I wish there were more friendliness

[BenInMT]

If all you want to do is tag along and learn something maybe you should just do a multi day backpack in elk country. The woods are fun without a rifle and you will learn a lot about the backcountry and yourself. I don’t blame Chad at all. You could be a huge liability.

 

[Redmt]

Hunting alone has definite advantages. You win all the arguments. No complaints about the cooking. Snoring won't keep you awake. Nobody complaining about tent farts. It's a really long list of positives.

 

[manitou1]

I mean absolutely no offense by this, but sitting on a tree limb and shooting a whitetail, then dragging it out of the woodlot is much easier (less physically demanding and a gentler learning curve) than killing an elk on public land and then packing it out in pieces.
BUT maybe that’s a good starting point. If newcomers just went out and started hunting and putting in the effort towards species that are generally less physically demanding, maybe experienced hunters would be more likely to take them on elk hunts?

Well I WAS ten years old at that time when whitetails were scarce in MO, unaccompanied and not mentored.
I too hunt elk and mulies as I live in WY.

 

[manitou1]

There is tight and then there is Superman tight. Anyone carrying fencing pliers (I used to but lost mine a couple years ago pheasant hunting) knows how to use them and what is tight and what is not. I don't think he or she would be loosening a gate merely for "covenience" but rather to make it actually usable.

Agreed. Yes, I have built fence and I have removed it. Some of my own and some for others. I am not a city slicker by any stretch (made a pun!). I also have good ranching buddies out here in the West...so no, I don't underestimate them.

 

[KB_]

Farmersonly.com

 

[KB_]

In all seriousness, I've done some hunting with two folks here. Got on elk with both and as far as I know they have not shared my special spot with anyone.

Havent done much hunting this year with them, but no hard feelings. Kiddos and life gets in the way sometimes. Heck I have 3 kiddos, not easy to get out and do anything anymore.

I dont really do this on purpose but I have friends with all different kinds of beliefs as well. I think I may be the glue in some friendships, Or people just like to watch me do dumb Sh#$ and be self deprecating. Cant take life so serious, this is the one shot you get.

 

[JLS]

WHEN u LEaN into THAT GaTE EYE CAN see UR BUTt HOLE!!!!

 

[DouglasR]

Second this. I recently got back from almost 2 weeks in CO and then WY hunting alone. Last year I hunted alone as well.

I was 2000 miles from home. Probably 5000 miles driven. Drove down miles of “road” where a breakdown would equal a long hike and a permanently abandoned vehicle. Not saying I was never nervous! Mostly new country I explored. Found bear, bulls, cows, bucks and does. Saw amazing scenery. Had full solitude once in the woods and field. Sleeping bag, truck, cold food. Awesome time.

Solo is no reason not to go.View attachment 243675View attachment 243676View attachment 243677View attachment 243678View attachment 243679View attachment 243680View attachment 243681View attachment 243682View attachment 243683View attachment 243684View attachment 243685View attachment 243686

If you’re not solo is it really hunting?

 

[DouglasR]

Is soloing the purest form of hunting?

 

[Hunting Wife]

Is soloing the purest form of hunting?

I don’t know. Who defines “pure”?

But possibly has the highest potential for learning, personal growth and self-satisfaction. There is something invigorating in being free to make your own mistakes.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

@Lov2hunt

IMHO hunting is no different than any other outdoor sport. I'll teach my spouse and my kids to ski, possibly spend some time helping a good buddy, but it's a huge ask for someone to spend their vacation time teaching you.

I definitely had some mentors that got me started hunting when I was a never-ever. One private land hunt, one backcountry hunt, but even on the backcountry hunt I bought all my own gear, helped pick the unit, and tried to do everything myself. After that I went on a bunch of struggle fest hunts and sucked. I think it took me ~30 days of hunting to kill my first elk.

Similarly in college, after a lifetime of skiing, I decided to learn to snowboard. A friend took me up 1 day and showed me the basics, how to get on the lift, helped me make my first turn on the bunny hill, gave me some things to work on, but then I progressed entirely by putting the time in... you just have to do the work, typically people recognize those folks who are and are more willing to help them out.

 

[DouglasR]

I don’t know. Who defines “pure”?

But possibly has the highest potential for learning, personal growth and self-satisfaction. There is something invigorating in being free to make your own mistakes.

As a soloist, idk if I could ever go on a hunting trip with someone else.

 

[Deleted member 52098]

As a soloist, idk if I could ever go on a hunting trip with someone else.

ESPECIALLY if they drove a Subaru

 

[Deleted member 28227]

As a soloist, idk if I could ever go on a hunting trip with someone else.

 

[Deleted member 52098]

As a new hunter myself - first elk hunt is in 5 days - I am going to weigh in here... and have to side with the OGs on this one. If you've ever gone on a backpacking trip with a group of people then you know that who you go with is MORE important that where you go. I can already tell that its the same for hunting. You need to know someone. Establish a history and be able to trust that person. Determine if you'll get along. Who I would backpack with is a MUCH smaller list than who I would go on a day hike with. That kind of thing.

I am not saying you are wrong for wanting to tag along, but it may have just been way too soon to ask that question. There are guys on HT who have been absolutely amazing to me but I wouldn't even dream of asking to tag along on their hunt, etc. If they ever offer, I would likely jump at that chance, but that's a very different proposition than me asking to tag along.

Getting into hunting is intimidating as $%^&. Trust me I know; my dumbass has been on the sidelines wanting to get into the game for nearly 15 years. One day, I just said the hell with it and started devouring as much information and knowledge as I could, bought a tag and who the hell knows how that hunt will go. You don't need a partner or a mentor to get into this game; and I am guessing the best hunting partners and mentors are earned rather than just show up. Part of that earning is bringing something to the table, time and time again.

Best of luck out there bud!

 

[TOGIE]

anytime i end up deciding to go on a hunt with a partner my backpack hunt plans fall apart.

hunting alone has massive advantages, it also has massive disadvantages. for me the biggest disadvantage is mental fortitude, while physically i can go over the next hill all day long and bring an animal back but when i'm alone, sometimes the mental fortitude to keep going over the next hill is just not there. the questioning yourself is constant. the dark is a little more forboding. though i'd rather keep pushing through those struggles than keep missing out on my mini bucket list hunt plans because i keep agreeing to go with people that pester me during application seasno.

i'm getting close to having to have an awkward conversation with a couple dudes where i just say sorry, actually i'm not looking to hunt with anyone. some of those people are because i don't respect them as hunters, their tactics, or some combination of that and their ethics or just the care and thought they put into what is a very spiritual and reflective activity for me.

really any time someone talks about how gamey something is so they're just gonna turn the whole animal into jerky is the first sign that maybe i don't want to hunt with them. that or when they reveal they still have 3/4 of an elk in their freezer from 6 years ago.

 

[Hunting Wife]

Still thinking about this offering to help angle. There is such a divide between the perspective of a newbie asking to help, and the experienced hunters perception of that help.

When I’ve burned a significant amount of money, effort, vacation time, personal time, relationship capital, and whatever else to plan a trip, it was done under a certain set of expectations. I had to evaluate how much of all those valuable limited resources I was willing to sacrifice to give myself a decent chance of achieving my goals for that hunt, whatever those may be. When someone comes along and says “hey, cool! You’re going hunting next week? I want to learn. Can I tag along and help?”, they are throwing a wrench in the whole plan. The reality is, they are an unknown quantity and therefore a liability on this particular trip. I planned the trip under a certain set of assumptions based on conditions, my abilities and the abilities of my partners (if any), the species I’m hunting, and the availability of all those valuable resources listed above. I did not plan this whole endeavor with teaching time, extra gear, or unnecessary wild cards factored in. So the answer is going to be no, thanks. YMMV.

If you want help planning your own trip, we can do that. If you want to help plan a joint trip with mentorship or learning as a stated goal from the beginning, we can do that. If you just want a sounding board to bounce ideas off of or ask questions, no problem. I’m more than happy to make time for those things. I get that everyone starts at a different place and with different skills, and that’s just fine. But I’m not doing all the work, or providing all the gear, or finding all the spots, or whatever so you can skip straight to the fun camping part and the successful kill part. Learning to hunt starts with learning to plan. Teach a man to fish, and all that.

On the road to gaining experience, most of us worked through no small amount of trial and error, failure, tears, blood, failure, effort, hard work, soul-crushing disappointments, and did I mention failure? Those are all part of hunting too, and you will eventually have to become acquainted with all of them if you really want to learn.

 

[rogerthat]

I don’t go hunting to make friends. It’s my escape. If that makes me an asshole than so be it. No one showed me crap. That makes it all the more sweet. Give it a try. See you out there.

 

[westbranch]

No way it would work for me to have someone come across the country to tag along on a multiday deer or elk hunt if we haven't spent anytime on a short day hunt or somehow meeting up a few times beforehand I have done some day hunts with inexperienced hunters and tried to help them out a bit. But hard to find people with goals that match up. Or that want to put in as much time planning as I do. I prefer hunting alone during the day and I do like to have someone to share a camp with when it will be 3+ nights but hard to match up schedules.

I have hunted or fished with a few members of this forum and a few others that I communicate with regularly about hunting plans and sharing info. Going mule deer hunting in CO in a few weeks with a guy that I met on this forum 4+ yrs. We were both new to western hunting at the time but grew up hunting in the midwest. Plenty of friendliness out there IMO.

 

[Irrelevant]

I think it took me ~30 days of hunting to kill my first elk.

I elk hunted for 14 years before I got an elk, a cow. In all that time, I'd seen 1 bull.

One up that B.