Abundant sunshine. Record high temperatures expected. High 98F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph.

Partly cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 72F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph.

Mostly sunny. High 91F. Winds N at 10 to 15 mph.

Abundant sunshine. Record high temperatures expected. High 98F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph.

Partly cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 72F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph.

Mostly sunny. High 91F. Winds N at 10 to 15 mph.

Charley Dickey's stories never grow old.

Charley Dickey's stories never grow old.

WOODY’S WOODS & WATERS -

The other day while browsing through a bookstore, I ran into an old acquaintance from over 50 years ago.

It was a collection of Charley Dickey’s outdoor columns, “Movin’ Along with Charley Dickey.”

That night I turned the brittle, dog-eared pages to the first story and started reading. Two hours later I was still reading.

Reading Charley’s stories is like eating potato chips – once you start, you can’t stop.

I’d read most of the columns decades ago when they initially appeared in various outdoors magazines, but Charley’s wit and wisdom remain as eternal and entertaining as ever.

Charley was born in Bulls Gap, Tennessee, and although he traveled the world and settled in Tallahassee, his heart never left his East Tennessee mountains.

One of my favorite stories is “And Then What?” about a hunting guide who lived in a remote area far removed from civilization and its pressures and aggravations. He spent his days hunting and fishing.

A wealthy client, impressed by the guide’s work ethic, urged him to move to bustling New York City and go into business. He assured him if he worked diligently for several years, he would become rich.

“And then what?” asked the guide.

“Then you could retire,” said the client.

“Then you could hunt and fish.”

Another classic is about “The Comforts of Deer Camps.” Charley wonders why everybody always remembers to bring peanut butter and jelly – which are never eaten – to a deer camp, but nobody thinks to bring toilet paper.

Charley’s fondness for hunting dogs is reflected in “A Dog-Eat-Bird-World.”

When his old English setter twitched and whimpered in his sleep, Charley liked to imagine he was dreaming about pointing a covey of quail. “But, more likely,” he admitted, “he’s thinking about the fun of chasing a deer. That’s OK – we’re all entitled to our dreams, including old dogs.”

Charley was an avid fisherman, and delighted in self-deprecating humor. He wrote about catching a 10-pound bass while alone, with no one to brag to. On the way home he stopped a stranger to show off his prize catch. Unfortunately, by then his bass had shrunk to five pounds.

He poked fun at outdoorsmen who rely on sonar and lunar tables. In “By the Light of the Silvery Moon,” Charley wondered how fish in a deep lake know what the moon phase is. He said he has a “peak feeding period,” around noon every day, followed by another around suppertime. He never checks the moon before eating, and doubts that fish do, either.

Charley died in 1998 at age 77. He was unable to hunt and fish in his final years due to ill health, but he continued to reminisce and write fondly about it.

Charley shared his good times and humorous yarns with his many readers, making us feel like we were there with him.

Decades later, it’s a delight to re-join him on the trail.

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