Youth Fall Outdoor Opportunities

It’s strange; when a mountain man finally gets to a level in his outdoor knowledge to really start racking up the impressive harvests, catches, and numbers while hunting, fishing, and trapping, his goals seem to change a little. Don’t get me wrong, we still love to pursue our passion, but we begin to see the importance of passing it on to the young’uns and we devote considerable time that previously would’ve been given to the relentless pursuit of our quarry. As I’ve matured in the great outdoors I’ve watched outdoor mentors, many who are at the top of their game and masters at their craft, shift from personal outdoor production to passing the heritage on to a child. This is truly the most sincere form of devotion to the Creator’s great outdoors.

Young’uns love to fish. Alex Stephens during the cool season on the Current River.

In Missouri this fall the opportunities are around every bend to take a child to the woods and water. After the Labor Day holiday the waterways around the state experience drastic reductions in recreational boaters. As the traffic slows and the temperatures cool down the opportunities crank up on the water for great fishing action. Nothing is more rewarding than taking a child camping and fishing in the cool Missouri fall weather. Take your pick – the Piney, Current, Gasconade, Jacks Fork, Osage, White, James and many others. The fisheries are great and the species are many. It’s the opportunity to create a memory for life for both you and a child while developing a torch carrier for our outdoor heritage.

Thirty-one days of fall turkey hunting makes for more chances to get a child in the woods than there are excuses to not take them. You don’t have to get up early, it’s not too cold or hot, and you can harvest either sex and you’ve got over 4 full weeks to get out there. With a ground blind and mastery of the kee kee call, a shot at a young turkey is almost a given. You want to get as excited about harvesting a turkey as you were the first time you pulled a trigger on one? Then sit next to a kid while they shoot their first bird. Every muscle in your body will go rigid, your heart rate will race, your breathing will quicken, and you’ll find your trigger finger going into spasms playing ‘air shotgun’ as the birds walk back and forth in front of the young hunter. And after the youngster harvests the bird you’ll play air guitar like Ted Nugent in celebration!

A boy hunting with dad is a happy boy. Greg and Alex Stephens, deer season 2001.

Deer hunting, including youth firearms, regular firearms, muzzleloader, and archery, provides for 4 months of hunting opportunities. Youth season this year is October 30 & 31 and January 1 & 2. These two seasons are the best opportunities to take a child to harvest a deer in the outdoors. Early youth season occurs just as the rut really gets heated up so scoring a great trophy is a real possibility. Again, an old mountain man will find his trigger finger playing ‘air rifle’ trying to pull the imaginary trigger as the deer cross in front of your young protégé’s rifle. However, after you watch a child harvest his first deer you’ll find a new passion even more intense than harvesting your own trophy deer. Seeing a kid take a deer is one of the most gratifying outdoor experiences of which I’ve personally ever been a part. This experience will definitely produce a lifelong memory.

Learning the in-depth, intricate details of the ways of wildlife in the Great Outdoors. Alex Stephens during trapping season.

Finally, fall trapping season, in one fashion or another, provides 4½ months of outdoor opportunity. All furbearers may be pursued from November 15 through January 31, 2011. Beaver can be taken all the way through March 31, 2011. Kids are fascinated to learn the methods and techniques for setting traps for the various species pursued. Trapping provides in-depth woodsmen skills for a budding outdoorsman. Track and scat identification, as well as identification of species specific habits and habitat provide for a much deeper understanding of the inner workings of Nature’s economy. There is absolutely nothing in the outdoors that provides a sense of pride and accomplishment more than looking at a fur shed with freshly stretched furs lining the ceiling. There’s also not a better way to teach a child that the outdoor pursuits, when done properly, are hard work and worth every ounce of effort. You want to see young kids go ape? Give them strips of tanned wild fur and they will be fascinated with the strips for weeks.

All of these opportunities to take young’uns to the woods are great opportunities to develop a relationship with a child while developing a new ambassador for the outdoors pursuits. This fall do yourself a favor and pass on some of that outdoor expertise. You’ll give a kid a passion for a lifetime. A wise person said, “Kids who hunt, fish, and trap don’t mug little old ladies.” That roughly equates to: If a parent devotes enough time to a child to teach them the outdoor pursuits there will be a firm foundation for a functional life within both society and the Great Outdoors. I hope you take that idea to heart. Start this fall. So says the One-Eyed Hillbilly.

Greg Stephens is a 35-year veteran & life-time student of the great outdoors. His column appears weekly in print & online publications. You can email him at gregstephens@one-eyedhillbilly.com. For more columns go to www.one-eyedhillbilly.blogspot.com.