread, and we went with the dog, and immediately went out onto the path. We seem to be near her and spent the night.
I came to the winter quarters. At first, from the doorway, I didn't talk about my grandfather. I do not know why. Immediately he said to Alexander: Let's go for the roe deer. Near here. He: Where do they come from here. Here they have never been. Well, I persuaded him. And not he, but I led him to the hollow, as if I knew this place very well.
Come over. As my grandfather said, I told Alexander. Come on, I’m here (I don’t know why from this place) I’ll rise, in about 20 minutes you’ll walk diagonally. Hunters know that the beast always runs uphill. And so they did. I got up. I hear hoofed rolls. 3 roe deer jump out. Male and 2 females. So I took the male, and after a couple of minutes I heard Alexander's shot.
He came up to me soon and said: Well? I told him: There is a stag. He: And I took one, the rest ran away. In general, we skinned the animals. The meat was chopped. They took it to the winter quarters. Alexander put it in an earthen niche dug by him (there all summer like a glacier). We decided to get out to the house in the morning, otherwise the meat would be lost. Of course, in the evening we cooked a full pan of fresh meat.
After supper I told him about that night. Alexander laughed at first: You dreamed. Maybe I dreamed, but I don't suffer from sleepwalking to look for dry wood at night and warm tea until morning. And birches near the place where I slept was not in sight. Then Alexander began to interrogate me with details. Where he slept, how and what was. He asked me in detail about the place where the roe deer were caught. But he does not remember where the cedrine heaped near the path lies. No, he says, there is a fallen cedar.
I will show him: I'll show you tomorrow. Pathfinder. You don't know your places. In the morning we woke up, packed up and went. We walked along the path, but the cedar and the truth is not. And I can't find a place for that. In general, I had to walk along the path here and there, there is no place to spend the night and that's it. Glamor.
In general, we came to the village. Alexander put the meat into the glacier and said: You sit down, I’ll hit the road here to one person. We'll talk if he's at home. I sat down, lit a cigarette, stretched out my legs - they were all the same in a day. There is Alexander, and with him an old man of such a homeless kind spanks. They approached, the old man begged for a cigarette and began to ask me what and when I saw and heard.
I repeated everything to him that I had told Alexander yesterday. The old man says: Lucky you. You met an old forest man. I told him: And what is the luck? He: So not everyone leaves the forest after such meetings, and even with prey. He liked you. He is a stern old forest man. Not everyone will help. Sometimes it will lead to such a jungle that either a person has disappeared altogether or will leave no one knows where. You will meet with him again. Exactly.
Chatted about anything else. Alexander brought the old man's hind leg from the roe deer wrapped in plastic, so the old man left.
I say to Alexander: What kind of bum? He: You are more accurate. Don't look at people by their appearance. This is our local hunter. Lucky for him on the hunt. They say he also caught tigers with the team. And in general he is engaged in herbs. Everyone comes to him for advice. Well, he drinks, so do not get stupid. So, for the company. The mind never loses.
This is the story that happened to me in one of the corners of South Primorye. But believe me or not, your right. I do not insist. He told me what and how it was with me. I still don’t know when I’ll meet the old forestry man again? And I'm not looking for a meeting with him on purpose. How will it turn out.
Author: Alexey