BACK IN THE DAY!

Well, Back in the day....blah blah blah. We all started hunting at some point in our lives. So lets see that very first kill, or if you don't have it then your oldest pic. I am sure everyone has pictures of a animal they took "back in the day". I bet that animal was a very special one...so lets see um, and lets hear that story. Bring back memories boys!

The first animal I shot was an axis deer doe on Molokai. I had hunted a lot with my brothers but had never shot anything. Then one day I was hunting with my Dad, which was rare because he hardly hunted at all by then, and got the doe. I don't have a photograph but the picture in my mind is as clear as it ever was.

I grew up on a dairy farm in Wisconsin, where the annual whitetail rifle season was something everyone did. At 17, I joined the Marine Corps and came to Hawaii, where I've lived ever since. I never did any birdhunting as a kid, and finally decided to give it a try in 1996. The first year, I didn't have a dog, and got up early every weekend to drive up to Kuaokala from Makiki and spend the day hiking around with my shotgun. It was exciting to be out hunting, but either I never saw a bird or they flushed way out of range. After several weekends of this, I started sneaking around like I was stalking deer. I'd been doing this for about an hour when I came over a small rise and saw 2 erkels dusting themselves in a bowl about 75 yards away. I snuck in as quietly as I could keeping brush between us, heart just pounding like mad. When I got to a point about 20 yards away from where I had seen them, I peeked around a bush. The dust bowl was empty. My heart sank. I stood up and started to walk into the clearing when suddenly, from the bushes on the other side, one of the birds flushed. My shotgun came up and went off without my thinking about it, just like when I was shooting skeet, and I watched the bird crumple! I was so excited. I marked where it fell and ran over, but when I got there, I couldn't find the bird. I spent 20 minutes searching for that bird, getting more and more worried. Just when I felt like crying for all my hard work and no bird, I found him burrowed deep into a clump of grass, dead. I must have walked right over him a dozen times as I searched. I was so excited!!!!! I cleaned him and took him home. My son was about 2 1/2 years old at the time, and I showed him how I cleaned off the feathers and prepped him to eat, explaining how it is important never to waste the bounty of the animals we harvest. It was a great learning experience for him, and he was excited to eat a piece of breast meat for dinner. That bird was really tasty both because of all the work I put into harvesting it, and for the opportunity to share with my son a valuable lesson about hunting.

LOve the Erkel story. I like to spot and stalk the dustbowls too.

B.I.Hunter,
Tell me yours then I'll tell you mine. Da mental hardrive slow nowadays though, always gotta start over and reboot. Makule pupule as the wise ones say. Wait, what we talking bout again?...............................see.


MAUKAKANE1
Onipa'a a ku ha'aheo

Ok MAUKAKANE, I got you. I cant write like you but I will try.

Started hunting when I was 10 years old. As soon as I could get my license I was in the forest try to harvest my first animal. After 1 full year of Mauna Kea Hunting...Nothing. Then all of a sudden my father asked me if I wanted to try and go to Puuwaawaa. Who would turn that down. Keep in mind this was back in 2001 before they let the dog hunters in the forest reserve. This was not sheep season, it was just a pig hunt. Took my .243 Sako and we and my dad made the best what Puuwaawaa had to offer. Seen a pile of pigs, missed a pile of pigs. Then for some reason at 2pm, on the way back to the truck. My dad suddenly stops. And i look up. I see a small boar walking straight to us. I kneel down and I put that 4X Leopold scope on him....problem is he is 10 ft from me and all I see is black. Then I hear, just point and shoot, so I just guessed where to put it and what do you know, I hit him right in the neck and he drops right there. The story had more to it and it is my favorite kill of all time. He may not be the biggest but he is the "ONE" that got me hooked. From this day on, it taught me the real meaning of working hard to get your animal. This boar, GAVE ME HEART! I know for a fact, this will be my most memorable animal ever taken. And I will always remember this boar and the story to go with it.

Oh boy... I grew up a fisherman. Used to fish almost every day. Used to watch hunting mixed with fishing shows on TNN (1998-ish). A friends dad used to bowhunt Na'pali coast and I showed interest so he brought me in 4 miles. Seen one goat and due to some exageration, it looked like the size of a cow to me. He never shot cuz was too thick but I liked it so he helped take me to hunter's safety courses before leaving the state. Note that nobody in my family hunts. While walking back from fishing, me and my friend Jake seen some small pigs rooting in a pasture beside the road so we snuck up close through the buffalo grass and rushed the herd. They scattered to run and I followed one throught he tall grass, about 25 pounds and somehow knocked it over and pinned it down. We took it home but it got away late that night. But me and my other friend Dan went back to that cow pasture which we were used to passing though while bass fishing below Kipu falls (we were little tresspassing hooligans back then). We went back with home made spears, snuck up on a heard of 20 little ones and Dan drilled a 50 pound sow through the guts and we tracked her down, found and finished her off. We were real proud of ourselves, I think we were 14. Two years later I had this compound bow and got it fully rigged up for christmas. 3 months later, I shot my first pig but everything went wrong and we lost her. Bad shot, bad decisions. That summer we went poaching down the coast and met some older hunters (van and Mike and Quintin) and I shot my first goat, a 40 pounder. Then on the way out I made a terrific shot on the oldest nanny I ever seen. Still got those long horns about 10" long. The old timers helped me out and taught plenty things. Some months later, they callen me to see if I wanted to go back in and I caught a couple billies. One was pretty nice, maybe 15 inches. Made a dramatic stalk on him too. good fun. and after that I was sort of hooked ...bad. The next year I think I actually killed 100 goats in a year. Used to bring the smoked meat to school to share with friends at recess. I've slowed down a little since then. Like to stalk pigs these days with guns, more so for the meat too. As soon as I turned 21, or even before, I switched more to guns but had a stint of dog hunting too. Used to film a lot back before. I'll attach a pic of that 15 incher. I'ld of been 16 I think. Just about a decade of hunting steady.

I had worked all night striking the adze, searching for the sharpest edge I could create. The snows this winter are deep making the wooly mammoth herd slower than normal. My people are hungry and this harvest is...........................Nah just kidding!!

B.I hunter, Nic,
Great stories, Good to here that our strain of human is still growing and strong. I remember when Pu'uwa'awa'a was like that. You would literally have pigs underfoot. I was "rushed" many times by ill-tempered hogs while bowhunting the reserve, CHEEHOOO!! Good fun!
I also enjoyed Nic's story too, reminds me of me and my cousins when we were young. Crazy kolohes!! until we brought it all together with direction from the old timers both inside and outside my ohana. I honestly cant recall my VERY FIRST hunt experience. Its in the jumbled mental files somewhere. Hypnosis maybe? LOL !

Mahalo for sharing guys keep em coming.

MAUKAKANE1
Onipa'a a ku ha'aheo

Great idea to post this thread Big Is.Hunter,
I loved your story and pic, Maukakane1- you cracked me up with that wooly mammoth thread I was feelin kinda old or somethin when I ws checkin out the pics, till I read that one, Maui Rhino and the erkel story and pic brought back memories- I shot lots of birds in my day and still eat lots of grouse. Jus like Muggs, no pictures of a lot of my historical hunts when I was real young, but so many hunts are etched into my memory, this post made me go look back into my dusty photo albums and I came up with 3 pics that brought back fond memories. Back before digital cameras, back when there seemed to be more animals and fish to catch than today, not quite back when the buffalo still roamed the plains, I was trained by my grandfathers and Dad. Raised on running hounds, beagles, and bird dogs. Deer, rabbits. squirrels and pheasants. But jus Like Nic, I started off fishing, I lived for it, but soon fell as deeply in love with hunting. I Nic's goat and hog hunting history. Makes me want to use a spear instead of my bow. Could not find pics of my first deer with bow or gun, but found some cool old pics. One of a whitetail I shot around 1982 with a recurve when I was a teenager, and one pic of a super nice blacktail buck I arrowed in northern CA around 1989. The other pic is an old black and white pic from the mid 70'd of my friend and I with a pile of steelhead, salmon, and Lake Trout. The biggest went 18 pounds, I remember that day real well and I was like 8 yrs young.
Gotta comment that my memories are as deeply cherished today with the hunting I get to do with my good friends Robert, Lionel, Ernie, and others on Kauai. I feel like a kid all over again. Have whacked a few goats on my own (still searchin for the big billy) and some pigs too (never would have yet without tons o help from my friends) (still searchin for a boss boar too) Mahalos to all you guys for lettin me chime in and talk story with yous, I sit up here on my island in Alaska dreamin about the next time I get to come hunt HI. I got my own slice of huntin paradise up here, but the grass seems greener on the other side of the fence sometimes. So stoked to come hunt again.
No scanner, so I took a pic of these 3 pics, I hope it works:
Aloha,
AK Andy

Great Stories and pics guys, Unfortunately we lost ALOT of our picture albums during Hurricane Iwa and when we moved to another house the roof leaked and we didnt know so alot of our older hunting albums and my Dad's military pics were lost very sad. Really wish we still had them lots of awesome memories and good times.

Anyway I did find a couple older pics that survived the wrath

The first pic is the oldest known pic I have of myself at either 2 or 3 as my Mom only wrote the year in the album. This pic was taken by my Dad after we got back to the truck. I need to ask my Dad the details of the hunt but here is my oldest pic.


Next pic is of a 115 lb boar that killed one of our good dogs this pic although not my first knife kill. It is the oldest pic I have of a pig I killed with a knife I was 10 yrs old. My brother on Maui has the pics of my first knife kill a 60 lb sow when I was 4 yrs old. Another thing memorable to me about this boar was that when I reached the action the boar had already killed one of our dogs (Only 2 dogs on this boar) and our main dog who was an awesome dog was just playing him. I snuck in as close as I could and waited for an oppurtunity to grab the pigs back legs if I could. The boar was wanting to fight and rushed our dog numerous times but he just slipped,slided and juked this boar and grabbed the boars nuts when he turned to run. The dog had him stopped on the river bank in a mountain apple patch but the trees werent that big so none to climb if things got nuts all of a sudden I hear a splash in the river and its my main grab dog aptly named "Dog" by me of course I know whats about to happen and im worried because this boar was a fighter as I could tell by the dead dog I was looking at on the ground. The dog this boar killed was no amateur either he laid many way bigger boars to rest but today he met his match. So as im watching this it seems like everything goes into slow-motion, the boar whose attention up until this point was on our main dog. Now notices that theres a newcomer to the fight and he knows this dog isnt hear to bay due to the fact my main grabba is making a beeline for him. He now turns his full attention toward my grabba and and commences on a full on rush. Our main dog immediately jumps to action and grabs his nuts but this boar is having none of it he could care less. He doesnt even do so much as blink an eye when our main dog hits his rearend he is now commited to do battle with this other dog that has come and take out all his frustrations on him since he cant touch our main dog. What happens next will always be etched clearly in my mind the boar and my grabba meet head on mouth to mouth and like some may have seen dogs do they both rise up on thier hind legs locked in battle. The sound is deafening as its only a few feet away. They both jockey for position it seems and luckily my grabba is able to get a solid grab and locks down hard. I know this is my chance and spring to action im on the boar in an instant and plunge my blade deep into his heart. The feel of his HOT blood pouring down my hand is almost too much and a feeling of revenge overcomes me for what he has done to our dog but at the same time admiration for such a warrior foe that we pursue. Although the battle only lasted seconds he was almost victorius in claiming another life before giving up his as he had dealt some serious blows to my grabba but in the end he lived to fight another day. Heres the pic of me and the boar sorry dont have one taken in the mountain.


Sorry if the photos is kinda blurry but they are older pics and I dont have a scanner so had to take pics of the pics LOL!!!

Aloha,

Bradda Muns

Good story Muns!

My first big game hunt was with Nic down the Na Pali, I think I was 16 and was using Nic's old 30# PSE. Got lucky and nailed a small billy from about 10' away. Also missed a shot from 10' that same trip. That was all it took! Never had family to show me how to hunt, so had to pick up what I could from friends.

Now dats a nice story, Bruddah Muns!!! Felt like I was there with you. Thanks for sharing.

Awesome story and pics Braddah Muns!- I imagine how it was when you were 10, your story brought me right there, just like mauakakane1 does with the descriptions he puts in.
Makes me even more pumped to come back soon and do more dog n knife hunts. Mahalos for taking the time to write that one and postin the pics.

Mahalo for the comments guys it was a very exciting hunt for sure.

Bradda Andy thanks for the comparison but to be honest Bradda J (MaukaKane) is way more talented than me by a HUGE margin

Aloha's

evbouret wrote:...Also missed a shot from 10' that same trip...

Evan, I remember when you missed that goat, I thought it was just 3' away! No worries, I've missed from that close too.

yeah, you're right...probably more like 3 feet. I could hear the thing breathing. Billy fever

got some with dogs and snares but this is the first i shot with my bow and landed.

Pic no work.

Heres a pic from back in the day!