I am proud to say that I have a son that enjoys the outdoors as much as me when he get’s the chance. The enjoyment on a child’s face as they take their first deer,turkey,or even that first fish from a pond or a creek. That first gobble they hear from a mature turkey early one spring morning. Just you and them walking side by side through the dark before sunup going to a special shooting house.
Think about life and the way you can change it for someone else other than yourself. Taking a kid fishing or hunting could be a reward for you as much as it would be to them. Me and my son have had a lot of chances to go out on an evening hunt.
There are a few things you may have to do different when taking a kid to the wood’s or on the water. Make sure that when you take them make it the best fun that you can make it for them.Take a book for them to read or even something like a small hand held game. I’m a grown adult and even with me I get bored sometimes when sitting in a stand so I carry me a game boy or a small pocket game.
I suggest that you try to make the child as comfortable as possible so they will want to sit there longer. When deer hunting take them to a comfortable shooting house and put a good chair in it so they will be able to sit high enough up to see the green field. I suggest taking some type of cover in case they get cold and maybe even a pillow if they get tired. By doing these things they will enjoy it more often than none.
I take a video camera and binoculars with my son so that he may look through them or even want to try hand at filming. A grunt call will always keep their mind in order if you just let them blow on it from time to time. Always tell them that they stand a very good chance of seeing a deer or other wildlife when they go. Let them know that by sitting in front of an Xbox or a playstation will not allow them to see deer from in front of a TV.
Another way that I can keep my son from wanting to leave to early is I carry a compact DVD player with a built in screen and have a few Monster bucks or Truth DVD’s on hand. He really enjoys watching the hunting video’s at home so why not let him watch them in a shooting house.
Make sure of one thing that they are always warm if it is cold and cool if it’s a little warm. Always remember that the kids of today are our future of tomorrow and they will be the deciding factor of our future hunting and fishing generation to come. So the next time you take a trip to the field,wood’s or even on water take a kid along with you and change the way they look at life.