Sherri’s Hunting Story

The reason I originally started hunting was to be able to tag along with my Dad and my brother James. I was never a fan of being indoors much, I actually remember getting in trouble and the punishment was that I had to stay inside for the day! I would have definitely been classed as a tomboy. Growing up on a farm, it wasn’t easy for James and I to have friends over, or to just go to a friends house for the afternoon. Even though we didn’t always get along, at the end of the day we didn’t really have a choice! I’m sure that he didn’t always appreciate my “choice” of hobbies which more often than not, were an imitation of his hobbies. (I’m sure that was a coincidence though) From sports card collecting, to getting a dirt bike, and even wearing his hand-me-downs, I guess you could say that I looked up to my big brother even though there were days when I wished I was an only child! Being able to be “with the boys” never struck me as an odd thing to do, it was just what I did because that’s what I grew up knowing!

When I started going on the annual hunting trips with the guys, I was pretty much a glorified bush pusher. I didn’t mind though because I will admit that there was a time when that gun I carried was more of a prop than a weapon. I always had pets growing up, and was an avid animal lover as a little girl. The thought of actually shooting a deer was more of just that, “a thought” more than it was a goal for me. The first time I was presented with an opportunity to shoot a deer, I was all by myself because the guys had gone to load up a deer that James had shot. I was wandering through brush openings looking for antler sheds when I looked up and standing 30 yards away, was a mule deer doe. I raised the .270 that my Dad was letting me use and aimed right behind her front leg just like Dad always said, I pulled the trigger and saw her jump into the air before I lost sight of her behind a bush.

I walked in the direction where the doe had gone and I found her almost immediately. She looked just like she was sleeping, it was a clean shot and I had gotten my very first deer! Looking back, I think if I hadn’t made a good shot and the doe had suffered, or been alive when I walked up to her, it would have impacted me very differently. I’m not saying that I’ve always had the best kill shots or that I’ve never wounded an animal. I’m saying that for a young girl to be on the fence about persuing a hobby; that day was probably the most influential day in my hunting life.

Hunting has taught me success – such as the story above, and many other great days that I remember because of hunting trips
Hunting has taught me failure – there are days that even when you think you made a good shot, you don’t find your animal.
Hunting has taught me patience – I’ve waited in hunting blinds for 12-16 hours at a time waiting for the right animal to come along
Hunting has taught me respect – Not only for the animals I hunt, but for landowners and fellow hunters alike.
Hunting has taught me perserverance – If at first you don’t succeed, try try again
Hunting has also taken me places that I never would have gone had it not been for a hunting excursion. Those experiences and memories cannot be replaced.