Hunting: The Instant Connection

By Will Bowen | PUBLISHED November 15th, 2023

There are very few ventures in this life where two people can connect so quickly and so deeply. Yes, people in the coffee shop will talk about their hobbies and adventures but very few will have a conversation like two hunters will. How many times have you been in the shop waiting for your oil change and strike up a conversation with the guy with the camo jacket? Or how many times have you been at a wedding reception and spent more time talking to a newly-acquainted hunter than your own spouse? I’ve found myself in this situation countless times. 

The conversation starts simple: you like to hunt? Had any luck this year? And then within ten minutes phones are out with trail camera pictures and harvest pictures exchanging at rapid pace. I’ll call it the “Instant Hunting Buddy Phenomenon.” Every year this becomes more and more evident to me and seem to consistently ring true. 

One of my best examples of this happened just earlier this season. A buddy and myself were camping in Oklahoma enjoying a few days of public land deer hunting. It was obvious that we were the only ones hunting in the camp considering that our little pop-up camper looked like a tin can compared to the other campers in the area. I imagine most of them to be retired travelers and families. So besides each other, we had no one to talk to. 

A few days later another truck rolled into the camping area. He was obviously a hunter considering the all-terrain tires, camper shell, and fishing brand decals on the back glass. A day went by and we decided to approach the guy to see if he had been having any luck. A friendly greeting turned into an hour-long hunting conversation. It’s like we had known each other forever. After the evening hunt, he joined us in camp for a deer steak and fried potatoes and the next morning we even helped him drag a deer out. 

An encounter like this isn’t rare for hunters. The outdoors is a commonality that we all share and it binds us together. There is a lot of toxicity in hunting now due to social media and just overall bad attitudes, and we don’t need to let it take over the good that hunting brings us. This season I challenge everyone reading this to shed the ego and shed the disdain for others that don’t do it exactly like you. You’ll be much happier because of it!

Hunting is the great connection. It has been since the beginning of time. We should use this connection for the betterment of the lifestyle and make it more attractive for those that want to join.