The Risk of Taking a Newb Hunting
I was a newb two years ago (and still consider myself a newb!), but I really wanted to learn how to hunt. Thankfully I had a friend take me, and I had the best time, and was HOOKED from that moment onward. Since then, I have taken my sister hunting with me twice (once last year, once this year) and my dad once (last year). All three times were pretty crappy (as far as hunting goes, though it was good to be able to spend time with them in the woods), and it makes me not want to offer to take anyone hunting again. Neither of them have any concept of what the term “sitting still” means, even though I explained a handful of times that you will likely NOT see a deer immediately when it is within line of sight of you, and that if you move before you see it, it will see YOU move and flee.
When they scan, they both turn their heads like they are checking traffic in a busy intersection. Nose itches? No problem! They’ll just reach up and scratch it like they normally would. My sister is a smoker and when the weather gets colder, she hacks. All the time. Not the best condition to have when you’re trying to be stealthy! When I have been with them, they both spooked multiple deer that they never even saw, although I did.
Again, I’m struggling with wanting to make the most out of the little time that I do have to hunt verses being selfish. I am grateful to my friend for taking the time with me my first time out and letting me have a shot at a doe that he could have easily taken first. Regardless, I was going hunting that season whether or not I had someone to take me. I was determined just to go and do it.
But what’s strange is that it’s in my nature to offer to take people hunting. If the subject comes up and someone shows interest, I just throw it out there without thinking about it, LOL. Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to take the person, instruct them carefully, but not sit RIGHT with them. Maybe 100 yards away or something, as long as we have a way to communicate.
What positive and negative experiences have you had in taking someone hunting for the first time?