Do you ever hit a brick wall?

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stash59
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby stash59 » Mon Jan 22, 2018 12:53 am

We hit walls\burnout when we want something too much! We see others having success and want to be in the same boat. Often these successful people make it look easy.

It's a tough balance mentally. Being confident each time out that it will happen. Then being happy and not caring if it didn't.

Personally I get frustrated because my health limits what I can physically do. When I am able to get in some scouting. I'm still hung up on just finding beds. I think this is also a big problem for alot of us. I know I need to take more time to try and evaluate how the bucks move to and from these beds. So I can better my setups for each bed/bedding area.


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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby Grizzlyadam » Mon Jan 22, 2018 1:09 am

Last year I was nearing my breaking point by mid November. I had been hunting hard and bouncing around a lot but couldn't even get a doe to cooperate. Empty freezer and getting really frustrated when one morning after a hard walk in, sweating my but off making too much noise and almost falling out of a tree. I was five minutes from throwing my bow out if the tree but gained my composure. A few minutes later in a window of 30 seconds everything changed and my number one buck was at five yards receiving my arrow in his heart.

Things can go from bad to best just like that. Always try to think positive and expect good things to happen even when least expected. Confidence can go a long way, but negativity can go even farther.

In my younger years sometimes I would hit the wall and get so desperate to just get a glimpse of a deer. Hunting was often anything but fun. I would sit up in a tree on the edge of my seat just boiling to have some action. Looking back, it somehow seems like that desperate predatory energy would radiate through the woods and make things even worse. I had to learn to relax and take every hunt (failure or success) as a learning experience, and that there was something to be gained from failure possibly more than success.
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby mheichelbech » Mon Jan 22, 2018 5:20 am

One thing that can really help is keeping a detailed journal l. This makes it easy to see what your experiences are and judge them rationally rather than just how you are feeling at the most based on most recent hunts. Also, in my view, most in season scouting and intel is best used for next season. Another reason to keep a journal.

Also, I think it helps to see where you’ve been successful and where you haven’t in order to make adjustments. Almost like game film to a sports team.
"One of the chief attractions of the life of the wilderness is its rugged and stalwart democracy; there every man stands for what he actually is and can show himself to be." — Theodore Roosevelt, 1893
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby bh bowhunter » Mon Jan 22, 2018 10:55 am

Yep I can relate to the frustration. I'm not sure what else I can do to up my odds of killing a mature buck up in the higher hills! Lost some excellent stand sites to logging and new hiking trails! Been hunting some new vast public areas for about three years now. All the scouting and hard work is starting to pay off. Last spring I didn't turkey hunt so I could prep stand locations and scout.

This year I'm gonna give up some ice fishing for more scout time! Was out this morning after a fresh snow and found a buck bed and followed some tracks and trails. Checked and moved some cams around and took down a treestand. I just keep readjusting and try new tactics every new season. One thing I know for sure about bowhunting is it's a lifelong journey and knowledge is hard earned!!!
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby ihookem » Mon Jan 22, 2018 11:33 am

Or, if ya get too sick of it like my son and I . Deer hunting is so poor in N.W. WIs. that my sone said DAD LETS JUST GO GROUSE HUNTING!. So , we did. Kicked up 14 grouse over the two day weekend. If you have real good squirrel hunting , take off and go if it's too warm to hunt. I'd just as soon go for a squirrel or grouse as anything. No pressure if ya miss . Just have fun.
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby oldrank » Mon Jan 22, 2018 11:47 am

I have hit stagnant stretches. Each time I had to mentally accept I was not advancing and make a decision to push myself harder. The way I do this is to force myself into uncomfortable scenarios. If I am avoiding areas with water I will hunt areas with water, if I am avoiding an area due to navigation issues I will navigate it till it becomes familiar.... If there are things I can get to help me I will get them. You have to conquer your personal demons.
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby tgreeno » Mon Jan 22, 2018 12:01 pm

oldrank wrote:I have hit stagnant stretches. Each time I had to mentally accept I was not advancing and make a decision to push myself harder. The way I do this is to force myself into uncomfortable scenarios. If I am avoiding areas with water I will hunt areas with water, if I am avoiding an area due to navigation issues I will navigate it till it becomes familiar.... If there are things I can get to help me I will get them. You have to conquer your personal demons.


I occasionally have the problem pushing myself this both deep water & navigation situations. That's something I am working on for next season!
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby Tennhunter3 » Mon Jan 22, 2018 3:52 pm

Peaked no.

Most of the areas i second guess aren't because of buck bedding. Its hunter sign or near a road that make me wonder what if someones been by here.

This year was very hard for me i have always hunted hilly terrain so this year i hunted swamps and brushy areas it was a totally new way of hunting was much harder then i thought.

I ate my tag this year did get onto a few nice bucks but never got it done. Its a very humbling experience.

If you are bored try hunting different terrain and learning it that can really make things interesting.
Never give up Freedom for imagined safety.
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby Boogieman1 » Tue Jan 23, 2018 1:07 am

Tennhunter3 wrote:Peaked no.

Most of the areas i second guess aren't because of buck bedding. Its hunter sign or near a road that make me wonder what if someones been by here.

This year was very hard for me i have always hunted hilly terrain so this year i hunted swamps and brushy areas it was a totally new way of hunting was much harder then i thought.

I ate my tag this year did get onto a few nice bucks but never got it done. Its a very humbling experience.

If you are bored try hunting different terrain and learning it that can really make things interesting.


Having a very humbling experience, sure doesn't sound like good times keeping it interesting! I think I will just stick to the same boring ole ridges :lol:
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby dannyboy » Sat Nov 24, 2018 3:17 am

checkerfred wrote:So I’ve been doing some thinking lately. Some days I enjoy hunting and some days I get so frustrated and feel like I’m just wasting time. I’ve done the same with other things over the years, like golf. I hit a level where it was just extremely hard to improve and some days I would go backwards. I’m getting this same feeling in hunting. Some days it’s a struggle just to see deer and other days you have a wonderful day in the woods that just can’t beat. It really starts to effect my patience and I start to second guess everything to the point where sometimes I just won’t go hunt. I’ve started asking myself “Have I peaked in my abilities?”

I’ve been on this site for about 5-6 years now and have learned a lot. I read about some of you guys on here patterning bucks or it seems like you’ve got some awesome bedding nailed down and you put down some big bucks. I just seems like this is a level that’s just hard to get to. I’ll admit I haven’t scouted near as much as I should but then I look at the stuff I have scouted and feel like I’m missing something and haven’t put the pieces together, or have no idea how to approach hunting it.

My goals for next year are to scout more hunt less, and focus either on one public land or if I focus on multiples limit my areas (I’m bad about going in blind looking for new areas)
I.
I'm experiencing some of that this year checkerfred. I'm older and hunt in Alabama like you. It's been very slow for me also and am trying to keep reminding myself that it's a marathon and not a sprint. When I'm going through a slow period, the more tougher, more physical hunts will take their toll on me physically and mentally. It helps me to then just make some easier, less taxing hunts. Let's not lose the fact to mainly keep it fun!
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby Swampbuck » Sat Nov 24, 2018 3:50 am

I find that happens when the results dont equal expectations or desire. I think its important to keep in perspective that is all about the time you put in, the work, and the location. If you haven't committed to these factors then you have to realize there is no reason to get frustrated. Like we cant expect great results others are getting if we arent putting in the scouting time. Or if we live in a location that is subpar have to travel to up the odds. To me either have to change the mindset or do something about it to get what you want
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby Tennhunter3 » Sat Nov 24, 2018 8:27 am

I try to learn something new every trip to the woods.

I've never have felt like I hit a wall because each area is so unique and bucks use areas very differently then others. Areas are always evolving in some way.

When bored you can mix alot up.
Learn a new terrain type or new wma.

Walk different routes into out of areas.

Study individual trees on certain winds to better determine what tree is best. This can take alot of hours.

Put cameras in new areas and do observation sits.

Scout scout and when exhausted scout more.

Hunting is a never ending process and their is no limit on how much knowledge and skill you can obtain which is exciting.

The more I hunt the more I realize I must study more and put in more effort.
Never give up Freedom for imagined safety.
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby tim » Sat Nov 24, 2018 9:15 am

I might get frustrated but I don’t give up. I just keep on grinding
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby ridge_runner91 » Sat Nov 24, 2018 10:36 am

I'm guilty.... After hunting hard all season I usually hit a wall right about now. I don't mind going out and not seeing anything but I spend almost all of my time trying to get my kids on deer and definitely put myself under a lot of extra stress doing that. By the end of the rut I'm mentally drained.

I like to take the most of the month of December off then hit it hard again during January.

In the mean time I will hunt small game and scout a lot while doing that. It's nice to be on the woods without being super serious for a while.
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Re: Do you ever hit a brick wall?

Unread postby treeroot » Sat Nov 24, 2018 1:10 pm

I look at hunting like any other sport. If I'm losing it drives me even more. If I'm not successful this hunt I'll push harder and farther next time. That mind set keeps me dreaming and mentally in the game even when I'm stuck at work. 21 years of hunting and I don't foresee me giving up any time soon. Just like any other sport, you spend more time training than actually playing the sport. I look at unsuccessful hunts as training. Learn adapt and overcome.

Wrestling was the same. If I lost a match, I'll train harder. That doesn't mean I'll win or get cocky. But mentally I'm in it to win it.

Racing cars was the same thing. If I didn't like how a race went I'd spend a week literally taking the car apart and putting it back together. Doesn't mean that I would win on Saturday night, but mentally I'm in the game.

I think it's a mind set thing. Every hunt is a new adventure. Every deer is different. Get in it to win it and find the drive.
I think it was Dan or Stan that said no hunt is a failure if you learned from it.


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