I suppose 6 months late on an introduction is still better than none at all...
So here goes.
I don't know if I would call myself an "Adult Onset" hunter, more like the prodigal hunter. I grew up in PA and NY learning how to shoot, hunt, and reload from my grandfather. My family was firmly entrenched in the suburbs so there were some glamping vacations, but no hunting. Joined the Corps when I was 17, started a family when I got out, and then moved back to NY with a brief stop in CO when that fell apart. I spent 9 years in NY getting my life back on track and serving my community as a Firefighter/Medic. I was forcibly retired due to a line of duty injury to my spine that left me paralyzed for a short time. Even though I was able to build myself back up strong enough to return to active duty, years of playing hard had taken it's toll on me and I just wasn't able to answer the bell as quick as I needed to. So when I became officially retired and disabled, the fiance and I decided it was time to get our kids out of NY and away from the drugs, violence, and crime that were becoming 'normal' societal behavior.
I had always talked about how much I loved Colorado, during the brief time I had been out here living with a good friend, so we found a 4 bedroom house on an acre of land and pulled the trigger. Now we've been out here for just over a year and my good friend John Cushman decided I needed to start hunting again. He gave me a muzzle loader for my birthday, and hooked me up with a guy selling a good used bow for a great price. So now I am officially a fledgling bow hunter. We've gone on a few hunts and I've managed to fill 2 pronghorn tags. First ever bow kill, first ever muzzle loader kill, and first ever antelope kills. We just finished up a week of elk hunting with and meeting David, from here on Hunt Talk, and although we didn't fill any tags it was an awesome experience being out there. I've got 2 whitetail doe archery tags left to fill this year, then I'm going to be down for a few months to have another back surgery to fix some problems they tried to let heal on their own, which obviously haven't. If all goes well, I'll be off and hobbling for spring turkey.
As for the prodigal hunter vs adult onset hunter thing, I did do some hunting in NC after I got out of the Marines. I managed to get in to a 'good ole boy' hunting circle by virtue of being a Damn Yankee who could shoot, and working for the head good ole boy. They used to sit around after work at the old tobacco barn he used to store tools and plink squirrels and birds in the surrounding trees. After a couple of days of out shooting a couple of the crew, I was invited to hunt. It was all shotguns and deer dogs, and at first it was okay. I soured on it after a while when guys were just blasting away at the deer and ruining meat. It didn't help that I got "taxed" on every deer I took, but nobody else did. So I just put down my guns, and stopped hunting. Now I'm back, loving the thrill of the hunt again, and looking forward to filling plenty of tags.
So here goes.
I don't know if I would call myself an "Adult Onset" hunter, more like the prodigal hunter. I grew up in PA and NY learning how to shoot, hunt, and reload from my grandfather. My family was firmly entrenched in the suburbs so there were some glamping vacations, but no hunting. Joined the Corps when I was 17, started a family when I got out, and then moved back to NY with a brief stop in CO when that fell apart. I spent 9 years in NY getting my life back on track and serving my community as a Firefighter/Medic. I was forcibly retired due to a line of duty injury to my spine that left me paralyzed for a short time. Even though I was able to build myself back up strong enough to return to active duty, years of playing hard had taken it's toll on me and I just wasn't able to answer the bell as quick as I needed to. So when I became officially retired and disabled, the fiance and I decided it was time to get our kids out of NY and away from the drugs, violence, and crime that were becoming 'normal' societal behavior.
I had always talked about how much I loved Colorado, during the brief time I had been out here living with a good friend, so we found a 4 bedroom house on an acre of land and pulled the trigger. Now we've been out here for just over a year and my good friend John Cushman decided I needed to start hunting again. He gave me a muzzle loader for my birthday, and hooked me up with a guy selling a good used bow for a great price. So now I am officially a fledgling bow hunter. We've gone on a few hunts and I've managed to fill 2 pronghorn tags. First ever bow kill, first ever muzzle loader kill, and first ever antelope kills. We just finished up a week of elk hunting with and meeting David, from here on Hunt Talk, and although we didn't fill any tags it was an awesome experience being out there. I've got 2 whitetail doe archery tags left to fill this year, then I'm going to be down for a few months to have another back surgery to fix some problems they tried to let heal on their own, which obviously haven't. If all goes well, I'll be off and hobbling for spring turkey.
As for the prodigal hunter vs adult onset hunter thing, I did do some hunting in NC after I got out of the Marines. I managed to get in to a 'good ole boy' hunting circle by virtue of being a Damn Yankee who could shoot, and working for the head good ole boy. They used to sit around after work at the old tobacco barn he used to store tools and plink squirrels and birds in the surrounding trees. After a couple of days of out shooting a couple of the crew, I was invited to hunt. It was all shotguns and deer dogs, and at first it was okay. I soured on it after a while when guys were just blasting away at the deer and ruining meat. It didn't help that I got "taxed" on every deer I took, but nobody else did. So I just put down my guns, and stopped hunting. Now I'm back, loving the thrill of the hunt again, and looking forward to filling plenty of tags.
Welcome Aboard RACHGIER.
