American Hunts Japan

[Matt Johnston]

My brother-in-law Jim is a very rare American who gets to hunt regularly in Japan. The process of being approved or licensed to hunt there is hard for Japanese, and harder for Americans. Jim is the son of Missionaries to Japan, so he was born and raised there. After college in Washington State, Jim married my wife's sister Hydi, who was also born and raised there. Jim and Hydi have been missionaries there ever since. After Jim's sons got him hooked on hunting during a furlough in Colorado, Jim pursued hunting in Japan.

Jim and Hydi run a small Christian camp high in the mountains. Jim met with local hunters who cull the excessive deer and pigs and learned how he could be involved. Rather than paying for tags, he hunts for free with a generous allotment of game he can take. I think you guys will like this video. I imagine he is speaking in Japanese, and the translation isn't great. You will notice Jim hunts with a shotgun; that's not by choice. After about a decade of hunting without any problems, he hopes to be allowed to use a rifle. He would be allowed only one, imported from elsewhere.

 

[Chiro1989]

That was pretty cool, nothing wrong with a Savage slug gun, just have to hunt up close, can't see more that 150 yds in that terrain anyway

 

[Matt Johnston]

Jim shows one of his collection of Japanese handmade knives. He has several, each with a story. Each part of japan has its traditional crafts that they are known for. The guys who make fine hunting and chef's knives today are in the places their ancestors made samurai sword and other edged weapons during the feudal periods

 

[Chiro1989]

If he gets the good neighbor discount on those knives, you should be all over that.

 

[Matt Johnston]

If he gets the good neighbor discount on those knives, you should be all over that.

Well, I spent $400 on an FE Sweet T knife just yesterday, so it won't be anytime soon. I should ask Jim about that, though.

 

[Mike Schoby]

This is awesome. He has to be one of the few if not only America hunters doing this. I have met with Japanese hunters at IWI trade show in the past and I was amazed at the quality of hunting they have with so few hunters. But that is all due to the difficulty of obtaining a firearms permit. Sounds arduous to say the least.

 

[Jeff Forrester]

My brother-in-law Jim is a very rare American who gets to hunt regularly in Japan. The process of being approved or licensed to hunt there is hard for Japanese, and harder for Americans. Jim is the son of Missionaries to Japan, so he was born and raised there. After college in Washington State, Jim married my wife's sister Hydi, who was also born and raised there. Jim and Hydi have been missionaries there ever since. After Jim's sons got him hooked on hunting during a furlough in Colorado, Jim pursued hunting in Japan.

Jim and Hydi run a small Christian camp high in the mountains. Jim met with local hunters who cull the excessive deer and pigs and learned how he could be involved. Rather than paying for tags, he hunts for free with a generous allotment of game he can take. I think you guys will like this video. I imagine he is speaking in Japanese, and the translation isn't great. You will notice Jim hunts with a shotgun; that's not by choice. After about a decade of hunting without any problems, he hopes to be allowed to use a rifle. He would be allowed only one, imported from elsewhere.

This is very cool. Thank you for sharing!

 

[Nick Muckerman]

This is cool.

 

[Terry Houin]

My brother-in-law Jim is a very rare American who gets to hunt regularly in Japan. The process of being approved or licensed to hunt there is hard for Japanese, and harder for Americans. Jim is the son of Missionaries to Japan, so he was born and raised there. After college in Washington State, Jim married my wife's sister Hydi, who was also born and raised there. Jim and Hydi have been missionaries there ever since. After Jim's sons got him hooked on hunting during a furlough in Colorado, Jim pursued hunting in Japan.

Jim and Hydi run a small Christian camp high in the mountains. Jim met with local hunters who cull the excessive deer and pigs and learned how he could be involved. Rather than paying for tags, he hunts for free with a generous allotment of game he can take. I think you guys will like this video. I imagine he is speaking in Japanese, and the translation isn't great. You will notice Jim hunts with a shotgun; that's not by choice. After about a decade of hunting without any problems, he hopes to be allowed to use a rifle. He would be allowed only one, imported from elsewhere.

This is very cool. @Chad Adams wonder if we could get an article from him with some stories.

 

[Chad Adams]

This is very cool. @Chad Adams wonder if we could get an article from him with some stories.

Agreed. @Matt Johnston, Japan is such a mystery for Americans, especially in terms of hunting. I lived there for a year and was able to fish, but never pulling the trigger in the wild. If you or your bro-in-law are interested in telling more of that story, we'd love to hear about it.

 

[Matt Johnston]

Guys, I'll reach out to Jim and see if he wants to share some stories.

 

[Charlie Benton]

I've wanted to hunt Japan for a while now. I've always heard about how difficult it is even for Japanese citizens, but Jim's story offers a bit of hope.