Reality Setting In

[CBU93]

I guess reality sets in sooner or later...

Following a few years of personal challenges, health issues, and life getting in the way, I have come to face the reality that I just don't care that much about deer hunting anymore.

Don't get me wrong...I enjoy going hunting, the venison from a successful hunt, the time spent with friends, God's beautiful creations. I am just not driven to hunt like I used to be. Let me clarify:

-I have my own small place to go, so I am not concerned with trying to find a "good" place to hunt
-I think the un-enjoyable work starts after I pull the trigger
-I am much more sensitive to weather now...if conditions are not perfect, I just don't care to go
-Little bucks don't excite me, big bucks do a little...I just don't want to work that hard
-In the stand, I am constantly thinking of what else I should be doing: work, family, golf, fishing, duck hunting, etc.
-My shoulder hurts too bad to attempt to bow hunt...early season is just too dang hot and a deer is not worth the massive case of poison oak/ivy I am destined to get

I have not killed a deer in a couple years...and I don't care. Reality...kind sucks sometimes.

Just some rambling thoughts...

 

[RUGER]

A good ole fashioned West TN blood & guts tour would help. LOL

If we still had Palmersville


I definitely know the feeling.

 

[JeepKuntry]

Sounds like it's time to downsize the gear and do other things. As for poison ivy, I've heard they make a shot now to lessen your chance of breakouts.

 

[Mike Belt]

My drive now is less than half what it used to be. I'm not mad at the deer anymore. I like putting 2 or 3 in the freezer and I still love hunting prime time when anything could happen but outside of that it just seems sort of like a waste of time and money. I think much of that has to do with where I hunt... Ames. Since we're not allowed on the place other than in hunting season I don't get to interact or get involved with the deer and what and where they're doing their thing anymore. That kind of takes the wind out of my sails.

 

[infoman jr.]

On the bright side - there's always meat at the grocery store.

 

[jaybird62]

I understand the feeling. When life gets in the way, it takes the fun out of it. The most fun I had was putting an old friend, who hadn't killed a buck in several years, on a good 3 1/2-year-old buck I had a history with on my farm. It was fun making a memory that is a lot more valuable than another rack hanging in the garage. I killed a couple of "nice" mature bucks this year, but they didn't mean as much to me as the one my buddy killed.

 

[Novocaine]

Re: Reality Setting

I grew up going to the deer camp. I rarely missed a hunt. I can remember being at camp in my early 20's in disbelief that some of our members wouldn't be coming to hunt. I couldn't understand how some of my uncles or older cousins in their 40's with kids and businesses weren't hunting. Now I'm in my 40s with kids and a business and I understand completely.

 

[TheLBLman]

In summary . . . . . . . . . .
Getting Old Sucks.

 

[gtk]

-I have my own small place to go, so I am not concerned with trying to find a "good" place to hunt
-I think the un-enjoyable work starts after I pull the trigger
-I am much more sensitive to weather now...if conditions are not perfect, I just don't care to go
-Little bucks don't excite me, big bucks do a little...I just don't want to work that hard
-In the stand, I am constantly thinking of what else I should be doing: work, family, golf, fishing, duck hunting, etc.

i am same way. used to, by the end of deer season, I was plumb wore out from hunting ! So, I quit working so hard to kill a deer. I quit putting out cameras. I quit making food plots.. I quit hunting when its so cold its not enjoyable. And now, I enjoy it a lot more

I've gotten into squirrel hunting, which is an absolute blast. I've also gotten passionate about elk hunting. When elk hunting, I put 100% effort into a week long season, and then its over.. There is no 4 months of hunting like deer here @ home ..

 

[Mike Belt]

I've thought about switching over from hunting all season here at home to a much shorter paid hunt elsewhere but I know me. I'd still be in the woods before and after that paid hunt. Another thing is you can't control the weather. Booking a hunt months or even years in advance you never know whether you might get unseasonably warm or wet or weather that basically kills your opportunity at the potential deer you were going after. Guess I'll just continue to hunt when I want here while getting older, lol.

 

[csi-tech]

My interest was waning too. I just did not care much about anything. Then I started testosterone therapy. It's all back with a vengeance!

 

[Jon54]

I was feeling that way two years ago. Because of health issues, I hunted opening morning last year and none after. I fell setting a stand before the gun season and fractured my ankle. I really miss the solitude of sitting in a stand. I just enjoy watching critters being critters.

 

[Gravey]

When the rut is on I'd hunt every day if I could. Outside of that I get as much enjoyment out of doing the food plots and sitting around camp BS'ing with my buddies. When it's no longer fun it's time to slow down or stop altogether.

 

[pass-thru]

If you are thinking of golf when deer hunting then it may be time for a break.

 

[Stu]

I feel your pain. 5 years ago i had health issues that changed my life and everything i did. It caused me to really get down and out. I stopped hunting fishing and pretty much everything that i loved. It was the hardest few years of my life. But i will say with a life style change and a lot of time on my hands to adjust to my new challenges i found i missed my time hunting and fishing and soon returned to it. So dont go selling all your stuff and giving up yet. If its in your blood youll come back to it once you find your new normal.

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[buckaroo]

I love deer hunting as much as anyone, at 56 I think as you get older you get satisfaction out of doing more and more things, for me it's working on my 56 acres

 

[bloodtrailing]

Reading this post is like reading my own thoughts. I used to hunt all season as much as possible. It has been getting progressively less each season. The reward is not worth the effort, as much. I have been fortunate to kill several nice bucks. If I kill another nice one I feel like I am wasting it because I am not sure what I am going to do with the antlers.

I enjoy the outdoors. If my family hunted it may be different. I think about them or other things I could be doing other than sitting and watching the day go by in a tree.

 

[fairchaser]

At 60 my drive to hunt is as strong as ever. I've killed probably the best buck I'll ever kill and taken some nice bucks over the years but I don't feel like I've reached any sort of plateau with my abilities. It's still a challenge to beat a mature buck at his game. I enjoy many things in life and have a great family and a grandson I adore but I'm a deer hunter and pray I will be for the rest of my life. One thing that has reignited my fire is having a property like Ames that is vast and you can't put your hands around it like a small property. If I had to decide which of three spots I wanted to hunt each time, I might quit hunting. But the challenge of 18000 acres is not something you figure out and it's constanly changing. I eat up the challenge. It's my motivation to stay in shape year round and we all need something to drive us. I can definitely see how my attitude about the critters is changing the older I get. Like Mike says, I'm not as mad at them but I do love to see them and video them which is my newest challenge. The Ames experience is something I'm not sure my hunting could survive without. It's really something special and I'm blessed to have it so close to where I live.

 

[winchester77jj]

Man, this really makes me think. My dad and I talked about this several times this year. He is 65 now and I just turned 40. We both still love the experience of the chase and the exuberance when you do find a nice deer. We have both found success over the years. He a LOT more than me. But we both have slowed down. His health has gotten in his way. Between diabetes and arthritis he just doesn't have the energy or hurts too bad much of the time. But when he does he still will sit on stand longer than anyone I know of.
I have had the all too typical life change in the last four years. Got way too fat and lazy. Then saw issues in my marriage forming so I started working on things but it didn't help. I did get into much better physical shape but I still wound up divorced. I remarried a year later and now I have three more wonderful kids. All this I say to explain that there is no time and no money most of the time. And so much on my mind when I'm on stand I have a really hard time enjoying my experience on stand sometimes. But the freezer need filled so I am coming to terms mentally with the need to spend the time instead of the money. I process my own usually so we get by on the deer most of the year.
But let me add this. Our oldest is now out of he house but the other four kids, three boys 16,14,13, and the youngest girl 11, are interested in hunting at differing levels. The 16 and 13 year olds have now both gotten a doe each. But from my perspective, taking them hunting is a blast. You forget the awe and wonder of the woods and the animals as you get older. "I have seen that before". But they see the world in such a different way that it makes me feel more energetic and excited again. It is difficult but I love it. They are getting to where I can set them alone and trust them.
So in closing to this rambling mess I say, I understand and am going through similar times. But it's getting better as I see it through fresh eyes with my kids. If you can you should try mentoring someone new to it. You may find that it renews your love of the woods and the hunt


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[Rackseeker]

Weather it be deer hunting or other things, I think the most important thing is staying active. A person will go down hill fast if he doesn't have a passion for something. As I get older I enjoy the scouting and hiking around, finding the deer more than I do killing it. I have been thinking about putting up the gun and buying a good camera.

 

[fairchaser]

I've thought about switching over from hunting all season here at home to a much shorter paid hunt elsewhere but I know me. I'd still be in the woods before and after that paid hunt. Another thing is you can't control the weather. Booking a hunt months or even years in advance you never know whether you might get unseasonably warm or wet or weather that basically kills your opportunity at the potential deer you were going after. Guess I'll just continue to hunt when I want here while getting older, lol.

Mike, I've been on many paid outfitted hunts and you will roll the dice on the weather. But, that is why you book a weeklong hunt. Usually, you will get 1-3 good weather days in that hunt and that's when you have to get it done. Sometimes I've found that when the weather is at its worst, there is no competition from locals and you have the best chance. Just go prepared for anything and you will have fun. But, don't expect it to completely scratch that itch like a full hunting season.

 

[TheLBLman]

It's still a challenge to beat a mature buck at his game.

Exactly, and most of us now have some mature bucks to pursue,
while maybe most of us didn't in times past.

For me, what has kept my passion for deer hunting still about as high as ever
has basically been to focus more on the quality than the quantity,
whether that be number of deer killed or number of hours spent hunting annually.
Now, it's more about the quality of those experiences than the quantity.

But over the course of the season, and certainly over the course of a year, I may spend more hours "hunting" now than I did when in my 20's & 30's, albeit those times afield have been greatly reconfigured. In my younger days, I spent more days archery hunting in the early season. Today, having a lot more flexibility in my schedule, I can hunt more of the best weather and/or rut-timed days, and simply choose to hunt less during early archery. I also do more "all day" hunts now, whereas in my younger days many hunts had to be before or after work.

Most hunters "evolve" with their experiences.
It may now take a mature deer (of either sex) to provide the same challenge once provided by a 1 1/2-yr-old buck.
Those who haven't evolved with their experiences are more likely to be bored or less passionate?

My hunting is year-round. And it's not just about deer.
When I'm hunting,
am commonly hunting for squirrels, quail, turkeys, deer, coyotes, and even ducks --- all at the same moment.
The "killing" or the "harvest" is more seasonal.
It is planned ahead based on where the earlier hunting directed as best.

The very best time of the year to "hunt" can be the month after deer season closes.
I'm "hunting" for the deer I plan to kill next deer season.
It's so exciting that I actually do look forward to deer season closing in January.
Then there is the next month, the time I find more shed antlers.
Something different to look forward each new month, but all a part of year-round hunting.

Last but not least, proactively "plan ahead" and look forward to making the best of each new day.
The "reactive" default is regret and disappointment, not just with the day, but that can carry over to all your life.
Be proactive.

 

[TheLBLman]

I'm not mad at the deer anymore.

Can't say I was ever "mad" at the deer,
but believe know what you mean, in that we're not so motivated to want to kill every one we can or could.
There is no longer that youthful need to prove to others, especially strangers, what we can do.

I'd just say we've learned to enjoy the virtues of patience and year-round hunting, more than ever before.
Unfortunately, as we get older, we may not physically be able to keep our bodies up with our minds.
We can't run as fast, but we can be the old tortoises that beat the young rabbits in the race.

 

[Smo]

I think it just comes with age.

I love to go but can't hunt all day like I would like too.

Had a depressing season as far a deer sighting go this year.

After a banner year last Season.

The Grandson did take a nice doe, and I've let a few walk.

I just don't hate em' like I once did..... and I'm kinda' like Buckaroo .

Only I'm 60 and got 80 acres to look after... That makes it harder to sit on stand not seeing any deer when there's a ton of stuff that needs done...