Hooked Before Even Harvesting an Animal: A Monroe County woman’s journey to the deer stand

Rana Reynolds took her niece for a first-time hunting experience in 2022. Photo provided by Rana Reynolds. By Megan Pullyard, Editor For Rana Reynolds, the best part of hunting doesn’t depend on whether a deer walks out. “The magic that occurs when the forest is waking up in the morning and, by the same token, when darkness draws near is, in a word, indescribable,” she said. “I was hooked before I even harvested an animal.” Reynolds is a lifelong northeast Missouri resident with roots in the Monroe City area. She grew up on family farm ground in the Salt River bottoms, a spot known as “Horseshoe Bend,” where the river makes a sharp turn and nearly surrounds land that has been in her family for generations. “I have always been an outdoorsy type and a ‘tomboy’ – eight miles from town surrounded by farm ground, then surrounded by a river – one doesn’t have much choice,” she said. “This was a great place to grow up.” A slow start Hunting wasn’t a big part of her childhood.

This excerpt comes from the named source. Read the original for the full reporting.