When the Hunting Urge is Gone

It's sometimes odd how these blogs come about. Sometimes they are planned long in advance, months before they are used.

Other times a note from a reader triggers the thought for another blog. Sometimes they just pop into my head while reading the morning paper over coffee.

This one, if we live long enough, will be one that each of us will face. A man wrote:

When do you know the urge to hunt has withered and blown away?

This loss can vary with people of different ages.

It seems a simple question with an equally simple answer. Live long enough, and the answer will become obvious.

The urge to hunt may leave any of us at any time although at age 71, I'm happy to admit it hasn't clawed its way into any of my urges and driven me away.

Age and health conditions can play important roles in when this question becomes a reality. A disability or serious health problem can slow or stop anyone. The natural attrition of hunters is due, in large part to age, feebleness, illness or some major injury that may make hunting just too difficult or painful as we grow older.

The average person, based on hundreds of conversations with other sportsmen, can begin to lose his/her urge to hunt anytime after the age of 55 years, and for some, even earlier. For many, they just get lazy and decide not to go out.

Health slowly eats away at a formerly active hunter, and more time is spent dreaming of the old days and not looking forward to future field trips. Often the hunter, growing older, may develop a heart or lung disease that makes it far more difficult to muster up enough energy to hunt regularly.

Some sportsmen may blame not having anyone to hunt with, and I'm indeed fortunate with my eye problems, that Kay is not only my best hunting buddy but my wife, and a person who enjoys bow hunting as I do. Some are not so lucky, and I know some older hunters who have taken young sportsmen hunting for years, but the youngsters forget who originally brought 'em to the dance. Now that is a sorry thought and extremely rude behavior for anyone.

The urge to stay home comes with the normal aches and pains of the aging process. Many say they no longer like venison, the woods are too crowded, too many small deer...whatever. There are millions of such excuses.

The aches and pains of aging often begin the downward slide for most folks.

There are usually a variety of reasons. Some folks fear falling from a tree stand, and pin their reluctance to hunt to a fear of falling. Some say they don't see or hear as well as 10 years ago but that happens to almost everyone during the aging process.

As this progresses, hunters begin making excuses for not wanting to go hunting. Reasons include but are not limited to:

• I haven't had time to sight in my rifle.
• I've found that my shotgun doesn't shoot as well as it once did (which means the hunter is really missing more often).
• Got me a hitch in my git-a-long.
• I had forgotten that this hill seems a lot steeper than it once was.
• I've been huffing and puffing for two years. Don't want to die and miss out on future hunts. Huh? Say what?
• The sun is too bright, not bright enough, and the  snow is getting deeper in the woods. etc. Snow makes it too difficult to get around, and I'm afraid of falling.
• Gas is too expensive. Doesn't bother them to go bowling, golfing or doing something else. But they are right about the cost of gasoline.
• Hunting just isn't as important to me as it was 20 years ago. Perhaps the most true of all of these statements.

Such excuses are just that – an excuse not to go hunting.

I've heard all of these excuses, and countless others, but the fact is the person is too ill, too lame or too lazy to exert the energy required to go hunting. It's not the hunting that is at issue here. It is the attitude of the sportsman.

The fact is that hunting can be hard, physical work, but those who stay in decent physical shape won't find it much different. The loss of a close hunting buddy often takes the hunting fire out of the belly of the sportsman who is left behind. Perhaps that is the time to find and teach a younger hunter about this pastime.

Sharing the wealth of a lifetime of hunting with a young hunter can help keep us young and more in touch with the seasons and the game we hunt.

We all grow old and we all grow tired, but hunting at one's own pace is available to all sportsmen. Take your time, remember those past hunts when the fire burned bright in our hunting plans, and we couldn't wait to get into the field.

Sometimes, a little kindling in the form of watching a young hunter develop their personal memories, is all it takes to renew our personal interest  and our perception of hunting.

It may be the start needed to rekindle the hunting flames of yesteryear, and bring some old-timers back into the hunting fold.