Getting Harder to find younger hunters to commit?

[JeffD]

From some of the posts here regarding the stereotypes that apparently "young" hunters fit into its no wonder some camps are having trouble finding new members. I'm 28 and most of my friends and peers hunt and have no problems finding camps interested. Maybe "young hunters" arnt the problem with you finding new members for your moose camps...

[Bigjake1907]

From some of the posts here regarding the stereotypes that apparently "young" hunters fit into its no wonder some camps are having trouble finding new members. I'm 28 and most of my friends and peers hunt and have no problems finding camps interested. Maybe "young hunters" arnt the problem with you finding new members for your moose camps...

Couldn't agree with anymore.

Also here is another stat that points to the problem.
http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/ontario...port-1.1473423

You can say all you want about phones and game system but this is among the biggest problem. You need money to hunt, without it you can't do anything or go anywhere whether is budget or any other type of hunt. Even though you may get money from the government, the important stuff is looked after 1st. Hunting is optional if you have any money left and that a big if. Hunting is no longer a cheap person sport.

[impact]

Forsaking buying those expensive Iphone, Ipad etc. frees up a lot of money towards recreational activities such as hunting and fishing. It's all about allocating the few dollars that you have. Hunting does not have to be optional.

[canthitathing]

I think several posters have said the right reasons being primarily time and money allocations are hard for younger hunters with growing families to "justify". Younger or older, these barriers exist. Sure, they are not insurmountable if there is enough drive to make it happen, but so many other things arise to push the hunting to the back burner (especially Moose hunting given the more remote geographic locales and generally more infrastructure needed (4X4 truck, ATV, etc.). Other types of hunting are considerably less expensive to engage in, so Moose hunting falls by the wayside.

I'm not young (62) and have touched base with a couple of "Moose hunter wanted" posts here in OOD in the spring, but I only have a puddle-jumper car right now, no ATV or camper trailer, etc. and I found the costs projected by some groups seemed high. As it is, I've got a bull tag for 21A and will embark on a solo shoestring hunt tailored to my infrastructure limitations since I did not find a suitable group set-up to join. It's a 14 hour drive and a "cold turkey" adventure since I have never hunted in 21A before, so I'm relying on Google Earth and topo maps to decide exactly where to go.

I would say don't pick on the "young" hunters, the barriers are more universal than that.

[welsh]

The way folks here are slamming the younger guys for their use of technology is simply the reiteration of the older generations slamming them back in 1970 for being self-absorbed drug-addled idealists. Le plus ca change.

[Bigboss]

Im 23 and I have the same problem. Nobody will commit to what I want to do. I usually just end up going solo, im getting used to that now. Drew a bull tag a couple years ago, hunted one week with some other people, and then the rest of the season alone looking for my bull. right near the last week of the season I ended up connecting with a young bull. I was happy, and the satisfaction of hunting that long and hard by yourself and being successful is just awesome.

I havent met anybody who is willing to follow me on a hunt for moose. My longest trek to date was 18 km in a day (this season actually), on foot. That was a long day looking for moose sign and rut activity. Was a very quiet season, and a cow stole our bull from us, so there wasnt much chance of calling him away from her. Needless to say we were unsuccessful, but we gave it a good shot. You always learn something in the bush, so you never come home empty handed, and thats what I love about it.

I have dumped a ton of money into outdoor recreation (hunting fishing and trapping) because thats what I live for. Theres nothing else Id rather do with my money.

You just need to find the right people to bring hunting. Find the ones who want to go, not the ones that are "forced" to go.

[kdp89]

I have only one question for you. Are you married?

I would be the exact same way if I was single. But I made my choices, I am not single, I have other responsibilities, and therefore dropping everything to run away on my own is just irresponsible.

I lucked out this year. My wife is sending me on a mulie trip in BC, because she knows how much I love hunting. But if she hadn't of planned the trip I would not be going anywhere, because in my mind our resources are better allocated elsewhere. This doesn't mean I don't really care about the out doors or I have no drive, or least of all that I don't want to get away from technology. It means that I am trying to be a responsible adult and look after my priorities at home before selfishly leaving the wife to keep up with the work and losing 2 weeks pay.

[sawbill]

We older guys aren't slamming technology. There's nothing wrong with buying a GPS or any modern hunting device. We're saying that a kid with $500 in his pocket isn't going to spend it on a rifle, ammo or gas that he gets to use at most one week of the hunt.
He's going to spend it on a cell phone and contract that he gets to use 365 days a year.
...and I never touched an illegal drug in my life.

[Oddmott]

...and I never touched an illegal drug in my life.

I think you just proved Welsh's point exactly. Older generations blow smoke about younger generations, without having a clue what they're talking about.

[sawbill]

When I went through high school you asked who's doing drugs. Now you ask who's not using drugs.
And how in the world does that mean I don't know what I'm talking about? I didn't go through life with my head in the sand.