My life completely revolves around the outdoors. I consistently immerse myself in what each Montana season has to offer. From the spring bear hunting all the way to mule deer rutting in November, I want to be involved in every bit. This leaves me wondering why I am the way I am. I often compare my hunting lifestyle to friends' and I’ll wonder why some girls aren’t tagging along on hunts or participating for themselves. I'm so grateful my parents decided to raise a girl to hunt.
Raising a Girl to Hunt:
Inspire their passion.
I credit my upbringing for how rooted my passion for hunting and the outdoors is. I think a different way of being raised may have caused me to never discover or consider hunting, or it may have delayed that discovery. This makes me want to see girls being raised in the outdoors, and for hunting to just be a normal thing they partake in.
Take them with you.
My dad took me on hunting trips when I was little. I tagged along and watched him harvest animals. It was normal for a girl to participate. And I think that was an important part of raising a girl to hunt, it was never a question if I would join in the hunt just because I was a girl. Early on this was rooted in me and by the time I was ready to hunt, I dove right in. I am so grateful that when I was born, my dad did not have a mindset that only my older brother would be the one joining him on hunts.
Have fun.
If you really want to raise a girl to hunt, make sure they have fun. As a little kid, there are some limits a parent should keep in mind while taking them hunting. A 10-mile death march up a mountain in the cold will most likely not catch their interest, as an easier day hunt would. You have to ease a kid into it, and not scare them away by a couple of miserable days.
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I started off doing doe hunts from a tree stand with my dad in mid-October. The weather was typically good. It was a great place for a kid to observe, and all my cousins and uncles came on this trip, the day would end at a pizza joint in town. These annual hunts gave me something to look forward to (even than Christmas). My dad made sure to start me off in a fun environment where I learned, and from there it grew to love hunting. Even miserable death marches up mountains. Developing this good foundation is critical. From here, growth will happen.
When I end up having kids one day I envision them learning this way of life no matter their gender. It’s a wonderful way to raise kids and teach them critical skills, it’s a hobby they will have for a lifetime.
