It was a beautiful fall morning still clad in shades of gray. The temperature was crisp as dawn's light was silently developing. Oak clad ridges gave way to deep ravines below as my son Aaron and I worked to keep the wind in our face and the ridgeline above our bowed silhouettes. We were in the Ozark Mountains hunting European Mouflon Sheep.

The Mouflon is a species of wild sheep known as Caprinae or "goat antelopes." It is reddish-brown in color with a dark back-stripe, light colored saddle patch, and white under parts, and the males have great crescent shaped curling horns. Mouflon are a small but handsome sheep introduced successfully to North America for hunting in different states and upon game ranches.

I was proud of my son who had learned early in his youth to value, protect and conserve our precious wildlife resources. He loved wildlife and the out-of-doors and belonged to youth conservation organizations like JAKES with the National Wild Turkey Federation, Green Wings with Ducks Unlimited, Pheasants Forever, and Safari Club International. Though he was only a boy this was not his first hunt. He had hunted rabbits, squirrels, ducks, pheasants, and wild hogs on other adventures we had taken together. But this was his first taste for big game and he was using all the lessons he learned while hunting small game, to create a meaningful and worthwhile experience.

We were taking careful steps and watching the small clearing of tall grass and brush on the hillside in front of us when we heard hoofs against loose rock coming up from the hollar below. We were at the edge of the trees when we saw Mouflon working their way up the hill at the tree break on the far side of the clearing. "Get ready son," I said as I glassed the sheep as they moved up the ravine. I glance out of the corner of my eye and saw Aaron's excitement and anticipation as he nervously mounted his muzzleloader and focused his vision through the Aim-Point scope mounted on the receiver. A majestic ram came out of the shadows and stopped watching the others file past him. The presentation was perfect and the horns were good -- a classic European Mouflon. "Aaron, see the big one right there," I said while I pointed. "Shoot him now!" "Where," Aaron queried. "Where the saddle patch meets the shoulder," I whispered. I waited for the distinct boom of the muzzleloader and the cloud of smoke that normally followed -- it never came. Again I whispered, "Shoot!" And again silence. Inspection revealed Aaron aiming in earnest, "Shoot him son," I said. "I can't Dad, there is a leaf in the way!" he protested. Smiling, as only a father could understand, I mustered a half-whispered half-chuckled, "Shoot the leaf!" With that the muzzleloader roared and Aaron's first big-game animal was cleanly harvested with one shot.

I share this tender moment with you because it reflects all the goodness a family can find in the great outdoors -- a respect for nature, habitat, conservation, and wildlife. Hunting teaches us how to place a value on wildlife, how to preserve, protect, conserve and utilize our precious wildlife resources. I call it "Conservation through Utilization" and it is the foundation upon which all-management and wildlife preservation efforts are built throughout the world. It is an important lesson for our children to learn and those who have experienced it themselves are the ones empowered to pass this heritage along.

Recruiting the next generation is a critical element to the future of the resource and our hunting heritage. Perhaps the single most important contribution any of us can make to ensure the future of wildlife, conservation and hunting is to bring a young person afield and teach them the skills, ethics and respect for wildlife that our parents and others instilled in us. It's important to start early and to explain almost everything we are doing to our young hunter. Review why we use a gun, a call, camouflage, and the wind, but most all teach them patience. Keep the hunts short and emphasize safety and conservation. Help them understand what a clean harvest is, and that it can be a great hunt without any harvest at all. Help them clean their wildlife, explain the different parts and teach them how to sustain and protect the harvested meat. Explain that even though hunters harvest wildlife each fall, their license dollars and volunteered support allow for wise management of wildlife resources, increasing populations thereby preserving our wildlife's future existence.

That is why banquets like the Tooele County Strutters held last Saturday are so worthwhile. They make this responsibility fun and exciting. They promote education, self-study, reading, and identification. They help us pass on stories and encourage our children to make their own. As a mentor for young hunters and conservationists, the payoffs of igniting a young person's interest in the great outdoors can lead to tremendous pride and satisfaction. We will feel the contentment in seeing our outdoor skills and ethics passed down to another generation as it was passed down to us and eventually to our little ones of the future. I'll see you from the sideline.