Getting Started - FNG's guide to becoming a mighty hunter

[Desk Jockey]

OK - so I was inspired by a note on another forum about Oregon creating a "how to hunt" for beginners online course. As detailed elsewhere in the forum, I am late bloomer , am pretty new to this stuff and spent the last couple of years learning as much as I can about hunting from every source I can find.

There is such a wealth of knowledge here that is very appropriatly focused on the deeply experienced hunting crowd that this forum was created for and I have learned a great deal in a short period of time from this and many other sources. However, it can be a bit daunting for a nube like me so I want to create a thread for the beginners. The focus is on identifying, and sharing resources for the new guys and girls to learn. Just a little corner for those lurkers who are trying to figure it out and don't want to post anything that betrays our relative inexperience and/or ignorance.

So, with that in mind, I will start this off by recommending the steve rinella book "The Complete Guide to Hunting, Butchering, and Cooking Wild Game: Volume 1: Big Game".

The Complete Guide to Hunting, Butchering, and Cooking Wild Game: Volume 1: Big Game: Steven Rinella, John Hafner: 9780812994063: Amazon.com: Books

Both volumes are worth checking out, but for under $20 I haven't found a resource that covers as much on western style hunting for big game in as clear, concise and well presented a fashion as volume 1. This book touches on nearly every major category of knowledge one needs to get started. It is also a great gateway to steve's writing and his show and podcasts, both of which are among my favorites in the hunting genre.

So bring it roksliders. Think about what you wish you had known all those years, and miles, and miss shots, and blown stalks, and miserable, painful, wonderful, unforgettable hunting trips ago and post it here. Post it here so the next generation can find it and put it to good use.

Thanks, DJ.

 

[FlyGuy]

Good thread. I have that book as well. Like anything from Rinella, it's informative but also a good read. I would also recommend elk101 (now an app) and the new Elknut app.


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[johnsd16]

Some things I've learned or are foundational beliefs.

1. Know your equipment (bow, gun) and how to use it accurately and efficiently. Practice a lot. Shooting, loading, shouldering, etc.

2. Know how to maintain, sight in and also tune your equipment or know someone reliable that can be paid to do it (tuning/mounting not sighting in). Keep firearms clean and bows with appropriate strings and cables.

3. Keep your feet comfortable and healthy. But the best boots you can and are appropriate for the task.

4. Become a woodsman not just a hunter. The best thing I ever did was start trapping. There's a steep learning curve but with info online today is a lot less steep. By the time you can get a free ranging wild animal to step on something the size of a 50 cent piece or put its head through a 10" loop of cable, looking for deer sign and planning a stalk is way easier. When you can find a mink trail, deer trails are not hard to find. You learn to play the wind not just that day but also the next several days while sets soak. It really makes you tune in with animal behavior and patterns and how different animals effect each other.

 

[Fatcamp]

Carry a quality rangefinder.

Don't put your pack down with the intention of "Going right back."

When you find an animal you really want to shoot, take five minutes to actually think about how you are going to get it done. If it is a spot and stalk type scenario you have a little time, and coming up with some sort of plan just may eliminate years of regret from your mind.