I was watching a t.v. show this morning, which I don’t do very often, and it really bothered me. The show was about kids hunting, something that should be great right? It was about privileged kids hunting. Which is entirely different. I am not sure that I like where hunting and fishing is going, thanks in large part to television shows. Now hunting and fishing is turning into a game for the privileged. It’s all about the score. This is a major conflict for me, especially as an outfitter. I have guided many people over the years that are way too concerned about what an animal scores. A score is only a number, created by people. Animal scoring systems were not created to measure the worth of an animal. You simply can not do that with a number. These numbers were created by people for people, to somehow measure themselves. Which doesn’t work either. It is the same thing as measuring  yourself, or someone else, by the number in a bank account.

The worth of an animal isn’t measured by some number people created, ( which is often exaggerated anyway). The worth of an animal can only be measured by the person who harvested that animal. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder as they say. The goal to harvest an animal shouldn’t be based on numbers alone. It should be based on the quality of an experience. We all know people who do unethical things to achieve a score whether it is in sports, business, or sadly in hunting and fishing. The number becomes the focus, and the true value of an animals life becomes blurry and worth much less.

I do think that scoring holds a small value, because it is a fairly decent way to judge maturity of an animal, or fish. I like to hunt for big animals. I like to catch big fish. However, score is never my concern. Numbers don’t mean anything to an animal. Most people associate maturity with intelligence. A very large brown trout is typically harder to fool with a dry fly than a little one, though not always. Very large animals are more rare, more experienced, and much harder to harvest than the small ones. It’s like selling a car to a 18 year old kid versus a 55 year old man. The stakes are much higher. I believe the reward is greater. Not because of a number. Because of the experience. Because of the challenge. I also don’t believe that makes a difference in the value of an animals life. It is only a starting point to determine what animal I would like to pursue. Everyone has their own measuring system for success, and it should never be based solely on a number. I believe that is the fastest way to devalue the experience.

Hunting and fishing should’t be about how much money you have. I do realize that it is a little ironic coming from an outfitter, but it shouldn’t be. Outfitters should be making their living by helping people acquire quality experiences in the outdoors in areas that they aren’t familiar with, or don’t have the ability to access on their own. I believe outfitters shouldn’t be selling numbers for people to measure themselves with. We all know being privileged doesn’t make you a better person. Being privileged also doesn’t make you a better hunter or angler.

I want kids to grow up hunting and fishing. I think that if it is done ethically and for the right reasons, it can be a very wonderful thing. When we learn to truly value the lives of wild animals and wild places, we can better value our own lives.