> I worked with a few people who lived in midwest US. They hunted a couple times a year and after listening for a while I realized it was a very impressive money saver. In a week, they were able to bag enough elk to eat plenty of meat all year, sold the waste (skin and parts) to a local processor. Apparently this is not uncommon, even for people who live in suburbs.
I live in CO now, and its definitely more normal than not outside of Denver and Boulder area. I got my Hunter's license this year after putting it off for so long and I will be applying for a tag this year. In addition to it being economical its also very good for sustainability as the gear and the tag help promote and fund wild life protection.
An elk can definitely feed an entire family, plus if you have never had game meat (venison in this case) you have the challenge of preparing very lean meat in the kitchen, I find that cooking the meat in animal fats (tallow and lard) can change your entire perspective of how much to eat as it satiates you quickly.
Its alarming how much meat is eaten in the US, even more so when you see the ecological damage that comes from factory farming, so I highly encourage more to explore this option.