Larry Eckart
Well-known member
Guys,
I saw a few posts about getting older and how it affects our hunting. Bifocals. Trying to back up a trailer when your body won’t let you twist like you used to.
How has aging has changed how you hunt? I don’t consider myself “old” at 63 but I certainly am not as flexible as I used to be or have the endurance I had when I was 50.
I notice my age when I try to throw my kayak up on my truck rack. The kayak isn’t heavy. But there is no place to grab it like my canoe. So I find myself struggling to get the kayak up on the rack and feel embarrassed that I can’t do that by myself without straining. I find myself preferring to use my 13’ canoe since it is easier to grab and throw over my head.
I notice my age when picking up something that has weight and feeling a pull in my elbow that didn’t use to be there.
I notice my age when fishing in my boat for the day. Pulling up the anchor, reaching for a rod, and throwing a cast net all use different motions than I use on normal days. And the next day my body is sore but my mind is happy!
I notice my age when I read my hunting journals from 20 years ago about crazy things I did back when. Like sleeping in my MLB Wigeon overnight in Lake St. Clair on the Canadian side. It sounds thrilling or romantic to sleep inside your boat. Isn’t that what Nathaniel Bishop did when he spent four months in a Barnegat Sneakbox floating down the Ohio River? If Bishop could spend four months in a Sneakbox surely I would enjoy doing it for one night! What I remember most is how LOUD waves are inside the hull and how LOUD mallards drakes quack at night and how LITTLE I slept. I’m glad I did it then. I’d never do it now.
On the other hand, aging brings an accumulation of knowledge, usually from past mistakes. Last year I took a young guy out diver hunting using long lines. He had only puddle duck hunted previously. I was surprised to hear him say several times, “oh that’s how you do that.” It dawned on me that there is a large bank of knowledge accumulated over the years in each of us.
But in spite of that accumulation of knowledge, I still relish the opportunity to learn new things about the marsh, the birds, the hunt and about myself. In that frame of mind, maybe we aren’t old at all!!
How has aging affected how you hunt?
Larry
I saw a few posts about getting older and how it affects our hunting. Bifocals. Trying to back up a trailer when your body won’t let you twist like you used to.
How has aging has changed how you hunt? I don’t consider myself “old” at 63 but I certainly am not as flexible as I used to be or have the endurance I had when I was 50.
I notice my age when I try to throw my kayak up on my truck rack. The kayak isn’t heavy. But there is no place to grab it like my canoe. So I find myself struggling to get the kayak up on the rack and feel embarrassed that I can’t do that by myself without straining. I find myself preferring to use my 13’ canoe since it is easier to grab and throw over my head.
I notice my age when picking up something that has weight and feeling a pull in my elbow that didn’t use to be there.
I notice my age when fishing in my boat for the day. Pulling up the anchor, reaching for a rod, and throwing a cast net all use different motions than I use on normal days. And the next day my body is sore but my mind is happy!
I notice my age when I read my hunting journals from 20 years ago about crazy things I did back when. Like sleeping in my MLB Wigeon overnight in Lake St. Clair on the Canadian side. It sounds thrilling or romantic to sleep inside your boat. Isn’t that what Nathaniel Bishop did when he spent four months in a Barnegat Sneakbox floating down the Ohio River? If Bishop could spend four months in a Sneakbox surely I would enjoy doing it for one night! What I remember most is how LOUD waves are inside the hull and how LOUD mallards drakes quack at night and how LITTLE I slept. I’m glad I did it then. I’d never do it now.
On the other hand, aging brings an accumulation of knowledge, usually from past mistakes. Last year I took a young guy out diver hunting using long lines. He had only puddle duck hunted previously. I was surprised to hear him say several times, “oh that’s how you do that.” It dawned on me that there is a large bank of knowledge accumulated over the years in each of us.
But in spite of that accumulation of knowledge, I still relish the opportunity to learn new things about the marsh, the birds, the hunt and about myself. In that frame of mind, maybe we aren’t old at all!!
How has aging affected how you hunt?
Larry