LAST UPDATED: May 1st, 2015
The young doe picked her way through the early October foliage oblivious to the predator perched just above her. Each small step brought her closer to my shooting lane which accelerated my heart rate and shifted my nervous system into overdrive. At the moment of truth I let instinct take over and guide my arrow toward its mark. Within seconds the woods were quiet once more as I basked in an overwhelming feeling of joy and accomplishment. That cool October afternoon I harvested my first whitetail deer with archery equipment and it’s a moment that will be etched in my memory forever.
My first deer taken with a bow some 19 years ago is an accomplishment that I’m proud of to this day.
Growing up in a household where hunting was simply a way of life I never gave a second thought to whether our pursuit of game animals was right or wrong. However as all hunters know there is a vast contingent of people who oppose hunting, in all of its various forms, for one reason or another. However the purpose of this particular commentary isn’t to empower my fellow hunters with facts to combat those who disapprove of our lifestyle but rather to make us all take a step back and embrace our love of hunting.
With the advent of the Internet and the explosion of social media it has become easier than ever for people to voice their opinions. What used to be messages passed between a few like-minded individuals at a local watering hole, library or other gathering has now become hundreds, thousands or even more people gathering in electronic format to support, oppose or otherwise express opinions on one thing or another. As we’ve seen with recent attacks on hunters including Melissa Bachman, Kendall Jones and Joella Bates amongst others is that the anti-hunting community has taken to the Internet to spout their malformed beliefs at every chance they get.
As hunters we have been well trained on how to combat the anti-hunting community. We often speak of wildlife management, conservation, population control, disease control, organic meat supply and a wealth of other advantages that hunting brings to both wildlife as well as human populations. While this evidence cannot be argued (at least not rationally) I feel that we as a hunting community all too often hide behind these facts to justify something that, in all honesty, needs no justification. We hunt because, plain and simple, we enjoy it.
The recent Kendall Jones story is a great example of how we as a hunting community have failed to stand up and simply say that we are hunters and we will not apologize for it. While Ms. Jones excursion to Africa undoubtedly generated both money and food for the local population while also providing numerous conservation benefits let’s not kid ourselves into thinking that’s why she flew halfway around the world to hunt exotic animals. If our only motivation as hunters was to provide food and monies for suffering and underprivileged communities, or to provide monetary support for conservation efforts, surely there are other ways to do so. Make no mistake, Ms. Jones and her family went to Africa because they enjoy hunting. And there’s nothing wrong with that.
To point the spotlight in my direction the same holds true when I wake up at 2 am to drive several hours and sit in a cold, uncomfortable tree in hopes of killing a monster buck. Does it provide benefits for the local wildlife if I harvest a couple deer each year? Yes. And does it also provide monies to support conservation efforts to preserve wildlife for future generations? Yes. However when I catch the first glimpse of the sun shining off a monster whitetail rack on a cold November morning I will admit that conservation is the last thing on my mind.
While hunting provides a variety of benefits to both humans and wildlife most hunter choose to hunt simply because they enjoy doing so. Hunter seen wearing Lost Camo.
Those who oppose hunting would say that it’s wrong to enjoy taking the life of a living animal. In fact they have used this argument time and time again in their attempt to paint hunters as nothing more than blood-thirsty killers, one step away from causing harm to our fellow man. This belief has caused many people, some hunters included, to have a hard time separating a love for hunting from a love of killing.
What’s important for the non-hunting public to understand is that killing makes up an extremely small piece of what we know as hunting. While the death of an animal is the necessary end-game of our quest it is by no means what defines our journey. The countless hours of preparation, both mental and physical, that are invested into each hunt is what we live for. In simplest terms the relationship between predator and prey, the connection with our visceral selves and the desire to experience nature, and life, in its rawest form is what compels us to hunt.
So the next time the hypocritical and delusional anti-hunting populous of the Internet gets together to bash one of our own, feel free to tell them that you’re a hunter and you will not apologize or make excuses for it. I’m not ashamed of my beliefs and you shouldn’t be either. After all, there’s nothing wrong with hunting.
