How to get started in hunting?

If you have a hunter's safety card or certificate from NJ, you should be good to get license in MA.....
Maybe look into joining a club that has bird hunting and members willing to mentor....
 
What kind of hunting does he want to do? Maybe try a preserve now with pheasants? You can get a guide that will help you with all you need to know for the days hunt.
 
Never been, handy with a shotgun and rifle. I did hunting safety courses in NJ, not sure if that's needed in MA.
What do you want to hunt? If it's deer you're after, get out in the woods often. Find where the deer are and then find their travel lanes to and from their bedding spots and their feeding spots. Early fall before the season begins, find an active run and look for buck signs like rubs and scrapes. Set up your tree stand, ( the best method by far), or set up a ground blind. (Not as good as a tree stand, but better than nothing).
During the season get out to your stand well before sun up in clothing that is as scent free as possible. Then just be patient.
That's about it, other than plenty of pre-season practice with your weapon. Also, invest in some good clothes and some very good boots. Hunting just isn't fun if you're cold and miserable.
 
feel like i missed some info in the OP's question. What type of hunting are you interested in getting into?

In order to get your first hunting license in MA you need to either have a hunters safety course under your belt(cant recall how they verify this) or be willing to tell a fib and say you've held a license before.

Just about everything is done through the massfishhunt portal, and its surprisingly simple
 
Whoops, probably should have specified. More interested in deer hunting.

Now is when to start. The best time to start scouting is now through spring green up.

The best way to get started is connecting with someone in your area that deer hunts to show you the ropes. If you have a family member who hunts great, if not, there may be someone at work or maybe even someone at your sportsmen’s club that help get you started.

Bob
 
Whoops, probably should have specified. More interested in deer hunting.
Specifically gun hunting in MA?

I strongly suggest picking up a bow to anyone interested in hunting MA. Adds another month and a half to the season, the weather is gorgeous, and far fewer guys in the woods.

As far as the actual hunt. I recommend hunting with a buddy
Who already has a few stands to get the ropes
 
Why do the new hunters always say they are mainly interested in deer hunting? Deer is probably the lowest success rate next to bear. Not saying don't hunt deer......but small game and turkey can be a great way start in the sport.....and you may actually come home with something the first or second trip out.
 
Why do the new hunters always say they are mainly interested in deer hunting? Deer is probably the lowest success rate next to bear. Not saying don't hunt deer......but small game and turkey can be a great way start in the sport.....and you may actually come home with something the first or second trip out.
I took a MA Hunter Safety Course in October and the instructors were asking what everyone wanted to hunt.

Everybody said whitetail deer. One guy said squirrel.
 
mr. evildragon, you are a man of very few words. you got to give a bit more information if you want someone to be specific with their answer.
 
Why do the new hunters always say they are mainly interested in deer hunting? Deer is probably the lowest success rate next to bear. Not saying don't hunt deer......but small game and turkey can be a great way start in the sport.....and you may actually come home with something the first or second trip out.
gotta fill that freezer baby! Whitetail is the best for that purpose in my opinion. As you've said though it can be incredibly slow and unsuccessful depending on what zone you hunt. I got hooked because I killed a doe with a bow on my first day in the woods. I've learned since that you've got to enjoy sitting in a tree appreciating nature and reading a good book with no expectations. Ive lost many new hunters to boredom after a few days in the woods and I dont know how I'm ever gonna get my son started with his attention span.

I'm looking to get into bird hunting, the idea of being constantly moving and some more shooting is very appealing to me.
 
gotta fill that freezer baby! Whitetail is the best for that purpose in my opinion. As you've said though it can be incredibly slow and unsuccessful depending on what zone you hunt. I got hooked because I killed a doe with a bow on my first day in the woods. I've learned since that you've got to enjoy sitting in a tree appreciating nature and reading a good book with no expectations. Ive lost many new hunters to boredom after a few days in the woods and I dont know how I'm ever gonna get my son started with his attention span.

I'm looking to get into bird hunting, the idea of being constantly moving and some more shooting is very appealing to me.
Squirrel. Start him on squirrel. High success rate and a long season. You can head out for an hour or 2 and bag a handful.
 
gotta fill that freezer baby! Whitetail is the best for that purpose in my opinion. As you've said though it can be incredibly slow and unsuccessful depending on what zone you hunt. I got hooked because I killed a doe with a bow on my first day in the woods. I've learned since that you've got to enjoy sitting in a tree appreciating nature and reading a good book with no expectations. Ive lost many new hunters to boredom after a few days in the woods and I dont know how I'm ever gonna get my son started with his attention span.

I'm looking to get into bird hunting, the idea of being constantly moving and some more shooting is very appealing to me.
You got lucky. So did my wife years ago. She hunted with the becoming an outdoor woman program and got a buck 20 minutes after legal light. She got home and said so......what do you guys actually do all day in the woods say after day? 😬
 
You got lucky. So did my wife years ago. She hunted with the becoming an outdoor woman program and got a buck 20 minutes after legal light. She got home and said so......what do you guys actually do all day in the woods say after day? 😬
I definitely did, hard to keep new hunters interested without that experience...

another reason why i really push people to try bowhunting, it starts in october so you can be out there in a sweatshirt most days. It's a lot harder to stick it out during shotgun when you're freezing and not seeing anything
 
I definitely did, hard to keep new hunters interested without that experience...

another reason why i really push people to try bowhunting, it starts in october so you can be out there in a sweatshirt most days. It's a lot harder to stick it out during shotgun when you're freezing and not seeing anything
More deer are taken by bow in MA than any other method now...near a majority:

1673364569741.png
 
More deer are taken by bow in MA than any other method now...near a majority:

View attachment 707699
This is a definite shift from say 10 years ago. Mostly driven by a lot of people taking up crossbow/archery hunting, and the majority of the states deer being in the East where you can hunt with a bow easier than a shotgun.

MA is still a tough state to deer hunt as 13k animals killed per all seasons pare's in comparison to some of the single zones in some other more heavily populated deer states Many of which have antler restrictions which holds the kills down even further.
 
gotta fill that freezer baby! Whitetail is the best for that purpose in my opinion. As you've said though it can be incredibly slow and unsuccessful depending on what zone you hunt. I got hooked because I killed a doe with a bow on my first day in the woods. I've learned since that you've got to enjoy sitting in a tree appreciating nature and reading a good book with no expectations. Ive lost many new hunters to boredom after a few days in the woods and I dont know how I'm ever gonna get my son started with his attention span.

I'm looking to get into bird hunting, the idea of being constantly moving and some more shooting is very appealing to me.
After many years of hunting archery with either just my dad, or myself. I reached my big buck goals, killed several in CT, MA and NH and got bored sitting in stands.

I switched to bird hunting over the dog more and with large groups of guys and it was fun moving around and shooting the shit just as much as shooting birds.

I still bowhunt, but not as seriously as I once did. If I shoot any deer with anything now its fine, and I take just one for meat, as that's all I need.
 
MA is still a tough state to deer hunt as 13k animals killed per all seasons pare's in comparison to some of the single zones in some other more heavily populated deer states Many of which have antler restrictions which holds the kills down even further.

...and of course the Puritanical "Sunday!" ban is a factor...
 
After many years of hunting archery with either just my dad, or myself. I reached my big buck goals, killed several in CT, MA and NH and got bored sitting in stands.

I switched to bird hunting over the dog more and with large groups of guys and it was fun moving around and shooting the shit just as much as shooting birds.

I still bowhunt, but not as seriously as I once did. If I shoot any deer with anything now its fine, and I take just one for meat, as that's all I need.
Kinda how i'm feeling lately. I enjoy being out alone during bow season because of the weather but I'd like the option of bird hunting with my in laws as well
 
This is a definite shift from say 10 years ago. Mostly driven by a lot of people taking up crossbow/archery hunting, and the majority of the states deer being in the East where you can hunt with a bow easier than a shotgun.

MA is still a tough state to deer hunt as 13k animals killed per all seasons pare's in comparison to some of the single zones in some other more heavily populated deer states Many of which have antler restrictions which holds the kills down even further.
Presumably there's much fewer hunters in MA. Most people are blown away when I tell them I hunt here
 
MA is still a tough state to deer hunt as 13k animals killed per all seasons pare's in comparison to some of the single zones in some other more heavily populated deer states Many of which have antler restrictions which holds the kills down even further.

Our entire estimated deer herd is just the deer kill in serious deer hunting states where they actually manage the deer herd as a resource for hunters. Here it seems that the DEEP want them all dead.

To get a new hunter really interested and excited about hunting you need a target rich environment. That’s why many are suggesting squirrels and other small game in Mass. In Western Mass it isn’t uncommon to see a deer or two in a weeks worth hunting.

When introducing a new fisherman, or woman, to fishing they always start with panfish for the same reason

Sitting in a stand freezing or soaked with sweat in the early season needs to be a worthwhile endeavor. “The juice needs to be worth the squeeze“, as they say, otherwise you will lose a new hunter before they even have the chance to get started. Once a new hunter gets his, or her, first deer they will either be hooked for life or not. It is really that simple.

We truly live in the Information Age and there is a lot of great information out there, and bad as well, right at your fingertips.

Two great sources are the Pennsylvania State University Deer-Forest Study and the Hunting Beast Forum. Good people and great informatio. IMO the Penn Deer Study has done more than anyone else to dispel the long lived deer hunting myths and “truisms” that have been accepted as fact for generations. Collaring deer and seeing what they actually do will always show the truth of what they actually do.

There are weeks and weeks of great reading about deer behavior at both places. There are a lot of great hunters on the beast who will happily welcome you to there forum and freely share their knowledge and experience.

Bob

The Hunting Beast - Index page

Eat your veggies…and flowers
 
Presumably there's much fewer hunters in MA. Most people are blown away when I tell them I hunt here

2019 is the most recent number I saw:

Massachusetts by the numbers

- Percent of residents with paid hunting licenses: 0.8%
- Total paid hunting license holders: 56,985
- Total hunting license, tags, permits and stamps: 256,651
- Gross cost of all hunting licenses: $2,367,256

Massachusetts is the #5 state with the fewest registered hunters

The deer harvest for the same year (2019) was 13,921
Preliminary deer harvest report shows another near-record year in 2019

If you do the math that means that the success rate is 5.42%. This presumes 1 deer per hunter and many hunters take more than 1 deer so I usually just call it a 5% success rate.

Bob
 
2019 is the most recent number I saw:

Massachusetts by the numbers

- Percent of residents with paid hunting licenses: 0.8%
- Total paid hunting license holders: 56,985
- Total hunting license, tags, permits and stamps: 256,651
- Gross cost of all hunting licenses: $2,367,256

Massachusetts is the #5 state with the fewest registered hunters

The deer harvest for the same year (2019) was 13,921
Preliminary deer harvest report shows another near-record year in 2019

If you do the math that means that the success rate is 5.42%. This presumes 1 deer per hunter and many hunters take more than 1 deer so I usually just call it a 5% success rate.

Bob
that definitely seems accurate, I'd love to see the success rate broken down by zones. Here in 11 if you dont have an opportunity to shoot deer you're either a terrible hunter that cant pick a good spot or you're just not out there enough.
 
...and of course the Puritanical "Sunday!" ban is a factor...
This and the fact that our gun season is not during the rut does keep the kills down a bit. That said, Many MA hunters have a brown is down attitude for the most part and shoot whatever they see, as they are allowed two bucks, and many doe permits.

Honestly its a good thing our gun season isn't during the rut.
 
This and the fact that our gun season is not during the rut does keep the kills down a bit. That said, Many MA hunters have a brown is down attitude for the most part and shoot whatever they see, as they are allowed two bucks, and many doe permits.

Honestly its a good thing our gun season isn't during the rut.
I love the attitude that people take up "Oh why'd you shoot that little buck/doe? let it grow up into something bigger" Absolutely not, you get 2 buck tags and plenty of doe tags. I shoot the first deer I can most seasons to put meat in the freezer and maybe get a little picky after that if it's early bow season. Once shotgun season rolls around you might as well shoot anything you can.

I'm all for letting small deer grow up, but at 5% success rate I shoot what I can
 
I love the attitude that people take up "Oh why'd you shoot that little buck/doe? let it grow up into something bigger" Absolutely not, you get 2 buck tags and plenty of doe tags. I shoot the first deer I can most seasons to put meat in the freezer and maybe get a little picky after that if it's early bow season. Once shotgun season rolls around you might as well shoot anything you can.

I'm all for letting small deer grow up, but at 5% success rate I shoot what I can
Yes.....you hit the MA attitude on the head, except you said picky. Nothing wrong with it, our F&W manages for "jesus christ I saw a deer I need to shoot it, because I haven't seen one in 3 years!"

Ask you this....if you saw deer a lot more.....would you feel the need to shoot every one you had a tag for? Say you went out and most times you saw some deer.....the average thinking would be I'll take one for meat, but I have a nice herd here in my spot and want to keep the quality up.

Or would you act like Jo Jo the circus clown and blast away not giving a shit about the herd, how many does your really taking out of the herd, what your doing to your spot, etc.........that is the overall MA mentality. Kill everything I see because.......well......I HAVE A TAG FOR IT. That makes it OK.

When you hunt other states like PA, KY, or most midwest states, that have tons of deer yet you have antler restrictions and only one buck tag........You'll see does and small bucks walk by you every day your in the field, you don't feel the need to shoot every one you see. So some days you say....yeah....today I'll take a doe or two and fill the freezer, then I'll use my one buck tag I get (because the state manages properly) to wait for a decent buck. The attitude in those states is totally different because they see deer regularly.
 
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