If you ever wonder why young people don't get into hunting..

[Citori54]

I have been hunting for 51 years and in that time I must say the vast majority of the other hunters I have encountered are great people. Have ended up good friends with some we have met while hunting. There is the odd ahole in every walk of life so no surprise there are some jerks that hunt.
I do recall one great situation while hunting near Port Renfrew years ago. I worked in the area so knew where to find some good bucks. I had seen a very nice 5x5 in an area that we planned to hunt early in the season. It poured all night but stopped by the time we got to our spot in the morning - perfect. The plan was to hike about 400 yards up through a young plantation to hunt a beautiful patch of old growth where my brother had taken a dandy the year before. Just as we were getting ready to leave the road another hunter pulled up to chat. He was nice enough but said he had been hunting here for a week (mostly driving) and had not seen any deer, and we should not waste our time. We said our good byes and as we hiked up through the plantation we looked back and saw he had come back hoping we would spook something to him - made us a little nervous. About noon I shot a beautiful 5x5 that made the Island Book. It took me an hour or so to drag it down to the road where I left it in the ditch near a culvert while I got the truck. Perfect timing - the hunter we encountered in the morning came along just we were loading it into the truck. As he got out I said "yup, no deer around here" and we all had a good laugh.

[bruce44]

I think you missed the point. I do not have "my spot". What I was referring to was what the poster said about doing some target shooting at a stump when the idiots on their machines drove into "his spot". Two ignorant acts do not make one sane and smart one.

Never said it was my spot. I said we were hiking for about an hour in a narrow trail only for some fat slob in camo everything to almost run us over and then sit at the clear cut we were headed.

on an open road we wouldn’t have minded. But you dip past us almost killing us just so no one can get to your spot, you don’t deserve respect. You deserve to be arrested for reckless driving.

[Looking_4_Jerky]

I am not condoning ass-face moves, but will point out that more and more people are engaging in desperation moves as the abundance of game decreases. Back when there was more game, people didn't feel like they had to tie up the best areas, they didn't feel like they had to lie to fellow hunters, and there was no need to be so competitive. If it didn't happen today it would happen tomorrow. Now everyone hunts under the pressure that if they don't get every edge during their 5 days out there, there's a strong chance they go home meatless until next year.

There have always been dickheads. But the decline of game populations, in my opinion, is the biggest driver of the pervasive shit attitude between hunters.

[abbyfireguy]

Please don’t lump the vast majority of older hunters into the bad category.
Thats not appropriate or appreciated.
I hunt with many of the so called bad older hunters and they are all great.
Yes there are dicks, but not the vast majority.
Just my take on things after hunting for 45 of my 64 years on this globe.
And yes, I’m still out hunting at my advanced age! LOL!

[adriaticum]

The problem is the scarcity mindset.
People are, whether they wanted it or not, whether they know it or not, "protecting resources for themselves".
The old mentality when game was plenty and human population was low people were willing to share their knowledge, their honey holes.
This is changing fast as population of BC is growing, exploitation of natural resources is expanding and game population are dwindling.
I think they call that urbanization or civilization, or development.

[huntingfamily]

Please don’t lump the vast majority of older hunters into the bad category.
Thats not appropriate or appreciated.
I hunt with many of the so called bad older hunters and they are all great.
Yes there are dicks, but not the vast majority.
Just my take on things after hunting for 45 of my 64 years on this globe.
And yes, I’m still out hunting at my advanced age! LOL!

Yep. There isn't one age group that is any worse than others...
And I find the vast majority of hunters we meet are terrific.
If you are finding the opposite maybe look in the mirror?

[slowjo]

I had an experience with older hunters that I have to share.

Two friends and I had just wrapped up a morning of still hunting and glassing. We had met up on an FSR spur and decided to walk the 2km or so back to the truck for lunch. Not more than ten steps into our walk we were startled to hear a gun go off in the bush very near to us. Not one shot....five shots!!! We look at each other like, "WTF!?".
We're standing there for a few seconds and we hear some rustling in the bush, and out pops this handsome 5x7 whitetail buck! It stops in the middle of the road, 20 meters, broadside, and stares at us like, "Are you gonna shoot me or what?"
So my friend raises his rifle and drops the deer right there in the middle of the road.
I go get the truck, we load up the buck and take down it to a flat spot a few km away to field dress it.
While we're working away, a pickup pulls up and out jump two older guys in one-piece army surplus green wool outfits and combat boots. The older, hairier and meaner looking of the two yells in a very thick russian accent, "Who shoot this deer?"
I point to my friend who did the shooting.
The man stomps towards him, grabs my friend by the shoulder, smiles and says, "This is nice prize for you! We must celebrate! Who wants cigarette!?"
Relieved and laughing, we all accept his offer, and he says, "My friend here, he speak no english. He shoot at this deer five times! He miss all!" And he laughed and rubbed the back of his sad looking partner.
For the next hour or so we all shared a few smokes and a few beers, and the old guy told us stories and gave us tips and insight on the area he had been hunting for 30 years. What a beauty he was. We celebrate all our kills in the same fashion now, even though none of us smoke, keeping a pouch of rolling tobacco stuffed in the bottom of the hunting bag for just such an occasion.

[J_T]

That’s the reason I don’t moose hunt anymore.

As I transitioned to hunting in the archery season only a number of years ago, the one intangible that I continue to enjoy is the lack of protectiveness, the willingness to share hunting tips, strategies, and areas.

Hunting brings out the "competitive nature" in a lot of hunters.

Just to reiterate, the bow only seasons really take the competitive nature out of the hunt and it simply is, much more simplistic and spiritual. There is - for me - an increased element of camaraderie when different camps are hunting similar areas.

There is lots to learn from the elders in our hunting community. Respect, ask, listen.

Absolutely. And not to bash the OP, but he must be very young to lump all pricks into 'older' categories. I'm older and I would suggest, I leave no trace in the forest, helpful to others, informative and usually abdicate to someone else who wants to hunt and area and move on to somewhere else. Animals are everywhere, success is mostly about how we hunt.

..... Question, would hunting be better off without social media? you know maybe just enjoy it for what it is and not have to post or shout about it etc?

Yes, absolutely. Not talking about, or sharing a hunting story is not about protecting a location, but it is about limiting the unnecessary criticism from people who basically don't know you.

[Linksman313]

I am totally feeling you RYO!
Been there, felt like slapping heads, had 6 year old out at the time, we hiked on in disgust as well.
Good hunting, hope that Moose wanders right into your set up to spite the dycks around.

Signed
Granby Rvr clean up crew
(Or so it seems this year already)
Links

[BigSlapper]

Good rant! .... Question - what is your "cut-off" age to classify one as an "older hunter"?
and btw ... my philosophy has always been "lots of room in the sandbox so play nice"