Outdoor Tips

Game Camps

By Craig McMullen and Gerry Perry; Photographs by George Andrejko

Women and Hunting: A natural relationship

My love of the outdoors and everything natural attracted me to hunting; game meat after all is the perfect marriage of my want for healthy sustainable meat and my great love of being in nature. Jennifer Yelich

Arizona Game and Fish Department after participating in a 2012 Arizona game camp, her first experience as a hunter. An increasing number of adults, many of them women, are learning to hunt and fish for the first time. Their reasons for picking up new skills include the wholeperson health benefits associated with procuring your food naturally in the great outdoors, the opportunity to feel connected to nature, the quality family time away from electronic distractions, and a chance to participate directly in the cycle of life. In 2010, the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies completed a literature review of the benefits of outdoor skills to health, learning and lifestyle. The review suggests Yelichs views about the benefits of outdoor activities such as hunting or fishing are not unique to her. It states, Clearly, outdoor activities have been shown to have a positive impact on self, and others and presumably on the environment in a general context. While growing up, Yelich had little exposure to hunting, and did not consider going hunting herself. Her ideas about hunting changed after college, where she met her future husband, a wildlife biologist. He brought a broader perspective on the cycle of life in the conGame camps provide an opportunity for adults and youth to pick up hunting skills under the guidance of an experienced mentor.
As seen in Arizona Wildlife Views magazine. To subscribe, call (800) 777-0015.

Jennifer Yelich shared these thoughts with the

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Outdoor Tips

Game Camps

Everyone was very responsible, safety was the first priority

Of her game camp experience, Jennifer Yelich (not shown here) said, The best part of all was the shared love and respect for the animals we were hunting.

text of hunting. She discovered research showing that wild game is healthier than some forms of domestic meat. As time passed, she began to consider hunting as a way to connect with nature, procure healthy meat and spend time with family. But harvesting wild game requires knowledge. Where could she acquire that knowledge? During a Google search on hunting, she found an ideal opportunity: the 2012 Womens Javelina Camp. Now in its third year, this annual camp is organized and hosted by Coueswhitetail.com, a website dedicated to hunting and the outdoors. In 2010, the organization began hosting a womens javelina hunt southwest of Tucson, establishing a primitive camp during the February javelina hunt and encouraging women to come learn about Arizonas outdoors, natural history and javelina hunting. Aiding this effort is Youth Outdoors Unlimited, whose members provide outdoor cooking for the threeday event.

At the javelina camp, experienced mentors assist new hunters in learning outdoor skills such as camping, orienteering, using binoculars, identifying plants and behaving ethically in the outdoors. And everyone enjoys tasting wildlife dishes created in a camp environment. The women who participate often arrive solo and without equipment. They leave as successful hunters who know a great deal about the natural history of Arizonas plants and animals, and the role hunting plays in the conservation of Arizonas wildlife. Yelich was part of the 2012 camp, in which 30 women participated. Reflecting on her experience, she says, I anticipated that some of the people would be gun-loving, shoot-it-up, unsafe, irresponsible types, but to my pleasure it was the opposite. Everyone was very responsible, safety was the first priority, there was great camaraderie, and the best part of all was the shared love and respect for the animals we were hunting.

Yelich was relieved to be paired with a mentor, who guided her and her husband through every step of the hunting process and made sure she had everything needed for a successful experience. My mentor refreshed me on gun safety and helped me build my confidence using a gun, she says. The actual hunt of the animal was also a very exhilarating experience. The whole process of spotting, stalking and shooting the animal was one of the greatest experiences Ive had in the outdoors. Like all hunters, Yelich found that she needed to learn a lot about the animal she was hunting in order to be successful. Javelina, her target animal, rely primarily on their sense of smell. Once we spotted the animals, my mentor taught me the basic biology of the animal and explained the tactics required to successfully hunt javelina, she says. They will smell you well before they see you and will hightail it out of the area before you ever get in a shot.

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Yelich came away from camp with a newfound understanding, not just of wildlife, but of wildlife management. I learned that the Arizona Game and Fish Department, before any hunt, conducts surveys of the various hunting units to determine how many tags will be issued to keep the population of animals and natural area healthy for the future, she says. Now that she knows hunters are part of a system of management that maintains healthy wildlife populations and natural areas, Yelich is even more comfortable being one. And, she says, Although I did not kill a javelina on my first hunt, the experience is one that I want to repeat in the near future. Yelichs journey will resonate with many women who care about the food they eat and where it comes from. Yelich, who grew up in a nature-loving family, was a vegetarian and then a vegan for a while. Now she feels comfortable not only eating game meat, but harvesting it herself. Shes not alone: According to figures provided by the National Sporting Goods Association, a group of sporting-goods retailers, more women than men took up hunting in 2009 (the most recent year for which figures are available). Between 2008 and 2009, the number of female hunters increased by 5.4 percent, netting 163,000 new participants. Growth areas for women included muzzleloading (up 134.6 percent), bowhunting (up 30.7 percent) and hunting with firearms (up 3.5 percent). Connecting people like Jennifer Yelich with the outdoors is why the Arizona Game and Fish Department is a partner in efforts such as the Womens Javelina Camp, which help people learn how to get outside to enjoy the benefits of hunting and an outdoor-oriented lifestyle. Camps occur for juniors, women and novice hunters around the state during all seasons of the year. Craig McMullen supervises the Wildlife Recreation
Branch of the Arizona Game and Fish Department. Gerry Perry is the former regional supervisor of the departments Tucson office.

Upcoming Camps
Want to experience a game camp? Here is a list of camps occurring soon. Check www.azgfd.gov/outdoorskills for the latest information. Sept. 79: Becoming an Outdoors Woman ational program for women to learn about N activities such as rappelling, hiking, camping, fishing and more Location: Prescott, Friendly Pines Camp osted by: Arizona Wildlife Federation, H Game and Fish Register: www.azwildlife.org, $245 fee Oct. 57: Unit 1 Squirrel Camp earn about hunting tree squirrels for L beginners, other outdoor skills activities; food provided ocation: Pinetop/Lakeside, Los Burros L Campground, Unit 1 osted by: Game and Fish, Rocky Mountain H Elk Foundation, Arizona Elk Society egister: Game and Fish Pinetop office, R (928) 367-4281 Oct. 57: Outdoors Skill Camp

A A r i zo n s s e e n i n a W i ld l m aga z i f e V i e w s i ne . To sub sc ( 8 0 0 ) r ibe , c all 777- 00 15.

Dec. 89: Picket Post Small Game Hunting Camp earn to hunt dove, quail, rabbits, L outdoor skills; campout, food provided Location: Superior area, Unit 37B osted by: Youth Outdoors Unlimited, H Game and Fish Register: www.youthoutdoorsunlimited.com Feb. 1517, 2013: Womens Javelina HAM Hunt Camp or women who want to have fun and learn outF door skills and how to hunt, camp; food provided Location: Tucson area, Units 36A, 36B, 36C osted by: Coueswhitetail.com, Youth Outdoors H Unlimited egister: www.coueswhitetail.com/womens_ R javelina_hunt_2013.htm Feb. 2224, 2013: Javelina Hunt and Outdoor Fair

earn how to camp, fish, hunt, and discover earn to hunt javelina; hunting seminars, field L L nature and wildlife; limited to 50 participants assistance, predator calling, vendors and more ocation: Payson area, Sharp Creek L Campground osted by: Game and Fish, Safari Club H International, Red Bear Outfitters, Mogollon Sportsmen Association egister: Henry Apfel (480) 639-9994, R hapfel@azgfd.gov Oct. 1921: Beginners Quail and Small Game Hunting Camp earn to hunt quail and rabbits from L experienced hunters, seminars, camping; food provided Location: Yuma area, Unit 41 osted by: Yuma Valley Rod and Gun Club, H Southwest Arizona Habitat Partnership Committee, Game and Fish nformation: Game and Fish in Yuma, I Chris Bedinger (928) 342-0091 ocation: Prescott area, Units 17B, 18B, 20A, 20C L osted by: Arizona Bowhunters Association, H Outdoor Experience for All, Game and Fish Information: www.huntingfair.com

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