Is hunting/fishing a “dying sport”?

[Mccallister25]

I’m sorry if this has been covered before. Just genuinely curious as to the answers I may get. 
Iv been doing a lot of thinking lately about the future. They say that hunting and fishing is a dying sport due to lack of interest from the younger generations. I can kinda see where this thinking comes from, but at the same time I Was born and raised in the south. It seems to me that both are alive and well throughout all age groups. I personally know a ton of people who do at least one of the activities on a regular basis. Now I’m not sure how the rest of the country fares as far as outdoorsman goes, but it seems to me that the number of people who engage in some sort of hunting/fishing  is bigger than a lot of people may think. Id love to hear answers from you guys. What do y’all make of it? 

[Tennessee Boy]

I'm also from the south so I can't answer for other parts of the country.  I see no evidence that fishing is in decline.  Now as for hunting,  I think it has gotten harder in general to hunt.  You need a place to hunt and those places are getting harder to find.  They ain't made any new land in a long time.  Urban growth has taken away some hunting land and land owners are more reluctant to let hunters hunt on their land.  My grandfather was a coon hunter and he would just follow the dogs without worrying about who's land they wandered onto.  Those days are long gone.

[Bird]

Deer hunters definitely have declined.

 

Bass fishing has increased making the fish wiser. Lol

 

Watersports have greatly increased on bigger water making for challenging conditions to fish but fishing remains very popular especially with the advancements of fishing kayaks. 

[J._Bricker]

In the Golden State @Mccallister25, I believe it has for a variety of reasons that I prefer not to rant about... I do believe it is incumbent upon all of us to try to instill the value of outdoor activities such as hunting/fishing to our children and grandchildren.

[12poundbass]

Hunting licenses are down in Michigan. Fishing licenses I’m not sure about. I see boats out all the time in my area fishing. 
 

Last summer I took my son and his best friend out fishing. We were right in front of this house and they were hammering the gills and trying to catch the catfish that kept popping it’s head out. This old guy (late 70’s) came out and stood at the shore just looking at us. I finally said hi and he smiled and said he had been watching those two for a while (I was just the guide that day) and said he was so glad to see them out fishing and having so much fun doing it. He gave me a wink and a thumbs up. That was a proud dad moment for me. I’m doing what I can to keep hunting and fishing going in my household. 

[gim]

Minnesota -

 

Big game

turkey hunting - slight increase the past decade

deer hunting - mostly remained stable the past decade

 

Small game

Waterfowl - major decline the past decade

Pheasant - major decline the past decade

Other small game - declined the past decade

 

Fishing

 

Open water - remained flat the past decade

Ice fishing - increased participation the past decade mostly due to the popularity of over night wheel houses

 

Minnesota is a pretty big state in terms of popularity of outdoor recreational activities such as hunting and fishing but for the most part, overall participation is decreasing.  Participation can be tracked in license and stamp sales fairly easily.  The primary reason is that the overall demographics of the population is aging and we aren't replacing them with a younger generation.  The DNR's budget is closely tied to license sales and they can see the loss of participation so their solution is two fold (neither of which I support): increase the cost of each individual license to help defray the loss, and create some controversial special youth seasons.  Bass fishing to be more specific as it relates to this website is not overly popular here because the walleye is king.  I would say that a lot more people target walleye and panfish and maybe trout too than they do bass.  A big reason why is because we have this thing called ice on the lakes for 5 months and bass are pretty much hibernating.

[DanielG]

I have no idea here in  Maine what the fishing increase/decline might be. But...if it is in decline, well, that was my fish they caught anyway so it's okay with me!

?

Seriously though. I don't think fishing is in decline here. The reason I 'think' that because I have no statistics, is that we have the oldest and retired population in the country. Lot's of regular every day anglers out on the water it seems like. I'm one of them.

[J._Bricker]

3 hours ago, gimruis said:

Minnesota -

 

Big game

turkey hunting - slight increase the past decade

deer hunting - mostly remained stable the past decade

 

Small game

Waterfowl - major decline the past decade

Pheasant - major decline the past decade

Other small game - declined the past decade

 

Fishing

 

Open water - remained flat the past decade

Ice fishing - increased participation the past decade mostly due to the popularity of over night wheel houses

 

Minnesota is a pretty big state in terms of popularity of outdoor recreational activities such as hunting and fishing but for the most part, overall participation is decreasing.  Participation can be tracked in license and stamp sales fairly easily.  The primary reason is that the overall demographics of the population is aging and we aren't replacing them with a younger generation.  The DNR's budget is closely tied to license sales and they can see the loss of participation so their solution is two fold (neither of which I support): increase the cost of each individual license to help defray the loss, and create some controversial special youth seasons.  Bass fishing to be more specific as it relates to this website is not overly popular here because the walleye is king.  I would say that a lot more people target walleye and panfish and maybe trout too than they do bass.  A big reason why is because we have this thing called ice on the lakes for 5 months and bass are pretty much hibernating.

Couldn’t agree with you more @gimruis about shifting demographics. +38 million in my state, the majority living in an urban environment, over regulation and increasing fees and very little being done to enhance hunting/fishing habitat, water politics. Sun Microsystems co-founder bought Martins Beach, which my family would go for grunion (surf smelt) since the 30’s, locked out the public and is now being sued to reopen the beach.... And I said I didn’t want to rant lol

 

4 hours ago, 12poundbass said:

Hunting licenses are down in Michigan. Fishing licenses I’m not sure about. I see boats out all the time in my area fishing. 
 

Last summer I took my son and his best friend out fishing. We were right in front of this house and they were hammering the gills and trying to catch the catfish that kept popping it’s head out. This old guy (late 70’s) came out and stood at the shore just looking at us. I finally said hi and he smiled and said he had been watching those two for a while (I was just the guide that day) and said he was so glad to see them out fishing and having so much fun doing it. He gave me a wink and a thumbs up. That was a proud dad moment for me. I’m doing what I can to keep hunting and fishing going in my household. 

That’s what I’m talking about @12poundbass, good moments and memories. This past Christmas, my youngest for a present gave me a fishing trip. She would buy a license, take the day off work, and spend the day of my choice with me fishing. The older we get, the more things like that are appreciated.

[gim]

54 minutes ago, J._Bricker said:

Couldn’t agree with you more @gimruis about shifting demographics. +38 million in my state, the majority living in an urban environment, over regulation and increasing fees and very little being done to enhance hunting/fishing habitat, water politics.

Luckily the state of MN treats its lakes and rivers in pretty high regard here (land of 10,000 lakes, ironically), so our water quality and public accesses are in good shape.  What is not being treated great is the land and its use, which often contributes to problems that exist IN the lakes and rivers (runoff, pollution, etc).  Finding good places to hunt can also be problematic as the common hunter probably can't afford to buy their own track of land just for recreational purposes and hunting public land that is highly pressured generally doesn't lead to a consistent success rate or great experience.

[soflabasser]

I see more people fishing today in South Florida than I did over 20 years ago. 

[Mccallister25]

Interesting responses from everybody. I really appreciate the input. Like I said in my original post, down here it seems to be kickin pretty good.. Both hunting and fishing, although I can definitely see hunting becoming more of a thing of the past with each passing year. Development doesn’t stop, and it’s getting harder and harder to find land to hunt. 
 

As far as fishing goes, here’s another question for you; does anyone feel that eventually fishing will phase out to the point of major companies in the industry shutting down? Rod/reel makers, bait companies, etc?

[Sam]

Money. It is all about money.

 

Today it costs a lot of money to go fishing and hunting.

 

When you think that I paid $35,000 for my first house and a good bass boat costs a lot more today than what I paid for my house outside of Philly you can understand why in some parts of the states fishing has decreased.

 

When you think of all the deer in the cities and counties/parishes but no places to hunt why spend thousands on guns, ammo, clothes, stands, etc.?

 

When I watch my two grandkids play on the computer for hours and not want to go outside, other than to BPS to run around and shoot the laser guns, I can understand your concern.

 

Different states with different economic conditions will have different statistics. 

 

Remember NASCAR at its peak a number of years ago. It has fallen on hard times as the stands are not filling up for the races. Same could hold true for bass fishing in the future if we burn out.

 

The bass fishing industry is at it epitome now. Hope it stays there. Time will tell.

[ohboyitsrobby]

I live in rural Arkansas and both are alive and well here thankfully. We also have an abundance of lakes close by and national forest to hunt on. Hopefully it remains that way. Only time will tell though

[N Florida Mike]

6 hours ago, Tennessee Boy said:

I'm also from the south so I can't answer for other parts of the country.  I see no evidence that fishing is in decline.  Now as for hunting,  I think it has gotten harder in general to hunt.  You need a place to hunt and those places are getting harder to find.  They ain't made any new land in a long time.  Urban growth has taken away some hunting land and land owners are more reluctant to let hunters hunt on their land.  My grandfather was a coon hunter and he would just follow the dogs without worrying about who's land they wandered onto.  Those days are long gone.

^^^ This.

[gim]

15 hours ago, Mccallister25 said:

s far as fishing goes, here’s another question for you; does anyone feel that eventually fishing will phase out to the point of major companies in the industry shutting down? Rod/reel makers, bait companies, etc?

 

I don't see that happening for a while.  What I see happening first is the collapse of fishery populations.  Its already happened in many parts of the country, and the world for that matter.  Resources are strained.  If we don't lower some of our bag limits to account for more effecient harvest, some populations are going to be downright eliminated.

 

I'll give you a local example here right in Minnesota: Mille Lacs lake.  A lot of bass anglers now know about it from a national perspective because of the incredible weights it posted 2 years in a row on the Elite tour, but the lake was traditionally a walleye stronghold.  For years the daily bag limit was four walleyes.  Well the past few years they haven't allowed any harvest of walleyes and a couple years they had to shut it down early because the mortality quota was exceeded.  Its not just from over harvest, but climate change and the pyramid of the ecosystem has drastically changed in that lake the past decade, and it has hurt the walleye population (contrary, it has allowed the smallmouth bass population to explode).  Well, now the walleye anglers are upset because they can't harvest any and they're blaming the DNR for it.

 

[TnRiver46]

If you fish the TN river from chickamauga to KY lake, you would think bass fishing was the most popular sport on the planet. 90+ percent catch and release, we could use a little harvest down this way 

[Mccallister25]

Does anyone think any of the next few generations will see the downfall of recreational fishing?

[Scott F]

Statistics from the last 20 years of fishing licenses sold in the US does not show declining sales. In fact, in 2013, almost 36 million licenses were sold. There has been a slow, steady increase since then and 41.4 million were sold in 2019.  Doesn’t look like the industry is dying just yet.

[J Francho]

I would say that outdoorsmen are a subset of the typical angler.  I do not see the number of angler decreasing as I would say outdoorsmen.  I also would not lump hunting and fishing into one group.  They are distinctly different activities, though with a good deal of crossover.  I don't hunt anymore, probably never will again.  It's just not interesting to me, as fishing is these days.  Based on the the number of advances made, the cost of much of the gear, and the shear level of online marketing done, I'd say there is growth in fishing.  Seems like more and more companies fighting for a market share, and for higher and higher price points.  The average guy that bass fishes with any seriousness has as much tied up in their hobby as many golfers.  I've watched this shift for the past two decades.  A 20' bass boat costs as much as membership to a private golf club, these days.

[txchaser]

6 hours ago, Scott F said:

Statistics from the last 20 years of fishing licenses sold in the US does not show declining sales. In fact, in 2013, almost 36 million licenses were sold. There has been a slow, steady increase since then and 41.4 million were sold in 2019.  Doesn’t look like the industry is dying just yet.

Love 'em or hate 'em I think the youtubers in all their flavors are helping move these numbers. 

[Tennessee Boy]

I'm 57 years old and it's interesting how much the wildlife has changed in Tennessee in my lifetime.  When I was young I remember hearing quail all the time and walking through the woods and having a covey scare me to death when they flew up in front of me.  I haven't seen or heard a quail in many years.  Then there's deer.  We used to get excited about seeing a deer.  Now,  if you want to see one just look out the window,  there's probably one in the yard.  Same for turkey.  I'll never forget when I was a kid and I saw my first wild turkey while fishing at a pond.  Now they're everywhere.  It's definitely changed how people hunt. 

[DanielG]

17 minutes ago, Tennessee Boy said:

I'm 57 years old and it's interesting how much the wildlife has changed in Tennessee in my lifetime.  When I was young I remember hearing quail all the time and walking through the woods and having a covey scare me to death when they flew up in front of me.  I haven't seen or heard a quail in many years.  Then there's deer.  We used to get excited about seeing a deer.  Now,  if you want to see one just look out the window,  there's probably one in the yard.  Same for turkey.  I'll never forget when I was a kid and I saw my first wild turkey while fishing at a pond.  Now they're everywhere.  It's definitely changed how people hunt. 

Here in Maine we've changed too. Not necessarily game animals. Some things a few years ago  you never ever saw. I see blue herons and odd colored woodpeckers and other song birds. Never here before. They're warmer weather birds. We have about 2 months more of warmer weather than we used to. Ice is in a month later and out a month earlier. Also, we never had disease born mosquitoes here. Now we do as they say they're able to creep north with the changing climate.

In the lake I've been at since I was a kid the fish have changed and things like crayfish, leaches, and frogs are gone. The lake is  still good, just none of that stuff any longer. Strange changes.

[Bluebasser86]

I see way more people on my weekdays off on the water than I ever have. It use to be unusual to see another person, now it's not unusual to see 3-5 boats on a small lake and 10 or more on a large reservoir. Maybe the job market is different, giving people different days off so I'm just seeing it more, but there doesn't seem to be any decrease to me.

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

quick google found this on fishing 

"Only running activities had more participants"

https://www.statista.com/topics/1163/recreational-fishing/

[Way2slow]

Water activities seem to increase more each year in GA, but hunting, that's definitely on the decline because of the lack of places to hunt.  The only public access to land is on the states WMA's and those are highly regulated as to the number of people they allow each year.

Very few land owners will allow you access to their property because of the total lack of respect so many have for someone else's property when they do let them on it, or have already leased it out.  So, about the only access you have it to join a lease, if you can find one with an opening, and then it's very expensive.  So much so, the average hourly worker can't really afford it, paying the lease fees is only a part of the total cost.  GA has increased their bags limits on deer to large numbers because of the lack of hunters to help control the population.  I think GA has about 35,000 vehicle accidents a year involving deer.

Then you have the lack of game.  Yea, there are plenty of deer, and depends on what kind of growing season the turkey had the year before as to how their numbers are.  Not everyone want do hunt deer/turkey and the smaller game like birds, rabbit's, squirrels (unless you live in a neighborhood with lots of tree's).  Those are the things that were always fun as a kid to grab a 22 or 410 and just go walking and looking for.  Large, corporate farms have wiped out most of the habitat.  Farmers used to plant smaller fields they could manage, that left plenty of wind rows, now they plant thousand acre fields, nothing but bare land then.  That or they have quite maintaining the land it let it grow up into scrub land, or planted trees on it.

There are also plenty of wild hogs and coyote, but not places that you can hunt them.