Is hunting a dying pass time?

[free]

Father issues. Tell us everything.

I don't think PAFOA has the disk space for it.

[Roadking]

Well, I'm in my 40s and kiddos are early teens. This is our second year hunting...my dad was and is still a big hunter, I just never got into it when younger. I prefered stock car racing and girls over Bambi.

However, now I am hooked, have a great hunting buddy and his kid, and our kiddos look forward to pheasant and deer season more than Christmas, so, it's not dying on my watch. Haven't done turkey or bear, but time will tell.

Plus, wife loves venison as much as we do.

[KCJones]

My dad is into hunting. Tried to get us interested in hunting. Here is how our hunting days always went:

Wake up way early in the morning, typically 3 or 4 am or some shit. Drag ass out of the house, one eye open, in the dark, in the cold, and make some long ass drive out to the middle of nowhere (typically sleeping along the way). Get wherever the hell we were going around sunrise and spend the next 30 minutes or so getting our shit together, as I wondered why my sister never had to do this crap, instead getting to sleep in a nice warm bed until whenever Her Highness decided to get up and watch cartoons. Then spend the next several hours wandering around in the woods, seemingly lost and bored witless, all while having to do my utmost to keep from making any noises that would scare away whatever poor bastards we were supposed to shoot, be they deer, turkeys, squirrels, rabbits or otherwise, despite the fact that they always seemed to have advance notice of our arrival and having already executed their evacuation plans.

After five or six hours of walking around and never seeing a god damned thing I was supposed to kill, we ended up back at the car - tired, hungry and wishing that we had encountered a bear that saw us before we saw it. Then spend the next few hours in a smoke filled car, with dad's window down an inch but not being permitted the luxury of getting any fresh air of my own because another window down would "create a cross breeze" that dad found objectionable for some reason. Finally, arriving home between 2 and 4pm and not having eaten anything all fucking day, my hunger abated due to general fatigue and sleepiness, just going to bed for the rest of the day, hoping to never have to repeat the experience.

Yeah...I can see why today's kids are not signing up for that, given any choice in the matter.

P.s: similar story for fishing

Pretty much ditto here, except we typically got something (didn't make it 'worth it' to me...). After years of waking up at 3am etc... No interest.

[priell3]

My grandfather and father hunted, then I and my brother did too. We used to go for small game and rifle deer season. My grandfather passed away in '79 and my father is now in his 80s. I haven't hunted since '93. I am going to get back into the sport though and my son will probably join in.

[God's Country]

The truth is if you want to hunt there are plenty of hunting opportunities in Pa. Hunters need to adapt. That simple. Always cracks me up how everyone lines up to buy the latest tech. gadget, but when you mention perhaps buying a cross bow and hunting earlier I get a vacant stare from the same people. You can hunt or sit on your couch and complain. Not much different from anything else in life.

The mentored youth/adult program is an excellent idea about 20 years too late.

[4thdimension]

My dad is into hunting. Tried to get us interested in hunting. Here is how our hunting days always went:

Wake up way early in the morning, typically 3 or 4 am or some shit. Drag ass out of the house, one eye open, in the dark, in the cold, and make some long ass drive out to the middle of nowhere (typically sleeping along the way). Get wherever the hell we were going around sunrise and spend the next 30 minutes or so getting our shit together, as I wondered why my sister never had to do this crap, instead getting to sleep in a nice warm bed until whenever Her Highness decided to get up and watch cartoons. Then spend the next several hours wandering around in the woods, seemingly lost and bored witless, all while having to do my utmost to keep from making any noises that would scare away whatever poor bastards we were supposed to shoot, be they deer, turkeys, squirrels, rabbits or otherwise, despite the fact that they always seemed to have advance notice of our arrival and having already executed their evacuation plans.

After five or six hours of walking around and never seeing a god damned thing I was supposed to kill, we ended up back at the car - tired, hungry and wishing that we had encountered a bear that saw us before we saw it. Then spend the next few hours in a smoke filled car, with dad's window down an inch but not being permitted the luxury of getting any fresh air of my own because another window down would "create a cross breeze" that dad found objectionable for some reason. Finally, arriving home between 2 and 4pm and not having eaten anything all fucking day, my hunger abated due to general fatigue and sleepiness, just going to bed for the rest of the day, hoping to never have to repeat the experience.

Yeah...I can see why today's kids are not signing up for that, given any choice in the matter.

P.s: similar story for fishing

Yes Pa has great hunting opportunities. I think a persons first experiences hunting marks them for life. I had good mentors and there was always a lot of fun and excitement. I miss those days. Being able to hunt is basically the only reason I wanted my gun rights back. I missed being in the woods. I still bow hunted before my rights were restored.

[Coops]

The decline began 12,000 years ago when Humans transitioned from a hunter gatherer society to an agricultural society. You are just at the tail end of the phenomenon.
There is no NEED to do it anymore so it became a hobby, a test of skill and a way to commune with nature.
If the population is ever cut by 7 billion we will go back to hunting to survive.

[4thdimension]

The decline began 12,000 years ago when Humans transitioned from a hunter gatherer society to an agricultural society. You are just at the tail end of the phenomenon.
There is no NEED to do it anymore so it became a hobby, a test of skill and a way to commune with nature.
If the population is ever cut by 7 billion we will go back to hunting to survive.

Just food for thought. Hunters probably make up the largest pro 2A demographic in America.

[Remington788]

Just food for thought. Hunters probably make up the largest pro 2A demographic in America.

Its often surprising to see how many hunters have a very different view of the 2A than most here. I'm on a Facebook page for PA hunters and all you have to do is mention the use of semi-auto rifles for big game hunting and you will hear from tons of hunters that seem to think that anything other than a bolt action 30.06 is blasphemy and ARs should be outlawed.

[rkrcpa]

For me, the decline started with the SE Special Regs area. Years ago I used to hunt the State Gamelands near French Creek because they were close to where I lived and could manage to sneak away for short periods of time. When the regs changed and I could no longer use a revolver I quit going. I just didn't have an interest in using a shotgun. Life (aka kids) also interfered with my ability to get away to the mountains during buck season. That, combined with seeing fewer deer, led me to stop those trips about fifteen years ago.

Now that I'm an empty nester I'm hoping to get back to it but seeing game will play a big role in whether I stick it out. Being able to use a Semi Auto may help also.