First successful hunt... ever!!

[Doc Sauce]

I cannot convey just how great I feel!  I have not caught a fish in the last 10 years (except for 2 trout at a stocked pond that is guaranteed to give fish... took the kids and 5 minutes later was done).  I killed a squirrel in 2006... before that... I think it was middle school.

I get stationed here and the learning curve begins again.  I feel so far behind and I am so unprepared for hunting in Washington. 

I find this website, I lurk for a long time before joining, and then start asking questions.  What do you know... I get some wicked good advice from y'all... about the high hunt, elk herd management, and some bird hunting ideas.

A friend of mine and I head out to the Moses Lake area with our boys.  I was proud of those little dudes... we pushed them for a total of about 4 or 5 hours through some wicked thick stuff.  They played and made so much noise (sorry to the rest of the hunters that were out there) and they had a blast.  My goal was to get my boy out there and let him enjoy himself.  He thinks he was  hunting. He loved it.  Next time I mention hunting, he is going to remember how great it is and want to go.  As he gets older, he'll (hopefully) start doing more and more hunting and less and less playing.  Either way, we got to spend some quality time together. 

AND... I killed a Pheasant!!  My first kill, on my first bird hunt, on my second trip with my boy!!!  I'm hooked!! I'm ready to sell my rifle, upgrade my shotgun, join a skeet and trap club and buy a dog!!!!  I'm hooked.  (For the record... I am NOT going to be getting rid of my rifle)

We started walking down a creek between a couple fields and after about 15 minutes... BAM!!  This burst of Quail come rushing out of the trees... So fast and so loud.  I think I laughed a little bit when the busted out like that.  It was amazing.  I think each of the breaking covey's made my boy jump!  The next time they broke, I unloaded the gun and hit one.  When I started walking to where it dropped, another explosion from the brush.  Sounded like a whole covey of quail, but was 1 bird.  One big bird, and so many colors... Wait a minute, THAT'S A PHEASANT!!  It broke, came towards me a little bit to get out of the brush and then started flying directly away from me.  I dropped him too.  The rest of the day was just icing on that cake. 

There are so many of y'all to thank and I know I will forget some and don't want to offend those that I would neglect to mention.  To those who have responded to my questions and sent me PM's... Thanks so much.  I am eternally grateful.  Without your collective wisdom and online mentorship, I am convinced that my son and I would probably not have had such a memorable day out.

Thanks again... and now the pics...

My boy clearing a trail in the grass with a decoy pigeon he found...


Happy little brush buster...


Lunch break with the little man...


Me and the Bird...


Thanks again y'all. 

Happy Hunting

[Whitpirate]

Great pictures and you'll have another hunter on your hands before you know it.  I can't wait to take my kid WT hunting in NE this weekend.  Get to show him where "Dad" grew up etc.... even if we don't get a buck it will be worth it.

[Birdguy]

Great job! Way to go Dad. Good looking bird too. Looks and sounds like the boy (and Dad) had a great trip. Funny how a little success can get a guy hooked  . Start doing your homework and get that dog on order, you can have him in good shape by the time the boy is old enough to shoot.

[C-Money]

Congrats! Nice bird! Good times.

[csaaphill]

 
gj keep it up.

[Stilly bay]

awesome!  FYI there are no twelve step programs available to help you with this addiction. you might as well hang on and enjoy the ride.

[brianb231]

You know... That is one of those.....Gas...50$.......Shells......20$........Lunch......10$.........That smile on your boys face...........PRICELESS!!!!   Way to go man! I am very proud of you as a fellow father. Your son will be by your side in the field for years to come!

Great Job


Brianb231

[Andrew]

Congrats!  My little man has a year or so to go...can't wait. 

[X-Force]

Very Cool! 

[Derailed]

I am going with you next time! Sucks having duty

[Atroxus]

Congrats! Awesome pics, cute kid you have there and a nice first bird. Mind if I ask how old your son is? I have a 3 year old and am trying to decide how long to wait before I start taking him out in the field with me.

[hunterrcc]

Congrats! Awesome pics, cute kid you have there and a nice first bird. Mind if I ask how old your son is? I have a 3 year old and am trying to decide how long to wait before I start taking him out in the field with me.

THE YOUNGER THE BETTER.  MY SON WAS 2.5 MONTHS OLD IN HIS JOGGER BEHIND A GATE WITH MOMMY AND I OVER 8 MILES!  HE RIDES AROUND IN THE FRONT SEAT OF THE TRUCK AND GOES OUT BEHIND GATES AND HE WALKS A LITTLE WHILE WITH ME AND THEN I CARRY HIM ON A HIKING PACK FOR KIDS THE REST OF THE TIME.  HE LOVES USING THE ELK BUGLE AND PREDATOR CALLS ALREADY.  "HE SAYS HI DEER" AND "HI ELK" WHEN HE SEE THEM OR " SHOOT DADDY BANG BANG."  LATELY HE LIKES LOOKING AT ELK TRACKS AND HE IS ONLY A LITTLE OVER 2YRS OLD.

ANYWAYS GOOD TO SEE SOMEONE TAKING THEIR KIDDO OUT IN THE WOODS AND EVEN BETTER WHEN THEY LOVE GOING.  IF MY SON KNOWS I AM GOING HUNTING WITHOUT HIM, LETS SAY MOMMY HAS A LONG DAY WATCHING HIM!

[PlateauNDN]

Congrats! Awesome pics, cute kid you have there and a nice first bird. Mind if I ask how old your son is? I have a 3 year old and am trying to decide how long to wait before I start taking him out in the field with me.

THE YOUNGER THE BETTER.  MY SON WAS 2.5 MONTHS OLD IN HIS JOGGER BEHIND A GATE WITH MOMMY AND I OVER 8 MILES!  HE RIDES AROUND IN THE FRONT SEAT OF THE TRUCK AND GOES OUT BEHIND GATES AND HE WALKS A LITTLE WHILE WITH ME AND THEN I CARRY HIM ON A HIKING PACK FOR KIDS THE REST OF THE TIME.  HE LOVES USING THE ELK BUGLE AND PREDATOR CALLS ALREADY.  "HE SAYS HI DEER" AND "HI ELK" WHEN HE SEE THEM OR " SHOOT DADDY BANG BANG."  LATELY HE LIKES LOOKING AT ELK TRACKS AND HE IS ONLY A LITTLE OVER 2YRS OLD.

ANYWAYS GOOD TO SEE SOMEONE TAKING THEIR KIDDO OUT IN THE WOODS AND EVEN BETTER WHEN THEY LOVE GOING.  IF MY SON KNOWS I AM GOING HUNTING WITHOUT HIM, LETS SAY MOMMY HAS A LONG DAY WATCHING HIM!

   the younger the better and hunterccc said it well.  Congrats dad and have fun.

[fethrduster]

That is friggin' awesome!  Good for you for making the effort to give your boy and yourself that experience.  Now you need to buy a fancy 16ga upland sxs, start reading upland magazines, get an english setter, and then you can start calling yourself an elitist upland bird snob like me and Stilly Bay.

Way to go man, way to go. 

[HUNTINCOUPLE]

Great wrote up!! Never to young to go!!!!

[Doc Sauce]

Boy just turned 6...  I would have started him a little before he turned 5, but we (as in my family) were not in a position to start doing these things yet.  I bought him a cammie sweatshirt (so that he could have special hunting clothes too) and a 5 dollar long sleeved orange shirt that I cut the sleeves off of so that he could have a vest. 

I saw a pic on here of a dude out hunting with a kid in a backpack.  I thought that was great.

To the "elitists" like Fethrduster and Stilly Bay (who gave me some good advice... thanks y'all)... I am afraid I cannot go with the english setter.  GSP for me!! 

My wife told me she likes the idea of me comming home with birds more than comming home with big game.  She is more comfortable cooking birds and is nervous about having so much meat to try and figure out how to prepare.

I told her that was fine.  I have not finished spending the money I had planned on spending on big game, so it would not be a problem at all for me to start gearing up for birds.  I have seriously SERIOUSLY considered shifting my focus to be birds... hunt big game, but put my attention and heart into the winged meat category.

It was a blast.  My wife asked when I got my first gun... I knew where this was going.  I'm watching him (and his sisters) maturity and have started looking into youth shotguns and .22 rifles...  Life is good y'all... life is good.