Proud Dad

Outdooraddict

Active member
Joined
May 9, 2009
Messages
461
Location
Western CO
I had been lurking on this site for years before signing up in 2009. After that I have shared a few pictures of my son hunting or fishing with me. One of my first posts was of his first fish he caught by himself, from cast to reel, and he wasn't quite 2 years old. I thought it was odd that a boy could use those motor skills to cast, push a button, and reel before he could jump and land on 2 feet. But he loved it. This year I allowed him to go deer hunting with me and I was lucky enough to connect on a descent buck. He was so excited to be part of the hunt, I even strapped a front quarter in his pack to bring back.

Now he is 7 years old and itching to hunt on his own. After having him tag along with a bb gun for a year, I thought it would be o.k. for him to take a hunter safety class offered by the local 4h club- at least it would be good practice or a learning opportunity even if he doesn't pass. So I take him and his friend (who is 8) to the class. The instructor looks at me like, "I hope this guy is staying so I don't have to baby sit these two." The boys behave very well in class, they even participate and answer questions. Test day- my son asks me, "If I pass my test can we get a turkey tag?" I give him a quick 'yes' and hope he doesn't start crying when he doesn't pass. I quiz the boys on the way to the test site, telling them to listen (the questions are spoken for the younger students) to all the possible answers before making a decision (like D: all of the above). I sit in the back of the room watching the two impulsive kids answer questions before the instructor reads all possible answers, so I prepare myself to say something positive to the boys. After the tests are graded, I looked at his buddy's test- he missed 1 question in the first 5. "Not too bad," I think to myself as I examine his test. Then I realize, that is the only problem he missed... only 1 out of 50! Next they give me my son's test... 50 out of 50!:eek: He did not miss any. Couldn't believe it... still can't. They did great on the firearm handling/shooting test as well.

To make a long story short, I bought him a turkey tag the next day. We spent days hiking- and he enjoyed being out. We saw plenty of turkeys, but just couldn't get them close enough for that single shot 410. The last weekend, we were lucky enough to call in a jake, and the kid connected. "I GOT HIM!" he yelled. We admire the turkey, take some pictures, share some hugs, and tell him good shot. He looks at me and I say, "He's your bird, you ready to pack him out?" And he answers with a smile.
 

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Here I am, sitting at my desk, huge grin on my face with goosepimples on my arms with happiness and joy thinking of future fun events for you and your best hunting buddy ever. Congratulations to you both.
 
Congrats on getting your son involved. He is probably hooked for life
 
Awesome post!!
Congrats to the young hunter and Dad - good for you!
 
Thanks for the story and pictures; a fine young hunter/fisherman you have there! I'm looking forward to many more memories with my little guy. Some of my earliest memories are ones in the woods with my dad and I want my son to have the same.
 
Awsome! I'm sure you will enjoy many years with your fishig and hunting partner.
 
Awesome!! It looks like you've got the parenting thing down pretty darn good! You're going to have a great hunting pal for many years!
 
That kid has the genetic makeup to be a hunting machine... as long as his mom lets you two out of the house...;)
 
Good on you and your son! To be certain though, he isn't 12 years old yet so he can't be ready for hunting big game. :) (Sarcastic dig at those who advocate for minimum age requirement for youth hunters.)
 
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