Thought I would chime in because I am absolutely one of the newcomers to western hunting. I am 36 years old and grew up in the southeast. My father was a bird hunter from ND but not a big game hunter. I had several friends that did whitetail and I tried it a few times but sitting in a tree stand hoping a deer walked by quickly became uninteresting. Animals like elk seemed unobtainable. I knew no one going out west. I had no father or grandfather to show me how. I thought it required thousands of dollars for a guide and a private ranch to hunt. Like several have posted here, the internet, podcasts, and social media have absolutely shown guys like me that it doesn't have to be a complete pipedream. Someone mentioned Joe Rogan. I know two people that have bought a bow specifically because of him. For me it was Rinella and his focus on the meat and public lands that got my wheels churning. I will admit that as I was looking at harvest statistics for a certain state last night I was pretty shocked at the significant uptick in archery hunter numbers from 2016 to 2017 and felt a little disheartened and at the same time guilty that I might be contributing to one more hunter on the landscape. I get that those of you who have been hunting since before it was cool would be upset by all of us dummies out there in your spot but I also agree there's a good chance this fad will pass. This "wilderness athlete" nonsense is absurd. It's great you're in shape but we don't need to hear about how many squats you did or miles you hiked with x number of lbs in your pack.
I do think we'd all be wise to foster newcomers such as myself though to protect our interests for many years. While the western hunting may be becoming more popular, hunting numbers in general are dropping and frankly the leftists are getting more and more radical and brazen in their efforts to control activities that they disagree with. I am a member of the BHA, NWTF, DU, and pheasants forever and likely will be a RMEF member before my first archery elk hunt next year. I also pay an absurd amount in federal taxes. The idea that I should be limited in my western hunting any more than I already am I think is unfair. Had there been work for me in Colorado or otherwise when I finished training I would be living out there too. Doesn't make me any less of an American that I live in Florida. I am glad the Colorado DOW agrees with me.
I am not trying to be antagonistic. I wish we could all hunt more than we could stand. I am happy to wait my turn for an opportunity but if every state simply made sure that every citizen in that state that wanted one had an elk tag every single year before opening up to the tens of thousands of NR hunters, that opportunity may never come. By the same token, I don't think my state of Florida owes me an Osceola turkey or a huge snook or 100 lbs of scallops before a guy from Wyoming. Come on down. I will show you the spots.
I do think we'd all be wise to foster newcomers such as myself though to protect our interests for many years. While the western hunting may be becoming more popular, hunting numbers in general are dropping and frankly the leftists are getting more and more radical and brazen in their efforts to control activities that they disagree with. I am a member of the BHA, NWTF, DU, and pheasants forever and likely will be a RMEF member before my first archery elk hunt next year. I also pay an absurd amount in federal taxes. The idea that I should be limited in my western hunting any more than I already am I think is unfair. Had there been work for me in Colorado or otherwise when I finished training I would be living out there too. Doesn't make me any less of an American that I live in Florida. I am glad the Colorado DOW agrees with me.
I am not trying to be antagonistic. I wish we could all hunt more than we could stand. I am happy to wait my turn for an opportunity but if every state simply made sure that every citizen in that state that wanted one had an elk tag every single year before opening up to the tens of thousands of NR hunters, that opportunity may never come. By the same token, I don't think my state of Florida owes me an Osceola turkey or a huge snook or 100 lbs of scallops before a guy from Wyoming. Come on down. I will show you the spots.
