Poll: Your thoughts on youth hunting/fishing opportunities

[bearpaw]

Which options do you agree with to improve and fund increased youth hunting/fishing opportunities?
Please offer any additional ideas and feel free to change your vote if desired.

[Gringo31]

I'm probably not much help here....I think we could continue to encourage our youth to be in the outdoors but I have a real hard time paying one more cent when I see them spend piles of money on things I disagree with.

[danderson]

  I think the current system in place as far as licence and tags is fair, if youth purchase the combo option the tags are essentially free, and the special permit application cost is reasonable, in my opinion the best way to recruit and retain youth hunters is provide opportunity, offer more cow tags and youth hunts its not rocket science.

[Bob33]

Youth start hunting with adults. When adults quit hunting youth lose mentors. You can't fix the youth issues in a vacuum.

[arees]

  I think the current system in place as far as licence and tags is fair, if youth purchase the combo option the tags are essentially free, and the special permit application cost is reasonable, in my opinion the best way to recruit and retain youth hunters is provide opportunity, offer more cow tags and youth hunts its not rocket science.

[Jingles]

This is probably going to Pizz off some people but oh well better to pizzed off than pizzed on
The youth have all the free and reduced fees they need what is needed is for adults accompanying the youth to quit filling the youth tags.  As far as opportunities for youth I haven't seen to many kids that get off the sofa and away from the electronic games that are interested in going hunting.
Time youth found out that life isn't free and Mom and Dad aren't going to pay for everything their entire life full price for basic license but slight reduction for tags special permits full price

[pianoman9701]

I don't think hunting is hurting because of the price of a license and I would oppose changes to youth hunting fees at this time. I will only address hunting, as I believe fishing is doing fine.

I think hunting is hurting because our society has been gradually moving away from it as people become less outdoors-y and depend more on in-home entertainment for their recreation. Unfortunately also, with the prevailing and growing atmosphere of fear regarding firearms, most kids whose parents aren't hunters or shooters won't be joining the sport. I think there are a few things that can be done, but hunting's popularity is waning. Plain statistics.

We definitely should recruit more people to teach hunter education and we should also promote mentoring of youth into shooting and hunting sports. The Master Hunter program is good for both of these and it's possible that we should look into increasing enrollment goals for that program to help boost youth hunting and Hunter educator participation. For those not involved in the MH program, among other emphases, it stresses the importance of mentoring youth and allows the MH to stay current on his conservation volunteering hours by teaching hunter education. This kills two birds -  it increases the number of hunter educators and supports the importance of mentoring. I became a mentor AND and hunter educator after having become a MH and finding out even more that I have a passion to forward our sport. It also educated me and got me involved in the politics of hunting and gun ownership at a level which I had not previously participated. I'm not sure the WDFW is happy about that last part! 

[ICEMAN]

I feel that costs are not the deciding factor causing parents to get their kids out in the field.

If it were me, I would do the following:
* transfer a third of all doe and cow tags to youth hunts statewide, not just a few GMUs.
*increase catch limits for adults and youth,  when a youth is involved in any fishing.
*increase possession limits for adults and youth, when a youth is involved in all bird hunts.
*create a youth doe day and cow day statewide for all GMUs. Adjust permit hunts accordingly.
*provide extra special hunt points for adults who purchase hunting and fishing licenses for youth.
*double youth special hunt points, just for being a youth.

My point is; hunter groups should cheer for joy when a partner brings along a youth hunter or fisherman.

Youth points are short lived in everyones family. Might as well pump up the volume on benefits for todays youth, get them excited about hunting and fishing. Give them stories to tell when they get older...

Flame away.

[birdstew]

There needs to be more hunters willing to take out youth to hunt. Numbers will never increase if hunters are only willing to take just there children. There are lots of children if introduced to hunting would turn into hunters. But they don't come from hunting family's. I did not grow up in WA but have lived here for 8 years. I would say this is the hardest place to try and get someone to share hunting places with.

So next season we should see a new topic: Take a new child hunting Post Pic Here

[kentrek]

Get these private timber companies to rework there permit policies to create opportunity for highschool kids to go out an hunt together.....I usually took a hand full of buddies my age out every year but thats came to a screeching halt with the permit issues....

I feel thats a big issue in SW washington for getting new hunters

[benhuntin]

I think the seasons are fine. I think it is odd that everyone is happy just to give the youth antlerless tags and be done with it.  Cost is surely a factor for any parent with more than one or two kids.


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[huntnphool]

Youth start hunting with adults. When adults quit hunting youth lose mentors. You can't fix the youth issues in a vacuum.

 Bingo!!!!

 How many youth start hunting on their own? Very very few, they get started because of their parents/mentor.

 How many of them get constant reminders how poorly WDFW is running things?
 
 How many of them get constant reminders about our ever decreasing and poorly timed seasons?

 How many of them get constant reminders our money is being spent to fund wolf and predator recovery?

 How many of them get constant reminders of out of control Indian harvest?

 How many of them get constant reminders that although you look at mom and dad's trophies on the wall every day, you only get to hunt propeller heads.

 Boy those would really enthuse a kid about hunting and fishing right?

  It's the parents that get the kids involved. Take everything away from the parents and then wonder why the parents don't get the kids involved anymore, boy there's rocket science for ya!

 I could go on and on and on but it doesn't give a kid much enthusiasm to pick up a activity with so many negatives being heard coming out of their parents mouths.

 How many times have I suggested a two point deer category for kids, to target those mature two points our elite APR has generated? All you hear from them is it would be too difficult to educate them and the parents, as if they don't educate people of the difference between black and grizzly bears, or male/female cougars.

 I've suggested a youth ram hunt category on Chelan Butte for a collared ram. The collared rams there are old, past their breeding age and smaller than the younger offspring, they wil never be hunted and die of old age on the Butte. Why not give the kids another category, one that would be a real trophy hunt, rather than a meat hunt?

 The truth is Dale, there really is zero interest bye WDFW to recruit youth into fishing/hunting, their only interest is revenue generation.....period, and they need today's youth for tomorrow's revenue! They finally realized they have cut off their nose to spite their face.

[SCRUBS]

Youth start hunting with adults. When adults quit hunting youth lose mentors. You can't fix the youth issues in a vacuum.

 Bingo!!!!

 How many youth start hunting on their own? Very very few, they get started because of their parents/mentor.

 How many of them get constant reminders how poorly WDFW is running things?
 
 How many of them get constant reminders about our ever decreasing and poorly timed seasons?

 How many of them get constant reminders our money is being spent to fund wolf and predator recovery?

 How many of them get constant reminders of out of control Indian harvest?

 How many of them get constant reminders that although you look at mom and dad's trophies on the wall every day, you only get to hunt propeller heads.

 Boy those would really enthuse a kid about hunting and fishing right?

  It's the parents that get the kids involved. Take everything away from the parents and then wonder why the parents don't get the kids involved anymore, boy there's rocket science for ya!

 I could go on and on and on but it doesn't give a kid much enthusiasm to pick up a activity with so many negatives being heard coming out of their parents mouths.

 How many times have I suggested a two point deer category for kids, to target those mature two points our elite APR has generated? All you hear from them is it would be too difficult to educate them and the parents, as if they don't educate people of the difference between black and grizzly bears, or male/female cougars.

 I've suggested a youth ram hunt category on Chelan Butte for a collared ram. The collared rams there are old, past their breeding age and smaller than the younger offspring, they wil never be hunted and die of old age on the Butte. Why not give the kids another category, one that would be a real trophy hunt, rather than a meat hunt?

 The truth is Dale, there really is zero interest bye WDFW to recruit youth into fishing/hunting, their only interest is revenue generation.....period, and they need today's youth for tomorrow's revenue! They finally realized they have cut off their nose to spite their face.

Very well said Phool.

[Special T]

I think that giving kids under 15 possibly 17 a small game Lic.
Some of the benefits are...
1 It wouldn't cost the state much
2 ACTION is required to get kids hooked. There is more action in small game hunting, long stretches in a deer/elk stand don't really help. I know i got hooked on hunting via bird hunting.
3 It would promote Varmint hunting. Coyotes, Coons, Opossum, crows, starlings etc
4 If under 15 they must be accompanied by an adult (if off private land) which means that they will have some kind of mentor.

If the WDFW can do it for fishing, then they could do it for hunting, especially a form that does not affect the bottom line too much but still creates the opportunity.

I think a good question to ask the WDFW is "What is the retention rate for kids who get FREE fishing Lic?"  Some of that data may provide good insight as to what we should push for as hunters. OR question the Dept why they offer free fishing if it doesn't translate in to retention...

[bearpaw]

I'm going to try and capture some of these additional ideas in the poll. It might work best if I reset the poll after I get all the additional ideas included. Please keep offering all the additional ideas you can think of and I will add them all to the poll later today or tomorrow.

THANKS!