Fast Woman's First Hunt

I originally wrote this article for ‘Poke and Stroke” the Colorado State Muzzle Loading Association’s monthly magazine in June 1995.

There are certain myths surrounding hunting and shooting that keep some women from enjoying those two sports. Myth one: “Hunting is just for men.” Myth two: “ A man won’t find a woman appealing if she hunts.” Myth three: “Hunting, since it’s a man sport, will rob a woman of her femininity.” Myth four: “Men feel threatened by a woman who hunts.”
I bought into these myths but I proved for myself once and for all that the myths are totally without merit. I found all these myths to be totally untrue this past hunting season when I shot my first deer with a black powder rifle.
Married to an avid hunter for almost 22 years, I have accompanied him on many hunts. I began going with my husband on hunting trips because it was a good way to spend time with him away from the pressures of business, family, city life and the stress that goes with all this. I continued going with him because I loved being out in the wild and seeing animals in their natural habitat. I’m not a passive spectator to any degree so I took part in all aspects of the hunting trips except shooting the animal. I’ve worn a pack and carried a rifle and walked many many miles in search of game. I’ve been beside my husband and watched him shoot deer, elk, bear antelope, birds or what ever my husband was hunting at the time. He encouraged me to go hunting with him by buying me hunting licenses and gently nudged me to shoot too. I always had an excuse for not shooting. But I had two very specific reasons for not shooting that I admitted only to myself.
The first reason I had was that I thought I’d flinch at the last minute and only wound an animal. I knew I could not live with the thought of being responsible for any animal’s pain or needless suffering. This problem was solved fairly easily. To avoid merely wounding an animal I practiced shooting my black powder rifle as much as possible. I joined black powder shooting club in my area. These clubs have monthly shoots and I attended as many of these shoots as my scheduled allowed. I also went to the shooting range to test my skills and my rifles accuracy between club shoots. In addition I talked to other black powder shooters to learn any shooting tips that would increase my own accuracy. In, short I did everything possible to become an accurate shooter.
My second excuse for not shooting was not so easy to overcome. I am extremely squeamish regarding cleaning and gutting an animal. I’d been along on enough hunts to know that the person who shoots an animal was the person responsible to clean the animal. This was a problem that I could not learn to change no matter how hard I tried. It hadn’t changed in the 22 years I’d been with my husband. But I accepted and respected this rule. I did not want or expect to be exempt from this unwritten rule and resigned myself to the reality that I was to be a spectator not a hunter.
My husband kept nudging me to join the hunt as a hunter; He knew I could hit a target. He’d seen me shoot at black powder events and he knew I was a decent shot. He couldn’t understand my reluctance to hunt. I finally confessed to him about my reluctance to shoot because I knew I couldn’t clean the animal I shot. Bless his heart! He said that if that was all that was keeping me from hunting he’d clean the animal for me. It’s a compromise that I deeply appreciate. His understand of me as a person removed one barrier to my becoming a shooting hunter.
One small barrier remained, but it’s the common one that every hunter faces, man or woman. Could I look in the eyes of a beautiful wild animal, pull the trigger and end the life of that animal? Did I have that in me?
The first season after my husband agreed to clean my animals for me I struggled with this question. I had a tag for a buck deer. My husband and I hunted for white tail during the black powder season and during the hunt I had ample time to think about whether I could shoot an animal. At times I’d pray I wouldn’t see a shootable animal just so I wouldn’t have to face the question. At times I was anxious to see a buck so that all my hard work would pay off. I never did see a buck that season so I was off the hook.
In 1995 I drew a doe tag. My husband did not have a tag so he was at my side to help me through this momentous occasion. My hunt was successful. I saw a doe, I steadied myself and raised my rifle as I had practiced, aimed at my target, said a small prayer that I wouldn’t miss and shot. I hit my target, this time a beautiful deer instead of apiece of paper or metal. How did I feel? Exhilarated! I had practiced and trained for the experience. I used my skill as a marksman and successfully shot a deer. I didn’t feel guilty or ashamed for killing the deer. Instead I thought I was doing something that fit in with the natural scheme of things. Men have been hunting as a means of survival or sport since time began. I was simply taking my place as a hunter. I knew that the animal I had killed would be well used. The offal would feed wild animals. My family and friends would eat the delicious meat. I planned on using the hide to make brain tanned leather for clothing and other objects. Some of the hair went to my nephew for tying fishing lures. The deer I had killed had filled its place in a natural order of life.
So what has my hunting experience done to dispel the myths mentioned earlier? Hunting and shooting are not just sports that men enjoy. Women, properly prepared can enjoy them as much as men. What’s more, men and women can enjoy these sports even more by sharing the experience. I haven’t lost my appeal to my husband since I hunted. Just the opposite. He wants me to go with him on every hunt now. Hunting has not robbed me of my femininity because it has nothing to do with femininity.
The final myth destroyed is the one that says men would feel threatened by a woman who hunts. Again, just the opposite happened. Men who never talked to me about hunting before now include me in their conversation when it turns to hunting. My husband is so proud of me he almost explodes when he tells anyone the story of me shooting my first deer. And the best evidence that women who hunt aren’t a threat to men came when my husband was away hunting during second season for elk. His male hunting buddy and I stayed behind because of our jobs. I had a second deer license and my husband’s buddy had not gotten his deer first season. He still had the desire to be out in the woods but he didn’t have a license. I did. So on Sunday my husband’s buddy asked me to go hunting with him. I felt like I had truly taken my place as a hunter.