Question for the "old guys"...Is it just me or are there others?

[appalichian hunter]

Have always been a woodsy type person my entire life, would rather be in the woods than anywhere else, Was told I was born 200 years too late.

 

[D.Summers]

I'm right there with you, appalichian hunter!! All the way!!

 

[Woody Morgan]

I am a child of the late 40’s and 50’s, back when things were much simpler and straight forward where you heroes on TV were the likes of Walt Disney’s Davy Crockett and later Daniel Boone. Soon I will be 65 and am now fully retired, and for some reason, perhaps old age, senility, a rebellion against this modern age and what is happening to our society, or something else, I have developed a desire or longing to experience to a certain extent the lives of our country’s pioneers. To that extent I have started to develop some skills with outside Dutch Oven cooking, making coffee over a camp fire, making basic leather cases for various hunting knives, shooting flintlock pistols and rifles and cap & ball revolvers, and pursuing an in-depth study of the period of our country’s history from the French & Indian Wars up through the period a few years beyond the Civil War. My question for those members of a similar age is am I alone in this somewhat crazy endeavor or are there others out there like me? Bob P.

We called that "camping".

wm

 

[bang]

Be 65 next month. Retired 8 years. Found a bp club close and enjoy every minute. Don't get to go out for long periods but still hunt.
Got my first revolver at 16. Rogers and Spencer. Still have it and it shoots. Took many rabbit and squirrel with it. Plan on using bp to hunt with.
I've been fixing up rifles. I like having alternate calibers. Presently fitting a Mowrey barrel for a TC Renegade stock.
Had to put a Gibbins style breech and tang with an L&R lock.
The money saved on gas not having to go to work has been a big help.
Dove in to rock locks. Now have 2.

 

[JamesA]

I am a month and a half from turning 78 years old. I learned how to read, write (cursive too), add, subtract, multiply and divide without a computer or even a cellphone, tell time looking at an analog clock, spell correctly about 98% of the time, learned biology (there are TWO genders), learned a lot of stuff from my dad, but never was a real outdoorsy guy until I got in my mid 30's. I'm still not all that skillful today. I have to be honest, I'm not sure I could survive like our ancestors did but I can certainly give it my best if need be.

If anyone would have told me back in the 60's and 70's our country would come to be in the horrible shape that it is in today, I would have laughed at them and told them to put down that joint. There is no way some ridiculous old corrupt fool would become our president. Something that inconceivable would not be possible. And members of my own family helped make it possible.

Lately, I have taken an increased interest in how our ancestors did things and I can only marvel at their courage and resourcefulness. For me, it might be too late, health issues.

Stay safe, stay healthy, and stay armed.

 

[Smokey Plainsman]

I hope by now you realize most members of this hobby are in their 60s and beyond.

What’s genuinely difficult, is finding much anyone under 40 who does it passionately.

Go to any shoot or show and you’re going to see very few younger people in attendance who are there of their own accord.

 

[OldMaineWoodsman]

I'm 62 and retired twice. Once from the Navy and a second from the government. I agree and share many of the things previously discussed so I won't rehash. I will say that I cannot believe how soft, lazy, and unprepared young people are today compared to my generation.

Back in January we had a pretty bad winter storm. Trees down everywhere, to include one on my garage (thankfully no damage). We lost power Monday morning during the storm and it wasn't restored until late Thursday afternoon. It wasn't fun, but we did just fine. I lit oil lamps for light inside, and my Coleman gear outside on the porch. We had hot food, coffee, and tea. My wife is the manager of a supermarket, so she had to be there. It was amazing how many employees cried that they couldn't come in. It is a sad state of affairs when her most reliable employee is an 81 year old part-timer. Our street never gets plowed until days after any snow fall, so I walked with my wife down to the store and back for three days until I could get my truck out and on the road.

I try to avoid getting caught up in the news cycle. I do enjoy watching the Weather Channel. I'm always amused by the "Weather Disasters" and "Would You Survive?" segments. I did a tour as a Water Survival Instructor, so I know about things such as exposure, rip tides, or how to escape quicksand. It is amazing how clueless young people are. I follow the Adirondacks closely and I shake my head at the number of hikers who die there because they thought they would be fine in shorts and a t-shirt.

I enjoy reading many of these posts. While I'm worried about our country, I'm one person. I vote, am aware of my surroundings, and keep my head on a swivel. I refuse to be labeled as a relic or "Okay Boomer." I pursue my activities and will continue to do so until I'm physically unable. Doing what you like keeps you young.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

My question for those members of a similar age is am I alone in this somewhat crazy endeavor or are there others out there like me? Bob P.

Well yes I am of a similar age, but I don't think age has anything to do with it...

I started working with wilderness skills in the 1970's when I was in my teens. I was the only Scout in my Troop that had the Wilderness Survival merit badge, for example. I read My Side of The Mountain by Jean Craighead George when I was in 6th grade, and it kindled a spark in me. Luckily I got some actual survival books by Bradford Angier and read them before trying anything....

I enjoy working on and learning new skills. I've even employed them a few times in my profession, which flabbergasts my cohorts.

I Laugh when I see "horror" movies where the main character or characters are being chased in the woods, and I laugh at folks in the movie theater who get all spun up by such stories. The Blair Witch Project comes to mind and was shot very near to where my parents live. Woods? Bad guys or something after me in the woods? Bring it! I love the woods, they are home to me. May fate have mercy on bad guys or a "creature" after me in the woods. LOL

My daughter started in 1999 at the age of five. She's 28 now and has some skill too, and recently reached out to ask for me to show her more. More along the lines of what she'd need if she was camping alone.

LD

 

[mushka]

I will be 78 next month and was given the outdoors and take care of myself mindset when I was a kid by WWII and Korean war vets. Action type men taught me about how to live right. I still try to live up to their standards. Today's societal standards are insufficient as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Reno]

Well I am certainly a grey beard. Old enough to remember the Davy Crockett rage. And BTW. I now have two coonskin caps. Full face and tail. Yes I know nobody wore them. But heck. Disney put one on Fes Parker.
When I would hunt with my dad as a child he would teach me a figure four trap, dead falls and such. I thought at the time. Why? But I’m so glad and I did pass it on when I was a scoutmaster. And to my son when we hunted and he was a small child.
The heritage of our country is what I appreciate when I hunt. But especially when I hunt with muzzleloaders.

 

[TFoley]

Funny, reading and talking about survival. We just drove by a minibus at the side of the road with double rears, one of which had a flat. There were eleven young men and the lady driver - a local five-a-side school team. Pulling ahead of them, I got out and asked if I could help them change the wheel. Nope, one of them said, we've called AA - the UK version of AAA - but they are busy right now and won't get here for about three hours.

Twenty minutes later, they drove away, with wheel replaced by 76-year-old me. Not one of them had the foggiest notion about how to change a wheel, but I noticed that at least half of them at any one time were taking photos or making video on the cell-phones.

 

[SmokepoleSam]

I had the same thing happen with my youngest daughter who was in her thirties at the time. She had a flat on a parkway/highway. Neither she or the female state policewoman knew how to change it. The cop took her to the nearest payphone (before she had a cell) and she called me.They knew to jack up the tire but not to loosen the lugnuts. I made her change the tire so she would learn how and told her to call the cop and explain it to her.

 

[springfield art]

I am a child of the late 40’s and 50’s, back when things were much simpler and straight forward where you heroes on TV were the likes of Walt Disney’s Davy Crockett and later Daniel Boone. Soon I will be 65 and am now fully retired, and for some reason, perhaps old age, senility, a rebellion against this modern age and what is happening to our society, or something else, I have developed a desire or longing to experience to a certain extent the lives of our country’s pioneers. To that extent I have started to develop some skills with outside Dutch Oven cooking, making coffee over a camp fire, making basic leather cases for various hunting knives, shooting flintlock pistols and rifles and cap & ball revolvers, and pursuing an in-depth study of the period of our country’s history from the French & Indian Wars up through the period a few years beyond the Civil War. My question for those members of a similar age is am I alone in this somewhat crazy endeavor or are there others out there like me? Bob P.

There's tons of guys like minded. This site is a perfect example. Best of luck!

 

[mushka]

I taught both my boys and daughter how to change a tire, jump start the car, and change the oil, and a couple other things a driver of a car should know before I let them get a drivers license. Now that I'm fairly senior I can still do these things though some of them might be painful afterwards.

 

[jimairwin]

I'm 77. Been making chips and parts out of metal since I was about 10. Have the old Atlas to this day. Made my first REAL ml rifle, a HAWKEN (NOT Hawkins!) from Cherry Corners parts in 1974. Lots of prizes won, still have it! Cannons, too. From bb bore to BB (Bowling ball!) Love my time in the outdoors, though it's rare now. I "retireded", then opened a gunsmith shop. Spend most of my time fixing other folk's guns.

 

[earlwb]

Yeah I am of a like mind too. You are not alone. There are a lot of us out there. Sometimes the world starts to change too much and we need to slow it down to our speed.

 

[Graybeard2A]

I'm 62 and retired twice. Once from the Navy and a second from the government. I agree and share many of the things previously discussed so I won't rehash. I will say that I cannot believe how soft, lazy, and unprepared young people are today compared to my generation.

Back in January we had a pretty bad winter storm. Trees down everywhere, to include one on my garage (thankfully no damage). We lost power Monday morning during the storm and it wasn't restored until late Thursday afternoon. It wasn't fun, but we did just fine. I lit oil lamps for light inside, and my Coleman gear outside on the porch. We had hot food, coffee, and tea. My wife is the manager of a supermarket, so she had to be there. It was amazing how many employees cried that they couldn't come in. It is a sad state of affairs when her most reliable employee is an 81 year old part-timer. Our street never gets plowed until days after any snow fall, so I walked with my wife down to the store and back for three days until I could get my truck out and on the road.

I try to avoid getting caught up in the news cycle. I do enjoy watching the Weather Channel. I'm always amused by the "Weather Disasters" and "Would You Survive?" segments. I did a tour as a Water Survival Instructor, so I know about things such as exposure, rip tides, or how to escape quicksand. It is amazing how clueless young people are. I follow the Adirondacks closely and I shake my head at the number of hikers who die there because they thought they would be fine in shorts and a t-shirt.

I enjoy reading many of these posts. While I'm worried about our country, I'm one person. I vote, am aware of my surroundings, and keep my head on a swivel. I refuse to be labeled as a relic or "Okay Boomer." I pursue my activities and will continue to do so until I'm physically unable. Doing what you like keeps you young.

I'm 71 & was taught to take care of myself & family from the start by my Grandfather who was an avid outdoorsman! Glad I listened!!!

 

[VAN]

I hope by now you realize most members of this hobby are in their 60s and beyond.

What’s genuinely difficult, is finding much anyone under 40 who does it passionately.

Go to any shoot or show and you’re going to see very few younger people in attendance who are there of their own accord.

I recently helped the local DAR chapter that my wife belongs to put on a Revolutionary War weapons demonstration. I was pleased to see that the local 4H club had a black powder club for the young teenagers. They put on a great demonstration of shooting and safety with traditional muzzleloaders. It was great to see about a dozen teens so interested and proficient in the sport. They also taught the ladies that wanted to how to load and shoot at the end of their part of the program which took place at my local range.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

I was pleased to see that the local 4H club had a black powder club for the young teenagers.

Yes, 4H may be the key to producing a "next generation" of traditional black powder shooters. Especially in areas adjacent to or within soccer-mom zones, where the idea of even a flintlock they find to be scary.

LD

 

[Dutch7]

Late to the party but have carried only a flintlock since the mid 1980’s. Love every aspect of our sport from casting to punching paper to building and hunting. More recently I have researched our family heritage, coming out of Pennsylvania in the mid 1700’s which has lead me to learn much more of the absolute hardships all of our ancestors endured and I have tremendous respect. Now when I am alone in the woods with the flinter I know there are no humans waiting behind a tree wanting to take my life and a hot shower waiting when I return takes the “hardship” aspect away but I love it - 100% in. Just pray that I can pass this heritage on.