learning to hunt.

Man I wish I were still in Utah and able to help you out. First off good luck, I hope something works out for you! This is a great opportunity to bond with your son (not to mention be able to relax and enjoy your life) more than you could have ever imagined [As i'm sure you know though]. As far as helping you out with what I can do though, All I can say is there are books and movies out there you can buy (they pretty much sell them everywhere. Sportsmans, Cabelas, etc...) But I imagine it will still be a little confusing until you actually do it yourself for once (and once you've actually done it you realise that it's actually really easy.... and kind of fun even though that probably sounds pretty weird, haha. But it's definately work that I enjoy)

I have never heard of any actual 'classes' on hunting, But i'll keep my ears open - hopefully your friends come through and take you out.

Lets do this, everyone who posts has to give at least 1 tip. Here's mine;

Wind: As far as camoflague and what to wear, there is nothing more important than the wind, regardless of what you're wearing. Always do the best you can to stay moving into the wind.

hopefully enough people participate and you get some good info. There's definately enough knowledgable people here on this board. If not i'll chime in with another little basic tip.

Good luck and keep in touch!

I guess I'll cover the after kill process. I learned just by doin' it so I'm sure somebody will have an alternative to my method but here we go anyway. After the shot you need to evaluate where you think you hit. This will determine how long you should wait until you go to recover your game. If you feel you mad a good shot in the vitals I'd suggest waiting at least an hour if you want to be safe. If you think you made a bad shot like a shoulder or a gut shot, it's best to just pull back and wait it out. Give it a few hours before you go in to look for your animal so you don't jump them up and run them off. Just let em' bleed out. I've heard stories of mulies here in Arizona jumping up after being shot by hunters that didn't give the animal time to expire and they run to the next county. Figure of speech of course but they will run until they drop. Once you find your animal the fun begins.
You are gunna want a few sharp knives and a sharpener never hurts the process. Also, you are gunna want to get this part done as fast as possible because the longer you wait the harder it gets. I personally start my cleaning process at the chest. You want to try to have the animals head facing up hill if possible so all the blood and stuff can run out of the bottom of the animal. Some people like to start at the testicles or that general area and work up to the chest but I go the other way. Find the breastplate and pinch the skin you you can pull it from the body. Make a cut through the skin so you can poke two fingers into the hole itself. With a sharp knife, cut all the way down to the testicles staying to one side of the penis. I keep my fingers in the animal to keep the tip of my knife from hitting any internal organs because it can spoil your meat. Once you get to the ol testies go ahead and just cut them off and toss em out unless you ear rocky mountain oisters. YUM! Next on my list is the anus. Pretty gross if you don't have a Butt Out tool. Basically you have to cut out the hole without cutting the actual anal tract. Pretty simple but I don't enjoy it. Once I have the anus removed I go ahead and split the bone between their legs. I think it's just cartilage but I'm not sure. This will enable you to spread the legs wider making it easier to climb in. Now all you gotta do is run you hand on the inside of the body cavity to break everything free. Start pulling out organs but be careful not to puncture or tear them. Also, you have to be careful of what I know as the "piss sack". I think it's just the bladder. Don't pop it. Once you have removed intestines, lungs, heart, etc., reach way up into the neck and cut the windpipe as far up as you can. This will allow for everything else to fall out. Go along one side of the breastplate with a knife and rock or a hatchet to open the chest up. Make cuts all the way down the legs on the inside so you can remove the skin. Hang him upside down from his gambrels (?) and start pulling the skin away from the animal using you knife for assistance if needed. That's pretty much it for the cleaning process. If you want to quarter the animal just cut through the spine leaving one rib on the bottom half of the animal. Then cut the length of the animal through or to one side of the spine and he's quartered.
Sorry it's such a long response but it's a dirty process. There are lots of variables but unless you cut intestines it's pretty hard to screw up. You'll get better as you do it more of course. Hope this helps.

NEXT!

Always liked look at pictures also. Hope these links work for you.

Some different methods with pictures

http://www.huntingnut.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=27

http://www.surviveoutdoors.com/reference/fielddress.asp

Best one I think. On a elk.

http://home.att.net/~sajackson/guttless1.html

You said you relied on others to take you out. Now you know where to go so just go. Spend time observing if nothing else. It doesn't need to be hunting season to go look and learn about the animals and the terrain. My tip is to get a good pair of 10x50 or 10x40 binoculars and learn to use them. If you don't have lots of cash save the money. They'll last a lifetime. Cheap glasses won't be clear enough to find what you're looking for and will give you headaches.
Good luck.
Mark

maybe you should shoot PRO a PM and ask about "Gutless Butchering". I used this method this year to process 2 elk and its by far alot easier, and less messy...I'm not great at explaining on here how to do this, but I think PRO has a nice link that shows you in detail how to do it.

My hint is: Get very comfortable with your weapon(s). Don't just shoot 2-3 weeks before the hunting season...Get out and shoot all year long and in every possible condition...toy will be ready for that shot when it comes. Not to metion, spend some wonderful time in the woods with that great boy of yours.

My advice would be..... Keeping yourself Mentally and physically fit, and most of all PRACTICE, PRACTICE, and PRACTICE some more.

Keep yourself in shape will pay off many times when you have to change your stock because of a change in the wind! Or you get an animal on the ground, that's when the work really begins even with two people its alot of work.

There are several archery shops around town that are open to the public for leagues or just to shoot. Leagues are great place to meet other with the same drive and addiction, this is were you can get alot of information on hunting. You and your son could join as a team and have a great time!

PM me and we will hook up and go shooting some night after work.

Sweet And thanks to everyone for the help. We are so looking forward to the hunt this year Me and my family all shoot togeather every saturday and plan on joining DATUS archery club and the timpanogos archery club. but on saturdays you can usually find us at Jakes and I am going to print a copy of everyones advice to take with me on the hunt and get a copy to my son thanks again every one I appreciate all the time yall take to help out a rook.

Pm me. I hunt the northern region and do not mind taking people out with me. I can usually get you where deer are Elk are a little harder. but my boy had plenty of chances on archery and finally connected on Muzzy I would be glad to show you how to clean a deer, track your game, the rhino’s are a great idea I have them myself.

PRACTICE!!!!
As stated above practice as much as you can. Physical shape. Get out there and glass and you will pick it up. Most importantly spend your time at the range...You don't want to miss. It will happen and its one of the worst feelings ever.

i remember when i was 14. it wasnt too long ago. 10 years to be exact. when your that age your not overly concerned with mass and fork depth and makin sure their wider then the ears before squezing the trigger. your not too sure what your after you just know it involves a gun and a large game animal =D> . if i were to give my two cents id say just focus on heavy trails where you know game are going to travel in the morning and night. ( water, and if possible alfalfa fields). i remember my dad not being too knowledgeble about the area we first hunted but me being so young most of the ranchers we talked to were more than willing to give us some pointers about when and where game would travel. imo any camo is good as long as it doesnt reflect light. call me crazy but thats how i judge my camo if it reflects light at the store it will darn sure reflect sun light. hope i could help a bit im still quite the novice myself.

p.s. the classes your lookin for on hunting exist in the wilderness. at sunrise and sunset :)

First off, just have fun with your son! My dad was the one that got me started on this addiction and i can never thank him enough for it! The best experiences ive had with my dad have been hunting, im sure your son will feel the same way. Im excited to have kids of my own to take hunting and fishing. Youre in a good spot so soak it up and make the most of it! Second, theres no such thing as failure in hunting. (unless you just dont go) There will be days of scouting where you wont see anything or some years you might finish off the season with a nice hot bowl of tag soup but every time you hit the woods theres something to be learned, take notes of your trips and dont give up or get lazy! You might be tired but who knows maybe just over the next ridge the buck or bull of a lifetime is waiting for you! Have fun out there! :thumb

Archer11 - Well said!!! :thumb