I hunt (1) to participate in a long tradition, (2) to experience and enjoy the outdoors, and (3) to obtain game meat for my gourmet dinners.

It may seem that "participating in a tradition" is an empty reason. It sounds almost like doing something because it has been done before. I mean more by this. In this particular case, it is my opinion that participating in the tradition of hunting reveals our nature to ourselves and gives us a better understanding of ourself, our place in the world, and our relationship to our ancestors back to the cave men. We live a comfortable existence -- air conditioned homes and cars, ample food on the table, labor saving devices at our beck and call -- because we have collectively applied our brains to common problems and shared solutions. Hunting definitely is included. It takes brains to devise an efficient and capable weapon. It takes brains to learn where best to lie in ambush for a deer. The knowledge of building and handling weapons and how to take game has been passed down through the ages. Additionally, while I may confront and solve a hunting problem alone, I am aware that men thousands of years ago solved the same problem and experienced the same thrill and satisfaction when the clever workings of their minds had worked out where to lie in ambush for the deer -- overlooking a funnel. When I sit out in the dark and see the constellation of Orion high in the sky in a cold late November pre-dawn morning, I like to think of other hunters out under the same constellation three thousands years ago. We eat meat. We take life to sustain our own lives. Buying neatly wrapped packages of meat at the supermarket cloaks this reality and keeps us unaware of this reality. Hunting, shooting a deer, sticking your knife into the belly of the deer, and thereafter your hands into its steaming guts brings reality close. There is something disquieting about this experience and there is something nurturing and assuring about this experience. I skin, cut-up, and package my own meat, which gives me a further indoctrination in the reality of life as at least a part-time carnivore.

Hunting is an excellent way to enjoy the outdoors. I like to fish, to hike, and to backpack also. These are enjoyable outdoor pursuits, but hunting has a deeper and more substantive feeling for me than these others. I think hunting calls upon more of my abilities and reserves. It is physically more demanding, as you can't take the easiest path as you can backpacking. I have to have more of my wits about me and be more aware of my surroundings than in fishing, hiking, or backpacking. Hunting more fully engages me in the outdoor experience. I have to melt into the shadow of a tree and blend against the background of a rock. I have to remain motionless. I have to avert my eyes when a deer looks directly at me. I slow my movements dramatically. I'm out in the woods two hours before sun up and hear the owls which I wouldn't hear if just out for a hike. Backpacking I would still be in my comfortable sleeping bag. Hunting, I have to walk through the woods and find my way in the dark. The stars are my companions. Just a different, fuller outdoor experience in my opinion.

I like to cook and am an excellent cook. Some great dishes are based on game. Regrettably, I am not rich, so the most reliable method to stock my table with game is by bagging the game myself by hunting.