Random ramblings...

[Lockdown]

I read a post online today where a guide killed a monster he’d been trying to put clients on. He mentioned how he didn’t really enjoy the kill itself all that much. I think I feel the same way.

I’ve mentioned in the past how someone could offer me a “sure thing” opportunity at a big buck and I wouldn’t take it. “He walks into that field every night. Sit that wooded fence line with a South wind and you’ll get a shot.” to me that’s not hunting. It’s killing.

In the past, yeah, I absolutely enjoyed the kill. Of course I still do to a certain extent because it equates success. But the kill ITSELF isn’t what I’m after. It’s the chase. The chess match. The days, months, or maybe years of “Where the (expletive) is he?!?”.

The chase aspect is the main reason I like public land. I love outsmarting a buck who has eluded hunters for years on ground where 99% of hunters would kill him if given the opportunity. Anyone can own prime land and grow deer. (I’m by no means saying they’re easy to kill). But not everyone has the ambition to put the work in, deal with other hunters and track a big buck down on public land.

To be honest I almost feel more relaxed on public.

I don’t have to worry about trespassers. I don’t have to worry about the neighbors in their property line stand shooting on to my ground. I don’t have to worry about the buck that I’ve watched grow getting killed elsewhere. On public I expect them to die. And if they do I move on to the next one. I just don’t get as attached to those public land bucks.

And the food plot thing... or hope and pray... I just can’t do it. Maybe it’s because I had the hope and pray mentality for two decades and have had way better success with scouting and woodmanship, but there’s no way I could rotate through stands over food plots all year.

I’m addicted to scouting bedding and reading sign. To me, THAT is hunting. I love all the little details. Gauging how fresh sign is. Analyzing trails and why they’re there. Knowing there’s a big one around that is outsmarting me. That’s the stuff that keeps me coming back. Every time I hit the woods, regardless of what happens I can’t wait to get back to go and learn some more.

I know I’m not the only one...

[Dewey]

Say’s the guy who killed three deer in what......about five or six sits.

I totally get what your saying as I’m sure a majority here do. The hard earned bucks are the most satisfying. When I think back the easy ones are not the most memorable to me. The seasons where it was a struggle sometimes even for consecutive seasons are the buck kills that really stick in my mind and mean the most.

I always say when hunting gets so easy that I can kill a big buck at will it’s time to hang it up. The struggle is what’s appealing to me. Nothing good ever comes easy and it’s all about the chase.

[Mgaspari]

I feel the same way. The chase, that’s what it’s about. I killed a public buck I hunted for two years. After about 30 minutes of “Holy %$&@ I got him” my emotions then went almost to sadness that it was over.
I think a lot of it has to do with the evolution we go through as hunters.

[treeroot]

I enjoy venison, but I could live without it. I'm addicted to the chase. I quit using trail cams because I want to figure it out on my own. I like the mystery of not naming every deer around. This year I've been doing aerial scouting and going in blind a lot. I'm finding I like it the most. These little mini adventures every weekend has me pacing all week. Usually I make things harder on myself, but that's when I enjoy it the most.

Taking the pistol out this year is like a continuation of the thrill of bow hunting for me. After getting a few on the ground with a rifle it lost its luster years ago. I'm not saying I won't rifle hunt ever again, but I could see that in my future.

[jnwalsh]

Over the last two years scouting has become some of my favorite time spent outdoors. This goes for new properties I’ve never laid a foot on and current ones I have more experience with. Learning how crop rotation, pressure, etc all can impact the sign being laid down is fascinating to me.

[MarshRunner1]

I totally agree, I'm in it for the chase. The "killing" aspect, once mastered, is well, just that - killing. Going in on a piece of public, finding sign and relating that to why its there and where that points to the deer being - now thats what I'm after. A guy could really get a piece of remote public mastered to a science but at that point your losing some of that chase and "mystery" aspect. I don't know how guys hunt over food plots, that just isn't something I could do season after season unless I really was desperate for meat.

[Dewey]

Over the last two years scouting has become some of my favorite time spent outdoors. This goes for new properties I’ve never laid a foot on and current ones I have more experience with. Learning how crop rotation, pressure, etc all can impact the sign being laid down is fascinating to me.

I like scouting just as much if not more than hunting. Figuring out all the pieces of the puzzle is just so much fun to me. Nothing like a relaxing winter or spring day out scouting to clear the mind.

[Wlog]

You’re going to find a lot of like minded opinions on this site for sure. Overall among the general hunting community, maybe not so much agreement. I’ve always enjoyed the scouting more than time in the treestand. Putting together the puzzle is so much fun.

That said, who wouldn’t get excited walking in to a nice buck when you don’t expect it. Prime example came for me Wednesday. I sat a two man stand with my daughter for no other reasons than it was an easy, quick spot to take her where I was relatively confident she would see a deer and maybe get a shot. If I were by myself that night I wouldn’t have been in that tree when my biggest buck to date walked right behind the stand. I’m positive I would have over analyzed the heck out of my hunt and ended up who knows where. Lucking into a nice buck is still a lot of fun. I wouldn’t change a thing about that hunt.

[Lockdown]

Say’s the guy who killed three deer in what......about five or six sits.

I totally get what your saying as I’m sure a majority here do. The hard earned bucks are the most satisfying. When I think back the easy ones are not the most memorable to me. The seasons where it was a struggle sometimes even for consecutive seasons are the buck kills that really stick in my mind and mean the most.

I always say when hunting gets so easy that I can kill a big buck at will it’s time to hang it up. The struggle is what’s appealing to me. Nothing good ever comes easy and it’s all about the chase.

it’s not quite that high of a percentage. 4 sits in MN (not including 3 hope and pray sits with my Dad during shotgun... I did pass some bucks though ) and 6 in WI.

I keep finding myself losing interest in the spots I know like the back of my hand. Oscar’s grove for example. I’ve killed there multiple times and I know that little grove so well that it’s not as much fun. Figuring it out is the fun part. I could have went to some big buck spots in SD in October but instead I went in blind to WI. I’m glad I did because I learned a lot.

I enjoy learning. I have a couple spots that I almost gave up on, but I know the bucks are there. One was the spot where I killed my buck this year. I’d seen shooters there pre-season several years, but never during season. This was the 6th season hunting it. Finally figuring out that early season bedding area taught me an incredible amount.

I think the reason I don’t like hope and pray or the food plot stuff is because I don’t learn anything. I’m always trying to answer questions that I have while I’m afield. Even if that means less chance for success right now. To me it means more success in the future, which is a win in my book.

[Rich M]

If the guide didn't enjoy it - why did he shoot it? Should have left that deer for someone else.

Folks get too much out of a kill - the journey should be just as enjoyable. You do not have to kill a deer to have a good hunt.

[treeroot]

I'm excited about all of it until a few minutes after finding the deer. After finding it, I have that mix of excited to lay hands on it and realizing the chase is over.

I enjoy knowing I made that killing shot, but i don't enjoy the actual killing part. Even though i want the deer to die on impact, I'd be lying if I said I don't enjoy a tough tracking job. I volunteer to help track for my friends and to share the excitement of finding the deer.

[MarshRunner1]

Hunting over a spot that you have carefully selected based off of sign that you have read, and harvesting a deer - that feeling is incredibly rewarding and something that money could never get you.

[Lockdown]

One of Stanley’s last seasons I remember him posting about finally catching up to an old buck he’d been chasing for years. The buck was old and his rack wasn’t what it once was. When he finally got his opportunity he let him walk. I completely understand why. I could see myself doing that some day...

Stan finally won the chase part... but didn’t have the heart to kill the old warrior.

When I killed my 162” I had such a mix of emotions. After three years of history with the buck in his prime, there’s no way I would let him go. But I felt a little sad as I stood over him. It’s strange that you can feel pure joy and sadness all at once.

[Kraftd]

I find myself being less and less excited about killing deer the last few years too. Experience and maturity I suppose. I think its good to acknowledge and talk about how complex the emotions of all of this can be. I've said may times, I won't hunt with people who like killing things, as in enjoy the actual act of the killing. Luckily I've not had to make this decision with any guys I've hunted with, but there have been plenty I've avoided because of it. With the feelings of excitement and accomplishment, which are strongest when they are earned, there should absolutely be empathy, sadness, respect, and a little but of discomfort.

Some of that is why I'm also not a cam guy, and why naming bucks and singularly chasing individual bucks never had much appeal to me. No judgement, but it just never registered for me. Naming something I want to kill and getting to know it on an almost personal level is personally unappealing to me.

The other part of my growth as a hunter has been the strengthening of my appreciation for the food aspect of it. If my family or I didn't like venison, I think I'd probably carry a camera instead of a gun or bow (luckily my daughters have insisted on hacking off chunks of the buck in the garage every night this week and cooking it up themselves for dinner!). For me, the food justifies the discomfort of the killing, because I know I have more respect for my quarry than meat eaters whose only source of meat is a big box store. That matters to me.

To each their own, and I certainly have a lot of respect for guys busting their butts and giving everything they have after a buck they have named. We all have to answer to ourselves and if it all reconciles with you and you are doing it ethically, I'm happy to be part of the same team.

[Jmitch]

The food aspect is something that has definitely grown over the last few years for me and honestly I think a lot of that has to do with watching Meateater and listening to some podcasts with Steven Rinella and Ryan Callahan. Thst got me into taking wild game cooking to another level where I'm still excited to kill one but more of the aspect of what I want to do with the meat after the kill. Dont get me wrong I still wanna kill the baddest buck around but as I mature there is more to it for me than that. If that makes sense.

Accomplishments are a wierd thing. I shot a 180" buck on private a few years ago and while it was an experience I'll never forget I remember the emotions being more complex than I would expect. I wouldn't say sad but maybe just accepting or realizing that is possibly/probably the biggest buck i will ever kill and that it already happened. Idk maybe it's just me be it was just a wierd thought at the moment.

I have mostly been a private land hunter for the last 10yrs or so and almost entirely public before that but I've been finding myself wanting to expand my horizons and knowledge base onto public the last few years. It is definitely a different experience for sure. Some parts are more enjoyable for sure. I feel way less pressure on myself as far as saving areas or passing the right deer etc. And I way easier to be aggressive where on the private I share with others I feel i have to take a much more passive approach and only make a move when the time is "right" out of fear of messing the place up. Plus the added challenge is something that keeps it interesting with fresh achievable goals. For me personally it's way more achievable to shoot a Pope and young buck on public then it is to expect a shot at a buck bigger than I've already killed on the same property I've killed 3 other Pope and young bucks. Maybe someday I'll move to more traditional archery too in order to keep this interesting. So I totally see what you are saying