First elk hunt!!
Contributors to this thread:Elk
From: LUNG$HOT
24-Jul-14
Ok guys, my 10 yr old son really wants to go on an archery elk hunt with me this yr. As most of you know it's not an easy task navigating the elk woods for a grown man let alone a 10 year old boy. He loves the outdoors and is a tough kid. We just returned from a Utah fly fishing trip in which he surprised the heck out of me with how well he kept up through all the willows, mud bogs, beaver dams, etc... I am considering taking him with me for the opening weekend to scout/ hunt and maybe set up a blind over a wallow for a day or two. So my question to you all is, 1) do you think I'm crazy for even considering this? 2) how old were you on your first archery elk trip? Would love to hear your thoughts and opinions. Thanks
From: Barty1970
24-Jul-14
Both of you will cherish every moment of the hunt for the rest of your lives
Resident tags = $$ Memories = Priceless
From: tradi-doerr
24-Jul-14
I'd take him, as stated you will cherish it for ever. And you'll be surprised just how much more enduring he may be than you (youth) I took my son last year(10yr) on his first elk hunt and he did great.
From: Mark Watkins
24-Jul-14
LUNGSHOT, to answer your questions: 1: no, you are not crazy for considering. 2: I was 47 on my first archery elk. (Way too late!). Your son sounds like a gung Ho , all in overachiever! Make sure to keep the trip in perspective.....that it is his first elk trip (hard work but yes FUN) and the two of you will make many great life long memories!
You sound like a great Dad,
Mark
From: ki-ke
24-Jul-14
I would take him in a heartbeat.
I've been taking my son on hunts since he was 6 or 7. At 15 now, he is relatively independent in the woods.
The thing you need to remember, is that once you commit to bring him, that hunt becomes about him. In my experience, kids don't sit motionless for any amount of time. My son would last about 15 minutes playing with Legos, making friends with bugs in the blind, digging holes in the floor, then he would look out the window every 20 seconds or so and say out loud..."NOTHING OUT THERE DAD!"
So you have to be content with just the fact he is out there with you. If he spooks game (good chance that will happen long before you see it) you need to be ok with that.
Enjoy it for all it's worth. My boys now define my outdoor experiences. I love that.
From: stick n string
24-Jul-14
Well said, ki-ke
From: cityhunter
24-Jul-14
Lungshot I bet he would do better then most adults in elk woods .. Take him for he will remember this the rest of his life !!!
From: LBshooter
24-Jul-14
Ten year olds are tough little sons of guns. Also, can you think of a better way. To hook him for life to the outdoors and hunting? Take him and have a ball.
From: oldgoat
24-Jul-14
You'd be crazy considering not too! I'm fifty years old and I remember my first deer hunt with my Dad as well as my last by myself but that might just be from the short term memory loss, LOL! Take him and remember to make it a lot about him! Buy him an elk call and he might surprise you with being good with it by then and help call something in.
From: LUNG$HOT
24-Jul-14
Thanks for the reassurance and the input guys. I too have been deer hunting with my Dad since I was a little boy (around 6 or 7 yrs old). The only difference is that he hunted with a rifle like an old school good ole boy, driving all the back country mountain roads glassing hillsides with his binocs til he saw something (road huntin lol). We would get out and take our fair share of walks and find a spot to sit sometimes but nothing too crazy. Not til I was a little bit older like 25 did I do my first diy archery elk hunt and it was something I instantly fell in love with. Truth is I'm definitely excited to take him along and teach him what I've learned and plant those seeds in his life. He's already been running around with my cow elk call practicing (actually not too bad) and asking me if he can hold the decoy lol. So I guess wish us luck and once again thanks for input.
From: razorsharp
24-Jul-14
Take him! Make it about you and him spending time together.
From: T Mac
24-Jul-14
Ki-Ke + 1, Lungshot I have a 10 year old as well although much different then an elk hunt i love sitting side by side in my treestand with him as we deer hunt....he first sat with me when he was 7 and it was all about the experience....just like us as hunters the more we get out the more proficient we become....we plant the seed and watch it grow, to a father that is priceless....enjoy!
From: Ace of Spades
24-Jul-14
Take him, even if you can't get into the area where you planned on hunting he'll enjoy it. I'd rather take my kid and see nothing than go by myself and kill a big bull. It's about the experience and memories! And if something wanders in when your with him it would be pretty cool for him if you shot it.
Josh
From: monkeybutt
24-Jul-14
Lungshot,
I say bring him, just set your personal expectations accordingly. My older two (14 & 16) have their own tags, but my youngest is only 9 and he comes to experience it all (for now). My older two can go anywhere at this point (assuming I'm doing the heavy lifting ...). My youngest has been coming out with us since he was 6 and where we hunt is very steep and often times in think cover ... and I'm not the most patient guy, which means we cover ground and as a former climber I have a tendency to not shy away from going up. My point being that pace is everything and if he's in decent shape, he will be fine.
I have found that it's worth while to pack the Jetboil and make some hot chocolate (not to mention I can have a cup of coffee) and pack some M&M's and such which can do wonders for attitude. My kiddo's have also learned to embrace the 0 dark thirty wake up call and they know they will get a high altitude nap and they love it.
The hardest part with the younger kiddo's is that it's harder to get them going day after day ... I tend to try to give my youngest some down days where I can also hunt more freely and it keeps it fun for him.
From: ridgerunnerron
24-Jul-14
Start the addiction as young as you can. He'll be hooked on hunting for a long time and you will never regret it! A lot of kids when they are that young whatever they get into it (be it football, motorcycles, hunting) is something they will be passionate about it. After the hunt most likely he'll be thinking/planning the next hunt before you will be.
From: Bob H in NH
24-Jul-14
Teach him to call!
From: AZBUGLER
24-Jul-14
I started tagging along with my dad during archery elk hunts at about 7-8 years old. My first actual (bow in hand) elk hunt I was 12 and I remember everything about it! As some others have said, it will change the way you hunt a little, but will be very rewarding as well. My oldest killed his first elk at 12 and my soon to be 13 year old has his first archery tag this year. It's an adventure hunting with kids!
From: Quinn007
24-Jul-14
My son was mouth bugling into anything that looked like a grunt tube by the time he was 4. He went to the elk woods when we was 6. (Grandma came to camp) He called in his first bull for one of my buddies when he was 9. Now at 18 he's killed deer and elk w/ his bow, and that's all he'll hunt with for big game.
Start 'em young.
From: VARon
24-Jul-14
Took my son when he was 9 yrs old on a scouting trip for elk. We walked in rough country for three days. He had no trouble keeping up. We both had a great experience. His time soon after became consumed with sports teams, then high school athletics. Although we did plenty of hunting locally in Virginia, there was no time for a trip west. He now has a job where he can get the time off and we are headed to Colorado in September for his first elk hunt and my first in over 10 years.
Take your son whenever you get the opportunity. Time goes by sooo fast.
From: bowhntr
24-Jul-14
Had my 9 yr old with me last year and he did awesome. Pulled all the hills no problem and he was with me when I harvested my bull. He helped process, haul meat out and had a blast.
From: Aspen Ghost
24-Jul-14
Take him and definitely teach him to call. If he can shoot well then get him a permit. In Colorado it's only $100 for a NR youth Elk permit.
From: LUNG$HOT
24-Jul-14
He's already got his first bow a Bear apprentice 2 and is a pretty good shot. Im actually a Colorado resident so it would be cheaper than $100. Still needs a few years building strength to up the poundage enough to stick an elk. Think in co you have to be 13 years old to hunt but I could be wrong (it's happened once) :) Great advice and suggestions
From: LUNG$HOT
24-Jul-14
And yes I'll document the hunt with pics and a written re-tell here on bowsite. C'mon September!!
From: Heat
24-Jul-14
Take him with you! My Dad brought me at age 8. I am forever thankful for that trip and it is etched in my memory forever.
From: midwest
24-Jul-14
good deal!
From: Eric B.
24-Jul-14
My boys were elk hunting with me since 5 or 6 yrs. old. Tailor the hunt around them. Remember it's not about the killing !
From: Adman
24-Jul-14
Like everyone else has already said, it would be a great idea to take him. I tagged along with my father on small game since I was about 5 but when I was 11 my father took my on an elk and deer hunt with him and I became addicted. That first experience was very rewarding because after backpacking in about three miles, I got to witness my dad shoot at a nice buck and call in a small bull to less than ten yards. Those memories are going to be with me for the rest of my life and while that hunt was anything but easy I would not trade it for anything.
Good luck this September and I look forward to seeing the pictures and reading about the hunt
From: coelker
24-Jul-14
My daughter started hunting with me at age 4 for coyotes, and has spent several days looking for fall elk and bears. I have never killed a big game animal with her, but they are the best days in the field... You have to slow down and call it quits a little early but they will have fun....
From: ElkSmith27
24-Jul-14
I got my first archery elk tag for the first time in 5 years and my first bull elk in over 10 years. My son is 11 and, even though I have waited a long time for this tag and want to hunt hard, I am taking my 11 year old for the first time and I wouldn't even consider going without him. My oldest (now 24) went with me one time when he was about the same age. He isn't much of an "outdoors" kid but at least I will never forget that hunt and the time we had together and I'm sure it will be just the same with my youngest this year. So, hell yeah, take that kid along and in 25 years he will do the same for his.
From: Elkman52
24-Jul-14
Some kids don't get it some don't want it! If he wants to go you need to feed him the fever! You won,t be disappointed no matter what the result.
From: jdee
24-Jul-14
Take him !!! I still remember and still talk about my dad first took me hunting when I was about 7 or 8 years old....freezing my butt off, hiking up big hills trying to keep up with him. Now I feel lucky I have those memories!!!!
From: IdyllwildArcher
24-Jul-14
If he really wants to go like you say he does, then he'll have the time of his life.
