Ryan Barnes for SPLIT REED
Well folks it’s almost here. In North Dakota and now Canada, the first blood has already been drawn. Early season goose hunting is just around the corner, along with early season teal and other hunts in other states. We waited all summer for this! After such a miserable Spring and Summer, I’m sure we’re all frothing at the bit to get out and hunt.
Now, each year most hunters have the good intentions of taking someone new and introducing them to this sport that we love. Whether it’s a child, a friend, a co-worker, or neighbor- we’ve all had the intention to take someone out on a first hunt and let them experience what we love. But sometimes, it can be a lot harder than people think. So here are 5 tips to help you get someone involved in the great sport of waterfowl hunting this season!
1. Explain what hunting really is
A lot of people see hunting as going off into the woods to kill stuff. While that is true (to a certain degree), there is SO MUCH more to hunting than that. There’s camaraderie, and friendships being built. There’s memories made and so much love for what’s going on that people don’t understand. When asking someone to go on a hunt, do your best to explain that, and to try to explain what will be happening during the hunt. Don’t let them think that all they’re going to be doing is sneaking up on ducks on their belly and shooting them. Describe the fun of it, and what hunting really is, and why you enjoy it so much. Tell them how the hunt will work, and what to expect. Create excitement about it. We all love it, so show the people we try to
2. Don’t focus so much on success that the hunt becomes a drag
Certain hunters can get to a stage of hunting where they’ve gotten to be successful so much that anything less than an amazing pile pic at the end is a failure. Those guys are no fun to hunt with, in any circumstance, much less if you’re a first-timer. Do yourself a favor, if you’re taking out a first-time hunter, understand this, they don’t know what success is yet. Sure they know that the goal is to kill ducks and geese, but a successful hunt can every bit as much be having fun in the blind, teaching them how to use a call, or set up decoys. A first-time hunter doesn’t need to shoot a full limit of birds to be hooked for life, they just need to have a good time!
3. Hunt the “easy” spot
Back when I first went on my first goose hunt, we had to pack our decoys in about half a mile just to get to the pasture we were going to hunt. It was muddy, mucky, and for a 10-year-old, it wasn’t really fun. Obviously my scenario was different, coming from a background of avid hunters, and looking forward to my first honker hunt was something I had dreamed of. However, someone who hasn’t ever been in that scenario before might go, “F*** this” and decide that hunting isn’t for them. When you take a new guy out hunting, go to an easy access spot, that you can get in and out of without having to worry about getting stuck, or falling through ice, or all the other less-than-ideal things that come when you really try to get after it. Go somewhere easy, it will save everyone involved some brain damage.
4. They don’t have to be a kid to go on a first hunt
Most people assume “first hunts” are for youth and young hunters. That’s not true at all. There’s plenty of people out there that would love to get into hunting, they just don’t know how, or where. That’s where you come in. Maybe a neighbor has asked you a few times how your hunts have gone, or a friend you have that doesn’t hunt asks how things are going, those are prime times to break the ice and ask if they’d be interested in going. Most states have mentor programs that will allow people to go hunting without hunter’s safety just to learn if it’s something they would enjoy (*this rule varies widely from state to state, be sure to check your local state regulations). As you look for someone to take on their first hunt this season, remember, they don’t need to be a youth hunter, however we do strongly encourage getting youth hunters out and involved, we also generally encourage getting everyone out and involved! Don’t assume certain families or people aren’t interested. Ask away. You never know who might be interested, or who might be wanting to get into hunting, and they’re just looking for a way to get started. Adult-onset hunters are out there waiting for their first hunting experience!
5. Teach, Teach, Teach!
I think one thing all waterfowlers can say about the appeal to waterfowling is learning about it. Learning about the waterfowl, the decoys, the calls- all of it! Your job, obviously, is to teach these new hunters about what it is they’re involved in. Teach them gun safety, and boat safety, and all the necessary things, of course. But more than that, teach them about hunting. Teach them about the flyways, and how duck hunting works. Let them blow your calls, and teach them the small idiosyncrasies of hunting. That’s what they’ll fall in love with. Then as they kill birds, it will be something they can’t get enough of! And once they kill those birds, teach them about the birds. Overall, make sure you teach! Teach about everything! Overdo it if you have to. But if they truly enjoy the experience, they’ll be soaking it all in.
Each year, fewer and fewer hunters are going out into the field. It needs to become a priority for us as waterfowlers and as sportsmen to get those around us involved in the great sport of waterfowling. Listed above are only five tips to help get someone out into the blind or boat with you to help kill some ducks or geese, but there are many more ways to get people involved. Many guides and outfitters offer a discount for someone’s first hunt, or for larger groups of hunters.
