Ethan Hirschy’s interest in hunting portrays a trend in younger generation — getting in touch with a more natural way of life.
The 33-year-old is a vice president of sales at Midway Press, the company that prints Lone Star Outdoor News and multiple other publications and newspapers.
“My dad grew up on a farm, but no one in my family hunted, ”Hirschy said. “I became more interested in the outdoor lifestyle. I grow and make my own food and was intrigued by the self-sustaining aspect of hunting.”
At the Lone Star Outdoor News Foundation’s Wild Game Night at the Beretta Gallery last October, Hirschy introduced himself to David Sams of the foundation.
“We talked and I told him I was interested in hunting and had no idea how to get started. He said, ‘I will take you.”’
The last weekend of January, Hirschy arrived at the hunting ranch in the late afternoon.
“We did some target practice, “Hirschy said. “I hadn’t shot a rifle since Boy Scouts. Once we completed that, we went to a blind without much time before dark to get a feel for it. An old buck did come out just before dark but there was no good angle for a shot.”
The next morning, the pair was back in the same blind.
“There were plenty of young bucks to watch,” Hirschy said. “There was a buck with one antler I was interested in, since I was more about the meat than the antlers. But David wanted me to have a nicer one.”
Finally, another buck came out and Sams gave the greenlight.
“I had the gun on him for 30minutes before there was a good shot,” Hirschy said. “There was always something in the way, whether the feeder or other deer.”
Then a clear shot was available.
“I took the shot but couldn’t see clearly after, “Hirschy said. “I kind of blinked when Shot. But David said he ran about 100 yards and fell.”
Walking to where the buck was, Hirschy noticed a little bit of blood.
“It would have been hard for me to track him,” he said.
Once at the downed buck, Hirschy’s reaction also showed a newer perspective.
“Everything felt quiet and still, it was almost a little mystical,” he said. “It was my first time seeing a deer that close.”
Back at camp, Hirschy field-dressed the buck, and then skinned it, with Sam’s help.
“He started butchering it, and I finished it off,” Hirschy said.
That evening, the pair was back in the blind and Hirschy shot his second deer, adobe.
“That felt a little different,” he said. “It was a little sad.”
Traveling to the ranch in his sports car, Hirschy didn’t have room for the meat from another deer.
“David took the doe to Cinnamon Creek for processing,” he said.
Other time at the ranch was spent by the campfire, where some pieces of venison were cooked on a kabob. The next day, they rode the fence perimeter, checking snares.
“We caught four coyotes and two raccoons, ”Hirschy said. “I skinned two coyotes. I have them in the freezer and am going to try to tan them myself — we checked the cost of sending them to be tanned and it was pretty pricey. I make a lot of my own clothes and want to try to do something with them.”
Hirschy said hunting is definitely going to be a part of his future, as is utilizing the meat.
“The experience gave me a new sense of empowerment,” he said. “I cooked a steak for myself and am planning other things to make with the meat. As for hunting, I want to learn to shoot a shotgun and hunt birds. I’m tall, and need to get a rifle fitted to be more comfortable. I would like to get more experience, with the ultimate goal of riding horse and hunting bison with a bow — the ultimate natural experience. But we’ll workup to that.”
Recognizing many Texans have a desire to hunt and fish, but lack the opportunity, LSONF strives to continue bringing more people out into the field, “recruiting hunters and anglers for a lifetime.” For more information on LSONF or to donate, visit lsonews.com/lson-foundation.
