As I sit in front of my steaming bowl of chili, my mind flips back to my first father-daughter adventure into the wilderness. I was excited and attentive as my father told me the basics of how to hunt, and how he gave real meaning to "putting food on the table." I was awed by how much work my father put into transforming the whitetail into tonight's supper. In the age-old sport of deer hunting, there are many hidden factors to a successful hunt such as the actual hunt, the skinning, and the processing of the deer.
             Hunting the deer takes skill, patience, and precision. One usually wakes up at five in the morning, drinks a strong cup of coffee, and dresses in the traditional camouflage. When dressed, the hunter takes her place in a deer blind and begins to wait. The blind is usually about a hundred yards from either a deer trail, food plot, or a deer feeder. Once a group of deer has arrived, the hunter picks out the largest and gets him in his sights. It is important to hit a spot that will kill him immediately, such as the heart-lung area right behind the shoulder blade. The hunter gently squeezes off his shot and waits for the deer to fall. After he is killed the deer must be tagged and field-dressed. He is pulled to an appropriate place and is laid on his back. The skin is carefully cut from his throat to his rear so as to not nick any organs. The deer is then rolled to his side to empty his organs. A knife is used to detach them from the carcass of the deer. Then the deer is taken back to the cabin for the skinning process to begin.
             It is extremely important to have sharp utensils and a steady hand when skinning the deer. Latex gloves make the process much more hygienic. Using the traditional method, the deer is hung through cuts in the back legs. The hide is pulled down as a knife is used to release it from the muscle tissue. The deer is then quartered, cut into two shoul
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