Are we to blame for the decline in hunting as well?

You are very right sir it is our responsibility to educate and help the younger into the sport... JP.
 
ilovegunz said:
Well, let me tell you...no. I'd like to try hunting, probably deer to start with since I'm not really interested in eating bear. I know firearms well enough to put together a dandy rig for whatever I'm looking to shoot. The simple reason I've never hunted before is that I've never hunted before. My dad never hunted, so I didn't get to experience it when I was younger, and at this point it seems pretty overwhelming. .
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This is true to a point, but luckily for you, and unlike those of us who had no computer or internet when we were younger, you can get a ton of info on the internet along with videos. I remember as a teen reading every magazine and book I could get my hands on to learn as much as I could because though I did have someone to bring me hunting, they were not the best to learn from.

There are some great vids on the net how to field dress a deer, although having someone there to guide you is the best, you can certainly learn on your own with practice, and the same goes for butchering your deer.
 
It now more imortant than ever that we take a person hunting. Not only do we get a convert to the gun culture, but we get another hunter and conservationist added to our number as well.
 
Land access is the biggest hurdle from my point of view. Far harder to get started without it. Discharge rules a close second. Locating a patch even just to small game hunt is hard.
The courses and the money do hit you but now a days walking up to a house in the country to ask about hunting you have no idea how they will react. Too many kids raised on Bambi movies.
 
The feel of the hunt have to be pass to the young on a real hunt, there he will devellop is instinct, there is so much you can learn by reading or interneting, it is the feel that is important to give... JP.
 
Guys I have been shooting for about 25 years. I just took up hunting last fall. I am fairly familiar with the usual gun regs and stuff. I still find for some stuff the hunting regs in Ontario are sort of convoluted. I imagine once you have done it once its gets easier but having you guys around to ask questions on the regs and various rules, permits, licenses and stuff sure helps.

I think the more people we get into hunting the better. Otherwise a few decades from now when we have this conversation again there wont be many posts.

Sometimes new shooters are abit off base because they have learned about guns from TV or video games. Theres nothing wrong with giving them some advice and steering them in the right direction as long as while doing so you dont come across as a condescending ####### and belittle them.

To many I believe have forgotten all bull#### aside that hunting and shooting is suppose to be a FUN recreational activity.
 
It's funny that the best hunters - the guys who get the most game - quite often don't know much about guns. They didn't study the nuances of ballistic theory or know what twist rate is best for a 250 gr 30-06 bullet at 2300 fps. They just know their rifle well enough to know whether to shoot or try to get closer to game. They just bring home game and don't even realise they don't know wtf they are doing.

The guys who make me shake my head are the ones who didn't know the difference between a flat point and a flat base on arrival at the forum, but 3 months and 3000 posts later (prolly sitting in their mom's basement) they feel fully qualified to give advice on any subject. These guys are most critical on the perennial newb subjects like what cartridge is minimum for elk, or bear defense guns. It's easy for them to have strong opinions because they don't know a fcuking thing of practical use to interfere with their opinions.
 
If you have the passion for hunting it does not mean you have the passion for rifles ( and vice-versa ) but you can have both and somethime one thing lead to another... JP.
 
I would like to add, that this fall will be my first time out hunting since I was a little kid, many many years ago. The rifle I am using was given to me by my wifes family and is a .303 British Parker Hale sporter :). I am forunate to have a mentor to take me out and show me the ropes this fall.

As for shooting, I spent quite a few years with the military reserves and am quite confident in my abilty to shoot, and yes, I've already been to the range to sight it in.

I'm very happy to have found this site and CRR as I have learned a lot about firearm laws.

I hope to bag something this fall so I can fill my freezer with meat.

Happy hunting and tight groups.
 
Hunting is on the decline because hunting as an acceptable activity has been under attack for years. The media exaggerates the publically held view by way of sterotyping the average hunter. Recently at Ian Thompson's first court hearing, there were about 20-30 people present. Professionals, well deported, and yet the only person the media wanted to interview, besides Ed Burlew Ian's lawyer, was a guy wearing a cowboy hat, with bad teeth and 4 days of growth on his face. Bubba personified!!!

During the recent run up on the long gun registry, the media chose to interview the stereotypes. They did not interview people like John Evers or Blair Hagan, because they are not consistent with the message the media want to convey about hunting.

Similarly, when hunting is seriously discussed, it usually involves native treaty rights. And the image shown, generally, are natives wearing bandanas, burning tires at barricades.

With decades of bad press, it is no wonder that its hard to convince young people to take up hunting. The allure of "Call of Duty", is too hard to overcome.

The hunting and firearms laws have been stacked against young people getting involved in the shooting sports. The minimum age, the need for a hunting mentor etc.the licensing and course costs all work against young people taking up the sport, especially those in an urban environment.

To make matters worst, the so called conservation groups like NWTF, DU, OFAH have done little to address this issue. In fact they have done less than nothing and the results speak for themselves. With all of the money that supposedly goes to support youth we should have seen a rise in participation rates amongst youth. We have not.

Hunting is part of Canada's cultural identity.

It should be honoured as such.

What the hunting fraternity needs is a vast mentoring program done at the grass roots level with ads placed in local papers and with youth organizations. Forget the hunting conservation orgs. Your local club and mens group is the solution, not OFAH or DU.

One expereinced hunter in a community can impact the lives of more kids than all of the so-called "Youth Events" where the focus is on feeding them hot dogs and building bird houses.

Since when does bird house building lead to hunting? Bird house building leads to carpentry and bird watching. Fishing leads to ... well fishing. I know of no empirical study that shows these youth activities as being effective in increasing the number of hunters. It is my opinion that many of our "youth programs" are excuses to assuage the guilty feelings of men who should know better.

Drop the pretense. Volunteer to take the fatherless boy next door or down the street out for a hunt. Take the money you would normally waste on DU, NWTF, OFAH, RMEF, etc and spend it by taking a kid hunting. That is the only way to build support for hunting amongst the youth. All of the Green Wing or Jakes programs are a waste of time and money that could be better spent showing a kid how to hunt and help him begin the passage to manhood.
 
Beausoleil said:
Hunting is on the decline because hunting as an acceptable activity has been under attack for years. The media exaggerates the publically held view by way of sterotyping the average hunter. Recently at Ian Thompson's first court hearing, there were about 20-30 people present. Professionals, well deported, and yet the only person the media wanted to interview, besides Ed Burlew Ian's lawyer, was a guy wearing a cowboy hat, with bad teeth and 4 days of growth on his face. Bubba personified!!!

During the recent run up on the long gun registry, the media chose to interview the stereotypes. They did not interview people like John Evers or Blair Hagan, because they are not consistent with the message the media want to convey about hunting.

Similarly, when hunting is seriously discussed, it usually involves native treaty rights. And the image shown, generally, are natives wearing bandanas, burning tires at barricades.

With decades of bad press, it is no wonder that its hard to convince young people to take up hunting. The allure of "Call of Duty", is too hard to overcome.

The hunting and firearms laws have been stacked against young people getting involved in the shooting sports. The minimum age, the need for a hunting mentor etc.the licensing and course costs all work against young people taking up the sport, especially those in an urban environment.

To make matters worst, the so called conservation groups like NWTF, DU, OFAH have done little to address this issue. In fact they have done less than nothing and the results speak for themselves. With all of the money that supposedly goes to support youth we should have seen a rise in participation rates amongst youth. We have not.

Hunting is part of Canada's cultural identity.

It should be honoured as such.

What the hunting fraternity needs is a vast mentoring program done at the grass roots level with ads placed in local papers and with youth organizations. Forget the hunting conservation orgs. Your local club and mens group is the solution, not OFAH or DU.

One expereinced hunter in a community can impact the lives of more kids than all of the so-called "Youth Events" where the focus is on feeding them hot dogs and building bird houses.

Since when does bird house building lead to hunting? Bird house building leads to carpentry and bird watching. Fishing leads to ... well fishing. I know of no empirical study that shows these youth activities as being effective in increasing the number of hunters. It is my opinion that many of our "youth programs" are excuses to assuage the guilty feelings of men who should know better.

Drop the pretense. Volunteer to take the fatherless boy next door or down the street out for a hunt. Take the money you would normally waste on DU, NWTF, OFAH, RMEF, etc and spend it by taking a kid hunting. That is the only way to build support for hunting amongst the youth. All of the Green Wing or Jakes programs are a waste of time and money that could be better spent showing a kid how to hunt and help him begin the passage to manhood.
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Now that is post that speaks the truth!
 
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I don't know what you guys are talking about, I see more hunters out in the field now than ever before. It is actualy becoming a problem.

But hey, I'm in Alberta where the population is growing to fast, and people have the money to hunt far from thier home, and close to mine.
 
Everyone should have 303. It's as Canadian as hockey and maple syrup. I have a buddy in NFLD that kills moose with his every year. Sure as heck is good enough for deer.

I agree with the OP that we need to get people out in the woods hunting and have them develop a love for the sport. They technical stuff will come after when they read gun mags and spend to much time on the forums.
 
Hunters are in large their own worst enimies! Put a group of internet hunters in a room for a day and let them establish our new regulations and hunting would be totally banned......sad.
 
zooch345 said:
+1 no land access
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Its getting bad in my area for access as well. Lots of Alberta city dwellers buying up rural Sask and lots are against hunting. Ive politely asked many new land owners to hunt on land Ive had access to in previous years and get told "Please Leave". I myself have sold alot of rifles off and hardly bother going out any more. At least they can't tell me to get off the lake and stop walleye fishing.
 
In southern ontario its the boom in turkey hunters that's closing up a lot of access. In years past I could sit in my tree stand the entire season and see no other soul. Now I have to kick new hunters out of my stand and ##### them out for trespassing. I know a lot of landowners that let 1 or 2 ppl hunt their land and have gone out to see 5 truck loads of trespassers that have parked on his crops and gone in hunting without permission. Also if they get permission to hunt turkeys they believe they can hunt deer as well. I've had 6 stands stolen in the last 3 years on land where my group are the only hunters allowed. This new group of hunters as they call themselves is ruining the good reputation decent hunters have. Laws and signage mean nothing to these new folks that walk the woods shooting at everything. Last year I met a trespasser that was carrying a 30-06 in a muzzleloading season in an area where one can't even legally carry a rifle of that caliber. He also told me to get off his land. When I called the landowner it got sorted out and he left before the ministry could catch up to him. Its not just old hunters and rifleman saying one could do better with a more modern rifle its the lack of respect we've let our following generation grow up with. And its this lack of respect that has lost me 3 farms I used to hunt because of a careless trespasser who put a round into a pickup. Now no one is allowed to hunt there
 
ilovegunz said:
Well, let me tell you...no. I'd like to try hunting, probably deer to start with since I'm not really interested in eating bear. I know firearms well enough to put together a dandy rig for whatever I'm looking to shoot. The simple reason I've never hunted before is that I've never hunted before. My dad never hunted, so I didn't get to experience it when I was younger, and at this point it seems pretty overwhelming. There are too many things to know. I don't even know what the heck to do with it after I shoot it, short of cutting some chunks out of it and putting it over a camp fire. I don't even know how to find it. Pretty much all I can do is wander into some thick looking forest with a gun and walk around for a bit (hopefully without getting lost). It's a pretty daunting challenge for somebody who has literally no knowledge of how to hunt, and I'm certainly not the only one.
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just get the proper licenses and find some crown land. Get a map, a knife and a compass. At first follow a creek or ridge so as you can not get lost. Just enjoy the outdoors.
If you see game relax, it is your choice as to shoot or not. Know your limitations. If you do down a deer, first cut its throat so as the blood will drain out. Then you can figure out how to get the hide off of it.
There has to books etc of how to dress a deer or any other animal. Help yourself a bit. Have fun. Sorry Joe for hijacking your thread.
 
First off, just from reading the first post it looks like you're misinterpreting the OP. Sounds like he was offering to take him to the range.... most newbies like that.


In regards to the decline of hunters, I'd agree that the hunting community is partially to blame. There are lots of hunters in my area, yet in several months of searching I didn't find a single local person who was able to even meet up and discuss things, even when I offered to pay for gas and food for the day. Some good people did offer, but they were generally eithe 12 hours away by car or hunting with bows.

Heck, even look at the mentoring section - probably about 10 newbies to every mentor posting in there. We simply aren't going to get many new hunters without some active support from the community. For those that make the crotchety statement about "just getting out and doing it"... that's all well and fine to say, but it isn't going to happen with people who aren't confident.
 
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