Heartwarming Fathers Day Tales from HLRBO Field Reps Bonding in the Great Outdoors

Written by HLRBO Staff| 06/13/2025

This Father’s Day, HLRBO celebrates the unforgettable moments shared between fathers, sons, daughters, and even granddaughters in the heart of the wilderness. Our field reps have opened up about their most cherished hunting experiences, where the thrill of the chase meets the joy of family bonding. From first deer harvests to tracking bucks with three generations, these stories capture the essence of passing down traditions, overcoming challenges, and creating lifelong memories in the great outdoors. Join us as we dive into these heartfelt tales that remind us why hunting is more than a sport—it’s a legacy of love and connection. Read these great stories below.

Darin McAlister Taking my Granddaughter hog hunting . Had to carry her on my back to stand ( she had on softball cleats and didn’t want them to get wet) lol . She got stung by a Red Wasp but like the true Trooper she is the sting went away after she connected on a True East Texas Trophy Boar.

Tom Westhoff This past fall I was able to share a special moment with my two sons as we sat in the deer blind together. This was my 11-year-old boys first hunting season and probably our 5th sit of the archery season in Michigan. My 7-year-old tagged along with us. With about an hour of daylight left I spotted a mature doe about 70 yards away. She slowly made her way right in front of us and gave my son a nice broadside shot at about 23 yards. He placed a perfect shot with his crossbow and we tracked her about 30 mins later for his first ever kill! A special moment we will never forget!

Robert Kons 

2024 was an amazing hunting year for me, not for my personal success but for the success of others. I have been hunting with my father for 30 years in which countless memories were created. I have been looking forward to sharing these types of experiences with my own son since the day he was born. Early in 2024 my son Ryker showed an interest in hunting, starting with turkey then wanting to attempt deer hunting. He is 8 years old and not interested in hunting with a firearm so his choice was to use a crossbow, knowingly that this would greatly decrease our effective hunting range, but he was up for the challenge. After practicing during the weeks up to the season, it was finally time for the Michigan Liberty Hunt which allows youth, disabled and veterans an early chance at hunting prior to the regular season opener on October 1. We were nestled up in some brush on a hillside near an old apple tree on the opening afternoon of the Liberty Hunt and only 45 minutes in a nice buck appeared. The buck still had velvet on his antlers, which is a unique opportunity this time of year. After waiting about 10 minutes, the buck cleared the brush and my son shot, connecting perfectly in the bucks vitals. We heard the buck go down in a crash. A memory I will always remember. 

Fast forward a few weeks to the Wisconsin youth hunt which had my son and I sitting together in a blind and my dad hunting with his crossbow about 1/4 mile away. My son had an opportunity at a nice buck, but the shot didn't connect this time. Still a fun experience. The disappointment did not last long, as my dad text messaged that he just shot a buck! My son and I went over to meet my dad and we all tracked the buck together. We found the buck and the work began getting the deer out of the woods. Another great memory made with three generations of hunters in the deer woods.

Nick Gaskill

Just thought I'd share and awesome dad moment I had this last year with my daughter. 

I have three daughter's twins that are 10 years old and a 4-year-old. 

Luckily one of my oldest Hadley loves to get out in the woods with me and hunt!! 

Arkansas has a hunt where they pick five kids for a special deer hunt. Well this last year Hadley was chosen to be one of the kids to go hunt and she was able to kill her first deer it was an amazing experience one I believe neither one of us will ever forget! 

Brandon Blanton

Over the years I have been blessed with some amazing hunts throughout this great nation. These are definitely memories that will be etched in my mind forever. However, these will never be as memorable as the times I have been able to spend with my boys during their first harvest of a whitetail. 

This past season in Georgia, I was able to be with two of my sons for some amazing hunts. The first one was with my middle son, Gunner. Gunner had already harvested his first deer a few years ago but was now in pursuit of his first buck. We were able to log many hours last season trying to make it happen. During these hunts, Gunner was presented multiple opportunities to take does, but he passed them up waiting for that buck. Then, on a cold windy day in November, actually Thanksgiving afternoon, it all came together. Early in the hunt, we saw a a few does easing along a small food plot, so we felt like our chances were good. A little while later, a small buck came by pushing some does. Gunner got in position and waited for a clear shot. Unfortunately, the buck circled around and caught our wind and slipped away without presenting a shot. We were both a little bummed, but excited over the experience. 

A short time later as the light was fading, I heard something moving behind us. We were in a ladder stand with a blind cover, so seeing behind us was difficult. As the sound got closer, I peeked my head around the window to see a buck coming right towards us! I told Gunner to get ready because he was moving right on the edge of our wind. As the buck came into view, I immediately recognized him as a buck we named Highrise. As the buck walked into an opening, I told Gunner to take the shot if he could. Gunner fired a single shot dropping the buck in his tracks! 

We were both shaking uncontrollably and being able to see the joy in his face after this accomplishment was like no other experience I have had through all of my hunts over the years. There's truly no better experience than seeing a a young man enjoy his hard work and persistence pay off! I will cherish that moment forever! 

On another hunt with my youngest son, Drake, we were trying to get him an opportunity to harvest his first deer. On a cold December afternoon, Drake and I were sitting in the same stand as Gunner and I during his successful buck hunt. About an hour before dark, we noticed moving in a hardwood bottom to our left. I scanned the area with my binoculars and spotted three does. Even though the foliage was gone, the amount of limbs prevented a clean shot, so they moved along. About 20 minutes before last light, we see a doe working towards the end of the small food plot. Drake readied his rifle waiting for her to present a clean shot. 

After a few minutes that seemed like hours, she finally eased into the field giving Drake a shot. I could see him shaking and told him to take some deep breaths and settle behind the front should and squeeze the shot off. He fired a shot and she mule kicked running out of the field into a hardwood bottom. Seeing the kick, I knew she was hit good. The excitement and joy Drake had after the shot was such an incredible and emotional moment for me! We were both shaking like crazy! 

We sat for a few minutes, then gathered our gear and climbed down. We walked to where she was during the shot, but couldn't find any blood, just some brown hair. Slowly, Drake's excitement started to windle as we tracked without a blood trail. We searched for about an hour to no avail. It broke my heart! The next day we went back on the trail and recovered her a short distance from where we were the following night. The shot was great, but unfortunately there was no blood. It didn't matter, though. When we found her Drake was so happy and was ready to call his mom to tell her the good news! Even though we didn't recover the evening before, the experience of seeing Drake light up with excitement during the recovery was amazing! Again, much like Gunner's experience this will be forever lasting in my mind! 

I am so grateful to be blessed to have these experiences with my boys as their Dad! 

Nick Wise II.

Here's a picture of my son Colson and me.  He was able to get his first deer/buck when he was 8 years old.  As much as I love to accomplish my own personally hunting goals,  seeing my kids succeed in the hunting woods is a joy that I can't put in words. I've enjoyed hunting even more since I started hunting with them. The experience and memories are priceless.