Why I Learned to Hunt

Photos courtesy of the author.

My motivation to learn to hunt started with my passion for the outdoors and desire to obtain my own sources of sustainable protein. I was listening to podcasts for a couple of years before I came across the Illinois Learn to Hunt program. I was researching ways to get started with hunting on my own but didn’t really have a game plan other than buying a compound bow and practicing. As a child I was exposed to fishing, hiking and camping, but hunting wasn’t something my immediate family was involved in.

The first Learn to Hunt clinic I attended was geared towards learning to hunt wild turkey, and was the first time I fired a shotgun. I’m not sure if it was the gunpowder, goose stir fry or the comradery, but I left the event certain that hunting was something that I could do, and I was eager to get to work. The coordinators of the workshop did a great job of breaking everything down into easily digestible pieces and providing a network of hunters and experts to reach out to with questions or for advice. This was exactly what I had been missing prior to attending this event. I now had the confidence and tools to get out into the woods and start putting my plans into action.

Since attending my first Learn to Hunt clinic, I have attended almost every variety offered. The Deer Processing clinic was a real game changer for me. Not only did I learn how to properly field dress, skin, debone and package a full deer but the class allowed me to have a complete connection to the animal that I am providing to my family. I harvested my first deer two days before attending this class and, because admittedly I had no clue as to what I was doing, I took it to the local meat processor for basic cuts, burger and some jalapeno cheddar sticks. While field dressing my first deer and fumbling around with a tool some guy sold me on at the local sporting goods store, I quickly realized that videos just don’t do this process justice. The day after taking the class I harvested my second deer. Field dressing this deer was much easier, and I processed everything in my garage with the help of my two hungry dogs and wife.

The success of my first two deer was incredibly rewarding, but I feel like I should back up just a little bit. Up until that perfect November rut day, I had hunted before work, after work and every weekend. I missed my first opportunity on a young deer and shot an oak tree instead. I spooked many deer on the way in to hunting spots and going out. I went over every mistake I had made in my head and kept a journal that described what had happened and what I should have done differently. I’m not sure if the mental torture that I was putting myself through mattered, but I like to think it did. My goal with anything new is to improve at it each day. During my second deer season I continued working towards this goal. I made more mistakes this last season but I squeaked by with some meat in my freezer. The biggest takeaway from this last season was that I needed to slow down and remember to enjoy the process of hunting rather than overthinking every detail. Sometimes we make things out to be bigger deals than they really are. I think this is partly due to how long the off-season is for deer hunting.

This off-season I tried waterfowl hunting for the first time and found that I loved it. We didn’t bring home any geese, but it was a memorable experience, nonetheless. We spent what seemed like hours breaking ice to create a hole to attract geese as they flew overhead. We had a couple of flocks turn to our calls, but upon closer inspection they decided not to commit. We half-joked about shooting some crow for dinner instead.

I also gave pheasant hunting a try this year with a mentor setup through the Learn to Hunt network. Other than a couple of phone calls with my mentor I had no idea what to expect. He helped me decide what choke to use and what size shot to buy. I patterned my gun a couple times, too, just to make sure my equipment was good to go. We hunted at Des Plaines State Fish and Wildlife Area (Will County), and I think we tracked 7 or 8 miles on foot. The German Shorthair probably covered three to four times as much ground. I was amazed than not only was this dog athletic, intelligent and obedient but there was a level of synergy that I’m not sure I can adequately explain. Since this first experience, I have hunted with the same mentor and dog three more times. Each time out I have been more amazed. I recently convinced my wife that we need a hunting dog; this will be the newest chapter in my hunting journey. We will be picking up a puppy this May.

I’m a DIY kind of person, but the hands-on learning and social connection at these events has been invaluable to my journey into the hunting and conservation world. I’m not saying that the videos I’ve watched or the books I’ve read were not helpful learning tools because I still use them. But without making actual social connections at Learn to Hunt workshops, I don’t think I would have succeeded at hunting. Every time I got discouraged or made a mistake, I had someone to bounce ideas off and ask for their experiences and advice. Having access to mentors and knowing how to find them was critical to my early success. It didn’t prevent me from making mistakes, but it did make it easier to bounce back up and learn from them.

---

Aaron Miller lives in central Illinois and started hunting during the 2018-2019 season with the goal of providing sustainable protein for his family. Since then he’s included his wife, dog and friends on hunts as well. With everything that is currently going on in the world, he’ll be entering this 2020-2021 season with a higher sense of appreciation for our public lands and abundance of natural resources than ever before.