paramed214

well this is the result of my sons first solo hunt. Not a monster by no means but for a new hunter trying to make his way it is a trophy to us.

WV Hunter

Looks like an awesome trophy to me! He'll remember that one for the rest of his life I'm positive. Congrats to your boy, he did good. (Obviously your question was posed after the fact LOL).

halfbaked, and others....
I also have a daughter....she just turned 11, and has hunted with me the past 4-5yrs also, though not as much as my son. She hasn't had as much interest. She is no where near ready...in fact, she hasn't even wanted to shoot one herself yet. Much different than my son, he shot his first 6 yrs ago with me. She's been with me when we've shot some....maybe next year she'll be ready. I envision at least 3-4 more years with me before even thinking of letting her go solo.

Also, when I say solo....its on our own private land and I am hunting as well, and we are in contact by radio.

WNYhunter

I have just gone thru this the last few years. My son who has been hunting with me since he could walk turned 16 this past march. I keep wanting to walk him to the stand and all I hear is I am 16 now dad....LOL. To me, my son has all the abilities to hunt on his own and has the last few years. It is my nerves that can't take it.

Wayspr

I don't think you can put a definitive age on when a kid is ready to hunt alone. I have 2 sons, one 16, the other 17. My older son started hunting alone when he was 13. When my younger son turned 13 he thought the old man was going to cut the leash - wrong. He was not ready, I made him wait until he was 14. This is for private property, shooting house hunting only. No climbing or fixed position stands, no still hunting. Each kid is different and thus when it comes to priveleges such as hunting, they are earned.

Champlain Islander

I have a pretty strong opinion on minimum age for hunting. Today it is felt by many that we need to get them out at an early age or lose them to the sport. People are having their child get hunter ed as early as 8 and then getting them out for a few deer before they turn them loose. All kids are different with regard to their maturity so it is difficult to say when one is mature enough to hunt and another isn't. Hunting is a rewarding and dangerous endeavor just like driving and most states have a minimum age of 16 when it is believed the child can make mature decisions behind the wheel. Having a child between the age of 10 and 14 sitting with a lethal weapon alone is just asking for trouble and not really fair to the child. I started to hunt at 12 but was in direct contact with my father. Prior to that, I tagged along without a gun starting at age 10. When I reached 15 I was allowed to hunt on my own which in retrospect might have been OK for a kid like I was who grew up in the woods but not as a blanket for all kids. I know several parents who pushed their kids to hunt at an early age and it actually burned them out and they stopped hunting. Most kids at age 10 or 12 can’t take the slow pace of deer hunting and would rather be doing things with their friends.

petasux

Theres no set age but everytime I see a post like this it makes me wonder if the parents asking because they have some doubts if thier kids ready.If you do, then he isnt ready, plain and simple.

My oldest boy started hunting with me young, and hes just as facinated by it now at 16 as he was at 5 when he would just go along and sit in a duckblind with me or when he was 8 and shooting rabbitts with his pellet gun while I hunted pheasants.When he was 10 he would go deer hunting with me and finally at about 12. I started letting him sit by himself short distances away where he was in earshot but outta sight.He was 14 when he got to sit by himself completeley and he had to carry a phone at all times.

Ive taken a lotta kids out hunting though including my own and hes an exception to most of what I see these days.He was very safety concious after getting his own gun, to the point where he would correct adults including myself if he seen them doing anything questionable.His patience level even at a young age was pretty impressive, he could sit motionless and quietly for hours.He spent hours upon hours practicing shooting.I get called a lot when people have hard blood trails to follow around here, he would always tag along, ask questions and finally he could follow easy ones all by himself.Im not bragging, dont get me wrong, the boy just had a real aptitude for hunting about anything he put his mind to.I had no doubt when I cut him loose he could get into his stand, hunt safely, and follow up on anything he killed, and he knew his weapon and surroundings well enough to handle anything that went wrong.

My other kids dont share his desire to hunt, my 12 year olds just getting into it matter of fact and it will be a long time before shes ready to go alone.My 7 year olds shown no interest at all so far.

Ive taken many other kids between 10 and 14 and 99% of them I wouldnt trust out of sight at all, half of em you wanna keep close enough to touch, pretty scary thinking of some of them alone with a gun.One or 2 of em I would have no problem at all hunting near me unsupervised.

Champlain Islander

I made my post but didn't really answer the question. Since all kids are different and so is the judgment and standards of the parents so I would defer to the same rules enacted for the privilege of driving. Just like some kids on a farm who drive on private property some age consideration might be allowed on your own private land but for the sake of argument I will clarify my answer to public land hunting.

mlo31351270

All kids are different. You should all start by following your state laws. I know in NY there is an age, I think it is 16 where a kid can hunt alone.

Sfury

I started out "solo" hunting at 13. My little brother was 12. The difference in when we started had to do more with my brother being able to go to his older brother or our father if any problems came up.

It also did not help that my birthday is in the fall. I was not ready for the deer hunt at age 12.

IME age is an arbitrary marker. It all depends on the hunter themselves. It also depends on the support for the new hunters as well. I'm slmost five years older than my brother. That meant I was a relatively experienced hunter by the time he started. I was there to help my little brother as much as I was to get my own deer. Hunting in my family is not about the kill, it's about the camp experience and being there for everyone.

Becoming a good hunter requires patience, time in the field, and positive people there to make the tough times seem unimportant. You should be having fun even when things are not going the best.

A11en

Here in NC you also have to wait until 16 to hunt alone, after taking the hunter safety course.