charvey9
WKR
Like most my first experiences hunting were with my dad. I grew up in Michigan, where all we really had to hunt was Whitetail, and from a very young age my dad would take me along. I'm not exaggerating when I say there are more baby pictures of me posing with dead animals or the days catch than with any member of the family. I still remember him tying a rope under my arms and winching me up into the tree stand because I was too short to climb the ladder steps myself. Nowadays that would probably be considered child endangerment...lol.
I hunted deer every fall growing up, mainly rifle, but didn't really live for it the way my dad did. Something about sitting in a tree on a late November morning, freezing to death in single digit temperatures just wasn't all that fun to me. Some years I just hunted opening day/weekend, and then would call it quits. Opening day was literally a holiday in Northern MI, where we even got the day off of school....so you HAD to go hunting. My dad took me on two trips "out west" my senior year and first year of college to hunt deer/elk at my uncle's place in Montana. I liked this much more than sitting in a tree, but opportunity and desire to pursue it on an annual basis just wasn't there. I did not hunt with any regularity through most of college or my first few years of moving to Oregon. I was too pre-occupied with other things (aka women and beer).
I actually owe my re-introduction to hunting to my youngest dog, Bowman, who from a pup I could tell just had natural hunting instincts. It still took me until he was 3 years old to take him out chasing birds for the first time. I knew it would be something he would just love, and felt guilty for denying him the opportunity. With zero training on my part, we walked into the field our first day and took three birds. We were hooked.
By the next year we were bird hunting with every opportunity, and I also bought my first OTC tag since moving to Oregon. I ended up taking a nice Blacktail with my rifle. Coincidently, it was also the first time I hunted big game by myself. I even bought a small travel trailer prior to the hunt, because god knows you at least need 4 solid walls, heat, electricity, and a fridge to "rough it" for a week in the woods. This was also the first time I ever had to field quarter and pack out an animal, since growing up all we did was gut it, drag back to the truck, and take it to the butcher. I found a road roughly 3/4 of a mile uphill from where I took the deer, and just started breaking down the animal. Did not de-bone it, left the hide, hooves on, etc. I think it took me 4 trips to accomplish what I now do in one to get it packed out. I was pretty proud of myself though. Caught up in the moment, and not paying attention, I ended up having to re-trace my steps the next day to recover my rangefinder and hunting knife. Good times, and this trip really got the wheels turning in my head.
Things snowballed from there. I bought my first new bow in probably 15 years that December. I shot a lot the following year, but did not hunt. I did not know where to start. Rifle hunting was one thing, but bow hunting in anything other than a tree stand was something I couldn't quite comprehend. At that time I could count the number of days I'd spent hunting elk on both hands, and the idea of locating, hunting, killing, and getting an animal of that size to the truck may as well have been a trip to the moon.
Not knowing anyone who bow hunted in "the west", I took to the internet in search of information. Guess what comes up first when you Google Backcountry Bowhunting? Of course, it is Cam Hanes book "Backcountry Bowhunting: A guide to the Wild Side". I had never watched much hunting TV or read magazines, so had no idea who Cam was. In fact the only hunting personality I could have probably named was Ted Nugent, since he is from Michigan and my dad had the chance to hunt with him once. I may have eventually found the information elsewhere, but I am not exaggerating by saying that book opened the door to a whole new world for me. I never even knew what a bivy was before reading his book, and although I have developed a lot of my own methods (and gear) since then it certainly got me started down the path. I remember finishing the book when I was on vacation in Mexico with my wife in February, and by the time we got home I had boxes of backpacking gear piled up that I had ordered from Amazon. I started my first overnight solo backing trips that spring, and went on my first 7 day bivy elk hunt that fall. I have to give Cam a lot of credit for that. For any haters, all I have to say is that I had the opportunity to share bear camp with Cam last year and he is they type of guy you enjoy hunting with and being around. Why any hunter would project negativity in his direction is beyond me.
I owe a lot to the Rokslide community as well. Without a doubt, it is the best place to go for information on anything related to backcountry hunting and a steady source inspiration to get out on the mountain.
I am by no means a great (or even a good) hunter, but the journey has been awesome and each step takes me further down the rabbit hole. My free time now revolves around hunting and I spend my days off doing stuff I would have never thought of growing up. With some extensive negotiating and bribery (that may ultimately lead to divorce...lol), I will be spending all four weeks of my vacation this year hunting. BC mountain goat, Oregon elk, Alberta moose, and South Dakota pheasant trips all on the books. All dreams coming true that weren't even on my radar a handful of years ago. Evolution in my gear is kind of like going from the invention of the wheel to driving a Ferrari, thanks a lot to feedback on Rokslide. Last month I bought my first pack mule. At this rate I'll be living in a shack in Alaska by the end of next year.
Sorry for the long read, but it has been awhile since I reflected on that, and all I really have to say about how I got started in hunting and backcountry hunting.
Edit:
My dad says this is the first deer I ever pulled the trigger on, but I can't remember so who knows. He has been known to tell a story or two.....
I hunted deer every fall growing up, mainly rifle, but didn't really live for it the way my dad did. Something about sitting in a tree on a late November morning, freezing to death in single digit temperatures just wasn't all that fun to me. Some years I just hunted opening day/weekend, and then would call it quits. Opening day was literally a holiday in Northern MI, where we even got the day off of school....so you HAD to go hunting. My dad took me on two trips "out west" my senior year and first year of college to hunt deer/elk at my uncle's place in Montana. I liked this much more than sitting in a tree, but opportunity and desire to pursue it on an annual basis just wasn't there. I did not hunt with any regularity through most of college or my first few years of moving to Oregon. I was too pre-occupied with other things (aka women and beer).
I actually owe my re-introduction to hunting to my youngest dog, Bowman, who from a pup I could tell just had natural hunting instincts. It still took me until he was 3 years old to take him out chasing birds for the first time. I knew it would be something he would just love, and felt guilty for denying him the opportunity. With zero training on my part, we walked into the field our first day and took three birds. We were hooked.
By the next year we were bird hunting with every opportunity, and I also bought my first OTC tag since moving to Oregon. I ended up taking a nice Blacktail with my rifle. Coincidently, it was also the first time I hunted big game by myself. I even bought a small travel trailer prior to the hunt, because god knows you at least need 4 solid walls, heat, electricity, and a fridge to "rough it" for a week in the woods. This was also the first time I ever had to field quarter and pack out an animal, since growing up all we did was gut it, drag back to the truck, and take it to the butcher. I found a road roughly 3/4 of a mile uphill from where I took the deer, and just started breaking down the animal. Did not de-bone it, left the hide, hooves on, etc. I think it took me 4 trips to accomplish what I now do in one to get it packed out. I was pretty proud of myself though. Caught up in the moment, and not paying attention, I ended up having to re-trace my steps the next day to recover my rangefinder and hunting knife. Good times, and this trip really got the wheels turning in my head.
Things snowballed from there. I bought my first new bow in probably 15 years that December. I shot a lot the following year, but did not hunt. I did not know where to start. Rifle hunting was one thing, but bow hunting in anything other than a tree stand was something I couldn't quite comprehend. At that time I could count the number of days I'd spent hunting elk on both hands, and the idea of locating, hunting, killing, and getting an animal of that size to the truck may as well have been a trip to the moon.
Not knowing anyone who bow hunted in "the west", I took to the internet in search of information. Guess what comes up first when you Google Backcountry Bowhunting? Of course, it is Cam Hanes book "Backcountry Bowhunting: A guide to the Wild Side". I had never watched much hunting TV or read magazines, so had no idea who Cam was. In fact the only hunting personality I could have probably named was Ted Nugent, since he is from Michigan and my dad had the chance to hunt with him once. I may have eventually found the information elsewhere, but I am not exaggerating by saying that book opened the door to a whole new world for me. I never even knew what a bivy was before reading his book, and although I have developed a lot of my own methods (and gear) since then it certainly got me started down the path. I remember finishing the book when I was on vacation in Mexico with my wife in February, and by the time we got home I had boxes of backpacking gear piled up that I had ordered from Amazon. I started my first overnight solo backing trips that spring, and went on my first 7 day bivy elk hunt that fall. I have to give Cam a lot of credit for that. For any haters, all I have to say is that I had the opportunity to share bear camp with Cam last year and he is they type of guy you enjoy hunting with and being around. Why any hunter would project negativity in his direction is beyond me.
I owe a lot to the Rokslide community as well. Without a doubt, it is the best place to go for information on anything related to backcountry hunting and a steady source inspiration to get out on the mountain.
I am by no means a great (or even a good) hunter, but the journey has been awesome and each step takes me further down the rabbit hole. My free time now revolves around hunting and I spend my days off doing stuff I would have never thought of growing up. With some extensive negotiating and bribery (that may ultimately lead to divorce...lol), I will be spending all four weeks of my vacation this year hunting. BC mountain goat, Oregon elk, Alberta moose, and South Dakota pheasant trips all on the books. All dreams coming true that weren't even on my radar a handful of years ago. Evolution in my gear is kind of like going from the invention of the wheel to driving a Ferrari, thanks a lot to feedback on Rokslide. Last month I bought my first pack mule. At this rate I'll be living in a shack in Alaska by the end of next year.
Sorry for the long read, but it has been awhile since I reflected on that, and all I really have to say about how I got started in hunting and backcountry hunting.
Edit:
My dad says this is the first deer I ever pulled the trigger on, but I can't remember so who knows. He has been known to tell a story or two.....
Last edited:
