Returning to the Hunt Each Year: An Interview with Tim Wagner

Hunting is a year-round passion, but hunters develop one-track mindsets in the late summer and early fall seasons. It's the start of an annual ritual and a natural pull to nature that can't be fully explained but is understood by anyone who loves the outdoors.

As hunters prepare their tools and head to the range for their final practice sessions, we wanted to capture what it feels like to anticipate the return of the fall season. So, we interviewed Tim Wagner, an avid hunter, outdoorsman, Professional Outdoor Media Association speaker, and Outdoor Life Grand Slam Adventure winner, for his views on hunting and why he returns to the hunt each year.

We'll also talk about how to stay safe during each hunt so you can continue hunting every season!

Who First Introduced You to Hunting?

This is going to be the most original answer ever! My dad. 

I think he gave me a Daisy Red Ryder when I was 4 or 5 years old. We were farmers, so I had plenty of room to explore with it. I graduated to a Crosman 760 pretty soon after that, and there was a five-cent bounty for me on the head of every sparrow and blackbird raiding our wheat crop.

What Was the First Game Animal You Hunted?

My first game animal was a mourning dove, then a bobwhite quail, then a pheasant – all taken with a 16-gauge single shot made in 1916 that came up to me through my grandfather. 

We lived in the Texas Panhandle then, and there was no such thing as big game near us – nothing bigger than a coyote. When we moved to Arkansas, I hunted squirrels and rabbits with my Marlin Golden 39M.

When Did You Finally Move on to Bigger Game?

Dad took us deer hunting once in the Ozark National Forest, but we saw hundreds of hunters and only one deer. 

It wasn't until college that I shot my first deer, a button buck, and I was out all by myself. It felt good to accomplish a huge goal by applying everything I'd learned from decades of reading Outdoor Life and listening to my dad. 

Later, when I shot my biggest buck, my dad was with me in my stand. I'm not sure that's a story coming full circle, but something like that.

What Keeps You Coming Back to the Field Each Year?

About a dozen different things, really. 

I've loved animals since I was tiny. I can never get enough of watching wild animals go about their lives. Non-hunters rarely believe how much a true hunter loves the animals that he kills. It's a dichotomy; we know that.

Do You Ever Feel a Conflict Between Your Love for Animals and Your Love for Hunting?

There's certainly a conflict inside us about loving, possessing, killing, thankfulness, and yes, even remorse over hunting. However, that also makes us the best conservationists – we don't just want to watch animals on a TV program. 

We want to interact with them, eat them, and enjoy all aspects of them.

Other Than That Interaction, What Else Do You Enjoy About Hunting?

I very much enjoy the strategy and pursuit of game animals. I also love the solitude, the quiet, the reverie of hunting, and the trophies on my wall for the memories they bring and the pure beauty that has been captured.

My family and I also enjoy eating wild game. I clean and butcher all of my own game and we make from scratch our own smoked, German venison sausage every year. The self-sufficiency aspect of hunting is also important to me. 

You just can't extricate hunting from me – it's an integral part of me.

What is Your Most Memorable Hunt?

I can't remember what I watched on TV last night, but I can remember just about every hunt of my 40-year life. 

I see my mounts from that hunt in my home and relive that experience every single day of my life. My son has also grown up under the watchful eyes of a gemsbok, impala, and steenbok. That makes me happy.

So, memorable might not be the right word to differentiate it, but there is one hunt that will stand out for obvious reasons. In 2009, I wrote an essay and entered it into Outdoor Life's annual "Grand Slam Adventure" contest. Out of a couple thousand entries, they chose my essay as the winner. 

I got to take a safari to South Africa and hunt plains game! An editor and photographer went with me, and a videographer joined us for a few days.

Even if You Don't Use Your Tags, What are Your Key Takeaways from Each Hunt?

Well, come on – I always fill my tags! But, yeah, that's just one of the end goals. 

I'm more peaceful and fulfilled after each hunt. I've found my solace in the outdoors. The world slows down a little for me after hunting. 

Although I rarely hunt deer with someone else beside me, I'm almost always with a group of family and friends before and after each hunt. So, I always get that camaraderie and fellowship, too. 

Plus, almost every time I'm out in the woods, I have a new experience. I see animals do something I've never seen before, or I learn something that will be useful when I hunt again.

What is Your Ritual Before Hunting Season?

I mentioned all those things above. Plus, I usually start growing a beard a month or so before hunting season. This year, I started three months early! 

I check all of my gear and replace anything that is worn out or damaged. I sharpen my knives, sight in my rifle, and get my camouflage ready. Then I wait another month for hunting season to roll around.

Seriously, hunting is a process that starts in August and usually ends in January for me. We'll have dove season in Texas over Labor Day weekend, and I'll get to hunt while preparing our property for deer season. 

My season usually wraps up after New Year's weekend, when the family gathers to make sausage. So, it's really that whole season – almost half a year – that I anticipate. Man, do I anticipate it! 

I'll start literally losing sleep over it pretty soon because when I lay my head on my pillow, I can't stop imagining the coming hunts.

I can't say I "live to hunt" because I live for some loves and beliefs much grander than hunting. But on my priority scale, right below those eternal priorities, hunting is right there.

Return for a Safe Hunting Season With Hunter Education

Experienced hunters like Tim Wagner continue hunting because of their passion and ability to stay safe in the field. Practicing hunting safety essentials helps hunters avoid dangerous mistakes that lead to injury, enabling them to return each season for more game. 

Whether your first hunt is coming up (or your next hunt), make sure you've passed a state-approved hunter education course. Hunter-Ed provides hunting safety education for every state and all our courses are online – making them convenient for every hunter!

Find the course for your state, learn and pass the online test, then prepare your gear and start dreaming about your next hunt!

Originally published August 20, 2014. Content updated March 28, 2023.