Parents and children across the state will spend time together while practicing their hunting skills during Maryland?s junior hunting day Saturday.
“It?s the only time I have to really bond with my dad. We sit and just wait for whatever we are killing,” said Rachel Avery, 15, of Edgewater, who plans to hunt in the Davidsonville area with her dad, Wayne.
“When she killed her first deer, that was a pretty special moment,” Wayne Avery said. “I will never forget the hug she gave me, for the rest of my life. She practically squeezed the life out of me.”
The day is open to youth age 16 and younger who have passed a hunting safety course and are accompanied by an adult age 21 or older.
Most children who participate grew up watching a parent hunt during their elementary school years and took up hunting as a preteen, said Paul Peditto, director of Wildlife and Heritage Service for the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, which regulates hunting.
“It?s a day when the adult mentors focus on these young hunters. In the end, it?s a great tool to advance those skills,” Peditto said.
Mostof the hunting is done on private farmland near Maryland?s rivers, Peditto said.
But some families plan excursions to hunting outfitters on reserve land, where the deer are beefed up. Some stay overnight in an outfitter bed and breakfast and are accompanied by a guide.
“I will be able to get a much bigger deer [on managed land],” said Marco Cardone, 14, of Hagerstown, who plans to stay overnight with his dad at an outfitter called Schrader?s Bridgetown Manor, located in Henderson on the Eastern Shore.
He and his dad plan to wake up at 3 a.m. and stay out until 4:30 p.m. ? or until they bag the maximum three deer.
“This is one of the [sporting] events where they can be side by side without teammates or fans. It?s a focused moment,” Peditto said.
Young hunters killed 2,239 deer last year, according to the department?s Web site.
White-tailed deer firearms season 2006-07:
» Nov. 11: Junior Hunt
» Nov. 25: Dec. 9
» Jan. 5: Jan. 6
