With age comes wisdom. The most ironic thing about this saying is that the only people who really grasp it have the “age” to understand its meaning. When I first started applying out of state and building points close to 20 years ago, I had grand visions of one day passing on 340-350" bulls and 180" bucks until I found that one ancient animal that had it all. Fast forward to the present. Now that I have a little more age on me, those are not the same visions that drive me to hunt year in and year out. My head is now filled with exploring new areas and hunts with friends and family. An old roman-nosed mulie with a worn out set of teeth is just as appealing to me as a giant rack, although it doesn’t hurt to have a giant rack too. I have come to appreciate the experiences I gain while in the field more than a mount on my wall.
I feel like this is the natural progression with most hunters, and quite frankly, it is the result of starting families, working careers, and burning points and having to start over at the bottom. Priorities tend to shift as we get older and as other responsibilities arise that were not factors when we were younger. I can appreciate all levels of progression, and I can relate to individuals who want to hunt the biggest and the best as well as those who just want to get out and enjoy the camping and camaraderie with friends and family while having a chance to fill the freezer in the process. As hunters, we have the same common goal in the end – to be free without criticism to pursue our passion of hunting a sustainable population of wild game.
It doesn’t matter if you hiked 20 miles a day and shot a buck at 20 yards with your bow or if you were driving down the road and spotted a bull 700 yards off on an open hillside and shot him with a long-range rifle. We are all in this thing together, and if we all stick together in the pursuit of our dreams, we can continue the sport of hunting for generations to come. It really doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things how you like to hunt or how you came about harvesting your animal (so long as it is within the law), it only matters that you are out there hunting along with everyone else who loves this way of life. Good luck in the draws and with whatever type of hunt you have this year.
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