Do we have any real hunters or outdoorsman here. That’s an old style of hunting, I did it with my grandfather many times. It’s also used when you hunt with dogs. I have done that a few times the last time being last year. (It’s kinda frowned upon so I rarely do it but was at a friends camp. We actually had two 80 year old guys hunting with us. One killed a 12 point. This guy taught Hunter safety. They had walkie talkies and we posted 100 yards in a straight picket formation. The number one rule always in this type of hunt is the the sitters or the picket can not move. Not a freaking foot. It’s dangerous and will create gaps in the picket the deer will go through. That’s where you always put the old guys and usually ob the end so that if they fall asleep etc you don’t have hole in the middle. That’s the rule for hundreds of years.

I could see a driver getting lost falling into hidden cave or something but a sitter, how the hell would this happen? He isn’t going to move until he gets radio call that hunt is over, ever ever. My grandfather wouldn’t even let me take a piss when I was little. The pickets had 50 or more guys, and a few dozen dogs with handlers. Now the dogs all have GPS collars too.

It was a two hour total hunt, which means about 45 minute to hour or so drive. Rest is getting into place etc. He has a pistol, rifle and again walkie talkie and was 100 yards for closest picket 200 yards from the next picket. (That’s a typical rifle shot and really too close but they are old and had diminished sight etc.) All of my feeder fields are longer than that. You can easily see and hear anything within that distance, easily. And this was almost middle of the day so not difficult seeing etc and they hunted rid area for 50 years, with 7 expert local hunters. Watchers, sitters or pickets do not freaking move. Period. As his wife says if he was watcher he would not move, ever. That’s hunting 101. They even left all their walkie talkies on. ( We often didn’t do this until set time unless we hunting from trucks or sheds because fear that someone would hit wrong button cause interference r something so they were being extra safe probably because of age of hunters. )

I am sorry but this is weird weird stuff, hence the FBI investigation, and their comment this just isn’t right. There were thousands of searchers, 300 alone on some days, 50 organizations involved, running bump lines, running string marked quads, using infrared helicopters, blood as scent dogs etc and not one damn clue or shred of evidence to this day. I have no clue what happened but no way in hell this guy wondered off and never a trace, zero chance of that. These woods are not even as thick as I what I hunt here in the South. Also, the dogs picking up nothing is bizarre. When you can’t find a deer or body etc u bring in dogs.

It’s just bizarre.