In Idaho But Living Vicariously Through GON

Dear GON,

I was born and raised in the Conyers/Covington area and lived for the year-round hunting and fishing that is available in my home state. I spent every waking moment in the woods there and wouldn’t have changed it.

I left roughly eight years ago for work and to experience something different for a little while. I ended up starting a family and landing in southeast Idaho roughly 1 1/2 hours west of Jackson Hole and two hours south of Yellowstone National Park (can’t complain on my new location). I have ventured in the woods here, but nothing beats home, and it’s hard to fulfill it.

I end up back in Georgia about twice a year, usually in April for turkey season and in October or November for whitetail hunting and a UGA football game. Go Dawgs!

Still, twice a year is a far cry from spending every waking moment there. I guess the point is in this rambling email is that I have had my subscription to GON for a while now, and I can honestly say it’s gotten me out of some low spots in missing the Georgia woods and water. It is my nightly reader, and I even keep one or two copies in my office when I need to just chill.

Thank you for all you do, and I am so grateful for this magazine and the app. It’s the only thing I have to get me through missing the Georgia woods and water.

Kaleb Mattingly, Idaho Falls, Idaho

Enjoying Squirrel’s Nest Fiction

Dear GON,

I really enjoyed the fictional story The Squirrel’s Nest. It kept my attention, and I was very disappointed when I got to the end and realized it was a part 1 of 2. I can’t wait until next month when I can read the next part!

Ansley Giddens, Cochran

Editor’s Note: Ansley, flip over to page 60 of the September issue to read the conclusion of The Squirrel’s Nest.

Jones County Reminiscing

Dear GON,

I have been a loyal subscriber to GON for close to 10 years and love reading all the stories and articles.

I grew up in Gray in Jones County. There were two articles of interest from Jones County in your August edition. The first was The 180 Club in which Clayton Kitchens (the only barber) in Gray killed a 180-inch buck just outside of town. Clayton Kitchens probably gave me my first haircut and many more after that, just as he did every boy and man in town. More than once after  returning home from a haircut my dad would say, “Boy you go back down there and tell Clayton Kitchens I said to take more hair off that head.” Very embarrassing indeed.

The second article was the Fab 40. The No. 26 (tie) buck was killed by Chase Crutchfield. I believe he is the son of Steve Crutchfield, who I worked with during the construction of Plant Scherer in Juliette.

So great to read stories old and new from my old stomping grounds. Thanks for something good to read in these troubling times. Please keep the good news coming.

John Carpenter, Cohutta

GON Social

GON Instagram: Kiki Webster with her first buck ever. She took the deer in Burke County on Nov. 13, 2019.

GON Instagram: Cal Mitchell with a Tift County bass that went 10.8 pounds.

GON Facebook: This is a beast from Pickens County! We’re hoping Miles Childers will get an official score on it, so we can add it to GON’s online Georgia Deer Records.