2012 State Youth Coon Hunt

Lori Bell Johnson, Tyler Johnson and Chad Beard strike a pose

The 2012 State Youth Coon Hunt was held on February 25 at the Webb Wildlife Management Area in Hampton County. Tyler Johnson, an 8-year old student at Colleton Prep, finished in second place overall in the Youth Division and figures to be in the hunt for future competitions.
Finishing in first place in the Junior Division was Jace Shuler, while Kevin Barnes won the Junior Sportsman ship award. The first place finisher in the Senior Division was Austin Williamson who was hunting over his dog Bo Didley. The sportsmanship winner for the senior division was female hunter Vonne Doran, who actually was the 2011 champ at the State Youth Coon Hunt.

            Johnson’s adult supervision team during the hunt included Lori Bell Johnson and Chad Beard. Lori shares that there were five ‘casts’ with four youth division hunters each. Those groups drove to separate locations to hunt just after dark on Saturday night. Two ‘drops’ of coonhounds were completed with a one-hour time limit per hunt. “Tyler wasn’t the first boy to strike his coon dog, but he was the first to holler that his dog had treed a coon,” said Bell Johnson.

Richard Jones (Saluda), Kevin Barnes (Ulmer),
Lane Owenby (Aiken) and Tyler Johnson (Walterboro)

Coon dog handler Tyler Johnson and Bootsie

            Hunting with a borrowed coonhound named Bootsie, the female Treeing Walker was accurate and when a coon squalor was blown, the judge was able to identify a coon was looking down from the tree. Tyler Johnson actually finished first in his cast, but later finished second overall in the points standings. “When Tyler was handed the 2nd place trophy he lit up that room with an enthusiastic smile and a determination to return next year,” said Bell Johnson.

To view past blog entries about the State Youth Coon Hunt click here.