How did you introduce your kids to hunting?
- Thread starter el_jefe_pescado
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505Wapiti
WKR
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As many others have said prior, put them in backpacks as babies and they have loved being outdoors in the mountains ever since. I took my oldest coyote hunting with me when he was 5 or 6. Had to put him behind a makeshift blind because he couldn’t sit still, LOL. They are 9 and 12 and both love the outdoors and love to hunt and fish. I eased into big game hunting with my oldest and started out with antelope tag. He has a mule deer tag this year and is super stoked. Will put him in for elk next year. My youngest is chomping for a big game animal now because he can’t be outdone by his brother.
I think the main thing is make it fun and exciting and not a grind. If they have a miserable experience early then they are less likely going to want to do it again.
I think the main thing is make it fun and exciting and not a grind. If they have a miserable experience early then they are less likely going to want to do it again.
I hunt_dm3
WKR
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I think it is really important to take your kids outdoors and introduce them to that first. That can start at any age, as they get older and understand they will want to be apart of the hunting aspect. Take them as early and as often as possible.
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Huntindog45
WKR
i took my kids fishing and hunting every chance i got from the time i could push them in a jogger stroller. Frankly one of my greatest pet peaves is hearing someone say "i cant wait until they are old enough". I always say old enough for what? Take them now. Take them often. You will be grateful when they are "old enough" and can handle their own out there long before the kids whose parents are waiting around for their kids to be old enough to drive...
mcr-85
WKR
I love to take my kids trapping, hunting and fishing. Anything outdoors is time well spent. I hope they love it as much as I do.
my 2 year old was strapped to my wife's chest fly fishing in MT and CO at 3 months old. Car seat in the SxS riding in the mountains and in a back pack trapping that spring (1year old).
This past fall she was in a backpack Sharptail hunting, in a duck blind and this spring spent 2 full days laying in a field hunting Snow Geese. Now she caught her first fish all by herself at 2 years old just this past weekend. So far she loves it.
It is exactly how both my wife and I were raised and how we planned to raise our kids. They do what we do basically until they are independent enough to make that decision.
This past fall she was in a backpack Sharptail hunting, in a duck blind and this spring spent 2 full days laying in a field hunting Snow Geese. Now she caught her first fish all by herself at 2 years old just this past weekend. So far she loves it.
It is exactly how both my wife and I were raised and how we planned to raise our kids. They do what we do basically until they are independent enough to make that decision.
No kids but I'll describe how my father did it. He always took me out from a very early age on easy hunts and fishing trips like turkey, pheasants, bluegills. He always took the time to answer stupid kid questions about animals, hunting, fishing, and would tell me the same stories of his hunts over and over every time I asked. Our house was full of his mounts, hunting and media like magazines, books and movie cassettes and he always made hunting and fishing the cool thing to do and never forced or pressured me.
His elk hunts turned into family camping trips, where'd he'd hunt in the mornings and evenings while the rest of the family camped. He taught me gun safety with a red ryder at a very young age and spent the time to make sure I had it right. I was then allowed a great deal of freedom with bows, bb/ pellet guns in the neighborhood and only got in trouble a few times with said freedom and I was quickly reprimanded. Admittedly I "hunted" every living critter i could from birds, squirrels, and rabbits around our 3 acres/subdivision and on camping trips. perks of living in a semi rural area where neighbors didnt think too much about kids having bb guns.
I was very fortunate to be raised in a semi rural area with like minded people around. All my friends around hunted and fished and having young peers doing the same thing helped out. Teachers and coaches never looked down on hunting and encouraged us to read and write about hunting. I would take the time to find a way to make sure your kid has peers that are into the same stuff.
His elk hunts turned into family camping trips, where'd he'd hunt in the mornings and evenings while the rest of the family camped. He taught me gun safety with a red ryder at a very young age and spent the time to make sure I had it right. I was then allowed a great deal of freedom with bows, bb/ pellet guns in the neighborhood and only got in trouble a few times with said freedom and I was quickly reprimanded. Admittedly I "hunted" every living critter i could from birds, squirrels, and rabbits around our 3 acres/subdivision and on camping trips. perks of living in a semi rural area where neighbors didnt think too much about kids having bb guns.
I was very fortunate to be raised in a semi rural area with like minded people around. All my friends around hunted and fished and having young peers doing the same thing helped out. Teachers and coaches never looked down on hunting and encouraged us to read and write about hunting. I would take the time to find a way to make sure your kid has peers that are into the same stuff.
Antarctica
WKR
I do some backyard deer hunting where my 'stand' is sitting on top of a flat section of my barn roof. I took my kid up when he was just two, used a dog leash to a belt loop to make sure he didn't step off.
Later that fall, we were raking leaves, and all of a sudden, he was gone. I looked around and couldn't find him. Looked up and he had climbed up the roof and was sitting up there on the bucket. When I went up, I asked him what he was doing and he said "Shhhhh. I'm deer hunting."
The next year, I shot a deer. He was in the house but I knew he saw it, so I brought him out. His reaction was "there's a lot of blood", I thought he would go back in, but he wanted to stay with me while I gutted/started processing it. I was worried that he'd get freaked out over the gore. After about 10 minutes, he told me he was going back inside - I thought he'd had enough. Two minutes later he comes running back and says "Daddy - I got my tools!!", and he proceeded to try to saw the leg off the deer with his plastic toy saw.
I take each of my kids deer hunting individually each year. They love it. I don't really try to hunt though - its all about them, and spending time together. Mostly we walk around with a gun and drink hot chocolate.
Later that fall, we were raking leaves, and all of a sudden, he was gone. I looked around and couldn't find him. Looked up and he had climbed up the roof and was sitting up there on the bucket. When I went up, I asked him what he was doing and he said "Shhhhh. I'm deer hunting."
The next year, I shot a deer. He was in the house but I knew he saw it, so I brought him out. His reaction was "there's a lot of blood", I thought he would go back in, but he wanted to stay with me while I gutted/started processing it. I was worried that he'd get freaked out over the gore. After about 10 minutes, he told me he was going back inside - I thought he'd had enough. Two minutes later he comes running back and says "Daddy - I got my tools!!", and he proceeded to try to saw the leg off the deer with his plastic toy saw.
I take each of my kids deer hunting individually each year. They love it. I don't really try to hunt though - its all about them, and spending time together. Mostly we walk around with a gun and drink hot chocolate.
bowieknife50
WKR
I'm not sure it's been mentioned but take a lot of snacks. Then just take them whenever you can and don't plan on getting much accomplished. Mine love chasing bears and it's a good way to get them hooked. Spend most of the day bouncing around the truck eating snacks. Don't have to be quiet or still, we practice that at other times though. I think it also helps that we hunt with dogs because they love those dogs and then we get to hunt with them and it's all a big partnership. I should mention also that it's pretty important to have a good supply of snacks. The picture is my 6 year old checking tracks like a boss.
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Sent from my SM-G981V using Tapatalk
Salmonchaser
WKR
Also near the Yukon; I was six; never too early
Attachments
Warmsy
WKR
Last weekend I took my 4 year old son fishing and he and the dog jackrabbit "hunting". He was babbling on and running around with his bow and single arrow.
I stooped down and said "rabbits have big ears, so they can hear really well. We have to tiptoe and be quiet". The black lab is happy for a walk. The boy starts stomping and whisper-yelling "daddy I'm being quiet! Buggies is being quiet!".
He caught a trout with a spinning rod. I couldn't hold back the laughter with his sneaking skills haha.
I stooped down and said "rabbits have big ears, so they can hear really well. We have to tiptoe and be quiet". The black lab is happy for a walk. The boy starts stomping and whisper-yelling "daddy I'm being quiet! Buggies is being quiet!".
He caught a trout with a spinning rod. I couldn't hold back the laughter with his sneaking skills haha.
swampthing
WKR
As said, you just raise them in an outdoor lifestyle and they grow into it. I got my son a 22 when he was 4 and he was shooting grouse before he was legally allowed! My son is 25 now and just upgraded to a kifaru pack and a new lupy spotter for his upcoming backpack sheep hunt. It was great watching him grow up into a solid outdoorsman that anyone would be lucky to share a camp with!
Hunt eat repeat
WKR
Aww man love that pic.
EastMT
WKR
I took mine on a reasonably easy caribou hunt off the road system when he was 4. We hiked in about a mile and waited for some caribou we had seen eating 2 nights in a row.
He did way better than I expected, wouldn’t let me hold alders out of the way, I got it dad he’d say. Had to carry him across the beaver dam, but the rest he handled it well.
When I put the ear muffs on him before mom shot he started humming real loud because the sound was so much different than open ears, I was panicked but it worked out fine, all the bulls stopped to see what the noise was!
At 6 months my first boy was on my back and in the woods. At 18 months he pretty much learned to walk on hiking trails as once he started to walk a little he'd come along on hikes and would go as far as he could and then into the pack for the rest. By about 20 months, he was helping carry Bear meat in from the coolers to be processed.
Both boys ate wild game within their first month of solid food. I tell them what animal they are eating everytime we have meat. The youngest at 18 months old was at a petting zoo, looked at a chicken, pointed and said "I eat that!" He made the connection that chicken on the plate and chicken in the zoo were the same thing.
Now we go on "Bear hunts" (pretend) on afternoon walks. They know the difference between Bear poop and other poop.
I've always explained to them when I'm going hunting.
They're 3.5 and 2 right now and they seem very eager to learn, participate and be a part of hunting. The oldest I hope will come with me on a real hunt next Spring. The youngest might be a bit older when he comes as he's a bit nervous around loud things, but who knows, they change so much in a year.
I still need to introduce guns to both of them, not sure how to do that.
Both boys ate wild game within their first month of solid food. I tell them what animal they are eating everytime we have meat. The youngest at 18 months old was at a petting zoo, looked at a chicken, pointed and said "I eat that!" He made the connection that chicken on the plate and chicken in the zoo were the same thing.
Now we go on "Bear hunts" (pretend) on afternoon walks. They know the difference between Bear poop and other poop.
I've always explained to them when I'm going hunting.
They're 3.5 and 2 right now and they seem very eager to learn, participate and be a part of hunting. The oldest I hope will come with me on a real hunt next Spring. The youngest might be a bit older when he comes as he's a bit nervous around loud things, but who knows, they change so much in a year.
I still need to introduce guns to both of them, not sure how to do that.
RE: Getting a kid to enjoy something that YOU love.
Understand that your kid growing up may likely be experiencing a whole 'nother set of circumstances which are different than you did growing up. Like for myself? Since becoming an adult way in the hell back when, I'd always dreamed of someday having a kid and taking them with me to ride DirtBikes in the Dez! Long story shorter... when we originally went out on an XR50... at whatever age that was... I'll guess and say 7yo... he liked it... when we were riding two-up on the XR50. (Which was MURDERING my ol'lower back injury)... but when I attempted to have him do it solo... though he did decent... when he had fall overs.... oh man... he whined something fierce talking about "I can't pick it up!" etc, Ugh!
I say all that to tell you to mentally prepare yourself for the possibility that your kid may end up NOT liking or taking to the things you had always DREAMED of being able to do as a kid!
And, when you're going out initially with that younger kid.. PLAN on not remaining out there very long at all initially. (Which SUCKS if you live in SoCal and have to burn $70 bucks in gas just to get there!)
RE: Hunting
Start taking them shooting with you. And/or Archery with you.
Start with making sure you show them your Big Game and Small Game animals as you bring them home and process them. (Especially if you then go and make something delicious out of it!) Have him watch you process the game. They'll be like "Ew!" and such, and when they do, go pull out a chicken bought from the store and show them how it's just the same thing, just a little more already processed. Show them what each organ is, explaining that you have this same organ in your body too! That helps to curb the "Ew!" thing, and turn it more into fascination with being able to see inside.
Then take them shooting out in the wild. No hunting. No scouting. Just shooting in a nature setting. (Highly recommend bringing an EZ-UP for shade and a Resin table to shoot from) Getting them used to the whole deal of we gotta bring our own water and food/snacks. We pick up our trash. We pick up our shell casings. Work on trigger discipline. I'm going to repeat that WORK ON TRIGGER DISCPLINE!!! Then.... if the area you take him to is such that they have like Ground Squirrels and such.... later on... once he gets his license... he can take some Ground Squirrels while you supervise. With these outings you can assess how well he minds and listens, and you can assess how much of a whiner quotient your kid has and whether or not YOU can put up with it or not just yet. The boy was annoyingly a whiner during younger years, so it just wouldn't have worked with my patience levels at that time.
Got him in Boy Scouts. That helped A LOT with taking care of the whiner bullsh*t because he's with peers so ya don't wanna look like the whiny baby of the group. And there's some kinda magic to having some OTHER adult in a group setting giving your kid commands to execute that mysteriously makes them not pitch a b*tch the way they might be inclined to do with you. So they end up just getting with the program and getting over it.
Matter of fact I was real proud of him cause on one campout they did, the dork didn't realize this red thing in his pack was his 40 degree sleeping bag I'd put in there for him.... (I guess cause of its red color, somehow he thought it was a med kit!) so.. when he got cold that night... he wrapped himself up in the yoga mat he also took, and the next night he also took out the emergency "foil"-type blanket and wrapped in that. And other Asst Scout Leaders were telling me how HE DIDN'T COMPLAIN! AND DIDN'T WHINE about it! So yeah... the peer pressure can work in a very positive way too!
Do LONG bike rides with them first several times. Get him used to droning along for long distances. For me we'd go to the beach from our home, (approx 4 or 5 miles each way) and then go out on rock breakwater jetties because those are fun to climb on and are actually quite physical to traverse, so it builds up their stamina for the mountains and the intriguing surroundings take away the whiner component.
Fast fwd to recent times (him 12yo).... with Covid, in 2020 in CA they allowed you to do Hunter Safety all online on Hunter-Ed.com so I sat with him and we went thru it all. That site did a really good job with their content and how it's presented to not make it boring.
So then with license in hand... hrmm, I think first I let him pop some Ground Squirrels, then the first "real" hunt we did together was a Rabbit hunt, on the opener, done at the crack of dawn in an ambush style wearing leafy gear and sitting on Tripod stool. (Later on switched over to FlexLite/Helinox style chairs for greater all day comfort) It was a location I was very familiar with so I knew where the rabbits would come out to sun themselves in the AM. So with the .22 LR I bought specifically for him... and the Kwik Stiks (which we'd practiced with on Ground Squirrels first a lil bit) he took his first rabbits at 12yo. Which seems quite on the late side. But when you consider that we live in a much more Metro area and have to drive significantly just to get anyplace. And the gas cost, you can see why I didn't try to push it until I felt he was mentally grown enough and ready so it wouldn't be a whiner-fest that would make me wanna claw my eyes out.
Oh also... sorta near to the rabbit spot, on a prior occasion I'd taken him out to do clay pigeons with a shotgun I'd gotten for him. And we got the shotgun for him because at a child-centric Event they host at this Shooting Complex... Son of a B*tch if the first time...ever.... that he shot a shotgun.... he hit a clay pigeon being thrown away from them like Trap-Style. Definitely take em into the area you're planning on hunting ahead of time, on a trial run, to see how they do on the hike-in.
Actually now that I think about it. after those first rabbits I then hazarded having him come with me to this one deer spot that's 6mi each way. And he was fully loaded in terms of pack and carrying his shotgun the whole time, so ya know, they'll kinda at first dig on that aspect, (before they realize how much of an exhausting hike it's going to be, hehe)
In the end.. I think a lot of what will govern how soon you can bring your lil guy with you depends on where you have to go and how physical it is to get to the place. That was another thing that was great about that rabbit spot I knew about. It's not far at all from where you park your vehicle. So no "How much farther?" BS to deal with.
Understand that your kid growing up may likely be experiencing a whole 'nother set of circumstances which are different than you did growing up. Like for myself? Since becoming an adult way in the hell back when, I'd always dreamed of someday having a kid and taking them with me to ride DirtBikes in the Dez! Long story shorter... when we originally went out on an XR50... at whatever age that was... I'll guess and say 7yo... he liked it... when we were riding two-up on the XR50. (Which was MURDERING my ol'lower back injury)... but when I attempted to have him do it solo... though he did decent... when he had fall overs.... oh man... he whined something fierce talking about "I can't pick it up!" etc, Ugh!
I say all that to tell you to mentally prepare yourself for the possibility that your kid may end up NOT liking or taking to the things you had always DREAMED of being able to do as a kid!
And, when you're going out initially with that younger kid.. PLAN on not remaining out there very long at all initially. (Which SUCKS if you live in SoCal and have to burn $70 bucks in gas just to get there!)
RE: Hunting
Start taking them shooting with you. And/or Archery with you.
Start with making sure you show them your Big Game and Small Game animals as you bring them home and process them. (Especially if you then go and make something delicious out of it!) Have him watch you process the game. They'll be like "Ew!" and such, and when they do, go pull out a chicken bought from the store and show them how it's just the same thing, just a little more already processed. Show them what each organ is, explaining that you have this same organ in your body too! That helps to curb the "Ew!" thing, and turn it more into fascination with being able to see inside.
Then take them shooting out in the wild. No hunting. No scouting. Just shooting in a nature setting. (Highly recommend bringing an EZ-UP for shade and a Resin table to shoot from) Getting them used to the whole deal of we gotta bring our own water and food/snacks. We pick up our trash. We pick up our shell casings. Work on trigger discipline. I'm going to repeat that WORK ON TRIGGER DISCPLINE!!! Then.... if the area you take him to is such that they have like Ground Squirrels and such.... later on... once he gets his license... he can take some Ground Squirrels while you supervise. With these outings you can assess how well he minds and listens, and you can assess how much of a whiner quotient your kid has and whether or not YOU can put up with it or not just yet. The boy was annoyingly a whiner during younger years, so it just wouldn't have worked with my patience levels at that time.
Got him in Boy Scouts. That helped A LOT with taking care of the whiner bullsh*t because he's with peers so ya don't wanna look like the whiny baby of the group. And there's some kinda magic to having some OTHER adult in a group setting giving your kid commands to execute that mysteriously makes them not pitch a b*tch the way they might be inclined to do with you. So they end up just getting with the program and getting over it.
Matter of fact I was real proud of him cause on one campout they did, the dork didn't realize this red thing in his pack was his 40 degree sleeping bag I'd put in there for him.... (I guess cause of its red color, somehow he thought it was a med kit!) so.. when he got cold that night... he wrapped himself up in the yoga mat he also took, and the next night he also took out the emergency "foil"-type blanket and wrapped in that. And other Asst Scout Leaders were telling me how HE DIDN'T COMPLAIN! AND DIDN'T WHINE about it! So yeah... the peer pressure can work in a very positive way too!
Do LONG bike rides with them first several times. Get him used to droning along for long distances. For me we'd go to the beach from our home, (approx 4 or 5 miles each way) and then go out on rock breakwater jetties because those are fun to climb on and are actually quite physical to traverse, so it builds up their stamina for the mountains and the intriguing surroundings take away the whiner component.
Fast fwd to recent times (him 12yo).... with Covid, in 2020 in CA they allowed you to do Hunter Safety all online on Hunter-Ed.com so I sat with him and we went thru it all. That site did a really good job with their content and how it's presented to not make it boring.
So then with license in hand... hrmm, I think first I let him pop some Ground Squirrels, then the first "real" hunt we did together was a Rabbit hunt, on the opener, done at the crack of dawn in an ambush style wearing leafy gear and sitting on Tripod stool. (Later on switched over to FlexLite/Helinox style chairs for greater all day comfort) It was a location I was very familiar with so I knew where the rabbits would come out to sun themselves in the AM. So with the .22 LR I bought specifically for him... and the Kwik Stiks (which we'd practiced with on Ground Squirrels first a lil bit) he took his first rabbits at 12yo. Which seems quite on the late side. But when you consider that we live in a much more Metro area and have to drive significantly just to get anyplace. And the gas cost, you can see why I didn't try to push it until I felt he was mentally grown enough and ready so it wouldn't be a whiner-fest that would make me wanna claw my eyes out.
Oh also... sorta near to the rabbit spot, on a prior occasion I'd taken him out to do clay pigeons with a shotgun I'd gotten for him. And we got the shotgun for him because at a child-centric Event they host at this Shooting Complex... Son of a B*tch if the first time...ever.... that he shot a shotgun.... he hit a clay pigeon being thrown away from them like Trap-Style. Definitely take em into the area you're planning on hunting ahead of time, on a trial run, to see how they do on the hike-in.
Actually now that I think about it. after those first rabbits I then hazarded having him come with me to this one deer spot that's 6mi each way. And he was fully loaded in terms of pack and carrying his shotgun the whole time, so ya know, they'll kinda at first dig on that aspect, (before they realize how much of an exhausting hike it's going to be, hehe)
In the end.. I think a lot of what will govern how soon you can bring your lil guy with you depends on where you have to go and how physical it is to get to the place. That was another thing that was great about that rabbit spot I knew about. It's not far at all from where you park your vehicle. So no "How much farther?" BS to deal with.
Last edited:
Azone
WKR
Taking them with me as much as possible and trying to make it as fun as possible from day one. My wife loves to hunt so that definitely makes things easier having mom along for me, sometimes.
There’s gonna be great days and bad days, but it comes with the territory. There’s days between moody children and a wife I really envy the solo hunters out there lol.
Just remember some of us were that young little pain in the ass that couldn’t sit still or stay quiet. My problem was sitting still, always wanted to see over the next hill.
There’s times for the “hey, you need to pay attention and stop screwing around” but most of it is awesome when it comes to teaching your kids about killing their own food.
Kids are like bird dogs, you get out of them, what you put into them.
There’s gonna be great days and bad days, but it comes with the territory. There’s days between moody children and a wife I really envy the solo hunters out there lol.
Just remember some of us were that young little pain in the ass that couldn’t sit still or stay quiet. My problem was sitting still, always wanted to see over the next hill.
There’s times for the “hey, you need to pay attention and stop screwing around” but most of it is awesome when it comes to teaching your kids about killing their own food.
Kids are like bird dogs, you get out of them, what you put into them.
String&stick
WKR
- Joined
- Jan 16, 2018
- Messages
- 1,034
As many have stated, get them in a pack young and get them going. My first was a boy and from about 8 months on he was with me for trapping and pheasant hunting. Started him turkey hunting at 4 since Nebraska doesnt have an age restriction for youth turkeys. Hes 11 now and I get lots of complaints if i do anything outdoors without him. He harvested 2 bucks last year for his first 2 deer. He will start coming on extended out of state hunts in another year.
2nd kid is my only daughter and I started her around 4, more because 2 is harder to deal with. But she is a stone cold killer. She is 8 now and harvests turkeys and wants a Bow so she can practice to hunt deer. She comes on most hunting and fishing outings bust she is a sweet heart and knows her brother wants 1 on 1 time with dad so sometimes she hangs out at home so he can have that (and we sneak out alone sometimes as well)
3rd child was another boy. He's 4 now and has followed along with the backpack and now doing some hunting. . . It just gets more difficult to manage 3 kids at once so I've had to split them up at times.
Best advice. Plane to be home early when you take them. If they get cold, make them stick it out 5 more minutes the call it a day, don't do anything to make it a negative experience.
Know that they will be LOUD at times, and just don't get upset.
My oldest was with me when I missed one of the biggest deer I've seen. He walked up on my right as we were checking a pocket and I had to scramble to get past him so I could take a shot. . . Needless to say the buck went from standing to running. It was all I could do to not shout curses as a sure wall hanger got away and I missed a quick running shot. . .he didn't listen to where he was supposed to stay (behind me). But he was 8 . . . Now we laugh about it and he says every now and again " don't you wish you hadn't missed that buck!" Just to get under my skin. We will remember that moment for a very long time and that is what it's about, good memories.
2nd kid is my only daughter and I started her around 4, more because 2 is harder to deal with. But she is a stone cold killer. She is 8 now and harvests turkeys and wants a Bow so she can practice to hunt deer. She comes on most hunting and fishing outings bust she is a sweet heart and knows her brother wants 1 on 1 time with dad so sometimes she hangs out at home so he can have that (and we sneak out alone sometimes as well)
3rd child was another boy. He's 4 now and has followed along with the backpack and now doing some hunting. . . It just gets more difficult to manage 3 kids at once so I've had to split them up at times.
Best advice. Plane to be home early when you take them. If they get cold, make them stick it out 5 more minutes the call it a day, don't do anything to make it a negative experience.
Know that they will be LOUD at times, and just don't get upset.
My oldest was with me when I missed one of the biggest deer I've seen. He walked up on my right as we were checking a pocket and I had to scramble to get past him so I could take a shot. . . Needless to say the buck went from standing to running. It was all I could do to not shout curses as a sure wall hanger got away and I missed a quick running shot. . .he didn't listen to where he was supposed to stay (behind me). But he was 8 . . . Now we laugh about it and he says every now and again " don't you wish you hadn't missed that buck!" Just to get under my skin. We will remember that moment for a very long time and that is what it's about, good memories.
DawnPatrol
WKR
Thanks everyone—I have two little ones under 3 years old so the insight and experiences really help. Super inspirational what some here have been doing with their kiddos!
Both of mine have been in the pack steelhead fishing, scouting, etc all the time but I’m just starting to cross the threshold of whether my oldest will “like” hunting and fishing or not. Had some good experiences, and some that we’ll laugh about later (imagine a 2 year old yelling “Hello!!!” In response to a turkey gobbling nearby).
My only advice (based on my own upbringing) is to expose kids to a wide range of outdoor activities and skills and see what sticks. My folks didn’t teach me to hunt, but by the time I was 15 I could camp/fish/backpack/float/navigate with a topo map/shot a bow and generally be comfortable outdoors. When I started hunting in my 20s, it really shortened the learning curve.
Both of mine have been in the pack steelhead fishing, scouting, etc all the time but I’m just starting to cross the threshold of whether my oldest will “like” hunting and fishing or not. Had some good experiences, and some that we’ll laugh about later (imagine a 2 year old yelling “Hello!!!” In response to a turkey gobbling nearby).
My only advice (based on my own upbringing) is to expose kids to a wide range of outdoor activities and skills and see what sticks. My folks didn’t teach me to hunt, but by the time I was 15 I could camp/fish/backpack/float/navigate with a topo map/shot a bow and generally be comfortable outdoors. When I started hunting in my 20s, it really shortened the learning curve.
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