How do I start hunting?

[danmdevries]

Really, I have no idea where to start.

I've got a bow, got it from an estate sale with intention to resell as it was $40 but decided to hang on to it. I haven't ever shot it, the only place I can shoot my guns is a small indoor range, don't have anywhere for a bow. I've got a .22 rifle and a handful of handguns, no shotgun.

I've got a cousin that hunts every season for every game, enters the lotteries for the limited access hunts around here in NWI etc, but he spends TONS of money every year doing it. He also has 50+ acres that he hunts but won't allow other hunters to use, including myself. My friend's father in law also owns a large amount of land about an hour south of me in IL but I don't want to deal with having to transport weapons over the border and I doubt he would let me hunt there either.

Are there areas where there's public hunting?

I'd like to do small game if I can use a .22 and possibly deer this winter if school isn't too much of a chore.

I live right on the border of IL/IN and Lake Michigan. This area is pretty urban and its rare to see much wildlife other than birds rabbits and squirrels. My family got excited that there was a skunk in the yard last spring. So needless to say I can't ask around for someone who owns property nearby to hunt the land. How do people find hunting spots?

For the license/tagging how does that work? Do you buy the license and it comes with a tag? Do you have to contact the DNR before you take an animal?

Lots of dumb questions, but I haven't got a clue. Mind you I'm the first in my family to own any firearm and other than that one cousin, I know nobody that hunts.

 

[MoparMan]

Go to DNR: DNR Home. Has all the info you want. As for as learning how to hunt. Watch some videos/tv. Have people you know take you out and teach you some things. Never go by yourself!

 

[Slab]

good questions.
starting off. a .22 works fine for rabbits and squirells. A shotgun just makes it easier, and for the guy that cant have more than one weapon, they can put a short home defense barrel on it, then a vent rib with shot for bunnies, and a slug barrel for deer.

for locations, it sounds like youll have to check out some DNR public hunting land.

Most of the seasons dont start till after mid oct, so you have plenty of time.

bow stuff takes more patience, as you have to get much closer to the game to be able to get a shot off. It is more work than some like, and others love the extra challenge.

just keep asking questions and answers will come.

 

[hps]

You need to decide what you wanna hunt, then go from there. I'd start small(squirrels,Rabbits) and if you like it move onto bigger game

 

[Mrmonte]

Infantrylife gave you solid info. Know the game regulations before you go into the field and dont hunt alone. 2 very important points.

Firearm safety is #1,

Get your cousin off his butt, most hunters would welcome the opportunity to introduce a new hunter to the sport.

Pick up a Field & Stream or Outdoor Life magazine, lots of good how to suff, especially for the novice. Read books specifically about hunting. Go to the library or bookstore and read everything you can get your hands on.

PM me your name and address, ill send you a free deer hunting dvd if you would like.

I truely hope that you get the chance to spend time in the woods this fall. I know that i would go crazy without it!

 

[El Cazador]

The DNR puts on Hunter Ed classes across the state, I'd recommend one. While basic, they hold a lot of info for someone starting out. I know there's some public areas up in your area. Ask at the DNR's offices at the areas for help and suggestions. Most every Conservation Officer I know is a willing fountain of information and help for people wanting to learn to hunt, or just be outdoors. Find an Isaak Walton club, or any conservation club, and join. Be up front that you want to learn, and 99% of those members will help. Ignore the other 1%, they are usually game hogs and small thinking people who don't like to share America's natural bounty. If you were closer to me, we'd take off and do some pre-season looking. The deer are in velvet, the young critters are all up and running about, and the young birds are fledging now. Pretty cool time to be out in the woods enjoying life.

 

[Timjoebillybob]

One thing about the DNR hunting education class, it is required to get a license for people born after Dec 31 1986.

DNR: Outdoor Education Schedule
Here is a link for class schedules.

 

[Greg.B]

This is my post from a thread a while back, but is pertinent to your questions. Many of the points have already been hit upon:

1. Hunter Education Course, regardless of your age or experience.

2. Find someone to go with you that's experienced and can teach you the basics of hunting.

3. Spend some time before deer season hunting small game (squirrels). Become familiar with the wildlife, how they react, etc. In other words, 'learn' the woods.

4. Pick up a good hunting related book/magazine and start reading about the animals you want to hunt.

5. Spend time talking to/learning from other hunters. Their knowledge will be very helpful to you.

6. Talk w/locals in the area you're going to hunt: landowners, postal and newspaper carriers, farmers, even DNR officers can be invaluable in narrowing down a specific area.

7. It may be tough, but you'll have a much safer and enjoyable experience if you can avoid the public areas and find some private land to hunt.

8. Become intimately familiar with the firearm and ammo you'll be using. Know it's limits, and yours.

 

[42769vette]

good questions.
starting off. a .22 works fine for rabbits and squirells. A shotgun just makes it easier, and for the guy that cant have more than one weapon, they can put a short home defense barrel on it, then a vent rib with shot for bunnies, and a slug barrel for deer.

for locations, it sounds like youll have to check out some DNR public hunting land.

Most of the seasons dont start till after mid oct, so you have plenty of time.

bow stuff takes more patience, as you have to get much closer to the game to be able to get a shot off. It is more work than some like, and others love the extra challenge.

just keep asking questions and answers will come.

dead on.

 

[raiven]

the best way to get into huntinh from my experiance some one took me under his wing and started training me how to hunt spent 2 years doing this learning in public lands with a bow before i got a shotgun now i get a deer evry year on my own.

 

[Marc]

also game that is in season right now is coon. find someone with dogs and see if he can teach you. or find a friend or family member in indiana that has land with some woods and coon season will never end if they dont want them around. and remember it is illegal to discharge a firearm with 300ft of a occupied house other than your own. .22 cal is a great start, thats how i started.

 

[redneckmedic]

Never go by yourself!

 

[pgw0321321]

You've started out right, by ask questions.
So many times I meet people who go out, buy a shotgun, an orange hat, and it's off to the woods, that's very dangerous for you and others.
All good advice from the other replies, but the best is go with another experienced hunter a few times.

 

[danmdevries]

Wow, thanks for the replies. Last time I checked the thread there were only two.

I was working Sunday (neat story behind this jobsite I've been at for 5 years, I'll share it sometime - restoring a World's Fair house) with a friend of mine and we decided to take off early to do some fishing. While out fishing I mentioned that I wanted to find a place to shoot my bow and learn how to use the thing. He just happened to be looking into buying a bow to go out with his brother in law for deer season this fall. He's just as clueless as I, but looks like I've made one contact with 25 acres of private property less than an hour away.

I want to deer hunt. Small game could be fun, it'd let me use my 10/22 more than just at the range but I'm not looking to just shoot some animals just for the sake of shooting them, nor am I interested in eating rabbit or squirrel. A deer fits the bill as I enjoy venison. My first fulltime job was as a butchers assistant, I helped process many deer and got a couple cuts out of it for myself. I'm not much of a meat eater beyond chicken and fish but I do enjoy deer.

I've been talking to anyone and everyone that may have contacts for me to start into this, seems like everyone I've talked to knows somebody so this may pan out to be more doable than I've imagined. I've been interested in it for quite some time, but never really looked into it too much because I didn't know anybody who hunts and didn't have land to hunt. Now that I've been asking around seems everybody knows somebody that's got land or that hunts so I'm pretty excited.

And for the hunters safety course, I was born before the required date. I may take it anyway, we'll see. I have a feeling it's going to be one of those common sense instruction sessions. We'll see. It may not be able to happen this year, but I graduate with my second BS in May and will have to work two years before entering the MS program so I'm planning on fitting it in during that time.

 

[MoparMan]

Good, looks like some people will help you. Its nice to get new people into any sport. The Hunter Saftey Course is real basic, but you need it to get in any draw military/refuge hunt. Take a partner with you in the woods, its fun and safe in case something happens. In the tree, wear a safety harness, they work and are lifesavers.

 

[finity]

You can take the hunter education course online & then the test is also online for $12 if you pass it.

 

[wolfman]

Check out the DNR web site under fish and wildlife areas, there's several thousand acres of public hunting ground just SE of you in Newton, Jasper, and Pulaski Counties.