Are We a Dying Breed?

[mazzgolf]

1 hour ago, vdep217 said:

Today I see alot of people start kids in a deer blind and 2 or three sits with no sightings it looses them and they dont want to go anymore..

This has to be a big reason right there. Let me give you my personal experience. I had a couple friends - deer bow hunters. For a few years, they would always ask me to come out hunting with them. So they did really try to recruit me. But then I'd ask what they did when they go out. The answer was, "We sit in a tree all morning." I'd ask, "Do you see anything?" They'd say, "No, we don't really see many deer."

So, I could either sleep in or go sit in a tree for hours in the cold and watch the grass grow. Didn't sound enticing to me. I never went, and they didn't harvest a deer for a few years. Now, I was in my 40s and I didn't think it sounded fun - I can't imagine a young boy or girl would find it very fun sitting in a tree or a blind in the cold for a few hours hoping to see a deer and not seeing anything. Now, if you are in a spot where you KNOW you are going to see a lot of deer every time, then OK. That would be interesting to a first-timer. But don't do it if it's hit or miss. A couple boring mornings and that kid will want to sleep in or play video games. But even so - it will be much more interesting if a new first-timer has a chance to pull the trigger a few times at squirrels.

As for me, I only really started seriously thinking about hunting after someone took me to a trap range and let me shoot their shotgun at some clays. Again, its the action of pulling the trigger and hitting things that was fun. That to me would get newcomers the itch to want to try hunting more so than going out and sitting in the woods listening to the wind and nodding off to sleep

 

[deletereturnshift]

I'm in my late 20s and this past year was my first year hunting. 

What made it difficult to me was lack of guidance. For the past 10 years I was looking for a way to get into hunting including when I lived in Texas. 

Most hunters I knew only hunted private and not to blame them, but they didn't seem to interested in bringing someone who could spook away game since they were paying money just for access. 

It wasn't until I recently moved to Hunterdon County I decided to start on my own since NJ has public land, way more than I had access to in Texas anyway. 
 

I was originally going to give hunting a shot this Fall with a crossbow instead of last fall, but I happen to luck out by finding a coworker who took my hunting during the 6 day firearm season through casual conversations
 

When I used to ask for help I got the same response. "There are tons of resources online!" Which is true, but what I learned out in the field is experience is everything with hunting and having a mentor is priceless. The guidance I received during the 6-day season would have taken me years to learn on my own. 

[tpr1921]

In my opinion the numbers of hunters will continue to drop off indefinitely. I believe that the average age of most hunters today falls somewhere in their mid 50's.

[Livesintrees]

8 minutes ago, deletereturnshift said:

I'm in my late 20s and this past year was my first year hunting. 

What made it difficult to me was lack of guidance. For the past 10 years I was looking for a way to get into hunting including when I lived in Texas. 

Most hunters I knew only hunted private and not to blame them, but they didn't seem to interested in bringing someone who could spook away game since they were paying money just for access. 

It wasn't until I recently moved to Hunterdon County I decided to start on my own since NJ has public land, way more than I had access to in Texas anyway. 
 

I was originally going to give hunting a shot this Fall with a crossbow instead of last fall, but I happen to luck out by finding a coworker who took my hunting during the 6 day firearm season through casual conversations
 

When I used to ask for help I got the same response. "There are tons of resources online!" Which is true, but what I learned out in the field is experience is everything with hunting and having a mentor is priceless. The guidance I received during the 6-day season would have taken me years to learn on my own. 

This is a great site with plenty of good guys. This is the perfect time for someone to do some shed hunting with you and explain a couple ins and outs and whys with you. Maybe go to the “man stuff” day that’s coming up and pick some peoples brains with your questions. 

[Mr12gauge]

It is sad today, both my sons have no interest in hunting. None of their friends do it so they think they would rather do something else. I have like three of everything including fishing poles, well sometimes I can get them to fish but it's hard.

[bigwuhead]

IMHO, based on the people I come into contact with through running mentored hunting programs and being an adult onset hunter myself..  our future is not in the youth.  Right now and for the foreseeable future the only way we will grow ranks is by bringing in women (of all ages) and adult men 18-40ish.

 

When We organize women’s events we literally have women of all ages from 18-60’s.  These women are thirsty for hunting and want to dive in head first and learn all the things and it’s great that we are now in a place to provide programs in so many different disciplines and species here in NJ.

 

And the second group..  are left out in droves and it’s a shame.  We have finally opened up turkey and deer hunts for all adults.  What happened was we were getting so many guys asking for it, so now it’s an option.

Hook those groups, foster them and we will get the kids that come up below them.  I have sat through a lot of seminars and presentations on this subject, read a lot about it.  There is a forgotten generation that wasn’t raised with it, wasn’t exposed to it and either now they are interested or their adultish kids are.

Edited February 24, 2020 by bigwuhead

[deletereturnshift]

7 minutes ago, Livesintrees said:

This is a great site with plenty of good guys. This is the perfect time for someone to do some shed hunting with you and explain a couple ins and outs and whys with you. Maybe go to the “man stuff” day that’s coming up and pick some peoples brains with your questions. 

Without question this site has been very helpful. 
 

I accidentally stumbled on it a few months ago. 
 

My biggest issue these days is time. Between work and family responsibilities time is limited, but getting out in the field has been fun. Planning on going shed hunting and taking my kids with me. 

[mazzgolf]

45 minutes ago, buckhound said:

on the internet of guns , meat and  hunting are bad

I'm actually reading that hunting for meat is starting to become "cool" at least in some corners of the "millennial" world. (I think there was an article about this in one of the latest NRA American Hunter magazines).

Yes, youth are being brainwashed into thinking the world is coming to an end due to global warming (in my day as a kid, it was the Soviets and Nuclear War; today it's global warming).

But because of the "green" movement, it seems buying "local", food sustainability, anti-factory-farming, etc. etc. are a big deal. These youth are now coming to see hunting as a viable way to obtain food ethically without relying on the evil factory farms and the conditions they see the farm animals being raised in and their contribution to global warming (whatever that may be - cow farts or whatever).

So this is one way to get young people into hunting. They don't have to see it as the radical militant animal rights people see it - they can see it as a "green" thing to do. And this is a real thing that is happening. Famous people, who millennials are familiar with, are doing it. Facebook's Zuckerberg said he spent a year only eating what he kills. Chris Pratt did the same thing recently: https://www.instagram.com/p/BAf6NxDjHFF/  Yeah, the militant animal-rights/vegan crowd are up in arms, but this is expected and they are a loud minority - other people are starting to see this as a viable green alternative to other ways of obtaining meat while saving the planet from "sure destruction."

 

 

[deletereturnshift]

10 minutes ago, mazzgolf said:

I'm actually reading that hunting for meat is starting to become "cool" at least in some corners of the "millennial" world.

I can validate this. I am a millennial and the main reason I hunt is for the meat. I would rather eat a wild meat than pay out the nose for organic grass fed beef. 

 

When a few of my friends found out I wanted to hunt they originally were confused as to why I would want to kill an animal and the main reason was I want to have the cleanest meat I can have for my family. 

[Integracingsr]

My son is only 2 1/2 but he saw me going out with the dogs on weekend mornings to chase birds and said he wanted to go... so last weekend the weather looked good so I seized the moment and took him up to the club with me. I thought he might be a little young but figured what the heck. Well guess what, he LOVED it. He loved walking the fields, watching the dogs, birds, airplanes, squirrels, all of it.  By the end of the day he was fighting my one dog for the retrieve. Sure we didn’t cover as much ground as I usually would and I had to let some fly that I normally would’ve been in position for but seeing the excitement and joy in my sons face made it more than worth it. I think that the steady action of bird hunting is surely a great way to get any kid interested and the rest will follow as they grow older and more patient.

[chenrossi]

We can be our own worst enemy. Plain and simple. Don't need 20+ pages of conversation to say it. Take one, make one. Actually do it. Biggest failure I see is over-influating expectations. People setting up their 10 year old on a giant buck. Nothing to put effort in for after that if they dont' see the ups and downs, failures, close calls to draw them back for more.

 

Doesn't have to be this way. We are all accountable for the future.

Edited February 24, 2020 by chenrossi

[mazzgolf]

18 minutes ago, deletereturnshift said:

When a few of my friends found out I wanted to hunt they originally were confused as to why I would want to kill an animal and the main reason was I want to have the cleanest meat I can have for my family. 

And I bet when you explain it to them (if they aren't rabid vegans), they will probably go, "hmmm... that's actually a good point. You know you aren't eating animals pumped up with antibiotics and are free-range animals".

This is what I'm hearing that is getting young adults into hunting.

[06roadking]

I did a lousy job getting my kids into hunting. When my kids were little, I worked 12-14 hr. days 5 days a week and 10 hr. days on weekends just to buy a house and groceries. I didn’t hunt at all during those years. Then at middle school age, my son started travel lacrosse and we were away at tournaments throughout the northeast. Then my son played for school and played on the NJ state travel team and I didn’t hunt those years. The boys went off to college and I started hunting again but, they weren’t around. I feel bad about it but, they grew up happy and successful so, I can’t bitch I guess...

[Rdfhunter]

All the state orgs need to be on the same page too . New recruits should be the biggest priority.. Hell , only a handful

of years ago the UBNJ wanted to kick youth out of November for their early gun days.. 

Edited February 24, 2020 by Rdfhunter

[thefirstndsecond]

If I can find local places to hunt here in PA I would be able to bring my girls more often.

Thank you to those influencing the youth towards hunting.

I know my oldest loves archery. If I could only get Sunday's off.