Hunting: A Family Tradition

Dad is gone now, but I can recall many fun times and stories of our time together in the outdoors. Each of my three sons began hunting from the time they were 12 years old. Our family has so many wonderful life-long memories of hunting together, time in the woods, time at deer camp, those early morning breakfasts that my wife loved to prepare, and hunting rabbits, pheasants, squirrels, quail, elk, deer, antelope and bear. And you know what? We love to eat all those fish and animals.

Our time in the woods has always been special, especially when we’ve taught young kids how to recognize animals, their habits, their tracks, their “rubs,” and their sounds. Just a few weeks ago, while walking with one of my sons and grandson, we saw a porcupine climbing a tree right in front of us. What an opportunity to teach about an animal that most people have never seen in the woods around here!

What hunter or fisherman hasn’t bragged about the big fish or big deer they’ve successfully harvested. What can possibly be wrong about sharing that trophy fish, bird, or animal with others by displaying pictures and or mounting that animal or fish? Hunting is fun, it’s relaxing, it’s great exercise, it’s great time with family and friends, it’s educational, it’s moral and ethical and it’s even biblical.

A serious family problem today is that families don’t spend enough face to face time with each other. We’re way too busy doing everything else and ignoring what is really important to the family in the long term. We’re too busy with our jobs, running here and there, or with our heads buried in an iphone, computer, or TV doing things that just don’t really matter at all.

Perhaps the best way to spell love is T I M E. Hunting and fishing is a wonderful way to spend time together. I’ve seen the joy on the faces of young kids as they learn to shoot a bow or rifle, learn to bait a hook and cast a fishing rod, or learn about wild game and their habits. Really think about that.

Hunting and the revenues generated in each state from hunting and fishing are the direct and documented reasons we have such plentiful wild game today. My generation remembers the day when deer and turkeys were seldom seen, but now they are plentiful in most areas of our country. Smart game management in our states has been directly attributable to the larger herds of animals, birds, and fish we have today. Hunters spend millions of dollars for licenses, guns, bows, ammo, clothing, travel, etc. Taxes on these products and services pay for this very necessary game management. The Pittman-Robertson law makes it possible for hunters to contribute around $3.5m per day to conservation.

I don’t want this to be an argument about hunting, because I know that I’ll never convince some people to change their minds with all the facts. Many people just don’t understand the personal values achieved through hunting and fishing, especially if they’ve never had the opportunity to learn to enjoy that type activity. Yes, I think you’ve really missed out on something. By the way, check out the NRA or RMEF (Rock Mountain Elk Foundation). I mean really check out these organizations and what they do to preserve our natural resources, including conserving our land, fish, and animals. Check out the true heart of these organizations, not just the rhetoric they get from the media and some politically correct people. By the way, find a copy of the September/October 2015 issue of BUGLE, a publication of Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. In BUGLE you’ll find the real hearts of real outdoors men and women, hunters, and fishermen. Check out the local hunting and fishing clubs and the education and conservation they encourage and work hard to support those causes. I recently heard a guy say that if you really want to get to know someone spend a few days hunting or fishing with them and you’ll be amazed how much you can learn about that person.

Who hunts? Who spends time in the woods? We have usually thought of this as a man’s world, but not so. Women are the largest segment of growth in the hunting world. Young kids really do enjoy the outdoors and enjoy hunting and fishing. Maybe you could help a kid!

More and more people are conscious about what they eat and how our food is prepared. Younger people are turning down processed foods from our grocery stores and looking for their meats to be farm fresh or wild game. And that translates to hunting and fishing.

So please, take some time to find out more about hunting and fishing before you’re so quick to criticize. You may just learn something new and exciting.