Interestingly, when I was working on my degrees I went about 8 years without holding a tag myself. This is after finishing hunters ed at 9, first buck that year, first elk the year after. 8 big game animals later I left rural NM for a large university 2,000 miles away.
During that time I found I had a pretty big void, but never really consciously identified it as the outdoors. I have an addictive personality in general, so I tend to stay active with “healthy” addictions.
I filled that void with girls, books and sports in college. Then lifting and nutrition while working through my doctorate. After school before moving back West I became obsessed with archery, fishing, woodworking, knives and sharpening, etc etc.
Funny, now that I am back in the mountains I could care less about the majority of what took up so much of my time in the past.
Unless it helps in the hills, that is.
I still maintain a voracious appetite for books. I hope I never lose that.