Women in hunting is something very important to me.

I like to think of myself as pretty lucky.

Not only to call myself a hunter, but to have grown up knowing hunting as a way of life.

However, I find myself even luckier to be a hunter alongside other women.

To me, it’s so exciting to think that what was once a minority demographic in society is helping to turn what has always been a ‘male dominated’ sport into something more equal.

I’ve been asked to write about what it means to me to be a woman who has grown up in hunting.

For something I’m so passionate about, it shouldn’t have been so hard to put pen to paper, but it was.

There are so many aspects to hunting in general that mean a lot to me, let alone being a woman in the hunting world. It’s hard to put into words.

From the opportunities, the memories, the laughs, the fun, and animals you are able to harvest, it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what makes hunting mean so much to me.

However, taking a moment to think about it, there is one thing that stands out about hunting that makes it so important to me and many others: Camaraderie.

The camaraderie between fellow hunters, particularly women, is uncanny. The friendships and bonds that you make along the way are some of the most unique and special things I have ever experienced.

I was introduced into deer hunting through joining the South East Branch of ADA and since then I have been fortunate to meet some of my closest and dearest friends. Not only that but I have had the pleasure of meeting inspirational women within hunting who have inspired me to be who I am today.

It’s hard to pick a handful, but there’s a special few that really highlight just how much hunting means to me.

I first met Abbey on the 2017 junior ballot hosted by the South East Branch of ADA. She was the first junior to arrive at the main camp with her dad, Rod. Out of all the juniors in the ballot that year, there were only three girls. After some introductions and time together, who was to know that after a few games of Uno, we’d form a friendship that has lasted ever since.

Since then, Abbey and I have been on many other hunts together, again in the south-east, up in the High Country and alongside each other on Sunday Island. She was alongside me when I shot my first sambar, when I went on my first hound hunt and when I first experienced the wonder that is snow in the Victorian High Country. In 2018, we were both fortunate to be drawn in the Sunday Island Para Park Junior Ballot Program. We have shared some incredible and treasured memories together.

It’s truly special to always be welcomed into her home, greeted with a hug from Maree and shown Rod and Abbey’s spectacular and truly exceptional trophies. Not to mention sharing some of the most special memories and moments of my life with them. It’s an irreplaceable friendship and I can’t wait for the experiences we will continue to enjoy together.

When I first met Aimee she was a keen new hunter who had joined ADA, willing to see for herself what hunting was all about and everything it had to offer. Joining something new can be tough, especially when you don’t know many people, but regardless Aimee was keen right from the get-go to get her hands dirty and start learning.

On the first Ladies and Families hunt weekend hosted by South East Branch, Aimee and I both hunted on the same property. I had been successful in my morning hunt, taking two deer, and although Aimee wasn’t so lucky, she couldn’t have done more to help with the recovery.

We were offered the maiden trial run of a new cart by one experienced member who wanted to see just how successful the cart would be on a large recovery. The recovery worked quite well ... eventually. After a few tip-overs, a few choice words and different people pushing the cart, it was decided that the cart needed to go back to the drawing board and was in fact not the best idea for large recoveries! (Thanks Daryl!)

When I first joined the South East Branch of ADA, I had little to no idea of how the branch was started, let alone who was involved in the process. Being a male-dominated sport, my initial thought was that the branch was founded by male deer hunters who enjoyed the bush and just wanted to hunt deer.

Little did I know just how wrong I was.

The branch was started in 1974, and although it was started by mostly male hunters, there was one woman who played a part in providing its hundreds of ADA members with the privileges they enjoy today.

Pip Rasenberg has never been a hunter. However with her husband Jack a keen hunter, hunting has always been a part of Pip’s life.

Hunting was to provide Pip and Jack with countless opportunities. Shooting foxes at $35 a skin allowed the pair to travel and see some of the most spectacular sights around the world.

When I first met Pip, I was interested in writing an article about the history of the South East Branch.

I was quite nervous. I’d heard people talk about the Rasenbergs in very high regard and wasn’t sure whether they would have the time to be able to help me write an article.

But once again, I was wrong.

Pip was incredibly open and willing to help me out in any way she could. From telling me their stories of travel and even her experiences of sexism within the hunting fraternity on her travels, nothing was left out.

The one thing I will always admire is Pip’s strong emphasis to me that women are able to do anything they want to do, no matter what it is, and we should not let anyone, particularly males, patronise or ostracise us from doing what we love.

This is one of the most special and important things that has come out of my hunting journey, and I am fortunate and lucky to have a relationship with such a strong, dedicated and honest person like Pip.

Then there’s my best friend Tegan. I met Tegan within the ADA; our dads had hunted together years before we were born. We each shared our dad’s love of hunting and relished all the stories and memories of their adventures as we were growing up.

I’d briefly met Tegan and her family once before in South Australia when I was younger, but not well enough to remember.

So, I planned a weekend trip and there is no exaggeration in saying it was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

From the moment I arrived, we got on like a house on fire and ever since the laughs, fun and memories haven’t stopped.

From shooting clays together, being there with me on my first South Australian duck opening, to coming across the border fox shooting and being my number one cheer squad at shooting competitions, I couldn’t ask for a better best friend or someone who is just like a sister to me.

If I think of all the things in hunting that I’m thankful for, my friendship and bond with Tegan and family would have to be at the top of the list.

I look forward to the adventures we'll have together and am excited to see what a lifetime full of fun and laughs continues to look like.

I seem to say this a lot, but hunting has never purely been about the taking of an animal. There are so many other elements and factors that come into play that make the hunting fraternity special. Especially now, with women in hunting.

I am very fortunate to be a woman in hunting and am proud to be known as one. But nothing makes me prouder or happier to be a woman in hunting alongside these few other women who have given me the hope that our lifestyle will continue to thrive for years to come.

Contributed by: Michaela Shirley.