What draws y'all to exotic places to hunt exotic game

To hunt and explore is what it is to be human. It's in our evolution to wonder what's over the next rise and go find out.

On a more personal level I enjoy the adventure and challenge. It's also a form of meditation for me. Hunting recalibrates my mind.
 
So here's the quick and dirty explanation of what I'm doing

So I'm doing a final project for my anthropology class called "Fieldwork Methods" where I'm writing a 12 page paper on the appeal of zoos. After ruminating on this for a few days and doing some interviews with people, I've nailed it down to 2 factors

1. A desire to see things that are "exotic" or "out of the ordinary" hence why things like reptiles and charismatic megafauna are so popular
2. A desire to experience a connective experience with nature.

It was then I realized that zoos were only the tip of the iceberg in our desire to get close to what we consider wild. That's where this forum comes in. Since members here frequently traverse exotic locations in pursuit of big game, I'd like to know if any of these factors come into play.
Yes seeing new places and hunting animals in their native environment is why I do what I do. The people and the culture are paramount in the experience. By the end of this year I’ll have hunted 8 countries and enjoyed every moment. You might watch Trophy the film to get more of my perspective for your project.
Philip
 
In short... the world is an/your oyster. Make the most of & experience life and the globe. I’ve know way to many that the earth ended at the city limit sign.
 
In short... the world is an/your oyster. Make the most of & experience life and the globe. I’ve know way to many that the earth ended at the city limit sign.
Fell over the edge just beyond it, because the earth of flat!!!
 
Adventure, new experiences, see new things, meet new people.....
Not many people, outside of this forum, can say they have hunted PG in South Africa, or sheep in Hawaii, or Sandhill Cranes in Alaska, or........the list goes on.

"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming, “Wow what a ride!“

I am currently working in Antarctica for all the same reasons.
 
As a landscape ecologist, going to Africa was about putting myself in new ecosystems where every plant and every animal was something that I had never seen before in the wild. And while I was hunting things, there were things hunting those things, and things that might even be hunting me. OK, the last part was unlikely but it was fun to imagine.

Good luck with your project.

There is a software called qualtrics that allows you to create surveys and analyze qualitative data such as verbal responses to forum questions. Check it out if you want to go deeper.
 
I wish to escape parochialism of place, ethnicity, and the received and unexamined experiences of others. I also wish that, under the supervision and instruction of wiser and more learned people than I am, to return with fuller, clearer ideas of myself, my potential, and an awareness of exotic ecosystems and their animals and plants. I wish to experience other civilizations and cultures. Should my hunt result in a keepsake or trophy, I will regard that as a side-benefit.
 

Attachments

  • Screen Shot 2019-05-05 at 8.36.31 AM.png
    Screen Shot 2019-05-05 at 8.36.31 AM.png
    1 MB · Views: 95
Last edited by a moderator:
I think in its most basic form, it is observation vs experience and first hand participation. Like reading a book, then going to see the movie. The “book” being everything outside of the experience itself. The “movie” is experiencing the game, the flora and fauna, the habitat, the people first hand. Rarely reading a book do our senses become so in tune, so acute, as we do when we see the movie. Similarly, in the wild and exotic places, when we are immersed in it all, every sense becomes heightened. But unlike a movie, this is real, and something inside us stirs, and feelings we’ve never had surface. How else do you explain a successful hunt, from personal experience, of a lion where the elation of what just occurred changes to tears of compassion, love, joy and satisfaction all at the same time. You can not get that in a zoo. Or please explain to me the raw feelings of “buck fever” either before, during or after the shot. Unless you have experienced it, you can not explain it properly. Best of luck with your paper.
 
This is all great. Does anyone remember any specific emotions when they were out there in the bush?
Watch Trophy the film and you will get my perspective. Available Online everywhere.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BWH
God has made an amazing and beautiful world. We are blessed to live in it. Not taking the opportunity to see the majesty of this world and it's creatures, peoples and cultures, befuddles the mind.

Compared to some, I am a novice wayfarer. Compared to many, I am a regular globetrekker. I pray that I will continue to have the health and financial resource to be amazed for many more years!
Well said!
 
Last time I went to a Zoo I had a copy of The Perfect Shot in my hand

And a laser pointer, don’t forget the laser pointer!
 
This is all great. Does anyone remember any specific emotions when they were out there in the bush?
wonderment, the unknown, and adventure of course.
 
wonderment, the unknown, and adventure of course.
Different cultures, customs, terrain. In the bush I like to put myself in the animal's "shoes" so to speak. I imagine I am that animal and try to think like him. What would I do in a certain situation if not being hunted. How would I react to the presence of a hunter on my trail. This served me well as a kid. I could think like my quarry and counteract his actions. Still works today.
 
The anticipation of all the things that you are going to see and how the hunt is going to unfold, heightens your five senses to the sharpest degree you can attain. Fully alert. The Hunt in full flavor. Adrenaline rush and Exhilaration beyond compare for those that truly love the chase of exotic game in exotic places.
 
Something new and different. The variety of wildlife as well. Here in Montana we have deer, elk , antelope readily available. Other species not so much due to hard to get tags. In Africa there are many more species available and you are seeing new things all the time. I don’t mind the mild weather either!
 
A few reasons. One is that there is a whole wide world out there. It would be a shame not to see as much as I possibly can. And by hunting I get out of the city’s. I see the real culture of the area I am traveling to. I would not consider ATL to define the culture of the State of Georgia, nor would I consider NYC to define the culture of The state of New York. I apply that mentality to other countries/continents as well. I meet the real people and see the real culture of the place I am at by traveling through the little towns and being in the middle of nowhere with nothing much around. I get to eat real homemade meals instead of restaurant food that’s meant to cater to people. I meet the everyday average joes this way of wherever I travel.

Another reason is I enjoy seeing and hunting animals I can not see where I reside.

Hunting is also one of the greatest ways to have personal development within one’s own self. You experience disappointment, Moments of extreme joy. It teaches patience and hard work. It also teaches that not everything will always go as planned. It teaches young men and women how to deal with disappointment. It teaches self discipline. It teaches you to always stay humble and to “not count your chickens before they hatch.” To put it bluntly I think hunting can teach a lot of lessons that can be applied to life in general.

Also hunting is conservation. Plain and simple. I would bet that most of us that are willing to travel to other countries to hunt care more about the animals and their preservation than most people ever will.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
53,632
Messages
1,131,575
Members
92,699
Latest member
gpstracking
 

 

 

Latest posts

Latest profile posts

Early morning Impala hunt, previous link was wrong video

Headshot on jackal this morning

Mature Eland Bull taken in Tanzania, at 100 yards, with 375 H&H, 300gr, Federal Premium Expanding bullet.

20231012_145809~2.jpg
 
Top