NM34R
Member
Newbie here in NM Unit 34. New to forums and hunting. Lurking for the last couple of months and am amazed at the knowledge and experiences of the members here. Hopefully I will have the time to get there.
Grew up in the Kansas City area, always wanted to hunt and liked the outdoors but was generally just a visitor for day hikes, mountain biking, sightseeing …. With encouragement from a friend, in 2013 at the age of 45 an hour before the NM deadline, I submitted my first application for deer and cow elk. I didn’t own a single item for hunting including a rifle but figured I would cross that bridge if I was drawn. I drew both. Oh s#!*! After struggling through deer season alone, then killing an elk with some help, I was hooked. Now I wish I wouldn’t have waited so long to take the plunge. Why did I wait so long?
It wasn’t an option growing up. My dad taught me how to shoot but never made it to the hunting part, he died in a hunting accident when I was 5, guns or hunting were no longer an option. I didn’t shoot a gun again until I joined the USAF 14 years later.
Life! Trying to make ends meet when you are 17 with a pregnant girlfriend in high school. Eventually joined the USAF and spent the better part of my 24 year career overseas in Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Italy, Germany and Afghanistan. Final assignment was to Holloman AFB, NM in 2006. I loved the mountains, wife liked the lack of winters, so we stayed.
Maybe the biggest reason. Where to start? The questions are endless. Going into my fourth season and I still have millions of unanswered questions and that’s how I ended up here, lurking, trying to figure out how to become a hunter instead of a person that enjoys long walks in the woods with a rifle.
I may have over shared but I believe there are thousands of others out there like me that are just waiting for the nudge/invite to start hunting. I talked to many hunters over the years but none that seemed to want to take a new guy out. I now know that it’s not as simple as “sure come hunting with me next week” so now I try to assist, and encourage where I can.
If anybody is coming to NM unit 34 get in touch. I may not have much hunting knowledge but I may be able to help with area info.
Thanks for the shared knowledge,
Rod
Grew up in the Kansas City area, always wanted to hunt and liked the outdoors but was generally just a visitor for day hikes, mountain biking, sightseeing …. With encouragement from a friend, in 2013 at the age of 45 an hour before the NM deadline, I submitted my first application for deer and cow elk. I didn’t own a single item for hunting including a rifle but figured I would cross that bridge if I was drawn. I drew both. Oh s#!*! After struggling through deer season alone, then killing an elk with some help, I was hooked. Now I wish I wouldn’t have waited so long to take the plunge. Why did I wait so long?
It wasn’t an option growing up. My dad taught me how to shoot but never made it to the hunting part, he died in a hunting accident when I was 5, guns or hunting were no longer an option. I didn’t shoot a gun again until I joined the USAF 14 years later.
Life! Trying to make ends meet when you are 17 with a pregnant girlfriend in high school. Eventually joined the USAF and spent the better part of my 24 year career overseas in Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Italy, Germany and Afghanistan. Final assignment was to Holloman AFB, NM in 2006. I loved the mountains, wife liked the lack of winters, so we stayed.
Maybe the biggest reason. Where to start? The questions are endless. Going into my fourth season and I still have millions of unanswered questions and that’s how I ended up here, lurking, trying to figure out how to become a hunter instead of a person that enjoys long walks in the woods with a rifle.
I may have over shared but I believe there are thousands of others out there like me that are just waiting for the nudge/invite to start hunting. I talked to many hunters over the years but none that seemed to want to take a new guy out. I now know that it’s not as simple as “sure come hunting with me next week” so now I try to assist, and encourage where I can.
If anybody is coming to NM unit 34 get in touch. I may not have much hunting knowledge but I may be able to help with area info.
Thanks for the shared knowledge,
Rod
