When to start a youngster on his first safari?

[Troubleshooter]

She loved Africa so much as it was admittedly so much more lavish and cushy compared to her prior hunts.

So for Africa specifically I say tak them as soon as you can and often thereafter. Then again what do I know. To some, I bet I appear as a bad parent letting her skip the last two weeks of school for this trip.

I strongly suspect that she learned far more in those two weeks than she would have learned in school.

 

[Philip Glass]

Planning ahead a few years, But thinking about when to take my grandson on a safari,when they are about 10 years old. Depending on size, maturity and hunting desire.
Going after members of the Tiny Ten , impala, etc. Something that a small bore can handle well, Probably South africa for ease of travel and cost.
I picture a rifle in the 243, 6.5 maybe 308 class. I will build him a rifle well before hand.
Throwing this out for ideas and others experiances.

It is going to depend on the kid. If they love to hunt and can shoot I would say 12 may be a good age. Personally I took my boys at 17 and 16 for the first time. I would go with a suppressed .308 for the best combination of power and low recoil.

 

[CBH Australia]

I think you have to gauge it as you go. You know the child and their likes etc.

It’s a great idea and plenty here have done it from reading this thread. My kids have been around firearms, my now adult son has shot a handful of animals but doesn’t have the drive to pursue hunting.

It’s great if you can afford it and want to take the kids along but overall it’s a unique opportunity for young kids to get involved in hunting internationally at a young age.

I just wonder if it changes their perspective on what a normal family holiday is or they appreciate it’s not something all families can accomplish

 

[rookhawk]

All three of my kids have hunted to a fair extent, but the middle one is and always has been the fanatic of the bunch. I took him to Africa when he was 9 on his first trip, he brought his bow and did some archery hunting spot and stalk and then he had his 7x64 mauser for Kudu, Eland, etc. On his second trip when he was ten he brought his 375HH for elephant and croc. We didn’t connect on elephant that trip, the government scout was a very annoying woman that ruined stalks shrieking that they were charging…they weren’t, they were 100 yards away.

He had plenty of fun, but he also was a fanatic and had a significant amount of hunting experience in the States from age 6 on up, both wing shooting and big game hunting.

It’s all about the temperament of the kid and their skills that decides if it’s a good idea or bad idea at a given age.

One thing I really disagree with is the posts above that effectively say “make it hard on them, make them earn their stripes by hunting X, Y, Z first”. Um, no. I can’t afford to take my kids on duck hunts, it costs as much as a week in Africa. Hell, our put and take pheasant club costs as much per day as a day in DG camp. My kid’s New Mexico Oryx hunt all-in after drawing his tag cost more than getting on a plane and flying to Africa to shoot a wild Oryx in their native habitat. If you can have your kids hunt 100 days a year for “simple” quarry so they can “earn” their stripes, consider yourself filthy rich. A hundred days of turkey, deer, pheasant, rabbit, duck, goose, grouse, and woodcock hunting would be a king’s ransom compared to going on an elephant hunt. Access to land and resources doesn’t grow on trees, many parents have to decide what is the most economical approach to sport. Africa, ironically, is cheaper than many American hunts I’d love to do with my kid like Sitka, Mulies, or a good Elk Hunt.

 

[Elkeater]

All three of my kids have hunted to a fair extent, but the middle one is and always has been the fanatic of the bunch. I took him to Africa when he was 9 on his first trip, he brought his bow and did some archery hunting spot and stalk and then he had his 7x64 mauser for Kudu, Eland, etc. On his second trip when he was ten he brought his 375HH for elephant and croc. We didn’t connect on elephant that trip, the government scout was a very annoying woman that ruined stalks shrieking that they were charging…they weren’t, they were 100 yards away.

He had plenty of fun, but he also was a fanatic and had a significant amount of hunting experience in the States from age 6 on up, both wing shooting and big game hunting.

It’s all about the temperament of the kid and their skills that decides if it’s a good idea or bad idea at a given age.

One thing I really disagree with is the posts above that effectively say “make it hard on them, make them earn their stripes by hunting X, Y, Z first”. Um, no. I can’t afford to take my kids on duck hunts, it costs as much as a week in Africa. Hell, our put and take pheasant club costs as much per day as a day in DG camp. My kid’s New Mexico Oryx hunt all-in after drawing his tag cost more than getting on a plane and flying to Africa to shoot a wild Oryx in their native habitat. If you can have your kids hunt 100 days a year for “simple” quarry so they can “earn” their stripes, consider yourself filthy rich. A hundred days of turkey, deer, pheasant, rabbit, duck, goose, grouse, and woodcock hunting would be a king’s ransom compared to going on an elephant hunt. Access to land and resources doesn’t grow on trees, many parents have to decide what is the most economical approach to sport. Africa, ironically, is cheaper than many American hunts I’d love to do with my kid like Sitka, Mulies, or a good Elk Hunt.

I’m with you. My kids will go to Africa again before they likely kill a pronghorn or elk. I’m not gonna spend the money on landowner tags and draw go long sometimes. They get to hunt deer, javelina, bear, quail and dove locally.

 

[Mountaineous]

I took my son to Limpopo this year when he was 6. He had the time of his life, and woke up every day grinning from ear to ear. Granted, he is a bit of an old soul, and is extremely easy to travel with. He knows the “the perfect shot” from cover to cover, has me read Capstick to him at bedtime every night, and can tell you the difference between pretty much all of the subspecies of plains game. It made the trip all the better, getting to see his eyes light up at every animal we saw.
He was able to take a springbok and blesbok with a suppressed 223 that the PH had. It took a lot of tries, and some patience on the part of the PH to get it all to come together. I am extremely glad that I decided to take him on the trip though.

 

[Quest#1]

I took my son when he was 5. He shot a warthog and springbok which were his first 2 animals ever hunted. He was shooting the guides .223. Both 1 shot kills. Seeing him hunt with his grandfather for their first times in Africa are great memories I will always keep.

That’s awesome! 5 is what i am doing as well. We will be in Namibia then. He's 3 now has a 410 single shot that he carries often to learn safe gun control. He is also obsessed with hunting it’s probably that he feeds off of my obsession.
Can’t wait!!!

 

[Ridge Runner]

The spark of hunting, caught up with me when I was of preschool age. From my grandfather. And it was always in me.

Having said that, I took my son hunting with me when he was 12 or maybe earlier.
I took him to Africa, when he was 14. He took a warthog with 223. By the age if 18, he made hunting exam,
I thought this was it!
But, by the time he enrolled to college just after that, he lost all his interest to hunting. He is all over in his exams,

We will see later, in his forthcoming years, if the interest to hunt will come back to him.
I really have no idea, and I see no rules. I did whatever was possible.

A friend of mine in his retirement, took hunting exam, and went hunting first time in his life at mid sixties. It was his life long dream.

it is either in you, or you dont have it at all. It can come, and it can go, and it can come again.

It's called: boy meets girls or girl meets boys syndrome,....aka the dating years.

As you said, they will either get back into hunting or they won't. It's where they find their niche in life.

My buddy's grandson, that likes-liked-likes to go hunting with me, is in that phase.

 

[Hunter-Habib]

I got my son started when he was 7.

And my daughter started (with hunting in general) when she was 13.

My eldest grandson first accompanied me to my most recent Safari in 2023, when he was 23.

 

[Brandon.Gleason]

Both of my kids were afield with us by age 1 on pheasant hunts. My son went on his first big game hunts last year for black bear and whitetail at age 8. Thinking about bringing them to South Africa in 2027 (ages 11 and 7). The flights are what worry me. My wife's worry is whether or not they'll tolerate 10 days straight of hunting or drive her nuts and want to sit in camp on the wifi after a few days and complain they're "bored." Not something I want to acknowledge as a possibility, but I have to be realistic and say it is.

 

[Russ16]

All three of my kids have hunted to a fair extent, but the middle one is and always has been the fanatic of the bunch. I took him to Africa when he was 9 on his first trip, he brought his bow and did some archery hunting spot and stalk and then he had his 7x64 mauser for Kudu, Eland, etc. On his second trip when he was ten he brought his 375HH for elephant and croc. We didn’t connect on elephant that trip, the government scout was a very annoying woman that ruined stalks shrieking that they were charging…they weren’t, they were 100 yards away.

He had plenty of fun, but he also was a fanatic and had a significant amount of hunting experience in the States from age 6 on up, both wing shooting and big game hunting.

It’s all about the temperament of the kid and their skills that decides if it’s a good idea or bad idea at a given age.

One thing I really disagree with is the posts above that effectively say “make it hard on them, make them earn their stripes by hunting X, Y, Z first”. Um, no. I can’t afford to take my kids on duck hunts, it costs as much as a week in Africa. Hell, our put and take pheasant club costs as much per day as a day in DG camp. My kid’s New Mexico Oryx hunt all-in after drawing his tag cost more than getting on a plane and flying to Africa to shoot a wild Oryx in their native habitat. If you can have your kids hunt 100 days a year for “simple” quarry so they can “earn” their stripes, consider yourself filthy rich. A hundred days of turkey, deer, pheasant, rabbit, duck, goose, grouse, and woodcock hunting would be a king’s ransom compared to going on an elephant hunt. Access to land and resources doesn’t grow on trees, many parents have to decide what is the most economical approach to sport. Africa, ironically, is cheaper than many American hunts I’d love to do with my kid like Sitka, Mulies, or a good Elk Hunt.

I hunt ducks and pheasant for the price of a an out of state license and ammo every year. Plenty of public land. Been taking my nephews the last few years and it is a great experience for them. We usually camp and they learn a lot of independence. Getting to the point where I ask them where we are going to hunt or the strategy for decoy setup.

I’ve never paid a dime for a woodcock hunt. Find a national first and start walking. Just saying there is a lot of affordable hunting out there in the US.

 

[Daveboone]

I think any age is appropriate for introduction to big game hunting....but not necessarily as a hunter. I firmly believe to establish the love of the outdoors, it is more important to simply spend as much time out doors...literally doing anything...hiking, fishing, whitling, star gazing...to hopefully build a bond that they want to spend time outside. My goal was to show it wasnt just about the blood sport...and over emphasizing the end result of killing. Lord knows, we love our venison, and I love to recall my successes, but more important...to love the animals and the overall experiences. Lord knows Africa is a great place for all of that.

 

[rookhawk]

I hunt ducks and pheasant for the price of a an out of state license and ammo every year. Plenty of public land. Been taking my nephews the last few years and it is a great experience for them. We usually camp and they learn a lot of independence. Getting to the point where I ask them where we are going to hunt or the strategy for decoy setup.

I’ve never paid a dime for a woodcock hunt. Find a national first and start walking. Just saying there is a lot of affordable hunting out there in the US.

It all depends where you want to live. A relevant saying is "Montana is poverty with a million dollar view".

We've driven as far as 28 hours for quality hunts. It's better now where we can hunt our own land for a few species, but its still generally a long drive. Sure, we can go to Canada for a $4500 bear hunt any time we want, plus lodging and a 12 hour drive, OR we can boast of how cheap it is to just put in points for $6 a year and draw a tag after 14 years and then drive a mere 4 hours and pay a mere $1750 access fee, for example.

If you know a place in America where there is unlimited free hunting and loads of public land that also has jobs that cover the estimated costs of $500,000 per child to raise them x3, lay it on me.

Otherwise, I'd say going to Africa is about as cheap of a hunt as you can actually put together unless your time is worthless and your fuel and tires are free.

 

[Russ16]

It all depends where you want to live. A relevant saying is "Montana is poverty with a million dollar view".

We've driven as far as 28 hours for quality hunts. It's better now where we can hunt our own land for a few species, but its still generally a long drive. Sure, we can go to Canada for a $4500 bear hunt any time we want, plus lodging and a 12 hour drive, OR we can boast of how cheap it is to just put in points for $6 a year and draw a tag after 14 years and then drive a mere 4 hours and pay a mere $1750 access fee, for example.

If you know a place in America where there is unlimited free hunting and loads of public land that also has jobs that cover the estimated costs of $500,000 per child to raise them x3, lay it on me.

Otherwise, I'd say going to Africa is about as cheap of a hunt as you can actually put together unless your time is worthless and your fuel and tires are free.

I live right outside DC it can’t be much worse many places than here. But yeah I use some of my vacation to drive to the dakotas every year. Fuel isn’t free but the whole trip costs me about $1000 for 10 days. I hunt woodcock and grouse in the mountains of WV and public land ducks in Maryland. No I can go kill a big elk or deer for free.

But i was responding to the idea that it’s hard to introduce a kid to a lot of hunting for not a lot of money, it can be done even around here. You were saying a duck hunt or grouse hunt was expensive it doesn’t have to be. Just a change of expectations. A late season spooky public land duck in an area that’s shot out is as much a trophy to me as anything.