When does hunting become too easy?

[MNice]

I go both ways. For rifle season I hunt on private land up north. All of our stands are 4x4 with about 3' sidewall and a roof. All have kerosene heaters. Yes we've been there for 20+ years and have had very good success. Many times I satay in my stand all day, and have even cooked lunch on a coleman stove. Ya, I rough it!!

Bow hunting, I pack in my climber & backpack, mostly on public land, so I go as far as possible.

I truly enjoy both, there is not a right or wrong.

Just enjoy the hunt, and don't bother others.

[goblueM]

mmmm satay in the stand. now THERE's a good idea

[brittman]

To each their own. There is noting wrong with having some type of permanent shelter as a deer camp.

Rather than spending time pitching tents, etc... I spend time scouting my quarry and understanding their habits, tendencies, etc...

This makes for a more enjoyable and successful hunt.

While we hunt out of "open" ladder stands that we set up in October, I have often thought a few enclosed stands would be great if they allow a hunter to stay out and hunt longer. No one has an ATV in our camp and I would prefer people walk to their stands ... pulling deer back to camp ... if you have an ATV ... use it.

[NaturesRespect]

I love the hard work it takes to get to a stand spot in south east MN I love the sweat and strain of draging deer up and down steep hills in south east MN. I love setting up tents and building fires and getting situated at camp.

sometimes i hate these things. but everytime i hate it seconds later i realize there are some that wont even last just getting into the woods that i hunt.

from the movie Into The Wild (I read somewhere... how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong... but to feel strong. To measure yourself at least once)

thats why i do it.... to feel strong... to feel like one with nature

[MNice]

OOPs, for got to spell check that one. My bad

[BLACKJACK]

naturesrespect, I'm curious, how old are you?? I think your tune will change as you get older, wiser, get a few more aches and pains, and more money to afford the nice little luxuries that make hunting easier.

[CANOPY SAM]

NR. Sounds like you guys might need a boat to get your deer out this fall. Hope you're staying above water. Good luck. Hope you're all okay down there this morning.

Yep, Blackjack. The adrenaline rush we had as teens and early twenties just don't overpower the aches, pains, and exhaustion that comes with age. Kinda sucks. My mind tells me I can still do it. My chubby carcass tells me another story...

[Harmonica Bear]

+1

HAHA - spot on!

[Musky Buck]

Yes 8 grand which is nothing to him, heck he leases 320 acres for mega bucks each year, money talks, he has it, I don't. Not to mention 2 elk hunts, moose, bear, LOTW trips every other weekend and more, thankfully he won't take any of his nephews along, ever, the weasel. I hope a mature buck with my name on his leg has his snorkel on today.

[NaturesRespect]

naturesrespect, I'm curious, how old are you?? I think your tune will change as you get older, wiser, get a few more aches and pains, and more money to afford the nice little luxuries that make hunting easier.

im 17 years of age. I have lwer back pain sometimes, terrible weak legs at times, bad vision, averege strength, not a great respitory system. I feel like one of you older guys lol. I have 50 year old uncles who can out perform me anyday lol.

I play sports and is very good at any sport that is presented to me, only weakness is body recovery like pain or sore muscles. I have aches and pains, heck just squirrel hunting i had to lift my own leg to drive! thats how sore i was but it does not stop me from hunting hard! yes i do have quite alot of cash right now and yes i can afford alot of the things to make hunting easy for me but i decide not to buy any. I'm just a die hard outdoorsman i guess

[Bear55]

Don't worry NaturesRespect it will get much worse, you only think you have pain and sore muscles now.

[BLACKJACK]

NR, when I was in my 20 and 30's I ran marathons, and was busy all day long from sunrise to sunset, used to drive my wife crazy, I'd set my alarm on weekends, even when it wasn't hunting season. Now at the age of 53 I plan an afternoon nap on weekends and can definitely feel the weather changes in my joints!! I still duck hunt, but I only throw out about a dozen decoys, not four dozen. I still bowhunt, but I've given up on tree steps and portable stands and now use ladder stands. I love to pheasant hunt and still have two labs, but nowadays its more about getting out to hunt, watching the pure joy that my dog shows, rather than whacking two pheasants per day.

Enjoy the youthful vigor while you can!! That feeling of being invincible doesn't last forever!!

[gurkster]

NR - See me in 30 years . I love your passion. We used to hunt east of Ely out of homemade tents made from blue tarps we strung up. Heated it with a little wood stove, we would have to drag all this stuff in about a mile from the trucks. We worked so hard getting to camp, setting it up, gathering fire wood, trying to stay warm, etc that hunting became an after thought. It was fun though (especially looking back on how we did it). We still rough it to some extent, no electic or water, but at least a cot or bunk and open ladder stands. Now we can hunt more rather than trying to survive. Enjoy it while you can.

[bikeoutback]

I can't afford the toys but once I can I'll start to hunt easier in certain respects. I'm starting to think the idea of a permanent stand with roof and everything is not going to be me though only because my reading (I'm a beginner deer hunter trying to read up and learn) leads me to believe that I may want to move my stands around each year. I'll do ladder stands but only because I own my land now and can place them and leave them where I want without worry. But I want to be able to move them year to year and have a few of them so I can learn to play the wind better each day. I'm also going to get much more into scouting since I live on the land now and don't have to drive there. All of this seems like it will make hunting easier to me... but it's also work doing the scouting and such. I enjoy the woods though so I'm excited to get moved into the house this weekend and start scouting and getting a feel for everything in the next few weeks. I've never shot a deer yet in the past 2 years and yet I'm out for trophies instead of just shooting a deer already.

My guess is 20-30 years (30 now) I'll be looking for a cozy, dry, platform with heat to hunt from also but I'll still want trophies and don't expect them to just walk up to my heated stand, I just doubt it's that easy.

[bogwalker]

Just get out there and do the best you can. Have a great hunt.

[Tator2k]

You mean being able to see your deer lanes from Google earth is a bad thing?

The echo what everyone else has said. To each their own. I think it's up to each person to make it as much fun as they wish. For myself, I like easier hunting. I've trudged through swamps, climbed trees and sat on random brush piles hoping to find the perfect spot to able to harvest an animal. Heck, I've even sat on an up-turned 5-gal pail in the middle of a cedar swamp, because my dad told me to sit there until the deer come...

Presently, we have a number of permanent box stands we use for deer season. As previous posters have said. They help you extend you time in the woods.

This past season, I was out for the first 4 days without seeing an animal. So was it still easy?

[CANOPY SAM]

T2k - "see your deer lanes from Google earth" - that's funny!

bikeoutback - if you haven't shot a deer yet, I'd recommend that you just take a nice doe. I know that hunting for a trophy, and making it your "first deer" would be super cool, but honestly, you might spend a better part of your life waiting to pull the trigger! Get a few under your belt. It helps a lot in the process of learning to hunt larger, trophy animals. If you can pattern deer consistently your on your way to taking a giant.

I hunted "hard" for many years, waiting to drop that wall-hanger. After seven years of tag-soup I decided I wasn't doing something right. So I refocused my efforts on just putting a nice animal in the freezer. Since then, I've become a much better hunter, and can now, with a fair amount of consistency, put a nice buck on ice. Don't waste too many years waiting for the glory buck. He may never show up. Just IMHO.

[Tator2k]

[Bear55]

You mean being able to see your deer lanes from Google earth is a bad thing?

Good one Tator2k, we've actually got a few stands on private ground where you can see the shooting lanes on Google Earth too. Cutting 10 shooting lanes 150-200 yards each is anything but too easy. But I guess the stands is a little too comfortable.

[bikeoutback]

Canopy Sam - Don't get me wrong, at this point in time I'll shoot any deer that walks past me during legal shooting and is larger than my dog at this point in time. I'm not above does.... however I may not have that choice this year depending on how the lottery goes. The house we bought is in a lottery zone and I applied but no doe permit means no does allowed where I'll be hunting 85% of my time this year. I'm just attempting now to learn how to pattern and become a better hunter now that I live where I hunt. It's just seems a whole lot different now that I live in the country and have the land around and are part of it daily vs when I was in the cities and had to drive 70 to 80 miles to hunting spot. I guess simply put when I hunted public land I didn't want to put in the proper time, energy and $$ just to pick a spot or two just to get there and find someone else 12 feet away from me. Now I can spend the time in the woods cause I enjoy it and work on trying to pattern. Hopefully we get permits in the lottery so both myself and wife have a chance to harvest our first deer.

ps. This is only my 3rd year of deer hunting with no kills to date. She has hunted the past 12 years with her family and hasn't shot one yet I'm crossing my fingers that I can somehow put her in a spot to get a shot this coming year, would really prefer her to take one cause she's dedicated and tries just hasn't had the luck of right spot right time yet.

[CANOPY SAM]

And I thought you were just kidding Tator! Ha Ha!

Gotcha, bob! We've got does around our area like RATS! They're everywhere. I guess deer density is really variable depending on where you're at this year! Good luck to both you and your wife, and Welcome to the Country! You'll never go back to the city.

[bogwalker]

I have told my kids for years " Looking forward to bedtime is a sign of maturity ". Some are now old enough to understand and agree.

[Musky Buck]

When the DNR went from a 2 day or 2nd weekend 4 day, zone 4 deer hunt to now allowing those willing to hunt for 25 days. 23 extra days possible in the field with a firearm. But, really it has made hunting more difficult as these deer are getting way more nocturnal as the pressure has nearly maxed out in the areas I hunt, how is it the old 2 day season I used to see way more deer than I do in the 25 day season ? Bow pressure and field goose/pheasant pressure may have a touch to do with it I guess also. A lot of guys, having such a lengthy deer season, are "finding" someone to tag that 1st deer saving their tag to extend their season, that began with the multi-zone buck license and then extended into the all-season tag, not that there is any way to stop that because they are "party hunting" so the stands stay full of hunters, when it was the old 2 day season, no extras guys tagged their own deer with the exception if you had a late bow hunter in your group. To the tower standers, I'd personally rather have guys shooting downward from a tower stand than shooting flat from a ground blind, had a stray bullet almost pierce my ear from a ground blinder who wasn't concerned where that bullet ended up after firing, background for him was standing corn, but guess who was in that corn, me, scary.

[mnhunter5]

I sure do get a kick out of these forums! I dont post ever just like reading them when I am bored!............Lots of guys have a lot of time to sit around and critique hunters and there methods!....TO me if you take the time to build an enclosed blind cut lanes, etc in the early season to make yourself comfortable to spend more hours hunting................your doing more work than the next guy to make your fall enjoyable.........I do both I sit in portables 80% of the time, I sure do enjoy when sitting in my comfortable stands make sense with wind and deer movement I know that!!! ITs what you make of it...........I think alot of guys that look down on it wish they would of put in the leg work to be comfortable! I know I have when it is 10 degrees and blowing sitting in a portable with my face in the wind!

[Musky Buck]

I think it some is portrayed as being easy, you hear 5-10 big buck stories and everyone assumes that's happening all over,opening day when the gunfire starts you assume everyone must be seeing deer but me etc., if we each shot 2 deer a season there'd be 0 deer left in our state so it can't be that easy selling about 600,000 deer licenses a year, doubled 1.2 million, you get the drift. There are only a finite # of big buck magnet spots that year in year out produce, you either have that land or you don't, if you don't the % of connecting on a mature buck is much lower. I think I make it easier, I sight in my rifle and have had the same rifle/scope since 1983, I'm decent with it and have shot the same bullet forever, I dress appropriately, do what I can to eliminate scent, get to my stands early and on my time, mentally prepare, ie. bullet chambered, clear scope, reminder to whistle that buck to stop, etc. etc. and more etc.s. Is it when hunting becomes to easy or getting what you are hunting becomes to easy, for me the weather over the last decade has made things easier. Good Luck hunting !

[BARNEZ]

Many youngsters were taught differently than others. When I started out my dad didnt care that I was cold,bored,hungry,tired or just miserable. I didnt have a cell phone or game thing to keep me occupied, it was about sitting still and walking still. It all depends on how we were trianed, I hated it at first, now I love it. We didnt scout at all just knew where we wanted to hunt, "a week before sit down" with our a hunting party. Now, people come crashing through the woods, with their vehicles parked right next to yours. Back in the day that wouldnt happen. Four wheelers driving up and down the trails all day long, if not their wheelers, their trailers. Everyone wants a 10 point buck hanging on their wall, but dont want to work to hard for it. If you think about it, that is kind of how the world is going. Everybody wants everything, but not have to work hard for it. I saw it coming when parents started making their kids wear helmets when on their bikes. My hunting party has down sized due to bad hunting tactics and not invited back. Now its just like it used to be, just me and my old man. He still doesnt care about my above compliants.

[NaturesRespect]

I feel that too many youngins have it too easy when they start and later along the line hunting becomes more a sport rather something to really understand and come to respect hunting. playing the gameboy and texting while hunting, to me that just says not much apriciation and they are only waiting for something to shoot. who knoes maybe its just me. im not sure but i just feel when you have it too easy too early you dont understand the true meaning of hunting. I wuld like to take it easy later on in the road but i dont mind the hardwork i do now.

like someone said here

hunt hard now and you will soon respect nature more

[Bear55]

Many youngsters were taught differently than others. When I started out my dad didnt care that I was cold,bored,hungry,tired or just miserable. I didnt have a cell phone or game thing to keep me occupied, it was about sitting still and walking still. It all depends on how we were trianed, I hated it at first, now I love it. We didnt scout at all just knew where we wanted to hunt,

Hey BARNEZ I think you just described my childhood hunting experience.

[Bear55]

I feel that too many youngins have it too easy when they start and later along the line hunting becomes more a sport rather something to really understand and come to respect hunting. playing the gameboy and texting while hunting, to me that just says not much apriciation and they are only waiting for something to shoot. who knoes maybe its just me. im not sure but i just feel when you have it too easy too early you dont understand the true meaning of hunting. I wuld like to take it easy later on in the road but i dont mind the hardwork i do now.

like someone said here

hunt hard now and you will soon respect nature more

Nature I hunt the hard way of the time and do understand where you are coming from, but you also have to respect other hunters because there is no one size fits all when it comes to hunting and nature.

I might go all out hard core when it comes to deer hunting because its what I love to do but I might just half azz it going after ducks or grouse. It might be the opposite for someone else. What if I don't respect another hunter at my camp because of the way he deer hunts and I don't believe he understand the true meaning of hunting and he doesn't respect me over the way I duck hunt, we get in a big argument over the whole thing, what good comes of that?

Honestly what is the big deal if some kid want to text or play a video game in the stand? I knew plenty of older guys who listen to ball games or read books on the stand, some of them have been deer hunting this way for 60+ years, are they not true hunters? Are they not respecting nature?

Like many of us have said hunting is what you make it of, do what you love and don't worry about the other guy you will enjoy it even more.