Completely Confused but Determined Newbie

0rca

New Member
Hey there everyone. Just a complete newbie here trying to figure out how to do this hunting thing.

I never had anyone to teach me how to hunt, don't know anyone who ever has, and don't generally meet anyone remotely interested in it here in metro Atlanta.

I'm in my mid thirties, work in video production (producing live broadcasts, vodcasts, short films, etc), and am a part-time adviser for a state university student media department. Needless to say, I don't meet a lot of avid hunters or outdoors-men in my line of work. Still, I love the outdoors and am stubbornly pushing forward head-first as I try to learn the outdoor skills that I feel like I should have already learned long ago.

I've taken a hunter safety course (in which they didn't really give much information, and passed everyone for free anyway) and done a lot of research online, but that's as far as I've gotten.

I'm working on my marksmanship now and hoping to go on my first hunt next year, probably around September of 2020. I'm interested in hunting Deer and Hog in the north Georgia WMA's (Chattahoochee, Swallow Creek, Warwoman, etc..), but the DNR websites make it so hard to learn if you don't already know what to look for. It all seems pretty overwhelming to figure out, and questions that are probably simple/obvious to you all seem almost impossible to answer for me. Embarrassingly, something as simple as where to leave my car while on a WMA is impossible to figure out (along with about a billion other questions), and it's frustrating me.

Still, I'm dedicated to figuring this thing out, and I hope you all will put up with my stupid questions while I go through the painful process of putting all these pieces together over the next year -_____-
 

j_seph

Senior Member
Welcome aboard, not poking at you at all but I have never really thought about the situation you are in when it was all just a part of growing up and life in general.
If you get your marksmanship down you do not have to wait till next year which may never come. You need the appropriate licenses for starters. Easiest thing is to purchase the sportsmans license. That will cover you and even give you fishing opportunities. Next find a WMA you are interested in, most of them have a check station which is where you go to sign in for your hunt and to check out your game you harvest if you get blessed. Most of these will have many gates and several that are locked except during a hunt. Go to this website and find the wma you are interested in, click it and you will see on the top right interactive maps. Next is plan you some days during the off season and go visit and do some walking, lots of walking looking for sign of deer and hogs. TIP the easier it is to get to walking the more chance you will have company come in walking. You just park on the side of the road in a wide area making sure there is enough room for other cars to drive through. If you pull into a road that has a gate on it, park to the side so that the gate or road is not blocked.

Also maybe even make another post on here seeking someone to mentor you and in exchange offer to help them on their private lease working in hopes of gaining hands on knowledge and an opportunity to be taken hunting on private land. Public land can be some good hunting however on private land your odds can be extremely higher. While you are getting into this I would also suggest one of these night vision hog hunts where everything is provided, all you have to do is show up and be ready to shoot. Also look in the feral hog and dogs section and try to get with someone to take you on a hog hunt with dogs. No marksmanship needed for that and again another chance to get hands on knowledge and time afield.
 

Batjack

Cap`n Jack 1313
Welcome to the campfire. You'll find lots of good folks in here with the info, when you ask. Good luck in both of your hunts...info and game.
 

0rca

New Member
Yeah, it's a weird situation to be in haha. I appreciate all the great advice. That helps out more than you could ever guess.

Part of why I'm taking it slow is because it's all so much at once. I've never owned or shot a firearm until a couple of weeks ago and I've never been camping either, so it's all a lot to take in and absorb.

Plus, I don't have a lot of spare money to put down on things like guided trips and whatnot (as much as I would love it) and don't get to leave the city super often. Maybe I'm being overly cautious or over-complicating things though.

Also, I don't know why, but I just have almost no interest in dog hunts. Don't know if I'm being uptight or what, but it just doesn't seem enjoyable to me (not judging or anything, just doesn't feel like it's for me).
 

GeorgiaBob

Senior Member
It would help a lot if you could connect with a hunter near you who would be willing to take you along a few times to scout good places to hunt and give you a few pointers. If you know a deer hunter at your workplace, or in your church, or perhaps a neighbor, who could walk with you a few times, you will learn a lot more that the bast of the hunters here can teach over the internet. It might even be possible that one of the fine folks here is near you and has the time to share a little experience as you scout a WMA or two!
 

NOYDB

BANNED
Welcome and enjoy!

Best advice was posted earlier. Spend time walking where you intend to hunt. Get to know the land where you will be hunting. The more time you spend in the woods the better your chances.
 

ddgarcia

Mr Non-Libertaw Got To Be Done My Way
Welcome aboard Orca.

First off, you have probably just made your single biggest, best decision of your hunting/outdoor career by joining this board. The wealth of knowledge, the willingness to share said knowledge and in general help all even complete strangers in pursuit of shared interests most find unmatched.

There are routine gatherings of members of the Sports, Political and Campfire Forums, everything from nothing more than lunch to full blown hunting/camping trips. There are some members that have on occasion put out open invitations to any willing to come, to go shoot pigs on private property in SGa, even going so far as to offer to supply guns and ammo, for nothing more than your cost to get there and maybe a little "sweat equity".

If you have an interest, find your way to the Political or Sports, especially if you're a Dawg, Go Dawgs, but all are welcome and we have fans of most of the D1 teams in the area and few that aren't so local. Word of caution, step lightly in the Political forum, there are some there that can be a bit harsh if you aren't in lockstep with their beliefs even if it's on just one subject.

If you just want to have some mindless fun try the Useless Billy or Driveler threads in the Campfire. Don't bother trying to figure out what's going on, most of the time the "regular" participants don't even know, but spend enough time there and you'll catch on and feel free to jump right in with any random thought you may have, we'll know what you mean.

Once again welcome aboard and I'm sure you will find all that you hoped and likely more here.
 

crackerdave

Senior Member
Welcome to a good,clean forum.
As was said,there are many good folks here that will gladly share their knowledge with you.
Come to one of the gatherings and meet some members and sit around a fire with us.
Look in the "Around the Campfire " part of the forum and the "Freshwater Fishing" for info about the get-togethers coming up this fall.
 

bany

Senior Member
Welcome orca. Congratulations on your new challenge!
I’d suggest not watching too many hunting shows. Or at least not putting a lot of expectations in them. Lots of good books for outdoors and hunting. Probably several older books available like “The Deer Hunter” that are primal compared to modern takes on the sport. I just got an email from DNR about a new to hunting class. Check it out.
Also USFS info usually mirrors wma activity as visiting or hunting goes, ie parking,camping,etc.
 

KyDawg

Gone But Not Forgotten
Come on over to the Useless Billy thread. We got peeps over there that alarm us if anything special is going on. Welcome to the Campfire Orca.
 

4HAND

Cuffem & Stuffem Moderator
Staff member
Welcome! A lot of good info on here. Not only about hunting, but all things outdoors, cooking, politics & life in general.

Don't hesitate to ask questions. I promise you'll get answers, may not be good answers, but you'll get answers!
????
 

0rca

New Member
Appreciate the warm welcome everyone. I'll definitely check out the threads you all mentioned.
 

0rca

New Member
Welcome aboard Orca.

Word of caution, step lightly in the Political forum, there are some there that can be a bit harsh if you aren't in lockstep with their beliefs even if it's on just one subject.

Outside of my private life, I tend to stay as far away from politics as possible haha, so definitely no worries about that one. Thanks for the warning though ;)
 

Ruger#3

RAMBLIN ADMIN
Staff member
Welcome aboard, you just hit the mother lode of outdoor info.
Head over to the hunting forums for hunting info.
Your welcome over at the camp fire just to chat and get to know folks.
Give a shout out in any forum with questions and you'll get more help than you need.
 

Patriot44

Banned
I have been in the woods hunting for the better part of 40 years and I have still not figured it all out and probably never will. Having said that, trying to figure this out for 40 years has been the ride of a lifetime and I am now passing this tradition down to my son.

I live in the NW burbs and would be happy to meet up and talk about hunting and even go out with you. Just hit me up, we can meet for a beer and plan a couple of trips for late fall. :cheers:
 

35 Whelen

Senior Member
Hey there everyone. Just a complete newbie here trying to figure out how to do this hunting thing.

I never had anyone to teach me how to hunt, don't know anyone who ever has, and don't generally meet anyone remotely interested in it here in metro Atlanta.

I'm in my mid thirties, work in video production (producing live broadcasts, vodcasts, short films, etc), and am a part-time adviser for a state university student media department. Needless to say, I don't meet a lot of avid hunters or outdoors-men in my line of work. Still, I love the outdoors and am stubbornly pushing forward head-first as I try to learn the outdoor skills that I feel like I should have already learned long ago.

I've taken a hunter safety course (in which they didn't really give much information, and passed everyone for free anyway) and done a lot of research online, but that's as far as I've gotten.

I'm working on my marksmanship now and hoping to go on my first hunt next year, probably around September of 2020. I'm interested in hunting Deer and Hog in the north Georgia WMA's (Chattahoochee, Swallow Creek, Warwoman, etc..), but the DNR websites make it so hard to learn if you don't already know what to look for. It all seems pretty overwhelming to figure out, and questions that are probably simple/obvious to you all seem almost impossible to answer for me. Embarrassingly, something as simple as where to leave my car while on a WMA is impossible to figure out (along with about a billion other questions), and it's frustrating me.

Still, I'm dedicated to figuring this thing out, and I hope you all will put up with my stupid questions while I go through the painful process of putting all these pieces together over the next year -_____-

Good place to start here:
http://forum.gon.com/threads/beginner’s-guide-to-hunting-public-land.666602/
 

greg_n_clayton

Senior Member
Appreciate the warm welcome everyone. I'll definitely check out the threads you all mentioned.
If you get a chance to come North to the mountains, holler. Squirrel hunting is my thing when it comes to hunting. I know you said you didn't care about hunting with with dogs, but I got a couple of young dogs I am training this year. Squirrel hunting with a dog is a bunch of fun, especially when you have watched them learn. We can do some still hunts if ya want. I got all the firearms needed ! Maybe do a little fishing and camp at a remote lake or camp somewhere. I got all that covered too ! And like Cracker said, slide out to that fish fry !! I have never met a "bad" guy here ! They have all been good people.


Welome to the forums !!>
 
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