How many under 18 years old?

California, despite all the other crap, has long had a great program for special youth hunts, but over the years it seems that it is just the sons/daughters of hunters who would have hunted anyway taking advantage of the opportunity. God bless 'em. But most of the photos you see are of 16 year olds with good gear and guns and a strap of good ducks.... not some first timer. The public refuge system has become so complex and crowded that it turns many off.

Here in France you rarely see young kids hunting and they are almost always kids of avid hunters, still the numbers go down due to cost and time/interest.

For me it is a losing battle due to culture/internet/school teaching. My parents didn't hunt but they had no problem with me getting into it at 16 out of my own interest. In 1975 there wasn't any anti-hunting pressure, that I felt at least, and it was easy to buy stuff. Not like that now.

Pete

See alot more deer hunters this rifle season compared to the last 10 years.

In states like Idaho the only revenue fish and game receives is license sales and federal taxes. The legislature won't provide any money but wants to micromanage all they do. We pay big ranchers and farmers for animal damage but they won't allow hunting on their property. I think a main reason for declining hunter numbers is lack of access close to town. People keep subdividing and building houses and kids have no way to get to where they can hunt. When I was seven I was walking out the back door with a .22 and grouse hunting in five minutes. My parents would be arrested now. One of the other big problems is the animal rights groups and them suing fish and game every time they don't get their way. What little money fish and game has is used on lawyers. Improve access and get a kid started and I think hunting,fishing and trapping numbers will improve.

We have about 85% of the States moose Youth hunts in our 10,000 square miles of Alaska. Hunting here should ruin them for hunting.

There are you tube videos showing two Texas billionaires brothers named Wilks purchasing thousands of acres of land in the Boise area and then gating off the public Forest Service Roads going through these lands. How can this be legal? If it is, somehow this must stop. Another reason I believe Fish and Game agencies shouldn’t enforce no trespassing laws.

NO public land should be land lock from the public use!

Hunting and fishing numbers THIS past pandemic year were insane in northern MN.

https://www.hcn.org/articles/no-ted-cruz-westerners-should-not-follow-in-texas-footsteps

According to some, 2% public land is too much! I tend to disagree. I realize public and private ownership both have pros and cons for some obvious and also not so obvious reasons depending on your perspective.

Check out the podcast I wrote about in a post a few days back. A big focus on this was access to public lands.

https://trapperman.com/forum/ubbthr...plicable-to-nearly-all-of-us#Post7136688

Happy trapping! ScottW