Let's talk about hunting....

[mud]

Same ol' song & dance and for that I apologize in advance.  I'm a father of two young men 11 and 13.  All three of us have recently been through hunters education and are eager to get into the woods.  Our #1 dilemma is lack of knowledge and time. With all the youth sports we're involved in, we have neither.   

I'm not looking for a handout or any particular honey holes per se, but I would like to point these boys toward a path of success and appreciation of the world around them.  I can't help but feel overwhelmed in our current state.  Anybody been through similar circumstances?  Any advice?  While I'm not loaded, I'm willing to invest in their passion and success.  Youtube only gets somebody so far!

Also, special youth permits....any advice?

Thanks to everyone!

Paul

[JimmyHoffa]

You could help a little by narrowing down the info you're looking for:
Species--deer/elk/bear/all
Weapon--since you're new to it, is it safe to assume rifle?
Ability--can you hike/camp the backcountry or plan to road hunt?
Timing--are there other seasonal obligations?

[mud]

That's a very good point.  Due to our inexperience, we're open to anything to include small game, but I think their highest chance of big game success is with a rifle.  For Christmas they each got a used shotgun for any potential bird hunting. 

Ability:  Physically capable, but I believe we lack a critical knowledge base for back country survival.  I would like to build up to back country once we gain some experience.

Timing:  For an opportunity, I will pull them from any tournament or find an alt coach for my soccer teams in an instant! Otherwise, it's year round, non stop.   

[h20hunter]

My basic advice is get Sayleans book about bears, buy a tag, get out and hunt. Look on Google Earth, maps, a begain to learn an area . Chances are it will hold bear, deer, yotes, possibly cougar. Boots on the ground and bear seasons get you out in good weather.

[Boss .300 winmag]

Since time is a factor, find the closest unit that has doe tags and put them in for it, it may take two years to draw. Also I would put them in as a group so they both draw if the other does. 

[JimmyHoffa]

Bear is good because it starts in Aug on the Westside, so before school and maybe before team practices.  It also has a long season and cheap tags. 
Grouse offer a long season and allow you to walk or drive down roads and get a lay of the land and scouting.

[garrett89]

Gear. Do you have packs, knives, game bags, cams etc.?

[JDHasty]

My basic advice is get Sayleans book about bears, buy a tag, get out and hunt. Look on Google Earth, maps, a begain to learn an area . Chances are it will hold bear, deer, yotes, possibly cougar. Boots on the ground and bear seasons get you out in good weather.

Good advice. 

[mburrows]

I think there are tons of resources out there for new guys now. There are some awesome podcasts and youtube channels that have tons of info if you prefer those over reading.

Podcasts:
Gritty bowmen, randy newberg,  meateater, shootin the bull

interested in waterfowl? Thats a good way to get your feet wet and get outside with washingtons long season

[bearpaw]

My advice is to take advantage of youth hunts to get your kids hooked on the outdoors!

There are special youth seasons that are very good for turkey, deer, and bird hunting. I also agree that going bear hunting in areas open in August is a great idea. There are youth doe hunts in October, you could hunt bucks while your boys hunt doe or buck. One of the most important things for youth hunters is that you wet their appetite with some success!

You can enter your boys in our contest for a free youth guided turkey hunt including all kinds of free gear here: http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,199364.0.html

[yum tag soup]

Bear is good because it starts in Aug on the Westside, so before school and maybe before team practices.  It also has a long season and cheap tags. 
Grouse offer a long season and allow you to walk or drive down roads and get a lay of the land and scouting.

get a Hancock pass and do some scouting/grouse hunting in September. Can drive or walk the roads, put them shotguns to use 

[JoeE]

You live in Graham in looks like so maybe look into getting a Hancock pass for the Kapowsin tree farm. That would give you and your kids a close area to go hunt... You're going to have a ton of company in there with you but its a big place and its a close place to start.

[trophyhunt]

You live in Graham in looks like so maybe look into getting a Hancock pass for the Kapowsin tree farm. That would give you and your kids a close area to go hunt... You're going to have a ton of company in there with you but its a big place and its a close place to start.

and there might be some good changes this year.

[JKEEN33]

I like to start kids on spring turkey. The weather is usually fairly mild, there is a youth weekend prior to the regular season. With a little effort it's fairly easy to be successful. The regular season is fairly long and it's easy to at the minimum see turkey in the wild. Now is the time to start researching and getting your calling ready for April.

[Tinmaniac]

Archery,long seasons,no need to draw special permits.Skookum in Puyallup is a good range close by.Anyone can grab a gun and a couple of boxes of shells and call themselves a hunter.Bowhunting takes practice and skill.My son killed his first elk with a bow this year.Best hunt I've ever been on!

[mud]

My basic advice is get Sayleans book about bears, buy a tag, get out and hunt. Look on Google Earth, maps, a begain to learn an area . Chances are it will hold bear, deer, yotes, possibly cougar. Boots on the ground and bear seasons get you out in good weather.

Funny, I'm in the middle of Ralph Flowers' book now.  We've been on some sites, but I haven't located an easy/efficient way to find/view public lands.  The rules about fed vs state vs DNR vs Nat forest rules are different for each and easily confused by a newcomer that can't ID the difference. I like to think I'm not the only one, anyways!

Since time is a factor, find the closest unit that has doe tags and put them in for it, it may take two years to draw. Also I would put them in as a group so they both draw if the other does. 

I was thinking this as well.  The group thing I'd never heard of.  I'll be looking into it, Thanks!

Gear. Do you have packs, knives, game bags, cams etc.?

We have the basics, but lack proper packs/cold weather gear for sure.  Will need to buy rifles, but that's another thread.  They're both 5' and 90 lbs, so my .308 may be too much.

I think there are tons of resources out there for new guys now. There are some awesome podcasts and youtube channels that have tons of info if you prefer those over reading.

Podcasts:
Gritty bowmen, randy newberg,  meateater, shootin the bull

interested in waterfowl? Thats a good way to get your feet wet and get outside with washingtons long season

Nice!  I found Meat Eater through the folks here.  Been awesome to watch, and keeps the kids interested as well.  Will have to do some research on the rest...

My advice is to take advantage of youth hunts to get your kids hooked on the outdoors!

There are special youth seasons that are very good for turkey, deer, and bird hunting. I also agree that going bear hunting in areas open in August is a great idea. There are youth doe hunts in October, you could hunt bucks while your boys hunt doe or buck. One of the most important things for youth hunters is that you wet their appetite with some success!

You can enter your boys in our contest for a free youth guided turkey hunt including all kinds of free gear here: http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,199364.0.html

Exactly what I was thinking, I'm just not sure of all the opportunities that exist for kids-seems like they're out there if one knows where to look.  Saw your post in the youth forum, that's awesome of you guys! 

Ran out of time, will have to reply to the rest later.  Thanks all for taking the time to respond!

[garrett89]

My basic advice is get Sayleans book about bears, buy a tag, get out and hunt. Look on Google Earth, maps, a begain to learn an area . Chances are it will hold bear, deer, yotes, possibly cougar. Boots on the ground and bear seasons get you out in good weather.

Funny, I'm in the middle of Ralph Flowers' book now.  We've been on some sites, but I haven't located an easy/efficient way to find/view public lands.  The rules about fed vs state vs DNR vs Nat forest rules are different for each and easily confused by a newcomer that can't ID the difference. I like to think I'm not the only one, anyways!

Since time is a factor, find the closest unit that has doe tags and put them in for it, it may take two years to draw. Also I would put them in as a group so they both draw if the other does. 

I was thinking this as well.  The group thing I'd never heard of.  I'll be looking into it, Thanks!

Gear. Do you have packs, knives, game bags, cams etc.?

We have the basics, but lack proper packs/cold weather gear for sure.  Will need to buy rifles, but that's another thread.  They're both 5' and 90 lbs, so my .308 may be too much.

I think there are tons of resources out there for new guys now. There are some awesome podcasts and youtube channels that have tons of info if you prefer those over reading.

Podcasts:
Gritty bowmen, randy newberg,  meateater, shootin the bull

interested in waterfowl? Thats a good way to get your feet wet and get outside with washingtons long season

Nice!  I found Meat Eater through the folks here.  Been awesome to watch, and keeps the kids interested as well.  Will have to do some research on the rest...

My advice is to take advantage of youth hunts to get your kids hooked on the outdoors!

There are special youth seasons that are very good for turkey, deer, and bird hunting. I also agree that going bear hunting in areas open in August is a great idea. There are youth doe hunts in October, you could hunt bucks while your boys hunt doe or buck. One of the most important things for youth hunters is that you wet their appetite with some success!

You can enter your boys in our contest for a free youth guided turkey hunt including all kinds of free gear here: http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,199364.0.html

Exactly what I was thinking, I'm just not sure of all the opportunities that exist for kids-seems like they're out there if one knows where to look.  Saw your post in the youth forum, that's awesome of you guys! 

Ran out of time, will have to reply to the rest later.  Thanks all for taking the time to respond!

I would suggest try to find a local outdoors guy in your area for tips and tricks. Remember minimum big game caliber is .24.

[Duckgtr]

Get in contact with me closer to duck season and I may be able to take you guys out

[WSU]

I'd take a long weekend for rifle deer on the east side.  There are places where the chances for success are high and deer camp is fun whether you are successful or not.  I'm sure someone can point you to a public land spot that fits the bill.

[Dhoey07]

Find some national forest on either google maps or a handheld map and start driving.  Find some water and do some hiking.  Look for trails and deer sign, and either mentally mark them or gps them.  It's about exploring.  Have fun 

[Eric M]

I don't know what shotguns you have but that isn't necessarily a limitation on the west side. A lot of mammals get killed every year with them (in addition to waterfowl and turkey). Have you looked at the harvest reports on the fish and game website? They also do an outlook thing that is like a biologists summary of an area. Once your seeing some numbers you like, get the GMU map and pick some areas to scout. For blacktail I suggest reading the books by Boyd Iverson and Scott Haugen. Saylean's book is the one for bears. (Douglas Boze). Maybe fool around with google earth. Go drive to the end of a road. Walk around then come home and google earth it. You'll start getting an idea of how to scout on google earth, knowing what an area looks like in person and then how it looks online. If an area is good, mark it with their pin feature. The best way to learn an area is to spend time there. You don't need a lot of expensive gear to spend quality time with the boys. I do suggest a GPS for the wandering. I don't think I've ever spent a day in the woods without seeing something interesting. Take pictures. Have fun. Good luck.