Who taught you how to hunt/fish?

[hard_r]

I was thinking recently of how my life has been shaped by one man, my dad's dad, my Poppa. He taught me everything I know about shooting, fishing, hunting, outdoor living. That's the biggest part of who I am. He made me the man I am today. He doesn't shoot or hunt anymore or do any fishing except Texoma Stripers. He's just too old to be as active in the outdoors as he used to be. I really feel like I should tell him how much input he had on my personality. How grateful I am that he cared enough to teach me those things and how fond my memories of those times are. Not to mention what he taught me about manners, respect, honesty, ect. ect.

So I wonder, who got you all hunting/fishing? I'd like to hear similar stories.

 

[dennishoddy]

My grandfather had two guns.
Both he inherited from his dad.
He never shot either. Gave the Win 1890 Hex barrel .22 to my dad, and gave the damascus barreled SXS hardware store gun to me.
My dad never shot the Winchester. It sets in my safe as we speak.
So, in response to your question, I did not have a mentor to teach me anything about hunting. My family were fishermen.
Don't know what planted the seed in my brain, but as a kid loved to read, and was engrossed with the great hunting novels of the day, like the "Call of the Wild, Death in the long grass, etc.
Hunting became a passion in high school that has only intensified as the years went along.
Trust me, over the years of learning on the fly, there have been zillions of mistakes, and lots of embarassing moments.
The hunters coming into the arena these days have wonderful resources with the internet forums like this one, and youtube.
That being said, it still breaks down to one hunter in the field against one game animal, one on one.

 

[hard_r]

it still breaks down to one hunter in the field against one game animal, one on one.

This is what it's all about. What drives me. Well put, sir.

 

[cowgirl23]

My Papa and Granny taught me how to fish. They would take me to the lake on the boat and out in the pasture as well. I remember having great family time fishing with them. Every time I go fishing I think of them. As for hunting my Grandpa Jack taught me a lot on the smaller game, but the deer my father in law and hubby (hard_r) taught me everything I know.

 

[streak]

My dad taught me how to fish, and how to shoot but never had the time to go crazy with it. Co-workers of the past taught me to have a passion for them.

 

[deerwhacker444]

I really didn't have anybody to learn from. My dad grew up in CA and never learned to hunt and didn't have an guns. My paternal grandfather who lived in Arkansas, hunted and fished, died when I was 13, just when I was getting old enough to learn. Shortly after that his 2nd wife burned his house down to collect insurance money, she was a piece of work. All his fishing and hunting equipment went up in flames, so no heirloom guns in my family. My maternal grandfather wasn't really a hunter either, although I did get to go one one special hunt with him near the end of his life when he shot his first deer, a button buck up in Osage county. That will always be a great memory

I always like shooting things since I was a kid. I remember a cork gun that I absolutely loved, along with some guns that shot ping pong balls and some others that shot pea sized yellow balls and one that shot nickel sized disks. When I was old enough, I got a bb gun, then a pellet gun. I hunted most of the county with that pellet gun.

About 12 or so I started learning about hunting and trapping. I had a classmate who trapped and he was my hero. Him and his brother were good at it and they caught coon, bobcat, coyote, lots of stuff.

I begged my parents to let me trap. After a year or so of nagging, they let me trap. Only things I could catch were skunks and opossums, but that didn't matter, I was a "Trapper"!

After that I started fooling around with a bow and my dad took some interest. He had a friend that was a hunter and he took my dad under his wing and got him started. However, he moved away shortly thereafter and dad picked up alot of bad habits, that he thinks is hunting. If he doesn't walk 4-5 miles per outing, he's not hunting. I have a hard time keeping him in one spot.

In High School I read everything I could get my hands on and just tried to learn from there. There's been lots of lessons that I had to learn on my own. I wish someone would have been there to show me the ropes, but that's the way it goes.

All you guys that did have people show you the ropes, be sure to thank em. I would have loved to have a mentor.

 

[264Magnum]

My dad and uncle, and their friends, taught me everything I know. I was considerably younger than all the other kids, so everyone took me under their wing. Looking back, I was unbelievably fortunate to have so many experienced hunters willing to teach me everything they knew.

I remember my mom coming to get me out of school because my uncle killed a 6x6 elk waaaay back in the Arizona forest, and my dad thought I should see the process of packing out an animal. Plus I had to carry the backpack full of water while everyone else had elk parts strapped to their backs.

 

[hard_r]

I remember my mom coming to get me out of school because my uncle killed a 6x6 elk waaaay back in the Arizona forest, and my dad thought I should see the process of packing out an animal. Plus I had to carry the backpack full of water while everyone else had elk parts strapped to their backs.

Awesome story to tell the grandkids...

 

[imhntn]

My dad loved to shoot, especially .22 rifles, and started me shooting and hunting small game real young. He let me hunt by myself when I was 10 reasoning that I would have a hard time shooting myself with a long gun but never let me hunt with anyone else for a few years. He hated pistols and we only ever had one sat. night special around the house because we had all our rifles and shotguns stolen and he bought a cheap pistol to have something around. Had an uncle in Caddo County that loved to deer hunt and started taking me when I was 13. He took me every year but there just were not that many deer around in those days. He died the summer after my freshman year at OSU in a car accident and I saw/killed my first buck a couple seasons after he died. I get to hunt with his son, who was 2 or 3 when my uncle died now and really enjoy out times together.

 

[hard_r]

Had an uncle in Caddo County that loved to deer hunt and started taking me when I was 13. He took me every year but there just were not that many deer around in those days. He died the summer after my freshman year at OSU in a car accident and I saw/killed my first buck a couple seasons after he died. I get to hunt with his son, who was 2 or 3 when my uncle died now and really enjoy out times together.

This is what it's really about. Good times with family and passing the passion on to another generation. I'm reminded of the Tracy Byrd song Pass it On. I can't even listen to it without tearing up and thinking about my Poppa, who is still alive but doesn't hunt anymore.