Opening Day Tradition

This Saturday is opening day. In Kansas, opening day means pheasant and quail seasons. We have a long tradition of bird season opening days, and hunters across the state are gearing up for Saturday morning. I've been looking forward to it since last opening day, but I've been thinking about it a lot recently. My cousin Brad is coming out from Kansas City, and I'm really looking forward to kicking around the fields of Kiowa County with him and the dogs. The bird hunting forecast for that area isn't very positive because the of the drought and summer heat, but we'll still have a great time. The experience is what you make it, and I know we'll work hard and earn our birds. We'll appreciate every opportunity, and the birds we get will mean something. I've heard hunters make excuses for not taking young hunters when bird numbers are down, saying that youngsters need lots of action or they won't like hunting. I think you can make any hunt meaningful, even without lots of birds. When populations are thin, take young hunters. Just make the outings shorter. Take time to learn about deer rubs and scrapes, and talk about the biology, habitat, and weather factors that control our bird numbers. Sit under and tree and eat a sandwich and talk about things other than hunting. I've said it before -- youngsters won't remember how many birds you bag, but they'll never forget that you took time to take them hunting. Don't miss an opportunity.