My Formerly Anti-Hunting Buddy Wants to Hunt

[Srp]

I went skiing for a week with a old friend of mine. I have known him for 30 years, and new that he was anti-gun and anti-hunting. He is a good friend, and so I was planning to avoid the topic of hunting for a week (tough for me, but I was ready to make the sacrifice in the spirit of continued friendship). My jaw dropped when he asked me about how to get started hunting. He is 51 years old, and after a lifetime of being firmly against it he wants to start. We can all thank Joe Rogan, Cam Hanes, and Steve Rinella for being advocates.

So, here is my question: is this great news or is there cause for some concern that we are seeing new hunters at what seems like a incredible rate? The upsides are clear - there are more pro-hunters to support hunting and gun rights. Should I worry about the downsides? Six or Seven years ago I could pick up a decent Idaho OTC Elk tag in June. Now these tags are gone by January. Drawing tags gets harder every year, and the influx of new hunters will put many tags out of reach forever. Guided hunt prices have increased noticeably in the last few years. Help me get my mind right. Am I the only one worries about the new competition for opportunities?

 

[Laramie]

Absolutely help him out. Think small and start with small game or a whitetail. When I am introducing new people, we start with a doe whitetail. The tags are cheap the meat is great. I help them out and explain everything bluntly about opportunities shrinking throughout the country. I also help them understand that other fun opportunities are expanding like wild boar and whitetail deer. Most people are happy as a clam shooting a deer or a couple hogs a year.

 

[SuperDUECE22]

help the guy out, at one point in life none of us hunted. Luckily a lot of us had great friends/families that introduced us to the great outdoors. I think it's pretty selfish to think that you don't want to introduce him to hunting because it's not as easy to get tags anymore, especially a FRIEND of yours.

 

[roadrunner]

If he wants to go, and you want to help him, do it. More than likely, he will either become "self-reliant" enough to be on his own, or, will lose interest in it when he (and you) both learn that you cannot always be the one who orchestrates him going.

As far as too many becoming interested too fast and opportunity slipping away because of it, realistically, there are a lot more people fixin' to die from old age than are coming in new to the game, so, it will even out. Sounds morbid, I know. But, it is what it is...

 

[WRM]

It's a duality, not one or the other. But, it's certainly likely to affect you more (in the short run) in the hunting arena.

I started turkey hunting 30+ years ago. I rarely saw anyone for years other than on opening weekend and, occasionally, during the season. Today, I'll hunt 20+ days a year and I see more people in a morning, most days and even mid-week, than I'd see on a weekend opener 30 years ago. Everybody's a "turkey hunter". What most of them really are is in the way, but they have that right on public land.

As for the gun rights, pray the USSC "rules right" on the NY 2nd amendment case in front of them this year. For us old geezers, it's likely the last one we'll see get there. If they rule right, the "new hunters"/gun owners can all retire, as far as I care.

No doubt, some will drop out due to boredom, too much effort, etc., etc., but the landscape has changed. Forever.

 

[Customweld]

@Laramie nailed it. If he is a good friend of many years, help him out. If he doesn't already know, help him be a woodsman, not just a hunter. This will help him out if he ever wants to be self sufficient and hunt on his own. It's good that he has changed his stance that he has held for so long. I would say he has an open mind and is open to learn something. There is a lot to be said for someone that has held such a strong belief to change his view,.

 

[BRTreedogs]

Id find a pair of land owner cow tags. Get him started, show him how to take care of the animal and set him free, or continue to hunt with him if it plays out like that.
Tags are hard to draw anyways, you gotta live for you and the ones you care about.

 

[Srp]

Great replies. Just to be clear, I am absolutely going to help my friend get started. I was more interested in everyone's thoughts on the influx of new hunters. Thanks.

 

[Nickofthewoods]

If I were in your shoes it would depend on how good the friend is and what type of hunt. Most of us only get to do this stuff for a few weeks each year and if the experience is terrible or the friend bails early because it's not for him, you'll have an entire year to think about how it. Guess I'm a second vote for starting with small game or Turkey, something less committing.

 

[Laramie]

Great replies. Just to be clear, I am absolutely going to help my friend get started. I was more interested in everyone's thoughts on the influx of new hunters. Thanks.

New hunters are needed... just not necessarily in the west where demand far exceeds supply. I hear the rabbit and squirrel hunting is really awesome just about everywhere. Ducks and geese are eating their nesting grounds bare because there are so many. Coyotes need controlled more than ever... There are a ton of really fun and rewarding hunts you can teach people to enjoy... and they will have zero trouble getting a tag or a place to hunt.

 

[backcountry_hunter]

I have a feeling, with no sound science to back thisup, that the retention rate on these adult-onset hunters is going to be relatively low in the long term. It's easy to watch an instagram feed, youtube vid, etc... and see instant success in a 15 minute video but I've known a few that "got into it" only to get right back out when all the costs were weighed against a fairly low success rate.

Help the guy out..... he'll need all he can get.

 

[BRTreedogs]

Great replies. Just to be clear, I am absolutely going to help my friend get started. I was more interested in everyone's thoughts on the influx of new hunters. Thanks.

Dude if I worry about it ill freeze in fear. I just get what I can for tags and just go hunting.

 

[WRM]

There ya go--anyone who has never been licensed (or has not held one in last X years) must hunt nothing but yotes, wild hogs, and overpopulated migratory birds for a period not less than 5 years BEFORE they qualify to hunt anything else.

 

[Laramie]

Some of you guys are missing the point imo. It isn't about creating the next great hunter that will hunt everything. It's about introducing someone to hunting who may be on the fence so they maybe change to a favorable view the next time something hunting related is on the chopping block.

 

[TSAMP]

I'll echo whats said above. Absolutely take them. But maybe save the conservation gospel for later down the road. Let them enjoy hunting first.

 

[WRM]

According to the OP, his most pertinent question was "thoughts on influx of new hunters", and that's how I read the post. There's a lot, and too many in many places.

 

[hunt1up]

I'd definitely help your friend like everyone else has said.

I wonder what percentage of adult onset hunters actually stick with it though. I've had about a dozen casual whitetail hunting friends who for years wold bug me about going west. They want to hunt antelope, they want to hunt elk, they love how tasty the moose meat was I'd let them try. But when I explain what they need to do, such as buying preference points, the interest fades. They don't want to spend the money. They don't want to pay attention to lotteries, dates, and draw odds. So I've given up trying to help them further. If they ask, I'll explain things again but you can only lead a horse to water.

 

[thinhorn_AK]

Tell him to pound sand. Then start sending creepy text messages to his wife late at night.

 

[WCB]

IMO we do not need the numbers of new hunters we are seeing...we need quality people to start hunting. If there is a large number of quality people that understand actual conservation and hunting good...unfortunately that is not what I am seeing.

 

[AZ8]

I have a feeling, with no sound science to back thisup, that the retention rate on these adult-onset hunters is going to be relatively low in the long term. It's easy to watch an instagram feed, youtube vid, etc... and see instant success in a 15 minute video but I've known a few that "got into it" only to get right back out when all the costs were weighed against a fairly low success rate.

Help the guy out..... he'll need all he can get.

Exactly.

Don‘t take him out on 12 mile backcountry wilderness elk hunt on his first outing.