Saturday I woke up at the crack of dawn, ate breakfast and prepared myself for what I thought was going to be a fast-paced vivacious day soaked with the blood of rabbits. Boy was I excited.
The hunting took place about 40 min from Tomelloso in the countryside with two fellow teachers, Goyo and Antonio, Goyo’s father and three of his most trusted hunting dogs. Armed with shotguns (everyone but me) and dogs we set off in a horizontal line about 15m apart. Antonio flanked the left side, Goyo the right side and me, with Goyo’s dad and the dogs in the middle. The dogs constantly ran from one bush to another seeking out the misfortunate rabbits that happen to be above ground. Fortunately there seemed to be none. For the most part, it was pretty uneventful. Occasionally the dogs would gather around a bush, sniff back and forth, but for the most part to no avail. Rarely, did a rabbit dart out of its hiding spot. When they did they were fast and a couple of shotgun blasts would go off. Of the two or three times I saw a rabbit, they were fast, too fast. Overall we/they hunted for about 3-3.5 hours. I did more walking than hunting. It was definitely and interesting experience. I’m not sure if I’m the hunter type. It was the last weekend of rabbit season and I have been meaning to do something with Goyo and Antonio outside of school. It was my first time going hunting and even though I may not be that into it, it is a big part of their lives; it was a good bonding experience.
After the hunt, we went back to the country house and had a fulfilling meal of cooked meat La Mancha style, over an open flame. Then we shot clays. I may not love hunting, but I love shooting. And even though I don’t do it much, I love shooting clays. For somebody who hardly does it, I’m pretty damn good. It was a great beginning to a great Saturday.
